Jian Ruonan was lazy, not stupid.
Never mind three points of interest a day-even if she lost a hundred points daily, Jian "Salted Fish" Ruonan wouldn't panic.
The most important thing for a successful salted fish was a good attitude. Her guiding principle was that once you owed enough, another debt was nothing to worry about.
So what if she owed points? At worst, she'd keep using rough toilet paper.
The basic rule of being a salted fish: unless someone held a knife to your throat, don't bother turning over.
Since she already owed so much, why not play a few more rounds?
The system was useless anyway. She could owe eighty or a hundred thousand points-getting the items into her hands came first.
The system: [...Host, don't push it. Our hearts are connected. I can hear what you're thinking.]
Jian Ruonan: [So what if you can? Heh, I'm embracing the rot.]
The system: [...]
[Ding-] [The Points Mall will remain closed until all outstanding points have been repaid!]
Nan Nan sucked in oxygen: Trash!
Aside from Min and Jian Ruonan, quite a few ladies and young misses were seated in the Flower Hall.
Seeing her staring into space in a corner, Min pulled her over and introduced her to the officials' wives present. "This is our Fifth Miss, Ruonan. Ruonan was sickly as a child. Master Chengyuan advised sending her to the South, so we sent her to her aunt's home in Jiangsu..."
Jiangzhe was a land of fish and rice with a flourishing literary culture. Saying Jian Ruonan had been sent to Jiangnan gave the impression that her family valued her, and that sending her away had truly been a last resort.
The officials' wives present had more hidden holes in their hearts than a lotus root. Min feared they would look down on Nan Nan.
She held Jian Ruonan in her arms with great affection, letting everyone see that this was a daughter she cherished in the palm of her hand.
The ladies who were close to Min gave Jian Ruonan plenty of first-meeting gifts, then took her hand and asked, "What books have you read over the years? What skills have you learned?"
Officials' daughters had tutors hired for them at home. They had to study the Four Books for Women and embroidery, and even if they weren't accomplished in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, they still needed some proficiency.
Jian Xilu was highly skilled at the zither and often performed before the noble young ladies and officials' wives. She also wrote beautiful flower-adorned small regular script, and Min often had her help write invitations to flower-viewing gatherings.
As the eldest legitimate daughter of the Marquis's Estate, Jian Xilu was poised and gracious, with a widely celebrated reputation for talent. When she had just come of age, saying that matchmakers had worn through their threshold was no exaggeration.
With such an outstanding eldest legitimate sister, surely this younger sister of the same mother couldn't be too bad.
Every lady in the Flower Hall turned to look at Jian Ruonan.
Jian Ruonan was rather speechless. She hadn't expected that even in ancient times, she couldn't escape the fate of being made by her parents to perform for friends and relatives.
Aside from the advertising line "The Jiangnan Leather Factory has gone bankrupt, and the boss ran off with his sister-in-law," Jian Ruonan knew nothing. She did her best to play a shy little girl while thinking of a way to refuse.
Suddenly, a woman's sarcastic voice rang out. "Oh, I've heard the talented ladies of Jiangnan are exceptionally gifted, every bit the equal of our young ladies in the Capital City, if not better. Surely, even if the Fifth Miss has learned only the barest basics, she'll still open our eyes."
The speaker was a middle-aged woman who stood out somewhat among the officials' wives dripping with gold and silver.
She wore a simple, plain brocade dress, with a silver hairpin in her hair and only a pair of plain silver stud earrings.
Although she dressed modestly, the officials' wives around her didn't look down on her. In fact, they seemed to be subtly flattering her. Her seat alone showed that even the Duke's Madam treated her with considerable courtesy.
With that one simple remark, the middle-aged woman immediately drew quite a bit of hostility toward Jian Ruonan.
Jian Ruonan looked utterly bewildered. Why were these people looking at her so sharply?
She immediately had the system dig up the gossip. As it turned out, before the new year, the emperor had acquired a new beauty from Jiangnan. Her soft Wu dialect rose and fell melodiously, and she possessed a thousand charms and a hundred allurements.
Not long after entering the palace, she had leaped several ranks to become Consort Yi. Recently, word had spread that she was pregnant with an imperial child. Surely it wouldn't be long before she secured the rank of consort.
With Consort Yi enjoying imperial favor, there was naturally no shortage of people singing her praises.
The noble ladies of the Capital City and the talented ladies of Jiangnan each had their own strengths. The problem was that praising someone was one thing-why drag others down in the process? Plenty of idiots had reduced all the capital's noble ladies to worthless nobodies while flattering Consort Yi.
With a single sentence, the middle-aged woman had slapped the label "talented lady of Jiangnan" onto Jian Ruonan, inevitably stirring up collective indignation.
Everyone was waiting to pick her apart.
After getting the gossip from the system, Jian Ruonan hurriedly said, "Although I grew up in Jiangnan, all my tutors were hired from the Capital City. You can tell from my accent, ladies-I don't even speak the Jiangnan dialect."
