At that time, Lam Can Dung just opened her eyes when she saw Que Vien. Thoughts of later events between herself and Que Vien made her want to throw the servant girl out, but a smile blossomed on her face filled with sweetness instead. At this time, though nothing has happened, but she knows what will happen in the future. How could she still keep Que Vien by her side? Her defenses shot up. Who knows what the ending would be like now? Regardless of whether the person is good or bad, if she could use them at the right time, in the right place it is still beneficial.
How would Que Vien know that in the blink of an eye countless thoughts had pa.s.sed by Lam Can Dung"s mind? To her this was still the Fourth Young Miss, naturally beautiful and elegant. She mischievously laughed and used a hang to pull Lam Can Dung up. "Fourth Young Miss, hurry and wake up. Third Madam and Second Madam have both come to ask about you. Third Young Miss has also just arrived."
"Older sister as come? Why did no one come and awaken me?" Lam Can Dung looked towards the windward saw that the time was no longer early. Que mama and Le Chi probably let her sleep in because she had awaken in the middle of the night. If not for the fact that today was the 60th birthday of grandmother, she was afraid the two would"ve let her sleep in all day.
Que Vien brought a long, soft red dress over to Lam Can Dung. As she helped Lam Can Dung brush and style her hair, she chattered away: "The guests from afar had already arrived earlier, but the people of Cu Madam has still not arrived. Recently, some guests rushed to come and the kitchens are busy in preparation. The hard labor servants could to sigh and complain loudly." In Que Vien"s tone, there were hints of arrogance and boasting since she was the lady"s maid of young miss. Those servants had to do things like sweep the floor and do hard labor, how could they compare to her?
Lam Can Dung casually smiled and allowed Que Vien to style her hair and makeup. She was still young, not old enough to have a complicated hair style; at most the bottom of her hair will be brushed out, then using a seven colored silk ribbon to tie to buns on the side of her head. As a finishing touch, flowers will be pinned on for decoration. As for the powders and rogues, her age made it inappropriate for her to use. That was why getting dressed and ready, for her, was still a simple thing.
"How about wearing a pair of (him đinh hương) (not sure what this is)?" Le Chi came held up a small box, after rummaging through, she wore the (him dinh huong) for Lam Can Dung. She adjusted the piece of jade hanging from the young miss"s waist. With a cheerful face and giggle, she said: "Fourth Young Miss has grown up., looking more and more like Madam."
Everyone knows that the Third Madame of the Lam family, Dao thi, was a beauty and extremely famous for it. Le Chi also said that. Though Lam Can Dung"s appearance was never mentioned, it was a compliment.
Lam Can Dung looked at herself in the mirror. She had skin that was delicate and fair, shapely eyebrows, a delicate and feminine gaze, and a full and soft pair of lips. Her face can"t be considered to be too beautiful, but she won in her calm temperament. People say what"s on the inside will influence what"s on the outside. That year, it was not her face that caught her aunt"s (co co) attention, but her delicate and calm personality that stood out. Her aunt broke her own rules and liked Lam Can Dung. Just because auntie likes, does that mean others also have to like? That year, what was her appearance like? Lam Can Dung looked down in contemplation, a cheerful and elegant smile peaked through, and the sun illuminated her fair, jade-like face.
The manor in which Lam Can Dung ate and drank was also very exquisite; not too fast and not too slow, just steadily. The societal standard of beauty is to be thin. All of the females within the manor — from all the aunts to her mother, sisters and cousins, and the concubines tucked away — did not dare to eat too much. She was also like this previously. But now, she no thought like this. She imagined that this type of weak beauty, when encountering a group of bandits, would only be able to run for a little bit before needing to stop for a break. At that time, would they regret that they didn"t eat enough and should"ve eaten more? At that time, she deeply regretted that she didn"t.
Seeing that the young miss eating her fill, Que Vien winked at Le Chi. Since Fourth Young Miss woke up from the traumatized event, every time the young miss saw food, she acted like she had some kind of grudge with it. In comparison to before, the amount of food had increased by a lot. Wasn"t the young miss worried that eating like this would make her fat? Que Vien"s eyes traveled the length of the young miss"s body: really, not even an ounce of restraint.
Le Chi"s face remained unchanging and only softly said: "Young Miss should eat a little less. Today, there will be a lot of food coming from the kitchen. There will also be goat meat, your favorite." If the young miss ate a lot now, later her appet.i.te will dwindle.
"The food should be finished and not wasted." Lam Can Dung nodded her and, even finishing the last bites of food cleaning from the plates. If one has not faced starvation and thirst, one would not understand that food and water is very precious. If one has not died once, one would not understand that life is precious.
Lam Can Dung stood underneath a tree within Lam Manor; her gaze trained on something far away. The weather in the 8th month, with its bright sun, felt like the end of autumn. The garden of Lam Manor was still fresh and beautiful. The leaves changed from green to yellow, from yellow to red, layer by layer making the garden grand and dazzling.
