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After Second Master Chu became disabled, his temperament changed significantly – he became unpredictable and moody. The old Marquis and his late wife doted on him, his brothers made allowances for him, and he developed a habit of indulgence in pleasure and leisure.
Traditionally, the men of the Chu family did not take concubines. However, in an effort to divert Second Master Chu’s attention, the late Madam had arranged for him to have two concubines. One of these concubines cleverly administered infertility medicine to the other concubine and bore the eldest son, thus being elevated to the status of a first concubine.
Already disabled and now with an illegitimate eldest son, Second Master Chu found it even more challenging to find a suitable wife.
It wasn’t until he was nineteen that a bride was finally found for him – Second Madam, Li . The father of Second Madam Chu was originally a minor official of the eighth rank, but the old Marquis pulled some strings to promote him by two ranks and secure a more lucrative position before agreeing to the marriage.
Second Madam Chu was decent-looking, fair, delicate, and came from an official family background. Initially, Second Master Chu was fond of her and even agreed to arrange a minor official position for him, hoping to reform his ways and take charge of household affairs to support his family. However, over time, he noticed that Second Madam Chu had small-mindedness, lacked tact in speech and action, and was greedy, revealing these flaws and becoming a subject of ridicule.
This realization saddened Second Master Chu, and his old habits resurfaced.
Though lacking in other aspects, he was fertile. While the current Marquis (Lingxuan’s Father) and Third Master Chu had only two children each, he had fathered five – two sons and three daughters.
They were as follows: Chu Lingqi, nineteen years old, the eldest son; the third son, Chu Ling’an, seventeen years old, the legitimate son; the eldest daughter, Chu Zhen, fourteen years old, the legitimate daughter, and the second daughter, Chu Lin, and third daughter, Chu Bi, both nine years old, both illegitimate daughters.
Chen Feng approached Second Master Chu, her gaze lowered, and could discern a resemblance between Second Master Chu’s features and Chu Lingxuan’s, though their temperaments were starkly different – Second Master Chu appeared more melancholic, frail, and his left sleeve was empty.
Bowing respectfully, Chen Feng addressed him, “Greetings, Second Uncle.”
Second Master Chu nodded silently, offering her a red packet.
Subsequently, she met with the Third Master Chu, Second Madam Chu, and the Third Madam Chu, all of whom she had previously encountered. They exchanged pleasantries, offering auspicious words for future prosperity. Second Madam Chu merely responded with a soft “Hmm” and handed her a red packet as well.
As the eldest sister-in-law, apart from the elders, the younger uncles, aunts, sister-in-law, and nephews all came to pay their respects to her. She had prepared jade pendants for the men and jade hairpins for the women as gifts.
The last person to pay respects to Chen Feng was the one-year-old son of Chu Lingqi, the Second Young Master – Chu Siwen. He was carried by his nursemaid and performed a cute bow.
After the greetings, they proceeded to pay respects at the ancestral hall.
Returning to Bamboo Pavilion by midday, Chen Feng noticed that Mrs. Li, Qing Feng, and a few other maidservants were in the main room awaiting her.
After freshening up in the washroom and having lunch, Chu Lingxuan went to the front courtyard, mentioning he needed to discuss matters with Third Master Chu.
Chen Feng sat by the Eight Immortals table in the hall, while the household staff came to bow to her.
Bamboo Pavilion had six maidservants and four matrons previously. Autumn gave each of them a small purse containing silver coins. Since Yu Zhuo and Hong Fei were the senior maidservants, their purses each contained six silver coins.
Chen Feng appointed Mrs. Li as her stewardess, with Autumn, Qing Feng, Yu Zhuo, and Hong Fei as senior maidservants. Xiaohong, Xiaolv, and Chu Lingxuan’s two maids were renamed Xiaohuang and Xiaomo, as second-tier maids; Xiaozhi and a few other maids were designated as third-tier maids, while the four matrons continued in their respective roles.
When Yu Zhuo was in Dingzhou Prefecture, she had already been engaged, and this time she brought her fiancé, Yu Yongshun, along. They would marry in two months, and Yu Zhuo would become Chen Feng’s stewardess, overseeing Chen Feng’s affairs here. Yu Yongshun would manage Chen Feng’s store in the capital under the supervision of Zeng Shuang, selling farm produce provided by Fengyunlai.
After assigning tasks, Chen Feng instructed the kitchen matron to prepare flour, eggs, milk, and other ingredients. Later, she planned to make some snacks to offer to the elders.
With only Mrs. Li and Autumn left in the room, Autumn brought out red packets.
Inside the red packets were silver notes. The old Marquis gave eight hundred taels of silver, the Third Master and Third Madam gave four hundred taels each, the Second Master gave four hundred taels, and the Second Madam gave twenty taels.
Autumn expressed disdain, “The Second Madam, giving only twenty taels as a senior, has some nerve.”
Chen Feng smirked without saying a word. She wasn’t just superficial, she didn’t even bother with superficial gestures.
She leaned back on the kang and closed her eyes to rest. A servant came to report that the Fourth and Fifth Young Master had arrived.
The Fifth Young Master was, of course, Chu Lingzhi, and the Fourth Young Master was Chu Lingwei, the eldest son of the Third Madam Chu. In the morning, Chen Feng hadn’t observed them closely, but she noted that Chu Lingwei was tall, at just eleven years old, he was half a head taller than Lu and Chen Yulan.
Chen Feng stood up with a smile, saying, “Please come in.”
Chu Lingzhi rushed in, exclaiming, “Sister-in-law, you’ve finally married into our family. After leaving Tangyuan for so long, I’ve been craving the snacks you used to make.”
Chen Feng chuckled, “Just craving snacks?”
Chu Lingzhi hurriedly added, “Oh, and I’ve missed Sister-in-law, Yanyan, Dabao, Zhui Feng, Sasa, Wangcai, Qiqi, and Gray. Why didn’t you bring them all along?”
Chen Feng smiled and gestured for Chu Lingwei to take a seat. Inheriting the good looks of the Chu family, Chu Lingwei seemed a bit shy, his face flushing red, perhaps feeling a bit embarrassed about coming over to ask for food.
She knew that the men in the Chu family, led by the old Marquis, had a sweet tooth and particularly enjoyed snacks. These two boys were definitely craving some treats.
She replied, “I’ve already had the kitchen prepare the ingredients. I’ll start making them right away. Please have a seat and enjoy some tea, it will be ready shortly.”
Taking Autumn with her, she headed to the kitchen in the backyard, where the kitchen matron had already prepared the dough.
Since there was no oven there, many pastries couldn’t be made. She decided to make golden cakes and secretly added a bit of crushed green agarwood leaf to the flour.
In less than half an hour, the cakes were ready. Eight pieces for each elder, four for the other masters, and two for a few respectable servants. She instructed the maids to deliver them accordingly.
Everyone in Bamboo Pavilion got a share, naturally.
Carrying a plate of golden cakes to the main courtyard for Chen Lingwei and Chu Lingzhi were like feeding the fish. Upon seeing Chen Feng approaching with the treats, they quickly wiped their hands on a cloth and came forward to greet her.
Chu Lingwei remarked, “Sister-in-law, our household cook can also make these golden cakes, but they never turn out as delicious as yours.”
Chen Feng replied with a smile, “If you enjoy them, feel free to visit often. I can make other treats too.”
She admired the Third Master and his wife and also had a soft spot for these two children.
After the brothers finished all the golden cakes, Chen Feng gave each of them the four pieces she had set aside for them to take back.