Chapter 4: The Return of the Wet Nurse

  "Jin'er, is this really painted by you?" asked Lady Fan gently.

  Xu Mingjin nodded and said, "En." Mrs. Fan stretched out a slender jade hand and gently stroked her head, delightedly saying, "My Jin'er has grown up." Xu Mingjin pointed to the blank space in the upper right corner of the painting and said, "Mother, here, help me fill in these few lines of poetry." As she spoke, she took out a plain paper from her sleeve and unfolded it. Mrs. Fan looked down and saw that there were several lines of crooked characters written on it with a brush. She smiled and shook her head, saying, "Jin'er still doesn't like to practice writing." Xu Mingjin's face turned red with shame, thinking to herself, "It turns out my previous life didn't like practicing writing either, which saves me from having to explain. It seems that my previous life also learned painting before..." Mrs. Fan waited until she had clearly read the characters on the paper, then became excited and grabbed Xu Mingjin's hand, her voice trembling as she said, "Jin'er, is this...is this poem written by you?"

  "I love only the lotus for rising from the mud yet remaining unsoiled, washing in clear water yet not becoming seductive, being straight inside and out, not twining or branching, its fragrance increasing with distance, standing tall and pure, able to be admired from afar but not to be trifled with."

  Xu Mingjin really wanted to nod, but didn't want to mistakenly acknowledge someone else's work, so she said: "My daughter saw it in a book." The books in her study were all "Nu Jie" and "Nu Ce" types of books, which she had never flipped through, only glanced at and discovered they were this type of book, then put them away. At this moment, saying this made her heart truly afraid of being exposed. Fortunately, when Madam Fan heard the words, she only showed a hint of disappointment, but didn't suspect anything. Holding that silk fan, using a brush to carefully write those few lines of poetry on it. Xu Mingjin let out a sigh of relief.

  It is said that one's handwriting is like their person. After seeing Madame Fan's handwriting, Xu Mingjin began to doubt this saying. The reason was simple: Madame Fan's handwriting was majestic and powerful, with a momentum that soared into the clouds.

  Xu Mingjin was stunned by what he saw.

  "All right. Take it away." Madame Fan waited until the ink on the painting was dry before handing it over to Xu Mingjin.

  "Mother, will you teach Jin'er to practice calligraphy every day from now on?" Xu Mingjin looked at Lady Fan with eager eyes. She revealed a relieved smile and said, "Jin'er finally knows how to make progress, I'm so happy that I haven't even had time to catch my breath, how could I not teach you?"

  "That's settled then!" Xu Mingjin was overjoyed, he had just been thinking of practicing his calligraphy and was worried that no one would be able to teach him. It turned out that there was a master calligrapher hiding in plain sight right next to him, what a wonderful coincidence!

  She said she would do it. Xu Mingjin immediately wrapped herself around Madame Fan to teach her calligraphy. Madame Fan affectionately stroked her head.

  After returning from Mrs. Xu's place, she drew a picture and handed it to Chun Xing, instructing her: "Take this out of the mansion and find a carpenter to make what's on it." Chun Xing responded with a yes, took it with both hands, looked at it curiously, and asked: "Miss, what is this thing?" Xu Mingjin smiled as she looked at Chun Xing's curious expression, saying: "Don't ask, you'll know when it's made."

  Xu Mingjin didn't want to say more, Chun Xing made a bow and took the blueprint out.

  Xu Mingjin asked Qiuyun, who was standing beside him: "Qiuyun, when will Nainai come back?" The Nainai in Xu Mingjin's mouth referred to Xu Nainai, the wet nurse of this body, who had returned to her hometown last month to visit a patient and had not returned.

  "Miss, tomorrow is when Madam Xu is on duty, she will return to the mansion by this afternoon at the latest." Qiu Yun said: "Miss, do you have any instructions?"

