“Alright, now that we’re done looking, let’s go back!” Chu Lian stood up and led Senior Servant Gui and Xiyan back to Songtao Court.
After they returned to their courtyard, Senior Servant Gui handed the purse containing all the banknotes over to Chu Lian, holding it up with both hands. “Third Young Madam, this is the money that the lady of the house gave to me to keep for you on your wedding day.”
Chu Lian took the purse and opened it up. As expected, there was a stack of 100 tael notes, five in total. They were all issued by Datong Bank.
She took out one note and held it out to Senior Servant Gui. “Momo, keep this hundred taels in case of emergency. I’ll keep the rest.”
Senior Servant Gui waved her hands as she looked at the hundred tael note. “No, no! This is Third Young Madam’s dowry. How could this old servant keep it? Rest assured, we don’t need to spend any money within the estate. There won’t be any emergencies at all.”
As she finished speaking, the corners of her eyes turned red. Thinking back to the days in the Ying Estate, Sixth Miss had always hoarded her money like it was treasure, afraid that these lowly servants would find her money and steal it. Although Senior Servant Gui didn’t hold that kind of behaviour against Chu Lian, she couldn’t help but feel that small distance between them. As close as they were, they were still master and servant in the end. A grudge would be the worst thing that could come between them.
Chu Lian smiled. Of course she could guess what Senior Servant Gui was thinking. She inwardly pursed her lips, scolding the original ‘Chu Lian’ for being too silly.
No matter how much Senior Servant Gui tried to reject the money, Chu Lian still pushed the note in Senior Servant Gui’s hands in the end. “Momo, keep it. You never know what might happen. It’s better to have this money in hand, rather than none at all. Money can solve a lot of problems in this world. Anyway, I still have four hundred taels with me! It’s not a small sum at all. I’ve finally learned to let go of some things. Money at hand is meant to be spent anyway; why be calculative about who’s keeping it? Momo, I was too narrow-minded in the past, and I was in the wrong. Please don’t take it to heart.”
Hearing Chu Lian speak like that, Senior Servant Gui couldn’t hold back her emotions any longer. Tears streamed down her cheeks and she let out a choked sob, the thin banknote gripped tightly in her hands. She couldn’t find the strength to speak, and could only nod. Any servant who served their masters with all their heart would want to earn their acknowledgement and trust. Now that she had earned Chu Lian’s trust today, Senior Servant Gui felt that the grievances she had suffered in the past were all worth it.
Within her heart, she silently said, ‘Madam, did you see that? Young Miss has grown up and matured. You can rest in peace now.’
When Chu Lian saw that Senior Servant Gui had lost control of her emotions, she wanted to cheer her up.
She drew closer and answered Senior Servant Gui’s teary expression with a bright smile, her eyes narrowing into crescents. “Why? Does momo think I’ve given too little? Just wait till I earn more money! I’ll let you count the notes until your hands are sore!”
Senior Servant Gui burst into a chuckle and glared playfully at Chu Lian. “Third Young Madam has such a silver tongue!”
“I can back my words up with results! Momo, don’t you trust me?”
“Of course I do! Momo trusts you the most!”
“Hehe!”
Senior Servant Gui watched the pretty young flower before her, freed from burden. She felt that she had never been as lighthearted as she was now. Sixth Miss had been restrained and gloomy in the past. The current Sixth Miss was like a beautiful piece of jade, cleansed of all impurities. She practically radiated a comfortable warmth that drew others in. As for whether Sixth Miss was merely boasting about earning more money or not, what did that matter? As long as they were all peaceful and happy, she would be content.
