The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 202 Wang Xifeng's Good Intentions
Lady Wang sent someone to invite Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang to the Wang family to enjoy the flowers and have fun. They set a date, and Wang Xifeng was happy. She planned to make arrangements for tomorrow in advance so that the servants would not lose their discipline and break the rules when the masters of the mansion were not there.

Since marrying into the Jia family, Wang Xifeng has been most satisfied with her ability to discipline the servants.

The Jia family used to be very prestigious. They were two Dukes who founded the country, a unique position. They were prominent figures among the nobles, and what they needed was prestige and grandeur, so as to attract more talented people to join them.

Even the servants in the mansion had to live like immortals, to tell outsiders how kind and benevolent the Jia family was, and that they could confidently seek refuge with the Jia family and receive generous rewards.

Wang Xifeng didn't understand before, but after her uncle's explanation, she finally understood why many things in the Jia family were so strange.

Uncle is right. The Jia family has long been on the decline. It is no longer appropriate to continue with the old ways. What is needed is humility. The Jia family, which does not even have the status of a proper official and only has the title, will not only not benefit from maintaining the old ways, but will also be ridiculed by those who know about it.

Everything must change. The days of ease and freedom where servants were more comfortable than their masters are gone forever. Once they receive their monthly wages from the manor, they must work diligently and abide by all the rules.

He felt he had done right by the Jia family, but the Jia family had wronged him.

“Grandma, Wang Shanbao’s wife didn’t come. She said she’s serving the First Madam and the First Madam can’t be left alone, so she couldn’t come. She said if you have any instructions, please send someone to tell her.”

One of the stewards' wives lowered her head and said softly. In front of all the stewards' wives in the room, Wang Xifeng suppressed her dissatisfaction and felt a sense of helplessness, as if she had the power to do nothing.

He had only chosen to play the villain for the good of the Jia family, yet everyone was trying to trample on him; it was truly disheartening.

Wang Xifeng couldn't do anything to her mother-in-law. Wang Shanbao's wife, relying on being her mother-in-law's maid and a senior member of the household, had always been unwilling to follow the rules and was not honest. However, with her mother-in-law protecting her, she was powerless to do anything about it.

"Since that's the case, then tell her to serve the First Madam well. If she displeases the First Madam, I'll skin her alive." Wang Xifeng uttered these ruthless words from her red lips.

Some of the uninformed female servants were too frightened to even breathe loudly, while the elderly watched coldly, thus avoiding offending Wang Xifeng.

Wang Shanbao's wife had the support of the first wife. No matter how powerful Wang Xifeng was, she was just a daughter-in-law and it was only natural for her to serve her mother-in-law. Therefore, Wang Shanbao's wife was not afraid of Wang Xifeng and even dared to offend her. They were no match for her.

Wang Xifeng was in no mood for anything else. She only gave a few instructions before letting everyone leave.

Many of the maids breathed a sigh of relief, not expecting that the Second Mistress would be so easy to talk to today, and they all whispered among themselves. There were over a thousand servants in the two mansions alone, old and young, men and women, as well as their relatives and so on. The two mansions were also very large, and not only were there not many maids, but Wang Xifeng also felt that there were not enough. However, with so many people, there was not much income, so she could only reduce the number of servants again and again.

"Ugh."

After they all left, Wang Xifeng couldn't help but sigh.

In the past, she still had Ping'er around, and she could talk to Ping'er. Now she didn't even have a close friend. She kept many things to herself. She never thought that she would be unable to live without Ping'er. Wang Xifeng thought of what her aunt had just told her.

The old lady wasn't going, so my aunt wasn't going either.

However, my aunt's family will be going, and I will also be bringing several young ladies from the mansion, Baoyu, and Master Xin. According to my eldest aunt, the real guest is actually Master Xin.

Wang Xifeng was delighted that her uncle wanted to see Master Xin, knowing that her uncle would be pleased with Master Xin's talent.

Thinking of this, Wang Xifeng couldn't help but want to go to Tubi Manor. Her uncle had a very strong personality, which most people would probably find hard to accept. However, her uncle was selfless and, although strong-willed, was also very generous.

Many things need to be kept in your own hands before they can be bestowed upon those below you.

Wang Xifeng was used to it since childhood, and she did the same thing in the Jia family. She didn't think her uncle was wrong, but she was afraid that Wang Xin was unaware of it, so she thought of revealing a little about it and telling Xinye the benefits of it.

Just as she stood up, Wang Xifeng saw herself in the mirror, then suddenly stopped, paused for a moment, reached for her makeup box, and then stopped in mid-air. "What am I thinking?"

Wang Xifeng came to her senses, no longer hesitated, got up and left. She was, after all, the second mistress of the Jia family, a proper young lady from a respectable family.

They arrived at the village and encountered several old women from Tubishan Village.

Several old women were playing cards when Wang Xifeng saw them. The old women were flustered, fearing that the Second Mistress would punish them. Wang Xifeng glared at them but ignored them. Although the old women were from the Jia family, she knew that Master Xin was kind to his servants and didn't pay much attention to the old women.

Since that's the case, Wang Xifeng didn't want to be the villain.

Several old women breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the second mistress had let them go, and they all stepped forward to offer their concern and care.

Wang Xifeng casually asked, "What is Master Xin doing in the manor?" As she asked, she walked inside, not intending to linger.

Several old women, however, became interested.

"Second Madam, you don't know, that Master Xin is a real man, not just a pretty face. He practices swordsmanship in the garden every day, sometimes for half a day at a time. He's really living up to his reputation."

