They had been traveling for who knows how long. Shen Ruyi didn’t know how far they had gone, but the carriage finally stopped before she fainted from hunger.
The midday soup contained wolf meat. Shen Ruyi had expected to find it disgusting, but the aroma made her mouth water.
Previously, she drank wild vegetable soup mainly to help the steamed buns go down; now she genuinely craved meat.
After eating and drinking her fill, she finally had the energy to notice that the group had left the mountains. They were now camped at the foot of the mountains, cooking their meals there.
“Everyone, rest well today. We will keep moving for the next two days. In two days, we will reach Yongzhou.”
After the meal, a soldier whom Shen Ruyi suspected was one of the leader’s deputies, struck a few gongs and informed everyone of the schedule.
Used to starting early and stopping late every day, Shen Ruyi wasn’t usually bothered, but the sudden halt for rest made her feel uneasy.
Only two days left, and I’ll be arranged to marry—still as the chosen party.
Shen Ruyi wandered aimlessly along the mountains’ base, feeling she should think about many things, yet having no clue where to begin.
She felt like a rootless duckweed, drifting with the current, with nothing in her control.
“Ruyi, I’ve been calling you! Why don’t you answer? What are you thinking?”
A sudden tap on her back startled her.
“Zhenzhu Sister? When did you get here? Why didn’t I see you before?”
Shen Ruyi looked up to find the woman in front of her was Zhenzhu, formerly a top maid in the Old Madam’s residence, leaving her even more surprised that Zhenzhu remembered her, a low-ranking servant.
“I’ve been traveling with the maids from Qingyang and Guangping Hou’s residences, staying near the carriages. We only got a chance to move around today and saw you walking alone, so I came to greet you.”
Zhenzhu pointed toward a few other maids in the distance.
From afar, Shen Ruyi couldn’t see clearly, but judging from their uniforms, they were top-ranked maids from the three households.
She recalled that even in prison, she hadn’t been with Zhenzhu, which meant marriage arrangements were divided by rank—first and second-class maids were paired with higher-ranking soldiers.
After a brief chat, Zhenzhu and the other two maids walked away.
Even greeting a lowly servant like Shen Ruyi was seen as courteous from a top maid’s perspective.
Shen Ruyi, however, didn’t care.
Her worry was deeper: in a society of blind marriages, being ranked even lower only made her prospects bleaker.
This wasn’t her modern world of free choice. Now, it was truly an era of “marry according to your social status, whether rich or poor, man or woman.”
She tried walking to clear her mind but grew more restless. Eventually, she stopped, found a quiet spot, and entered her space to count coins, rations, and ginseng.
Counting money brought her inner peace.
As promised, for the next two days, they traveled continuously.
Previously, Shen Ruyi thought the journey had been grueling, but these last two days surpassed anything before.
The carriages only stopped when night fell, and soup was canceled.
They received only one black steamed bun each morning to eat in the carriage.
The bun was hard; it had to be torn into tiny pieces, moistened with saliva, then chewed slowly to avoid damaging teeth.
Some impatient maids with strong teeth would choke trying to swallow too quickly, turning pale.
Shen Ruyi, with her well, could cheat a little, and she felt fortunate. Happiness was relative.
“Look! The city walls!”
Two afternoons later, someone exclaimed, and all the maids rushed to the windows.
In the distance appeared a city wall, less grand than the capital’s, yet exuding an imposing, solemn, and austere beauty.
As they approached, Shen Ruyi read the large traditional characters carved above the gate: Yongzhou.
Seeing this city wall, filled with a sense of foreboding and gravity, calmed Shen Ruyi’s earlier unease.
The wall’s majesty seemed to absorb all her fear and nervousness, settling her mind.
The convoy entered the city without stopping; the soldiers seemed aware of their purpose, and the route was smooth.
“Everyone, disembark.”
The maids got off the carriages one by one.
“For the next two days, stay in this residence and follow Madam Tian’s instructions. Do not leave; only move within the residence.”
The deputy-like soldier instructed the group and then hurried the empty carriages away.
Shen Ruyi looked up to see a vast residence. Though not as ornate as the capital’s, it was large and sturdy, showing signs of rapid construction.
At the main gate stood a woman—likely Madam Tian—with the standard warm smile of the inner residence. Her gaze swept over the group, and even Shen Ruyi, standing inconspicuously in the back, felt noticed.
“Ladies, please follow me inside.”
The front carriages held the daughters of the three households and top-ranked maids, walking orderly behind Madam Tian.
Following them were second and third-class maids and low-ranking servants.
The old madams, wives, and young heirs had already separated from the main group.
Even with just one instruction, several hundred maids moved silently through the courtyard.
Shen Ruyi, trained by three years as a servant, instinctively kept her head slightly lowered, avoiding eye contact.
“Ten per room. Madam Tian will come and guide you to wash and change into the prepared clothes. Rest well here for two days. Once the military camp arrangements are ready, you will be notified.”
With that, Madam Tian left, leaving younger attendants to guide the women to their rooms.
Shen Ruyi has now arrived in Yongzhou, ready for the next stage of her journey and the impending forced marriage. The chapter emphasizes her anxiety, social hierarchy among maids, and the imposing, slightly intimidating atmosphere of the city and residence.