  Xu Mingjin shook his head and said, "Nothing, you come and grind the ink for me." After finishing speaking, he took out the letter from Mrs. Fan and carefully examined it. For a while, the only sound in the room was Autumn Cloud grinding the ink.

  Xu Mingjin had practiced calligraphy with a fountain pen for a few days in her previous life, but this was her first time using a brush. She recalled the scene where Lady Fan taught her personally in her room, "When writing, one must be serious. One's body, brush, and heart must all be upright!" Lady Fan's words still echoed in her ears, so she quickly adjusted her mindset, calmed her nerves, and began to write stroke by stroke.

  She copied a melancholic poem:

  Parting is only a reunion in dreams,

  The horse's hooves outside the door have already moved.

  A complaining song is left to be heard when drunk,

  Looking far away, it's unbearable to send off into the empty sky.

  Who shares tonight's wind and moon?

  The phoenix on the pipa's neck is choked with sound.

  In life, nothing is more plentiful than passion,

  The river water is not deep, the mountains are not heavy.

  Xu Mingjin's hand held several sheets of paper, almost all of which were similar love poems. At the time, Mrs. Fan took them out from a small box beside her pillow and gave them to her. It was clear that they were very precious to her. Xu Mingjin imagined how many cold and lonely nights Mrs. Fan had spent alone by the window, sitting till dawn. Just thinking about such scenes made her heart ache for this nominal mother of hers. She hated even more the person who had caused all this, hoping never to see him again in this life. If she could see him again, she vowed to avenge her mother and bring justice back to her. But she also knew that this was almost impossible, so now she felt even more heartache for her mother. Although at present, her feelings for Mrs. Fan were not deep. She thought that since she had taken on the role of daughter, she should treat Mrs. Fan as if she were her own mother.

  Unbeknownst to her, she had already filled up a large sheet of paper. Xu Mingjin read the poem and thought: Mother must think she's still young and can't understand it, so she gave it to her to copy. She must not know that she has already understood her thoughts.

  Xu Mingjin put down her pen and admired the characters she had written. To be honest, they were not as good-looking as the handwriting of her past life. She didn't get discouraged, though - in this life, she was only eleven years old, and there was still plenty of time to improve.

  Xu Mingjin finally put down his pen after writing two more big characters.

  Suddenly, a little girl came to report that Mrs. Xu had returned and was on her way to the Jingyuan Garden after passing through the second gate. Xuming Jin was overjoyed. Wasn't she supposed to return in the afternoon? How did she come back before noon? She learned from Chun Xing's mouth that Mrs. Xu's hometown is located in Jiangnan, and she has been working in the embroidery workshop since childhood. Her embroidery skills are exquisite and unparalleled. After marrying, Mrs. Xu became a nurse for Madam Fan at the Fan family home. After Madam Fan gave birth to Ming Jin, she went to serve Ming Jin. It can be said that Mrs. Xu is one of the people who understands Xuming Jin best, but she doesn't fear being suspected by Mrs. Xu, after all, she is one of the few people who truly care for Ming Jin.

  "Qiu Yun, put away the things on the table," she said as she walked out of the study and through the corridor. Before she reached the main house, she saw a woman in her fifties with white hair at her temples but neat and clean from head to toe walking into the courtyard. This must be Permitted Auntie. She stopped in her tracks. As soon as Permitted Auntie saw her, her eyes welled up with tears, and she hurriedly took a few steps forward, sizing her up from head to toe before anxiously saying, "I've only been gone for a month, and Miss has become so thin! Those little maids must not have taken good care of you, they should be punished!"

  Xu Mingjin smiled and held onto Nurse Xu's hand, saying: "Nurse, it's not what you think. They're all very diligent." As she spoke, she glanced at the several maids standing by with a smile. Only then did Nurse Xu put away her angry expression. Again, she worriedly said to Xu Mingjin: "Miss, you're too thin, you need to eat more nourishing food."

  Xu Mingjin remained noncommittal.

