The Reborn Legitimate Daughter is Frivolous - Chapter 18

It was normal for people to admit they didn’t know how to do something like this—but Murong Qing just couldn’t bring herself to ask Shopkeeper Wu for help.

So now she sat in the Jewelry Pavilion, silently wrestling with herself.

“Miss, did we come all the way here just for this jewelry shop?” Qingbi asked.

“Yes. Otherwise, why do you think I’m sitting here right now?” Murong Qing snapped irritably. The ledger really was driving her crazy.

She could recognize the words, but the dense rows of numbers made her dizzy.

She picked up the other two ledgers on the table, handed one to each of her maids, and said, “You two take a look and try to learn a bit. If I can’t come next time, you might be able to help me manage the place.”

“Miss, we…”

From Shopkeeper Wu’s attitude earlier, Qinglian and Qingbi already had some idea of what was going on, but they hadn’t expected Murong Qing to say something like that.

It was impossible not to be moved.

The shop might not be huge, but it was still a proper store in a bustling area—and surely made good money.

The fact that Murong Qing could speak so casually about trusting them to help meant she truly saw them as her own people.

But the problem was, they couldn’t read or count at all.

“Forget it, don’t make it hard for yourselves,” Murong Qing said with a sigh.

Qinglian and Qingbi both breathed a sigh of relief—not because they didn’t want to help, but because they really couldn’t.

Still, as Murong Qing’s closest maids, they wanted to be useful somehow. After a moment of whispering, they came up with an idea.

“Miss,” Qinglian said, “I’ve heard that some maids can read and do arithmetic. Maybe you could buy one to help you manage things.”

“But those kinds of maids are really expensive,” Qingbi said cautiously.

Qinglian was thoughtful—she could tell that Murong Qing didn’t want to rely on Shopkeeper Wu, and she also didn’t want to go back to the General’s Mansion or ask Murong Jie for help. So this suggestion seemed like a good middle ground.

Murong Qing remembered hearing something similar before. Back then, out of curiosity, she had asked Shui Xinting about a certain maid, and Shui Xinting impatiently said she’d bought her from a broker in the south of the city—spending quite a lot of money.

At the time, Shui Xinting had been annoyed about the cost, but later, that same maid made her plenty of profit. Without her, Murong Xue might never have entered the palace so smoothly or become a concubine.

That maid had been completely loyal to Shui Xinting. She could read and count, and she followed orders perfectly. In the beginning, Shui Xinting didn’t know how to use her properly, and Murong Qing had even been annoyed about it.

Looking back now, she had to admit—mother and daughter were truly lucky in their previous life.

Judging by the time, that maid would probably be bought back by Shui Xinting within the next month.

“The servant spoke too rashly just now, I didn’t think it through…” Qinglian said quickly.

“It’s fine,” Murong Qing said, waving her hand. She closed the ledger and added, “Actually, I think your idea makes sense. It’s still early—come with me to the south of the city. We’ll visit the broker and see if there’s anyone suitable.”

“Yes, Miss.”

As soon as Murong Qing stepped out of the Jewelry Pavilion, Shopkeeper Wu came forward and asked, “Miss, are you heading home?”

“I’m just going to look around for a while, get familiar with the market. I’ll come back later to continue with the accounts.”

“Don’t tire yourself out, Miss,” Shopkeeper Wu said politely.

Murong Qing knew he was just being courteous, but she didn’t call him out. He probably thought she was just a pampered young lady pretending to care about business—and really just wanted to go shopping.

She smiled faintly and led Qinglian and Qingbi toward the south of the city.

“Miss, are we really going?” Qingbi whispered. “I heard those maids cost a fortune, and we didn’t bring much silver with us…”

“The boat will straighten when it reaches the bridge,” Murong Qing said calmly. “Let’s just take a look first.”

She tried to recall that maid’s name but couldn’t remember. After entering the palace, she’d rarely interacted with anyone from the General’s Mansion, and that maid had always answered only to Shui Xinting.

Murong Qing only remembered that when Shui Xinting first bought her, the maid had wounds all over her body. They said she’d been beaten for disobedience. The broker, Ya Pozi, had disciplined her harshly—but not too much, since a literate maid was valuable.

After all, who would ruin something that could make them money?

Following Qinglian’s directions, Murong Qing soon arrived at a quiet alley. At the end stood a small wooden door.

In such a hidden place—it was a wonder Shui Xinting had even found it in the first place.

But however she’d done it, this time things would be different. That capable maid would no longer be Shui Xinting’s right hand—she would be Murong Qing’s.

“Is Madam Ya here?” Murong Qing called out.

“Oh, coming!” A woman in her forties opened the door.

Qinglian quickly stepped forward and said respectfully, “My lady wishes to purchase a maid.”

Then she stepped aside to let Murong Qing be seen.

Ya Pozi had met countless people in her line of work. One look at Murong Qing’s elegant bearing told her this was a noble young lady. She didn’t dare be careless and quickly welcomed them in.

“The house is humble, please forgive me, Miss,” she said politely. “What kind of maid are you looking for?”

“One who can read and do arithmetic,” Murong Qing said clearly. Her tone was calm and kind—neither cold nor arrogant—which made a good impression on Ya Pozi.

“Please wait a moment, Miss,” she said with a smile.

The place looked small from the outside, but inside there was plenty of space—rows of young maids being trained for sale.

After a short while, Ya Pozi returned with three maidservants and said, “These are the ones, Miss. See if any catch your eye.”

Murong Qing studied them carefully.

They were all pretty, and their eyes gleamed with flattery as they looked at her.

No—none of them were the one she wanted. The girl she remembered had no such flattery in her gaze.

Those stubborn, unyielding eyes had left a deep impression on her.

She’d seen plenty of maids eager to please their masters, but ones with spirit like that were rare.

After a pause, Murong Qing asked, “Is this all? If there’s anyone else, don’t hide them from me.”