Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I stayed peacefully at the Marquis’s Mansion for nearly half a month. I grew a little fairer, and I learned some rules of etiquette too.

In my sister’s words, I finally looked somewhat human and no longer like a wild monkey.

My sister had several new outfits made for me. After looking me over with satisfaction, she still asked uneasily, “Do you remember everything I taught you?”

I nodded obediently. “Smile when I meet people. If I run into something I don’t understand, keep my mouth shut. In this family, I can offend anyone except the Marquis.”

According to my sister, the Marquis was only twenty-two this year, yet he alone held up the entire Marquis’s Mansion.

When he was young, he had already shown the talent of a top scholar. Now he was even a close minister of the emperor, favored and honored beyond measure.

The young misses and young masters of the Marquis’s Mansion all revered and feared this eldest brother. They did not even dare speak loudly in front of him.

The Marquis governed the household with strict discipline, so the family conduct in the Marquis’s Mansion was upright and proper. No one dared trample on the lowly and flatter the powerful.

That was also why my sister dared bring me here. She was not afraid anyone would openly bully me.

But after thinking about it, my sister added, “With that strange, clever nature of yours, no one else should dream of bullying you either.”

The Old Madam held a banquet at home and invited many guests.

My sister held my hand and introduced me to several good friends she knew well.

When the Old Madam saw me, she also praised me for being delicate, clever, virtuous, and quiet.

When my sister heard the words “virtuous and quiet,” she did not dare respond. Feeling guilty, she quickly sent me outside to play.

The young masters and young misses were all in the front garden composing poetry and matching couplets. I did not understand a word of it.

So I sat in a hidden spot and quietly ate pastries.

When I turned my head, I saw someone else sitting on the sidelines just like me.

She met my eyes and amiably struck up a conversation. “You must be Sister Ah Sheng, right?”

Seeing how plainly and coolly she was dressed, I knew who she was.

She was another young cousin miss who had come to live off the family, just like me: Zhao Rongjing.

Her position in the Marquis’s Mansion was even more awkward than mine.

My sister was a proper Young Madam, and she could look after me in every matter.

But Zhao Rongjing was only a poor relative so distant one could barely call it kinship, who had forced a connection in order to come visit the Old Madam.

If she had not saved the Fourth Young Master and the Fifth Young Master, she would have been sent away long ago.

My sister told me, “Miss Zhao thinks that with this life-saving favor, she will be able to marry into the Marquis’s Mansion. She is thinking too simply. Fourth Brother’s mother is proud and arrogant. She would never accept a girl from a fallen household as her daughter-in-law. Fifth Brother is young and promising, but his mother is set on having him marry a noble lady from a high-ranking family. Miss Zhao’s favor has instead put her over the fire to be roasted.”

Seeing Zhao Rongjing so neglected, I understood what my sister meant.

She had accepted the Marquis’s Mansion’s reward but still refused to leave. Anyone with eyes could see what she was thinking.

Still, this Miss Zhao was quite good at keeping her composure.

As I ate a date-paste pastry, I thought to myself, In that case, the two people I saved probably won’t repay me by pledging themselves in marriage either.

I might as well ask them for some silver.

Zhao Rongjing and I sat together, but we were not familiar with each other, so there was not much to say.

I glanced at the pastries on her table and kindly advised, “Miss Zhao, it’s hot out. If pastries sit too long, they’ll go stale. You should eat them quickly.”

When Zhao Rongjing heard that, she immediately pushed all of them over to me.

I was right in the middle of eating.

Then I heard someone burst out laughing. “You really can eat. I heard that these days, the money Cunshan Hall spends on food has tripled. When Mother looked at the accounts, she was startled and nearly thought a taotie had entered the household.”

The person laughing at me was my sister’s sister-in-law, the legitimate Second Miss of the main branch of the Marquis’s Mansion.

She had always been lively and said whatever came to mind.

My sister had said she might not mean any harm, so I should not take it to heart.

I slowly swallowed the pea-flour cake in my mouth and merely smiled, not in any hurry to answer.

Zhao Rongjing blushed scarlet with embarrassment and immediately walked a few steps away, looking as if she could not wait to draw a clear line between us.

Second Miss was still looking at me curiously. “Your name is Ah Sheng, right? You don’t look fat to me. How is it that you eat so much every day?”

I answered honestly, “I’m very strong, so I eat a lot.”

Second Miss asked, “Oh? How strong?”

I thought for a moment, sank into a horse stance, and raised both hands flat. “Second Miss, I heard you are good at dancing. Step on and try it.”

Second Miss was bold, and her body was nimble too.

She lifted her skirt, stepped onto my hands, and truly stood steady.

I raised her high into the air.

Second Miss reached out and plucked a magnolia blossom from a branch, then laughed in surprise. “Amazing! Ah Sheng, you really are amazing!”

She laughed so heartily that she even startled the Old Madam’s side.

They came over and saw the scene.

The Old Madam was the first to laugh. “Oh my! No wonder when I praised Ah Sheng as virtuous and quiet just now, my second granddaughter-in-law looked so embarrassed. So this is what was going on. Second Girl is restless all day long, like a monkey. Well, wonderful. Now Ah Sheng can make mischief with her. Put the two of them together, and won’t they turn the whole place upside down?”

My sister gave me a helpless glare.

But the Old Madam seemed to like me very much and even rewarded me with a pair of jade bracelets.

She held my hand and smiled kindly. “Ah Sheng, just treat this as your own home. Don’t be so restrained. Judging by your build, you must be good at riding and archery. It just so happens those useless grandsons of mine are all practicing riding and archery in the Northern Yard. Go take them down a peg.”