Chapter 59: Chapter 52, The Importance of the Maternal Home_l
Madam Li and Yan Zhigao returned to their previous respectful interactions, yet there was an atmosphere between them that made Daohua feel somewhat strange.
It seemed to her that her mother was no longer as thoughtful and meticulous towards her stepfather as when she first arrived.
And her stepfather, well, he often glanced at her mother, sometimes starting to speak, then hesitating, which was very odd.
“Could it be that my stepfather has finally noticed my mother’s virtues and had a change of heart?”
“What are you muttering about?”
Madam Li tapped Daohua’s forehead.
Daohua immediately shook her head, “Nothing.” After speaking, she immediately lowered her head, flipping through the account book with one hand, and clicking away on the abacus with the other, her speed astoundingly fast.
In this period, seeing Madam Li check the account books until her eyes were red, she felt, as a daughter, she should help share some of the burdens, and so she volunteered herself to Madam Li.
With the end of the year being so busy, Madam Li didn’t have the time to teach her daughter how to read, record, and calculate the accounts, but she knew it was her daughter’s filial intention and couldn’t bear to disappoint her. Besides, considering her daughter was already 9 years old, it was time for her to learn some household management matters.
Thus, Madam Li made a point to carve out some time from her busy schedule to teach Daohua how to read the account books.
Compared to wealthy families, Madam Li’s dowry wasn’t much, but in the modest Yan Family, it was certainly considered generous.
Even though over these years, the family expenses and the silver given to Yan Zhigao had used up quite a bit, the always resourceful and frugal Madam Li still managed to add a bit to the family wealth.
So, at the end of each year, she had a pile of account books to go through.
Madam Li watched her quirky daughter with a smile, her voice gentle as she said, “If you find any problems in the account books, just note them down, and when your mother returns, I’ll clarify them for you.”
Without looking up, Daohua replied, “I know, I know, mother, you go busy yourself with other things. Leave the accounts to me with peace of mind.”
Madam Li smiled silently, watched her daughter seriously calculating for a while, and then quietly left the room for the neighboring one.
“Madam, these are the lists of New Year’s gifts sent by some families over the years.”
At the end of each year, the exchange of New Year’s gifts is a very important affair, as it concerns the maintenance of relationships and goodwill between families.
In the past years, Madam Li had to both review the year’s account books and prepare New Year’s gifts for various families, often bustling around until she was worn out.
This year, to her surprise, she enjoyed the benefits brought by her daughter.
Teaching her daughter about the accounts, she was ready to stay up late night, but who would have thought that after only a rough guidance, her daughter took over the account books completely.
She checked and found that every entry in the account book was calculated by her daughter to the last fraction, and her daughter had also thoughtfully altered the accounting method to make the books clearer at a glance.
This gave Madam Li a new appreciation for her daughter’s intelligence.
“This year is probably the most relaxed year for Madam,”
Seeing the constant smile on Madam Li’s face, Ping Tong joined in the fun.
Ping Xiao picked up the conversation, “Indeed, ever since Miss Daohua arrived, Madam’s smile has never faded. In my view, Madam’s complexion has improved a lot compared to before.”
Ping Tong added with a laugh, “The old madam said that Miss Daohua is a lucky star, who brought fortune to the old madam back home, and now she’s come to the County Governor’s Office and started to bring fortune to Madam.” Madam Li felt the same way in her heart.
She knew how poor the old madam’s health was, but now, looking at others who were younger than the old madam, they probably couldn’t compare to her energy.
She didn’t know if it was just her imagination, but she also felt that her skin had improved lately.
“Okay, you two mustn’t keep praising that girl any longer, and certainly don’t spread words about lucky stars outside,”
A good reputation is important for a woman, but too great a one isn’t necessarily a good thing.
Some women had attracted snakes and all sorts of unwanted attention due to being too well-known, ultimately meeting a tragic end.
Madam Li wished for Daohua to have a life of safety and happiness, not needing ephemeral fame to draw the attention of strangers.
Ping Tong and Ping Xiao, seeing that Madam Li preferred not to dwell on the topic, honestly set about helping to organize the list of New Year’s gifts.
“Is there still no New Year’s gift from Beijing this year?”
After reviewing all the gift lists, Madam Li sighed.
Without a powerful family backing, her sister’s life at her in-laws must be difficult, to the point where not evena New Year’s gift could be sent to her maternal home.
Ping Tong asked, “Then Madam, are we still sending New Year’s gifts to Beijing?”
Madam Li nodded, “Yes, of course. Even if the Yang Residence looks down on what we send, they must know that my sister has a family.”
Madam Li thought it over and added ten percent more to the gifts being sent to Beijing.
