43 - Managing the mansion

Chapter 43 – Managing the mansion

It was not only Old Madam Shangguan who was staring at her but the other sisters were also staring at her. Shangguan Yan felt so uncomfortable under their gaze that she blushed with embarrassment.

“Why is everyone staring at me? It seems as if I had grown three heads and six arms.”

When she saw her daughter feeling shy, Old Madam Shangguan laughed. “Mother is truly gratified. After twenty years of raising you, finally, you have become a daughter and not a son.”

Old Madam Shangguan’s words were meant to tease her daughter. In the past, her daughter was given the freedom to disguise herself as a man and she behaved like a boy outside. Old Madam Shangguan really thought she had given birth to another son instead of a daughter.

Now that her daughter is married, her daughter finally has the awareness of a woman!

Shangguan Yan blushed. “Mother, you are laughing at me!”

Shangguan Xin also poked fun at her. “My Fifth Sister has finally returned! This Younger Sister has been waiting for twenty years!”

“Stinky girl! Even you are laughing at me! What twenty years? You’re only sixteen! When it’s your turn to get married, see how I’ll laugh at you!”

“What’s there to laugh at? I am originally a girl and I won’t change into a man after getting married……..Ah!………”

Just as Fifth Sister stretched out her hand and was about to hit her, Shangguan Xin screamed and fled, causing the other sisters and sisters-in-law to burst into laughter.

As a newlywed returning to the maiden home, of course, everyone wanted to make full use of the time to force a confession out of her. They asked her about everything and wanted to know whether the new Guye treated her well.

In what way did he treat her well? Was he very serious?

Especially when everyone discovered the red marks on her neck, they cried out in shock one after another and the questioning became even more intense.

Looking at Lord Di who is extremely serious, it is truly difficult to imagine that he would be so heavy-handed.

While the women’s talk became more and more explicit over here, Di Jing was having an idle talk with Old Master Shangguan, Eldest Master, and Second Master.

The men of the Shangguan Family discovered that although their family’s Fifth Son-in-law had a stern temperament, he was very humble towards them and did not even show a trace of an official’s arrogance.

In terms of age, the Eldest Master was twenty-three and the Second Master was twenty-two, and both men were younger than Lord Di. However, Lord Di disregarded his age and status and still called the two brothers as Eldest Brother and Second Brother. This dissipated the pressure in the two brothers’ hearts and they immediately regarded him as one of their people.

However, they did not feel it was good to take advantage of their brother-in-law, so Eldest Master suggested that Lord Di call their names directly and in turn, they will also warmly call him brother-in-law, treating him as a member of the family. In this way, they felt a little more closer and when they chatted, they became more relaxed and their attitude became more casual.

At first, Old Master Shangguan hoped that his daughter could marry an ordinary man like Pan Gongzi but now, he feels that the son-in-law in front of him is much better. His daughter needs a husband who does not fear the powerful and can protect her. At the same time, her husband must love her and can suppress her temperament and Lord Di is just this kind of person.

Men like to talk about the country affairs from the local community to the imperial court and from business to political affairs. Di Jing also carefully observed Old Master Shangguan and the two brothers-in-law and discovered that they were all prudent people. It is no wonder that they could remain royal merchants without a change to their honor and favor.

Di Jing understood very well the Emperor’s temperament and also understood the direction of the wind of the imperial court and the powerful factions so he gave the brothers-in-law some tips. The two brothers-in-law had taken over the Shangguan Family’s properties and businesses, and their biggest trading partner was the imperial court. With the guidance from the Governor, it was equivalent to having an extra layer of protection, and they humbly accepted his advice.

By right, the new couple should leave the maiden home before dark but since Di Jing did not have elders in his family, so they were not hindered by many restrictions. Thus, he continued to play chess with his father-in-law and talked happily with the two elder brothers-in-law. At the same time, it was to allow his wife to stay a while longer in her maiden home and Old Madam Shangguan was so happy that she praised this son-in-law even more.

After dinner, Di Jing and his wife bid farewell to the Shangguan Family and returned to the mansion.

