Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Ning Shuqian had previously tried to chase Mother Wang out of the Wen Family home but ended up having her plans foiled by Wen Xinya. Old Mrs. Wen treated Mother Wang with great respect and often told her to make some fruit tart and paste that tasted like ice cream for Ning Shuqian.
Although Ning Shuqian enjoyed the sweet fruit delicacies, she often pretended not to like it, just so she could make Old Mrs. Wen be displeased with Mother Wang. However, Old Mrs. Wen did not give in and instead told Ning Shuqian to bear with it since fruits were nutritious and good for the baby and herself.
She intentionally pretended to have a tummy ache, so as to insinuate that there was something wrong with the fruit delicacies. However, Old Mrs. Wen did not think so and instead sought a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner to take her pulse.
However, she had no choice but to let the matter slide because she did not want her fake pregnancy to be exposed.
She then found out from the servants that Mo Yunyao had relied on consuming fruit paste in order to push through her tough pregnancy.
That old woman must think that Mo Yunyao had depended on the fruit paste in order to give birth and that I’d definitely be able to have a smooth delivery with the added supplements.
Old Mrs. Wen’s greatest goal was for Ning Shuqian to give birth safely.
Hence, all of her efforts were futile.
Old Mrs. Wen took a look at the time to see that it was already eight in the evening. She said to the servant who was cleaning up the glass tea equipment, “Auntie Li, go ask Mother Wang if my goat milk broth is ready yet.”
Ning Shuqian’s eyes glistened in joy. She was well aware of the nutritional benefits that goat milk offered, and anti-aging and beauty effects could be achieved with long term consumption. It had already become a habit of Old Mrs. Wen to consume a bowl of goat’s milk broth every evening. Not to mention, it had slimming benefits too.
After Auntie Li left for the kitchen, Old Mrs. Wen said with a sullen expression, “I wonder what Mother Wang is getting up to. Did she forget about my goat’s milk?”
Ning Shuqian frantically said, “Mother, don’t get angry. Mother Zhou, who used to be in charge of brewing soups, has been chased out of the Wen Family. There’s no one to take over her job now and hence, Mother Wang has to brew soups. It must be tough for her to juggle so many tasks simultaneously, especially since she’s getting on in her years.”
Ning Shuqian had intentionally taken the chance to turn off the stove when Mother Wang was not noticing. She then pretended to have a bad appetite and asked to have some fruit taste made by Mother Wang. The making of fruit paste was a tedious process and Mother Wang was the only servant in the family who knew the recipe. Hence, she would definitely be unable to tend to the goat soup.
The tension on Old Mrs. Wen’s face eased up, though she was still feeling a little uncomfortable.
After her plans to chase Mother Wang out of the house had been foiled, Ning Shuqian came up with another plot. “Mother! Since Mother Wang is so busy, why don’t we hire another servant to be in charge of brewing soups?”
She only realized after Xia Ruya’s reminder, that she had to take the chance to plant some of her snitches in the Wen Family home and develop her own army of loyal followers while she was still pregnant. That was the only way she could live well in the Wen Family.
Finding her words to have made sense, Old Mrs. Wen said, “I’ll inform the butler later and get him to hire some competent workers.”
Ning Shuqian said with a frown, “Mother, our family is prestigious and well-known in the city. We can’t be too casual with hiring servants. They must be good at cooking and have great character and morals. Otherwise, it’d cause our family’s reputation to be marred. Besides… we also have to consider their family background. If they come from despicable and unfavorable families, we’re going to be adversely affected as well.”
“You’re right. We really have to be more careful,” said Old Mrs. Wen, who initially did not take those details into consideration. However, after hearing Ning Shuqian’s words, she suddenly felt that the latter was right. Seeing how genuinely concerned Ning Shuqian was about the Wen Family, she looked at her with greater satisfaction.
Ning Shuqian put on an earnest smile and said, “But this is going to take lots of time. Mother Wang has been in charge of taking care of yours and Father’s health all these years and now, she still has to take care of me because I’m pregnant. If we can find a suitable servant as soon as possible, Mother Wang will have it easier too. She can focus on taking care of yours and Father’s health. Your health is the most important.”
Ning Shuqian made it sound as if she was extremely concerned about their health. Old Mrs. Wen looked at her with a gentler expression and said, “This is indeed tricky and it concerns my future grandchild. There can’t be any mistakes at all. So, I must look for a reliable servant. However, I can’t find any suitable candidates at the moment. As you said, Mother Wang definitely can’t handle having to look after the four of us at the same time. If anything goes wrong, the consequences would be dire. So, we can’t afford any delay.”
After some thought, Old Mrs. Wen felt that Ning Shuqian was right. Mother Wang has indeed been doing a great job at looking after me and the old man’s health, but now that she has to take care of an expectant mother too, she’d definitely find it difficult to manage. If anything goes wrong, not only will our health be affected, the child in Ning Shuqian’s womb is going to be affected too.
Seeing that Old Mrs. Wen had weighed the pros and cons of everything, Ning Shuqian said, “I do know of a lady who’s an expert at brewing soups, and the soups that she makes taste better than those made by Mother Zhou. Besides, she has great culinary skills as well. She was in charge of cooking for me and Haowen when we moved out previously. However, we sacked her because we were moving back home.”
She then looked at Old Mrs. Wen.
Old Mrs. Wen was rather tempted by her suggestion. However, she kept her cool.
Having already guessed her intentions, Ning Shuqian smiled and explained, “Mother, don’t worry. She’s definitely reliable. She’s from a village and she’s very trustworthy and can take hardship as well. Her husband has been sick for more than two decades and yet, she still takes care of him unconditionally. However, he passed away last year. Hence, she moved to the city to work.”
Old Mrs. Wen smiled and said, “She does sound like a suitable candidate.”
However, she could not help but be a little worried, for it was not a candidate whom she had handpicked.
Ning Shuqian smiled and said, “She’s experienced in cooking the eight major cuisines and soups. I really enjoyed the soups that she made, and Haowen loved the dishes that she cooked. I’ll let her cook for you someday. You shall decide if she’s fit for the job, Mother.”
The lady had been carefully selected by Ning Shuqian and Xia Ruya. With her honest looks, she would definitely be able to please Old Mrs. Wen.
Upon hearing her words, Old Mrs. Wen felt rather enticed by the suggestion. After all… the new servant would have to look after Ning Shuqian. It was only appropriate for the servant to be someone who got along well with Ning Shuqian. Besides… Wen Haowen took a liking to her as well. Hence, she had no reason to turn down Ning Shuqian’s suggestion.
