Li Man'er said calmly, "Liu Ya, go supervise. Don't let her hurt Father by being careless. And remember, it needs to be a full hour for it to be effective, understand?"
Liu Ya said solemnly, "Miss, don't worry, your servant understands." In truth, her heart was bursting with joy, and if she hadn't been holding back, she probably would have burst into laughter by now.
"How much longer do you plan to kneel? Get up quickly and go massage the Marquis."
Jiao Niang had no choice but to grit her teeth, get up, and go into the inner room to massage Li Shu.
Liu Ya pulled up a chair and watched from the side, occasionally making critical remarks and offering instructions.
Li Man'er listened happily from the outer room and began to organize her medicine chest.
Her medicine chest had been inspected by the Xiao family before. To be safe, she had to check it again. If the Xiao family dared to tamper with her medicine chest, she would make sure these people tasted the medicinal pills from her bottles and jars.
Fortunately, there were no changes to the medicines in her chest.
Li Man'er placed the medicine chest at the far end of the small couch, waiting for Xiao Qiniang to arrive.
Ever since she had entered the government office, Xiao Qiniang had probed her repeatedly. She figured that any attitude she had towards Jiao Niang would quickly be reported to Xiao Qiniang.
She felt that Xiao Qiniang was a bit too self-important and was not as virtuous as the people of Mobei praised her to be. This woman was cunning, but her skills were still shallow. If it weren't for her advantageous position, she wouldn't be able to cause so much trouble.
The Xiao family was like an airtight iron barrel, protecting Xiao Qiniang very well. An indoor woman who hadn't truly seen bloodshed would probably consider killing a few servants a great evil.
As expected, Miss Xiao Qi arrived again a moment later.
"Miss Li, why are you staying in the outer room? This small couch is hard and uncomfortable to sleep on. Isn't there a room with a screen inside?"
Li Man'er curved her lips into a smile and said, "I am accustomed to luxury and cannot sleep on a servant's bed."
Xiao Qiniang's expression stiffened, and she said uncomfortably, "I thought you were from a military family and wouldn't care about such minor details."
"How could I not! Miss Xiao Qi should know that my maternal family's surname is Ning, right? I grew up pampered and precious. If there's any grievance, it's here in your Xiao family. I've been here for half a day, and there isn't even a cup of hot tea in this room."
Xiao Qiniang's face turned slightly red. "Eldest Miss is right, these servants are becoming more and more negligent. Where is Jiao Niang? Didn't I tell her to come and serve? Why isn't she here?"
Just as the maid behind Xiao Qiniang was about to speak, Li Man'er's loud voice was heard, "Miss Xiao Qi, your Xiao family is a prominent clan in Mobei, yet your conduct has become increasingly similar to that of barbarians!"
"Eldest Miss Li, mind your words." Xiao Qiniang's face suddenly changed color, as if Li Man'er had said something to slander the Xiao family.
"Isn't it true? Jiao Niang was assigned by you to take care of my father, feeding him medicine and washing him. It was truly thorough and meticulous. However, you sent a maid who serves my father to serve me. What kind of protocol is this? There is no such custom in the capital."
Li Man'er glanced at Xiao Qiniang and said, "Oh!" She asked thoughtfully, "Miss Xiao, your clothing is plain. Is your Xiao family not wealthy? Ah, what a predicament! It's not that Miss Qi doesn't understand the rules, but that she's poor."
Xiao Qiniang suddenly stood up. She believed she had good self-control, but she repeatedly lost her composure in front of Li Man'er. It was truly a case of one superior conquering another.
"Life on the frontier is hard, and the people struggle to make ends meet. Our soldiers are also fighting for survival. Our Xiao family has a simple style of living and cannot compare to Eldest Miss's. It's not that we intentionally neglected you."
"Oh, is that so! Then I forgive you. Miss Xiao Qi, you don't need to blame yourself too much. Making money is a man's business; what does it have to do with us women?"
The implication was that the men of the Xiao family were useless!
Xiao Qiniang's lungs were about to explode with anger, and she was quite pitiful.
Li Man'er looked at her as if it were the most natural thing in the world, without a hint of embarrassment, as if what she said were divine decree.
Lüyi, inside the room, almost burst into laughter but dared not make a sound, so she endured it.
Perhaps Miss Xiao Qi couldn't stand Li Man'er anymore. She quickly arranged for two matrons to stay and attend to Li Man'er's daily needs. She gritted her teeth and said, "Eldest Miss Li is accustomed to luxury. You must serve her diligently, paying attention to her food and daily necessities. Do not let Eldest Miss feel that we have neglected her."
The two matrons quickly agreed.
Xiao Qiniang said, "Eldest Miss has traveled a long way to Mobei and should rest well. We can talk again when we have time."
"Alright, Miss Qi, you may leave as you please!"
Miss Xiao Qi took another deep look at her before leaving the side room.
After leaving the courtyard, Miss Xiao Qi couldn't help but curse Li Man'er a few times, her anger unable to be suppressed.
Her maid, Xin Yu, said, "That Miss Li is so rude, her words are laced with barbs. She's truly overbearing."
"It's not that simple," Xiao Qiniang sighed. "I wish she were overbearing and brainless, but she's nothing like the rumors."
"Miss, what should we do then?"
Xiao Qiniang only said, "What are you afraid of? There's still Feng Jue!"
Xin Yu's eyes lit up. "That's right! She made a bet with Doctor Feng. If she loses, she'll be at our mercy."
"Let's wait and see."
The mistress and servant hurried away, leaving Li Man'er and the two matrons staring at each other.
"What can you two do?"
The two matrons exchanged glances before replying, "Back to Miss, your servants are clumsy and only do rough work, like fetching water and chopping wood."
"Can you make a bed?"
"Yes."
Li Man'er nodded with satisfaction. "Then go find some new, thick bedding for me. I want new cotton, and the fabric should be good. My maid will sleep on the floor, so get a few more sets for her, understand?"
The two nodded and hurried to the storeroom to fetch a few sets of bedding.
The quilts were brand new. Moreover, in Mobei, where the wind and sand were strong and the climate was dry, there was no problem of dampness, so Li Man'er was quite satisfied.
"Good, the fabric is good, and it's also thick." Li Man'er asked them to make her bed and placed the bedding for Liu Ya on a nearby chair.
"Go fetch some hot water, and bring out some of your household's best tea." Li Man'er said very selectively, "Oh, and take away the teacups on the table and bring a new set. Hmm, considering that the Xiao family isn't wealthy, I won't be too picky. Just something decent will do."
The two matrons were filled with resentment, but they had no choice but to take away all the tea sets on the table and bring a new set.
Washed tea sets, boiling hot water, and excellent tea leaves, and even pastries that Li Man'er hadn't mentioned, were brought before Li Man'er.
They seemed to have been intimidated and had become more sensible.