Chapter 548
Chapter 548
"Whether she uses Nanny Feng or not is her own choice. Besides, there is no rule saying she must use Nanny Feng, is there?" The Old Princess said with an indifferent air.
Rules are rigid, but people are flexible. As long as Li Zhiwei did not do anything to disgrace the Prince An's residence, the Old Princess would turn a blind eye and pretend not to notice.
"But what if the people the Li family brings in are not familiar with the affairs of the princely manor—" Nanny Luo mulled it over and still could not rest easy. She was unwilling to hand the manor over to someone from outside.
"Nanny Luo, I am old now. I cannot manage the affairs of this manor for the rest of my life. The new Princess Consort has her own team of people. If you employ someone, you must trust them. From now on, the matters of the manor should be decided by the younger generation." The Old Princess looked at Nanny Luo and said.
These words were meant for Nanny Luo, but also for herself.
Besides, from what she could see, Li Zhiwei was not the kind of person who lacked reason.
One should still give the young more opportunities to gain experience. If they truly made a misstep, she was still here to offer guidance now and then.
"The Old Princess is right. This old servant has overstepped her bounds." Nanny Luo suddenly realized she had misspoken.
When Li Zhiwei returned to Songmo Courtyard, she only saw a few servants bustling about.
"Miss, you're back." Cuiguo saw Li Zhiwei return and rushed forward to greet her with delight.
"Go and summon Nanny Feng." After sitting down, Li Zhiwei said to Qingyue, who was standing nearby.
Qingyue acknowledged the order and withdrew.
"What's wrong, miss?" Seeing that Li Zhiwei seemed unhappy, Cuiguo asked with concern.
"It's nothing." Li Zhiwei shook her head, thoughts of managing the manor running through her mind.
If the Old Princess had not reminded her today, she might well have forgotten that she was now the Princess Consort of An.
Now that everything in Prince An's residence was different from the Li household, the proper rules could not be done away with.
Nor could the proper staff be lacking.
At this thought, Li Zhiwei rubbed her forehead.
Whether in her previous life or this one, she truly had no experience managing a household.
But who was she? She was Li Tianyou's daughter. Even if she lacked experience in running an inner courtyard, she had the experience of her father managing all sorts of businesses over the years. Managing the household should not be far off the mark.
Thankfully, for now, she did not need to take charge of the manor's various shops.
She only needed to manage her own Songmo Courtyard well.
"This old servant pays respects to the Princess Consort." Nanny Feng hurriedly bowed to Li Zhiwei.
These past few days, the Princess Consort had not called for her, and she was feeling a little uncertain.
She had been the Old Princess's dowry maid, and she did not know whether the new Princess Consort would think highly of her.
"Nanny Feng, no need for such formalities. Please, have a seat. Cuiguo, serve tea to Nanny Feng."
"Thank you, Princess Consort!" Nanny Feng sat down according to propriety.
In her heart, she wondered whether the Princess Consort had called her over today to send her back to the Old Princess's side, or to assign her some duties.
"Nanny Feng, there is no need to be so reserved. I have only just entered the manor, and I am not yet fully familiar with some of its rules. I will need to rely on you for your guidance." Li Zhiwei looked at Nanny Feng with an expression of genuine humility.
Hearing this, Nanny Feng was secretly overjoyed. She knew that the new Princess Consort was likely going to place her trust in her.
At that thought, Nanny Feng breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, the Old Princess had told her when she sent her to the new Princess Consort's side that the latter might not necessarily choose to rely on her.
The Old Princess already had Nanny Luo by her side, and in her service, Nanny Feng could only play a supporting role.
But this new Princess Consort was quite different. Although she had several capable maids by her side, she did not have a head nanny to manage things.
These days that Li Zhiwei had left her idle, she too had been extremely anxious, fearing she might be sent back.
"This old servant will surely serve the Princess Consort with utmost devotion." Nanny Feng knelt directly before Li Zhiwei, performed a grand bow, and then rose.
This bow signified her acceptance of Li Zhiwei as her mistress.
"Nanny Feng, please, rise quickly." Li Zhiwei stood up at once and personally helped Nanny Feng to her feet.
"Thank you, Princess Consort!" Nanny Feng had not expected Li Zhiwei to personally help her up, and she was deeply moved.
It seemed that this Princess Consort was indeed as approachable as the rumors claimed.
"Nanny Feng, my mother-in-law has now handed the authority of managing the household to me. However, because I need to go on a long journey soon, the management of the household will temporarily remain in her hands. But as for matters within our own courtyard, my mother-in-law has said we may handle them as we see fit, and she will not interfere. Do you have any suggestions?" Li Zhiwei looked at Nanny Feng seriously and asked.
Nanny Feng had not expected Li Zhiwei to ask for her opinion first.
She was silent for a moment, carefully calculating the various circumstances of Songmo Courtyard in her mind, before answering: "To answer the Princess Consort, this old servant believes that given your status as Princess Consort of An, you should have four first-grade maids, six second-grade maids, and some rough-work maids. But at present, you only have three senior maids: Cuiguo, Qing Feng, and Qingyue. There are no second-grade maids arranged at all. Would you like this old servant to go to the broker to select some people, or should we promote a few from within the manor?"
"Nanny Feng, do you have anyone in mind to recommend?" Li Zhiwei thought for a moment before asking, since she indeed did not have enough people by her side.
As for the second-grade maids, Fengwu and Chunju, along with the others, made exactly six. But those were people she had kept aside for other purposes; she did not want to place them in the manor.
"Does the Princess Consort wish to select people from within the manor?" Nanny Feng was somewhat surprised as she looked at Li Zhiwei. After all, for such close personal attendants, most mistresses preferred not to use existing staff.
"The people in the manor are all family-born servants; we know their backgrounds well." Li Zhiwei thought that if she could rely on people from the manor, it would save her worry, since they would be familiar with the manor's rules.
Nanny Feng thought it over. There were indeed people in the manor who could be promoted and trusted, but those individuals would not be suitable to serve by Li Zhiwei's side.
"Princess Consort, there is the girl Chunxiang in the manor. She is meticulous and well-mannered. You could keep her by your side. As for the other second-grade maids, this old servant suggests that you might consider purchasing a few girls from a broker to bring into the manor." Nanny Feng thought for a moment and finally brought up the girl Chunxiang, who served in the Old Princess's courtyard.
"Which courtyard is Chunxiang currently serving in?" Li Zhiwei thought for a moment and asked.
"To answer the Princess Consort, Miss Chunxiang currently serves at the Old Princess's Ci'an Hall as a second-grade maid." Nanny Feng quickly replied.
"I will speak to my mother-in-law about this matter later." Li Zhiwei nodded, though she was also wondering whether the Old Princess would be willing to let her go.
She was also surprised that Nanny Feng would suggest buying people from outside rather than directly promoting those already in the manor.
Was it truly the case that this great Prince An's residence could not even produce six maidservants?
Li Zhiwei looked at Nanny Feng, appearing as if she wanted to speak but hesitated.
There were some things she was not sure she ought to ask.
"Princess Consort, it is because some of the servants in the manor previously served the former Princess Consort. If they were to come and serve you, it would not be appropriate." Nanny Feng caught the puzzled look in Li Zhiwei's eyes and quickly explained.
"You have given this careful consideration, Nanny Feng." Li Zhiwei smiled and nodded, feeling even more satisfied with Nanny Feng's judgment.
"There is one more matter, Your Highness, the Princess Consort. This old servant is uncertain whether she should speak of it or not." I looked again at Li Zhiwei, hesitating slightly as I spoke.