Chapter 46: Competition Breeds Motivation
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Lin Wanqing was having dinner when Qingzhu hurried in, smiling brightly. “Madam, your prediction was spot on. Sister Lianxin has already persuaded the eldest young lady. Tomorrow, she will start learning manners under Nurse Zhao’s guidance.”
Lin Wanqing glanced at Banxia with a smile. “See? I told you I was right.”
Banxia winced. “Why is the eldest young lady’s resolve so weak?”
Lin Wanqing reached out her hand. “A bet’s a bet. Time to pay up.”
Stomping out, Banxia soon returned, still stomping, placing a small silver coin in Lin Wanqing’s palm.
After Sister Lianxin left last night, Lin Wanqing had confidently said she trusted Lianxin to successfully convince Lu Jinrong. Banxia was skeptical—after all, Lu Jinrong disliked their young lady intensely. How could she so easily agree to learn proper conduct?
So the two had made a wager: if Lin Wanqing lost, she would treat everyone with five taels of silver; if Banxia lost, she would treat with one mace.
Lin Wanqing laughed, tossing the small silver coin to Zi Su. “Use this to buy some treats to share.”
Zi Su smiled brightly. “Thank you, Banxia.”
Banxia’s lips puckered as if ready to pout to the sky. “This eldest young lady is truly hopeless!”
Zi Su laughed heartily. “It’s your own greed. Once you heard about a five-tael bet, you forgot the eldest young lady’s true nature.”
Banxia grew even more frustrated.
Lin Wanqing smiled warmly. “Let this be a lesson: don’t lose your head at the sight of gain. Always analyze carefully before making a decision.”
She made the bet precisely because Banxia was impulsive and easily swayed by emotions. In her previous life, Banxia had suffered many losses because of this. This time, she must help Banxia overcome this flaw. Preaching might not work, so she had to approach it through something Banxia cared about.
Banxia was a miser at heart; losing silver hurt her more than losing flesh.
Sure enough, Banxia frowned miserably. “I’ll never forget this lesson—just one mace of silver! How long will it take me to save that much?”
The whole room of maids burst into laughter.
The next day, Lu Jinrong joined the ranks of those learning proper conduct. Alongside her were the maids from her and Lu Huixin’s courtyards.
Since maids were learning manners, it was inappropriate for Nurse Zhao to teach them; instead, Lin Wanqing’s dowry nurse, Nurse Qiao, took charge.
Nurse Qiao, a woman Lin Wanqing had personally chosen years ago, was reliable and strictly disciplined. The maids from her courtyard were all trained under her firm hand.
Of course, Nurse Qiao’s methods were strict but still considerably gentler than Nurse Zhao’s.
Thus, the two young ladies of the Lu family suffered greatly. If they failed to learn properly, they faced not only Nurse Zhao’s corporal punishment but also her scorn.
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“Your talents are even inferior to those maids?”
“When you go out in the future, the maids will surely outshine you in etiquette.”
Such remarks infuriated Lu Jinrong to the point of wanting to strike someone.
Lu Huixin was also upset, yet she was far wiser than Lu Jinrong.
She had a goal and was willing to work hard to achieve it.
On the first day of learning manners, Lu Huixin had even cried from frustration, but a single remark from Nurse Zhao lifted her spirits.
“Endure the bitterest hardships to become the best. If you can’t even bear this small suffering of learning manners, what great things can you accomplish? You might as well give up now and find a husband in Yuzhou City to live an ordinary life.”
That one sentence made Lu Huixin grit her teeth and persevere.
She firmly believed that enduring this hardship would bring her one step closer to greatness.
When Nurse Zhao reported back to Lin Wanqing, she made sure to mention this, which made Lin Wanqing laugh.
“Endure bitter hardships, only to endure even more in the future.”
In her previous life, Lin Wanqing had believed such nonsense and suffered a lifetime of hardship.
But she would never tell Lu Huixin this truth—at least, not yet.
That young lady did deserve to suffer a bit.
Besides, learning manners wasn’t such a hardship.
Life’s bitterness was far more severe than the bitterest herbs.
Lu Jinrong had originally planned to just coast through with Nurse Zhao, pretending to learn manners until her brother’s reply arrived.
But Nurse Zhao wouldn’t let her slack off.
Whenever Lu Jinrong dared to be careless, Nurse Zhao’s cane would fall upon her.
The first time she was punished, Lu Jinrong jumped three feet high and, without thinking, tried to strike back.
Before she could even reach Nurse Zhao, two older women pinned her down.
“Eldest young lady, don’t lose your composure. Though Nurse Zhao is a nurse, if you actually hit her, your reputation will be ruined, affecting the entire General’s household.”
A nurse who taught manners was like a half-teacher. If a young lady struck her, no one in that family could hope to marry well; the entire clan would be ridiculed.
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That was why great families were as meticulous in selecting a nurse for their daughters as they were in choosing tutors for their sons.
Lu Jinrong understood this, so after being held down by the older women, she reluctantly accepted it.
But when punished a second time, she leapt up again.
Nurse Zhao sneered, “What, still want to hit me? Go ahead, I hardly want to teach you anymore. I’ve never seen a girl as foolish as you—unable to perform such a simple task. Huixin learned it after three tries; you still can’t remember after ten.”
Lu Jinrong refused to believe it. “How many times did Lin Wanqing practice?”
Nurse Zhao replied, “When Madam first watched me, she learned almost perfectly in one go.”
Lu Jinrong shouted, “Impossible! I don’t believe it!”
Nurse Zhao said, “Madam’s stepmother invited me to teach her manners, not to have her master them. Yet under my guidance, she never once received a single strike. You scorn her background, yet you don’t come close to even a tenth of her ability.”
Lu Jinrong was so furious she felt like vomiting blood, yet she was still defiant. “It’s just manners! I can learn them just as well! What’s so great about her?”
Nurse Zhao smiled faintly, saying nothing.
Such an attitude only fueled Lu Jinrong’s anger further.
So she gritted her teeth and resumed practicing seriously under Nurse Zhao.
Seeing Lu Jinrong get serious, Lu Huixin felt pressured.
Originally, she had thought having Lu Jinrong at the forefront would make things easier for her.
But Nurse Zhao was so adept at reading people that a few words were enough to ignite Lu Jinrong’s competitiveness.
This left Lu Huixin no chance to slack off. Losing to Lu Jinrong would be utterly humiliating.
Lu Huixin put aside her schemes and began to practice earnestly.
When Lin Wanqing learned of this, she smiled warmly. “Indeed, competition is what drives motivation.”
After Lu Jinrong began learning manners seriously, the household grew quieter.
But after a few days of peacefulness, Zi Su brought news to Lin Wanqing.
“Miss, Lady Huixin’s birth mother often visits her secretly.”