Chapter 11: The War That Will Not Stop

Ji Man turned to look at her and shook her head, saying, "Little girl, you need to understand the principle of letting go when necessary. If you can't bear to part with the child, you won't be able to catch the wolf. Zhao Dama is a servant with status, and she doesn't have much money. How could she willingly do things for you? Our demands are not high, just to have good food, not to feel cold or tired. The remaining one hundred taels of silver will be enough for us to spend for some time."

Muxu still felt a bit aggrieved, and after holding onto the silver for a long time, she finally turned and hid it in the bottom of the cabinet.

"What did you ask her to buy?"

Ji Man picked up her embroidery needle and continued to embroider the handkerchief, saying slowly, "Just some very ordinary things. I wrote a list and asked her to bring some in every month. With those, we won't have to worry about spending money."

Muxu didn't understand, but seeing her mistress so confident, she didn't ask further and helped with the embroidery.

Due to Sangyu's diligence, she handed two handkerchiefs to Liumama every day. In just a few days, the maids and servants in the mansion were using new handkerchiefs with intertwined mandarin ducks and entwined lotus flowers, all with auspicious meanings. In addition, Sangyu's embroidery skills were excellent, and even Wenwan couldn't bear to part with them.

When Moyuhou was sitting at the table drinking tea, he saw Wenwan carefully touching the patterns on the handkerchief and saying, "With this kind of skill, I'm afraid I won't be able to achieve it even after practicing for a few more years."

Ning Yuxuan followed her gaze to the handkerchief. The faintly blooming purple lotus flower seemed to exude a fragrance.

"She only has this much skill."

Wenwan raised her eyebrows at him. "I think Sangyu's temperament isn't as difficult as you say. Perhaps she was wrong before, but now she has become gentle and obedient. Why do you still have such a bias against her?"

He had a bias against her? Ning Yuxuan couldn't help but sigh. He knew her temperament better than anyone else after so many years.

When he married her at the age of fifteen, Sangyu dismissed all the maidservants he had before. When he was sixteen, Sangyu caused trouble for Qisiling, who he had brought in as a concubine. When he was eighteen, she cried, made a scene, and even attempted suicide when he brought in Qianlian and Liuhanyun. When he was twenty, she attempted suicide again, causing embarrassment to the Hou Mansion. Now, at twenty-one, she had lost her position as the Hou Furen and pushed Wenwan to the forefront. Perhaps she had finally become sensible, or maybe she was secretly plotting something.

If it weren't for his mother's pressure to marry her, would he have married this shrew? As a leisurely and carefree Houye, he hadn't had a good life in the past few years because of her. Now, he had finally confined her to the reflection pavilion and would never easily let her out again.

"I don't know why, but I feel sorry for her." Wenwan sighed and put the handkerchief back into her sleeve, looking up at Ning Yuxuan. "I'm also a bit jealous that she has been with you for so long."

Ning Yuxuan raised his eyebrows and smiled, "You're jealous of her? You still have decades to spend with me."

Wenwan glared at him and blushed slightly. "I didn't have the days you had before, so of course I would be jealous. But it's okay, in the future, you will only have me in your world."

Moyuhou reached out and embraced her, resting his chin on her forehead. "Before you, I never loved anyone, and Sangyu was nothing to me. You don't need to worry."

"Okay." Wenwan smiled and hugged him, closing her eyes contentedly.

Ji Man sneezed several times in a row, and tears came out. Sniffling, she muttered, "Could I really be getting sick?"

Suddenly feeling low, she didn't know why. She was not a sentimental person, so this was probably Sangyu's mood affecting her. It felt a bit awkward to think that there was another person living in her body. But why was she feeling so down for no reason?

Someone knocked on the door outside, and Muxu went to open it. Ji Man came out and stood at the door, calling out, "Muxu."

"Mistress." Muxu ran back and stood beside her, stomping her foot in anger. "They're bullying people!"

Ji Man looked at the maid at the door, and her gaze was somewhat sharp, which frightened Banxia to take a step back. But thinking about what her mistress had said, the little maid gathered her courage and said, "I've delivered the message to Madam Sang, and Marquis Hou also said that the manor doesn't keep idle people. You don't need to serve Marquis Hou anymore, and you should find something else to do."

