Chapter 41 - Sowing Discord
Yu Jianjia bit her lip and looked a little put on the spot. “It’s nothing serious. It’s just that when we were at class today, Ms. Ye was a little unhappy that Eldest Sister hadn’t come to class for a long time. When Mother found out, she was worried about Eldest Sister’s studies, but she couldn’t say anything because Grandmother dotes on Eldest Sister. Father, don’t be angry.”
Yu Zongzheng’s expression turned very ugly. Since a few days ago, he had already instructed Yu Youyao to attend her classes at the residence. He did not expect her to completely ignore his words.
Yang Shuwan glanced at his expression and covered the corner of her mouth with her handkerchief. She said worriedly, “Master, during the previous trip to the Precious Peace Temple to offer incense, I happened to hear some rumors about Yao Yao. I’m very worried.”
Yu Zongzheng’s expression darkened again. “What kind of rumors?”
Yang Shuwan hesitated for a moment before saying, “They were saying that Yao Yao is interfering in the matters of the residence at such a young age, and beating the servants of the family. They also said that she’s really arrogant and disrespectful. I shouldn’t be telling you about such awful rumors, lest you misunderstand and think that I’m stirring up trouble. However, this concerns the reputation of Yao Yao and the Yu Residence, so I wasn’t sure what I should do.”
Yu Zongzheng’s face turned green.
He had also heard about Yu Youyao beating and selling the servants. However, he’d assumed that it was just gossip by the servants, so he had not paid much attention to it.
But now, hearing Madam Yang mention it, he suddenly understood.
This kind of matter should have been reported to the matriarch of the household and dealt with by Madam Yang. That was the proper way of handling the matter, and Yu Youyao wouldn’t have the reputation of being an arrogant and tyrannical brat at such a young age.
Seeing that his expression was amiss, Madam Yang panicked a little and quickly explained, “I didn’t mean anything else. Although Yao Yao wasn’t raised by me personally, she’s Master’s eldest daughter. Naturally, I treat her as my own. Seeing that she has neglected her studies and has a bad reputation outside, I’m just concerned for her.”
She looked like a loving mother who was worried about her stepdaughter and always thinking for the Yu Residence.
How could Yu Zongzheng not be angry? He slammed his palm on the table, producing a loud sound. The teacup on the table also made a piercing clang. “This unfilial daughter is getting more and more out of hand just because her grandmother dotes on her. The Yu family has been well-educated for generations. If a child of the Yu family doesn’t study hard and doesn’t know how to write, wouldn’t that be inviting others to mock our family?”
Yu Jianjia was startled and quickly tried to calm him. “Father, don’t be angry. Eldest Sister has been learning the rules from Nanny Xu recently. Perhaps she doesn’t have time to attend the classes, and she didn’t miss them on purpose.”
Yu Zongzheng was furious. “Just because she’s learning from the nanny, she doesn’t attend her classes to study? Who in this residence hasn’t learned the rules from a nanny? Why should she be any different from the others?” He suddenly clenched his fists on the table, and his tone became even angrier. “As the eldest daughter of the first wife in the residence, she should be studying harder, carrying out the responsibilities as the Eldest Miss, and setting an example for her sisters. However, she’s not behaving like a proper young mistress at all.”
Yu Jianjia was frightened by his anger. She bit her lower lip and lowered her head. On the other hand, Yang Shuwan advised gently, “Be careful not to get too angry. Yao Yao is still young. Just teach her slowly in the future.”
“Girls should be sensible by the age of seven. She’s already nine years old and has long passed the age to be young and ignorant.” Yu Zongzheng raised his voice and said angrily, “Jia Jia was already much more sensible at six or seven years old than Yao Yao is now!”
Yang Shuwan did not know how to calm him down anymore. For a moment, she was just dazed in silence.
The atmosphere in the room was thick and heavy.
