Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 159 Discipline

The Second Miss naturally had no chance to know what was happening inside the Ruyi Palace. Meanwhile, in the Yunyi Palace, it was time for the servants to formally pay their respects to the concubine.

According to the rules of the Prince's Palace, each concubine, from the rank of Consort to Zhaoxun, was assigned four maids and two eunuchs to her palace. The maids assigned to Yunyi Palace (strictly speaking, it should be called a palace, but from now on it will be referred to as Yunyi Palace) were the four maids of Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, as well as the brothers Yu Heyuan and Yu Jingnian.

Aunt Mei had already learned about the tasks they had previously performed in the mansion. Since the newcomers wouldn't be assigned to important tasks, she assigned them to daily cleaning and summoning duties.

"My original name was Chunxi. I was fifteen years old. Xia'er and I used to be maids working in the Duke of Qing's mansion. After the incident in the Duke's mansion in the thirty-eighth year of Qianyuan, we were punished and sent to the slave quarters until last year when Steward Song selected us to enter the Prince's mansion."

The maid named Chun'er knelt on the ground, speaking fluently and clearly.

They seemed a little uneasy when the words "Qingguo Duke's Mansion" were mentioned, as if they were afraid of displeasing their master. But Xia'er was right; Consort Zhen would definitely investigate their background, and it couldn't be hidden forever.

The second young lady changed into casual clothes, held a hand warmer in both hands, and sat at the head of the table, while Mengzhu sat beside her, bowing her head and taking notes at the table.

Aunt Mei and Hua Yan were each responsible for asking questions. They exchanged a glance and saw a hint of doubt in each other's eyes.

Hua Yan couldn't help but recall that Huan Yun's father was also implicated in the case of the Duke of Qing's mansion.

Aunt Mei asked, "You were only five years old back then, how did you survive in a place like the slave market?"

The Great Zhou Dynasty's Sinner Wards housed and cared for the families and slaves of convicted officials. Most of the slaves were given back by the emperor, while the families of convicted officials were re-educated and trained for a period of time. The women were sent to the Jiaofangsi (Imperial Music Bureau), and the men were sent to serve at the border when they reached the appropriate age.

Chun'er's eyes were slightly red, and her voice trembled with emotion: "My mother died early, and my father was originally a minor steward in the Duke's mansion. He didn't survive the turmoil. After I came to the slave quarters, I was taken in by Granny Yu, who used to work in the main kitchen of the mansion..."

When it was Xia'er's turn to answer, she added some details. Both of them were servants in the Duke of Qing's mansion, and now they were all alone in their own homes. As for Granny Yu, whom Chun'er mentioned, she was quite remarkable.

Granny Yu was a skilled cook. After being taken into the slave quarters, she was kept to work in the kitchen. Chun'er and Xia'er were still young at the time, and the case of the Duke of Qing's mansion was very sensitive at the time, so they were not sold.

Xia'er added, "Reporting to the Consort, Granny Yu has also been selected to join the household and is now the head of the main kitchen."

At this moment, Hua Yan suddenly asked:

"Besides the three of you, how many other servants from the Duke's mansion were selected by the steward to enter the Prince's mansion?"

The second young lady's heart stirred, and in the blink of an eye, she understood why Hua Yan had asked that question.

Xia'er and Ruizhu were initially similar in temperament, both being quite pragmatic.

She respectfully replied, "Reporting to Sister Huayan, Steward Song selected twenty-seven people at the Slave Quarters that day. Among them, seventeen were servants of the Duke's mansion, and ten of these seventeen, including Granny Yu, were originally old servants of the mansion."

Aunt Mei shook her head slightly at Hua Yan, and Hua Yan stopped there, no longer asking any further questions.

Qiu'er and Dong'er were chosen by Steward Song from among the homeless disaster victims when he accompanied the prince to Jinzhou. Apart from their tragic backgrounds, they were not particularly special. Dong'er had an honest and simple appearance and seemed to have no guile, while Qiu'er was more beautiful and did not say much except when answering questions.

