Chapter 10: A Good Gift (II)

Jin Hua Hall was bustling with activity, with maids, servants, and young girls standing around the yard, all with smiles on their faces, as if something joyful had occurred. As soon as they reached the door to the second hall, they could hear the delighted laughter of Old Madam Xu, along with the crisp, sweet voice of a girl.

Cui Xi helped Meinang up the steps, and a servant lazily reported, “The eldest madam has arrived!”

The room fell silent instantly, the joyful sounds vanishing. Meinang rubbed her forehead with her index finger: “Is my character really so poor? Not even a smile is left for me?”

Madam Ji, from inside, raised the warm curtain and laughed, “Please enter, eldest madam! The old lady was just mentioning you, saying you should be awake by now!”

Meinang smiled gently and gracefully, quickly entering the room. She did not immediately observe the elegant surroundings of flowers and embroidery that adorned Old Madam Xu. Instead, she walked up to her and knelt, bowing as she said, “Granddaughter in law pays respects to grandmother!”

This was the way Wang Mama had instructed her, when entering the room, she must give a formal greeting to ease the old lady’s temper and not let her blame her too much for the incident involving the smoke damaged purple leafed forest.

Old Madam Xu looked stern, her eyes unfocused, as if her attention were elsewhere. She lightly said, “Rise.”

Meinang stood, and immediately, three or four people nearby also rose and offered their respects. Meinang looked over and saw several young girls, around fourteen or fifteen years old, who were all pretty and lively. They wore embroidered satin jackets with silk lining, gold collars inlaid with jewels, and their hair was styled in typical youthful fashion either hanging or in double buns decorated with bright palace flowers, golden step-shakers, and beaded hairpins. Meinang realized that these were the young ladies from the Xu family.

Before she could greet them individually, a voice from outside called out loudly, “Second sister in law has arrived!”

The curtain was raised again, and Meinang, curious, looked outside but didn’t see anyone. Then, a lively and cheerful voice entered: “Ah! It’s still the best at our home! The old lady’s warm room is so comfortable!”

The sound of this voice made the young girls resume their cheer, and they all called in unison, “Second sister in law, come quickly! We missed you so much! You went back to your maiden family and left us behind!”

A young woman dressed in an apricot-yellow satin robe with a pink silk skirt entered, her hair adorned with a golden phoenix step shaker. Her face, painted with a fresh peach-colored blush, radiated beauty. She giggled coquettishly, first bowing to Old Madam Xu before saying, “Greetings to the old lady! It’s obvious that you don’t care for your granddaughter in law at all. Look at how lively and cheerful it is here, but no one remembers me!”

Old Madam Xu laughed and scolded her, “You have such a mouth! Always acting cute after eating well. Clearly, you don’t care about us, and then you come back and make a mess of the house. It’s a good thing I’m not angry with you!”

The second sister in law hurriedly knelt again, saying earnestly, “Thank you, Old Madam. I won’t do such things again!”

Old Madam Xu raised her hand. “Rise! I’m not really scolding you. As in-laws, we should support each other. You haven’t done anything wrong. It’s just a pity about my forest. You three little monkeys just want to torment me to death!”

The second sister-in-law, Bai Jing Yu, hurriedly apologized again, massaging Old Madam Xu’s back and shoulders. Meinang quietly stood aside, watching the show.

Her calm demeanor caught the attention of a woman sitting next to Old Madam Xu, a gentle and elegant lady in a bean-green silk gown, with minimal but exquisite jewelry, giving her an air of delicacy and distinction. She subtly turned her head to observe Meinang, and Meinang, with her keen intuition, caught her gaze. The woman was startled and quickly lowered her head.

Bai Jing Yu, seeming to just notice the lady, exclaimed with exaggerated surprise, “Who is this? Ah, truly, a lady can change so much! In the blink of an eye, it’s like turning from an old hen to a duck! No wonder Old Madam doesn’t miss me. It’s because this fairy like, sweet-hearted Lan younger sister has come!”

The lady, named Lan, bowed to Bai Jing Yu and shyly covered her face with her sleeve, saying, “Second cousin, what are you saying? I don’t understand at all!”

