Though Hexian’s illness was nine times out of ten an exaggeration by Fifth Young Madam, the surface proprieties couldn’t be neglected. After paying respects to the Grand Madam and reporting to Madam Xu at Qingping Garden, Fifth Young Madam led Seventh Miss into Leshan Residence’s small flower hall. Only after hastily ordering someone to fetch a physician for Hexian did she smile and beckon to a small maid beside her.

“Little Fuchun, come here.”

Having observed Fifth Young Madam for so long, Seventh Miss naturally knew that her most trusted maids were Little Fuchun and Little Luowen. When it came to household affairs, these two maids could make thirty to forty percent of the decisions for her. She smiled.

“Sister-in-law truly dotes on me.” Seventh Miss praised Fifth Young Madam. “Knowing I’m suddenly taking over household affairs and will surely be completely in the dark, you’re even willing to leave Little Fuchun with me.”

Fifth Young Madam didn’t decline modestly but unusually smiled until her eyes creased, accepting Seventh Miss’s praise. “What kind of talk is that, Sixth Sister-in-law? As one family, we must naturally support each other. Though you’re clever, you’ve just arrived and may not be able to handle those cunning old matrons. With Little Fuchun here, at least she can help you maintain control.”

The Xu family was after all a great household. However fiercely the sisters-in-law fought privately, if they made mistakes on the surface and angered Duke Pingguo, even if Seventh Miss was the one who lost most face, Fifth Young Madam would inevitably suffer collateral damage. Both sisters-in-law understood this principle.

Fifth Young Madam exchanged a few more pleasantries with Seventh Miss, then unfastened a small key from her person, placed it on the table, and smiled. “This is the small key to the household’s master ledger. Keep it, Sixth Sister-in-law, so if you need to retrieve something, you won’t have to find me to get it.”

The household mistress naturally always had keys, tokens, and account books nearby, generally kept by trusted maids. Only the master ledger recording the estate’s annual income and expenditures was carefully stored, brought out by the mistress herself only at year’s end for reconciliation. This small key represented far more significance than just one account book.

Seventh Miss’s pupils contracted. She looked at Fifth Young Madam with a smile, picked up the brass key and examined it carefully.

Fifth Young Madam’s eyes revealed a trace of amusement.

But unexpectedly, after merely examining it, Seventh Miss smiled and pushed the key back in front of Fifth Young Madam.

“I’m just helping Fifth Sister-in-law manage the household for a few days. Even if you gave me such a master key, I wouldn’t dare accept it—please don’t blame me for overstepping, but with Mother and Grandmother above us, we younger generation are merely helping manage. Into whose hands the master key should pass must depend on the two elders’ wishes. How would we juniors dare conduct private transactions? Don’t you agree, Fifth Sister-in-law?”

The small flower hall immediately fell silent.

These words were open and aboveboard, transparently righteous, subtly revealing Seventh Miss’s status as the heir’s wife, making Fifth Young Madam seem rather petty by comparison. Not only claiming illness at this crucial moment and dumping the burden on Seventh Miss, but even scheming like this before leaving… Sometimes when people schemed too much, others watching felt rather chilled.

Though the servants’ faces showed little expression, the faint approval in their demeanor was easily discernible.

Fifth Young Madam suddenly had nothing to say.

Was this concubine-born Yang daughter really raised in the same family as her sister?

After exhausting every method and digging countless traps, she wouldn’t fall into a single one. Yet her words were sharp as blades, and her skin thicker than city walls… Dealing with this person was like using chopsticks to pick up a glass marble—difficult enough to begin with, and the marble was covered in oil!

She forced a smile, having no heart to banter with Seventh Miss. She merely glanced at Little Fuchun, then rose to take her leave. “I sent someone for Doctor Zhong early this morning—he’s probably taking pulses by now… Sixth Sister-in-law, please don’t blame me. As mothers, you understand my concern for Hexian.”

With resentment in her heart, even her parting words carried hidden barbs.

Seventh Miss acted as if she hadn’t heard, seeing Fifth Young Madam out of the small flower hall with a face full of spring breeze. By then, Lixia and Bailu had also arrived together.

With these two senior maids present, Seventh Miss’s heart settled. Though Shangyuan also attended her, she still lacked some experience. For many matters, only having these two handle them gave Seventh Miss peace of mind.

She swept her gaze over the several maids in the room and sighed silently: what a pity Lichun had such an unfortunate fate, dying in childbirth two years ago, otherwise…

“These are two maids from my side.” Suppressing the slight melancholy in her heart, she smiled as she introduced them to Little Fuchun. “There are so many people in the mansion, you’re probably not very familiar with them. These next few days you’ll inevitably work together, so get acquainted.”

