High-class maid

The second wife casually tossed the letter aside and said, "We're an old married couple, what's there to say? I'm not replying."

The old woman hesitated for a moment, then, not daring to say anything more, quietly withdrew.

"Granny, what's going on with the Madam and the Master? They're acting so strangely," Ban Jian asked secretly.

The old woman thought to herself that it was a tragic fate, but said aloud, "How could we possibly fathom the thoughts of our masters? Let's not say anything more."

Ban Jian pouted, but ultimately didn't dare to argue back.

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, the masters set off for the estate. Shen Xing'er and Shan Tao, being third-class maids, were not qualified to go along, and thus enjoyed a rare moment of sleeping in.

Shen Xing'er hadn't had a good night's sleep in a long time. Ever since she met Granny Jiang that day, she would dream of Granny Jiang's hideous smile every night. Shan Tao, who lived in the same room as her, naturally knew about Shen Xing'er's condition.

Seeing that Shen Xing'er was sleeping soundly, she couldn't bear to wake her, so she took both of their lunchboxes and went to the kitchen to get their food.

"Xing'er, Xing'er, good news, good news!" Shan Tao's happy voice came, waking up Shen Xing'er who was sleeping.

"Huh? What's wrong? Did I oversleep?" Shen Xing'er scratched her head and asked sleepily.

"Oh dear, that's not the point. Hurry up and get dressed, let's finish eating and head out of the manor!" Shan Tao said, hurriedly setting the food on the table.

"Leaving the manor? Why are you leaving the manor?" Shen Xing'er asked with a puzzled look, but her hands didn't stop moving as she found her clothes and put them on.

"Look at me, I was so happy that I didn't even tell you. When I went to get food today, there were very few servants in the mansion, only these people from Jinling. Just as I was wondering about this, I happened to see my mother. Guess what?"

"Oh, stop being so mysterious, what's wrong?" Shen Xing'er's interest was piqued by Shan Tao's animated expression.

"My mother said that thanks to the masters' kindness, we haven't had a day off in the two months we've been in Jinling City. Today, since the masters have all gone to the estate, they've given us a special day off!"

"Wow! That's great news! Hurry up and eat!" Shen Xing'er jumped off the bed excitedly, afraid that she would eat too slowly.

"Tch, look at you, now you won't say I'm making a fuss over nothing, will you?" Shan Tao said, seeing that Shen Xing'er seemed even more anxious than she was.

"Good mountain peaches? No way! I was just worried about not having enough time. By the way, if we all go out, who will stay in the manor?"

"Of course it's the servants of Jinling. They grew up in Jinling and are probably already tired of exploring it. They wouldn't want to compete with us for this opportunity."

“This is the masters’ wish. I suppose even if they are bold, they wouldn’t dare to disobey their masters,” Shen Xing’er said.

The two sisters quickly ate and drank, then went to get ready.

The main force on the other side finally arrived at the village before noon. The village was located on an open space in the north of the city, surrounded by mountains on two sides, with dozens of acres of fertile fields next to it, where the wheat planted on the fields had already sprouted lushly.

Next to the fertile fields was a simple little house, which was obviously inhabited by someone who was there to look after the fields.

Zhuangzi was three times the size of Xiao Mansion. Although it had wooden doors and plaques, it was still majestic and imposing. Even though Wang was well-traveled and knowledgeable, she was still shocked by the sight before her.

The second wife was also very surprised. Even though her family was very wealthy, she had never seen such a large estate.

She secretly resolved to curry favor with her mother-in-law in the future. A little money from the main wife would be enough for the second branch of the family to live comfortably for a long time. Who would be foolish enough to complain about having too much money? As for that stinky man, it didn't matter whether she had him or not.

At the old lady's prompting, Shen Kun knocked on the gate of the estate.

"Coming, coming, who is it?" An old woman opened the door and asked when she saw Shen Kun in front of her.

"Who are you looking for?"

Before Shen Kun could answer, the old woman saw the large group behind her and said, "Are the masters here? Please come in, please come in." Then she opened the door wide and stood aside, bowing, waiting for instructions.

After the masters of the Minister's mansion had all entered the estate, no other servants had come to pay their respects. The old lady alighted from the carriage, looked at the old nanny, and said...

Are you the only person living in this manor?

The old woman didn't dare to look up at her, only catching a glimpse of a hem of her dress and a pair of luxurious shoes, which even had large pearls on them—truly a sign of wealth.

"Reporting to the old lady, there is one steward, two cooks, four servants to feed the livestock, four to care for the fertile fields, four to care for the fruit trees, four to clean the area, and one to watch over the fertile fields outside."

The old woman clearly knew the situation in the manor very well; she lowered her head and spoke every word clearly.

"Where are they? Couldn't they hear such a commotion? Even if they were busy, where is the butler? What is the butler busy with?" Danxue asked angrily as she stepped forward.

"This..." The old woman lowered her head, looking troubled, unsure whether to speak or remain silent.

"Alright, don't make things difficult for an old woman. Let's go in and take a look ourselves. We've been in the carriage all morning, so it'll be good for us to stretch our muscles." The old lady waved her hand, signaling Danxue to stop asking questions.

So the masters, along with their maids and servants, a large group of people, went inside.

They first went to the masters' residence. Danxue, at the old lady's signal, was the first to push open the door and look inside.

"Wang, you should go and take a look too," the First Madam instructed Wang.

Upon seeing this, the second wife immediately instructed her maid, Banjian, to also check the room.

"Your Majesty, everything in your room is as usual, except for a little dust," Danxue replied after the inspection.

“Madam, yours is too.” Wang Shi and Ban Jian each replied to their respective masters.

"Hmph! At least they have some sense of propriety. Let's go inside," the First Madam instructed, then turned to the Old Madam and said...

“Mother, you must be tired from the journey. Why don’t you rest in your room? Leave the rest to your daughter-in-law.”

The old lady said, "Then I won't go with you. It's not worth getting angry and hurt over these clueless people. I'll look around. Danxue, Danwen, you two go with the Madam."

Because the masters only brought their head maid and personal nanny with them on this trip, the old lady sent the two of them along so that they could broaden their horizons.

Apart from the old lady who was inside, the group, led by the first wife, continued walking inside. They passed through a long covered walkway and entered the estate.

What came into view was a fishpond, and the smell of fish was overwhelming. The First Madam looked at the dirty shoes at her feet, and her eyes were about to burst with anger.

"We've only walked a few steps, and our shoes are already filthy. What do these people do all day?" Xiao Yi'an said.

A hush fell over the crowd; no one dared to approach the young master. The sounds of cards being played inside the house next to the fishpond contrasted sharply with those outside.

At the madam's signal, Shen Kun kicked open the door.