Shanhu gave a few more instructions before leaving.
"Let's get to know each other. My name is Ding Fang, and I'm 22. My younger sister is a maid in Old Madam's courtyard." Ding Fang was the first woman in the room who had spoken earlier while expressing milk.
"My name is Yan Zhi, 20," Yan Zhi introduced herself.
"I'm Ye Yunniang, 18," Ye Yunniang followed Yan Zhi and stated her age.
"Who referred you all to come here?" Ding Fang asked curiously.
"My father-in-law is cousins with Old Niu, who tends to the horses in the mansion," Yan Zhi replied.
"I was introduced by Aunt Tian at the side gate."
After hearing this, Ding Fang nodded. "I'm the oldest among the three of us. Sisters, let's go inside first and see how we’ll divide the rooms?"
Neither Ye Yunniang nor Yan Zhi objected to Ding Fang’s suggestion.
The two rooms in the right wing were identical in size and layout. Against the inner wall of each room stood two beds, one on either side.
The bedding, pillows, and mosquito nets were already neatly arranged.
Next to each bed, pressed against the wall, was a large wardrobe. Beside the wardrobe stood a dressing table.
Behind the door was a washstand holding a basin for washing the face, with a foot-washing basin placed beneath it.
In the center of the room was a square table with four stools, meant for meals, tea, or conversation.
One room had a large tree outside its rear window, making the space feel somewhat dim.
"That tree is scary at night. I’m afraid—I won’t stay in this one," Yan Zhi refused.
Ding Fang didn’t speak, but her expression clearly showed she didn’t want to stay there either.
"I like this room. There was a tree behind my house back home," Ye Yunniang said, fond of the tree outside. She dreaded heat the most, and a tree nearby meant cooler summers.
Ding Fang and Yan Zhi took the room closer to the courtyard gate, while Ye Yunniang settled in the one nearer to the main house.
Once inside, Ye Yunniang finally exhaled in relief. From the moment she entered the mansion until now, she had been standing and undergoing inspections nonstop—exhausting.
She lay down wearily to rest. She didn’t know how long she had slept when the sound of voices outside roused her.
Opening the door, she first noticed a pile of items placed at the entrance.
"Sister Yunniang, you're awake. Shanhu brought us some daily necessities. You were asleep, so she thoughtfully left them by the door," Ding Fang explained upon noticing her.
Ye Yunniang thanked her and carried the items inside.
Without unpacking, she stepped into the courtyard.
Seated on the stone stools were Ding Fang, Yan Zhi, and a slightly plump woman.
"Sister Yunniang, let me introduce Sister Chunyao," Ding Fang said.
"Greetings, Sister Chunyao. I’m Ye Yunniang," she introduced herself.
"No need for formalities, sister. We all serve the Sixth Young Master under the same roof," Chunyao replied with a round, jade-like face and a warm smile that instantly put others at ease.
"Sister Chunyao, we’re new here and know nothing. Could you enlighten us?" Ding Fang requested.
"Please, sister, tell us about the mansion’s rules," Yan Zhi added.
Ye Yunniang remained silent, but her bright eyes were fixed on Chunyao.
"Very well, I’ll explain," Chunyao agreed without hesitation and began sharing details about the Jiang Mansion.
The Jiang family currently housed three generations: the elderly, the middle-aged, and the young.
Old Madam Jiang and Master Jiang were the most esteemed figures in the household. Master Jiang also had two concubines.
The eldest master (Jiang Mingde), the second master (Jiang Mingzhe), and the fourth master (Jiang Mingrui) were all born to Old Madam Jiang.
Third Master (Jiang Mingyu) was born to Concubine Xue, Sixth Master (Jiang Mingshu) to Concubine Bai, and Fifth Miss (Jiang Mingyue), the only daughter of the Jiang family, was born to the late Concubine Wen.
Fifth Miss was raised under the care of Old Madam Jiang and was deeply doted on. Now just past the age of fifteen, the household was in the midst of selecting a suitable husband for her.
The Jiang family had not yet divided their estate. Aside from Jiang Mingde, who had entered officialdom through the imperial examinations and served in the capital, the remaining four brothers resided in Jiangcheng.
Jiang Mingde had two sons, Jiang Mingyu had a daughter, and Jiang Mingrui had two daughters and a son—the latter being the young master Jiang Tingjun, whom Ye Yunniang and the others were to nurse.
Originally, four wet nurses had been arranged for Jiang Tingjun.
However, two of them had encountered mishaps—one had given birth to a son with intellectual disabilities, while the other had insufficient milk supply.
