Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 153 - 151

Chapter 153: Chapter 151

"Father, mother, the servants in our house have no manners. We just got back not too long ago, yet the others in the courtyards already know about our movements, even what we’ve brought back. It must be the servants who take care of us spreading this information, it’s not good to randomly disclose the whereabouts of the master’s family. We cannot tolerate such behavior."

Just returned home after being granted rewards, still filled with excitement when they got an unexpected shock. There was nothing more disgusting than this!

Shen Chengyao nodded. He was also displeased with the fact that people came to question him as soon as he stepped into the house.

"We just moved in not long ago and many rules have not yet been established. We must bring up this issue as soon as possible. Otherwise, if this continues, they will truly believe our house has no rules and it will become even more difficult to manage later." Mrs. Liu had been learning from the housekeeper for a while now and knew that the most fundamental traits of servants are loyalty to their master and observance of rules. Where there are no rules, there can be no order.

"Zijing, could you please fetch Aunt Rong?" After returning home, Xiao’er asked Aunt Rong to rest in her own room. After all, she had been standing in the sun for half a day.

"Aunt Rong comes from a place with strict rules, it is most suitable to have her teach the servants etiquettes." Their family came from humble beginnings, probably some of these people who had stayed in this prospering place for a long time didn’t dare to say it out loud, but deep down must look down on them. Or perhaps they feel that they are not a proper wealthy family, with not as many rules to follow.

Before departing, their family had discussed buying some properties in the Imperial Capital. The inner courtyard matters were managed by his daughter and Mrs. Liu. Feeling reassured, Shen Chengyao gave his instructions and went to find the housekeeper. He asked him to contact the broker to see which farms or shops were suitable to buy as soon as possible. They had to hurry back to their hometown before the new year.

Aunt Rong arrived quickly. After saluting, she asked, "Miss, did you call for this old servant for something?"

"Aunt Rong, our family has shallow roots, and we are from a farming family. We don’t have any experience of commanding servants. However, we do know that servants should not arbitrarily disclose the master’s affairs. As there are no proper rules in the house, we thought about asking Aunt Rong for help to establish some rules!"

"This is a major taboo. The person who did this can be sold off. Miss, rest assured, this old servant will certainly straighten out the servants’ rules!" Aunt Rong understood immediately. There must be some servants who talked too much. Every servant in the Imperial Capital learned the most basic rules. Even though Marquis Shengping’s family has shallow roots, they received imperial grants. Not everyone can receive such large rewards. They are not to be looked down upon by servants!

The servants that disrespect the rules or attempts to test the master’s bottom line - no matter what mentality they carry, it’s necessary to kill one to scare the rest!

A servant should be attentive to the other people and matters around the master, and report immediately to the master if anything unusual is noticed. Disclosing the master’s affairs would be treasonous, this is absolutely incorrect!

"The servants probably don’t even know who the rightful master of this house is." If they hadn’t separated from the family, Mrs. Shen Zhuang would have been the head of this family. It was understandable if the servants didn’t know about the separation.

These words hinted at the idea of light punishments for first-time offenders.

"This old servant understands. Madam, rest assured."

Xiao’er felt anxious about Mrs. Shen Zhuang and her bunch. They were like ticking bombs, not knowing when they would explode and cause trouble!

"Aunt Rong, the Imperial Capital is filled with nobles. As we come from humble beginnings, there are many people and things we don’t understand. When the old Madam and her group go out, they must be accompanied, and anything unusual must be immediately reported back. It would be bad if we inadvertently offend any noble and end up not knowing why."

Thinking of them, Xiao’er felt a headache coming on and unconsciously pinched her brow. This was a habit she had when she was tired in her previous life; she had not done this since she traveled across time.

Well, she wasn’t afraid of them offending anyone. Ideally, they should offend someone severely and then learn some lessons! Let them realize that the Imperial Capital is not as fun as they had imagined and that sucking up to those with power isn’t so easy either! Suffering some lessons early on would prevent them from clinging to her family in the future.

But she must have a clear understanding of what’s going on and have the ability to control and resolve any situation that arises. Otherwise, things could easily go wrong and that would not be fun.

Aunt Rong nodded, understanding Xiao’er’s sentiments. Before her arrival, Xiao Fuzi had already told her about the situation in their house and what kind of characters the relatives were.

People like these needed monitoring. Ideally, every action and word should be known and understood comprehensively.

"If the miss is uncomfortable with some people or issues, just give face on the surface and that will be enough. If anything happens, the Sixth Prince will handle it. You don’t need to feel aggrieved," Aunt Rong suggested upon seeing the situation.

Normally, after severing ties and disowning family members, one could stop interacting with them. However, this could only work for normal families. For someone like Marquis Shengping who was suddenly elevated to the emperor’s circle, it was impossible! How many eyes would be watching their every move they make? If one has aspirations in the officialdom, then one must care about their reputation. Sometimes, petty officials can be very troublesome. One small misstep could bring about a plethora of old grievances, even trivial matters could become charges against you! Even if there’s nothing wrong in the end, it would be very annoying!

"Old Madam" Shen, along with the main family and second branch of the Shen family, were selfish and benefit-driven. Master Shen was biased without boundaries. If anyone with ulterior motives, stirred them up and used them to sue Marquis Shengping’s family, that would not be a sight to see. The world values filial piety and claims there are no parents who are absolutely in the wrong. Even if they have severed family ties, people might say that the parents must have had their reasons for their actions during that special time, as parents would definitely think more broadly. Hence, it’s rare for parents, like Master Shen and his wife, to behave this way!

The officialdom is like a battlefield, being cautious is the key to survival!

Xiao’er nodded, "Thank you for helping with this, Aunt Rong. We just settled down, so there are many things we’ll need your help with."

"Miss, you’re too courteous. I’m happy to help your family with whatever I can."

"Aunt Rong, I would like to know more about the various noble families in the Imperial Capital. Could you tell my mother and me about it when you have some free time?" You never know when you might bump into someone. Doing your homework allows you to better navigate social networking!

"The old servant has some ledgers that record the situations of all the noble families. I’ll send them to Madam and Miss later."

"That would be wonderful. Zijing, you can go with Aunt Rong."

...

Soon, Zijing returned with several thick ledgers.

Xiao’er picked up the top one and flipped through it. It included records of the Prime Minister’s Mansion, Duke’s Mansion, General Mansion, ...

The contents were detailed, recording who was related to whom by marriage, who had close relations with one another, who had grudges, even which Madam liked what colour clothes and what food they cannot eat. Everything was written down!

Xiao’er was a bit stunned! The ledger’s details were extensive, it was practically an encyclopedia of the Imperial Capital’s high-ranking officials.

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