Chapter 48，Part1: Jin Wang Dotes on His Concubine Ch 48 Pt. 1

Translated by gingercat

Edited by gingercat

At the same time, on the other side of the house in the West Chamber, Mrs. Li went to find Yan’er to discuss Zhou Sheng.

“This young man is quite good. He is honest and works in the prince’s manor. He is also not too old.”

Yan’er peeked through a slit in the window but didn’t manage to see Zhou Sheng. She couldn’t help but whisper, “How successful can he be? He’s just a servant who works for his master.”

Mrs. Li slapped her thigh. “What’s wrong with working as a servant? It also depends on who the masters are! Can the hired workers of small landlords compare with the servants of the prince’s manor?! Besides, Zhou Sheng is only how old this year? Who can say for sure what his future will be like? Do you think of yourself as a phoenix or the Queen Mother of the West? If you miss this chance, you will have to go to the countryside to marry an old widower and become a stepmother!”

Yan’er was also unwilling to become a stepmother. She wrinkled her face and glanced at her mother hesitantly. “It has to be him?”

Mrs. Li nodded her head vigorously. “Yes, it does! I’ll try to keep him for another day, and then we can ask your brother to help act as a matchmaker.”

“That Yaoniang won’t mess things up right?” Yan’er rolled her eyes at the thought of her. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“See if she dares!” Mrs. Li slapped her thigh again. “You shouldn’t forget that Xiaobao is still living at our house.”

Yan’er nodded and snuggled up to Mrs. Li. “Mother, Yaoniang seems to have struck it big. This time she brought back a lot of good things. The things from the prince’s manor are definitely not bad. You must help me ask for some so that I can use it as a part of my dowry.”

If she hadn’t mentioned this, Mrs. Li would have forgotten about it. When Yaoniang came inside, she did see her carrying two large bags, but at that time Zhou Sheng was next to her. She was too embarrassed to ask Yaoniang for the things in front of an outsider.

But in front of her daughter, she would never expose her thoughts. She used her finger to poke her daughter’s forehead. “You greedy and shallow little girl. If you want a dowry, you have to get married first!”

With that said, she left the West Chamber and passed by the East Chamber. She saw the lights from inside and hesitated. She resisted the urge to go over to eavesdrop and walked away.

A faint glimmer of light shone from the horizon as dawn broke.

Lin Yun County was like a giant beast that gradually woke up from a deep slumber. The streets and alleys gradually became rowdy with voices.

It was still and quiet in the Yao Family neighbourhood. From time to time, one could hear the creak of a door, followed by the sound of wooden wheels running over the cobbled streets. A garbage cart comes by every morning and goes from door to door to collect trash.

Yaoniang had woken up a long time ago, but she didn’t want to get out of bed. Lying next to her was Xiaobao who was sound asleep.

There was a faint sound of rustling from sweeping the yard outside. Yaoiang kissed her son on the head and got up to get dressed. When she was almost set, she heard the sound of movement from outside.

A noise sounded and it was accompanied by Yao Cheng’s voice. Yaoniang pushed open the door and went out.

Huiniang was also up and was making the bed.

Ming’er lived in the main room along with Mrs. Li, while Hong’er still lived with his parents.

At this moment, Hong’er hadn’t woken up yet and was sleeping in his own small crib. Lying under the winder, the crib was surrounded by wooden railings.

Huiniang turned and said to her sister, “Is Xiaobao awake yet? Put him here before he wakes up. So even if we happen to turn our backs on the child, he won’t fall off the bed when he wakes up.”

Babies at the age of six months old were naughty. They would roll off the bed when they awakened. If there were no railings, who knew what would happen. Huiniang had to watch over three children by herself. Although Mrs. Li occasionally watches over Ming’er, her eldest son, Yan’er and she were both lazy people who didn’t want to do anything. Despite needing to watch over the children, Huiniang also had to do all the housework. She had no choice but to find a carpenter to make such a bed. When she was too busy, she would put Hong’er and Xiaobao in the bed.

When she saw the bed, Yaoniang’s heart ached. She forced back her sorrow and nodded. She returned to her room and carried Xiaobao out, then placed him beside Hong’er.

“It’s okay. When other families are too busy, they would also leave their children like this.” Huiniang comforted her sister when she saw that Yaoniang was troubled.

Yaoniang nodded and said, “Sister, I asked you to hire someone or buy a servant girl to help with the housework. Why didn’t you do it?”

Huiniang sighed. “Do you think that buying a servant girl is simply a matter of money? It’s not easy to encounter a servant girl who is old enough to know how to take care of children. Buying a servant girl who is too young is the same as gaining another daughter. Your brother-in-law and I can’t bear to order a young girl to do the work. There’s even less need to mention hiring people to come and help. It’s hard to find a trustworthy person to work for you and it’s even more difficult to investigate a random person’s background and character. If some evil person was hired, what’s to stop them from kidnapping the children and selling them?”

Yaoniang thought about it and agreed. “I will come back again after half a year, but I think it’s still better to hire someone. Even if they can’t help with watching over the children, they could help with the housework. Those two women don’t do anything themselves but make you do everything. Even if you feel it’s fine, I feel tired on your behalf.”

As she talked, Yao Cheng walked in with a smile on his face. “Brother Zhou is really courteous. He got up early in the morning to help us sweep the yard.”

Only then did Yaoniang learn that the sound that she heard earlier that morning was from Zhou Sheng sweeping the yard.

“This Brother Zhou is a pretty good man, Yaoyao what do you think?”

“Big Brother Zhou is pretty nice…”