  Mrs. Xu led the way, holding onto Xu Mingjin's right hand as they entered the house together. Xu Mingjin instructed Qiu Yun, "Go and pour a cup of tea for Mrs. Xu, she must be thirsty." But before he could even finish speaking, Qiu Yun had already poured a strong cup of tea and handed it over to her. Mrs. Xu took it with a smile as Qiu Yun teased, "You didn't know, Miss has been calling out for you all morning! If you hadn't come back, my ears would have grown calluses!"

  Madam Xǔ smiled and said, "Autumn Cloud, go to the kitchen and see if lunch is ready." Autumn Cloud hastily obeyed and went.

  Miss, I heard about your illness and the rumors outside the mansion as soon as I returned to the house. Is it true?

  Xu Mingjin nodded.

  "Those long-winded and garrulous good-for-nothings should have their tongues cut out and be driven out of the mansion!"

  "Mother, it's not from the mansion that the news got out." Xu Mingjin said calmly; "This time Father came back to see us, and was found out by the people in the other mansion." Madam Xu was stunned upon hearing this. After a while, she asked; "Did Master ever mention bringing Madame and Young Master back?" Xu Mingjin said; "Mother, whether he said it or not, now that we're still living here, they've already gone to the capital."

  Madam Hsu's face showed a hidden sorrow, and she said: "My poor mistress!" Xu Mingjin's expression was serious, and he said: "Nanny, when we reach the mountain, there will be a way."

  Looking at Xu Mingjin's firm expression, Mrs. Xu slowly calmed down.

  "The old lady has rushed for over ten days, she must be extremely tired. Go and rest well for a few days before coming to serve again." Upon hearing this, Madam Xu looked deeply at Xu Mingjin with an expression that seemed both sad and joyful. She nodded and left.

  Chun Xiang had already returned. She said to Xu Ming Jin, "I went out of the mansion and found Zhang Shuo Zi, who I've known since childhood. He's now an apprentice in a shop and knows a bit about carpentry. I gave him the blueprint, and he said he could do it himself. So I came back." After finishing speaking, she looked at Xu Ming Jin with a worried face, afraid that she would blame her for taking matters into her own hands.

  But Xu Ming Jin just smiled slightly and looked at her for a moment before saying, "You've known him since childhood? Childhood sweethearts?" Chun Xiang's face suddenly turned red as she scolded, "Miss!"

  Xu Ming Jin chuckled and admired Chun Xiang's embarrassed expression. Then she asked, "Did he say when it would be done?" Chun Xiang pursed her lips and said in a small voice, "He said it would be done tomorrow."

  Xu Ming Jin drew out her voice and said "oh" before asking slyly, "Who is he?" Just then, Chun Xiang let out a sharp cry of "Miss!" and rushed out with her head down. She collided with Qiu Yun, who was carrying a food box and entering the room. Qiu Yun saw Chun Xiang rushing towards her with her head down and tried to dodge, but it was too late.

  Just as Chun Xiang's body was about to collide with hers, she quickly dodged to the side, tightly holding onto the food box. She broke out in a cold sweat and first checked the food box to see that it was safe. Then she wiped the sweat from her forehead and scolded Chun Xiang, "You bumping into me is a small matter, but you shouldn't have bumped into Miss's food box as well. If you had knocked over Miss's food box, Miss would have gone hungry, and if Miss goes hungry, she'll be in a bad mood. If Miss is in a bad mood, the mistress will also be in a bad mood, and if the mistress is in a bad mood, she'll scold people. This way, everyone in the mansion will suffer! Look at you, you've implicated all the servants in the mansion."

  Chun Xing had already stood still in a daze when she bumped into someone. Upon hearing this, her face suddenly turned red and green.

  Xu Mingjin was shocked. She just realized that Qiu Yun still had such a naive side.