Whether overtly or covertly, they were mocking her for being out of favor and useless, so they could order her around. Ji Man snorted and held a newly embroidered handkerchief in her hand as she asked Clover, "Clover, how does your mistress's embroidery compare to the top embroidery house in the capital?"

Clover cooperatively replied, "There's no difference at all. When my mistress hands over a handkerchief, Madam won't need the ones sent by the embroidery house."

Ji Man nodded. "How much does the top embroiderer charge for a handkerchief?"

Banxia's face turned a little green, and Clover glanced at her before answering, "Three taels of silver for one handkerchief."

"Alright, three taels of silver for one handkerchief. The colored threads are provided by the manor, so let's say the labor cost is two taels of silver for one handkerchief." Ji Man nodded with a smile and looked at Banxia. "If Madam Sang likes it, I'll give her a discount. One tael of silver for one handkerchief. Bring the silver to pick up the goods. I'll embroider as many as she wants."

Banxia's mouth fell open, and she looked at her for a while without saying anything. Then, she pointed at the two of them and stomped away.

Clover laughed. "Mistress, you're so amazing."

Ji Man waved her hand. "If Musui Qing were a concubine, I would have embroidered for her without a second thought. She's just a servant like me, but she still wants to bully me. If I were to complain, she wouldn't have a good ending."

Clover's smile faltered. She looked around and then pulled Ji Man into the room, closing the door behind them. "Mistress, don't forget, Musui Qing is the person that the crown prince gave to Marquis Hou. Even though she's just a servant, Marquis Hou won't easily punish her."

The crown prince? Such a powerful backing? Ji Man was amazed. She had thought that Nie Sangyu was the only one with a powerful backing, but it seemed there was another one hiding here. No wonder she was so arrogant and no one blamed her for speaking before the other concubines. It turned out she had the crown prince supporting her from behind.

But what was there to fear? One tael of silver for one handkerchief was a reasonable price. The manor doesn't keep idle people, right? Did Nie Sangyu's labor only worth five taels and five coins a month? Not only did she embroider two hundred handkerchiefs for free, but she also wanted to give extra gifts? No way.

Signaling Clover not to worry, Ji Man put away the two handkerchiefs she had just finished embroidering and started preparing things. "Go ask Aunt Zhao to find a few clean, unused pots and a small stove."

Clover agreed and ran out.

Ji Man thought it over. According to the development of the plot in the book, she could escape from the punishment of the "reflection pavilion" until she did something to get herself killed. But she didn't want to die. She wanted to live well, so it was important to establish good relationships and find a way to survive.

Nie Sangyu probably did a lot of bad things in the past, or else she wouldn't have made so many people dislike her. So, how could she make amends and make everyone forget their resentment towards her?

It was easy to placate servants and maids with money and benefits, but it wasn't so easy to fool the concubines and servants. It would take a lot of effort.

Women only cared about two things: face and men. Although she had only seen Marquis Hou once, Ji Man didn't have a good impression of him. The female lead would probably think he was great, but unfortunately, she was the female supporting character, the one who would be tortured to death by the male lead.

So, she wouldn't compete for favor. Not only would she not compete, but she would also make Marquis Hou hate her, really hate her. The more he hated her, the higher her chances of survival.

As for her face, she wanted to conduct an experiment. If it succeeded, she would have at least half of her life saved.

But Clover hadn't returned even after an hour. Ji Man sat alone in the room, watching as the sky darkened, and there was no movement outside.

Unable to sit still, Ji Man opened the door and took a few steps outside. Considering the rules of the Hou Manor, it seemed that confined individuals were not allowed to go out, otherwise they would be punished according to the family's rules.

But she was alone and helpless. If something happened to Clover, she would be truly finished. Regardless of everything else, she had to find her first, and it would be best not to alarm anyone above her.

With this in mind, Ji Man slipped out of the reflection pavilion, hugging the wall. Unfortunately, she didn't know the way, and after wandering around for a while, she ended up getting lost.

In front of her was a seemingly nice courtyard. Ji Man stood by the woodpile in the backyard, thinking about whether she should find an excuse to ask where the steward was and have him find Clover. It would be better than wandering around alone.

But just as she was about to climb over the wall and leave, she suddenly heard a lot of chaotic footsteps behind her. The sky was getting dark, and torches were being lit. The lead servant saw her in the backyard and shouted, "She's here!"