High-class maid

"There are so many, how can I possibly wear them all?" Shen Xing'er continued to politely decline.

"Okay, okay, I know you're good to me, alright? I really don't want it! Put it away now." Shan Tao pushed the jewelry back.

"Alright then." Shen Xing'er didn't back down and put the jewelry away again.

The two sat inside the house, unsure of what to do.

"Shantao, why don't you teach me embroidery?" Ever since Shen Xing'er was promoted to a third-class maid, she has never had time to embroider. The skill she had finally learned was put aside again.

“Great! I haven’t done embroidery in a long time, I’m sure I’m a bit rusty,” Shantao said.

So Shen Xing'er found a needle and thread and prepared to embroider a purse for each person.

When you're engrossed in something, time always seems to fly by. Before you know it, it's noon.

"Xing'er, Shantao, time to eat!" Wang called out, wearing an apron and holding a plate of stir-fried cured meat.

"Come on, come on."

The two put down their purses, cleaned their hands, and then sat down to eat.

On the small, square wooden table, five dishes were laid out in full, and Wang was carrying the sixth dish out of the kitchen.

"Auntie, let me do it, let me do it." Shan Tao hurriedly went over to take the vegetables.

"Good child, sit down quickly, don't be shy, eat while it's hot." Wang Shi stepped aside to avoid Shan Tao who came to serve the dishes, and placed the dishes steadily on the table.

"Auntie, there's no need to cook so many dishes. I... I didn't bring anything, and you've gone to so much trouble." Shan Tao was touched; the Shen family really valued her.

"No trouble at all, it's just a matter of adding one more pair of chopsticks. Even if you hadn't come, I would still have made so many dishes. It's been a long time since our family has seen each other. Come and eat."

Wang was afraid that Shan Tao would feel burdened, so she spoke very lightly.

Shan Tao knew that Madam Wang was only saying this because she was afraid Shan Tao would feel embarrassed to eat. Shan Tao was already exhausted from working in the manor; she didn't have the energy to cook so many dishes.

Although she didn't say anything more, she was even more moved.

"Xing'er, this is the land deed. Keep it safe." After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, Shen Kun took out a land deed.

It turned out that Wang had Shen Kun use the fifty taels of silver that the master had given her last time to buy fertile land for her daughter.

"Father, please keep it. I don't understand these things." Shen Xing'er glanced at the land deed and was about to return it to him.

“You’re all grown up now, keep it for yourself. We’ll buy you more when we have the money, and save it as your dowry!” Shen Kun refused and pushed it back.

"Uncle, how much fertile land did you buy?" Shan Tao asked, somewhat tempted.

“There’s wasteland, ordinary land, and fertile fields. The best I bought for Xing’er is ten taels of silver per mu of fertile land,” Shen Kun replied.

Because Shen Kun worked in the Ministry of Rites and was highly regarded by the Master, many people outside were eager to curry favor with him, so ten taels of silver for an acre of fertile land was not expensive at all.

"Uncle, I have some silver here. Could you please bring some with you next time you buy something for Xing'er?"

Shan Tao thought of the silver she had accumulated in the Minister's mansion over the years. Rather than carrying it around in fear, she decided to exchange it for fertile land.

Shen Kun and Wang Shi exchanged a glance. They knew about Shan Tao's family situation. Seeing that Shan Tao was so young and already planning for herself, Wang Shi felt a pang of heartache.

"Good child, next time your uncle wants to buy some, I'll buy some for you too, but how much fertile land do you want?" Wang Shi agreed.

"Including the rewards and the monthly allowance I've saved over the years, I only have thirty taels of silver," Shan Tao said shyly.

“Good child, it’s not easy for you to save up thirty taels. Next time your uncle buys something, have him buy it for you.”

“Uncle, I’ll give you these thirty taels of silver,” Shan Tao said.

Ever since Shan Tao's brother got engaged, Shan Tao had been careful, fearing that her foolish mother would use her money to curry favor with her sister-in-law. So she always carried her money with her.

"No need, no need. We don't even know when we'll buy it yet. You can take the money after I give you the land deed."

Shen Kun didn't care about the thirty taels of silver, so he didn't accept it.

"OK then."

After dinner, Shen Xing'er and Shan Tao helped Wang Shi clear the table.

"Alright, alright, you two go play, I can do it myself." Wang thought they were in the way and chased them away.

"Let's go to the street and buy some fabric to make purses," Shen Xing'er suggested.

"it is good."

Just as they went back into the house to get the silver, there was a knocking sound at the door outside the courtyard.

"Who is it?" Wang asked, wiping her hands as she walked behind the door.

"Meizhen, it's me." Chen Shanjia's voice came from outside the door.

"Young lady, you're here? Why are you carrying so many things?" When Wang opened the door, she saw Chen Shan's wife standing outside with large and small bags.

"It wasn't because we parted in such a rush this morning that we didn't have time to prepare anything. Shan Tao has been staying for several days now, so how could we trouble you?"

As Chen Shan's wife spoke, she was about to carry the things into the yard.

At this moment, Shan Tao and Shen Xing'er also heard the noise. The two came out of the house and saw that the table in the courtyard was full of food.

"Mother, did you carry all this stuff yourself?" Shan Tao asked in shock when she saw the table full of food.

"Yes, it looks like a lot, but it's not heavy at all. Mother can carry it." Chen Shan's wife wiped the sweat from her forehead and said with a smile.

When Shantao saw her mother, who had come alone carrying large bags of food to put her at ease, her resentment towards her disappeared.

She walked over to her mother with concern and wiped her sweat, saying, "Why didn't you ask my brother to bring it to you? You came all this way. Doesn't your back hurt?"

"It's alright, it's alright. Your brother went to help out at his father-in-law's house, so I didn't feel comfortable asking him to come."

"Why did he go again? My brother hasn't come home since he got engaged. He might as well become a live-in son-in-law." Shan Tao's mood, which had just calmed down, became irritable again when she heard that her brother didn't even care about his family.

"Alright, alright, little sister, come on in and have a cup of hot tea," Wang said quickly, trying to stop the mother and daughter from bickering again.

"No, where are you two girls going?" Chen Shan's wife saw that the two girls were carrying purses and wearing new hairpins, as if they were about to go out.

"Shan Tao and I have nothing to do, so we'd like to go to the street to buy some fabric to embroider sachets," Shen Xing'er said sweetly.

"Then you go ahead, be careful on the road, and don't come back too late. I'm going home now," Shan Tao's mother instructed.

"Wait, little sister, take all these things with you. We're not short of food at home." Wang hurriedly handed the things on the table to Shan Tao's mother.

"I don't want to, I don't want to. Shan Tao lives here, Shan Gen lives at his father-in-law's house, and Shan Tao's father works at the mansion. I can't finish eating all by myself at home."

As Chen Shan's wife spoke, she walked towards the door.