  "Alright, don't blame her anymore." Xu Mingjin suppressed a smile and said to Autumn Cloud: "Quickly bring the food box, I'm hungry." Again she asked: "Has your food been brought over?" Autumn Cloud nodded and replied: "I went with Manzi to the kitchen to fetch the food boxes. Ours are already placed in the outer room." Xu Mingjin nodded, originally wanting to have a few maids bring the food over so they could eat together, but looking at Chun Xiang's face which still had a lingering blush, she was probably the last person he wanted to see right now. So after Autumn Cloud set out the meal, she told them to go out and eat together.

  "Miss, the servants will wait for you to finish your meal before they go," said Qiu Yun. Xu Mingjin waved her hand and said, "Go ahead, I don't need anyone to attend to me here." The two of them then withdrew.

  After dinner, Xu Mingjin went to the study in the west wing to practice calligraphy. She practiced for two hours before stopping. After dinner, Xu Mingjin wanted to practice calligraphy again, but Chun Xiang said, "Miss, you can't work so hard all the time. Why don't you wash up and get some rest early? You can write again tomorrow morning!" Xu Mingjin thought for a moment and said, "Okay." She remembered that in her past life, she had become nearsighted to over 500 degrees because of reading too much without taking care of herself. And it was when she was around 11 or 12 years old that she became nearsighted. Now, she couldn't afford to make the same mistake again.

  A night without words.

  The next day, early in the morning, Xu Mingjin went to pay his respects to Mrs. Fan and found that she was ill and bedridden.

  Xu Mingjin was worried to death, but Mrs. Fan comforted her with a forced smile: "Jin'er, don't worry, I'm fine." Xu Mingjin looked at her pale face and listless expression, and became even more worried.

  "Master is here!" A little maid beside Madam Fan rushed in and said. "Please come in quickly." Xu Mingjin shouted loudly. This scene was so similar to the one when she woke up, only the roles had been swapped.

  It was Dr. Liu who came in and gave her pulse diagnosis last time. Xu Mingjin hid behind the screen, watching him give Madam Fan a pulse diagnosis, feeling deeply moved.

  Doctor Liu had been feeling the pulse for almost an incense stick of time, and his expression became increasingly solemn. Xu Mingjin was also getting more and more tense, with his heart in his throat.

  "Madam, I'm afraid I couldn't diagnose the cause of your illness. Please forgive my incompetence." Doctor Liu sighed and said regretfully: "Madam, your pulse is normal."

  Xu Mingjin's heart sank.

  See off Mr. Liu, Xu Mingjin had not spoken yet, when he heard Mrs. Fan's weak voice: "Jin'er, you promise your mother one thing."

  "Mother, you said it, daughter will agree with you." Xu Mingjin said without hesitation.

  Mrs. Fan forced a smile, but it was extremely bleak, and Xu Mingjin's heart ached at the sight. Mrs. Fan coughed lightly a few times before saying, "Tomorrow is the tenth day of the month. Every year on this day, I go to the White Cloud Temple outside the city to burn incense for your deceased grandparents. Tomorrow... ah, tomorrow I probably won't be able to make it. Jin'er, will you go in my place?" Mrs. Fan looked at Xu Mingjin with expectation, then tensely added, "Jin'er, I know you don't like going out, but just this once, okay?"

  Xu Mingjin's tense mood was swept away, and she had a feeling of being unable to cry or laugh. She thought it was so serious that her mother was going to entrust her younger brother to her care! She really wanted to say loudly: "No problem, I've got it!" But she didn't dare. So, she solemnly said: "Mother, daughter promises you."

  Madam Fan's face showed a relieved smile, and she said: "Isn't Nanny Xu back yet? Tomorrow, have her accompany you."

  Xu Mingjin nodded. She must think of a way to cure her mother's illness.

  Digression

  It's really cold, my hands and feet are numb from typing. Dear friends, I will continue to update the article. It's truly amazing, when I was 15 years old, I wanted to write. Unfortunately, it was hard to start, and it has been difficult until now. Although I have only updated over 10,000 words so far, for me, it is already a significant progress, and I will continue to work hard!