The next day, Qin Shuying accompanied Qin Yongtao to the government office, where all the properties in the capital were properly transferred. There were still some properties in the south that couldn’t be transferred immediately.
Through all these comings and goings, Qin Yongtao naturally no longer looked down on this niece as much as before. He was quite curious in his heart: How could this niece, who never stepped out of the main gate or crossed the second threshold, understand legal documents and account books? Could she truly be as naturally intelligent as Third Brother had been?
Over these years, Xu Shi had either sold or rented out properties. Now, Qin Shuying still had six shops and over ten estates in her hands. Compared to three years ago, these assets had naturally shrunk considerably. Moreover, among the people currently in those shops, except for four shopkeepers whose indenture contracts were in Qin Shuying’s hands, almost everyone else had been replaced by people Xu Shi had installed later, or had already become Xu Shi’s people.
Qin Yongtao said to Qin Shuying, “Seventh Girl, your uncle has been busy in the past and showed you too little care. In the future, if you have any matters, just come find your uncle.”
Beneath her veiled hat, Qin Shuying didn’t need to hide her emotions and sneered coldly, though she said aloud, “Thank you for uncle’s concern! The First Madam has always been extremely good to your niece. Now that servants like Nanny Zhang who dared to bully their masters have been beaten to death, without such bold servants who oppress their masters, your niece’s days are naturally comfortable and peaceful.”
“That’s good!”
Qin Yongtao nodded and instructed those beside him to escort Qin Shuying back while he himself went to the Court of Judicial Review.
As the sun gradually set in the west, Qin Shuying looked back at Qin Yongtao’s retreating figure striding away, the cold sneer in her eyes never ceasing.
In her previous life, Qin Yongtao was full of righteous morality, always presenting himself as a stern father to Qin Yaoyao, teaching her to always put the family first, instructing her to uphold feminine virtues. After Qin Yaoyao learned about the affair between Qin Feifei and Lu Changxuan, it wasn’t that she hadn’t gone home to tell Xu Shi about it.
At the time, Xu Shi had said this: “Second Girl, which man doesn’t have multiple wives and concubines? Rather than letting someone else benefit by becoming Changxuan’s concubine, wouldn’t it be better if it were your own sister? Feifei is gentle and well-mannered; she can help you maintain favor and also help you manage the household. This is something many people couldn’t even ask for.”
Qin Yongtao had been present at the time and said nothing, clearly agreeing with Xu Shi’s reasoning.
At that moment, Qin Yaoyao’s heart had grown half cold. In both the previous dynasty and the Great Zhou, whether in the imperial palace or great families, situations where sisters served the same husband were not unheard of.
But who ever considered these sisters’ feelings?
Who ever considered whether they themselves were willing?
In the following years, Qin Yaoyao had fully witnessed Qin Yongtao’s true hypocritical face.
In his eyes, there were only wealth and power.
Three years ago, when he went south to bring back Qin Shuying, Qin Yongtao had already embezzled much of the property left by Qin Yongzhou.
If he could be hypocritical and cunning even toward his own younger brother and biological daughter, could one really believe he would be genuinely good to a niece?
However, it was precisely his false benevolence that allowed her current self to take advantage.
If it were the original Qin Shuying facing this mess, she would indeed worry herself to white hair and ultimately still have to beg before Qin Yongtao and his wife. How could those shopkeepers be so easily subdued? Among the estate stewards, only three had their indenture contracts in her hands, while the rest were all arranged by Xu Shi—how could they listen to her?
Xu Shi was wrong. She was not that short-lived beautiful niece of his, but an evil spirit returned from the dark night to claim lives!
Three days later.
Qin Shuying moved to Yilan Garden. Zou Shi sent many people to help, and everything was organized within a day.
After all belongings were arranged, Nanny Fu, Hong Juan, Lu Ye, and Lan Chou checked everything over once more. The human trafficker had already brought a group of people and was waiting in the courtyard.
The trafficker’s surname was Luo, known as Nanny Luo. She was short and plump, with a smile before she even spoke. She flattered Qin Shuying thoroughly, while Qin Shuying maintained a faint smile and had Hong Juan serve her tea. In her previous life, she had dealt with such people—though they appeared lowly in status, it was best not to offend them.
Nanny Luo was indeed pleased: “Seventh Miss is so intelligent and clever, she will surely have great fortune and blessings in the future!”
Nanny Fu also wore a three-part smile. In the past, the young miss had looked down on such people most. If the master and mistress were present, there would be nothing wrong with the young miss acting this way—she was a noble young lady, how could she share a room with such crude and vulgar women? But now, circumstances were stronger than people. If the young miss remained aloof and proud, she would ultimately come to no good end.