When we get to the brothers Yu Heyuan and Yu Jingnian, we continue from where we left off.

After several years of hard work in the palace, the two finally got jobs in the Imperial Household Department. Yu Jingnian was in charge of managing the entry and exit of tribute silk, while Yu Heyuan ran errands and did odd jobs under the head of the Imperial Household Department.

Back then, Yu Jingnian made a mistake and was punished by the eunuchs in Consort Min's palace to kneel on the palace road for five or six hours. Consort Hui passed by and could not bear to see it, so she said a few words on his behalf and left.

When Yu Heyuan found out, he used the excuse of repaying a debt of gratitude to take his younger brother to kneel and express their thanks outside the Zhaoyi Palace. They were encountered by the Prince of Jin, who was then the Ninth Prince, at the palace gate. The Prince then persuaded his mother to let the two of them stay...

Hua Yan frowned in thought, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Judging from the grateful expression on Yu Heyuan's face when he mentioned Prince Jin, it's likely that Prince Jin had cultivated many relationships with palace servants and eunuchs.

They were the most unfortunate group of people in the magnificent palace. A word of relief or a little pity from their high-ranking masters could win them countless loyal followers. Thinking about it carefully, it was truly pitiful and lamentable.

Furthermore, Qiu'er and Dong'er are one thing, but Chun and Xia are from the Duke of Qing's mansion, and Prince Jin... what kind of game is this? He was only ten years old during the Duke of Qing's case, so why is he taking in so many former members of the Duke's mansion now?

The second young lady's words interrupted Hua Yan's thoughts.

"Now that you have been assigned to Yunyi Palace, because of this bond between master and servant, if you serve diligently, I will protect you and you will also receive your due rewards. But if you make a mistake, Yunyi Palace will absolutely not tolerate you."

Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, and the Yu brothers knelt on the ground and said in unison, "This servant will respectfully follow Consort Zhen's teachings."

As usual, Aunt Mei gave a lecture, and then sent people one by one to Mengzhu's table to receive the Second Miss's gift. Each purse contained five taels of silver.

Finally, Aunt Mei formally announced that all the servants serving in Yunyi Palace would receive the same monthly allowance as the concubine, in addition to the allowance given to the prince. Chun'er and the others knelt down and kowtowed to thank the concubine once again.

Hua Yan solemnly added, "When serving in the concubine's palace, the most important thing is to be careful with your words and actions. There's no need to tell outsiders about the generous monthly allowance."

After settling the servants, Hua Yan and Meng Zhu helped the second young lady into the inner palace to rest.

It was approaching evening.

Granny Gong brought several people to Yunyi Palace and recorded the four maids who accompanied the bride, including Hua Yan, and the maids from Aunt Mei's family into the personnel files of the Prince's Mansion.

From then on, Hua Yan and the others were considered servants in the Prince's mansion, and they would go to the steward on the first day of each month to collect their monthly allowance.

Hua Yan receives one string of cash and one bolt of cloth every four months, with additional rewards during the four seasons and festivals. Aunt Mei receives five hundred more coins per month than them.

As for Donggua, she was registered under Aunt Mei's husband's name. When Granny Gong confirmed with her and called out Donggua's name, Donggua was stunned for a moment before hurriedly agreeing.

Although Aunt Mei's family were part of the dowry household, the eldest son of the family did not work for the Prince's manor. He and several dozen other members of the Fang family still managed the second young lady's dowry estate. (As an aside, the eldest son of the family is Aunt Mei's husband.)

However, Aunt Mei's two sons lived in the servants' quarters in the front courtyard of the Prince's Mansion, where they usually ran errands and gathered information for the Second Miss. As for Aunt Mei's youngest daughter, she was still working as the Seventh Miss's personal maid in the Tang Mansion.

At dusk, the lanterns in the Prince's Mansion were lit, and Jingming personally came to Yunyi Courtyard.

On the Lantern Festival, the entire household held a banquet, and Jingming was sent by the prince to greet them.