Chapter 21: There is Room For the Poor Daughter
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Chapter 21: A Virtuous Wife in the Family
Time passed quickly, and before long, Daohua had been in Lin Yi County for more than a month.
During this time, she had gained a rough understanding of the situation in the county and learned about the various members of the Yan family.
The elders were fairly tolerant of her, while the younger generation only occasionally made sour remarks, but nothing too serious.
Overall, her life here had been relatively pleasant.
One afternoon, Yan Yihuan, Yan Yishuang, and Yan Yile, the three sisters, had just finished their lessons and were heading to the Songhe Courtyard where Old Madam Yan lived. Before they entered the courtyard, they heard the sounds of laughter and playful chatter coming from inside.
Yan Yile pouted in envy and said, "Big sister is out playing with Third Brother and Fourth Brother again."
Yan Yihuan smiled lightly and said, "Big sister is new to the county and not yet familiar with it. It's good for her to go out and explore."
Yan Yile retorted, "It's been over a month. The county is so small, she should have already seen everything. I think it's just that Big Aunt indulges her; whatever Big Sister wants to do, Big Aunt lets her."
Yan Yile glanced at Yan Yishuang beside her before glaring at Yan Yihuan. "Hush, we juniors shouldn’t be talking about the elders' matters."
Although Yan Yile was somewhat displeased, she didn't continue, instead turning to smile at Yan Yishuang. "Third Sister, don't you want to go out and play like Big Sister?"
Yan Yishuang pursed her lips and stayed silent.
Did she want to go? Of course, she did.
But her mother kept a strict watch over her and rarely allowed her to go out.
Yan Yile immediately leaned closer, "Third Sister, since Uncle dotes on you so much, why don’t you ask him so we can go out and have fun with Big Sister?"
Yan Yishuang was a little tempted, but shook her head. "My stepmother wouldn’t agree."
Yan Yile’s face fell. "Your Mother is too strict with you."
Yan Yishuang wouldn't let anyone criticize her stepmother and immediately retorted, "Mother does it for my own good."
Her mother had always said that only if she was more outstanding than Big Sister would Father like her more.
Yan Yihuan quickly stepped in to stop the argument between the two. "Alright, let’s go in and greet Grandmother."
The practice of greeting Grandmother had only been established since Old Madam Yan’s arrival.
Once in the morning and once in the evening.
Old Madam Yan had no objection and was happy to see her children and grandchildren around her.
When the three girls entered Old Madam Yan's room, they saw Daohua dressed in boys' clothing, holding something in her hands, smiling as she explained something to Old Madam Yan. Yan Wentao and Yan Wenkai stood beside her, occasionally interjecting.
Seeing this, the three sisters couldn’t help but feel a bit envious.
One reason was that Daohua could go outside, and another was because of Old Madam Yan’s favoritism toward Daohua.
Although Old Madam Yan was kind to them, it couldn’t compare to how she treated Daohua.
After greeting Old Madam Yan, Yan Yile smiled at Daohua. "Big Sister, when are you going to join us in class?"
Madam Li had hired a female teacher for the Yan girls, responsible for teaching them to read, write, and do embroidery.
Upon hearing this, Daohua froze for a moment.
Old Madam Yan thought for a while before saying, "It’s about time you started attending classes."
The others in the room expected Daohua to be unwilling, but to their surprise, she didn’t say anything.
Daohua glanced at the somewhat disappointed Yan Yile and secretly found it amusing.
So, in their minds, was she just an idle person with no academic skills?
"Grandmother, don’t worry, I’ll attend classes properly."
She knew that to live well in this ancient world, she had to adapt to its rules.
In the ancient times, women were expected to learn a lot. It was no harm to pick up more skills.
The next morning, after breakfast at Old Madam Yan's courtyard, Daohua returned to the main house where Madam Li called for her.
"I heard from Old Madam that you want to study?" Madam Li smiled as she pulled Daohua to sit beside her.