Old Madam Xu laughed heartily. “She’s speaking the dialect from a nearby village, naturally, you wouldn’t understand. She’s complimenting you with no ill intent. Jing Yu, you’re the elder sister in law, so stop being mischievous. You know very well that Lan, my niece, is not like other girls. She has always been well educated and never speaks in such village dialects.”

Bai Jing Yu smiled coquettishly, then glanced at Meinang.

Before she could look back, Meinang had already shifted her gaze away and was smiling at Lan.

Meinang knew well that, although she was the eldest madam, she was dealing with a second sister in law. She could ignore the elder sister in law’s actions and still maintain her composure, while pretending everything was fine.

Meinang walked forward and took Lan’s hand gently, smiling softly, “It’s true, you’ve grown so tall, I almost didn’t recognize you!”

Everyone in the room broke into a cold sweat, not only did she not recognize Lan, but she had never even seen her before!

Lan’s father had been the old lady’s most beloved nephew, but tragically passed away young, leaving only Lan as his daughter. The old lady had always been fond of her and often had her stay by her side. After Xu Junying married Meinang, Lan fell ill and was sent back to Jin Ling by her uncle. Since then, she had not returned to the Xu family’s home in the capital.

Old Madam Xu coughed lightly and said, “This is my niece, Yu Lan. Jun Ying has called her Lan’er since she was little. Lan, go ahead and greet your elder sister in law.”

Lan retracted her hand and took a step back, lightly curtsying and saying, “Greetings, elder sister in law.”

The hand that Meinang had touched subtly throbbed with pain, causing her own head to ache. The beautiful, ethereal woman in front of her was none other than her rival, wasn’t she? Just hearing her name made her tremble, and seeing her in person was even more unbearable.

Hadn’t she been near death recently? Why had her grandmother summoned her to comfort Xu Junying, and yet, this “elder sister in law” appeared perfectly healthy, looking ten times stronger than Meinang?

Bai Jingyu also slightly curtsied to Meinang, saying, “Elder sister in law, I was so happy to hear you were recovering, but I couldn’t come back immediately… I’m really sorry. But I’ve prepared a gift, which has already been sent to your courtyard. It’s my apology for my neglect!”

Meinang smiled gently, speaking softly, “We’re family, no need for such formalities. You didn’t offend me. I’ve been ill and greatly appreciate your care. The girls have told me, and I’m grateful for your kindness.”

Cui Xi, Cui Si, and Cui Jian, Meinang’s three attendant maids, were all loyal and clever. Cui Si was the most astute and outspoken, unable to keep secrets. She had already informed Meinang of everything who had treated her well during her illness and who hadn’t. The servants under the second sister in law didn’t treat Meinang particularly well. Some of them didn’t even want to fetch good medicinal herbs, claiming that there was none available, only scraps. They were supposed to follow the second sister in law’s instructions, but no one dared defy the eldest madam’s authority.

Meinang wasn’t one to hold grudges, but when Bai Jing Yu entered and blatantly looked her over, pretending not to notice her, she couldn’t help but make a subtle remark.

Bai Jing Yu’s face changed slightly, but before she could think of a response, Meinang took a large red brocade box from Cui Xi’s hands and smiled brightly as she presented it to Old Madam Xu.

“This is a gift from a friend of Lord Hou in the northeast. He said this is such a rare item that even the palace might not have it, let alone the pharmacies in the capital. Lord Hou wanted me to present it to you, grandmother.”

She glanced at Rui Xue, who stepped forward, took the brocade box, and opened it to reveal two yellow, over a footlong, old mountain ginseng roots, making the eyes of those around them sparkle.

No one knew who this friend of Lord Hou was, but judging from the sheer quantity of rare treasures they had sent, Meinang guessed that the person must be either incredibly generous or incredibly naive or perhaps lived in the mountains where they cultivated ginseng.

Old Madam Xu’s eyes lit up with joy, and Bai Jing Yu was momentarily stunned. She came from a prestigious family, and her late grandfather had been a government official. Her father, Bai Yi, was a wealthy merchant. Growing

up with extravagant gifts around her, she could sense the rare value of this gift and couldn’t suppress her admiration.

“It seems you really have good fortune!” Bai Jing Yu half-jokingly exclaimed. “Your health is already so much better, and now you’ve received this valuable gift. May it all be good fortune from now on!”

Meinang smiled back, her gaze lingering on the package, slowly withdrawing her hand. “Thank you, second sister in law.”