"This is utter nonsense, what rubbish is this?" Wang Xifeng said with a laugh.

The old women dared to say anything, and when they talked about what happened that night, it wasn't that they were making a fuss; they simply didn't know that women could call out like that. Ping'er, that girl, couldn't possibly understand. Wang Xifeng wasn't unfamiliar with crude language; in fact, she was quite adept at it. But hearing the old women's words, for some reason, Wang Xifeng felt a surge of shame and couldn't help but spit.

As he fled, he said, "You old geezers, you spout nonsense every day. Be careful, or I'll tear your mouths apart."

Seeing the Second Madam leave in a disheveled state, the old women felt a great sense of accomplishment. It was a bit strange; they hadn't expected the Second Madam to be so thin-skinned. It shouldn't be like this; she wasn't a bride. Wasn't it normal for them to say a few risqué things behind the men's backs?

"This is really going to be a disaster." Wang Xifeng was speechless at those old women. Master Xin was too lenient. After calming down, Wang Xifeng went into the courtyard.

"Second Grandma."

Qingwen was drying flowers in the garden. After they were dried, she ground them into powder to make soap. When she saw Wang Xifeng, she quickly greeted her.

Wang Xifeng casually smoothed out the flower petals that had been blown up by the wind in the winnowing basket, her movements practiced, and asked with a smile, "Where is Master Xin?"

"Master Xin and Sister Ping'er are inside." Qingwen gestured with her chin towards the back of her head.

Because of what the old women had just said, Wang Xifeng immediately connected the dots and couldn't help but whisper, "What are those two doing in the house during the day?"

Qingwen, unaware of Wang Xifeng's meaning, simply said, "Master Xin has something he needs Sister Ping's help with."

This must be a reason to fool Qingwen and send her away. Thinking of this, Wang Xifeng went into the room. Ping'er was someone she had given to Xinye. Just a few days ago, Ping'er had been keeping it a secret from her.

Didn't he just get caught? Firstly, he was somewhat dissatisfied with Ping'er's deception, and secondly, he wanted to settle the matter. Now that he had caught the two of them, Xinye couldn't just wash his hands of it and deny everything, could he?

With her own agenda in mind, Wang Xifeng ignored Qingwen, who didn't think much of it and continued with her work.

Wang Xifeng arrived at the door without greeting anyone, and directly lifted the gauze curtain and rushed into the room. Seeing the scene inside, she found Ping'er alone in the outer room, which was not what she had expected, and she looked disappointed.

Ping'er initially thought it was Qingwen who had come in, but then she felt something was wrong. She looked up and saw that it was Wang Xifeng. She quickly smiled and went forward to greet her.

Although she had guessed wrong, the matter with Xinye was true. Wang Xifeng's gaze was drawn to Ping'er's appearance. Her skin was smooth and moisturized, and her eyes were bright. She was clearly radiant from being pampered.

Ping'er was already a beautiful woman, and now she's even more stunning. She must have met a good man, unlike me.

Wang Xifeng felt disappointed inside, but she put on a brave face.

Hearing the commotion outside, Wang Xin went out and saw Wang Xifeng. His eyes lit up when he saw Wang Xifeng's voluptuous figure.

In her early twenties, she was at the peak of her youth, yet she had the air of a young woman in her prime. Having given birth to a daughter, she possessed curves in all the right places, and from an appreciative perspective, she was indeed a sight to behold.

"Feng girl, what brings you here? Please have a seat." Wang Xin said with a smile.

When Wang Xin came out and sat down at the round table, Wang Xifeng sat down as well and said with a smile, "Aren't we going to the Wang family tomorrow? That's why I came to check on things."

Wang Xin smiled, guessing Wang Xifeng's purpose in coming. He abandoned his initial politeness and said familiarly, "What's there to see?"

Because Wang Xifeng was distracted by those old women outside, she lost her composure and didn't know where to begin with what she had prepared. So she reorganized her words. She couldn't just tell Wang Xin to give way to his uncle, as that would offend Wang Xin's pride.

Ping'er believed that she knew Second Madam best and guessed that Second Madam had something to say, so she quietly went out on her own initiative.

Wang Xifeng was stunned for a moment, watching Ping'er leave. When she turned around, she met Wang Xin's gaze, who was staring at her. The atmosphere suddenly became quiet as the two were alone in the room.

Even the usually shrewish Wang Xifeng was flustered at this moment.

Because they were so close, Wang Xin could clearly smell the fragrance emanating from Wang Xifeng, her beautiful and supple neck glistening with moisture, and below that, her clothes obscured her view.

Feeling Wang Xin's gaze, Wang Xifeng became smug and regained her composure, smiling as she said, "I'm going to my uncle's house tomorrow, so I came to talk to Master Xin about it."

So that's what it was about. It seems Wang Xifeng didn't know. Wang Xin understood, which wasn't surprising. Wang Xifeng only cared about matters within the Jia family, and her relationship with Wang Ziteng was kept relatively private; there was no public conflict between them.

However, there was no need for Wang Xifeng to know. It wouldn't do her any good; it would only add to her troubles. So Wang Xin neither told Wang Xifeng nor rejected her kindness.

Wang Xifeng was initially worried that Wang Xin had a bad temper, but things went so smoothly. After finishing her conversation, she felt it was inappropriate to be alone in a room with Master Xin, so she got up to leave.

Wang Xin escorted Wang Xifeng to the door, and only turned back when he could no longer see her figure.

(End of this chapter)