Chapter 12 - Meeting the ‘w.a.n.g” (1)

Yao Ying and Yao Ling woke up early the next morning. For formality, they had to pay respect for the family first. w.a.n.g Luo Hai wanted to introduce them to his family. w.a.n.g Luo Hai also gave them servants, but they only chose two. Yao Ying chose a servant boy named Xiu and Yao Ling chose a maid called Xiao Yu. Those who weren't chosen would serve in their outer courtyard.

When they woke up, both of them tried to serve them and help them changing clothes and preparing for the day, but both were rejected.

"No need to serve us like that. Just help us with daily life or when we need to ask for help. We're not used to being served anyway," Yao Ling explained.

Xiu and Xiao Yu both looked at each other, feeling lost. They knelt down and said in unison, "We, servants, are here to serve masters. Please let us serve you, otherwise, we will be punished." The doctrine of serving masters was already drilled in their mind, besides as slaves, they wouldn't feel good being lazy.

Yao Ying and Yao Ling looked at each other helplessly. They really didn't like being served. They didn't think Xiu and Xiao Yu were lower than them; they used to be peasants too! But they also knew how important it was to maintain status in society. They decided to be more lenient.

"Stand up, please! Okay then. Just help us after we prepare ourselves. I'm used to serving my husband in the morning and prepare myself. Later just let me know the things that I need to know inside this household," Yao Ling gave the order while explaining the reason why they had refused their help just now.

Xiu and Xiao Yu nodded and left both of them alone. Yao Ying and Yao Ling sighed in relief. They looked at each other and laughed. "This feels so weird, right?" Yao Ying smiled.

"Yes," Yao Ling answered. "We better get used to it then!"

They didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the sudden change in their lifestyle. It was a great honor to have someone served them, but they just felt a bit uncomfortable with the attention. After they finished preparing themselves, they called Xiu and Xiao Yu back into the room.

"How long have you been working here?" Yao Ying asked.

Xiu answered, "I've been working here since birth. My father is the main butler and we have been working here for many generations." Xiu was around 16-17 years old. His face was quite handsome, but there was a distinguis.h.i.+ng scar on his left cheek. Though it didn't lessen his handsomeness, it would certainly scare people because it was quite deep -- no wonder it could leave a scar. He looked healthy and full-spirited.

Xiao Yu answered, "I was bought by the master when I was five." Xiao Yu was pet.i.te, but she was quite pretty. Her characters were cheerful and bubbly -- in a good way, but it seemed like because she just met a new master, she tried to hold herself back. It was quite cute to see.

Both seemed like good kids. Yao Ying and Yao Ling were quite satisfied with them. Yao Ling softly asked them, "Can you tell us the situation in this family?"

They only knew the superficial things in this family, for example, how many women w.a.n.g Luo Hai had, but from the information they were given, they understood there must be some conflicts within. Yao Ying and Yao Ling truly thought of w.a.n.g Luo Hai as their boss, so they didn't really care about his family affairs. However, everything was different now. They have become a part of the family too.

From Xiu and Xiao Yu's answer, they started to grasp the family situation. w.a.n.g Luo Hai was an only child and the matriarch was still alive. She generally only showed up in the morning and the women in the family needed to pay respect to her in the morning. After that, she would retreat and let the other women carry on in their own affairs. She was quite heartbroken with the fact that there was no kid in the household to continue the bloodline.

The rumor was that w.a.n.g Luo Hai actually fell in love with his main wife, Madam w.a.n.g. However, because he needed to continue the bloodline, he took three concubines. Actually four, but the one that cheated on him was already beaten to death. A bit harsh, but it was the rules in society. Never put a green hat[1] on your husband's head, otherwise, you would meet the same bad ending!

Xiao Yu told them, Madam w.a.n.g was beautiful and has a good temperament. She and w.a.n.g Luo Hai were childhood sweethearts, so when he took in concubines, she was heartbroken. However, as a woman, she could do nothing. Even though the rules were unfair, but Madam w.a.n.g needed to abide by it.

The first Concubine was Concubine Wan. She was the most beautiful of the four women, thus conceited. She loved to find trouble with the other women, and it was quite a headache to deal with her.

The second Concubine was Concubine Xi. She was the same age as Concubine Wan. She was a quiet person and didn't like to mingle with people. There was not much information about this concubine.

The third one was Concubine Lan. She wasn't pretty, but clever at sucking up to people. She appeared good in front of other women, but she was actually a two-faced person.

"How do you know so much about them?" Yao Ling asked in surprise.

"I used to clean here and there, so it was easier to get information inside the household," Xiao Yu grinned sheepishly. She found that Yao Ling was nice and started to relax in front of her.

"She's like a chirping bird, that gossips so much in this household that she doesn't know when to quit," Xiu looked at her and smiled.

"You…" Xiao Yu glared angrily and she kicked his s.h.i.+n.

"Ow! Look at how you behave! Are you a woman?" Xiu glared at her angrily.

Their banter made Yao Ying and Yao Ling laugh. Xiu and Xiao Yu looked to be quite fun to be around and their relations.h.i.+p was quite good. After hearing their masters' laugh, both of them looked down in embarra.s.sment. This was how they usually behave with each other and they forgot they were in front of their new masters.

Though Yao Ying and Yao Ling heard Xiu and Xiao Yu's explanation, they needed to look at the people in the family themselves to understand them better. They asked Xiu and Xiao Yu to take them to where w.a.n.g Luo Hai was. They needed to pay respect, so w.a.n.g Luo Hai could introduce them to the family.

It was going to be fun!

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[1] Chinese idiom for men who wear a green hat, mean that their wives were having an affair.

---Edited by: L0v3lamb---