Poor Lady Chapter 69: Housekeeper

Half a month after Qi Surong married into the Gu family, she basically recognized everyone in the Gu family. Combined with the memories of her previous life, she has a relatively comprehensive understanding of the situation in the Gu family's backyard.

The Gu family's house can only be considered a medium-sized house in the capital, with seventy-six servants and thirty-two nurses. The several masters of the Gu family, including Gu Jinyun, are relatively lenient towards the servants, and they are not very particular about etiquette. As long as they do their jobs well, don't steal chickens and dogs, and don't cause trouble, most of the small mistakes they usually make are just turning a blind eye. One eye, so the Gu family's inner courtyard does not have strict classification and cumbersome rules like those of famous families.

If the Gu family was just an ordinary merchant's family, it would be okay to keep the status quo, but now that the Gu family has gradually begun to contact the dignitaries in the capital, they may often have to entertain some people with status and status in the future. In this way, the etiquette norms of servants will become especially important. If they are rude, they will lose face of the Gu family. The guests may not reprimand in person, but they will feel contemptuous, and may even no longer be invited to the door.

Qi Surong came from a famous family, and all the servants in the house have undergone strict training, and there are rules in words, deeds, etiquette and clothing. They are generally good at observing words and demeanor, adapting to circumstances, and have a certain understanding of the dress, hobbies, habits, taboos, etc. of nobles and dignitaries, and will not neglect others at will.

As for the servants of the Gu family, they only need to know a little bit about the rules. For example, Fanghe, the girl of Shuangshuang, met Qi Surong for the first time, her attitude was contemptuous, her behavior was casual, and she didn't know how to speak properly. Qi Surong's husband is the young master of the Gu family, the old lady is no longer alive, she is the most prestigious mistress of the Gu family, but Fanghe treats her lightly. If he sees distinguished guests in the future and behaves in the same way, the Gu family is afraid that they will fall into the shoes of others and be ridiculed.

Qi Surong has experienced a lifetime of hardships, and the original noble and standardized manners and etiquette were polished by time to the bone. After rebirth, she is no longer proud of it, but thoughtful etiquette is not only a manifestation of self-cultivation, but also respect for others.

After half a month of observation, Qi Surong finally decided to start rectifying the inner courtyard of the Gu family. Of course, this matter must be reported to the father-in-law and husband first.

Gu Jinyun said: "You are the hostess, you have the final say on how to manage the house."

Gu Chang was even more refreshing, and with a big wave of his hand, let her go ahead and do it.

With the support of the two of them, Qi Surong no longer has any scruples.

The first step is to serve in a unified way. The house is mainly divided into six parts: the hall, the inner room, the study, the courtyard, the kitchen, and the stables. Qi Surong plans to design six kinds of clothing, especially the clothing for the hall, inner room and study room. The servants in the hall are mainly responsible for receiving guests. They must keep their clothes clean and tidy, and their appearance must be correct. The inner room is mainly composed of maids, who often go in and out of the bedroom to take care of the master's diet and daily life. The servants in the study are responsible for sorting out the books and letters. They must be proficient in writing and ink, and have a good character. As for the servants who manage courtyards, kitchens, stables and other places, they do rough work, and they should be served in dark colors, resistant to dirt.

Qi Surong didn't plan to design clothes with too different styles. There are two styles for men and women, and then make slight changes in color, skirt and some small accessories according to the different divisions. The color of male servants' clothing is mainly blue, while that of maids' clothing is mainly red, and different patterns are embroidered to distinguish them.

"Shuangshuang, come and try it on." Qi Surong picked up a skirt and gestured, "Your new clothes are ready."

Shuangshuang touched the clothes with excitement on their faces.

"Sister-in-law, can you change your clothes?" Qi Surong said softly.

Shuangshuang only hesitated for a moment before agreeing. During this period of time, they have been together with Qi Surong, and both of them have gradually developed dependence and trust in her.

Qi Surong smiled, motioned Ping'er to guard the door, then pulled Shuangshuang to her side, and talked to her to distract her while helping her undress.

Not long after, only the bellyband was left on Shuangshuang's body, Qi Surong turned behind her, and at a glance saw several bruises of different shades on her back, like pinch marks from fingers. This kind of mark is not only on the back, but also seems to be on the front.

Qi Surong frowned, touched those marks with his hands, both of them trembled, avoided to the side, and whispered: "No, both of you are afraid of pain..."

"Shuangshuang, who made this?" Qi Surong stroked her hair and asked, "Is it Fang He?"

