The Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir

Chapter 38: This brainless woman

During dinnertime, Ji Man went over to old madame's courtyard to report today's outing. She picked a few good moments to talk about. Knowing that old madame also had the intention of playing matchmaker, she said, "When my older brother has free time, Sangyu will invite him over here to walk around the residence."

"You're a sensible one." Old madame patted her hand and smiled very happily. "Noble Consort Nie has always been worried that you wouldn't be able to figure things out and would stay depress. Right now, you're well behaved and I don't have to worry about you. Xuan-er must be blind to like that narrow-minded plaything."

These words carried quite a bit of anger. Ji Man curiously asked, "What's wrong?"

What had happened in the residence while they were out today?

Old madame's face sunk. She lightly snorted and said, "She came to my courtyard in the afternoon to serve tea and I didn't drink her tea. I don't like scented teas* to begin with and she had brought osmnathus flower tea, the one that I dislike the most. It was only a small matter, but she ran to Xuan-er and cried out her grievances. She thought that Xuan-er would side with her. She's really lacking in the ability to make discerning judgments. I raised Xuan-er for so many years. Did she think that he would value a wild woman over me?"

* (T/N: Scented teas are made using a base of black, green, white, or oolong teas and blended with flower petals.)

Ji Man could guess what had really happened. Old madame had definitely given Wen Wan a hard time again and the female lead had a heart that was made of glass. Her heart must have broken, so she went to the male lead to tearfully complain. The male lead must have been in a dilemma. In the end, the matter was resolved by leaving it unsettled.

On one side, it was his wife. On the other side, it was his mother. Ji Man insincerely thought; Marquis Moyu was so pitiful. After gloating over his misfortune for a while, she said with a serious expression, "Madam has only recently enter this household and doesn't know your likes and dislikes. Old Madame, why be with angry with her?"

"I just dislike her vixen-like appearance," Old madame said with a calm expression. "Ning Clan has been a noble family for generations and has received the emperor's favor. Every main wife has been carefully selected, and yet that person..."

Old madame didn't say the rest of these words, but Ji Man could guess. Because Wen Wan wasn't the person that old madame had chosen, old madame would never find her pleasing to look at. In this aspect, the female lead was blameless. But, this female lead was clearly not clever enough. If she couldn't even endure the slight grievance, how would she be able to sort out such a large household?

"A few days ago, she brought me this month's account book to look over. It was a total mess. It would have better to have a concubine managed it." The more that old madame spoke, the more incensed she became. "Why did Xuan-er marry her? She doesn't know how to manage a household or how to respect to her mother-in-law. She only knows how to beguile people."

It wouldn't be good for Ji Man to interrupt, so she just listened to old madame's complaints.

However, after old madame finished her tirade, she looked at Nie Sangyu and considered for a while. She said, "How about I speak with Xuan-er and have you manage the household accounts?"

Startled, Ji Man said, "Ah? Why not give it to Mistress Ling?"

Qi Siling had previously been the one managing the accounts, and she had been doing a pretty good job too.

"In the end, she's still an outsider." Old madame meaningfully looked at her.

After Ji Man thought it over, she understood old madame's meaning. The marquis's residence's accounts were very large and it was possible for the person managing the accounts to extract ill-gotten gains. Even if it was only the accounts for the marquis's inner court, there were still many tricks that could be done in between. So, the control of these accounts naturally had to be held by someone that old madame trusted.