Qin Yining and Sun Shi returned to Xingning Garden and immediately went to check on the injuries of Nanny Jin, Cai Ju, and Cai Lan.
The coarse servant woman in charge of punishment, following the old dowager’s instructions, hadn’t gone easy on them. With a total of fifty strokes to be administered, Qin Yining had returned just as they were halfway through. Fortunately, the servant woman wasn’t trying to kill anyone—otherwise, striking the tailbone and lumbar spine could paralyze someone with just one blow. Even so, over twenty strokes were enough to make all three suffer terribly.
Cai Ju and Cai Lan were young and fared somewhat better.
But Nanny Jin, with her old bones, suffered the most. Not only was her aging body less resilient than a young person’s, but she had always been a respected figure in the mansion. This time, to be pressed down and beaten in the alley by the hanging flower gate, with so many eyes watching—it truly stripped away both her face and dignity.
The injuries of all three caused high fevers, with Nanny Jin’s being particularly severe.
Bingtang and the physician carefully examined all three, applied medicine, and went to brew medicinal decoctions.
Sun Shi crouched by the sickbed, tightly gripping Nanny Jin’s hand: “Wet nurse, you absolutely cannot have anything happen to you. Among those who came out of the mansion with me, I only have you left by my side. It’s all because I’m useless that you’ve been implicated.” As she spoke, tears began streaming down her face.
Nanny Jin’s lips were dry, her tongue barely able to move. Lying on the bed, she struggled to turn her neck and managed to say with difficulty: “Madam, don’t cry. This slave is fine.”
Her voice was so weak it seemed she might pass away at any moment, frightening Sun Shi into even more torrential tears.
Qin Yining brought a folding stool for Sun Shi, helped her sit down, and handed her a damp cloth to wipe her face. Then she crouched by the bed to meet Nanny Jin’s gaze at eye level, grasping her hand.
“Nanny Jin, rest assured. Father has now given me the authority tokens. During this period when I’m managing the household, I will certainly seek justice for you. Those gossiping troublemakers in the inner quarters won’t be spared either. You just focus on recovering—not only for my mother’s sake, but for your own as well. Though the world is in chaos, as long as I’m here for even one day, I’ll fight for you all for that day and will never abandon you.”
Nanny Jin was moved to tears, her dry, hoarse voice saying: “This slave thanks Fourth Miss. During these days, Madam will probably lack trusted people to serve her, so Miss will need to be especially attentive.”
“Rest assured, I’ve arranged for maids from Shuoren Study to serve her—all trustworthy people.”
Only then did Nanny Jin nod: “That’s good then.”
Being advanced in years and severely injured, Nanny Jin soon fell into unconsciousness.
Qin Yining instructed Bingtang: “Take good care of them.”
“Miss, rest assured. I may not be capable of other things, but this won’t be difficult for me.”
Qin Yining then called Ji Yun to a secluded area outside and spoke in low tones: “Now that times are about to change, I’m afraid the Qin family will be watched by countless interested parties. Your carrier pigeons can no longer be used from now on, or it might bring fatal disaster.”
Ji Yun was startled and quickly nodded: “Miss thinks thoroughly. What you say is absolutely right. From now on, this slave will definitely be cautious.”
Qin Yining nodded.
After sitting in the side room to drink some tea and rest briefly, someone outside reported: “Fourth Miss, the steward women and wives have arrived.”
“Have them all go to the main hall. I’ll be there immediately.”
“Yes.”
Qin Yining stood up. Song Lan immediately brought the lake-blue plain brocade jacket they had brought earlier and served Qin Yining in changing into it. She also re-arranged her long hair into a chignon, securing it with a silver hairpin of butterflies among flowers adorned with pearl tassels. The pearl tassels hung behind her ear, echoing the pearl earrings and casting elegant, soft light—simple yet dignified.
Qin Yining also deliberately applied rouge and eyebrow powder from Jiao Rong Workshop.
She usually didn’t use such cosmetics, preferring only some balm for skincare. Today, fearing her youth might not command enough authority, she put some thought into her appearance. Her willow-leaf eyebrows were drawn with an upward slant extending to her temples, and with rose-red rouge applied, her entire face brightened—beautiful but not seductive, adding several degrees of stern presence.
“Miss, let this slave accompany you,” Song Lan said as she arranged the white gauze shawl for Qin Yining and respectfully presented a crabapple-shaped silk fan with both hands.
Qin Yining took the fan and picked up Er’Bai, who had been lying on the table with wide black eyes watching her, holding him in her arms and gently stroking his fur.
“You’re thoughtful. Even if you hadn’t mentioned it today, I would have called you along. I can only recall the names of those veteran servants in the mansion, but I don’t understand the finer details thoroughly enough. You can help me observe from the side.”
Song Lan smiled and nodded upon hearing this.
Usually when Qin Yining left the mansion, she brought Bingtang and Ji Yun more often, while Song Lan and Qiu Lu had no complaints, because Qin Yining was very good at utilizing people’s talents. Going out required protection, so naturally bringing Ji Yun, who knew martial arts, was more convenient. When discussing matters at home, she mostly sought Song Lan, who was intelligent, resourceful, and understood everyone in the mansion. Qiu Lu was clever and meticulous but had a reserved, quiet personality, so important items were always entrusted to her for safekeeping. As for the qin and chess set gifted by father, Qin Yining treated Yao Qin and Yu Qi as masters who taught music and chess, always treating them with courtesy.
Thus, though there were many senior maids in Shuoren Study, they all got along harmoniously, with no issue of anyone stealing another’s thunder.
