Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Aunt Wang mentally prepared herself, but when she heard from Hongxing that the other masters in the backyard were aware of it and the servants were gossiping about it, she gritted her teeth in resentment at Mrs. Lu's housekeeper for not being strict enough.

When it was time to pay respects, Aunt Wang did not dare to be late and arrived early. Although Aunt Wang had used powder to cover up her dark eye circles, they were still quite noticeable. Auntie An stared at Aunt Wang with a gloating expression on her face that she did not hide at all. It made Aunt Wang want to give her two slaps.

Auntie Mei's expression remained unchanged. After properly paying respects to Mrs. Lu, she sat down. Mrs. Lu watched the expressions of the few below and drank tea in a good mood. Li Ming had not completely lost his mind yet.

Mrs. Lu sent away Auntie An, Aunt Wang and Li Shan. Li Shan did not want to leave, but seeing that Mrs. Lu had no intention of asking her to stay, she could only reluctantly follow Aunt Wang with gritted teeth.

Li Xin and Li Xia were left behind following Mrs. Lu to Yijing Pavilion. This was where Mrs. Lu usually handled affairs in the backyard and received stewards. Upon entering Yijing Pavilion, the stewards of the backyard were already standing ready.

Mrs. Lu sat down with Li Xin and Li Xia. The stewards came up one by one to report on their work. Mrs. Lu listened, signed bills to give money to those who asked for it. For matters that needed Mrs. Lu's ideas, she would ask about the situation in detail. If she could give ideas on the spot, she would. If not, Liu Xiao standing behind Mrs. Lu would take notes. After understanding and thinking about it in detail later, she would give a reply. Everything was clear and organized. The responsibilities of each steward were also very clear. There were rules for rewarding good work and punishing poor work that were clearly recorded in a booklet. This ensured accountability and a basis to reason.

Li Xia and Li Xin followed Mrs. Lu for a month to see how she assigned manpower and arranged things, and how to solve problems when they arose. Every day after Mrs. Lu finished handling matters, she would ask the two for their opinions. After Li Xin and Li Xia replied, Mrs. Lu would let them critique each other, and then point out where the two had failed to consider things thoroughly.

After a month of learning, Mrs. Lu confirmed that the two were capable of handling things. She arranged affairs for them to be responsible for.

Li Xin was responsible for the kitchen. There were many complicated things to consider here. But with Li Xin having grown up following Mrs. Lu and being immersed in her ways since childhood, she picked things up quickly. Li Xin handled the affairs of the kitchen diligently every day. She organized the kitchen neatly and methodically.

Woken up by Qiu Shui’s repeated calls in the early morning, Li Xia got out of bed. Getting up so early was too awful. She wanted to lie back down in her warm bed and sleep some more. She didn't want to go out at all. Qiu Shui wiped Li Xia’s face, fully waking her up. After breakfast, she came to Yijing Pavilion. She saw that Li Xin was already handling things next door.

Li Xia walked into the room and had just sat down to drink some tea when the Hua Steward from the embroidery workshop came. The Hua Steward had come to ask Li Xia about making clothes for the household, top and bottom, at the end of the year.

As the Hua Steward had expected, Li Xia simply said "follow precedent" while taking a bite of snacks.

"Second young mistress, it is not good to just follow the precedent for a county magistrate now that the old master has been promoted to Administrative Supervisor," the Hua Steward knew that Li Xia managed nothing at all. Normally following precedent was fine. But this year, with Li Ming's promotion to Administrative Supervisor, it would be inappropriate to still follow the precedents set when he was county magistrate.

Li Xia took a sip of tea, losing her taste for snacks. Looking at the Hua Steward, she asked, "What do you think should be done this year?"

The Hua Steward now had no expectations of Li Xia at all. She took out the plan she had prepared and gave it to Li Xia, who had said to provide plans on paper whenever there were arrangements needing approval for her to select from. But in reality, Li Xia would ask which one was best from the plan, and basically always defer to the Hua Steward's preferences. Whether such full authorization showed a brave heart or a negligent heart was up for debate.

Li Xia took the plan and glanced over it, nodding her head, "This plan is not bad, but since this is the first year in Liuzhou, the specifics of formal dress code should still be decided by my mother." Li Xia then asked the flower steward again, "In previous years, measurements for tailoring clothes was on the sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, correct?"

"Yes," the Hua Steward replied.

"There are still a few days before that. Let me confirm with my mother first before getting back to you."