Chapter 253 Living a Life

The Ningguo Mansion is in the vortex of power, and the situation has been treacherous recently, causing panic among the people in the mansion. But for Qin Xiaoning, who is already in a foreign land, she has settled down and lives a stable life.

The baby in her belly was just over a month old and was in an unstable period, so Qin Xiaoning seldom went out. She only needed to study calligraphy and painting at home, and then have Songzhi send them to Jixian Pavilion on time.

Ever since the first piece of calligraphy was sold for a good price, Qin Xiaoning's calligraphy became more and more popular. Later, one piece of calligraphy was even sold for two hundred taels of silver.

Boss Cai understood the importance of protecting Qin Xiaoning, the God of Wealth, and ordered the little boy to deliver the silver on time every time.

With plenty of money, Qin Xiaoning lived a comfortable life.

According to Qin Xiaoning's instructions, Songzhi and Sister Wang have been going out almost every day to look for a suitable wet nurse.

That day, the two men found two more and came back.

Qin Xiaoning had just woken up from a nap. The two women were led by Sister Wang to wait in the corridor. They saw the gauze curtain in the main room move slightly, and a little maid in green clothes supported a young lady wrapped in brocade clothes and slowly walked out of the room.

This must be the employer.

The young lady had fair skin, beautiful looks, graceful manners, and was as pretty as Chang'e in heaven. The two women who had never seen the world were so shocked that they were stunned for a moment. It was not until Sister Wang beside them reminded them that they came to their senses and came over to greet her.

Qin Xiaoning was supported by Song Zhi and sat down on a bench in the courtyard. Then she looked up at the two women: "What are your names? How old are you? Please introduce yourself briefly first."

Because she was looking for a wet nurse for her child, Qin Xiaoning was extremely cautious. She had looked at many women before, but was not satisfied with any of them.

As she spoke, she secretly observed and sized up the two women in front of her.

One was about fifty years old, with a slightly stout build, and the other was in his early thirties, with gentle features.

The two women explained their situations separately. They were both slaves and had taken care of children in their masters' homes. The stout woman's former master's young son accidentally fell ill and died, so she was sold again. The other woman said that the male master of the previous master's family behaved improperly and often molested her, so the mistress was so angry that she sold her.

They were all miserable people. Qin Xiaoning was kind-hearted and ordered Songzhi to give each of them a hundred dollars, and Sister Wang took the people away first.

After listening to the two people's stories, Qin Xiaoning had a plan in mind. After taking the people away, she asked Sister Wang to bring the boy who sold the two women into the inner courtyard.

This man-monger was a woman in her forties, with a sleek bun and good at speaking. When she saw Qin Xiaoning, she bowed and greeted her, saying, "These two women have taken care of children, cooked for them, mended their clothes, etc. They are both good at it. I wonder if you like them?"

Qin Xiaoning listened to her rambling and asked, "Can these two people read?"

The girl didn't expect Qin Xiaoning to ask such a question. She frowned and said, "Madam, you are being picky. Not to mention a servant like this, even if it's a girl from a good family, how many of them can read?"

She paused, then smiled and said, "Young lady, if you insist on finding someone who can read, I'm not saying this to sound harsh, but even if you search all over Shuwang City, you probably won't be able to find such a slave."

In the mansion, there are maids who can read and write, and there are quite a few of them. After all, the outside world is very different from the capital.

Before this, I had seen many maids, all of whom were illiterate.

"Madam, it may be really difficult to find someone who can read." Song Zhi whispered in Qin Xiaoning's ear.

Qin Xiaoning also knew the situation, so she made a compromise and said, "Then please call the younger woman in, and I will ask her a few questions in person." The young man saw that there was a play, and said yes repeatedly, and then smiled and said, "But the woman is only over 30, at the most capable age, so the price must be higher."

She looked at Qin Xiaoning and said hesitantly, "I wonder if my lady can accept it?"

Qin Xiaoning glanced at her and said, "I haven't said I want to buy her yet. Bring her in first. I'll ask her about it. If she's satisfied, we can talk about the price."

Seeing that Qin Xiaoning was so young, the boy thought she was someone who could be easily fooled, but he didn't expect her to be so experienced.

She quickly replied, "Okay, I'll call someone over right away."

After a while, the woman was brought in again by the boy. Knowing that she might be chosen, this time she came in, she was obviously more confident than the first time.

"I've met my wife."

She knelt down and saluted Qin Xiaoning. After being helped up by Song Zhi, she said to herself without waiting for Qin Xiaoning to ask, "Just now, my wife said that my wife wants to find someone who can read. Although I can't read, if my wife can buy me, I will try to learn how to read, so that I can teach the young master or young lady to read and write in the future. In short, as long as my wife takes me in, I will do whatever she asks me to do, and I will never be lazy or slack off."

When I first saw her, I saw that this woman spoke in a reserved manner and thought she was a dull person. But when I saw her again, I didn't expect that she could speak and knew how to speak.

Qin Xiaoning smiled and asked, "At your age, you should have no problem finding a buyer, so why are you so eager to stay with me?"

The woman hesitated after hearing this, then lowered her head and replied, "To be honest, when I was at the original owner's house, I was bullied by the male owner in every way. I was relieved when I saw that there was no man here."

I'm telling the truth.

Qin Xiaoning said nothing after hearing this. She waved the round fan in her hand, then looked at the boy beside her nonchalantly and asked, "How much silver did you sell this woman for?"

When the old woman saw this, her eyes lit up immediately: "This woman is good-looking, has a good temper, is good at sewing and mending, and is good at making soup. She has a really good eye."

After boasting for a while, he held up five fingers and said, "Without this number, my lady can't keep this woman."

Qin Xiaoning smiled faintly upon hearing this, and only threw four words to the other party lightly: "Forget it then."

Seeing this, the old woman said quickly: "It seems that the lady is not short of money, why bother about it?"

Qin Xiaoning replied, "I was not very satisfied with this woman because she is illiterate. If the price was cheaper, I would have kept her. But now that you are offering this amount, I feel I am losing out."

After saying that, he didn't bother any more, got up and slowly walked into the house.

The old woman was anxious and begged Sister Wang who was standing beside her: "Good sister, please help me say a word."

Sister Wang laughed dryly and said, "Don't think that our wife is easy to bully because she is young. She is very smart. If you want to make this deal, you should offer a sincere price. Otherwise, forget it."

The young man gritted his teeth when he heard that, and then quietly stretched out four fingers to Sister Wang. Seeing that Sister Wang was unmoved, she sighed and said, "Then it's thirty-five taels, no less."

Sister Wang nodded and walked into the main room. After a while, she came out with the contract signed by Qin Xiaoning: "My wife has agreed. You and the woman can put your handprints on it."

(End of this chapter)