When Qin Yining and the Sun Clan returned to Xingning Garden, they first went to check on Mother Jin, Cai Ju, and Cai Lan's injuries.
The rough servant obeyed old madam's orders and didn't go easy on them, giving them a total of 50 strokes. When Qin Yining came back, he was halfway there. Fortunately, the rough servant didn't want to take their lives. Otherwise, she would have hit their tailbone and lumbar vertebrae, which would be enough to paralyze them. Even so, more than 20 strokes were enough to make the three suffer.
Cai Ju and Cai Lan were young, so they were better off.
However, Mother Jin suffered. Not to mention that her old body wasn't as good as the young people, she was also a person with a reputation in the fu. This time, she was pressed down and beaten in the alley in front of Chuihua Gate with so many pairs of eyes staring at her. It really made her lose all her face.
The three people's injuries caused a high fever, and Mother Jin's condition was especially serious.
Bing Tang and the doctor carefully examined the three people, applied medicine, and went to boil the medicine.
The Sun Clan squatted in front of the sickbed and tightly held Mother Jin's hand, "Nanny, nothing must happen to you. After leaving the fu, you are the only one by my side. I'm useless and have implicated you. "As she spoke, tears streamed down.
Mother Jin's lips were dry, and her tongue almost couldn't move. Lying on the bed, she struggled to turn her neck and reluctantly said, "Furen, don't cry. This servant is fine. Ah."
That voice was so weak that it sounded like she would die at any time. The Sun Clan was so scared that tears fell like rain.
Qin Yining brought a chair for the Sun Clan and helped her sit up. He also took a wet handkerchief and handed it to her to wipe her face. Then, he squatted in front of the bed and looked at Mother Jin at eye level, holding her hand.
"Mother Jin, don't worry. Now that Father has handed the right cards to me, I will be in charge of the household for a period of time. I will definitely seek justice for you. I will not let off the scoundrel in the inner residence who loves to gossip and stir up trouble. You just have to take care of your health. Not only for my mother's sake, but also for your own. Although the world is in chaos, as long as I am here, I will fight for you. I will definitely not abandon you."
Mother Jin was moved when she heard this. Tears were about to fall from her eyes as she said in a dry and hoarse voice, "This servant thanks Fourth Miss. These days, I'm afraid that there won't be anyone close to Madam to serve her, so Miss will have to be careful."
"Don't worry, I have arranged for the maidservants of the Shuoren House to serve you. They are all trustworthy."
Mother Jin nodded, "That's good."
Mother Jin was old and heavily injured, so she quickly fell asleep.
Qin Yining then instructed Bing Tang, "Take good care of him."
"Miss, don't worry. I may not be able to do other things, but this is not a problem for me."
Qin Yining then called for Ji Yun to go outside and whispered to her in a quiet voice, "Now that the world is about to change, I'm afraid that the Family Qin will be watched by many people with ulterior motives. Your messenger pigeons can no longer be used in the future. Otherwise, I'm afraid that you will attract a fatal disaster."
Ji Yun was startled and quickly nodded, "Miss is very thoughtful. What you say is very true. This servant will definitely be careful in the future."
Qin Yining then nodded.
They sat down in a side room and took a sip of tea. After resting for a while, someone outside replied, "Fourth Miss, the housekeeper and the daughters-in-law have arrived."
"Have them all go to the main hall. I will be there shortly."
"Yes."
Qin Yining stood up, and Song Lan immediately took out the lake-blue plain make-up cloak she had brought to serve Qin Yining. She then redid her long hair into a bun and secured it with a silver butterfly hairpin with pearl tassels. The pearl tassels hung behind her ears and matched the pearl earrings on her ears. They glowed with an elegant and soft light, simple yet noble.
Qin Yining also specially used lipstick and eyebrow makeup from Jiao Rong Workshop.
She usually did not use these things and was used to using some reeds to moisturize her skin. Today, she was afraid that she would not be able to control herself due to her young age, so she put some thought into it. Her willowy eyebrows were drawn diagonally to her temples, and with the rose-red lipstick, her entire face lit up. It was beautiful but not seductive, and it added a bit of a fierce aura.
"Miss, this servant will go with you later." Song Lan helped Qin Yining tie up her white muslin shawl, then took out a begonia-shaped silk fan and presented it to her with both hands.
Qin Yining took the fan, then hugged Er Bai, who had been lying on the table and staring at her with its big black eyes, in her arms and stroked its fur.
"You are too considerate. Today, even if you did not ask, I would have asked you to come along. I only know the names of the old people in the residence, but I do not know the details. Help me keep an eye on them. "
Upon hearing this, Song Lan smiled and nodded.
Usually, when Qin Yining went out of the residence, he brought along Bing Tang and Ji Yun. Song Lan and Qiu Lu did not complain, because Qin Yining knew how to make good use of people. If he needed protection when going out, it was naturally more convenient to bring along Ji Yun, who knew martial arts. When discussing matters at home, he would look for Song Lan, who was intelligent, resourceful, and understood the people in the residence. Qiu Lu was intelligent and meticulous, but she was a dull and quiet person. Therefore, Qiu Lu was in charge of all the important things. As for the jade zither and jade chess pieces that her father had bestowed upon her, Qin Yining treated them as teachers to teach her how to play the zither and chess, and had always treated them with respect.
Therefore, although there were many senior servant girls in the Master Pavilion, they all got along well with each other, and there was no such thing as stealing the limelight from others.