Daohua nodded. "The younger sisters are attending class, so as the eldest sister, I shouldn’t fall behind."
Madam Li smiled gently. "Even if Old Madam hadn’t mentioned it, I would’ve arranged it for you. It’s good for a woman to read more books. Whether it's managing the household or helping with the family, it all comes in handy."
"Also, you should learn embroidery. In the future, if you look at someone, a good embroidery skill will leave a great impression."
Daohua immediately became serious, "Mother, I’m only nine. Isn’t this a bit too early to talk about this?"
Madam Li nodded and tapped Daohua’s forehead. "Too early? Some families already arrange marriages for their daughters before they’re even born."
Daohua shuddered. "Thankfully, I’m not one of them."
Madam Li smiled helplessly.
At that moment, the maid Ping Xiao entered, carrying several account books. "Madam, the accounts for this month have been finished. Please have a look."
Madam Li turned to Daohua. "I have some work to do. You can go play elsewhere."
But Daohua showed no intention of leaving. Instead, she looked at the account books. "Mother, can I take a look?"
Madam Li laughed. "Now our Daohua wants to learn how to manage the household?"
Daohua awkwardly smiled. "I just want to have a look."
Madam Li didn’t refuse, but said, "Just don’t mess anything up."
Daohua smiled. "I know, Mother." She casually picked up one of the account books and began flipping through it.
Madam Li shook her head with a smile and started calculating the family’s income and expenses for the month.
A quarter of an hour passed.
Half an hour passed.
An hour passed, and Madam Li looked at Daohua with some surprise.
She had thought that Daohua, being young, would quickly grow bored with the dense account entries. But to her surprise, Daohua finished one book and immediately moved on to the next, appearing determined to finish them all. What’s more, she was reading very carefully.
Old Madam Yan’s letters had mentioned that Daohua used to help her with bookkeeping at her old home and did a good job of it. At the time, Madam Li had thought it was an exaggeration, but now, seeing Daohua in action, she realized it was true.
Ping Xiao, who was serving them, couldn’t help but be amazed as well.
For the past few days, she had only seen the young miss running around with Third and Fourth Young Masters, thinking she was just an active, impatient girl. But now, she discovered this calm and focused side of her.
At this time, Daohua, who was buried in the account books, had no idea what the two of them were thinking. The reason she was looking through the account books was simply to understand the Yan family's income and expenses.
Since coming here, she had noticed that the family wasn’t very wealthy.
Firstly, the household didn’t have many servants, and like her and the newly arrived Third Room, no one had been assigned personal attendants to run errands for them yet.
Secondly, their food and clothing weren’t very good. Both Yan Zhigao and Madam Li wore clothes that were half-new, and only Yan Wenxiu, who attended the county school, had better clothes.
From these details, it seemed that her father was quite frugal.
After finishing the account books, Daohua couldn’t help but think to herself: no wonder Grandmother always says the Yan family’s financial foundation is weak.
It truly was weak.
Only Yan Zhigao had an official salary, but he had to support the whole family, while others had no income but plenty of expenses.
"Mother, Father is lucky to have married you."
Daohua remarked.
Without Madam Li’s dowry, which included land and shops that brought in some income, the family might really not be able to keep running.
Madam Li shot Daohua a glare. "What are you saying? Marrying your father was my good fortune."
Seeing Madam Li’s smile, Daohua couldn’t help but chuckle. She could tell her mother truly loved her father.
Daohua laughed. "Father is also lucky. Without you helping him manage the household, he wouldn’t be able to focus on his work outside."
Madam Li smiled without saying anything further. This time, she didn’t comment on Daohua’s words. "Your father works hard as an official, so I naturally have to help him out more."
Daohua smiled. "Mother, you’re truly the best."
Her mother was really wonderful—an exemplary virtuous wife and loving mother. Not only did she take great care of the family, but she never made things difficult for the favored concubines, fully embodying the ideal of a harmonious household.
(End of Chapter)
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