Chapter 59 : Nurturing Momo (2)

Yuxi waited for about a quarter of an hour when Yuchen finally came out. She could see that Yuchen was wearing twelve layers of unlined clothes, with her hair rolled up in a high bun and the bun was inserted with jade and pearl hair ornaments.

Yuxi was stunned when she saw such a lavish costume. For them to wear something like that just to learn rules, they would surely be dead tired by the end of the day.

When Momo Gui saw Yuxi, her eyes showed dissatisfaction and asked, “Why didn’t you change your clothes, Fourth Miss?”

Yuxi was not stupid. How could she not understand the meaning of Momo Gui’s words which were asking why she was not dressed up just like Yuchen? She answered, “I don’t have such clothes.”

Listening to Yuxi's words, Yuchen softly ordered, “Shiqin, take out the set of pale green clothes for Si Meimei to wear.”

When Yuxi heard this, she exclaimed, “San Jie, I can’t wear your clothes.” Yuchen was half a head taller than her, which would only make the outfit look ill-matched on her body.

Yuchen smiled and said, “The clothes were made last year, and I haven’t worn them yet. So, they should fit Si Meimei perfectly.”

Yuxi gratefully said, “Thank you, San Jie.” Actually, she was ridiculing the matter in her heart. It was such a waste that the clothes which had already been made but still not being worn yet.

Yuxi followed the maid to Yuchen’s bedroom, where she had to change her clothes first. She not only needed to change her outer garment, but she had to change her whole attire from inside out.

The maid soon brought in the clothes, which were also twelve layers of unlined clothes, made of satin and embroidered with exquisite patterns.

When the clothes were worn on Yuxi's body, it was slightly oversized.

Once Yuxi had changed her clothes, her hair needed to be done again, so she immediately sat in front of the room dressing table. She looked at the ivory dressing table, with the top of it filled with a dozen of boxwood combs, and a silver small case with enamel coloured pearl powder inside. She tried her best to maintain her calm. If she constantly compared herself with Yuchen, it would only make her infuriated with herself.

Shiqin then brought in two small boxes of head ornaments and when she opened them, the ornaments nearly dazzled Yuxi’s eyes. Looking at the delicate and precious head ornaments inside, Yuxi finally lost her nerve. All of them were almost similar to the ones left by her mother. The troubling thing was, all of these didn’t mean much to Yuchen. Otherwise, how could Yuchen let her maid casually take them out?

Shiqin looked at Yuxi’s emotionless expression and muttered in her heart. She always heard Shishu complaining that Fourth Miss had shallow eyes. However, when she herself had finally taken a good look at Fourth Miss, she found out that it wasn’t the case!

It took half an hour for Yuxi’s hair to be properly done.

An example of high bun or gaoji.
The image was posted by 汉服社 via Sohu (汉服发型--高髻, February 28, 2018)

Yuxi looked at the girl in the mirror that had her hair combed into a high bun and decorated with tons of jewellery. She could not help but mutter, was this really her? She looked like a little old lady. [T/N]

The hair bun was too high, the head ornaments were too much, and the clothes were too complicated. As a result, Yuxi couldn’t walk steadily as she had to be supported by a maid nearby. She really wanted to cry. Where could this be considered learning the rules? This only made her suffer in misery! Just like how the momo had abused her in her previous life!

Momo Gui still felt dissatisfied with the newly groomed Yuxi. However, she didn’t want to delay any longer, or the whole afternoon would be gone. She said, “Fourth Miss, let me see how you walk.”

At this time, Yuxi was only focusing on walking steadily, without falling down. Where would she have time to pay attention to her manners and demeanour?

Momo Gui couldn’t help shaking her head. Yuxi's walk was too bad. Then, she said to Yuchen who was standing by the sideline, “Third Miss, try to walk a distance to show the correct way to Fourth Miss.”

Yuchen slightly raised her skirt and walked slowly, almost at a leisurely pace, moving elegantly. When Yuxi saw this, she felt very depressed while thinking that this was the actual gap between both of them!

After spending one whole afternoon studying how to properly walk, Yuxi didn’t know how many times she had fallen down, and she didn’t remember how many times she did it wrong.