The remaining two were the plump Chunyao and the slender Shi Liu. Shi Liu was currently in Fanghua Courtyard, attending to the young master.
For convenience in caring for Jiang Tingjun, Fourth Madam Jiang had arranged for the wet nurses to stay in Zhiyu Pavilion, adjacent to Fanghua Courtyard. She also assigned a young maid, Li'er, and a servant woman, Nanny Shi, to assist them.
As Chunyao spoke, Li'er and Nanny Shi returned carrying a food box.
Ye Yunniang noticed they were struggling and stepped forward to help.
"Thank you, Wet Nurse Ye," said Li'er, who was only seven or eight years old and lacked strength, now nearly exhausted.
"How did you know my surname?" Ye Yunniang was puzzled, as she hadn’t introduced herself yet.
"I saw Wet Nurse Ding and Wet Nurse Yan Zhi while you were resting," Li'er explained.
The food box was placed on the stool where Ye Yunniang had been sitting. Nanny Shi lifted the lid and brought out the meals prepared for the wet nurses.
Following the physician’s instructions, the kitchen had prepared bland, low-salt dishes meant to promote lactation—such as pig trotter and peanut soup, carp and tofu stew...
Chunyao eyed the tasteless food with little appetite.
But for Ye Yunniang and the other two, who had only eaten a single chicken during their postpartum confinement, these dishes were still quite delicious.
After the meal, as dusk fell, lamps were lit in the room.
Chunyao invited the others inside to discuss their rotation schedule, which would be reported to Shanhu the next morning.
All five wet nurses couldn’t attend to the young master at once.
Since Ye Yunniang and the other two were unfamiliar with the household, they would first learn from Chunyao or Shi Liu before taking turns.
Ding Fang would be the first to shadow Chunyao, followed by Yan Zhi with Shi Liu, and Ye Yunniang last.
Once familiarized, the five would rotate shifts—night duty being the most taxing, with one person assigned for two-hour intervals, while daytime shifts lasted three hours each.
With Shi Liu absent, Chunyao, being the most senior, arranged the schedule to be submitted to Shanhu.
After finalizing the plan, they returned to their quarters to rest.
According to Chunyao’s arrangement, Ye Yunniang would have the next day off.
Back in her room, she didn’t immediately sleep but instead organized the belongings she had brought in.
Two sets of clothes, shoes, and socks, a few hairpins, floral ornaments, and earrings, along with daily necessities like tooth powder, a toothbrush, cloth towels, fabric, and sewing supplies.
She carefully put everything in its place before washing up and lying down.
Yet sleep eluded her. Ye Yunniang worried about Pan'er—whether he would cry, whether he would look for her.
The very Pan'er she fretted over was wailing in Cai Damei’s arms. Too young to speak, he could only cry out his longing.
He wanted his mother—where was she?
Cai Damei held Pan'er, softly soothing him, "Don’t cry, don’t cry… Mother will return soon…"
Eventually, exhausted from crying, Pan'er fell asleep.
Cai Damei finally lay down, exhausted, and found a moment to gather her thoughts.
Ye Yunniang had not returned—she must have been chosen, which was good news, though it meant the pain of separation for mother and child.
The next morning, Cai Damei sought out Cai Xiaomei to help her find a house.
At first, Cai Xiaomei was reluctant, but unable to dissuade her sister’s determination to leave, she eventually agreed.
Having lived in Jiangcheng for decades, Cai Xiaomei quickly secured a small, self-contained courtyard for Cai Damei.
The courtyard was located in Sunset Lane, just a street away from the Zhou family. The residents of the lane, Cai Xiaomei had inquired, were all decent, honest folk.
The courtyard had two main rooms, a side chamber, a kitchen, and a storage space.
A well stood beside the kitchen, making water easily accessible.
Cai Xiaomei had considered every detail for her sister’s comfort.
The monthly rent was 560 copper coins—a discounted rate offered by the landlord, who took pity on the widowed mother and child and agreed to a five-year lease with rent paid every six months.
Previously, the landlord had listed the rent at 650 coins per month.
Cai Xiaomei accompanied her sister to buy a bed, cabinets, pots, bowls, utensils, and other necessities. Over three days, they cleaned and furnished the house, preparing everything needed for daily life.
Despite Cai Damei’s protests, Cai Xiaomei even bought a string of firecrackers to celebrate her sister’s new beginning.
It wasn’t until more than half a month after Cai Damei’s move that Ye Yunniang learned her mother-in-law and son had left the Zhou family and settled into a stable, long-term home.