Nanny Luo was not without propriety either. Seeing the timing was about right, she said, “Seventh Miss, I dare not delay your time. Please see if any catch your fancy?”
Nanny Fu said, “What words are these from Nanny Luo? Throughout the entire capital, who doesn’t know that Nanny Luo conducts business most fairly?”
After both sides discussed for a while, they settled on a list. The prices given were fair, and they agreed on the time for the next visit. Nanny Luo happily left with the remaining people, having sold a total of fifteen people.
A few people had been negotiated beforehand—a family of five in total. The woman was called Mi Luo, already twenty-five years old. Qin Shuying bought her entire family: husband, two sons, and one daughter.
Mi Luo had been bought by Qin Yaoyao a few years ago and was utterly loyal to her. After Qin Yaoyao was stripped of power, Mi Luo pleaded for her multiple times and secretly went to see Qin Yaoyao, angering Qin Feifei, who quickly had the entire family sold. Fortunately, Mi Luo had learned excellent skills from following Qin Yaoyao and was bought by merchants in the capital who valued her abilities, allowing her to remain in the capital.
A few days ago, Qin Shuying had pawned several precious jewelry pieces left by Long Shi to buy Mi Luo back, then went to great lengths to buy back her husband and sons. Fortunately, not much time had passed; otherwise, finding her husband and sons wouldn’t have been so easy.
Another was Ziteng, fourteen years old this year, the daughter of Qin Yaoyao’s maternal uncle. Uncle’s family had died in a fire when Qin Yaoyao was nineteen. At that time, the maternal aunt had already passed away, and Xu Shi had deliberately concealed the news. By the time Qin Yaoyao learned of it, Ziteng had already disappeared without a trace.
A few years later, Ziteng appeared in the capital, already serving as a maid in some household. She was being dragged by the hair across the ground and beaten in the street by her master, her shoes and socks kicked off, exposing her feet. The reason Qin Yaoyao recognized her at a glance was because Ziteng had six toes. Precisely because of this, she was considered an ominous person. Ordinary families wouldn’t buy her, and even if they did, she would mostly do menial labor.
At that time, people were coming and going on the street. By the time she had the carriage driver turn around, Ziteng had disappeared again. Shortly after, she had her accident and never saw Ziteng again. During this period, she had asked Nanny Fu’s husband and son to search with all their might for Ziteng on that street, and finally she had found her.
Seeing Ziteng standing before her with lowered head, completely lacking her former liveliness, loveliness, and cleverness, and remembering her uncle’s love for her, Qin Shuying couldn’t help but want to cry. But what could she say? That she was her cousin? No, the matter of rebirth couldn’t be told to anyone.
Suppressing her emotions, Qin Shuying instructed Nanny Fu to take them to the courtyard for instruction.
Ziteng would start as a third-class maid first, so others wouldn’t notice anything suspicious. Additionally, there were nine other maids, ranging from nine to thirteen years old. Most had been sold since childhood and didn’t know where their homes were or who their family members were.
Since Qin Shuying had bought the entire family, Mi Luo was naturally grateful. Having been arranged to serve at her side, she didn’t harbor much suspicion. As a servant, being able to reunite with her entire family was a lifelong wish. The young miss had given her the grace of rebirth, so she would naturally be utterly loyal, and the young miss could rest assured having her nearby.
As for how to handle Xu Shi’s questioning, Qin Shuying had already thought it through. Mi Luo’s family could all do business, and she happened to lack business personnel. Qin Yaoyao was already dead—toward this servant Mi Luo, Xu Shi would at most feel wariness and disgust.
After the instruction, Yilan Garden began its new arrangements.
Nanny Fu managed internal affairs, mainly responsible for Qin Shuying’s three daily meals, teaching the maids and managing the courtyard, and personnel arrangements. Nanny Mi managed external affairs, mainly accompanying Qin Shuying when going out and helping manage business.
Hong Juan and Lu Ye were first-class maids. Lan Chou, Zhihua, Zhishu, and Zhiqin were second-class maids, while the rest were third-class maids. Zhishu, Zhihua, and Zhiqin were all around twelve years old and had served as maids in wealthy households since childhood, so they didn’t need much effort to retrain.
Dear readers, this novel is a rebirth revenge story, and the revenge pace will be quite tight later on. However, revenge requires strength, personnel, connections, and preparation. Therefore, it needs gradual progression and foundation-laying.