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Previously, Lu Man and the eldest daughter from the main family, eight-year-old Miss Lu Yu, lived in a small courtyard together. The courtyard was tiny, with only three rooms on each side, and Lu Man resided in the eastern room.
…..
Mrs. Xiao Chen instructed the servants to open the eastern room, revealing one small box and eight large boxes piled up in the western room.
While the servants were busy moving the boxes, Mrs. Xiao Chen quietly asked Lu Ying, “What about Hong Ling? Why didn’t she come back with you?”
Lu Ying replied, “Our third young madam values Hong Ling greatly and can’t bear to be apart from her for even a moment, so only I returned.”
Satisfied with this response, Mrs. Xiao Chen secretly had a purse containing silver ingots slipped to Lu Ying and added, “Let Hong Ling come back to visit her parents. Her parents miss her terribly when she’s not around.”
Accepting the purse, Lu Ying smiled and said, “Of course, I’ll pass on your message.” However, inwardly she thought, “You just wait and see.”
When Lu Ying arrived with several carts at Orchid Pavilion, Lu Man was still asleep, enjoying a peaceful rest until the noisy commotion woke her up. It was the first time Orchid Pavilion had been this lively in days.
Quickly getting dressed, Lu Man headed outside and saw Lu Ying directing the servants to move the boxes into the western room.
Hong Ling stood on the side with a displeased expression, not offering to help. She silently resented the fact that her parents and brothers were all at the Lu family, yet she wasn’t given any tasks to return home.
Understanding her feelings, Lu Man didn’t pay her any mind and first opened the small box. Inside were a few slightly worn clothes, a bronze mirror, some gold and silver jewelry, several old makeup containers, and various sizes of combs.
Seeing these items, Lu Man felt a pang in her heart, almost bringing tears to her eyes. It wasn’t just the sentiment of the former owner but also her own. Having lived two lives, both her fathers were heartless men who abandoned their wives and daughters, creating a sense of fate.
In her previous life, her mother was callously abandoned by a man who claimed that having daughters couldn’t continue his lineage. In this life, her mother was heartlessly cast aside for hindering a man’s career.
Yet, in her past life, her mother could rely on her daughter for support, while in this life, her mother was left alone, cast out by her husband’s family, with her whereabouts unknown.
Lu Man gently touched each item, carefully placing them back. She thought about finding Mama Wang in the future and then figuring out a way to locate Madame He. If she could find Madame He, she would have a mother in this life, something she longed for – a mother’s warmth.
Inside the remaining eight boxes were all books, packed to the brim. Upon opening them, a faint scent of herbs wafted out. Lu Man realized that the original Lu Man truly missed her mother and even knew to use herbs to protect the books from pests.
Upon flipping through the books, Lu Man discovered that only a few were newer printed editions, likely purchased from the study. Most were handwritten “manuscripts” passed down through generations in the He family. These manuscripts had larger fonts and were somewhat challenging to read. While the boxes seemed abundant with books, their contents didn’t match up to half the number of books Lu Man had in her past life.
Lu Man was still quite excited, these were truly priceless treasures. Especially the manuscripts, which contained generations of accumulated medical cases and analyses of complex diseases, far more valuable than gold and silver jewelry. Fortunately, Mrs. Xiao Chen, being a landlord’s daughter with limited education, didn’t grasp the value of these books. Hong Ling, who wasn’t literate, also paid little attention to the books in the boxes. Otherwise, even selling them to physicians could have brought in a substantial income.
Within Orchid Pavilion were several wardrobes but no bookshelves, so they needed to arrange for bookshelves to preserve the books properly.
After lunch, Lu Man, along with the servants, took out the books to air them in a shaded area on the veranda, using small stones to weigh them down.
Unfortunately, many books stored under the boxes had become damp, some had mold, and a few had started to decay at the corners.
Lu Man felt heartbroken, if the critical sections were damaged, it would be a significant loss. She remembered that after Mama Wang left, the original Lu Man rarely read the books, only occasionally adding herbs and airing them out. When Mama Wang was around, she would air out the books every two years.
There were hundreds of books, nearly filling the front porch of the main house and side rooms. The original Lu Man hadn’t read most of them, especially the handwritten manuscripts, finding the characters challenging to read, so she planned to study them when she had more time.
Seeing the valuable collection of books on the floor, Lu Man felt a surge of excitement. In her past life, such reference books were highly valued, especially in ancient times. There might even be some extremely rare editions among them.
The abundance of medical books lifted Lu Man’s spirits. As she had a habit in her past life, whenever she felt good, she indulged in good food to satisfy her cravings. She decided that later in the day, she wouldn’t have to go to Crane Hall to massage the old marquis. She took out a few silver ingots, asking Lu Ying to buy some ingredients from the main kitchen to cook herself a delicious meal and also gather information about what illness Jiang Zhanyu had. She felt a pang of regret that she couldn’t buy some wine, she had heard that osmanthus wine was excellent, but she wasn’t brave enough yet.
Hong Ling saw Lu Ying leave and immediately knelt in front of Lu Man.
Lu Man, aware of what was happening, asked, “Such a grand gesture, is there something troubling you?”
Tears welling up in her eyes, Hong Ling said, “Third Young Madam, ever since I started serving you, I have been loyal and dedicated, fearing that I might not serve you well enough and incur your displeasure. But now, I can’t shake the feeling that you no longer trust me. If I have done something wrong, please let me know, and I will correct it.”
What a turnaround!
Lu Man softened her gaze and replied, “You’re overthinking it. You’ve been with me for three years, showing dedication and loyalty, doing many good deeds for me. I appreciate all of that. However, I currently don’t want the Lu family to know about my current situation. They only see me as a means to gain wealth and status, never truly caring about me. If you go back and your parents ask you about me, what will you say? If you tell them, I forbid it. If you don’t, you’ll be in a dilemma. That’s why I sent Lu Ying back.”
As they spoke, there was a knock on the courtyard door. Hong Ling had to stand up to answer it, welcoming in a delicate-looking maid. Lu Man had seen her once before, she was the maid belonging to the Young Madam Han.
The maid knelt and greeted Lu Man, saying, “Greetings, Third Young Madam. I am Young Madam Han’s maid, Fenhe. Today is the tenth day of the month, and the household is distributing monthly salaries. Young Madam Han sent me to deliver your share.”
Young Madam Han, the wife of the Eldest Grandson Jiang Zhanjun was indeed a thoughtful person, sending a second-tier maid like Fenhe to deliver the monthly salary, even to someone like Lu Man, who wasn’t highly regarded in the household.
Lu Man knew that in this household, aside from the officials serving the Princess and the servants brought from the palace like maids, eunuchs, and court ladies, the other servants were ranked based on the color of the sashes they wore around their waists.
Those with dark green sashes were housekeepers, gray sashes were for senior servants, dark pine green for head maids, light green for second-tier maids, and pale green for third-tier and junior maids.