Against the Current Episode 5

Ms Zhao the loan shark and Becoming second class maids

Ji”er is munching candy and being her usual self. What was interesting is she chose to share a piece with Lan Xiang. They were the. Called into first Madam’s quarters and accused of theft. Ji’Er was found with a maid’s ring and her showing off the money she sent home and the candy she bought didn’t work out in her favor either. She was beaten until Lan Xiang knocked over a vase and Ji’Er remembered the punishment the slave holder was given for killing a slave without just cause. This stopped this part of her punishment, but it was far from over. She was put in front of everybody in the servants quarters as a cautionary tale to not steal. She and her entire family were sold off to different families and made an example in the slave quarters. The girls were reminded that their actions could also bring punishment to their families. The Xu’s were made nervous when the head maid inquired about their names directly. She was making it clear she knew who to punish if Lan Xiang messed up. What was bittersweet was LanXiang’s smile and forced cheerful goodbye as she encouraged her parents not to worry about her. She truly is a thoughtful daughter still in spite of all the trials and chaos. All this was in retaliation for Ms Zhao’s maid/friend being married and sent away. This broke Ms Zhao as this was her one friend and confidante, plus the maid handled the books. Jin Qi started it all by finding the cases brought against his wife for usury. His mom decided that stopping her was top priority and the shop holders secondary. She started by giving the maid a severance package if her dreams if she married as requested and left. She shocked her mistress by doing exactly that. She was sorrowful and knelt in apology, but at the end of the day she had to consider her own survival. Ms Zhao’s mom shows up for a visit and it wasn’t received well. It seems the Zhao women were held hostage by not being allowed to read or write and accepting the fate doled out to them by the males in the family.😝😡 I am not certain but I think this Zhao daughter at least knows how to read. She realizes her family is useless for her and that their objective is to get an heir via the Lin family. Tbh, I think she is as disgusted with how her family handles things as JinQi is. I am not sure why she is using her seal along with her cousin’s to verify transactions. It makes the reading simple but it holds the seal bearer accountable. So I am not sure if this is the cousin keeping her responsible if caught or if she is outmaneuvering him to get the cash required to take them away from the Lin house. The maid taking over for the first maid overhears she is not useful. I am not sure how that will go over with her treatment of the two now to be promoted. What I am sure of is she was tired of Ji’Er giving all her work to Lan Xiang and hid her ring in Ji’Er’s clothes to get her kicked out. To cover her tracks, Ms Zhao pretends the silk she just bought was to promote the two 3rd maids to 2nd. The one that likes to eat had all the latest gossip not really thinking about how that could effect her. The tale was of an adulterous pair who killed off any servants that knew about it to prevent witnesses. While the girl was acting like it was a thrilling piece of news, all Lan Xiang heard was that she was even more at risk to the whims of the household and being sold would be the least of her worries. When the matriarch asked for the household keys back there was an odd tension between first madam and top maid. That makes me wonder what side deal those two have going. Now it’s to be seen if Lan Xiang will reveal her ability to read and write or keep it well hidden and play dumb. Power shifts between Zhao and Lin families are going at a much quicker pace now that JinQi is home. I think the biggest irony is that in spite of her words, I don’t think Ms Zhao wants to visit her family any more than JinQi does.

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Ambitions, desires and unwanted opportunities

Ji'er didn't listen and that was her mistake. There's really no one to blame but her. At least she was quick enough to realize what she had to say to escape death. 😮‍💨 I didn't really like the Lv family, mostly because of how they treated Jialan when she was still living with her parents, but I never expected their fate would be like this... 🫣They fooled me well with Qian Shaoze. I was sitting there thinking — does Zhao Xingtang have a secret romance with a woman? I had to check because that person sounded like a man. And it is a male actor! So it's a male cousin who's disguised as a woman so Xingtang could do all the stuff she does with him without raising any suspicion! That disguise is so well made... 😯 To be fair, I kind of feel pity for Zhao Xingtang — she's the victim of the Lin and Zhao family elders who decided she and Jinqi had to marry. Her life is miserable in many aspects, and I can completely understand her choices there. 😔The Xu family, as always, brought me to tears. They don't even have to do much — it's enough to see how they worry about their daughter. 🥹🤧But now Jialan will have to dress up to possibly catch Jinqi's eye... She didn't look anywhere near okay with that possibility. His family is the reason why her family is dead and why she almost died too... 😟 Yet, I still can't wait for him to see AND notice her. 🫣

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