A Good Country Wife
Chapter 502 - 496_1

Chapter 502: Chapter 496_1

However, this time Lin Yue also needed to prepare local products as gifts for Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia to take with her, which did indeed require her own careful consideration. After all, considering the status of Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia, she had to prepare only the finest items, and they had to align with their preferences and tastes. This required Lin Yue to put in quite an effort.

Yet Lin Yue was quite willing to personally prepare the gifts for Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia. Not to mention that there had been a friendship between them, Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia had taken good care of her when she was in Capital City and even after returning to Xin’an City, it was under their protection that the Magistrate Ceng Lu had been so cautious as not to trouble her, although Jiang Ziqi was a factor in this, the role played by Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia was not insignificant. Otherwise, despite her previous good relations with the Jiang Family, Ceng Lu wouldn’t have been so considerate.

For Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia, the gifts didn’t need to be numerous, but they absolutely had to be exquisite. Not to mention that Lin Yue personally made the Fragrant Soap based on the standards of the batch previously sent overseas, even the various prepared foods were made by Lin Yue and Wang Dachuan together, which naturally tasted much better than those from the workshops. The finished embroidered products, needless to say, were embroidered by Lin Yue herself, although they had been completed earlier by Lin Yue, who then had Zhang Qiusheng mount them according to the designs she had drawn. There were also some ingeniously carved trinkets that Lin Yue had recently come up with and had Lin Qiusheng carve out.

Just preparing gifts for Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia had taken Lin Yue seven or eight days to get everything ready. She had the Jiang Family send them along with the goods to Princess Yongle and Lady Roujia. Having spent so much effort on these gifts, Lin Yue could imagine the happy expressions on Princess Yongle’s and Lady Roujia’s faces upon receiving them.

With autumn past and winter coming, the crops in the fields had long been harvested. Lin Yue, having finally found some free time, began to ponder over culinary delights again. Considering the scarcity of vegetables in winter, she had someone build a greenhouse. This was no particular innovation; big households all did this. However, Lin Yue’s greenhouse was improved by her own guidance, making it more scientific and economical than those of other big households, ultimately yielding better vegetables, including a new variety that others didn’t have: "mushrooms".

Speaking of mushrooms, the Haishi family’s contribution was the greatest. At the time, Lin Yue, struck by inspiration, had shared the method of mushroom cultivation from her memory, instructing Haishi’s daughter-in-law to command the servants to give it a try, without expecting it to succeed—after all, theory and practical application differed significantly. It was only her craving that made her hope for a success.

As expected, the initial results were unsuccessful, but the Haishi family wouldn’t give up. Ever since the arrival of Nanny Xu, many tasks had been relegated to Haishi’s daughter-in-law, making her seem superfluous. Fortunately, her mistress was kind and didn’t cast her aside because of it. Feeling grateful yet ashamed, Haishi’s daughter-in-law was determined not to fail when finally entrusted with a serious task by her mistress. She spent days in the greenhouse, dedicating herself to studying and experimenting with cultivating mushrooms. As her method was actually correct, it was the overlooked details that initially led to failure. After all her efforts, the Haishi family indeed found the right method to cultivate mushrooms.

Lin Yue was naturally delighted to hear this good news, as it meant an abundance of new dishes could be created using the cultivated mushrooms during the cold winter season. Not only were mushrooms a delight to eat but they could also be sold for profit. Even vegetables grown in a warm conservatory during winter were limited, let alone mushrooms that have always grown wild in the mountains. No one had ever managed to cultivate them before, so fresh and delicious ingredients like these were eagerly sought after, and she never worried about not being able to sell them.

"Haishi’s wife, you have achieved a great feat; the success in growing these mushrooms is all thanks to your efforts. I must reward you handsomely. Tell me, do you desire anything, or do you have any wishes? As long as it’s reasonable, I can grant it," Lin Yue was never a stingy mistress. Now that Haishi’s wife had achieved such merit, it was only right to reward her well, which also served as motivation for everyone to work hard.

What Haishi’s wife now wished for most was to express her feelings to Lin Yue, especially since she had been holding back these thoughts for some time and finally gained the confidence. "Madam, I desire nothing. Your lord and you have been overwhelmingly kind to me and my family; I will never be able to repay this debt in my lifetime. If I were to wish for anything, it would just be one thing: that Madam does not disdain me and allows me to stay by your side always. I know I am not as capable as Nurse Xu, and I can’t help with much, but I will carry out any task Madam entrusts to me with all my heart."

Lin Yue couldn’t help but be moved by Haishi’s wife’s response, a true embodiment of a loyal servant – not the kind portrayed in television dramas, but one who genuinely pledged loyalty to her! Lin Yue had seen Haishi’s wife’s anxiousness and unease during this time; she was aware but pretended not to notice. Part of it was to temper Haishi’s wife’s character and partly to test her, allowing her to learn from Nurse Xu so she could better assist Lin Yue in the future. After all, though Nurse Xu was reliable, age was catching up with her, and even if she were to stay healthy for a few more years or maybe a decade, that would about reach her limit. Naturally, it was necessary to have someone take over Nurse Xu’s duties. Moreover, as her household business grew larger, the need for more staff was inevitable, and training several loyal and trustworthy people was essential, Haishi’s wife being one of them.

"Haishi’s wife, I am aware of your loyalty, and I have seen your actions these past days. However, it is important to stick to principles; it has always been the rule here to clearly distinguish between rewards and punishments. A job well done merits a reward, and a poor one incurs punishment. It is not only to reward you but also to set an example for everyone else, so they will also serve me diligently. Think again, do you truly have no desires or wishes? If you truly have none, then I shall make arrangements for you."

"I am willing to comply with whatever arrangement Madam makes." What Haishi’s wife wanted most at the moment was to maintain her position in Madam’s eyes and had no other immediate concerns.

"Very well, since that is the case, I shall reward you with one hundred taels of silver and an additional three days of holiday. You have worked hard recently, and you should take this time to rest and relax properly. I have more important tasks for you to handle afterward, and I expect you to be energetic by then." Since it was Haishi’s wife who devised the method to cultivate mushrooms, and she also had the capability, Lin Yue would not consider handing this responsibility to anyone else; it remained Haishi’s wife’s duty.