Chapter 23 Take Action
Mengxi turned to look at Hongzhu, who secretly hated herself for being too talkative and covered her mouth with her hand. Mengxi turned around and asked casually:
"How come there are red heart bananas in the two concubines' rooms? I heard that the red heart banana is a rare flower in the south and hard to find in Daqi."
"This red-heart banana is indeed hard to find in the world. It was last winter when Aunt Zhang's brother came back from the south to visit his relatives and brought back three pots in total. At that time, two pots were given to the old lady and the first wife, and Aunt Zhang kept one pot for herself. Because the second master was born with a love for strange fragrance, the old lady's pot was given to the second master. Later, unable to resist Aunt Li's pleading, the second master asked for the first wife's pot and placed it in Aunt Li's room. Aunt Zhang heard that the second master particularly liked this flower and usually doted on Aunt Zhang and Aunt Li the most, so she gave the pot in her own room to Aunt Zhang," Hongzhu replied.
"Madam Zhang?" Mengxi said to Hongzhu.
"Second Madam has just married into the family, so you may not be familiar with her. Aunt Zhang is the second concubine of the eldest master, and the biological mother of the third master. Second Madam may not know that among the three concubines of the eldest master, Aunt Zhang is the most favored one. Not only is she good-looking, but she is also very easy-going and usually doesn't talk much. She gets along very well with the second master's concubines, unlike the first wife and the other concubines, who act high and mighty. People in our courtyard like her the most."
Seeing that the Second Mistress seemed to be unaware of Aunt Zhang's identity, Hongzhu hurriedly introduced her. Mengxi heard this and recalled the venomous look in Aunt Zhang's eyes when she served tea yesterday. How could such an easy-going woman have such a look? She deliberately made friends with the Second Mistress's aunt and servants, and she must have ulterior motives.
"How old is the Third Master this year ?"
"Second Madam, you don't know that Third Master is 16 years old this year. Because the First Master likes Aunt Zhang, he rarely disciplines Third Master on weekdays. Third Master has been playful since he was a child and doesn't like studying the most. He has participated in the provincial examinations twice, but he didn't even pass the exam."
Mengxi thought quickly that the culprit behind the harm to the Second Master must be the Second Concubine, but why did she do that?
By the way, the Second Concubine didn’t give the red banana directly to the Second Master. Is it a coincidence?
Mengxi rubbed her temples with her hands, thinking of the deep eyes of the Third Master. An idea flashed in her mind. Could it be that she wanted the Third Master to inherit the position of the head of the family? That's why she had the intention to murder him.
It is no secret in the Xiao Mansion that the Second Master likes all kinds of spices. Everyone knows about it. The old lady loves her grandson very much and is eager to send him things he likes. Even if the old lady doesn't remember it, as long as someone reveals this to the Second Master, he will definitely ask for it. Even the psychology of the Second Master and the old lady was taken into consideration, and it was done flawlessly. The person who set up this vicious plan has such a delicate mind. Isn't it terrible?
"Is Second Madam feeling unwell?" Hongzhu asked when she saw Mengxi rubbing her temple and frowning.
"Does the old lady also like all kinds of strange scents on weekdays?"
"The old lady likes lighter scents and only uses one or two kinds of scents all year round."
When giving gifts to people, of course you have to cater to their preferences. The Third Concubine is not a newly married young wife. She is a rookie, so how could she not know that the old lady does not like exotic fragrances? Yet she chose to send this kind of exotic flowers and plants with a strong fragrance. Although it is a rare thing, how can she please the recipient if he does not like it? It can be seen that she had other thoughts in mind. I wonder if the Third Master was also involved?
"good"
Mengxi said "OK" suddenly, and her expression returned to her usual calm and composed expression, which scared Hongzhu. She looked at Mengxi and thought to herself, "What did this Second Madam think of again? What's good?"
"Go tell Aunt Zhang and Aunt Li and tell them that Second Mistress said that happiness alone is not as good as happiness with others. How can such a beautiful and fragrant flower be hidden in a dark room for appreciation alone? It is better to bring it out for everyone to appreciate together. Move the red bananas in the two aunts' rooms to this flower stand. Grandma, I like flowers in clusters, it is more enjoyable to appreciate them."