Seeing Madam Li add items to the Yang Residence’s gift list, Ping Tong hesitated, then couldn’t help but say, “Madam, doing so might stretch our finances a bit thin next year.”
Madam Li didn’t stop writing, “We can’t do much for my sister at home, but if the gifts look better, she might have an easier time at her in-laws.”
The suffering of a high-born daughter-in-law, she knew it all too well.
She herself was one!
In the Yan Family, everyone seemed to respect her, but she was well aware that the majority were simply considering the sizable dowry she brought and her reasonably wealthy maternal family.
Even the elderly lady, when initially agreeing to her marriage with the master, valued this aspect.
The maternal family is indeed too important for a married daughter.
Fortunately for her, she had two brothers who cherished her, and even though the Li Family’s status was not as high as the Yan Family’s, the gifts they sent each year during the festivals allowed her to stand tall in the Yan Family.
Lady Li was then meticulously arranging the New Year gifts from various families before reciprocally sending corresponding gifts back.
At this moment, Daohua finished going through an account book and stood up, stretching languidly.
Ancient account books were indeed troublesome to read, leaving her eyes aching and swollen.
She needed to rest.
Nearsightedness in ancient times meant there were no glasses for her to wear.
Daohua walked over to the window to admire the Winter Orchid she had specially gifted Lady Li to alleviate eye fatigue.
The Winter Orchid, found in the mountains of her hometown and since then tended in her space, was now blooming, lush and about to drip with beauty.
Just then, Ping Xiao entered, carrying a bowl of freshly made cow’s milk.
“Miss, Madam had someone make this cow’s milk especially for you, please come and drinkit,” she said.
Daohua sat at the table, took a sip of the cow’s milk, and said, “Sister Ping Xiao, what about the pot of red plum blossoms I gave to Madam? Hasn’t it been displayed?”
Ping Xiao replied with a smile, “These days, the master has been resting in Madam’s room. Seeing that the red plum blossoms are doing well, he said he wanted to take them to the front office to show everyone.”
Daohua pursed her lips, “Father sure has the cheek to take it.”
To see the red plum bloom early, she had planted it in the black soil of her space for over half a month, making not only the flowers bloom beautifully but also fragrant and pleasing.
In this cold weather, smelling the faint scent of the plum blossoms can make one feel refreshingly clear-headed.
Her mother has been so busy, so tired lately, clearly lacking in spirits, while her ease-drawing father conveniently took the red plum away.
Daohua asked, “Father should have his New Year’s holiday in a few days, right?”
Ping Xiao nodded, “The master begins his holiday on the twenty-eighth of the twelfth lunar month.”
Daohua said, “Remind me then, I’ll need to ask Father to get the red plum back.”
Ping Xiao, watching the big miss being stingy towards the master, secretly laughed.
In the past, although the master valued Madam, he did not refrain from causing her grief because of Aunt Lin.
Now that the big miss has come, Ping Xiao felt immense admiration whenever she thought about how the big miss stood up for Madam before.
Meanwhile, at the Yang Residence in Beijing.
Yan Siyu’s lips were tightly pursed, and the hand hidden in the long sleeve was clenched tightly, allowing the fingernails to dig into her flesh as she listened to her mother-in-law and three sisters-in-law chatting about how they would reciprocate the New Year gifts to their maternal families.
This scene would recur at the end of every year.
Knowing her in-laws looked down on her birth family, she was prepared, but she never expected the Yang Family to go so far as not even willing to prepare a New Year’s gift for the Yan Family.
Although her brother, Yan Zhigao, had been a County Magistrate for nine years, this did not mean there was no possibility of promotion.
The Yang Family’s treatment of the Yan Family was terribly cold!
If it were not for her concern for her two children, she really wanted to flee from the Yang Family.
Old Lady Yang glanced at her youngest daughter-in-law, wearing a gloomy face, and snorted inwardly.
She knew the youngest daughter-in-law was still dreaming of her elder brother’s promotion, but unfortunately, that dream was bound to be shattered.
They would not have been so outrageous unless they knew that Yan Zhigao had no chance of further promotion.
The main reason she had agreed to her youngest son marrying Yan Siyu, of humble background, was the prospect of her elder brother’s advancement, wasn’t it?
Who knew, this Yan Zhigao was too arrogant of his talents, and completely ignorant of the ways of an official, offending a noble early in his career, someone he shouldn’t have provoked.
If not for his competent handling of certain affairs, he wouldn’t even be able to maintain his position as a County Magistrate.
Even now, as a County Magistrate, he was only dispatched to underdeveloped and remote counties, to toil like cattle and horses, adding to the achievements of those above.
Such a person’s life was essentially over, and she was already being generous keeping her youngest daughter-in-law for the sake of her grandsons and granddaughter.