After some thought, Qin Yining also had Ji Yun carry the authority tokens, and the three of them headed to the main hall.
The steward women and wives from various quarters and courtyards were now in the courtyard in front of the main hall—over a dozen people gathering in small groups, whispering among themselves.
Learning that the authority tokens had actually been given to Fourth Miss by the lord today, they were both surprised and somewhat apprehensive.
Fourth Miss was famously known as a wild tyrant, extremely fierce, the type to start hitting people at the slightest provocation. Even when Huining Miss was around, she would beat her whenever she felt like it—what more them?
“Fourth Miss is coming,” announced a young maid loudly at the moon gate.
The women and wives quickly stood properly, unconsciously stealing glances toward the moon gate.
They saw Fourth Miss holding a palm-sized little rabbit, accompanied by two beautiful maids, walking slowly toward them. With the green shrubs as background and the white moon gate as accompaniment, the master and two servants approaching together were each as graceful as water chestnuts, making people unable to resist taking extra looks. However, when their gazes lingered on Qin Yining’s face, the servant women all instinctively lowered their heads.
This person clearly wasn’t angry and even had a gentle smile, yet they still felt the same nervousness as when facing the lord, afraid they might say or do something wrong.
Two second-class maids brought out an armchair from inside and placed it under the main hall’s corridor, setting a black lacquered tall square table beside it and serving tea.
Qin Yining sat upright, placed the well-behaved Er’Bai on her lap, gently stroking his fur while observing the dozen or so people under the corridor, then slowly began to speak.
“I’ve asked you mothers and sisters-in-law to come today because you must all know that this mansion will be under my temporary management for a few days.”
“Yes,” the servant women responded in unison.
“I’m young and inexperienced, yet father has entrusted me with this important responsibility. During this period ahead, I’ll inevitably need everyone’s assistance and support.”
“We wouldn’t dare.”
Qin Yining smiled and said: “You’re all veteran members of the mansion, so I won’t say much about the rules—just emphasizing a few points. First, from today onward, unless there’s business, no one in the mansion is allowed to wander outside. It’s strictly forbidden to privately hide, carry, or exchange items. Those watching the gates must keep careful watch—not only opening locks at mao hour and locking up at xu hour, but also keeping the gates of each courtyard locked during the day, preventing unauthorized people from freely entering, exiting, walking around, and passing items or messages.”
In such a large estate, servants inevitably became lazy and cunning, skipping work or wandering between courtyards. The rules Qin Yining proposed weren’t unusual—they were what servants should have been following all along. But having grown accustomed to laxity, suddenly hearing these requirements made everyone feel somewhat resentful.
“I know some of you must be dissatisfied. But that’s fine—I happen to have intentions of ‘pruning branches and trimming leaves.’ If any of you wish to leave the marquis mansion, go ahead and violate the rules! If I catch you, it’s twenty strokes and expulsion. If someone catches a rule-breaker and reports it to me in person, they’ll receive a generous reward of twenty taels of silver.”
At these words, the servant women couldn’t help but shudder. This miss was indeed as formidable as the rumors said. However, the reward of twenty taels was truly attractive—they couldn’t save twenty taels in a whole year.
“Second, from today onward, the mansion’s security must be tripled. Whether in the inner or outer courtyards, those on night duty absolutely cannot drink or gamble! If I catch anyone drinking or gambling and neglecting their duties, once caught, it’s twenty strokes and immediate expulsion. Additionally, detailed records must be kept of who is on duty—which time period, who is guarding what position—all must be recorded in detail and submitted to me daily for inspection and verification.”
“For those whose shifts have normally ended but must work extra due to my orders, they’ll receive triple pay for overtime hours, and those on night patrol will get an additional late-night meal.”
Upon hearing this, the servant women looked at each other. There had never been such a thing as triple pay for emergency overtime plus a late-night meal in the mansion. Though this miss seemed formidable, she was clearly someone who believed in clear rewards and punishments.
“The mansion’s original rules remain unchanged. I’ll hold court daily in Xingning Garden’s main hall, starting at chen zheng (8 AM) to hear about the previous night’s events and plan what needs attention going forward. Those coming to report, collect items, or purchase things should try to come at this time to receive authority tokens. If you can’t make this time and it’s not urgent, postpone it until shen shi (3 PM). Have you all remembered this?”
“We slaves understand,” the servant women responded in unison.
Qin Yining stood up, holding Er’Bai and slowly pacing as she said: “During my period of household management, let’s all work diligently at our duties and maintain each other’s dignity. As long as no mistakes are made, I don’t want to create trouble and gain a worse reputation. But you also know my temper isn’t great—if someone truly commits an offense, don’t think you can luckily escape my notice. I know how people below and outside discuss me. I already have a bad reputation, so I’m not afraid of it.”
“We slaves will respectfully follow Miss’s instructions.” After this speech, everyone had become quite convinced of Qin Yining’s authority.
Seeing everyone’s response, Qin Yining’s tense, rigid posture relaxed slightly.
She had never managed so many people before. Taking command in crisis, she could only give orders based on what she thought of, not knowing if she was doing things correctly. Now seeing that everyone seemed obedient, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Outside the moon gate, Sun Shi saw Qin Yining handling things with ease and couldn’t help but smile with emotion and relief before returning to care for Nanny Jin.
Next, Qin Yining listened to reports from various steward women and wives, gave some instructions, and sent people to wait quietly outside the palace gates for news from Qin Huaiyuan.
Little did she know that her every move today had already reached the ears of the various quarters, and also to Second Uncle and Third Uncle in the outer courtyard.