In the mansion, all the servants could see Lord Di’s love for his wife, so they gradually came to a conclusion in their hearts. Lord Di was very satisfied with this wife who was bestowed by the Emperor and she was not slighted just because she is a businesswoman.

However, now is still the early stage of their marriage after all. Which newlyweds are not affectionate at first? This will depend on how long it will last.

Servants who work in the big residences of government officials will have perceptions that are not the same as those of ordinary servants of small residences.

Every one of them has a background. Some of them were old servants who had followed Lord Di to the new mansion while some had undergone strict selection procedures before they entered the mansion and some were servants rewarded by the Emperor.

The old servants had always relied on their positions as old servants to consolidate their power and would discriminate against the new servants. The new servants could not compare with the old servants since the old servants had been working beside their master for a long time, so the new servants would think of ideas to fight for positions. As for the servants who came from the palace, they regarded themselves as superior since they were sent as rewards by the Emperor and came from the palace.

In the beginning, the three groups of people competed secretly. Di Jing was aware of this and Shangguan Yan had already noticed this.

After about half a month had passed, Di Jing ordered the Chief Steward to summon all the servants in the residence to gather in the front courtyard. Shangguan Yan who was standing beside him then announced to everyone that she had made new arrangements for the deployment of all the servants. It was only then all the servants realized with surprise that Lord Di not only loves his wife, but he also trusts her completely. All the matters in the residence, no matter major or minor, were under her authority.

“In the past half month, I have been observing all of you. Now it’s time to do some personnel reshuffling. Here, we have old servants who had followed the Master over and there are also carefully selected new servants as well as people from the palace. Since I’ve just arrived and not familiar with all of you, so to be fair, I will treat everyone here as newcomers. A new residence must have a new atmosphere. Master had just been promoted to the post of Governor and is busy with official duties, so he had handed over the management of all personnel in the residence to me. Do you all understand?”

All the servants looked at Lord Di who was sitting on a chair beside her and sipping tea. When the Madam was speaking, he only listened quietly with a smile on his lips. Just by looking at his attitude, it was apparent that the Master was going to stand by Madam.

Several new servants who understood the situation with a glance immediately expressed their views. “This slave understands, this slave will adhere to Madam’s arrangements.”

When the other servants saw this, they also agreed to listen to the Madam’s arrangements. “Madam is right, this slave will obey Madam.”

Shangguan Yan was very satisfied and continued with a smile. “Since everyone is treated equally, I won’t treat you badly. Master is a law enforcer and has always followed the law and never followed anyone. Our residence has always upheld such a family tradition and talents will be used accordingly with rewards and punishments clearly defined. If you work well, you will earn merits and if you don’t, you will be punished according to the rules. All of you won’t suffer any grievances.”

Shangguan Yan believed that if one is to lead people, one must first convince these people and make them accept oneself before trying to win their hearts.

The first step was to break up the barriers of the three groups and prevent them from forming groups for personal gains. Talented people must also be given a chance to perform. It was Di Jing who first discussed this matter with her. As the Governor, he sits in a high position and possesses great power, so the servants will naturally be fearful and respectful but she is a businesswoman, without the support of a powerful family. First, she must establish her power and authority in the mansion and this is a sort of guarantee for her.

This is also the reason why he did not immediately rectify this problem when he received the new mansion as he wanted to leave this opportunity to her.

Next, Shangguan Yan began to announce the personnel arrangements. She scattered all the three groups of people and also broke up the original factions. Each person could only manage his or her duties without any distinction between old servants or new servants.

“This is the initial arrangement while I will continue to observe and then arrangements will be made once again based on your performance. Smart people should know how to seize this opportunity to show your performance, understand?”

“Understood!” Everyone responded in unison.

“Alright, that’s it for today. Go back to work.”

Shangguan Yan followed Di Jing and returned to the rear courtyard. As soon as they entered the house, Di Jing stretched out his hands to pull his wife into his arms.

“Wife’s stance is perfect and knows how to lead others. You’re better than Husband.” His hot breath was gently blowing her ear.

She smiled and looked at him tenderly. “Save it, I can’t compare to you when it comes to leading people! The people you lead are either famous constables or high-ranking officials. I can only show off my majesty in the mansion and get a kick out of it.”