The old quilts in the trunks totaled twelve.
Xia Ruqing smiled and said, "Perfect, there are six of you, two quilts per person, so you can all have a warm New Year!"
Just a few quilts, no need to fuss over high and low status, she thought.
"There’s also fabric, spices, and some unused candles in the small storeroom! And... window screens... lampshades, curtains, and so on! Gather these up, take inventory, and you all should take some as well. It’s better than letting them go to waste!"
"Yes!" Zi Yue responded with a smile.
By evening, the small storeroom and trunks had been sorted out. Once the items were cleared out, the space looked much tidier.
The old items found during the cleanup were divided among Xia Ruqing’s several subordinates.
As for Sister Liang and a few others, Xia Ruqing didn’t dare offer any to them. They were older and respectable Sisters, deserving of fine things. These items definitely couldn’t be given to them.
"After dinner tonight, I will give you a few Shi Chens off. Go tidy up your own quarters!" Xia Ruqing announced. "This year, let’s all have a clean and neat New Year together!"
Zi Yue, Zi Su, and Zi Ning exchanged glances. Grateful, they all knelt down.
"Yes! Thank you, Mistress!"
Such a good mistress was really rare. After all, the Harem was a unique place; they were truly lucky!
In the evening, after serving their mistress dinner, they returned to the servants’ quarters in the back courtyard.
This row of servants’ quarters looked quite nice on the outside. The eaves were adorned with glazed tiles, the windows were not small, and the walls were made of wood. With careful tidying up, it would definitely look bright and clean. After all, the opulent masters’ dwellings were at the front. It would be too jarring to have a row of thatch-roofed houses behind, wouldn’t it?
There were about ten rooms in the row, none too large. Zi Yue had a room to herself; Zi Su and Zi Ning shared one. Xiao Xizi and Xiao Zhu Zi shared another. Qiu Ye, having no one to share with, also occupied a room by herself. The rest were for several Wetnurse Sisters. However, since the Wetnurse Sisters were responsible for the Little Prince’s daily care, they usually didn’t live here. They would come here to rest for a while only when they occasionally got half a day off.
The mistress had given them so many things. After they moved everything back to the rear courtyard, they cleared out a vacant room specifically to store the items.
Xiao Xizi then said, "We need to move quickly, otherwise we definitely won’t finish tonight! Just throw away the things in your rooms that need to go; we won’t even be able to use all these good items!"
"Alright!" Zi Yue and the others responded.
Having finished speaking, they hurriedly returned to their rooms to tidy up. Old clothes, old quilts, and bedding they had long wanted but couldn’t bear to replace were all packed together and thrown out. The old window screens and other items were also torn down and discarded.
"The bedding is all damp," one of the maids commented. "Even if we air it out, it won’t be warm. It’s no pity to throw it away. But our quilts are still good!"
"Still, isn’t it a pity to discard *them*?" Zi Ning then asked, referring to their own quilts.
"What’s so difficult about that?" Zi Su said, her eyes lighting up. "Just throw away the old bedding and use our own quilts as mattresses. Won’t that work?"
"Great idea!"
The group got busy again.
When Xia Ruqing’s old quilts were stored, they had been sunned and then infused with scent. So, when they took the quilts out of the cloth bags, the whole room filled with a faint fragrance. Although the quilts hadn’t been aired, they felt fluffy, large, and warm to the touch.
"After a good sunning when the weather improves, they will be even warmer!"
"Indeed, these are many times better than our own quilts!"
"Of course! This cotton is all premium quality, and the quilt covers are all silk—how could they not be warm?"
"Okay, okay, you two, speed up a little!" Zi Yue urged. "There’s still so much to do!"
Zi Su and Zi Ning hurriedly said, "Yes, Sister Zi Yue!"
That night, several Palace Attendants packed up all the old and unusable items in their quarters and threw them away. Then they cleaned the rooms once more. Window gauzes, tablecloths, and curtains were all replaced with new ones. Even everyone’s trunks were tidied up spotlessly, now containing fine items just rewarded by their master: brocade, silk, damask, cotton fabric, as well as daily necessities such as lampshades and candles.
These things were all of excellent quality. In other parts of the Imperial Palace, let alone Servants, even masters out of favor might not have access to such fine things!
That night, both master and Servants slept very well.
In the latter half of the night, it began to snow, but how would Xia Ruqing, sleeping warmly under her covers, know this? Even her Palace Attendants didn’t feel cold!
In the bustling Imperial Palace, many people suffered from the cold, a considerable number in fact. It just wasn’t them!
「The following day was the twenty-ninth of the twelfth lunar month.」
The Emperor and Empress were both busy with preparations for the heavenly sacrifice outside the palace, so there was no need to pay respects in the Harem. Xia Ruqing lazily slept in. By the time she woke up naturally, the snow had stopped, and the sun was out.