Although Wu Weiwei was promoted by the Lady to replace the cousin, and judging by the Heir's reaction earlier, he seemed quite satisfied with her service.
Given Mistress Wu's beauty, if she were to win the Heir's favor in the future and bear a child or two, becoming a valued concubine was not entirely out of the question.
Logically, she shouldn't be offended, but...
As a mammy at the Lady's side, it was her duty to remind the Lady.
"Since she is the first woman to initiate Ting'er into manhood, her status cannot be set too low. Let us elevate her to a concubine!"
"Lady, the Heir's Consort has yet to cross the threshold. If you elevate someone now, I fear it will affect the Heir's future marriage prospects..."
The Marquis's Lady gently rubbed the prayer beads in her hand.
Wu Weiwei was someone she had found to replace He Yuyan, and could also be considered a chip she was preparing for herself in the future.
Now it was merely a matter of taking in a concubine for Ting'er. Compared to before, when her son had wanted to bring in He Yuyan with the rites of a valued concubine, this was considered quite low-profile.
However, for Ting'er's sake, elevating Mistress Wu to a concubine should wait until the primary wife entered the household another day!
The Marquis's Lady pondered for a moment. "Here is what we will do: Mammy, have people tidy up the Biyun Pavilion in the East Courtyard and assign two maidservants to Mistress Wu.
On the surface, she will still serve in the name of a bed-warming maid, but her clothing, food, housing, and transportation should accord with the protocol of a concubine!"
Biyun Pavilion was close to Rose Pavilion and also the courtyard closest to Qingsong Courtyard, which would make it convenient for her to serve Ting'er.
"If Mistress Wu knew the Lady was treating her with such kindness, I fear she would be so moved as to immediately kowtow to you, Lady."
"Heh, as long as she behaves herself in the future and isn't as pretentious as Lady He, I can worry a little less."
When Mammy Qiu led a group of people carrying items over to convey the message, Wu Weiwei was eating her midday meal in the servants' quarters of the courtyard.
Hearing this abruptly, she was nearly frightened frozen on the spot.
A bed-warming maid?
Wu Weiwei stood in a daze, disbelief written all over her face.
Not to mention all her sacrifices—she had nearly broken her back for the position of the Heir's Consort—yet in the end, she had only landed the title of a bed-warming maid.
As expected, she didn't have the good fortune of a female protagonist; other people started their entry into the Marquis's Estate straight as valued concubines.
Aunt Mei, who had followed behind, saw Wu Weiwei's frightened expression and assumed she was overjoyed. She stepped forward and gave her a nudge.
"Girl Wu, why aren't you hurrying to kowtow and thank the Marquis's Lady?"
Pushed like that, Wu Weiwei finally snapped back to reality.
"Th-This servant thanks the Marquis's Lady."
Qingwen, the senior maid beside the Marquis's Lady, cast a sideways glance at her.
Though her looks were not ordinary, looking at Wu Weiwei's foolish appearance, she let out a cold snort inwardly—she was merely a wooden beauty, nothing to be feared.
Mammy Qiu took her hand and told her that the Lady valued her, assigning the Biyun Pavilion in the East Courtyard for her to live in, and furthermore dispatching two maidservants to follow and serve her there.
Although she was nominally a bed-warming maid, she would actually be treated according to a concubine's status, and once she bore a child or two in the future, she could be elevated to the Heir's formal concubine.
Wu Weiwei's lowered eyes flickered.
She showered Mammy Qiu with pleasant remarks, expressing that she would surely serve the Heir well.
Mammy Qiu was satisfied.
Thinking to herself, she truly was a perceptive person who caught on at the slightest hint, unlike that arrogant young cousin who was so full of herself.
After these people all left, Wu Weiwei collapsed and sat down on the ground.
When the Heir left in the morning, he hadn't promised her anything.
She had simply treated last night as if she had been bitten by a dog, to the extent that she was still cursing that dog of a man while eating just now.
Now the Marquis's Lady had given her the rank of a bed-warming maid. The goal of becoming the mistress of the Marquis's Estate was still far too distant, but it was better than nothing!
