After half a cup of tea, the housekeeper came again; this time it was for two people in the house, and he brought them all over, each holding a large package in his hand.
"Miss Minghua, they have been brought to you; they now have the surname of the Xu family, and the deed is in your hands. You can change their surnames."
This was the case with slaves in ancient times, some of whom didn't even have a surname; the vast majority of those who had surnames followed their master's surname. If the master wanted to take away their slaves, they had no right to speak.
However, the purpose of the housekeeper's words was to make it clear to the two people who were brought here that their bond of sale was with the new owner, and their owner was only Xiao Minghua. What they would do with them in the future was entirely up to Xiao Minghua's whim. The second is to tell Minghua that she has the right to dispose of the matter.
"Okay, thank you for your hard work, uncle, take advantage of the time now; I'll take them to the new house to settle in, and the shopping has to be sorted out." After moving out of the chief minister's mansion, and having a home, I have to do everything that needs to be done.
The butler nodded and left.
"Mom, you should go and have a look, or you can just live there; tomorrow after the banquet hosted by the master, we will have to move out." Minghua asked her mother's opinion, mainly because it was not as good as living under the shelter of someone else's house. Living at home is comfortable.
Xiao Leshi said: "Then I'll move there first, but can you do it here alone?"
"Okay, don't worry. As long as the master is here, no one dares to treat me lightly." The two servants were sent out openly, which clearly shows that Xu Shoufu valued her as a young disciple; no one with a bit of discernment would look for trouble.
"Okay, I'll go pack your things. I'll take what you need and send them over. Just leave the clothes you need to wear tomorrow. By the way, I have to say goodbye to your master."
Xiao Leshi was busy and tidying up for half an hour. During this period, he picked out the things that Minghua would wear. In the end, he only left her a set of clothes that she would wear to meet guests tomorrow. And the clothes the father-in-law ordered to be made for Minghua were made of the best materials, and none of them could be seen outside.
Xiao Leshi cherished it very much and was reluctant to give it up. At the same time, she also understood that it was her daughter's future that made her what she is today. The two sons at home also need to be supervised carefully. After they moved there, Minghua wrote a letter, reminding her husband to take good care of them and come to the capital for family reunion as soon as possible.
"Give the things to the servants first. I will take you to see the master." Minghua gave a look, and the servants respectfully and honestly mentioned the things at Xiao Leshi's feet.
Minghua led a group of people out of the guest house and asked the servants to wait at the gate of the mansion. She took her mother to say goodbye to Xu Shoufu.
After hearing Ming's intention, Xu Shoufu had already guessed that Xiao Le's family would definitely move out soon after Ming Ming came to the house. He and his young apprentice would also move out with him. He said calmly, "It's okay to move here. Ming Hua can feel at ease after she settles down." Study; Mrs. Xiao, go and get busy, I won’t see you off if I have something else to do here.”
"Don't dare, Master Xu, you are busy, the civilian woman must leave."
Minghua bowed and followed Xiao Leshi out of Xu Shoufu's study and out of the courtyard. Xiao Leshi secretly wiped her sweat and said to herself, Minghua's master was so majestic that she didn't even dare to stand ten steps away from him. Say one more word.
"Sanya, learn from your master well."
"I know, mother."
Meeting up with two servants at the gate, the group left the chief minister's residence. They did not ask the mansion's carriage to see them off; instead, they took Xiao Leshi on foot while introducing the houses and routes along the way.
After crossing two streets and arriving at a house with two entrances, Minghua stopped; the plaque above had been replaced with the word "Xiao Mansion" and a big lock was hung on the door.
Xiao Leshi looked up and smiled slightly, "Your master is so thoughtful. He even changed the plaque."
"Yes." Minghua nodded.
"My mother-in-law, thank your master for entering the capital, thanks to the care of Dean Fan, my husband and Mr. Xu. If you don't listen to Mr. Xu in the future, I, the mother-in-law, will be the first one not to agree to it." It would not be an exaggeration to say that Xu Shoufu's attitude toward Minghua was because he was kind to his daughter; it was even worse than that.
When she was at her husband's house, she also heard her husband mention that Xu Shoufu was not very strict in raising his children and grandchildren. He seemed to have a freewheeling attitude, but his attitude towards his daughter was completely different.
"I know, mother, master took good care of me; I will naturally repay the master with the same heart. Let's go into the yard. It's not cleaned yet. We need to get everyone busy and tidy up the yard."
Xiao Leshi calmed down her nagging and led her to the door; Minghua took out a key from her arms and opened the door of the house.
Pushing open the gate of the house, what you see is a solid wall partition; bypassing the partition, you can see the withered yellow leaves scattered all over the courtyard, and the vegetation is quite neat. These were left by the previous owner of the house because it was inconvenient to take them away. .
There were eleven people in the two rooms, big and small, all with good eyesight. There was a simple and honest man who led his wife and daughter to bring two chairs and wiped them clean with clothes.
"Madam, Miss, please take a seat; the yard needs to be neatly arranged. Please take a rest and we will arrange it soon." The honest man was still wearing the clothes of the servants of Xu Shoufu's house, but his clothes were a little different from the others. .
"Mom, sit down."
Xiao Leshi nodded and sat down. Minghua sat down on the chair beside her and asked, "What are your names?"
"The nicknames of the slaves are not worth mentioning. We will follow you in the future and please give the slaves new names." The honest man finished.
Minghua's eyes naturally fell on him. This man had a simple and honest face and could not see his lowered eyes. "What is your status in the Chief Minister's Mansion? Tell the truth."
"Master, this slave works as a steward in the outer courtyard and works with the housekeeper on weekdays."
"Raise your head and look directly at me." Minghua said with a straight face.
The honest man raised his head, looked at her levelly, and then lowered his eyelids. With just this glance, Minghua saw clearly the shrewdness hidden in his eyes and nodded secretly.
"Tell me your name."
"The slave's name is Pingfu in the chief minister's residence."
"From now on, you will be called Xiao Pingfu, and my last name will be the same as everyone else's. Your name will remain the same and your last name will be changed." Minghua took out a 500-tael silver note from her sleeve and handed it to Xiao Pingfu, "Since you are Those who work with the housekeeper uncle should be familiar with housekeeping."
"Yes, I'm familiar with this. I know the purchasing process, and I know where the good stuff is and where the bad stuff is." Xiao Pingfu lowered his hands to his sides and bowed slightly.
Minghua handed over the banknote and said, "First, arrange everyone and clean what needs to be cleaned. My wife and I's rooms are in the second courtyard, and you can arrange the rest. We moved into this house for the first time, and everyone became familiar with it quickly. Every corner must be looked at. Then you take two people to go shopping. From today on, my mother will live here. You must buy everything you need to eat and drink, including firewood, rice, oil, salt, meat and vegetables."
