Mrs. Li, after hearing what her daughter had said, felt that having so many people around her was a waste of money, but her daughter was also right—without a few daughters to help, there was a whole pile of things waiting for her at home.
There was the troublemaker Aunt Lai, the sick Mother-in-law, the indifferent Father-in-law, and the youngest son was still little; the family also hadn’t hired many workers.
In the past, her daughters had helped her with some tasks, such as managing the accounts and delivering some obligatory gifts.
Thinking about how these things at home would be without her daughters in the Capital City, she felt that she would miss them and lack the many helpers in the future.
"Ming Yue, go outside and bring those people into the living room," she said.
Ming Yue nodded and left.
"Mom, I’ve prepared some silver to reward the workers. I’ll also visit my sister’s and brother’s servants later," said Ye Shiqi.
Hongji... the youngest daughter was thoughtful, truly cut out for business.
Mrs. Li... I had thought about it too, but we owe so much money; distributing it to so many people seems such a waste, she thought, yet did not express this, understanding her daughter’s wish for more loyalty from those serving her.
Ye Shiqi asked Nuanyang to hand a box to Mrs. Li, a box of red envelopes for rewards.
Soon, Ming Yue returned with many people following behind her.
There were two more men than in Ye Shiqi’s courtyard and two fewer old women, exactly fourteen people in total.
"Mother, let them introduce themselves and make a list of their names and specialties so it will be easier to manage them!" Ye Shiqi suggested.
Mrs. Li nodded and then asked them to introduce themselves. The men were to follow Hongji; there was no need to change their names.
The old women also kept their names, using their original ones.
Then came the little maids and second-class maids; there were too many of them for her to take away.
She planned on taking only four Maids and two old women back to her hometown.
"We won’t change the names of the little maids and second-class maids; write your original names on the list. For the four Maids, let’s name them after the seasons: Ming Yue, Nuanyang, Yu Ye, Bai Xue. Chun Yu, Xia Liang, Qiuri, Dongmei," said Mrs. Li.
After Mrs. Li spoke, everyone nodded obediently; they seemed a bit more serious and did not show as much emotion on their faces as the people in Ye Shiqi’s courtyard.
Ye Shiqi guessed this might be because they were older and more experienced, thus arranged by the housekeeper to be stronger and more competent by the Madam’s side.
Mrs. Li handed a box to Dongmei, instructing her to distribute the rewards to everyone.
Dongmei beamed with joy, and as she handed out the rewards, the previously somber faces of the crowd now smiled.
Mrs. Li... how thoughtful my daughter is, she mused, despite being a housekeeper for so long, I never considered these issues.
The amount of the reward, no matter how small, was a gesture of welcome and appreciation for the staff, making them feel that they had received an unexpected benefit and that their futures were promising and bright.
After the people in the living room had left to attend to their tasks, Ye Shiqi spoke a few more words with her parents. She wanted to wait until she had visited her elder sisters’ and younger brother’s courtyards before they all set out together.
Mr. and Mrs. Li, along with Hongji, all nodded in agreement.
Ye Shiqi, accompanied by her maids Ming Yue, Nuanyang, Yu Ye, and Bai Xue, then set off for her eldest sister’s courtyard.
When she arrived at her eldest sister’s courtyard, seeing that her sister was in the same situation, she also handed over a box of silver to her.
Upon learning that the eldest sister had met with the maids and the old women in her courtyard and had even named the Maids,
Qin Xian, Qi Hun, Shu Jian, Huaxian, the people in her courtyard were pretty much the same; the maids were slightly older, around fourteen or fifteen years old.
Elder Sister Ye Luoqi found her younger sister to be so heartwarming, she gave her a box of silver. She then had Qi Hun call the people from the courtyard inside and distributed the rewards.
Qi Hun obeyed the order, invited the courtyard people in, and handed out the rewards.
From the moment the little Lady entered, and the money was distributed, many hearts had already found balance, thinking the little Lady might be a manager in this house. They had also heard that the estate and some of its products were registered in the little Lady’s name.
In light of this little Lady, who was even younger than the Elder Sister, their attitude turned even more respectful.
Ye Shiqi saw that there was no affair concerning her, so she went to Second Sister’s courtyard.
In Second Sister’s courtyard, things were much the same, and she wondered whether it was the same with her other sisters’ courtyards.
Ye Shiqi met with Second Sister and also handed her the box of silver as a reward.
Second Sister Ye Mei Qi instructed her maid to accept the silver.
She then informed Ye Shiqi that the maids of the courtyard had been named after medicinal herbs: dwarf lilyturf, Lingzhi, red dates, Shanshao.
Ye Shiqi..., it was better that she didn’t need to worry, as naming was also a draining activity.
Second Sister Ye Mei Qi ordered Shanshao to gather the original group here and distribute the silver.
Initially, when they saw Second Sister didn’t reward them with silver, these people silently continued with their work, not thinking much of it, given the new mistress had come from the countryside and possibly didn’t have much to offer in terms of financial rewards.
To their surprise, when the little Lady arrived with the rewards, everyone internally acknowledged that this Lady was more like the Madam than the Madam herself, a person of no simple character!
Ye Shiqi then took her people to Third Sister’s courtyard.
The maids and old women greeted the little Lady’s arrival very respectfully.
It’s unclear if they were well-informed but they seemed to already know that several courtyards had received monetary rewards.
All were rewards distributed by the little Lady, and seeing her people carry a trunk made it even more certain that possibly the household manager wasn’t the Madam or the elder daughters, but rather this little Lady before them.
Ye Shiqi..., was quite enthusiastic, hoping they would show the same enthusiasm and loyalty towards her as they did for Third Sister.
She led her group to the living room, finding Third Sister deep in thought, but upon seeing her enter, Third Sister quickly ran forward with delight.
"Qing, how am I to manage so many people in the courtyard?"
Ye Shiqi pulled Third Sister to a seat and said, "Now that you’re a Lady, leave the management of those below you to your Maid, and the Maid’s management to the housekeeper. If the housekeeper is not around and you need assistance, you can find me or one of my maids."
Third Sister Ye Xinqi nodded, seeming to exhale in relief, then added, "The roles for these 14 people have already been defined, just say the word and I can name them!"
"Third Sister, if you wish to name them yourself, you may, but if you find it troublesome, just name the four Maids by your side to make future management easier for you!"
"Alright, I’ll think about their names!"
Third Sister Ye Xinqi was silent for a moment before saying, "I’ll name them after flowers. The names for the four Maids will be Xiaoju, Yueji, Feng Xian, Haitang."
"Fine, as long as Third Sister is happy," Ye Shiqi confirmed, before instructing Yu Ye to help distribute the rewards to the people in Third Sister’s courtyard.