The Young Lady of the General’s House

Shen Jin finished the last stitch, carefully cut the thread and checked it again before her face showed a few smiles. The maid on her side laughed, “Miss’ embroidery is really good, Wangfei will like it”.

Shen Jin pursed her lips and smiled, but didn’t take the maid’s words seriously, if this was considered good, then how do you call the work of embroidery staff in Rui Wang’s mansion?

Chen Cefei heard the maid’s voice, lifted the curtain coming in, “Let me take a look.”

“Mother.” Shen Jin smiled and moved aside, somewhat uneasily said, “I don’t know if Mother Consort will like it.”

“Silly girl.”Chen Cefei let everyone out except her personal attendant Li Ma, took her daughter’s hand, “Wangfei is from the Zhao family and married to Rui Wang, what kind of good things she has not seen? Even if your embroidery is more exquisite, what does it matter?”

Shen Jin bit her lip, she instantly understood her mother’s meaning, sending Wangfei a gift is just to show regards. Chen Cefei sighed, “It’s all Mother’s fault….     If ……     you don’t need to learn these at a young age.”

“Mother.” Shen Jin nestled into the arms of Chen Cefei, said in a delicate voice, “Daughter is not young anymore.” Chen Cefei smiled and touched Shen Jin’s head, “Well, go outside and look at flowers, Wangfei had two pots of peony sent today, the colors are beautiful.”

“Okay.” Shen Jin was young, still loved playing, she stood up smiling, “Then I can go to the garden?”

“Go ahead.” Chen Cefei herself did not like to go to the garden, but would not constrain her daughter. Shen Jin left with her maid to the garden, the smile on Chen Cefei’s face disappeared as she looked at her daughter’s embroidered handkerchief and slowly sighed.

The unfinished words could only be spoken now, “It’s all Mother’s fault… I am not able to compete for Rui Wang’s affection, so Jin-niang so young but has to learn to please others…. Xu-shi, ah ..”

Rui Wang was the Emperor’s only birth brother, his mansion was very large and beautiful. Shen Jin loved the most sitting in the small pavilion in the middle of the lake especially in June when lotus flowers bloomed, extremely lovely.

But today someone was already on the pavilion, it was Rui Wang’s eldest legitimate daughter Shen Qi, Shen Jin hesitated for a while afraid she would disturb, but Shen Qi’s senior maid came forward to invite her.

“Why don’t you come over here?” Shen Qi beckoned Shen Jin to sit beside her, and personally handed her a piece of yam and red bean cake.

Shen Jin peeled off the outside layer of glutinous rice paper and said with a smile, “Because I don’t know what Big Sister is doing, I’m afraid to disturb Big Sister’s mood.”

Shen Qi smiled, she is the eldest in the family, there were four younger sisters, this third sister was the most gentle and careful, just like the small white rabbit she had before, not only soft but also very timid. But it was expected, Chen Cefei was not only like a transparent person, she also very rarely came out.

The cakes from Wangfei’s kitchen were very delicious, that yam and red bean cake had a bit of milk flavor but was not greasy at all. Shen Jin ate very happily, nibbling the cake bit by bit with her eyes curved, Shen Qi saw it and felt all her troubles were gone. After Shen Jin finished that one, she took another piece for her.

In return, Shen Jin smiled sweetly, “Thank you, big sister.”

Shen Qi pinched Shen Jin’s face, it was really soft, “Eat.”

“So Big Sister and Third Sister are here sharing secrets.” Shen Zi saw Shen Qi and Shen Jin from a long distance, and immediately brought her sister Shen Jing over. Shen Zi was wearing a long red dress with scattering of flowers and on her head there was a pure gold phoenix hairpin inlaid with dazzling rubies.

The dress was obviously flashy but it did not look vulgar on her, it even set off Shen Zi’s eye-catching beauty, it easy to see that in a few years’s time she would be a devastating beauty of first rate.

Behind her was Shen Jing who was wearing a turquoise dress, with a pearl dangling hairpin on her hair, she was not as dazzling as Shen Zi, but looked more delicate.

