Wealth and glory seek stability

Liu Rui snorted coldly, "Liu Er, your father is in charge of the flowers and trees in the mansion. You rely on this business for a living, don't lose all the family assets."

Liu Er put down the work in his hands, clapped his hands, and said with a smile, "Uncle, you are the steward of this mansion. Who dares to find fault with me? Please bear with me for any faults of my nephew." After that, he poured a cup of hot wine that was warm on the stove.

"Uncle, have some tea."

Liu Rui enjoyed it very much and took a sip.

Leng Bixuan.

A Qing and a few others gathered around the fire in the back room to keep warm.

"Brother Qing, who does Liu Er think he is? He relies on his family's reputation in the mansion and dares to look down on us. It was clearly the young lady's favor that allowed everyone in the mansion to get a piece of venison, but he gave the most tender pieces to everyone he knew, and only gave some leftovers to people from Leng Bixuan."

"Yes, it's a pity that the general doesn't care about things. The inner courtyard is managed by the young lady, and the outer courtyard is controlled by housekeeper Liu. We have no place to complain when we have grievances."

Ah Qing was picking at the sweet potatoes in the fire, not saying a word.

"How about we go find a girl?"

"No, they are all nonsense. If the girl knew about it, she would think we were making a big fuss, which would be boring."

The curtain was opened, and Ah Hua came in rubbing his hands. "Just now, Madam Xing from the Huashui Pavilion came and said that the young lady had ordered that we give out New Year gifts. In addition to some regular rewards, each person who followed the master out will receive two more sets of coats. I heard that they are all made of good materials. She asked us to report our sizes to the sewing room so that they can be made before the New Year."

Ah Qing had an idea, "Do you have any money?"

Ah Hua said, "Of course there are. The maids in the mansion are given hairpins, clothes and cloth. The young lady is considerate. The servants in the outer courtyard are all given silver and clothes in exchange according to the rules. The first-class rules are as much as five taels."

Five taels of silver is equivalent to more than half a year's monthly salary for everyone.

"so much?"

"Of course, the girl is always generous. I'm afraid that when we pay New Year's greetings, if we are sweet-mouthed, there will be rewards."

Ah Qing immediately grasped the key point, "What did Liu Er say?"

"Tsk! Whenever that kid gets money, he either spends it on wine and women or opens a gambling house."

There are still smart people in the room.

"Brother Qing, what do you mean?"

Ah Qing narrowed his eyes slightly, full of calculations, "Humph! If he likes to gamble, let him gamble to his heart's content. Give two taels of silver to the night watchmen and ask them to buy wine to eat at night. I'm afraid the general will go home and sleep early today, so there's no need to be too attentive."

"Yes."

Liu Er, if you want to blame someone, blame yourself for provoking the wrong person.

Painted Water Pavilion.

After Jian Xi had eaten and drunk her fill, she changed into a set of light clothes, took off the hairpins and rings on her head, and let her long black hair hang loose.

She had someone put a rattan chair in front of the window and covered it with a whole tiger-skin blanket. Lying on it was like falling into the clouds, and reading a book while enjoying the snowy scenery was so comfortable.

Mother Xing came back to answer after finishing her errand.

Jian Xi responded lazily.

Mother Xing couldn't help but say, "Girl."

"What's wrong?" Jian Xi flipped through the pages of the book, seemingly concentrating on its contents.

"Forgive me for being so nosy, but I'm afraid it's inappropriate for the young lady to give such a generous reward."

Jian Xi closed the book and asked in confusion, "Why is it inappropriate? Could it be that Mother Xing thinks the money is too hot to handle?"

Mother Xing wanted to continue talking, but when she saw the smile hidden in Jian Xi's eyes, she understood a little, and then said respectfully: "Miss, it's good that you have a plan in mind. I am here to report, and the mission has been completed."

"Thank you for your hard work, Mother Xing. As long as you concentrate on working for me, I will definitely give you a peaceful old age. Today is the New Year's Eve, and I don't have any errands to do here, and I don't need anyone to stay up all night. I have already prepared a table of food and placed it in the side room at the back. Mother Gui and the others have already gone. You all followed me out of the palace. After you finish your errands, go and have a drink."

"Yes, thank you girl."

Jian Xi was the only one left in the room again. It was quiet and no one was around. Jian Xi turned the page of the book and continued reading from the previous content.

The world is bustling, all come for the benefit, and the world is bustling, all go for the benefit.

She didn't want to be so calculating, but because of her experiences from childhood to adulthood, she was always skeptical about true love in this world.

She always couldn't help but want to test it, but the result of each test was almost the same as what she guessed.

At first, she was angry and annoyed. She hated that someone was hiding her true feelings and was full of calculations and speculations behind her.

But she had no choice. The world was unpredictable. She felt powerless and conflicted, but she had to fight and compete, becoming the person she hated the most.

Over time, she also became a player in the game, and it was quite interesting to watch others fighting for their own interests.

Life is boring, so you have to find some fun for yourself.

There were sounds of laughter coming from the ear room at the back. It’s so good to be young.

Jian Xi closed the book and walked to the embroidery frame, where the last bit of work was just about to be completed. It would be a complete picture of a lady with a hairpin and flowers.

The 28th day of the twelfth lunar month is Emperor Xuanyuan’s birthday.

It is said that when Emperor Xuanyuan was young, he loved to pretend to be cultured and elegant, and when he got older, he pursued elegance even more. Even the concubines in the palace tried to please him by dressing in simple and elegant clothes.

She planned to give this screen as a gift. The double-sided embroidery had peaceful tones and a smooth surface, which was pleasing to the eye. After all, it was neither good nor bad.

At nightfall.

It should have been time to rest, but there was a commotion in the front yard.

bang bang bang!