Shuangshuang nodded, then shook her head again.

"Nurse?"

Shuangshuang still nodded, then shook her head again.

"Who the **** is it? Can Shuangshuang tell my sister-in-law? My sister-in-law promises not to tell anyone else, and treat it as our secret."

Shuangshuang frowned, pouted, "Shuangshuang can't tell sister-in-law."

"Why?"

"Fangfang said that if she told others, Shuangshuang would be sold far away, and she would never see her father and brother again."

"Nonsense, who has the guts to sell Shuangshuang." Qi Surong touched her head and said, "Don't be afraid, tell sister-in-law, everything will be fine."

Two double -flat mouths, crying: "Woohoo, don't say, don't say ... wow ..."

"Okay, okay, don't say, don't say." Qi Surong quickly wiped her tears, "Both of you don't cry, your face is covered with crying, shall we wear new clothes?"

Shuangshuang sobbed and nodded.

Qi Surong picked up the dress and helped her put it on one by one. Both eyes were tearful, staring at her blankly, with a hint of admiration in their eyes.

"Okay, come and look in the mirror." Qi Surong pulled her to the mirror.

The dress on Shuangshuang has a light pink base and a dark blue belt. A few dancing butterflies are embroidered on the skirt and cuffs. The wide sleeves and thin waist are fresh and chic.

Qi Surong picked out a butterfly hairpin from the jewelry box, put it on for both, and tied a butterfly tassel around her waist.

"We are both so beautiful," she praised with a smile.

"Really?" Shuangshuang smiled, "I'm going to show my father and the others."

"Wait a minute." Qi Surong pulled her back, pressed her on the chair, shaved her face and said, "The tears on her face are not dry yet, I don't feel sorry for your father and brother seeing them, sister-in-law You wipe."

Shuang Shuang nodded happily, shaking her legs, as if she couldn't wait.

Qi Surong wiped her face with a towel, then powdered her eyebrows, pricked her lips...the movements were skillful and elegant.

Shuangshuang watched intently, eyes full of admiration. The sister-in-law is so good, her fingers seem to be playing the piano.

"Okay, let Ping'er take you to find Daddy."

"Okay!" Shuang Shuang jumped up, the pendant on her head swayed, then opened her hands, and flew out like a butterfly.

"Miss San, slow down." Ping'er hurriedly chased after her.

At this time, Gu Chang and Gu Jinyun were entertaining guests in the courtyard. The person who came was Gu Jinyun's friend xx, who hadn't handed in the greeting card before, and the servant didn't notify Qi Surong in time, so she didn't know, otherwise she wouldn't It will make Shuangshuang bother you.

"Daddy, big brother!" Shuangshuang's excited voice came from afar.

The three people in the courtyard looked around, and saw a girl in pink running happily, her long sleeves and belt fluttering, she passed through the flower cluster like a dancing butterfly .

After getting closer, a scent of flowers came to the nostrils.

Gu Jinyun stepped forward to support her to prevent her from falling.

Both cheeks were flushed, eyes sparkled with brilliance, full of vigor, making people smile unconsciously at a glance.

"How many times have I said, girls should be more dignified and don't run around like crazy." Gu Chang scolded with a smile.

Shuangshuang jumped in front of her father, happily twirled around on the spot, and asked, "Daddy, look, do Shuangshuang's new clothes look good?"

"It's pretty." Although Gu Chang is a rough person, seeing his daughter's outfit makes his eyes shine.

"Brother, what do you think? Are Shuangshuang's new clothes good-looking?" Shuangshuang turned to Gu Jinyun again.

Gu Jinyun nodded: "It looks good."

"Hee hee." Shuangshuang was very emotional, looked at **** with a smile, regardless of whether she knew him or not, and asked the same question, "Does the new clothes look good?"

"It's pretty." **** looked at her in a daze, "The clothes are pretty, and the person is even better."

Satisfied, Shuangshuang flew away blithely, dancing lightly in the garden.

"Is she Jin Yun's younger sister, the third lady of your mansion?" **** asked.

"It's my sister." Gu Jinyun said, "I'm sorry, but my sister's heart is like a child's, and her behavior is erratic. Don't take offense."

"No, no." **** shook his head and smiled, "Miss San is lively and cheerful, very pleasant."

