Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Father nodded, then turned to Yin He, who stood quietly to the side.
“If I gave you ten wen and asked you to buy four cakes, with each cake costing two wen, how much would be left?”
It was an extremely simple question.
Ten wen. Four cakes would cost eight wen, leaving two.
Yin He did not answer at once.
After thinking for a moment, she said, “Your daughter would use the eight wen to buy flour. After returning home, I would imitate the cakes using the sugar and oil we already have. That way, the cakes we end up with would far exceed four pieces.”
Father nodded slightly and praised her. “A clear mind.”
And so Yin He settled in by my side.
Having another person suddenly added to my daily life was bound to feel uncomfortable.
Her desk was set right next to mine, but she was quiet. Even when she turned the pages of a book, she made no sound at all.
She woke earlier than I did. Every day, by the time I rose at three quarters into the Hour of the Rabbit, she would already be fully dressed.
The moment she saw me open my eyes, she would take my robes from Danxi and attend to me herself.
Through the gauze curtains, I caught her wrist.
“Leave these things to the servants.”
Her movements stilled. “Serving Eldest Sister is part of my duty.”
“There is no such duty.” I lifted the curtains, got out of bed, and took the clothes from her.
“Since you call me Eldest Sister, these things should not be done by you.”
She stood there, and at last a trace of helplessness appeared on her young face.
I looked toward the maid standing quietly at the side and instructed, “Danxi, from today on, Second Miss is your mistress.”
“Put her first in all things and serve her carefully.”
At my words, Danxi kowtowed to me with utmost respect.
“This servant thanks Eldest Miss for your years of training and care.”
When she rose again, she turned to Yin He and knelt just as properly, touching her forehead to the floor.
“This servant, Danxi, greets her mistress. From now on, I will devote myself fully to serving you.”
From “mistress” to “Eldest Miss”-with a single sentence, a gulf had been drawn between us.
Yin He looked a little dazed. “How can this be right, Eldest Sister? She is your maid…”
I took her hand and patted it gently.
“You came from Luoyang. You cannot be without someone reliable by your side.”
“Danxi was born into the household and knows all the rules. With her here, many things will be much easier for you.”
Yin He stared at me blankly. “But I am only a concubine-born daughter. Why should Eldest Sister trouble yourself for me?”
“In this family, we do not distinguish between legitimate and concubine-born. We judge only by learning and ability.”
“Remember this: you are the Second Miss of this household. The honor and dignity that should be yours cannot be lacking in any way.”
Her lips parted, but in the end, she said nothing. Instead, she tightened her grip around my hand.
“Ah He will remember.”
When we went to pay our respects, Mother looked at Danxi following behind Ah He, and a hint of a smile flashed through her eyes.
She set down her teacup and said to Ah He, “Since you have come, then live here properly. If you lack anything or need anything, tell your elder sister.”
Ah He answered respectfully, and the tension she had carried these past several days finally eased a little.
Time flowed between Father’s study and Mother’s main courtyard.
The things Father taught grew increasingly profound.
He began having us read the court gazette, selecting passages that involved taxation, water conservancy, and border trade, then asking us for our opinions.
What we said were all principles absorbed from books.
Father shook his head and pointed to a line of figures. “Last year, the flood in Hedong led the court to exempt three hundred thousand shi of tax grain and allocate one hundred thousand shi of military grain for disaster relief.”
“If that one hundred thousand shi of military grain were used to aid fifty thousand victims, how long could it sustain them?”