Chapter 77: A Thief in the House
Pear Moon wasn’t the only one who lost a fortune buying pepper.
Xiafu had also lost dozens of taels of silver, not earning a single coin back.
She had used her own savings, swallowing the loss in silence without showing a hint of it on her face.
Unlike Xiang Hui, who was foolish enough to make a fuss despite being deep in debt.
Pear Moon kneaded dough and boiled chicken broth in the kitchen, the more she thought about it, the more the pieces fell into place.
Xiang Hui was simple-minded, only capable of making a scene and picking fights without any real cunning.
To steal things in secret and avoid getting caught—she didn’t have the skill for that.
Xiafu, however, was different. Usually quiet and well-behaved, she got along well with others.
The second-rank maids were familiar with her, and the third-rank maids all curried favor with her.
It was precisely this gentle nature that made everyone let their guard down, and no one suspected her.
The maids had lost face powder, rouge, and jewelry, while the kitchen had lost meat, fish, and shrimp.
Xiang Hui was a third-rank maid who slept in a communal bunk—where could she hide so many things?
When she was driven out this morning, she only took a small bundle with her—she couldn’t have disposed of the stolen goods that quickly.
Xiafu was different. She lived alone in a side room, making it easy to hide things.
She also had her brother and sister-in-law here as attendants, making it convenient to dispose of stolen goods.
Pear Moon kneaded the dough over and over, carefully recalling Xiafu’s flustered appearance.
Knowing that someone was over there, why did she run over? She said she was going to cook a small meal, but she didn’t bring any money.
If Pear Moon hadn’t returned, would she have entered the room?
The small room’s door had a lock, but it only kept honest people out, not thieves.
In the heat of summer, the window lattice could be easily pried open, making it simple to enter and take things.
Failing to succeed there, she returned to the Main Chamber courtyard, passing through the water room to reach the third-rank maids’ quarters.
Seeing Xiang Rui washing her hair in the water room without her gold bracelet, Xiafu seized the opportunity.
The maids’ room door wasn’t locked. She lifted the pillow and rummaged under the bedding, taking the gold bracelet.
Thinking no one knew, she didn’t realize the black ash on her skirt had already stained the bedding.
After piecing everything together from start to finish, Pear Moon was certain the thief was Xiafu.
Once the noodles were in the pot, she hurriedly called Autumn Abundance over and told her to keep a close eye on the silver notes.
“The thief isn’t Xiang Hui! Make sure the silver notes are well hidden!”
Xiang Hui was already gone when Xiang Rui lost her gold bracelet. Even if she was annoying, she couldn’t be blamed for everything!
“Do you know who the thief is?” Autumn Abundance’s eyes darted around.
Pear Moon shook her head, her hands moving methodically.
She shredded the chicken, blanched the diced sour bamboo shoots, sliced the cucumber into strips, and fried the peanuts until crispy.
“When you weren’t back, she was loitering around our door. She only left when I arrived. When I entered the room and saw the silver was gone, I was scared half to death. Since I didn’t catch her red-handed, I can’t accuse her of being the thief.”
Pear Moon didn’t mention any names, but Autumn Abundance was clever and guessed it in an instant.
“You never truly know a person’s heart. We should slap her face and search her room!”
Autumn Abundance hurried off, and Pear Moon finished cooking the noodles.
With a flick of the bamboo strainer, she tossed the noodles into the cool well water, releasing a wave of wheat fragrance.
Half a bowl of clear chicken broth, a spoonful of soy sauce, two spoonfuls of aromatic vinegar, a handful of shredded chicken, two handfuls of cucumber strips, and a plate of sour bamboo shoots.
Pepper, ginger, and garlic were minced into fine pieces, along with dozens of crispy crushed peanuts, all sizzled in hot oil.
A blue-and-white bowl held the chilled noodles, a tall-footed cup held the broth and seasonings, and a small vermilion lacquer tray carried it all, accompanied by Eight-Treasure Pickles.
The sour bamboo shoot and shredded chicken chilled noodles looked appetizing.
Pear Moon carried the meal in a food box, but Xiafu wasn’t in her room—the door was locked.
By the time the noodles had grown sticky, Xiafu finally returned, sweating profusely.
Seeing Pear Moon at the door, her face turned as pale as paper.
“Is something the matter, Xiao Yue?”
No wonder they say a guilty conscience betrays itself. Pear Moon smiled and raised the food box.
“Sister wanted the chilled noodles with sour bamboo shoots and shredded chicken.”
“Look at my memory!”
Xiafu gave a dry laugh, uglier than crying, and went to fish out coins again.
“Sister? You already paid.”
Pear Moon set down the food box and ran off, while Xiafu’s hands trembled uncontrollably, her silk clothes soaked through.
“That Xiafu, that thieving wretch, she’s even colluding from inside and outside to fence stolen goods!”