Gu Jinyun glanced at him, and found that he was still staring at the direction where both of them disappeared. His eyes were dark and his heart was filled with reluctance. Although Shuangshuang is cute, her flaws meant that she couldn't care for her husband and raise her children like an ordinary woman. I'm afraid there will be no good family in this life who is willing to tolerate her and love her.

Although **** has a good character, she may not be able to accept both of her flaws.

"What? Father and husband are meeting guests?" Qi Surong looked at Ping'er.

"Yes, the third lady ran too fast just now, it was too late for the servant to stop her." Ping'er replied.

"Did that couple bother them?"

"It looks like it should be fine." Ping'er thought for a while and said, "The guest seems to be familiar with the young master."

"That's good." Then she frowned again. A guest came to the door, but no servant reported to her. It seemed that it was time for her to establish her prestige as the hostess of the house. If the same thing happens again, it will be her dereliction of duty.

This kind of thing never happened in Qi's house before, so Qi Surong was also negligent. Besides, she has just married into the Gu family not long ago, and she hasn't officially taken charge of the affairs yet.

"Ping'er, help me draw up a list these few days and record the names and schedules of all the servants in the inner room." Qi Surong ordered, "I will find six sons to assist you."

The sixth son is Gu Jinyun's personal servant.

"Yes."

The next day, Qi Surong called the butler over.

The housekeeper of the Gu family is surnamed Li, a middle-aged man in his forties, who has been in the Gu family for seven or eight years.

"Steward Li, bring me the account book from the inner court, I want to check it."

"Madam, checking the account books requires the permission of the master and the young master, the younger ones dare not make decisions."

"Since I said that I want to look it up, I have already obtained permission from my father and husband. You just need to follow the instructions and don't need to ask any more questions." Qi Surong looked at him coldly.

"Yes, I will do it now."

After a while, Steward Li sent over the account book.

Qi Surong said: "Go down, I will return it to you after I finish reading."

"Ma'am, don't you need to explain it to you?"

Qi Surong looked at him coldly, Ping'er immediately said: "Didn't you hear what Madam said? Please Steward Li, please step back first, Madam will call you after reading."

Then Steward Li retreated hesitantly.

Qi Surong took a deep breath and slowly opened the account book.

In the evening, when Gu Jinyun came back, Qi Surong didn't greet him as usual, he couldn't help being surprised.

Going into the house, she was found sitting and embroidering by candlelight.

"It's night, embroidery is easy to hurt the eyes." Gu Jinyun said.

Qi Surong ignored her and continued to embroider.

Gu Jinyun walked up to her and asked, "Are you in a bad mood?"

"I'll talk to you after I'm done embroidering. There's only the finishing touch." Qi Surong said.

Gu Jinyun then sat aside, drinking tea while waiting. Su Rong seldom treats him indifferently, and the current appearance makes him a little uncomfortable.

"Okay." Qi Surong cut off the thread and handed the embroidered thing to Gu Jinyun, "The handkerchief embroidered specially for you."

Gu Jinyun's eyes lit up, he took the embroidered handkerchief, and unfolded it, who knew that there was actually a naive little pig embroidered on it.

He looked at his wife innocently, why did he embroider a pig for him?

"The so-called breaking your promise and getting fat, you are a little fat pig who broke your promise." Qi Surong poked his chest with his finger.

"When did I break my promise?" Gu Jinyun felt wronged.

"You said that I am the mistress of the Gu family, and you promised me to be the housekeeper."

Gu Jinyun nodded.

"But these days, you haven't mentioned it to the servants to make them question my behavior." Qi Surong raised her eyebrows and said, "How can a hostess who is questioned be housekeeper?"

Gu Jinyun rubbed his nose: "It's true that I didn't think carefully about my husband, please forgive me, my lady."

"It's late." Qi Surong stood up, raised his chin and said, "My lady is very angry, and I asked my husband to make a bed today."

Gu Jinyun stretched out his arms and hugged her: "May I ask my wife to be lenient and forgive my husband this time?"

"No, small mistakes will not be punished, big mistakes will come later. You have to lay the floor today."

Qi Surong pushed him away, took the mat and quilt from the cabinet, and helped him spread them in a long-winded motion, then turned around and got on the bed, hanging down the gauze curtain.

Gu Jinyun looked at the *floor, and then at the soft bed, his heart felt cold.

However, he is not so easy to deal with. After Su Rong fell asleep soundly, he sneaked back to the bed again. When she woke up early in the morning, without waiting for Su Rong to get angry, Gu Jinyun preemptively killed her, wiped her dry, and then disappeared like the wind, taking away the fragrance in the room.