Chapter 69: The Xie Estate Receives Guests (Part 2)

  It is also unknown what happened to the housekeeper and the nanny at the Yao Mansion, but everything changed after they left.

  "Yes! What a great honor, Jia'er, you must seize the opportunity to win over Mrs. Xie's heart, if she likes you, your future days in the Xie Mansion will be smooth!" Old Master Yao smiled with a warm and loving face.

  "Father!" Yao Cun Jia's face turned slightly red, and she looked down with some embarrassment, but in her heart, she was secretly complaining. Dealing with her future mother-in-law was a test of her character! She couldn't appear too arrogant or too lazy, had to maintain the dignity and shyness of a daughter-in-law while also showing the attitude and demeanor of a future daughter-in-law.

  If this future mother-in-law were someone I was familiar with, that would be fine, but she's actually a complete stranger whom I've never met before!

  Yao Cunhui gazed at her sister's eyes, flashing with worry and sympathy. She was more difficult to deal with than the most familiar stranger.

  "Your father is right!" Madam Ma suppressed the cold smile in her heart and said warmly: "Jia'er, as long as your future mother-in-law likes you, your status in the Xie family will be as stable as a rock, and no one can shake it! Mrs. Xie has come in person, this is your good opportunity, you must seize it!"

  "Right, right, that's exactly what I mean! Your mother is absolutely right!" Old Master Yao chimed in with great enthusiasm and deep agreement.

  "Daughter... daughter understands!" Yao Cun's heart was in a mess, and he forced a nod and a smile.

  If there was a birth mother to guide them, it would be better. Ma Shi glanced at her secretly, as long as she didn't stir up trouble or create problems, how could they still expect her to help herself? If something really happened during Madame Xie's visit, wouldn't their own future days be...

  Yao Cun's heart skipped a beat, and his face changed color slightly.

  "Dad, since that's the case, why not arrange for Mrs. Xie and them to stay at Qingfengyuan? I remember that behind Qingfengyuan is a bamboo forest, which is very elegant and close to Yaofangyuan, making it convenient for sister to take care of them nearby." Yao Cunhui said with a smile.

  Since Mrs. Xie and her party are inevitable, it's better to take control of everything in their own hands. If they let the Ma family arrange and set things up, heaven knows what she will do!

  Yao Cunhui cast a sideways glance at Madam Ma, and indeed saw a flash of displeasure in her eyes.

  "That's right, Qingfeng Garden is not bad at all! The house is also clean and bright, the yard is spacious, just need to be cleaned up and rearranged!" Mr. Yao nodded in agreement.

  Ma's mouth twitched slightly, and he smiled faintly: "In that case, I'll have someone collect it later. Besides, it will take about half a month for Mrs. Xie and her entourage to arrive, so there is still plenty of time!"

  Ma had originally planned to arrange for Mrs. Xie and others to move into the Fuhu Pavilion. The Fuhu Pavilion was built by the water, with a gate in front of a patch of lotus flowers. If it were June or July, the fragrance of the lotus would be overwhelming, the green leaves like waves, and the scenery would be breathtakingly beautiful. But now it's deep autumn, facing a pool of withered lotus stems, probably no one's mood can improve. Mrs. Xie was unhappy in her heart, that's just right!

  Unexpectedly, Yao Cunhui spoke first, with a ready-made and grand reason, leaving her no room for rebuttal.

  Yao Cunhui's words were not just that, as soon as Ma's voice fell, she smiled again: "Dad, mom, I think it's better to let my sister be in charge of cleaning up Qingfeng Garden. This is my sister's filial piety, and Mrs. Xie will definitely be delighted when she knows about it! Moreover, it also shows my sister's ability to manage the household, and in the future, Mrs. Xie will surely appreciate her even more!"

  "Shut up!" Madam Ma, unable to bear it any longer, glared at her and scolded: "You're just a young unmarried girl, what are you talking about?! Are these things for you to intervene in and decide?!"

  "Daughter, daughter is also concerned about big sister..." Yao Cunhui hesitated for a moment, looked at Ma Shi and Yao Lao Ye with a wronged glance, and slowly lowered her head while fidgeting with her belt.

  "Madam, don't blame Hui'er," seeing that his second daughter was getting more and more to his liking, Old Master Yao felt a slight discomfort in his heart when he saw her being wronged, but more importantly, her suggestion was very much to his liking, so he said: "I think Hui'er makes a lot of sense, this is for the best! Jia'er, you take charge of this matter!"

  "Jia'er has never managed a household before, how would she know the intricacies and dangers within? This Rongguo House is not as simple as it seems. What if she makes one mistake and displeases Mrs. Xie, wouldn't that create unnecessary trouble?" Madam Ma glanced at Yao Cun Jia with a worried expression.

  Yao Cunhui's eyes lit up, and the fearless one raised his head again and said, "What's difficult about this? Can't we just temporarily borrow an experienced nanny from our maternal grandmother's side to guide us a bit?"

  "What nonsense!" Madam Ma immediately retorted: "This is our Yao family's business, although we are relatives, it's not good to trouble the Yun family. If people find out, they'll think that our Yao family can't even find someone to decorate a house, isn't that ridiculous?"

  "How could that be," Yao Cunhui smiled and said: "A guest from afar is a precious guest, and Mrs. Xie is an even more precious guest among the precious guests. Our family doesn't know her preferences, so asking around on her mother's side is also a way of showing respect to the noble guest. Where would there be such foolish people who would laugh at that? It only shows that our family is meticulous and enthusiastic about receiving guests!"

  "Foolish person? Are you saying I'm foolish?" Madam Ma never thought that Yao Cunhui would dare to repeatedly talk back to her in front of Old Master Yao, and she was so angry that her face turned somewhat yellow.