Seeing the two, Shen Jin hurriedly put down the half-eaten pastry and stood up, calling out first, “Second Sister, Fourth Sister.”

Shen Jin’s clean and delicate appearance couldn’t be compared with Shen Zi and Shen Jing, but she had her birth mother’s white, tender and smooth skin, and a pair of round almond eyes, which was particularly rare in the Shen family where everyone else had peach blossom eyes.

Her eyes were very moist and extraordinarily limpid and clear, they could make people’s hearts soft, at first glance not as catching as her other sisters’, but very likeable and the longer you look the more beautiful they were.

They sat down after greetings, Shen Qi ordered the maid to bring tea to the two before saying, “The kitchen has made some new snacks, you also try.” but she did not personally picked up cakes for them like she did for Shen Jin.

“Thank you, big sister.” Shen Jing first took a piece of flower-shaped pastry and laughed, “Mother Consort’s choice of staff are very skillful, this pastry is so beautiful that people don’t have the heart to eat it.”

Shen Jin just pretended not to hear the meaning of Shen Jing’s words, she took the half-eaten pastry and continued to sit on the side slowly nibbling, occasionally she pinched some crumbs to feed the fish in the lake. Watching a group of beautifully colored fish scrambling for food was particularly interesting, they were just like these sisters she had.

Shen Zi lifted her cup to lips, suddenly saw the coral bracelet on Shen Qi’s wrist, looked up to Shen Qi ear, there were indeed the matching coral earrings.

That time she heard that the palace rewarded a set of red coral jewelry, she pouted and asked Rui Wang for it, but Rui Wang did not give the set to her. She did not expect to see it on Shen Qi today, moreover it was being worn so casually.

Shen Zi’s stare were too obvious, not to mention Shen Jin who had been paying careful attention to the surroundings, even Shen Qi who did not care much about these two concubine sisters noticed it.

The eyes swept towards her wrist and Shen Qi understood, she could not help but sneer in her heart. She put down the fan and directly took off the bracelet, she pulled Shen Jin’s limp hand then wrapped it on, “I see that you don’t wear much colours today, so take this bracelet to play.”

Shen Jin screamed bitterly in her heart, she was hiding on the side feeding fish, how was it that she was still dragged in. But this wasn’t time to say anything, she held up her wrist shook it a little, the red coral beads on her hand looked really beautiful, she cheerfully said,

“Thank you, Big Sister, I like it very much as soon as I saw it.” This bracelet being given to her meant she had offended Shen Zi already, it was not good to also offend Shen Qi as well.

“Third Sister really knows good thing, this is a rare and precious item from the palace.” Shen Zi tightly squeezed the handkerchief in her hand, obviously angry but her face was still carrying a smile, “Keep it safely, don’t lose it. I am fraid even your mother has never seen such a precious thing.”

Her words were so acidic that Shen Jin felt toothache, but the Second Sister had always like red things, she even dressed up almost like a lantern.

Shen Qi laughed and said, “Such a family like ours, nothing we can’t have. This thing’s colour is just okay, even if lost, I can just find a better one for the Third Sister. ” Her words were mocking Shen Zi’s shallow taste.

Shen Zi’s face changed, suddenly laughed, “Big Sister is correct, but I heard that Mother Consort is preparing a marriage for Big Sister, isnt’ this thing Mother Consort specially prepared to make Big Sister happy?”.

While Shen Zi was still speaking, Shen Jin eyes went round, she did not know this, and it was not right to speak like that to Big Sister. This is not something the girls can talk about, if Wangfei found out they would be heavily punished.

Sure enough Shen Qi frowned. Shen Jing also felt it wrong, hurriedly pulled Shen Zi’s sleeve. Shen Zi did not care, still finished her words.

“Someone come,” Shen Qi did not move in the slightest, her face calm as she said, “Tie up all Second Sister’s maids.”