So she was one of their own. Everyone's gazes immediately grew friendly.
Their questions became gentler too. "What skills do you have, then?"
Jian Ruonan was momentarily stumped. If she said she knew nothing, wouldn't she embarrass the noble ladies of the Capital City?
Suddenly, Min spoke up. "Nan Nan knows a little medicine."
Jian Ruonan: *??*
When had she learned medicine?
Min thought that knowing how to identify athlete's foot and understanding what a fungal infection was should count as knowing medicine.
Medical knowledge was not only an unusual accomplishment, but a practical one. Most importantly, it couldn't be demonstrated. After all, no one would ask a girl who had only just turned ten to treat them.
Sure enough, once the ladies present heard that her accomplishment was medicine, they offered a few grand-sounding pleasantries and let the matter drop.
But the middle-aged woman from earlier sneered and persisted. "What branch of medicine, exactly? What medical texts has she read? What illnesses can she diagnose? Doesn't Madam Wang suffer from headaches? This is the perfect chance for Nan Nan to examine her."
[System, just who is this middle-aged woman? I haven't offended her. Why does she keep targeting me?]
The system dug around in the Melon Patch.
This middle-aged woman's surname was Song. The Song and Min families had been close for generations, and Madam Song and Min had once been intimate friends before marriage. When marriage arrangements were being discussed, Madam Song had set her heart on Jian Zhang. After pleading for ages, she finally persuaded her mother to visit his family. Yet not long after that visit, she heard that Min and Jian Zhang's engagement had already been settled, and the two families were preparing to exchange Betrothal Certificates.
Later, Madam Song married a poor Hanlin official. Compared with Min, the eldest daughter-in-law of the Marquis's Estate, her status was worlds apart.
From then on, Madam Song had hated Min.
She believed Min had drawn her blade and stolen her love.
[Ah, so Madam Song had a crush on my dad?! Another romantic debt stirred up by that pig-trotter dad of mine!]
Min: "..."
No wonder Madam Song had suddenly turned against her. She had finally found the reason.
[What? Madam Song still has feelings for my dad even now?!]
[After all these years, is Madam Song really that devoted? Oh, oh, it isn't devotion-her husband looks like a toad... Someone actually looks like a toad?! Are there pictures? No? Those only become available after earning more points and upgrading? System, you really are utterly useless.]
[Didn't Madam Song marry a poor Hanlin official? Why is everyone flattering her... Oh, that poor Hanlin official is now the left deputy censor-in-chief, renowned for his incorruptibility and a close minister of the emperor... No wonder. People always fawn on the high and trample the low.]
While Jian Ruonan secretly feasted on gossip, Madam Song was also sizing her up.
The other ladies didn't know much about Min, but Madam Song knew the situation at the Jinyang Marquis's Residence inside out.
This Jian Ruonan was a concubine's daughter. Because she had brought misfortune upon her family, she had been sent to a farm estate in Great Xing. She was sallow and scrawny-she probably hadn't even had enough to eat. What could she know about medicine?
But why would Min value a concubine's daughter so highly? As Madam Song looked at Jian Ruonan, a sudden flash of realization crossed her mind.
Jian Ruonan looked almost exactly like Min in her youth.
Jian Chuxue, whom Min had originally doted on most, hadn't been brought along today.
After a little thought, Madam Song understood. Most likely, the daughters had been switched.
This was a scandal for the Marquis's Estate.
Once she got home, she would have her husband submit an impeachment against the estate.
Censors had the right to submit reports based on hearsay.
[Oh no! Madam Song's husband, Censor Cao, will soon impeach my dad for failing to govern his household and muddling the legitimate and concubine-born children of the Marquis's Estate. Inspector Wei will throw stones while he's down, claiming that Dad forced Concubine Wei into the estate as his concubine. Dad will be demoted, and the petition to confer the title of Heir will be rejected too!!]
[Sure enough, our whole family is cannon fodder!]
[My life as the legitimate young miss of the Marquis's Estate has only just begun!]
Min: *!!*
What were they going to do?
With the legitimate and concubine-born daughters of the Marquis's Estate all mixed up, its young ladies would be looked down on whenever they went out. Xilu and Ruonan would also have a hard time finding marriages.
[Let me see what gossip there is about Censor Cao. Oh, this Censor Cao is no simple man. If this gets out, it's a crime worthy of beheading!]
Min's heart pounded wildly. She focused and held her breath, waiting for Jian Ruonan to spill the gossip.
Jian Xilu stopped chatting with her friends too and pricked up her ears.
Just then, Madam Song said, "Nan Nan, come and examine Madam Wang. Her headaches have flared up, and she's feeling quite unwell."
Jian Ruonan's inner voice stopped abruptly.
Min glared furiously at Madam Song, wishing she could swallow her alive and tear her apart.
Interrupt someone else's gossip, and you'd marry a toad again in your next life!
Before you continue