Chapter 95 - Silence
Chapter 95: Silence
However, Yu Youyao was used to seeing good things, so she naturally had good taste.
Her father’s calligraphy was strong and powerful, but his paintings were much inferior. This painting was far inferior to her cousin’s.
What stood out was the word “personally”.
In addition to the elders, Yu Shuangbai and the others also gave gifts in return. Although it wasn’t anything special, they were still sisters.
The next morning, after Yu Youyao and Nanny Xu finished etiquette class and freshened up, Nanny Xu helped her pick out a set of plain clothes.
She was wearing an elegant dress with sapphire blue embroidery on the collar, sleeves, and sides. Coupled with the Tian-tsui that Yang Shuwan had given her, she looked elegant and beautiful.
One after another, the young misses went to school. As they had received gifts from Yu Youyao, they came over to thank her. They couldn’t help but take a few more glances at the Tian-tsui on her head, looking envious.
Yu Jianjia also noticed this and said, “Big Sister, the jadeite you’re wearing today is very unique.” At this point, she bit her lip and continued, “I heard that the art of making a Tian-tsui is to take the feathers of the kingfisher alive. Kingfishers are rare birds, and there is one less each time you catch one. Such a Tian-tsui needs dozens or even hundreds of kingfisher feathers to make. There hasn’t been any Tian-tsui jewelry on the market for many years, and it’s very rare.”
Her words implied that this Tian-tsui was rare, expensive, and exquisite. Anyone who heard it would think that she was praising Yu Youyao.
However, Yu Shuangbai and the others looked like they couldn’t bear to see this. They felt that it was too cruel to kill hundreds of kingfishers with just a pickaxe.
Yu Youyao chuckled. “Mother gave it to me yesterday. I thought that I couldn’t let her down, so I put it on today. I didn’t know that Tian-tsui craftsmanship was so rare. Now that you’ve mentioned it, I don’t dare to wear it again in the future, lest others think that I’m cruel.”
Yu Jianjia felt a lump in her throat and her face turned pale. She hurriedly said, “Big Sister, don’t misunderstand. I just think that a Tian-tsui is too rare…”
She hadn’t expected that this Tian-tsui would be a gift from her mother. Now, the cruel person had become her mother.
Yu Youyao nodded. “I see. I originally thought that Third Sis was a kind person. When she saw this Tian-tsui, she naturally felt some pity for the kingfishers, so I said those words. I misunderstood Third Sis.”
These words stabbed at Yu Jianjia’s heart, making her speechless.
What could she do?
If she felt that the Tian-tsui was cruel, then wouldn’t she imply that her mother was being cruel?
The atmosphere became awkward.
Yu Shuang rolled her eyes and said, “Even if this Tian-tsui was a gift from Eldest Aunt, it might not have been made by Eldest Aunt herself. It might also have been obtained from someone else. Don’t say that it’s cruel.”
Yu Lianyu chimed in, “Eldest Aunt has always been gentle and kind. She naturally wouldn’t do such a thing.”
It was supposed to be a good thing, but when the words “gentle and kind” entered Yu Jianjia’s ears, it seemed to be filled with sarcasm. Her chest tightened, and she opened her mouth to cough.
Hui Xiang was furious. She resented Eldest Miss for always making things difficult for her, but she had no choice but to help her.
Yu Youyao asked Chun Xiao to pour a cup of hot tea for her and hand it to Ai Ye, Yu Jianjia’s second-in-charge. Ai Ye quickly gave it to Yu Jianjia.
This way, the matter regarding the Tian-tsui was over, and everyone returned to their seats.
Chun Xiao asked Yu Youyao softly, “Young Mistress, do you want to change to a new hair accessory?”
However, she did not expect that a single hair accessory would cause a commotion.
Yu Youyao stroked the Tian-tsui on her head and shook her head. “I’ll just wear it. After all, it was a gift from Mother. I’ll just wear it for a day today. It’ll fulfill Mother’s wishes.”
Chun Xiao nodded. If First Madam heard about how she took it off after wearing it for a while, it would indeed not be good. She would not be displeased, so she did not persuade her further.
However, Yu Shuangbai moved closer to her. “Don’t think too much about it. It’s just a hairpin. If you want to talk about cruelty, Third Sister’s ivory carving paperweight is made of elephant teeth. Also, my father gave me a set of bone porcelain the other day, but it was made of animal bones. Which family doesn’t have such things?”
Only Yu Jianjia knew how to cause trouble, but she had shot herself in the foot and implicated her mother.
Her voice was neither too loud nor too soft. Unless Yu Jianjia was deaf, how could she not hear her? For a moment, she held the ivory paperweight in her hand and felt that it was burning.
Yu Youyao nodded. “I don’t care about that. Hurry back to your seat. Ms. Ye should be here for class soon.”
Today, when Ms. Ye was teaching The Book of Rites and Records of Learning, she emphasized the importance of studying diligently, as well as respecting teachers who were teaching them.
After that, Ms. Ye explained the book College. “Although women don’t take the imperial examination and make contributions, you have to know that women also have to be wise, close to the people, and live with grace. In order to reach the foundation of moral cultivation, they also have to be knowledgeable, sincere, righteous, self-cultivated, have a good family, govern and bring peace to the country.”
Yu Shuangbai couldn’t help but ask, “Ms. Ye, do women also need to govern and bring peace to the country?”
Yu Youyao was also very curious.
Ms. Ye replied, “A man’s ambition is to rule a large country, and that is to have a heart for governance and to bring peace to the world. When a girl is in a residence, she needs the breadth of mind to manage the family and ensure peace in the household. If the family is peaceful, everything will prosper, and there will be fewer disasters. To govern a country, one must first manage the family, and managing the family will be like governing the country. Therefore, in addition to letting women learn dogmatic rules like the ‘Lessons for Women’, big families also have to learn the ‘Four Books and Five Classics’.”
After school, Ms. Ye asked Yu Youyao to stay back.
Seeing this, Yu Shuangbai and the others couldn’t help but gather together.
“Every day after school, Ms. Ye would ask Big Sister to stay for ten minutes. She would also often ask questions in class. Every time, she would answer fluently, which made Ms. Ye very satisfied. Even Third Sister had never experienced this before.”
“Is Ms. Ye grooming Big Sister as her favorite disciple?”
“I think that’s most likely the case. Big Sister has been under Nanny Xu’s care for a while, and she’s completely changed. It’s like she’s a completely different person. However, even Third Sister can’t compare to her. She’s really amazing.”
After school, Yu Jianjia studied “University” again. Feeling a little tired, she asked Hui Xiang to help her to the side room. Just as she reached the door, she heard voices inside.
Every word and sentence was an insult to Yu Youyao and compared her to Yu Youyao.
Yu Jianjia froze on the spot for a moment. Her slender body couldn’t help but tremble. She looked like she was about to faint and fall to the ground.