  This remark is too severe and Yao Cun Hui cannot bear it.

  "My daughter dare not!" Yao Cunhui hastily stood up, lowering her head and remaining silent.

  "Alright, alright! Xuan'er, sit down first." Old Master Yao wasn't a fool. Seeing the mother-daughter duo engaging in a war of words, he felt that something was off and thought for a moment. He decided that Yao Cun Hui's words made sense. This marriage had been arranged by Old Lady Yun after all, and the Yun and Xie families were old acquaintances. On Old Lady Yun's birthday, the Xie family had even sent a senior member and a high-ranking steward with grand gifts. It was reasonable for Old Lady Yun to send someone to help out, both emotionally and logically.

  "Jia'er, what do you think?" Mr. Yao turned to look at Yao Cun Jia.

  His intention was that Yao Cunhui's words were reasonable, and he tended to Yao Cunhui's idea; but in front of the children and servants, he felt embarrassed to refute his wife's meaning and hurt her face as the mistress of the house. Moreover, he was also worried that if he agreed first and Yao Cunjia didn't do well, it would be better to ask Yao Cunjia to take charge, so that everyone's face would be saved.

  Yao Cun Jia smiled and glanced at her father, then at her mother, saying with a smile: "Mother's consideration for me and the Yao family is truly appreciated. However, what Hui'er said isn't wrong either. I think I can handle this matter well! If there's anything I don't understand, I'll just ask Mother, and it's not like I'm dealing with outsiders at my maternal grandmother's place."

  "Good, good! You're indeed the daughter of Yao Nianyi, with spirit and determination!" Old Master Yao was overjoyed, chuckling as he smiled at Madam Ma: "Since Jia'er can handle it well, let's settle on this then! As for the Yun family, you'll need to send someone to inform Madame Yue."

  "Since the old master and our young mistress have said so, I don't have any opinion either!" Madam Ma nodded her head, but was secretly displeased with Old Master Yao's mention of "mother-in-law", as if she had become an outsider! In her heart, she silently cursed: What mother-in-law? That woman died long ago, where did this mother-in-law come from? Your current mother-in-law is a member of the Ma family!

  "After all, it's the first time for my daughter to do this kind of thing, and as her mother, I'm worried and want someone by our side to help out." Yao Cunjia said with a hint of a smile.

  Ma raised an eyebrow, and since Yao Cun Jia had confidently taken on this matter, she couldn't be in charge, so she thought it was better to let go and not care, letting her do whatever she wanted. Unexpectedly, this girl was also clever and knew how to get people to take responsibility for her, so if there were any mistakes or problems in the future, she wouldn't be able to shirk them off cleanly.

  Old Master Yao was nodding in agreement, smiling and saying to her: "Jia'er is right, you see who's suitable to assign someone to her!" It meant that Jia'er still respected her very much, making Madam Ma feel even more uncomfortable.

  Ma smiled and glanced at Qiao's mother: "Qiao's mother, starting tomorrow, you'll be helping the young lady! Everything will be done according to the young lady's orders!"

  "Yes, ma'am!" Mrs. Qiao bowed her head and accepted the order.

  "Thank you, Mother." Yao Cun Jia smiled and said: "Jiangnan is rich and prosperous, the Xie family is even more a wealthy and elegant family, these utensils and decorations..."

  "Tell your mother to open the warehouse, take whatever you need! This is a big deal and an urgent matter, we can't afford to neglect it and have people find fault with us, losing face for our family." Mr. Yao understood and made a decisive move.

  "The daughter understood, the daughter won't teach her father, mother is disappointed." Yao Cun Jia smiled and stopped talking.

  Then, many relevant things were discussed, and most of the speakers were Old Master Yao. Madam Ma occasionally expressed a few words with a kind motherly heart. Yao Cun Jia nodded gently in agreement from time to time. Yao Cun Hui sat quietly without speaking. Yao Cun Mei remained silent with a disdainful expression on her face. Ma Qun Fang did not say a word but listened very attentively, with a hint of envy in the depths of her eyes.

  Yao Cunhui finally put his mind at ease, at least in terms of accommodation, nothing would go wrong. If Ma Shi came, he would secretly set up two tables, but this was not something that could be said out loud. Although Mrs. Xie didn't say anything, she couldn't help but feel unhappy in her heart and had a grudge against Yao Cunhui. In the future, when Yao Cunjia married into their family, although Mrs. Xie wouldn't intentionally find fault with her because of this old matter, at least in her heart, she would have an unfavorable impression of her.

  Seeing that they were about to leave, Yao Cunjie and her siblings stood up to bid farewell. Old Master Yao waved his hand to let them go, then discussed with Madam Ma for a while before taking Fourth Aunt away.

  Ma, as usual, escorted him to the door, the handkerchief in his hand was almost crushed out of shape. He gritted his teeth and glared hatefully in the direction of Yaofangyuan, coldly sneering in his heart: Yao Cun Jia, this is just the beginning! You think you can win over Mrs. Xie with this? Dream on!

  "Every day, standing upright in front of the lady, you've suffered." In the pomegranate flower house, Old Master Yao said with a heartache to Fourth Aunt, his big hands gently stroking her face.

  "Where did the old man say that?" Fourth Aunt heard this and felt a little embarrassed, her mouth slightly hooked up, and a faint smile appeared. She leaned her head gently on Mr. Yao's shoulder and said softly: "In the past, concubines also served their husbands like this, and they didn't suffer at all. This is the duty of a concubine."

  "Good grief!" Old Master Yao couldn't help but laugh and shook his head, sighing softly: "I'm at a loss for words now!"