Chapter 246 - 246 They’re so Fortunate
246 They’re so Fortunate
Though Lu Jiao didn’t agree to stay by Xie Yunjin’s side, she remained confident about his capabilities. This man was going to be the future first assistant. If he had no good judgment of character, how will he survive his competitive field?
She smiled and agreed, “Okay, then we’ll go with these two families.”
Lu Jiao was about to tell the broker when Xie Yunjin grabbed her, “Hire one more person to serve you.”
Lu Jiao stared at Xie Yunjin in shock and even forgot to retract her hand.
Xie Yunjin didn’t dare to move a hair while he held her arm, scared that Lu Jiao would notice and move away.
Holding her made his entire heart feel warm.
When Lu Jiao looked back at him, he softly let go and whispered, “I think that young woman, Feng Zhi, is not bad.”
Lu Jiao knew who he was talking about right away. She was the young woman who intentionally cut her own face because the man of the house she served wanted her as his concubine.
Lu Jiao looked for the girl with the scar. They were similar in age. She was tall and slender, and appeared fearless. Before she got a scar on her face, she must’ve been very beautiful.
Lu Jiao said to Feng Zhi, “Feng Zhi, why didn’t you want to marry the master of the house?”
Feng Zhi became agitated right away.
She could tell that the husband and wife of this family liked each other. The man of the house was almost blind towards other woman. Plus, with her scar, she was sure he wouldn’t be interested in her.
If the wife was asking her a question, it must mean they have the intention to keep her.
Feng Zhi stepped out to answer, “My mother died young. Before dying, she told me that I must become the wife of a man who loves me. If I become a concubine, then she won’t be able to close her eyes even in death. Therefore, I rather never marry than be someone’s concubine.”
Her resolution impressed Lu Jiao, who smiled at the broker, “Feng Zhi can stay.”
The broker beamed happily. One sold.
Lu Jiao turned back to the group. The 30 to 40 people remaining grew nervous.
Lu Jiao nodded toward aunty Qiu and old man Wen, “Aunty Qiu and old man Wen, you can stay.”
The broker thought she heard it wrong. Only when aunty Qiu and old man Wen stood out to thank Lu Jiao, did she finally react.
Oh my goodness, she finally sold those two old people. What great news!
The broker almost kowtowed towards Lu Jiao and Xie Yunjin.
Lu Jiao then bought the Lin family.
The broker wanted to kowtow even more now. Both of those families were difficult to sell. Aunty Qiu was difficult because she wanted old man Wen with her. Old man Wen was a cripple and nobody wanted him.
Though the Lin family was a good family with the man being a coachman and the woman being a cook. The entire family was tall, skinny and very hard-working. The thing was that they were a family and most people didn’t need so many servants. Plus, people are normally afraid to buy an entire family, in case they get bad ideas and coop against the master.
The two difficult families were now sold. The more the broker thought about it, the happier she got. She complimented endlessly, “Young master, young lady, you’ve done such a kind thing. You accepted those two families.”
It wasn’t just the broker who thought so, the ones who were bought also thought so.
Lu Jiao felt a little guilty. She made her decisions based on her needs, not based on what she thought would be a kind act.
The two parties negotiated the price quickly. Once paid, the broker left with the remainder. Those who didn’t get sold were highly disappointed.
A few of the young women even cried and knelt down to beg Xie Yunjin to take them. Sadly, Xie Yunjin remained cool and ignored them.
The seven people stayed. Four from the Lin family, aunty Qiu and old man Wen, and the young woman with a scar on her face, Feng Zhi.
The seven servants knelt down to officially greet their new masters, “It is an honor to meet you, master, lady, and young masters.”
Lu Jiao glanced at Xie Yunjin, who gestured for her to speak. These people were going to be Lu Jiao’s servants and he had no right to speak.
Lu Jiao didn’t push it off. After all, they’ll be working for her. She looked at the group and stated, “I don’t have a lot of requirements, only one thing – loyalty. If I ever catch you betraying my family, I will never forgive you.”
The seven people kowtowed and promised, “As your servant, I would never do anything to hurt you or your family. Please do not worry.”
Lu Jiao nodded and started to introduce members of her family.
“This is my husband. He’s a scholar who’s going to take the provincial exam next year. Therefore, he will spend most of his time in the front courtyard. If you have nothing important for him, don’t interrupt him from his studies.”
Lu Jiao peeked at the four little ones as she made that statement. The children didn’t seem to object, which made Lu Jiao sigh in relief.
She then introduced the four little ones, “These are my quadruplets. This is the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Born.”
Lu Jiao was about to start delegating when she caught sight of her brother standing up straighter. Lu Jiao suppressed a laugh and introduced, “This is my younger brother, Lu Gui. He’s going to manage the place. If you need anything, go to him first. If he can deal with it, he will. If he can’t, he’ll find me.”
The servants answered in unison, “Yes, ma’am.”
Lu Gui was in shock. He was going to manage this place? He was a stewart now?
Lu Jiao was too lazy to pay attention to that almost moronic man. She looked back at the servants and started to delegate, “Aunty Qiu and Feng Zhi can help out in the back courtyard. Aunty Qiu can be in charge of all the sewing work. Feng Zhi can run errands for me. When you’re free, you can clean up the yards and do some general housework.”
Aunty Qiu and Feng Zhi stepped out quickly and lowered their heads, “We will do as you ordered.”
Lu Jiao then looked to old man Wen, “Uncle Wen can help me guard the gate. When you’re free, you can rest in the southern rooms.”
The fact that Lu Jiao referred to old man Wen as uncle Wen surprised aunty Qiu and old man Wen. Their eyes reddened quickly. This was the nicest thing that’s happened to them in so long.
Old man Wen knelt down, “I will do as I am ordered.”
Lu Jiao wasn’t used to this level of politeness and being viewed as a master who owed servants. She said, “You don’t have to answer me like that every day. Though you work for me, we can be more casual and comfortable like a family.”
Now, even the Lin family felt touched.
They were all so happy to have ended up with such a nice master. They were so fortunate!
Lu Jiao then delegated tasks to the Lin family, “Uncle Lin, you will be the coachman. Later, you go ahead and buy a horse carriage. Whenever someone from the family needs a ride, you can drop off and pick up. When nobody needs a ride, you can help dust up the yard and organize things.”
The rather skinny uncle Lin happily responded, “Yes, ma’am, I will remember that!”