Despite Yuxi not learning well, Momo Gui didn’t swear or even hit her. Instead, she just let her do it again and again until she did it well. However, by looking at Yuxi’s performance, Momo Gui felt that Yuxi was a block of rotten wood.

For the whole afternoon, Yuxi had felt more tired than when she was writing five hundred characters. When the etiquette training finally over, she was planning to change her clothes but was stopped by Momo Gui.

Momo Gui said, “You should go back to your courtyard in this dress.”

Yuxi opened her mouth, wanting to say that wearing these heavy clothes would only make her dead hot outside! However, when she thought that this kind of behaviour was inappropriate, she immediately closed her mouth. Afterwards, she carefully explained, “Momo, it's currently hot outside. If I return while in this dress, my makeup will also be ruined."

Momo Gui frowned, but in the end, she finally agreed to Yuxi’s request. She then said, “Once Fourth Miss returned to your own courtyard, Miss must practice properly and never slack off.”

Although Yuxi felt uncomfortable all over, she still replied respectfully, “Momo, rest assured. I will practice properly when I go back.”

Momo Gui nodded. When Yuxi finally left, she turned her head towards Momo Quan, and said, “Third Miss has learned the rules very well, with just a little guidance. But Fourth Miss is a bit small-minded. She had to be corrected from the beginning.“ It wasn’t like she was unable to correct Yuxi. It was just that she was just unwilling to waste her time on her.

Momo Quan knew what Momo Gui meant. She was appointed as the one who would teach Fourth Miss from the basics. She did not object, but stated, “If I start teaching Fourth Miss in the afternoon, I will have to prepare the medicated meal in advance.”

Momo Gui responded, “It doesn’t matter. When the time comes, just tell the maids to watch the fire.“

Back in Rose Courtyard, Yuxi almost collapsed because of exhaustion as she sat feebly on a chair. For her to get through her day like this every day, she didn’t know if her body could hold up. This was really too much for her.

When Yuxi practised writing characters that night, her whole body felt very painful. Every time she raised her hand, she would wince in pain. Today was only the first day of her learning rules. She estimated that if every day was going to be just like today, she would surely go insane.

When Yuxi got up the next day, her whole body ached. She said to herself, “This is really troublesome.” She had suffered once in her last life, and now, it looked like she was going to suffer again. She really couldn’t do anything to change it.

After Yuxi had finished with breakfast, she went to Magnolia Courtyard. Looking at Yuchen, who was still in good condition, she could only admire her. Well, she shouldn’t compare herself with Yuchen, or the jealousy would stick in her heart till she died.

In the afternoon, Yuxi noticed that Momo Quan would teach her rules. Though she felt really bad to be rejected by one momo after another, she quickly suppressed the feeling in her heart. As long as she could learn something, nothing else mattered.

Like Yuxi, all the other people's eyes fell on Momo Quan, though Momo Quan only fixed her eyes on Yuxi.

Momo Quan spoke much friendlier than Momo Gui. When Yuxi followed her teaching and did something wrong, Momo Quan would point it out. She also advised Yuxi on how to avoid making the same mistake again. This afternoon, Yuxi learnt a lot more rules and much easier than yesterday.

Momo Quan felt that Yuxi was not really a rotten wood. Yuxi only lacked a teacher to teach her since it was obvious that she did not understand many things. However, Momo Quan could see that Yuxi studied very carefully and had a strong understanding ability. “Tomorrow, we will learn the etiquette of courtesy on bended knees.”

Yuxi felt that Momo Quan was more accommodating, so she could not help but asked, “Momo, can I not wear this dress again tomorrow?” The dress was really uncomfortable for her to wear.

Momo Quan shook her head and said, “You have to wear it.”

Yuxi thought that if she had to wear the dress all the time during etiquette classes, her neck definitely would not be able to be straightened up in the future.

Momo Quan explained, "Fourth Miss, only by wearing formal clothes while learning the rules, can make you achieve twice the result with just half of your effort. It's also for your own good that we ask you to do it. You'll know when you get the results later on.”

When Momo Gui didn't talk, only by smiling, she already made herself look much friendlier, while Momo Quan looked serious all the time. However, after Yuxi personally got in contact with both of them, she felt that the two momo were totally the opposite. It was much easier to get along with Momo Quan than Momo Gui. “Momo, it’s not that I don’t want to wear the dress, but the head ornaments are too heavy. They make my neck hurt, even now.”

