The Marquise: I Earn My Own Worship

"Oh my! It's only June and it's already unbearably hot. This year must be a hot summer."

A mother, wearing a short-collared cotton shirt and wide-leg trousers, was fanning herself while complaining to the mother next to her.

"That's right. In previous years, it only started getting hot in July and August. I don't know what's going on with the weather this year."

Song Shengfu was eating ice fruit in the room. There was a basin of ice next to her and a little maid was fanning her.

Song Shengfu felt that the weather in ancient times was really unbearable. The summer was really too hot, but fortunately, the conditions here were not bad. At least there was a simple version of air conditioning.

If she were to dress like that and go home, it would be very difficult. Song Shengfu ate an ice fruit with satisfaction, secretly complaining in her heart.

When they got here, Song Shengfu realized that people in ancient times were not as conservative as they thought. In the summer, people still wore cool clothes. For example, she was wearing a dark blue satin dress with cloud patterns and mid-sleeves.

Younger girls or children all wore short-sleeved or sleeveless tops similar to modern ones, paired with pants or skirts that reached around the knees.

This is why outsiders are not allowed to enter the inner house, and there are strong maids guarding the second gate of the inner house, because the women wear less fabrics and are cooler.

Sister Wei brought Brother Xuan to Song Shengfu's room. The servants put out a few more basins of ice, and the room instantly became much cooler.

After walking this short distance, Sister Wei'er's forehead was covered with sweat. Song Shengfu wiped the sweat off Sister Wei'er with a silk handkerchief and scolded her:

"It's so hot, why are you still going out?"

Sister Wei smiled and threw herself into her grandmother's arms, fanned herself with her little hands, and stuck out her tongue.

"Grandma, it's cool here. Xuan Ge'er and I came here to avoid the cool weather. What do you think, Xuan Ge'er?"

Xuan Ge'er is now over two years old and can say some simple words. When he hears his sister calling him, he immediately leans sideways and stretches out his arms to ask his sister to hold him.

"Sister, sister, hug, hug Xian Ge'er"

Seeing this, Mother Qiu, who was holding Xuan Ge'er, put the little fat baby in her arms next to the soft couch. Although the boy was only two years old, he was very strong.

When Xuan Ge'er saw that he had come down, he used his hands and feet to climb onto Wei Jie'er and put his arms around Wei Jie'er's neck.

The weather was hot, so Xuan Ge'er wore a plain ice silk short jacket and plain cool pants. When Song Shengfu stretched out her hand, she saw through the loose clothes that Xuan Ge'er's back was covered with prickly heat, even in his armpits.

It looks so pitiful with so many people

"Why do you have prickly heat? Let me see."

Song Shengfu held Xuan'er in her arms and unbuttoned his coat. She saw that his whole body was covered with prickly heat. No wonder the child had been looking listless these past few days.

"What's going on? Is there no ice in Xuan'er's room?!"

Song Shengfu was a little angry, and her voice was much harsher. The maids in the room were startled and all knelt on the ground. Mother Qiu came forward and quickly explained

"Madam, I always send enough ice for Xuan'er. But the child is weak and can't stand the cold wind, so I only put a few pieces of ice aside, fearing that if the wind blows through him, he will catch a cold and it will be bad."

Song Shengfu was speechless. Children in ancient times were raised too delicately, and as a result, their bodies were more fragile.

In fact, children from ordinary farmers' families are less likely to get sick because they are well-fed. On the contrary, children from wealthy families die more often.

"Nonsense, complete nonsense. Children can't tolerate heat to begin with. Look at the prickly heat all over their body."

"Mother Qiu, you are the person Jingwen left for Xuan'er. Jingwen entrusted Xuan'er to you because she trusted you, and this is how you raise a child?"

Song Shengfu placed Xuan'er closer to the ice. Xuan'er felt very comfortable and moved closer to the ice.

Mother Qiu felt a little aggrieved and curled her lips slightly, but continued to reply.

"I guess the old lady, who has never raised a child, doesn't know this. Back in the Shen Mansion, this is how we raised our little sister and brother. And it's just prickly heat. Just apply some scented powder. It's better than catching a cold."

"Shut up! You old slave, you still dare to contradict the old lady. You must be so bold."

Seeing Madam Qiu's disrespectful expression, Madam Qi on the side immediately scolded her. What kind of words did this cunning servant say? What did she mean by "the old lady has never raised a child"?

Not to mention that the old lady gave birth to one son and two daughters, this sentence clearly means that the Duan family has few descendants.

Mother Qiu immediately realized that she had said the wrong thing, her face turned pale, and she knelt down and kowtowed to apologize.

Song Shengfu finally understood why, in the original trajectory, although she was clearly covered in prickly heat, the housekeeper withheld the cost of ice under the pretext that Xuan'er's courtyard was short of ice. There must be another layer of relationship involved.

"And Mama Lu, why didn't you tell me about this? Do you eat for free in front of Xuan'er?"

"Replying to the old lady, I am guilty."

Mother Lu knew that she had done something wrong and that nothing she said could change the facts, so she simply accepted the blame.

Seeing this, Song Shengfu sighed and asked someone to help them up.

"I know you're worried about my son getting sick, but it's so hot, how can a child withstand the heat? It's even more likely to get damp heat."

"Put the ice where it's needed. Xuan'er is strong, so he won't catch a cold as long as you don't put the ice too close to him."

The two of them listened to the training honestly

"Alright, considering you're doing this for my brother, I'll fine you one month's salary. Madam Qiu and Madam Lu, please make sure you take good care of Xuan'er from now on."

Seeing that the old lady did not blame them, Mother Lu and Mother Qiu let them continue to stay with Xuan Ge'er.

I was deeply moved and kowtowed repeatedly to express my gratitude.

It was the first time that Sister Wei saw her grandmother scolding someone like this. She felt warm in her heart. Her grandmother was really good to them.

"Grandma, let's forget about this. The two mothers are doing this for Xuan Ge'er's own good. Just ask them to be more careful in the future. Grandma, please don't let this make you angry."

Sister Wei came forward and fanned Song Shengfu. She was wearing a lotus-colored silk brocade short shirt and lotus-colored lily pants.

Song Shengfu knew that it was not their fault, but was caused by the inherent concepts of this era, and she did not blame them.

But here, one can only achieve one's goals through the common means of this era. For example, Song Shengfu's current identity means that all the servants in this mansion must obey her.

The way to control subordinates is to use both kindness and severity.

"What books have you been reading these days? What did Master Cheng teach you?"

Song Shengfu peeled a fruit for Xuan'er and handed it to him, looking at Wei Jie'er who was playing cat's tuck with the maid.

Upon hearing this, Sister Wei raised her head and kept moving her hands.

"Brother Kang and I have some of the same books, but the Master asked me to read some miscellaneous books, which cover a wide range of topics. The Master said that reading more books can help you gain experience and wisdom even if you haven't experienced anything."

Song Shengfu nodded secretly. This Master Cheng was indeed quite good. He didn't say that he didn't take her seriously because she was a girl.

"That's fine. What do you think of Master Cheng?"

"Students don't judge a teacher by his right or wrong. Anyway, Sister Wei thinks Master Cheng is excellent. Even Brother Kang, who doesn't like studying, rarely dozes off in class now."

As soon as these words were spoken, all the maids and servants present laughed, and Song Shengfu was also very happy.

"Does your brother Kang know that you are framing him like this in front of us?"

At this time, a voice came from outside

"Who, who is calling me?"