Even though Lam Manor is lacking in comparison to it"s previous splendor, not only the older masters and madams had their own courtyards. Lam Old Master treated the younger generation well. From the sons and daughters, even their children, each had their own courtyards with their own rock formations, a pond, and a tree. The structure of the manor was thought out meticulously and carefully. The construction was very beautiful. At this time, Lam Can Dung looked around and felt a bit of excitement and exhaustion.
Not far from here, beside a pond, laughter and conversation drifted over. Laughing loudly, someone said: "Fifth older cousin (bieu ca), this linh bich jade of yours is the real thing? It doesn"t matter how I look at it, it doesn"t look real. I only touched it a bit and it"s ruined." The words had not finished and a melody echoed forth.
Lam Can Dung looked down upon this graceful sound; in her ears, it sounded like the screeching of ducks. How many years has it been since she"s heard this song? The tips of her fingers tingled.
At this time, the distressed and anxious sound of Lam Diec Chi"s voice interrupted. "Luc family younger cousin (bieu de), you need to understand that this is something that my grandmother cherishes very much."
"Lam family older cousin (bieu ca) is too narrow minded." The person with a voice like a duck chuckled and said: "Our Linh bich jade takes the top spot in Binh Chau; I had only lightly touched it, how would I have ruined it? Look at you so distressed, even your face is red." Next, the sound of water: "Aahh!" Lam Diec Chi screamed and chaos ensued.
Que Vien"s eyes twinkled and she happily said: "Young Miss, did you hear? It"s Luc family"s Fifth Young Master. It would seem that Fifth Young Master will have to suffer for him."
Lam Diec Chi was the oldest of the Third family, fifth in the entire family, and only older than Lam Can Dung by one year, but, in comparison to her younger brother (bao de) Than Chi, he is much older. Thanks to the efforts of Hoang concubine (di nuong), carefully serving Third Master, Lam Can Dung"s father, she was doted upon and trusted. Even as the years pa.s.sed, the favor bestowed upon her had not diminished. The concubine and son pair was a thorn in the heart of Third Madam, Dao thi. Out of the married couples ten arguments, seven would be because of this mother and son pair.
That"s the reason why everyone at Lam Can Dung"s side found no place for him within their eyes. Naturally, Lam Can Dung also did not like Lam Diec Chi. When Lam Diec Chi was bullied by others, though she didn"t add to the bullying, but she ignored it. That was why Que Vien dared to speak so.
"Madam is still waiting for young miss." Le Chi was not like Que Vien. She didn"t want to be in these muddied situations. At this time, she advised Lam Can Dung to quickly leave and not b.u.t.t in to other people"s business. Her duty was to take care of Lam Can Dungm, not letting her worry or be troubled. Why did others hardship had to do with them?
It seemed like Lam Can Dung did not hear the words. She turned her body and went towards where the argument was. She couldn"t believe that she was very much connected to this situation!
She remembered that that piece of linh bich jade had been ruined. It was Luc Luan being bratty and pushed Lam Diec Chi into the water. Unfortunately, Luc Luan was an important guest; regardless of the circ.u.mstances, Lam Old Master (lao tha gia) would not blame him. In the end, the person who suffered was Lam Diec Chi.
Due to his fear, Lam Diec Chi jumped into the pond to pick up the rock. He was punished by kneeling for two days and two nights in the family ancestral hall. He caught a cold and Hoang concubine (di nuong) tirelessly took care of him day and night. She died due to exhaustion. Because of this event, Lam Can Dung"s father blamed her mother. In his vengeful state, he married a bunch of concubines. This made her mother even more angry and she fell ill for a time. The strained relationship became even worst infecting the relationship between the children as well.
From that point on, the status and position of Lam Diec Chi surpa.s.sed the legitimate children. Resentment filled his heart and he became a threat to Seventh brother. If not walking the same path, mother would not have agreed to her marriage and she would not have had to suffer.
That year she woke up sooner than today. She didn"t know about this even and couldn"t stop it from happening. But since she had encountered it now, she couldn"t sit still and not interfere. This one decision could change many things later. Lam Diec Chi would not be punished. Hoang concubine (di nuong) would not die early. Father would not bring home a bunch of beautiful concubines. Mother won"t get sick. Lam Diec Chi would not be resentful. The siblings would not have to suffer and she would not have to marry into the Luc family, to Luc Giam, and commit suicide by jumping into the river.
Seeing Lam Can Dung step forward, Le Chi signaled to Que Vien with her eyes and spoke softly: "Do not gossip! If the young miss is in trouble, let"s how I will report to Que mama and hit your legs."
She mentioned Que mama and not Third Madam; she was already being much more lenient. Que Vien was not grateful and said in an impatient voice: "Go ahead and tattle! How is that related to me? Hurry, young miss has gone far. Hurry, we need to catch up!"
Lam Can Dung walked up to the pond and stopped.