While stroking the burnt red petals with her hand, Mengxi gave instructions to a maid named Qian'er who was following behind her.
Hongzhu was so regretful. She thought the Second Madam was feeling unwell and was worried for a long time. It turned out that she was thinking about how to plot against the two concubines. She had been worrying about her for a long time in vain. Thinking about how she had said too much, she wished she could slap herself in the face.
，她已赞过 。 私家妈妈，她已赞过 。 English: This new Second Madam is really not an easy person to deal with. If the two concubines make trouble to the Second Master together, there will inevitably be another storm in the backyard. It's only been a few days since she entered the house, and she has caused so much trouble. She still thinks this mansion is not chaotic enough. Please don't make a scene like yesterday. Thinking of yesterday and concubine Li, I can't help but feel sick. This new Second Madam is too scary. She doesn't like flowers and brocade at all. It's obvious that she intends to cause trouble. With the words left by the eldest master during the day, if the concubines dare to make a scene, they will be expelled from the mansion. If they don't make a scene, the Second Madam will forcibly take the flowers, and the Second Master will naturally not go to any concubine's room for the flowers. This Second Madam is dark enough and has an unfathomable mind. It's only the second day since she entered the mansion, and she has already started to deal with the concubines. I regretted my talkativeness just now and prayed secretly: "Second concubines, please be patient and don't offend this ancestor at this time."
Mengxi saw Hongzhu's face turn pale, but she didn't know what was on her mind. She thought that she was afraid that she would offend the two concubines and was worried about her. She thought:
"Second Master doesn't like me in the first place, and I don't want to offend those two concubines. They are the second master's favorites, but in order to save his life, I have to do it!"
Pretending not to notice Hongzhu's expression, she continued to support Hongzhu and walked along a winding and quiet path into the depths of the garden. Looking at the colorful plants and flowers on both sides of the path, Mengxi's mood became more and more comfortable. For the first time, she felt the benefits of ancient times. These were all natural green foods, pollution-free, without chemical fertilizers, and good things for health preservation. As she walked, she identified various flowers and plants, such as Chickweed, Thistle, Bindweed, Amaranthus, Agrimonia, Purslane, Fern, Sophora flavescens, Nostoc, Pepperwood, Tricholoma matsutake... Some of them even have medicinal value. She was secretly amazed in her heart.
He bent down and picked a purslane, examining it carefully.
"Second Madam, this is called longevity vegetable. The flowers and plants in this yard were collected from all over the place by Second Master and are grown in this yard. The further you go in, the more rare species there are. They are hard to find even in Daqi. I heard that some of them are hard-to-find medicinal herbs in the world. Second Master doesn't know medicine, but he likes to grow these. Famous doctors often come to Second Master to ask for these things. Normally, people are not allowed to come here."
Hongzhu pointed at the flowers and plants in the distance and introduced them to Mengxi.
"Longevity Vegetable" Mengxi remembered that she had learned it in her previous life. This wild vegetable was called Purslane. It had green leaves, red stems, yellow flowers, white roots, and black seeds, so it was also called "Five Elements Grass". She was definitely not wrong. Maybe there was a difference between this time and space and her own time and space. Maybe it was its alias, but she didn't remember it. She remembered that this wild vegetable was rich in protein, trace elements and vitamins. It had a strong inhibitory effect on Shigella dysenteriae, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and many other bacteria. It had the laudatory title of "natural antibiotic" and had the effects of detoxification, anti-inflammatory, diuresis and detumescence. Thinking of the effects of Purslane, the slightly swollen eyelids of the old lady and her yellowish skin color flashed before her eyes. It was obviously due to weak kidneys and spleen, which could be treated with this thing. Thinking of this, she ordered the maid to pick some more and send them to the kitchen. She swam with Hongzhu for a while before leaving the courtyard and coming to the backyard. There were also east and west wing rooms and a cover room in the backyard. The small kitchen was set up here, and the two went straight to the small kitchen.
