In February, the morning light is slight. In the Zhaoxia Hall of Rongguo Mansion, Tang Bingxuan, the eldest daughter, was drowsy and was being waited on by servants and maids to dress and wash. The hot water soaked handkerchief wiped on her face, and she was also awake.
"Zhiqiu, my mother is not here today. Let's simply wear a low bun."
"Miss, even if your wife is not at home, you should dress up beautifully. You can rest assured that you will give it to your servant. I promise you will not delay in greeting Mrs. Tai."
There are four big servant girls in Chaoxia Yard, namely, spring, summer, autumn and winter. They are both 16 years old to know spring and summer, and 14 years old to know autumn and winter.
Zhichun is the oldest, careful and steady, cheerful and able to talk, and easy to deal with others. Tang Bingxuan usually takes Zhichun when she goes out, which has established Zhichun as the first servant in Zhaoxia Yard.
Zhixia has a quiet and cold personality, but as long as he speaks, he will always speak to the point. He is good at abacus and checks the accounts. He usually manages the warehouse and comings and goings in and out of the eldest lady in Zhaoxia Yard.
Zhiqiu is simple, likes beautiful things, is good at dressing up, and is responsible for the dress of the eldest lady in Chaoxia Yard.
Zhidong is good at cooking. Since the eldest daughter began to assist the steward Liu, the wife of the Duke of China, she has opened a small kitchen in the Zhaoxia Courtyard to take charge of the eldest daughter's diet.
After dressing up, Tang Bingxuan ate some cakes to cushion her stomach. Tang Bingxuan took the maid Zhichun to Pine and Crane Hall to greet Madam Shao.
Shao, the wife of Rongguo Mansion, is the eldest daughter of Rongfu eldest princess' mansion. The old Duke met by chance when he was young and fell in love with her at first sight.
After their marriage to the old country's public, the Shao family played zither and zither harmoniously. Four children: the eldest son Tang Jingyan; Second son Tang Jingyu; Young son Tang Jingrui; Little girl - Tang Jinglin.
The Pine and Crane Hall is close to the Chaoxia Courtyard. It's only half an hour's walk away.
When choosing the courtyard, Tang Bingxuan had always been optimistic that the Zhaoxia Courtyard was the closest to Mrs. Tai's courtyard. He could get up a quarter of an hour later if he got up early. He didn't choose the lagerstroemia crape myrtle Courtyard, which was larger in scale, and was praised by the elders as "giving way to sisters and having the style of elder sister".
Before arriving at the main room, a young maid had already asked the eldest lady to come in behind the curtain.
"Eldest lady, the old lady is still dressing up. Please sit down and drink a cup of hot tea first.". Mother Yao beside the old lady kindly held a cup of hot tea and put it at Tang Bingxuan's hand.
"Mom is really sweet, and I'm thirsty when I come here..." Tang Bingxuan smiled gently and chatted with Mom Yao.
Before long, the curtain of the door was lifted again, and Tang Bingqing, the second young lady, and Tang Bingyu, the third young lady, entered the room together. The three sisters saluted each other and sat down to talk in a low voice.
"Elder sister, I heard that next month my grandmother's birthday is going to see your husband." Tang Bingyu winked and whispered the news through the grapevine.
Tang Bingxuan knew about this news. Her mother, Liu Family, had told her a few days ago that her aunt would accompany her when she was born, not only to those who were friends in Kyoto, but also to her cousin Liu Family who was far away in Yunzhou.
Tang Bingxuan is now 14 years old. This December, she will reach her hairpin. Now she is old enough to talk about marriage. Because of the reputation of "dignified, virtuous, and talented women in Kyoto", several leading mothers of high families had already spoken out that they wanted to marry the first born son of the family, so that they could have two family names.
Tang Bingxuan was lost in thought. Before she could reply to her third sister's jokes, the old lady Shao came out of the room dressed neatly. The three of them quickly got up to greet their grandmother.
"Your mother got up early and went to the Fahua Temple for pilgrimage. It was estimated that it would be evening when she came back, so we left our grandparents and grandchildren to guard the house..."
"Grandma, grandma, here we are." Before the sound came, a confused sound of footsteps came, and Tang Bingyan and Tang Wenzhu, 6-year-old twins of Long and Feng, ran into the hall.
"Ouch, here come the two little fours. Grandma and sisters are waiting for you. Don't worry, don't worry".
"Xiao Zhu, I came first, and you lost." Tang Bingyan patted her brother with her small hand, looking like two brothers were good, and said provocative words.
"Grandmother, the fourth elder sister cheated, and I was the advanced gate. The fourth elder sister tricked me into saying that the fifth younger brother was chasing me behind. I went back to the gate and looked at it, and the fourth elder sister came running in", Tang Wenzhu was unconvinced.
The too madam nodded Tang Bingyan's forehead and said "slick".
"Your fifth brother woke up early and made a fuss about going to Fahua Temple with your three aunts. The little man ate vegetarian food at noon. It's estimated that he would have to make a fuss about eating meat when he came back in the evening."
When they came to Dongcijian, their grandparents and grandchildren had breakfast. Seeing that the weather outside was sunny and the garden was full of spring, Mrs. Tai took a leave of absence for the grandchildren to take a day off temporarily and go to the Zhuyuan Garden in the north of the garden for an early outing.
Grandparents and grandchildren walked and stopped in Zhuyuan, laughing and laughing. They had gone a lot and digested quickly. Before lunch time, Mrs. Tai ordered the kitchen to make a table, and several grandparents and grandchildren ate and drank in the pavilion in the middle of the lake.
After lunch, Mrs. Tai was too old to have enough energy, so she went back to the Pine and Crane Hall to take a nap.
Sister and brother are different in age, and most games can't be played together. Tang Bingyu suggested that her maid Caiwei play the drums, and several people played the drums to pass flowers.
With the drumsticks beating, Tang Bingxuan passed the flower ball to Tang Bingyan beside her, and Tang Bingyu winked at the drummer. When the flower ball reached Tang Bingxuan again, the sound of the drum stopped suddenly.
Tang Bingxuan blinked, still a little confused. I don't know why the ball fell in his hands and didn't pass.
"Big sister, it's your turn finally, hee hee." Tang Bingyu looked at her slyly, looking like I finally caught you.
Tang Bing, the second young lady, swept a glance at the third younger sister and warned her not to get too complacent.
"Big sister, you are recognized as a talented woman in Kyoto, and ordinary questions will not be difficult for you. We should discuss this punishment carefully." Tang Bingyu said, and the three sisters gathered together to whisper.
"I heard that the eldest aunt is choosing her husband's family for the eldest sister recently. Let's ask her what kind of brother-in-law she wants to choose. How about that?" Tang Bingyu, a 9-year-old smart kid, actively offered suggestions.
"The eldest sister usually acts like a famous lady outside, and every housewife wants to marry her eldest son at once. However, because of her temperament, she is not willing to be the daughter-in-law of the eldest son, and manage the domestic affairs for the whole family." Tang Bingqing, 12, then analyzed.
"Third Sister, you are so brave. You dare to lift her" tiger beard ". I admire you." Tang Wenzhu cast a small look at his third sister Tang Bingyu.
"The eldest sister is lazy at home all day and has no homework. How can she go out to dinner and know everything? Is there any trick?" Tang Bingyan, 6 years old, is not satisfied with all her homework. She has never understood the phenomenon that the eldest sister can learn without studying.
"That's because you were a baby when the elder sister was studying." Tang Bingqing and Tang Bingyu rolled their eyes in agreement, and the standard Rongguo Mansion sisters disdained.