Little Fuchun immediately lowered her eyes submissively and came forward to bow to Lixia and Bailu. “Greetings to both elder sisters.”

Seventh Miss took the opportunity to carefully observe Little Fuchun.

This was a timid little maid, wearing a spring dress of pale pink and lotus root white, making her appear even more fragile. Her voice wasn’t loud at all, only slightly louder than a mosquito’s buzz. Compared to Little Luowen, the other steward maid beside Fifth Young Madam, she had already lost considerably in presence. From Seventh Miss’s observations these past days, she only excelled in meticulousness. Compared to the loud-voiced, energetic Little Luowen, her capabilities were also somewhat inferior.

Of course, she was still just a regular maid, while Luowen was a senior maid who had “shown her face” and served as a concubine—their confidence levels were different… Women who could get ahead in the inner quarters, whether servants or mistresses, should never be underestimated.

“I often see Fifth Sister-in-law working with account books, tokens, and keys by her side,” she asked Little Fuchun with a smile, “do you keep all these things?”

Little Fuchun quickly knelt to answer Seventh Miss. “Replying to the Young Master’s Wife, normally Luowen Sister keeps them in the cabinet behind the small flower hall—all locked up. Because Miss Hexian fell ill and the courtyard can’t spare her, Luowen Sister wasn’t summoned to the garden. But our Young Madam was just mentioning this matter—someone should deliver them shortly.”

Though her voice was soft, her speech was clear and well-organized. She also explained Luowen’s absence quite clearly. Seventh Miss nodded slightly, glanced at the self-chiming clock in the corner, and seeing there was still half an hour before Fifth Young Madam’s usual time for handling household affairs, smiled and said, “I’ll go back and change clothes. Little Fuchun, you sit here and chat with Bailu and the others.”

She returned to Mingde Hall with Shangyuan and instructed the maids, “Find me something with a more solemn color tone, but the style doesn’t need to be too formal.”

She also took down her casual drooping-horse bun, properly arranged a spiral bun before the mirror, added some gold ornaments, checked herself in the mirror from various angles, and was finally somewhat satisfied. She couldn’t help sighing, “What a pity that after Qiqiao no longer attends me closely, we still need to find a skilled maid specifically for hairdressing.”

Though Shangyuan and the others had the ability to manage inner residence affairs, they truly lacked skill in hairdressing. Hearing this, they all laughed. “We really should start looking.”

As they were talking, Xu Fengjia entered the west three rooms. Seeing Seventh Miss, he raised his eyebrows in surprise. “I thought you’d already be busy in Leshan Residence—I didn’t expect the Young Madam to still have time to come back and dress up.”

Seventh Miss rolled her eyes at him in the mirror, deliberately putting on a grave expression and asking solemnly, “Does it look intimidating?” Before finishing, she couldn’t help laughing lightly—she normally always spoke in soft, gentle tones. Now deliberately making such an expression felt extremely unnatural.

Xu Fengjia was even more supportive. After a good bout of laughter, he wiped his eyes and asked Seventh Miss, “Fifth Sister-in-law suddenly dumping this burden on you… are you afraid?”

Though phrased as a question, his tone was quite certain, and his eyes and brows contained subtle amusement, making this usually blazingly intense young man radiate warm comfort.

Seventh Miss gave him a brilliant smile.

Over the past month or so, she’d discovered that smiling at Xu Fengjia was a very easy thing.

“You’re asking when you know the answer?” she replied quietly, then took a deep breath. “Fifth Sister-in-law’s move is actually quite a good opportunity for us.”

Fifth Young Madam’s sudden abandonment of her duties was naturally a naked attempt to make things difficult for the sixth branch, trying to catch Seventh Miss off guard. In Leshan Residence, Seventh Miss had no choice but to steel herself and accept the burden she’d thrust upon her.

But this difficulty was also an opportunity for the sixth branch: such treatment was naturally extremely improper. Of course, the several major figures in the upper echelons of the Xu family couldn’t be bothered calculating with Fifth Young Madam about this now, but as long as Seventh Miss demonstrated household management capabilities equal to those of a legitimate primary wife, even if Duke Pingguo couldn’t see through the injustice involved, Madam Xu would make it clear to him.

Of course, if Seventh Miss failed, there was nothing more to say—her household management duties would definitely be postponed until everyone in the Xu family had forgotten her failure. Even if Xu Fengjia could tolerate her failure, Madam Xu and the Grand Madam would probably vent their disappointment on Seventh Miss.

This battle came suddenly but was also long premeditated. Seventh Miss could only win, not lose.

Since that was the case, there was nothing to fear.

Xu Fengjia nodded, smiled slightly at Seventh Miss’s reflection in the mirror. Those phoenix eyes that blazed hot enough to melt glass now held complete tenderness.

