SFS Chapter 280: Disposal, the treacherous slave
Chapter 280: Disposal, the treacherous slave
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole audience fell silent.
Mrs. Feng was stunned for a long time before she realized that Yao Qingnian was going to kick her out and replace her with someone else. So she exclaimed, "Miss, what are you doing? Do you think you can do whatever you want just because the Madam is away? I have been in charge of the kitchen for many years and have never made a mistake. If you want to kick someone out, you must give a reason. Otherwise, how can we convince them? I will go to the old lady and the Madam to have a say. If you are like this, who will dare to work for the Shangshu Mansion in the future!"
"Mrs. Feng, you said you are old. I understand you and have made good arrangements for you to go back home to enjoy your old age. How can I say that I am driving you away? Since I gave you the chance with good intentions and you don't want it, then I will have a good talk with you." Yao Qingnian's voice was flat but with an unquestionable majesty.
Mrs. Feng couldn't help but tremble in her heart, but didn't respond. Instead, she stood there quietly, wanting to see what this yellow-haired girl could say.
"Let's talk about the daily meals in each courtyard first. Miss Youran is a girl, but she has to eat braised pork knuckle, lion's head, sweet and sour carp, shark's fin, abalone, sea cucumber..." Yao Qingnian looked at Mrs. Feng with a smile: "You think your sister is too thin, so you want to give her more meat? But she doesn't gain any weight even though she eats a lot of meat every day!"
Could Mrs. Feng say that Miss Youran really had to eat so much? She had fish and meat every day, whether she ate them or not, she had to have them anyway. Sometimes she would just take a piece with chopsticks and leave it alone, and the rest would be given to the servants. But could she say it? If she did, given Miss Youran's violent temper, she would definitely not admit it, and she might even bite back and get beaten, which would be a terrible outcome.
Yao Qingnian continued, "Not only her, but also the old lady. Grandmother eats vegetarian food and chants Buddha's name every day. You prepare so much meat every day. Don't you want her to concentrate on chanting Buddha's name so that the Bodhisattva will blame you?"
"This... this old lady is old, isn't it normal for her to eat some nutritious food to maintain her health..." Mrs. Feng's voice became much lower.
"Really? My grandmother taught me that it wasn't easy for the Shangshu Mansion to be where it is today, and I should learn to be thrifty. And she has a headache, so she shouldn't eat too much greasy food. She should eat more vegetables and less meat, firstly for health, and secondly to reduce killing." Yao Qingnian said seriously.
Then he looked at her steadily and said, "How about this, Shanwei, take Mrs. Feng to the courtyard of the Second Young Lady and the Old Lady to ask them if they can really eat so much every day, or if some cunning servants have falsely reported and embezzled the money and put it into their own pockets!"
Mrs. Feng felt her legs go limp, and she knelt on the ground, completely losing her previous contemptuous attitude: "Miss, even if you give me a hundred guts, I would not dare to do such a thing to enrich myself! I will go and find out the situation and give you a satisfactory answer. There must be some blind servants who are interfering."
"Oh?" Yao Qingnian flipped through the dishes he had recorded every day. "Not only in the courtyards of the old lady and Miss Youran, but also in my mother's courtyard. Three servings of bird's nest were delivered in one day! I was with her in the courtyard the whole time yesterday, but I didn't see even one bowl. Could it be that my mother ate it secretly?"
Sweat was oozing out of Mrs. Feng's forehead. She wiped it with her sleeve and felt a little dizzy.
"Do you still think everything in the kitchen is reasonable and normal?" Yao Qingnian suddenly raised his voice, and Mrs. Feng trembled all over.
"Miss, it was my fault for neglecting my duty. I will strictly discipline my servants in the future."
Yao Qingnian raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a meaningful smile. Seeing this, Mrs. Feng became even more flustered.
"Come here! Drag this old woman out of here. We can't afford to keep such a treacherous servant in the Shangshu Mansion! Old Lady Wen, you will be in charge of the kitchen temporarily. If you do a good job, you will be the manager in the future."
Mrs. Wen was also an old lady in the kitchen. She had inquired about her and found that she was a good person. Over the years, she had never been able to find a chance to stand out because of Mrs. Feng's pressure. Now, she finally got the chance and kowtowed hurriedly: "Thank you, Miss. I will do my best to do the job at hand and will not let you down."
"Miss! Please spare me! I have old parents and young children to take care of, and I can't stand this kind of torture. Even if I haven't made any contributions, I have worked hard over the years!" Mother Feng rushed up, knelt at Yao Qingnian's feet, wailing and begging for mercy, but was finally dragged away.
It's not that Yao Qingnian didn't give her a chance, it's that she didn't cherish it, who can she blame? Everyone watched Mrs. Feng being dragged away, and then they realized that this young lady was serious.
"Manager Zhong, you are in charge of the furniture arrangement in the mansion. How come in Sister Youran's courtyard, there are seven or eight vases, three sets of tea sets, and more than a dozen bowls and plates this month? What's going on?" Yao Qingnian looked over with cold eyes.
It was spring, and the weather was still a little chilly, but the sweat on the back of Manager Zhong's clothes soaked. With the lesson of Mrs. Feng, he spoke more cautiously: "This was carelessly broken by the maid in Miss Youran's courtyard. Fortunately, Miss Youran is kind-hearted and did not pursue the matter."
"Oh? Is that so? You broke so many things at once. You should have a good talk with your sister. You can't keep such a careless person. It will take her a maid most of her life to pay for all the broken things. You might as well sell them and buy someone more skilled."
"Yes, yes, Miss is right." Manager Zhong nodded quickly.
"Also, give orders. Not only in the young lady's courtyard, but also in the courtyards of the master and mistress, no more than three pieces of furniture in the room should be replaced or damaged each month. If more are needed, let them buy them with their own money."
Although Manager Zhong was somewhat embarrassed, he did not dare to disobey given the precedent of Mrs. Feng, so he had to accept the order and go down to give the order.
"I don't need to say much about the other managers. You should be more self-conscious, change what needs to be changed, make up for what needs to be improved, go back and think about it carefully. If you can't do it well, or feel that you are too old, come to me and I will replace you with a better one."
Yao Qingnian looked at everyone steadily and said, "Of course, there must be rewards for every punishment. If you feel that you have done something wrong, please take the initiative to speak up. I will forgive the past. If you have any ideas, you can also come to me. I will reward and punish you according to your situation."
"Yes! Miss!" Everyone nodded in succession, without the disdain they had when they came. Especially after today's changes, all the servants dared not look down on Yao Qingnian anymore.
When Shen Wenting came back, he learned that Chen Shuhua had handed over the housekeeping power to Yao Qingnian. He wondered what kind of trouble this daughter, who had grown up in the countryside, could stir up. It would be good not to have to smile and deal with Chen in the future. Thinking of this, he even hoped that Chen could stay in Xiangguo Temple for a few more days, so he had no objection.