After all, in the modern era, hadn't she put in a tremendous amount of effort to compete for the position of a flight attendant? These were all the results of her step-by-step hard work.
Just thinking this way, she unexpectedly felt that her achingly sore waist from last night wasn't quite so painful anymore.
Aunt Mei helped her move the gifts and luggage bestowed by the Marquis's Lady to Biyun Pavilion, and as she was finally leaving, she said to her earnestly:
"Girl Wu, although you have now received the Heir's favor and might even become the mistress of this Marquis's Estate in the future,
you must be all the more cautious everywhere and not let the splendor of this Marquis's Estate blind your eyes. The waters in the Marquis's Estate are not as shallow as you imagine!"
Aunt Mei had entered service in the Marquis's Estate since she was young, and she had seen too much of the open struggles and covert clashes within the estate. It wasn't as if she hadn't seen little girls like Wu Weiwei before.
The reason Aunt Mei offered pointers was also because she couldn't bear to see her come to a bad end when the time came.
Wu Weiwei turned to look at her, a wave of emotion stirring within her heart.
"Thank you for your guidance, Aunt Mei. Weiwei understands."
In the storyline, because the original owner was timid in nature, she had never known anything other than being bullied after entering the Marquis's Estate. Aunt Mei couldn't bear to watch and had gotten her out of tight spots a few times, but alas, the original owner could never stand up for herself.
It wasn't that the Marquis's Lady hadn't given the original owner chances.
Given the original owner's temperament, even if she hadn't been scared to death by being pierced through the heart with a sword last time, she would probably just detour around the Heir whenever she saw him in the future.
She had transmigrated into the book in this lifetime to become the Heir's woman, and since Aunt Mei was offering pointers out of good intentions, she naturally had to accept this kindness.
After Aunt Mei left, the two maidservants of Biyun Pavilion walked in from outside the door.
"This servant Lingfu pays her respects to Miss Wu!"
"This servant Chunrou pays her respects to Miss Wu!"
Wu Weiwei looked at the maidservant named Lingfu. Her appearance was ordinary, she was somewhat tall, and her speech was also proper and conventional—which somehow clashed slightly with her name.
"Where did you serve originally?"
"Miss Wu, this servant entered the estate half a year ago. As soon as I arrived, I was assigned to Biyun Pavilion, responsible for sweeping chores in the courtyard."
Oh, she sounded like an honest and dutiful sort.
"And what about you, Chunrou?"
This little maidservant named Chunrou had a pretty and charming appearance, and her voice sounded like an oriole singing—melodious and delightful.
If placed in the modern era, she could somehow livestream as an internet celebrity and coax the top-tier donors into giving gifts.
As for this ancient era, however, different people had different fates, and she could only do chores serving others.
"Replying to the Miss, this servant is born in the estate, and was a second-class maidservant in Qiushui Pavilion responsible for outer courtyard work."
She replied with a voice as crisp as an oriole.
"Born in the estate, and a second-class maidservant to boot... Wouldn't coming to my Biyun Pavilion be a grievance for you?"
Wu Weiwei sat in the main seat of this courtyard and cast a light, casual glance at Chunrou standing below.
Everyone knew that following beside the Marquis's Lady was definitely much more promising than serving a bed-warming maid like her.
As soon as Wu Weiwei said this, she saw Chunrou hurriedly kneel and say, "This servant came here of her own accord, there is no grievance. Besides, being able to serve the Miss is this servant's good fortune."
The previous two days, she had accidentally killed one of the Marquis's Lady's beloved flowers with too much water. At the time, she hadn't just been scolded fiercely by Mammy Qiu, but her monthly wages for a month had also been docked.
It just so happened that today Mammy Qiu asked in the courtyard if anyone was willing to come and serve in Biyun Pavilion, and Chunrou had volunteered to come over.
Chunrou had heard that this newly appointed bed-warming maid was originally just a coarse-labor maid with neither family background nor standing.
If not for the Marquis's Lady looking upon her with favor, she probably would never have attained the position of a bed-warming maid in the estate in her lifetime.
Since Wu Weiwei could do it, why couldn't she, someone born in the estate?