A Good Country Wife
Chapter 470 - 464 - _1

Chapter 470: 464 Chapter_1

Zhao Erhu had scarcely left when Lin Yue began to immerse herself in work. Even though she had promoted two smart and loyal maids to assist her, the technical aspects inevitably required her attention. Moreover, some things could only be understood intuitively rather than conveyed through words. Lin Yue, who was determined to maintain quality, busied herself so much that she worked herself to a point of exhaustion, occupying her days with the production of Fragrant Soap and other items and her nights with lamplight embroidery. Although the maids, instructed by Zhao Erhu, were eager to advise her, Lin Yue’s decisions were unwavering and beyond the persuasiveness of the maids.

"Madam, the Dongjia specifically instructed you before he left not to overwork yourself. You are so busy day and night that it will take a toll on your health. Better to rest early, or Dongjia might reproach us for not taking good care of you when he returns and sees you’ve lost weight."

"I know," Lin Yue said. "There’s nothing much left to do here, you may go and rest. I have a clear idea of what to do, and you don’t need to worry." Lin Yue’s embroidery required meticulous attention, and after hearing the maid repeat her concern twice, she became somewhat impatient and sent her away. The emptiness in her heart after Zhao Erhu’s departure, and the children’s absence, as they were all attending educational institutions, including the fourth son who didn’t pass the entrance exam for Songshan Academy but was enrolled in another academy, made her deliberately seek out more tasks to fill the void.

"Dongjia’s wife, these are a few items made according to the designs you drew. They are finished, and I’ve brought them specifically for you to see if you are satisfied with them?" Zhang Qiusheng, although speaking modestly, carried a tone tinged with pride, content with his own craftsmanship.

Lin Yue examined the finished items brought by Zhang Qiusheng and nodded in satisfaction. Initially, she simply thought it was a waste to discard the leftover scraps of wood from making boxes, especially since they came from precious timber. Yet, since those scraps couldn’t be used for crafting anything substantial, she had a sudden inspiration and drew several patterns for Zhang Qiusheng to create small items like hair clasps and bracelets. The detail in Lin Yue’s designs combined with Zhang Qiusheng’s skilled hands truly turned waste into treasure. Lin Yue was so enamored with the creations that she kept several for herself in her vanity case.

"Not bad, Old Zhang, your craftsmanship is unquestionable, which is why I value you so greatly. I’m not a stingy Dongjia. You’ve been working diligently since you joined us, and I’m aware you take extra work home to add to your workload at night. Even Brother Fuquan, who’s honest and hardworking, doesn’t put in as much effort as you. From now on, for every item you complete, I will give you a bonus that varies with the size and difficulty of the work. You won’t have labored in vain."

Having recently joined, Zhang Qiusheng had shown his loyalty a few times, but Lin Yue still wanted to observe and test him over a period of time. Therefore, she was well aware of his daily activities and naturally very pleased with his hard work, deserving of reward and encouragement to maintain his zeal.

Zhang Qiusheng’s earnest efforts were partly out of a sense of loyalty, and also because Lin Yue’s designs were so ingenious that they excited his artistic impulses, eager to carve them into reality and feeling a profound sense of achievement. Now, with his efforts recognized and the generous Dongjia’s wife promising him extra pay, his motivation soared even higher.

"Thank you, Dongjia’s wife. Since the items I’ve made please you, I’m relieved. You’re busy, Madam, so I will go back to work," he said.

"Go ahead, but be sure to rest adequately. Don’t overexert yourself. It wouldn’t be worth it if you wore yourself out. Let Brother Fuquan take care of things he can handle; I’ve been considering that you have too much to do, and I’m planning to hire two more carpenters. You can then focus on the most important and delicate tasks, leaving the rest to others. That should make things much easier for you."

After dispatching Zhang Qiusheng, Lin Yue played affectionately with the wooden trinkets on the table for a while, intending to continue her embroidery, when a servant approached as if to report something but hesitated, making Lin Yue somewhat suspicious.

"What happened? Judging by your stuttering, something must be up. Just tell me straight away. I’m not unreasonable—what are you afraid of?"

The servant wasn’t really afraid; they hadn’t known kinder masters than Dongjia and his wife, who never casually abused their servants. However, before Dongjia left, he had instructed that if there were any messages from Shanglin Village, they were to be delivered directly to him, not to let the Dongjia’s wife know. But now, Dongjia was away with no known return date, and the message from Shanglin Village seemed urgent. The servant didn’t want to disobey Dongjia’s orders and was also worried about not being able to take responsibility if anything serious had happened, which left him in a dilemma.

"Dongjia’s wife, someone from Shanglin Village has sent word that the grandmother is seriously ill and would like Dongjia to visit. However, Dongjia has already left for the south." The servant wisely summarized the crucial information, omitting Dongjia’s original instruction.

Upon hearing about Zhao Yunxiang, Lin Yue momentarily stiffened. She had almost forgotten about this woman, and it puzzled her that Zhao Yunxiang’s health issue had suddenly emerged, "So, it’s Zhao Yunxiang. It’s been a while since I heard any news about her. How did she fall so seriously ill all of a sudden? Is the person from Shanglin Village still here? Did you hear what illness Zhao Yunxiang has?"

"The person who delivered the message has already left, saying they had other matters to attend to. As for what illness grandmother has, they said it was a malignant disease, but it’s unclear if that’s true."

Since the incident, Zhao Yunxiang had stopped bothering Lin Yue. With so much time passed, Lin Yue still harbored resentment, but her anger had subsided. Given that Zhao Erhu was away, if Zhao Yunxiang was indeed gravely ill, Lin Yue felt obliged to check on her on behalf of her husband.

After all, Lin Yue knew her husband well—he was a man deeply principled and loyal. Even though Zhao Yunxiang had greatly wronged him in the past and chilled his affection for her, he still harbored sincere protectiveness and concern for this elder sister who had cared for him since childhood. If Lin Yue were to ignore Zhao Yunxiang’s serious illness while Zhao Erhu was away, and something unfortunate happened, Zhao Erhu might not voice it, but he’d surely bear a grudge. Lin Yue didn’t want any rifts between her and her husband.

"Dongjia, what shall we do about this? Should we go to Shanglin Village?"

"Of course, we’ll go. Go prepare the carriage immediately. I’ll see for myself if my sister-in-law is truly in a bad state."

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