“Don’t be afraid.” His hand pressed on Seventh Miss’s shoulder as he looked with her at the young woman in the mirror. “Opportunities don’t come just once. Miss one, there’s always the next.”

This consolation wasn’t sweet at all—rather, it was so practical it rather spoiled the mood.

But it was practical enough to give Seventh Miss great peace of mind: she was now certain that even if she failed this time, Xu Fengjia wouldn’t blame her.

She took a deep breath, straightened her back, turned boldly to look at Xu Fengjia, allowing her gaze to tangle with his for a moment. “Rest assured, you men have your battlefield… we women also have ours.”

She lowered her head again, smiling somewhat bashfully. “Though you’re always victorious, I’ve never lost either!”

#

When Seventh Miss stepped into the small flower hall, it was already a quarter past the hour of the snake. Not only had the dozen or so steward matrons all arrived, most had been waiting for nearly half an hour.

Seeing Seventh Miss enter, everyone rose and bowed properly, greeting Seventh Miss, “Sixth Young Madam, good health.”

Seventh Miss nodded with a smile and glanced at Little Fuchun.

Even Little Fuchun knew to call her “Young Master’s Wife”… This group of steward matrons were truly not a single easy lamp to deal with.

She sat down in the circular chair Fifth Young Madam customarily used, picked up the tea bowl at hand, lowered her head and gently sipped some tea, also giving the steward matrons a chance to size her up.

Suddenly parachuting in as a replacement, the new supervisor’s first appearance was naturally very important. Especially since Seventh Miss usually sat beside Fifth Young Madam watching her manage the household—one couldn’t say the group was unfamiliar with her. How to transform that usually amiable face into a supervisor’s mask was well worth some effort.

Changing clothes, deliberately arriving late, even this moment of lowering her head to drink tea—all were meant to create an aura of authority… Without being this affected, these matrons with their all-encompassing methods probably wouldn’t take her seriously.

Seventh Miss set down her tea bowl, raised her head to reveal a warm smile, and examined these steward matrons one by one.

Steward matrons in old mansions were the most difficult to offend. These people could freely enter and exit the residence, often serving as the mistress’s eyes and hands. Just look at how Nanny Liang could privately send Seventh Miss a large package of precious medicines without the Grand Madam’s knowledge—this showed that this group was definitely not something a novice could easily manipulate. Those with lesser methods would probably be manipulated themselves without even knowing it.

Wherever her gaze fell, some people lowered their eyes submissively, not daring to meet her eyes, showing complete obedience. Some boldly returned her glance before playing quail, while others’ gazes flickered away on contact…

After this mutual observation, the mental states of these eleven steward matrons had already left initial impressions on Seventh Miss.

“With the family celebration imminent, Miss Hexian has fallen ill. Fifth Sister-in-law’s heart is concerned for her daughter, so these next few days she has no mind for management.” She gracefully explained the circumstances. “Grandmother is elderly, Mother’s health isn’t good—whether forced into service or not, Seventh Miss can only steel herself to help Fifth Sister-in-law manage for a couple of days.”

Because of Duke Pingguo Xu Heng’s relationship, Seventh Miss’s given name had never been used openly in the Xu family. Usually calling herself Little Seven was before elders; before servants, she could only carefully call herself Seventh Miss. Just this caution alone was commendable.

“I know I’m young and lacking in virtue. These next few days there are many matters, but if everyone follows established precedents and gets through the duties safely and smoothly, Mother and Fifth Sister-in-law will naturally reward you.” Seventh Miss smiled especially at Little Fuchun, then continued. “Everyone here is a respectable matron. These next few days, please maintain your spirits. If any real mistakes occur and implicate everyone shamefully, it won’t be pleasant to face each other afterward. Isn’t that right?”

These few sentences contained infinite implications. Everyone listening had indescribable feelings. Seventh Miss then instructed Lixia, “Go to Qingping Garden and ask Old Nanny to come. This is a major family matter—how can Mother’s side have no one to oversee it?”

Several matrons summoned their courage to glance at Seventh Miss. Seeing that though her expression was gentle, she was dressed severely and looked more dignified than her usual youthful girl appearance. When Seventh Miss’s gaze fixed on them slightly, they all shrank back, not daring to look directly.

The atmosphere in the room immediately grew oppressive, as if iron ingots pressed down from above, making the steward matrons’ backs bend more than usual.

Seventh Miss swept her gaze over everyone again. She smiled with satisfaction.

She nodded at the first middle-aged steward matron on her left. “How should I address you?”

“Replying to the Young Madam, everyone calls this servant Lin Shan’s wife.” The steward matron stepped out and bowed, answering respectfully.

“For this grand event, what are you in charge of?”