The three of them also ate chilled noodles, sour and spicy, especially refreshing.
Autumn Abundance stretched her arm to ladle noodles from the wooden bucket, poured on broth and seasonings, and piled on plenty of shredded chicken and cucumber.
Huan Huan loved sour bamboo shoots, and the noodles were tasty too; she slurped down a bowl in just a few bites.
“Xiafu’s sister-in-law, Madam Xia, is the procurement for Phoenix Ripple Courtyard. Xiafu passes things to her sister-in-law. Her sister-in-law doesn’t even eat lunch, just goes straight to the pawnshop on the main street, and in the blink of an eye comes out carrying silver—her hands and feet are that nimble! Stealing like this, who could catch her?”
Autumn Abundance ate three bowls of noodles, let out a satisfied burp, propped up her foot, and used a silver toothpick to clean her teeth.
Xiafu stole so brazenly; if anyone had put in a bit of effort to investigate, they wouldn’t have failed to catch the stolen goods.
Granny Zhao wanted to maintain dignity and stability, refusing to admit there was a thief in the courtyard, and Xiafu took advantage of this to dare to act.
Autumn Abundance counted on her fingers, tallying the accounts.
Gold rings, plum blossom hairpins, gold bracelets—face powder and rouge were all valuable.
Add to that the fish, shrimp, eggs, and miscellaneous items from the kitchen; converted, it must amount to dozens of taels.
“Good heavens, if all these were stolen by her, she’s already stolen back the money she lost hoarding pepper.”
“Have we moved into a den of thieves?”
Huan Huan listened, her heart pounding in fear, hurriedly stuffing her personal belongings into a pouch and tying it securely at her waist.
Autumn Abundance, on the other hand, proudly stuck out her foot, revealing a pair of high-soled silk shoes.
“In this sweltering heat, you’re stepping on banknotes under your feet—won’t they get all smelly and rotten?”
Pear Moon nearly spat out the noodles she’d just eaten, and Autumn Abundance angrily kicked her hard.
“Pah! My feet aren’t smelly to begin with, and these shoes have woven grass uppers and wooden soles. I wrapped the banknotes in oiled paper and stuffed them between the wooden soles—even ghosts couldn’t steal them!”
Though the items were well hidden, they couldn’t guard against thieves forever.
Pear Moon was just pondering what else could be done when her sworn sister Cai Wen arrived.
The three quickly got off the kang, offering her a bowl of shredded chicken chilled noodles.
“My Xiao Yue makes wonderfully smooth noodles, but it’s a shame I’ve already eaten, otherwise I’d have another bowl.”
Cai Wen drank half a bowl of broth, took a few bites of the toppings, then hurriedly set down her bowl and chopsticks.
Madam Liu had sent her to relay a message: the Main Kitchen’s selection of helpers had been approved.
“The Main Kitchen is selecting four young maids. Those chosen will apprentice under the cooks, and the top candidate can even be promoted to first rank. All first, second, and third-rank maids in the estate, regardless of their original duties, can participate. Granny Qin just got the news and is discussing how to conduct the selection and what to test. The selection date is set for mid-June.”
Autumn Abundance anxiously asked, “Sister, is the embroidery room selecting people too?”
“Our embroidery room is also selecting, scheduled for the seventh day of the seventh month, Qiqiao Festival. We’ll choose twelve embroiderers, regardless of their previous work, as long as their needlework is skillful.”
Pear Moon and Autumn Abundance jumped for joy, and Huan Huan grinned foolishly along with them.
Cai Wen urged them to prepare well, promising to bring more news later, and before leaving, gifted them two fine lengths of fabric.
The fabric was silver-red gauze, perfect for making summer gauze blouses—cool and breathable—worth five or six taels of silver.
“Sister, please take it back. We don’t want it now—no need to make it easy for thieves!”
This was the first time Autumn Abundance had refused a gift, and Pear Moon quickly shook her head too, urging Cai Wen to take it back.
Huan Huan then explained about the maids in the courtyard losing things and Granny Zhao doing nothing about it.
Cai Wen hadn’t expected Phoenix Ripple Courtyard to be in such disarray and couldn’t help but sigh.
“The head matron is being foolish; this isn’t about saving face. If no one stops the theft of the maids’ belongings, the little thieves being raised will grow bolder and eventually dare to steal from their masters. If that leads to a major incident, wouldn’t it be even more disgraceful!”
She had no choice but to accept the fabric, saying she would make a few small garments and send them over later.
After seeing Cai Wen off, Pear Moon hurriedly fetched the almanac.
Counting the days from today, at most, there were only half a month left.
In the coming days, she needed to focus on honing her culinary skills; the thief in the courtyard would have to be overlooked for now.
Although Pear Moon had no intention of catching the thief, the thief was not about to let her off.
As soon as she entered the tea room, she noticed the lock had been tampered with!