Yu Jianjia poured a cup of tea and handed it to Yu Zongzheng. She said gently, “Father, Mother did not want to talk to you about this precisely because she did not want to upset you.”
Yu Zongzheng received the teacup and gulped the tea down. The cup of hot tea calmed him down a little, but his expression was still dark. Clearly, he was still angry.
Yu Jianjia said slowly, “Ms. Ye is a female teacher hired by Father, and she’s a renowned, talented woman in the capital. She teaches seriously and is very principled. Eldest Sister often couldn’t sit still during classes in the past, but Ms. Ye was always very tolerant. Please persuade Eldest Sister to apologize to Ms. Ye. She will definitely forgive her. Don’t hurt your father-daughter relationship because of this small matter. Otherwise, Mother and I will be put in a difficult position.”
Her voice was soft and pleasant, and her words made sense. However, the more Yu Zongzheng listened, the angrier he became, and his expression looked even worse.
So, there was definitely no problem with Ms. Ye’s character and abilities. Even Jia Jia was very satisfied with her. What was there for Yu Youyao to be dissatisfied with? Such that she actually dared to disrespect her teacher, by disregarding the rules during class. It was simply outrageous!
Yu Zongzheng suddenly stood up from his chair and walked out with a dark expression.
Yang Shuwan quickly stepped forward to stop him. “Master, please calm down. Yao Yao is still a child. Don’t scare her. Besides, Old Madam has always doted on Yao Yao. You can’t anger her.”
These words undoubtedly added fuel to the fire. The veins on Yu Zongzheng’s forehead throbbed. He waved the curtain aside and strode out of the inner room.
Yu Jianjia watched as her father left angrily, her face filled with fear. “Mother, why is Father so angry? Did he misunderstand Eldest Sister? Let’s quickly persuade Father to come back, or he’ll scold her again..”
With that, she rushed out.
Knowing that her daughter was a kind person, Yang Shuwan quickly pulled her back. “Jia Jia, don’t worry. Your father is usually strict but kind to your sisters. He’s just worried that your big sister will neglect her studies. He won’t really scold her.”
After much persuasion, Yu Jianjia finally felt more at ease.
After two days of grueling practice, Yu Youyao’s bamboo embroidery had become quite decent.
The green bamboo on the small sachet were tall and straight, while the branches on the bamboo joints were horizontal and slanted, embellished with three different patterns. Although the workmanship looked a little coarse, it was still considered decent.
Dong Mei held it in her hand and looked at it carefully. “Eldest Miss, you’ve embroidered so well. When I first learned embroidery, it took me an entire month to make something decent.”
She had been learning embroidery since she was young, but her hands and eyes were not as agile as the Young Mistress. Nanny Xu had taught Young Mistress how to embroider on both sides, so she and Chun Xiao had also learned along, but they hadn’t even grasped the needlework technique.
Nanny Xu had said that double-sided embroidery was not like the other embroidery techniques, and not everyone could learn it. Only people like Yu Youyao, who had naturally softer bones, could master this double-sided embroidery skill.
Upon hearing what Dong Mei said, Yu Youyao looked reproachful and complained, “Since embroidery’s so difficult, why did you and Chun Xiao try to persuade me before? You allowed Nanny Xu to fool me and you watched me suffer. My fingers have not felt okay ever since I’ve started learning embroidery. It’s simply too painful. I’ve never suffered like this since birth.”
Dong Mei covered her mouth and chuckled. “We felt that you actually really wanted to learn, but just couldn’t bear the hardship. How could we dare to stop you?”
If it weren’t for the fact that she really wanted to learn, no one else would have been able to persuade her to do it.
However, she had never been in such pain since she was young. Her fingers were full of bleeding wounds. She’d cried and said that it hurt, shouting that she didn’t want to learn anymore. Still, she was quickly pacified after some words of comfort by Nanny Xu.
Of course, it didn’t seem like she truly didn’t want to learn.historical