“This servant manages the storage, retrieval, safekeeping, and placement of gold and silver vessels.”

“What do you usually manage?”

“The same duties.”

Seventh Miss turned her head to ask Little Fuchun, “In Fifth Sister-in-law’s accounts, how are missing or broken gold and silver vessels handled?”

Little Fuchun didn’t dare delay. She thought for a moment, then replied somewhat uncertainly, “If household members broke it, the official residence pays silver to melt it down and reforge it. The steward is fined monthly wages. If it’s lost, the steward compensates according to the registry.”

Seventh Miss pondered slightly, then asked Lin Shan’s wife, “How many people do you have under you?”

As she questioned them one by one in detail, Shangyuan was already accustomed to this, grinding ink and wielding her brush like flying to write a full page. Everyone couldn’t help wanting to look but didn’t dare, craning their necks nervously—the scene was quite comical.

After Seventh Miss finished questioning, she took the roster from Shangyuan’s hands, looked it over, then asked Lin Shan’s wife with a smile, “Can you read?”

Lin Shan’s wife, completely unnerved by this unprecedented display, gathered her courage to nod and mumbled, “I know a few characters.”

These steward matrons’ literacy levels were indeed higher than ordinary servants. Seventh Miss nodded, had Shangyuan show her the document, and smiled. “Everything you said is correct, isn’t it?”

Looking at it, Lin Shan’s wife saw that Shangyuan had created a file about her, writing down her responsibilities and duties, along with specific detailed jurisdictions and such. Reading and guessing her way through, she found nothing wrong and nodded. “Yes, that’s correct.”

Seventh Miss nodded and smiled again. “You may sit first.”

She then turned to the second steward matron on the left and began. “How should I address you?”

After this round of questioning, Old Nanny was already sitting below Seventh Miss drinking her second round of tea when Seventh Miss finally finished questioning all eleven steward women. She didn’t speak for a while, just lowered her head to leaf through these documents. After a long time, she raised her head and smiled. “Good. Now I want you all to think—on the morning of the grand birthday at the hour of the snake, what will you be doing?”

This was a strange question. For a while, no one answered. Seventh Miss wasn’t anxious, propping her cheek as she looked at each steward matron. After a long moment, Lin Shan’s wife finally gathered courage to say, “Leading people to open the small storeroom door to retrieve gold and silver vessels?”

Seventh Miss nodded, then pointed at another steward matron and asked, “And you? Where will you be and what will you be doing?”

The one called upon was Wang Yide’s wife—she specifically managed the reception women welcoming guests everywhere. This middle-aged woman wiped the sweat from her forehead, forcing a smile. “This servant should be waiting inside the second gate. When guests arrive, I’ll direct the women to come forward and guide them, each to their position.”

With these two leading the way, everyone became animated, speaking one after another. They used words to “rehearse” the scene of what everyone should be doing on the grand birthday. Under Seventh Miss’s clear guidance—”At noon when the banquet begins, where are you and what are you doing?” “At the hour of the dragon seeing off guests, where are you…”—threads became distinct, responsibilities and authority clearly delineated. This sorting made the entire situation clear and comprehensible.

Seventh Miss glanced at the self-chiming clock, then asked Lin Shan’s wife with a smile, “If someone under you makes a mistake, what do you do? For example, if someone breaks a golden lotus bowl and dents the bottom.”

Lin Shan’s wife smiled. “I would naturally replace it with another, then deal with that person’s punishment after the event.”

Seventh Miss nodded and smiled again. “Yes, this is indeed the arrangement you experienced matrons would make.”

She casually sipped some tea, then instructed, “But from today onward, you all have one more task. When anyone in the household makes a mistake—if the matter isn’t serious, punish as you should and handle as you must—but afterward, register the incident, the disposition, and the people involved in the ledger and send it to me for filing. You matrons can all read, so this task isn’t difficult. I think we should start keeping these records from today.”

She swept her gaze over everyone again before smiling. “Of course, Fifth Sister-in-law has her rules, and my rules will only apply these few days. I must ask you matrons to accommodate me… That said, if any problems arise that the matrons didn’t register and explain, but the matter later escalates to me, I’ll have no choice but to investigate thoroughly to see why the matrons didn’t register it and instead let it become such an awkward situation.”

Seventh Miss still spoke in soft, gentle tones, but the false smile in her eyes had already cooled. Her large, dark pupils were like two unfathomably deep, cold pools, with an inexplicable imposing force emanating outward. Over Leshan Residence’s already heavy atmosphere, she had blown another layer of frost.

Old Nanny was the first to draw a sharp breath.

This Seventh Miss truly kept her depths hidden… Even trying to estimate her capabilities as highly as possible, they’d still underestimated this person.