After listening to this statement from Yuxi, Momo Quan asked her to sit on a chair, and then, she massaged her shoulders for a quarter of an hour.

At first, Yuxi felt very painful, with sweat beads on her forehead. However, her whole body slowly felt comfortable and the pain on her shoulders finally eased up. She was so ecstatic that she asked, “Momo, do you also know how to heal?” Through Momo Quan's act, she knew that Momo Quan clearly knew medical skill!

Instead of answering Yuxi’s question, Momo Quan only remarked, “I will massage your shoulders for half an hour after every etiquette class.”

Yuxi happily gave Momo Quan a thank-you gift. Before she could express her thanks, Momo Quan commented, “This is not how you give your thanks.” It was not Yuxi's fault, but the nurturing momo requirements were usually very high.

Yuxi’s face immediately turned red.

In the evening, Momo Gui found Momo Quan and asked her, “How did Fourth Miss perform today?” The two had a good relationship when they were in the palace, and this time, Momo Gui had invited Momo Quan to the state residence.

Momo Quan said, "Fourth Miss may not be as talented as Third Miss, but her perseverance and disposition are not comparable to those of ordinary people." She did not even once see Yuxi cry, show her tiredness, complaining or being all impatient during their class this afternoon. Instead, Yuxi had been listening to her teaching earnestly. Momo Quan believed the child could be taught.

Momo Gui smiled and said, “You can continue to teach her if you feel good about her.” Fourth Miss might have some advantages, but if she was compared with Third Miss, she was still far behind.

After three days of hard work, Hongshan finally found out all the ins and outs of Momo Gui and Momo Quan. She reported, “Miss, we have found out the background of the two momo clearly. Momo Gui was a First Class Female Official of Seventh Rank. She originally worked as a messenger in Cining Palace. Later, when Grand Empress Dowager passed away, she entered the Ceremonial Service Bureau to teach people etiquette. While Momo Quan was a Second Class Female Official of Seventh Rank. She used to work in the Food Service Bureau. I heard that Momo Quan is also good at making medicated diet. The Old Lady had obviously taken a lot of effort to bring over those two momo.“

Yuxi’s eyes lit up when she heard that Momo Quan was good at making medicated diet. This also meant that Momo Quan understood pharmacology. She knew that studying medicine in her current capacity was a delusion, but not studying it didn't mean she could not study pharmacology. Studying pharmacology was good for oneself. If Momo Quan herself, was willing to teach her pharmacology, the Old Lady definitely would not object.

It was the first time for Hongshan to see Yuxi’s eyes looking so eager, “Miss, is there something wrong?” Her Miss’ eyes were really frightening.

Yuxi’s mind returned back to reality and then she said with a smile, “I just didn’t realize that the two momo were former female officials. No wonder I felt that they were different than a usual momo. By the way, what about Momo Chang?”

Honghan stated, “Momo Chang was released from the palace several years ago. Over the years, she has been teaching rules to young ladies from large families and has a good reputation.”

When Yuxi heard this, her mind felt faintly uncomfortable. Even when the Old Lady didn’t really like Yuru and Yujing, she still brought in a good nurturing momo for them. Then, why did the Old Lady turn a blind eye on her in her last life and let Wu Shi continuously humiliate her? [T/N]

Hongshan felt that Yuxi had been acting very weird today. Yuxi would be happy one time, then turn sad at other times. However, she did not know what had happened that made her Miss acting like that, "Miss, are you not feeling well?"

Yuxi smiled and shook her head, “Nothing. It’s just that my hands are a little sour, and I have to write a hundred characters in the evening. My hands ache when I think about it.”

Hongshan could not help but give her some advice, “Miss, it is good that you write one hundred characters every day. However, it doesn’t matter if you don’t do it just for today.“

Yuxi shook her head and said, “Teacher said that if you want to practice good handwriting, you can’t fish for three days and sun-dry the nets for two days. You have to stick to it day by day, or else you will never be able to write in good handwriting.”

Hongshan explained that she just felt that Yuxi was working too hard.

Yuxi smiled and said, “Working hard is out of the question. It is just my hands are a little bit sour.” When one did something, one must do it well and never give up halfway.