Qin Yining thought for a while, then called for Ji Yun to bring out the cards, and the three of them went to the main hall.
At this time, the servants and daughters-in-law of the various branches and courtyards were all in the courtyard in front of the main hall. More than a dozen of them were whispering to each other in groups of two or three.
When they found out that the Marquis had handed over the cards to the Fourth Miss, they were surprised, but also a little frightened.
The Fourth Miss was a famous savage tyrant. She was very fierce, and she would beat people up with a fierce look. In the past, when Miss Huining was still alive, she would beat her up as she pleased, let alone them.
"The Fourth Miss is here." The little girl at the Moon Gate said loudly.
The servants and daughters-in-law hurriedly stood up, and all of them stole a glance at the Moon Gate.
They saw the Fourth Miss holding a palm-sized rabbit, and slowly walking over with two beautiful servant girls. With the green bushes as the background and the snow-white Moon Gate as the backdrop, the three of them were like spring onions, and people could not help but take a few more glances. However, when their eyes lingered on Qin Yining's face, the servant girls subconsciously lowered their heads.
This person clearly did not get angry, and his smile was very gentle, but they felt as nervous as when facing the Marquis, afraid that they would say or do something wrong.
Two second-class servant girls carried out an armchair from the room and placed it in the corridor of the main hall. They also placed a tall black table on one side, and served tea.
Qin Yining sat on the chair, placed the well-behaved Er Bai on his lap, and gently stroked its fur. He observed the dozen of people in the corridor, and slowly opened his mouth.
"Today, I have invited all the mothers and sisters-in-law here. I think you all know that I will be in charge of this mansion for a few days."
"Yes." The servant girls replied in unison.
"I am young and ignorant, but I have been entrusted with an important task by my father. In the coming days, I will need all of your help."
"We do not dare."
Qin Yining smiled and said, "Everyone here has been in the mansion for a long time, so I will not mention the rules. I will only emphasize a few things. First, from today onwards, no one in the mansion is allowed to go outside if they have no business. It is also strictly prohibited to secretly keep or receive things. The guards must keep a close eye on the doors, and unlock them at five in the morning and unlock them at seven in the evening. On weekdays, all the doors of the courtyards must be locked. No one is allowed to enter or leave as they wish to pass on items or information."
In such a large mansion, it was inevitable that the servants would be lazy, sneak away during work, or wander around the courtyards. Originally, the rules proposed by Qin Yining were not strange, and the servants were supposed to follow them. However, everyone was used to being undisciplined, and when they suddenly heard these requirements, they could not help but feel dissatisfied.
"I know that there are some among you who are dissatisfied. But that is not important. It just so happens that I also have the intention of 'pruning the branches and pruning the leaves'. If any of you want to leave the mansion, feel free to do so! If I catch you, you will be beaten twenty times with the plank and thrown out. If anyone catches the person who made the mistake and returns to me, I will reward you with twenty taels of silver. "
When these words were said, the servant girls could not help but shiver. This young lady was indeed as fierce as the rumors said. However, a reward of twenty taels of silver was also very attractive. They could not save up twenty taels of silver in a year.
"Second, from today onwards, the security of the mansion will be tripled. No matter if it is the inner courtyard or the outer courtyard, you will have to watch the door at night to prevent drinking and playing cards! If I catch you drinking and playing cards delaying your work, you will be beaten twenty times with the plank and thrown out. In addition, the guards will have to record in detail what time period they are on duty, who is on duty, and what position they are on duty at. They must all be recorded in detail and handed to me to check and verify every day. "
"If you are supposed to be off duty but have to work more because of my orders, you will receive three times the pay for the processing time. Those who are on night patrol will receive an extra midnight snack."
When the servant girls heard this, they looked at each other in dismay. In the mansion, there had never been a case of three times the pay for temporary processing and a midnight snack. Although this young lady looked fierce, she was also very clear about rewards and punishments.
"The original rules of the mansion will not change. Every day, I will listen to matters in the main hall of Xingning Garden. I will wake up at eight o'clock in the morning to listen to the matters of the previous day and night. I will also deploy the matters that need to be paid attention to next. If you want to come back to collect or buy something, you should try your best to come back at this time. If you can't make it in time, and if it is not urgent, you can come back at three o'clock in the afternoon. Do you remember? "
"We understand." The servant girls replied in unison.
Qin Yining stood up and slowly paced back and forth with Er Bai in her arms. She said, "In the days that I am in charge of the mansion, we should all do our jobs well and leave each other some dignity. As long as you don't make any mistakes, I don't want to create trouble and increase my infamy. However, you all know that my temper is not very good. If you really do make a mistake, don't think that you can escape from my eyes. I know how the people below and outside talk about me. I already have an infamy, so I am not afraid. "
"We will follow Young Lady's orders." After a round of reprimanding, everyone was completely convinced by Qin Yining.
When Qin Yining saw everyone's attitude, her tense body relaxed slightly.
She had never managed so many people before. In the face of danger, she could only give out orders that she thought of. She didn't know if she was doing the right thing. Now that she saw that everyone was still obedient, she finally let out a sigh of relief.
Outside the moon gate, the members of the Sun Clan saw that Qin Yining was handling the situation with ease and couldn't help but reveal a smile. They felt relieved and went back to take care of Mother Jin.
After that, Qin Yining listened to the replies of the various servants and daughters-in-law and made some orders. She also sent people to stand guard outside the palace gates and quietly wait for news from Qin Huaiyuan.
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