Chapter 319

Chapter 319: The Maid Slept in the Master’s Room

Yu Zhi Yi smiled: “If you really want to know, give me her birth date and time, and her father’s as well.”

Some heavenly secrets can be hidden, and some can’t-especially events that have already happened. No matter how carefully they’re covered up, there are always traces to follow.

“I know Chen Ruo Lan’s,” Xiao Qing Xuan said, “but Old Master Chen’s… I’ll need to ask around.” Her mood grew heavy. If it turned out that old incident was a setup, then her father-in-law’s years of guilt would be a joke. All their forbearance toward Chen Ruo Lan-and especially the grievances she herself had swallowed-would become laughable.

“Alright, don’t dwell on it,” Yu Zhi Yi said, patting her mother’s shoulder. “When soldiers come, we block them; when water rises, we build a dam. We can’t change the past, but our future is in our own hands. There’s no need to be too sad.”

Looking at her daughter’s calm, refined face, Xiao Qing Xuan felt much of her gloom disperse. [My daughter is back. I’m not afraid of anything. If that woman really has a scheme, I’ll just kill her.]

After settling Xiao Qing Xuan, Yu Zhi Yi handed Li Rou a Calming Talisman in a special little pouch: “Take this to Eldest Aunt.”

Eldest Aunt seemed bold and sharp, but in truth she was indecisive and liked to overthink. When big matters arose, she often lost sleep and worried herself sick. Offending the governor’s manor wasn’t a big deal to Yu Zhi Yi, but to an Eldest Aunt who didn’t know her true identity, it could feel like poking a hole in the sky. If they didn’t soothe her now, she’d wake tomorrow like a startled bird.

Holding the tiny red pouch, Lin Jing Xuan’s expression was complicated. She’d never believed much in ghosts or gods. Even after hearing her sons’ account of the night, it didn’t feel real. She suspected her two foolish boys had been tricked by some illusion-thinking they saw spirits when it was all man-made. She didn’t suspect Yu Zhi Yi of faking anything; she suspected whoever tried to kill her sons had played ghost.

In the past, she would have tossed a talisman aside. But tonight, for some reason, she tucked it into her sleeve. At bedtime, seeing that small red pouch, she slid it under her pillow.

Yu Zhi Yi woke to low, muffled arguing. The sky was just turning gray. She lifted her quilt and stepped out.

Outside, Li Rou was scolding Nuan’er in a harsh whisper, her face displeased.

“What’s wrong?” Yu Zhi Yi asked. She hadn’t slept in days and, for once, had skipped cultivation. Fresh from sleep, her voice was hoarse.

Li Rou shot her an apologetic look, then glared at Nuan’er: “This girl pays lip service and disobeys orders. I’m correcting her.”

In big households, not all servants sleep through the night. They take turns outside the master’s room so they can respond quickly if needed. On the first day Nuan’er was assigned to Yu Zhi Yi, Li Rou set the rotation: Li Rou kept the first half of the night; Nuan’er took the second. People get sleepy at night, so resting your head on your arm at the table for a quick doze is normal. As long as you don’t delay the master, most households aren’t too strict-especially since Yu Zhi Yi never fussed over rules.

Li Rou never imagined someone would openly defy the arrangement; she simply hadn’t checked at midnight the last two nights. Just now she woke to use the chamber pot and, passing Yu Zhi Yi’s room, heard loud snoring. She had followed Miss for a long time and had never heard Miss snore. So where else could that thunderous snoring be coming from? [Miss never snores.]

How could Miss sleep with that racket?

Li Rou pushed the door to check, only to find Nuan’er wasn’t in the outer room at all. The snoring was coming from the neighboring room. Second Master Jiang had prepared this courtyard for Second Miss. It wasn’t large, but it held six or seven rooms. Besides the master’s room and the servants’ quarters, two guest rooms had beds.

Li Rou opened the next guest room and found Nuan’er sprawled on the bed, limbs splayed, covered with a fine brocade quilt. Li Rou nearly exploded. Those bed linens were top-quality goods the master and madam had bought for Second Miss. Even if Second Miss wasn’t using them, how could a maid take it upon herself to sleep there?

She yanked Nuan’er up and gave her a fierce scolding.

After hearing the whole story, Yu Zhi Yi glanced at Nuan’er. The girl shrank like a quail, but her eyes were full of defiance.

Yu Zhi Yi gave a cool, faint smile: “My courtyard is small and can’t hold someone with a heart that big. Go back to where you came from.”

Nuan’er snorted: “Since Second Miss can’t stand a maid like me, then I’ll be going.”

She had been a rough-work maid in Eldest Miss’s yard. She hadn’t had a chance to be promoted to third-class maid yet-but it could happen. When she was transferred to Second Miss, she thought she would soar, because Second Miss had few people. Maybe she would become third-class-no, second-class-or even a first-class maid.

Reality was not what she imagined. She never got the close-serving tasks. True, she wasn’t doing hard labor anymore, but she couldn’t touch the core work either. Most importantly, she had overheard a shocking secret: Second Miss wouldn’t stay long in the Martial Alliance. Once the Earthly Ranking tournament ended, she would leave. If Nuan’er remained her maid, wouldn’t she have to leave the Martial Alliance too?

In Nuan’er’s mind, the Martial Alliance was the best place in the world, rivaled only by the great houses of the Capital City. She didn’t care where Second Miss planned to go; she only believed nowhere would be better, or offer more chances, than staying here. So she began to slack off and looked for a way out. Even if Li Rou hadn’t caught her today, she would have found a chance to leave on her own. Besides, Miss Chen had already promised that if Nuan’er couldn’t make it here anymore, she’d take her in.

By the time Nuan’er had been gone a while, Li Rou’s anger still hadn’t cooled. Yu Zhi Yi patted her shoulder: “Don’t be mad. It’s good for a person to have ambition, but if she can’t judge people well and doesn’t know her own place, that ambition becomes a disaster.”

Li Rou fell silent, thinking. She didn’t fully understand what Miss meant, but she did understand one thing: Nuan’er would not have a good ending.