Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 5 How difficult life is

Zheng's brokerage business was booming. Every day, matchmakers would bring back newlyweds, and every few days, customers from all over the country would come specifically to choose their brides.

It was just past noon on March 14th.

As Dunzi was putting things away on the stove, Chunhua hurriedly came over and called to her, "Dunzi, the Du family from the county is coming today to select people. You should come with me to the hall to wait."

After giving her instructions, Chunhua glanced at Meng Shu, seemingly unintentionally.

A quarter of an hour ago, Granny Li sent someone to instruct Meng Shu to deliver some pastries to the side room. Meng Shu was packing the pastries into a food box when she looked up and caught Chunhua's gaze. She felt a strange sense of unease.

Just as I was thinking of an excuse to decline the assignment, Chunyue arrived shortly after.

Seeing that Meng Shu was still in the kitchen, he breathed a sigh of relief and called out, "These pastries are precious. We can't entrust them to a little girl who is still learning the rules. If something goes wrong, we'll lose a business deal."

Chunyue is Zhou Yapo's cousin. Upon hearing this, Meng Shu said gratefully, "I'm so grateful to Sister Chunyue for making this trip for me. Grandma Zhou brought a lot of silk thread, and I just finished embroidering a handkerchief with twin flowers blooming. Could you please give me some pointers later?"

Chunyue smiled and said, "Alright, I'll come find you in a bit."

After checking the snacks in the food box, Chunyue picked it up with one hand and said to Chunhua, "Let's go. The Du family is very lucrative, so you'd better keep an eye on Dunzi." She didn't forget to give Dunzi a little pointer.

Dunzi thanked him sincerely, and the three of them left the kitchen together.

Meng Shu nervously returned to the back room, where Mu Tou was waiting obediently at the door. "Sister Shu."

After several days, Mu Tou finally learned a few characters from Meng Shu and realized that the "Shu" in Meng Shu's name didn't refer to the book in the book.

Neither of his roommates were home, so Meng Shu opened the door and called him in. "I might have some things to do today, so come back tomorrow evening. Have you learned the words I taught you yesterday?"

Chen Mutou did not learn etiquette with Meng Shu and the others in the morning. Zheng Dongjia hired a teacher to teach them separately in the corner courtyard. They were the pretty children who were just like Chen Mutou.

"I've learned it, but I don't know if I wrote it correctly. Thank you so much, Sister Shu, for teaching me."

Chen Mutou looked grateful and spoke in a low voice.

"I said there's no need to thank me. It's fate that we met, and besides, I don't know how much longer I can teach you."

Judging that Chunyue wouldn't be able to arrive anytime soon, Meng Shu took a wooden stick from under the bed and wrote a few characters on the ground in the order of the Thousand Character Classic.

"Don't worry, Sister Shu, I learned it secretly when no one was around, so no one else knows," Chen Mutou hurriedly explained when he saw Meng Shu keeping an eye on the door.

Meng Shu asked him to write down the characters he had learned a few days ago. Chen Mutou was very clever and could remember all twenty characters he learned each day. Finally, Chen Mutou asked shyly, "Sister Shu, could you please help me choose a name?"

Meng Shu paused for a moment before hesitatingly saying, "I haven't read many books either. You named yourself Mu (木), but one tree can't make a forest. How about Chen Lin (陈林)?"

Chen Mutou nodded foolishly. He and Meng Shu got along well, so he didn't care what she called him, as long as it was something Meng Shu gave him.

After teaching for the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Chen Lin knew that Meng Shu was waiting for someone, so he tactfully left.

Meng Shu sat on the threshold, not in the mood to do her embroidery. About half an hour later, she saw Chun Yue return with Dunzi and the others.

The two people who lived with Meng Shu were chosen by Butler Du. The two went back to their room to pack their luggage. Meng Shu stood up and saw that the two of them had blank faces. Then she looked at Dunzi and saw that she shook her head. She realized that she had not been chosen.

Chunyue was in the courtyard instructing the chosen girls to get ready as soon as possible. As she was speaking, an old woman from Zheng Dongjia's side brought in three girls, one of whom was Huandi.

When Huan Di returned to the backyard for the first time, he naturally saw Meng Shu. Seeing that her room was spacious and clean, he couldn't hide the jealousy in his eyes.

Five people were bought this time. When the old lady and others arrived, they began to give a lecture. Meng Shu listened for a while and realized that this was the usual practice of Zheng's brokerage.

Dunzi whispered, "Master Du's family is in Jinan County. Swapping my brother is a good thing, but it's a pity I wasn't chosen."

Seeing Chunyue looking at the chosen girls with some pity, Meng Shu gently squeezed Dunzi's chubby little hand to comfort her, "Didn't you say that Aunt An in the kitchen treats you well? Just relax and learn the skills in the kitchen. Maybe you'll find a better employer later."

Sure enough, after everyone left, Chunyue started talking while flipping through her flower patterns.

The Du family has only been wealthy for two or three generations, running a grain shop and a tavern. They made a lot of money by taking advantage of the convenience of the Jinan Wharf, and only in recent years have they donated money to obtain a sinecure as a junior official.

“Master Du has a great fondness for beautiful concubines, and his four sons are all lustful ghosts. I wonder what will become of Sanhao and Liumei in your household. The Du family is really not a good place to go.”

Chunyue was cheerful and outgoing. "I don't know how you caught my aunt's eye. After learning about Granny Li's plans, my aunt hurriedly sent me to stop her. If you bring tea and fruit to the main courtyard today, with your good looks, you'll definitely be bought by Steward Du."

Upon hearing Chunyue's words, Meng Shu's heart tightened. She diligently poured a glass of water and handed it to Chunyue, then took out a handkerchief with twin flowers on it. "I can only repay Granny Zhou's great kindness later. Meng Shu also thanks Sister Chunyue for helping me out of this predicament."

Chunyue didn't stand on ceremony. Meng Shu's embroidery skills were still immature, but the flower patterns had a unique charm. She put away the handkerchief and let Meng Shu sit down to talk.

"Just stay put. I heard that the Tang family from Lin'an Prefecture will come to select people in half a month. I heard that the Tang family is a branch of the Marquis's Mansion in the capital. They are very prominent. If you can be selected, maybe my aunt and I can benefit from your success in the future."

Meng Shu silently thought of Lin'an, a hint of joy in her heart. It was said that her uncle had gone to the south to do business four years ago. She wondered if she could find any news of him in Lin'an.

A few days later, Er Yazi was also chosen. It was said that the family was an ordinary wealthy family in the nearby Daming County. Dunzi, who worked in the kitchen, always heard a lot of gossip. She said that the family had found a young girl to be their child bride.

Er Yazi is of suitable age; after two or three years of raising him, they can get married.

An uncle from Mengjia Village had a son whose brain was damaged by a fever when he was young. He was somewhat mentally challenged. His family had saved up money for many years and had bought a maidservant to be their child bride.

In other words, the son of a family that could afford to buy a child bride probably had a physical ailment...

Meng Shu couldn't help but sigh; a woman's life is truly full of hardships.

Like her mother, who was born into a family of scholars, she never lacked food or clothing and was well-read. Her maternal grandfather had chosen Meng Chengwen, whose family background was simple, thinking that his parents had passed away and he made a living by copying books. He thought that his daughter would marry into the family, provide a large dowry, and have brothers to take care of her, so her life should be smooth and happy.

The first few years after the marriage were alright. But after the passing of the maternal grandfather and the disappearance of the uncle who went south to do business, the father, when the mother was seriously ill, would rather spend all of the mother's dowry to marry a prostitute than spend money on her medical treatment.