"Have you rested, young lady?" Xiaoshuang's voice came.

"Come in."

"Yes."

The door opened and the cold air from outside came in.

Jian Xi sat up and couldn't help feeling a chill.

Xiao Shuang lit a candle, took out a white cloak from the cabinet on the side, put it on Jian Xi, and said, "Miss, there is a commotion in the front yard. The servant next to the general came to pass on the message that some servants opened a gambling game and started fighting."

"Is this true? What is brother doing now? Why don't you go report to him instead of coming to me?"

Xiao Shuang exhaled and rubbed her hands. "Ah Qing said that the general went out drinking with his colleagues today and came back hungover. No matter how we called him, he wouldn't wake up, so he came to ask for your advice."

"You don't even put on some clothes, you'll get cold."

The noise in the main house startled Zi Cui and others who were already asleep.

Everyone put on their clothes in a hurry, not knowing why.

Jian Xi put on her cloak and ordered, "Xiao Shuang, put on your clothes and go with me. Except for the people on night watch, everyone else should go to rest."

"Yes."

Xiaoshuang put on a padded jacket and casually tied her hair into a bun with a hairpin.

Seeing Jian Xi pushing the door open and going out, Xiao Shuang hurriedly took the lantern and walked in front.

In the front yard, the guards were all people Shen Nanxing found in the army, and their family backgrounds were all clean.

Liu Er and the servant who had committed the crime were pinned together.

Because of the alcohol, Liu Er didn't hold back. "You filthy fellows, I don't know who dares to touch me. My father is the manager of the mansion, and my uncle is the housekeeper Liu. If you offend me, don't let me catch you and drive you out of the general's mansion."

"Oh? I didn't know that Butler Liu could cover the sky with one hand in this general's mansion?"

Jian Xi's brisk voice came.

Everyone knelt down and saluted.

"Hello, girl. I hope you are well."

"I want to be at peace, but you guys won't let me be at peace on New Year's Eve. How can I be at peace?"

The servant who had the foresight had already brought a chair. Jian Xi yawned and sat down in the right seat.

"What have these people done wrong?"

Zhang Da replied, "Miss, I was patrolling the outer courtyard as usual, and I didn't expect to find these people in the night watch room, gambling and drinking, making a lot of noise. Liu Er even took the lead and beat Wang Laoliu, who won the money, and blood was seen. I saw that the matter was serious, so I had to send someone to ask for instructions from the young lady."

Jian Xi slapped the armrest hard, "How dare you! Gathering and drinking at night is against the family rules. You are so daring. Fortunately, Zhang Da is here today. If you were to keep watch at night and a bad guy came in, wouldn't the lives of this family be in their hands?"

Jian Xi had always been very kind to her servants, but she suddenly turned hostile, catching everyone off guard.

Kneeling down and trembling with fear.

Liu Er wanted to plead, "Miss, I know I was wrong. Please forgive me for my uncle's sake."

Jian Xi rubbed his forehead and asked knowingly, "Your uncle? Who is your uncle? Tell me, let me hear it too. Whose face is it that can make the decision between me and the general? I will keep it in mind in the future and will not dare to interfere with your gambling and drinking."

A cold wind blew and Liu Er shivered. He sobered up a little from the alcohol in his body. Knowing that he had violated a taboo, he dared not say anything more.

"Where are Steward Liu's family? Even though such a big thing happened, Steward Liu is sleeping soundly." Jian Xi asked.

There was a smart person among the people, who knew that Jian Xi wanted to make an example of someone to scare the monkeys today, so he hurried to deliver the letter.

In a moment, Butler Liu arrived in his coat. Seeing the scene in the courtyard, he knelt down immediately and said, "Miss, how are you?"

Jian Xi stood up and said word by word, "Today is the Little New Year, I can't make any decisions. These people have committed crimes, so they will be dealt with according to the family rules tomorrow morning. Those who deserve to be beaten will be beaten, and those who deserve to be driven out of the house will be driven out. Let the servants of the family come and watch them, so that they will know how to do their job in the future. Zhang Da and others have done a good job, so they will be rewarded with a month's worth of silver and rice."

"Yes, thank you, young lady. These are all our responsibilities. How dare we ask for rewards?" Zhang Da hurriedly thanked her, unable to hide the joy in his eyes.

One month's worth of rice and silver, plus Jian Xi's annual reward, this is truly a good year.

Jian Xi didn't care about the thoughts of her subordinates. She still had to punish them. "If Steward Liu is partial to others and I find out, your job will be over."

Liu Rui was shocked and quickly assured her, "Don't worry, young lady. I will never be partial. It's late now. I'm guilty of disturbing your peace. Please go back and have a good sleep. I will take care of the rest."

Jian Xi yawned, "Xiao Shuang, come back with me."

"Yes."

Day two.

Everyone in the general's mansion gathered in the front hall and watched Zhang Da and others beat the servant who had committed a crime with a stick.

Zhang Da was originally a retired soldier, and he showed no mercy. After twenty blows of the board, the man was beaten to a bloody mess.

Some of the timid servants below were so frightened that they fainted.

From then on, everyone understood that Miss Jian Xi, who was always kind and generous in the general's mansion, was the one who could not tolerate any sand in her eyes, and would do her best in her future tasks.

Shen Nanxing found out and said that Jian Xi beat him well. If such a person was placed in the military camp, twenty military sticks would be the lightest punishment.

When everyone saw that Shen Nanxing really didn't care about the matter, for a moment, the General's Mansion actually followed Jian Xi's words.

From then on, Jian Xi finally gained a firm foothold in the General's Mansion, and her orders were enforced and everyone obeyed her.

No one dared to look down on Jian Xi because of her young age.