Shen Jin felt today was a bad day, she just came out a bit and she had given her mother more trouble. Shen Jin was not afraid of Shen Zi and Shen Jing, but she was worried that Wangfei would use this opportunity to not only punish Second Sister’s maids, but also Xu Cefei.

Shen Zi stood up in anger, anxiously and angrily said, “Big Sister what are you doing.” if her maids were tied up today, she would become the joke of the house.

Shen Jing hurriedly said, “Big Sister, Second Sister was just joking. Let Second Sister apologise, let’s forget about this matter.”

Shen Qi did not even look at them, leaning on her maid’s hand and walked outside, “Second Sister come with me to Mother’s place.”

Then she glanced at Shen Jin, seeing her round eyes looking like a scared little animal, her heart couldn’t help but softened, so she gently said, “Third Sister and Fourth sister just go back first.”

Shen Jin immediately said, “Yes.” Turning around to go outside, felt bad, hurriedly stopped and said, “Then Big Sister, Second Sister, Fourth Sister, I’ll go first.” After saying that, she waited for Shen Qi to nod before she left with her maids.

Shen Jing thought for a moment and decided to go back to her mother first to get help, secretly gave Shen Zi a wink before she left.

Shen Jin regretted this to death, she went directly to Chen Cefei. Ignoring the maids there, she dived directly into the arms of her mother, tightly wrapped her hands around mother’s waist, her little nose smelled mother’s body faint fragrance, and finally she let out a breath of relief.

She need to give this warning to mother, Chen Cefei saw her daughter looking for a hug as soon as she returned, gently stroke her back, “Li Ma, bring a cup of honey water.”

“Mother, just now in ……” Shen Jin whispered the matter, and took off the bracelet on her wrist, put it into Chen Cefei’s hand, “What to do?”

Chen Cefei silently cursed in her heart, Eldest Girl and Second Girl fighting, why should they dragged her daughter in, she was afraid that her daughter would get aggrieved when paying a visit tomorrow. Second Girl was so forgetful, even if Xu Cefei was favored, the master of the rear courtyards was still Wangfei.

But it was not good to say it, so as not to scare the daughter she just said, “Don’t be afraid, today’s matter has nothing to do with you. Since this is a gift from Eldest Girl, you just wear it. I have not seen such beautiful coral string like this, it matches your new goose yellow skirt well.”

Shen Jin came out of her mother’s arms and drank half a cup of honey water, “I also think it’s beautiful, and by the way that yam and red bean cake is delicious.”

“Silly girl, if you like it, let the kitchen make some today.” Chen Cefei pinched her daughter’s earlobe and said with a smile.

Shen Jin was just about to say a few more words when she saw Li Ma come in from outside, Li Ma’s eyes looked a bit of worried, “Madam, Wangfei sent someone to invite the Third Girl over, saying she wanted to ask a few questions.”

“Mother?” Shen Jin bit her pink lips.

Chen Cefei patted her hand, “Don’t panic, whatever Wangfei ask, you just tell the truth.” After thinking a while, she was still uneasy and got up to hold her daughter’s hand, “I will go with you.”

 

 

T/N:

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List of characters:

Rui Wang (Prince Rui) – the girls’ father, the blood brother of the current emperor.Rui Wangfei (Prince Consort Rui) – the main/legal wife of Rui Wang. Mother of Shen Qi. Also called Mother Consort by concubines’ daughters.Xu Cefei (Side Concubine Xu) – Rui Wang’s concubine. Mother of Shen Zi, Shen Jing, and Shen Rong.Chen Cefei (Side Concubine Chen) – Rui Wang’s concubine. Mother of Shen Jin.Shen Qi (Eldest Girl) – Rui Wangfei’s only daughter,Shen Zi (Second Girl) – Xu Cefei’s first daughter.Shen Jing (Fourth Girl) – Xu Cefei’s second daughter.Shen Jin (Third Girl) – Chen Cefei’s only daughter.Shen Rong (Fifth Girl) – Xu Cefei’s third daughter (not in this chapter yet).