Farmhouse Green Plum

Chapter 541 Maid

Song Ying didn't interrupt. With a faint smile on his face, he just looked at her, waiting for her to finish.

Facing her like this, Li suddenly thought of the Mid-Autumn Festival, and she couldn't continue her chattering.

She ended with a wry smile: "Work hard now, and when Yuanwa passes the exam, you can also benefit from it."

Song Ying had no expectations of her at all, so she didn't argue with her. She smiled and said to Song Yuan, "Did you hear that? Grandma is teaching you how to wash clothes. If you wash clothes you wear on the same day, they will be easy to wash clean. Just rub them twice and it won't delay anything.

I'll give you some soap for washing clothes later. Come back to the store for more when you're done.

As your elder sister, I am also very busy all day long and can't help you with other things, but since I run a soap shop, I can provide you with enough soap for washing hands and laundry.

You don't have to give me money. We are cousins, so we are relatives after all. You don't have to feel embarrassed. Just like grandma said, if you pass the imperial examination or become a Jinshi in the future, I can still benefit from it."

Li frowned when she heard this, and she didn't care that her smile was creepy. She scolded with a stern face: "What are you talking about? We are all family. Yuanwa always thinks about you so much, and you still have the nerve to ask for money.

I asked you to wash Yuanwa's clothes, but he has never done it before, so how could he know how to do it? As a sister, what's wrong with you washing two sets of clothes for Diwa?"

When she needs money and effort, they are like family. When it is their turn to pay for her, they are like her niece. It is a favor that reminds her to remember to repay them at all times.

Song Ying was tired of explaining these reasons. It was impossible to reason with people like them who were unreasonable or only believed in things that were beneficial to themselves, so he stopped talking.

She simply said, "You can learn even if you don't know how to do it. When he was little, he couldn't even eat, but now he has learned it. How can learning to wash clothes be harder than learning to write?"

Li was furious: "He's a boy, and a scholar at that. How can he say that a gentleman should stay away from the kitchen? Is washing clothes and cooking the job of a boy?"

"Rich families emphasize that gentlemen should stay away from the kitchen because these tasks are handled by maids and servants. If you want me to stay out of the housework, then buy me a servant. Not only will I not have to wash clothes, I won't even have to grind ink. I can even have my meals fed directly to me."

Li was so upset that her heart ached. Didn't she want to buy a servant for her grandson? Wasn't it because the family was broke?

She wanted to say more, but Song Ying was impatient to continue talking to her, "Okay, I'm very busy, I won't argue with you anymore, I can either learn to wash the clothes myself, or you grandma, you can pay someone to wash them for him.

"If you want me to serve you like a maid just by calling you sister, then I don't need to be your sister."

Upon hearing this, Yang quickly spoke up to smooth things over, "Don't argue with your grandmother. She's old and still has old ideas. How would she know about the affairs of you young people?

We don't know the rules in this city. How much is the wage for hiring someone to wash clothes? Your brother is only 10 years old this year and has little strength. How can he wash clothes?

Moreover, the weather was getting colder and colder, and the winter cotton-padded jackets were very heavy due to being soaked with water. It was difficult for us adults to twist them, let alone him.

Even if the family has no money, we have to grit our teeth and squeeze out some money to hire someone to wash clothes, so that we can get through these few years and wait until he grows up. "

After hearing this, Song Ying wanted to retort, saying that Song Yuan was only 10 years old and couldn't even lift his own clothes to wash. She was only 6 years old at that time and washed clothes for the whole family. Why didn't she think that she was not strong enough and couldn't wring the clothes?

Why didn't you go to the river to wash it? Why didn't you worry that the cotton-padded jacket would be too heavy in the water and just take it to the river for her?

When the words came to her lips, she no longer had the desire to complain about her grievances. Now in the entire Song family, she only had some affection for Song Yuan and Song Ergu.

"There are helpers in the academy. I'll ask you directly about the salary calculation when the time comes. I'm not sure about the details.

But I know that outsiders are all doing laundry, so I guess there’s not much difference.”

Yang thought it made sense, so she asked, "Then how much do they charge outside?"

"Occasionally I hire someone to wash a piece of clothing. It costs 3 to 5 wen per piece, and a thick winter coat costs 8 to 12 wen per piece. If it's silk or satin, you need to be extra careful when washing it, so it costs 15 to 20 wen per piece. If there are ink stains, blood stains, and other difficult-to-clean stains, you need to add an additional 3 to 8 wen depending on the situation.

It would be cheaper to hire someone to wash clothes on a long-term basis. Washing clothes for the whole family would cost 200 to 300 coins a month. Although I am the only one here, I am a scholar and I change clothes frequently, so it should cost me 100 coins a month.

Also, it goes without saying that you should use the host's soap nuts, otherwise you will have to pay an extra 2 wen for the soap nuts."

Everyone was shocked when they heard this. In this city, clothes are washed by the piece!

Yang's face turned pale, her mind full of money and literature, "It's just washing clothes, why is it so expensive?"

Song Ying didn't respond. She introduced the laundry charges and didn't care whether they were expensive or not.

Yang calculated for a while, but she couldn't bear to spend the money. Washing it once cost several cents, and if she washed it a few more times, it would be enough to buy new clothes.

She gritted her teeth several times but couldn't bring herself to ask someone to wash them. Finally, she said, "Yuanwa, just leave your dirty clothes there. I'll come pick them up every few days, wash them, dry them, and bring them back to you."

Song Yuan hesitated, "Mom, isn't it too tiring for you to run back and forth? You should learn to wash it yourself. I used to watch my sisters wash it, and it's not that difficult."

Yang felt warm in her heart, "You are still young, how can you twist it? It's just a few steps, it's not a big deal.

As long as you study hard, I will be happy even if I come to the city every day to wash your clothes."

While the mother and son were loving and filial, Aunt Meihua had some thoughts when she heard this. She said to Song Ying, "I heard that washing clothes for others in the city is a good job. Song Ying, do you think I can make money washing clothes for others in the city?"

Song Ying nodded and said, "It's all hard work. It's hard to make a lot of money, but it's definitely enough to support myself.

In fact, there are not many odd jobs that can be taken on normal days. It will be better in winter. If you want to make a living from this, you have to rely on long-term jobs.

Especially for those officials, the requirements are more stringent, but the price is also relatively higher. In the long term, it will cost about 500 wen to 1 tael of silver per month."

Aunt Meihua was stunned. "Don't wealthy families have maids who do laundry? Do they also hire people to wash clothes?"

"Not all officials come from wealthy families. There are many petty officials like Song Tian in the government office, as well as some minor officials. These families have simple families and little wealth, so it's not cost-effective to keep servants."

"It's not cost-effective to keep servants. If you hire someone to do laundry, they will only do the laundry. The servants can do everything else." Aunt Meihua expressed her incomprehension.

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