The main room was a bit larger.
In the center was a square table with two chairs on either side; against the walls on both sides were high stands, with a few stools nearby.
A landscape painting hung in the central hall; it wasn't a famous piece, but it was decent to look at.
The square table in the middle could be used for eating, drinking tea, placing things, or even chopped up to tend the fire, and it could certainly be swung around for a fight.
Ye Man sat on the chair, though the child had a commanding presence.
Wang Suning stood to the side, feeling satisfied just looking at the bolts of cloth: "Needlework skills are just not very good."
Ye Man said, "Then make some for yourself first; you'll be wearing it anyway."
Although these weren't exactly kind words, Wang Suning sensed a different meaning.
If it were at home, having something to wear was the key! As long as there was something to wear, anyone could sew it up!
Wang Suning regretted for a moment that she had learned all sorts of useless things and hadn't properly learned this skill.
She wasn't like other girls who were sold off around seven or eight years old; Qin Lou could teach them slowly.
She was already twelve when she was sold, and since she was due to be introduced this year, she was busy every day, sometimes studying for ten hours straight.
Fortunately, she wasn't stupid and could manage to get a little more sleep.
She was good-looking, so she studied and practiced calligraphy, though her handwriting wasn't that great.
Ye Man stood up and opened the door.
Wang Suning quickly asked, "Master, what are you going to do?"
The wind and rain outside were strong, and the sky was truly dark.
A lamp was lit inside, and an outside lantern swayed in the wind, providing insufficient light.
Ye Man came over and looked at the donkey child.
The donkey looked very happy to see her and was frolicking excitedly.
Ye Man patted it, then went to the front area kitchen to prepare some food.
Wang Suning hurried over; she knew how to tend the fire and cook porridge.
Ye Man watched; the waiter was truly diligent, the water vat was filled, and there were about five catties of rice and perhaps two catties of flour.
There were no vegetables, so for now, Ye Man took out a plate of steamed buns.
Wang Suning didn't know where she got them from, but with the rice in the pot, she placed the steamed buns on the side of the stove to warm up slowly.
Ye Man picked up a knife, called the maidservant over, and with a few quick strokes, shaved off her eyebrows.
Wang Suning felt a coolness on her brow, reached up to touch it, and found it was shaved very cleanly.
Ye Man said, "I'll do your makeup in a bit, and teach you a few phrases; your accent is too heavy."
Wang Suning went over to tend the fire and continued cooking the porridge.
She had made changes when she was at Zhichun Pavilion, but the accent was hard to change. Mama Feng said her voice was pleasant, so there was no rush to change it.
Now, there was a rush to change it.
Since Tan Xianglin was seen by many people on the street, Mama Feng could easily track her down.
It wasn't certain that Tan Xianglin genuinely saved her, and he might not negotiate well with Mama Feng.
The Master's current approach was quite good; otherwise, who knew how much silver Mama Feng would demand?
Wouldn't it be better to keep the silver for herself?
Wang Suning looked at the Master's actions; even if she could produce silver, it would be better spent on herself—whether eating ginseng or buying clothes—than giving it to Mama Feng.
Wang Suning said, "There are many girls at Zhichun Pavilion; they don't lack one of me."
Ye Man said, "Not lacking one of you is one thing; breaking the rules by running away is another. If everyone ran away like you, how could we operate? We must give others a deterrent so they don't dare to run."
Wang Suning's small face glowed under the stove fire, as if transitioning from ignorance to enlightenment.
She was a minor figure, but when rules were involved, she couldn't be considered small.
Wang Suning said, "So everyone will obediently listen."
Ye Man nodded, "That's essentially the case."
The porridge was almost ready, and Ye Man began teaching.
Pronunciation has its tricks, but for Old Ancestor Yeman, it wasn't an issue.
In the modern world, besides being a doctor, she had mastered ten foreign languages and ten dialects; learning more held no interest.
Wang Suning was fine with other things, but she had no talent for languages, being particularly stubborn about her Linzhou Accent.
Ye Man simply took a strip of cloth, tied it around her throat, propped up her chin, and made her stick out her tongue.
Was the scene a bit strange?
Wang Suning found it quite amusing; she became energized, determined to practice!
Ye Man went back into the room, brought out ink and a brush, and began drawing her eyebrows.
Wang Suning quietly tried to find the right feeling.
Ye Man finished drawing, and it looked acceptable. After all, the child was young, and her features weren't too pronounced.
A girl changes significantly by eighteen; some girls who look like tomboys when young can grow into great beauties.
Wang Suning looked at her reflection in the water; it was completely different, and if she failed because of her accent, all her efforts would be wasted.
Ye Man returned to the room and sat down.
Wang Suning brought over the steamed buns, and then the porridge.
This rice was good; the resulting porridge was fragrant, only lacking a dish of pickled vegetables.
Ding Yuan arrived carrying a food container.
Wang Suning quickly took it.
Ding Yuan pulled out a large bag of medicine from his bulging chest, and finally, carefully took out a box.
Ye Man's eyes widened; there was Spiritual Energy—did he buy it back so smoothly?
Ding Yuan placed the box in front of her: "At the Fu Ning Pharmacy, someone wanted to buy it but didn't have enough silver, so he bought three portions for fifty taels, and then sold the remaining one hundred and fifty taels of silver to me."
Ye Man opened it and looked; not bad!
Although it wasn't as good as that Bamboo Joint Ginseng, he hadn't been cheated either.
This ginseng would allow her to recover significantly, at least she wouldn't collapse while traveling.
Traveling a long distance wasn't a small matter; although her exterior was fine, she didn't want her inner condition to continue like this.
Otherwise, after thousands of miles, if she truly collapsed, she wouldn't have the energy to handle things.
Since the esteemed guest was satisfied, Ding Yuan was happy and went back to his duties.
Ye Man watched him walk into the rain; he was truly honest.
Then she noticed the maidservant watching from the side, and she got an idea.
Wang Suning shivered, and seeing the Master come from the kitchen with a knife made her even more frightened.
A flash of the knife passed; Wang Suning didn't even feel pain—it was more efficient than getting an ear pierced.
Looking at the blood on the knife, her face seemed to be bleeding, and the pain set in.
Ye Man took out several types of medicine, ground them up, and applied them to her face.
It hurt so much! Blood was flowing down to her chin; Wang Suning thought she was going to be disfigured.
Ye Man asked, "Afraid of being disfigured?"
Wang Suning practiced her accent, speaking unclearly, "Not afraid."
Ye Man said, "Doing anything else is troublesome. This will take about two days, leave a scar that won't be noticeable for long, and it will be safer on the road."
Wang Suning grasped the key point: "The scar won't be obvious?"
Ye Man said, "If it were obvious, wouldn't it attract attention?"
Wang Suning nodded, exactly!
Ye Man washed her hands, sat down to eat, and after eating, she still had things to do; alas, she really didn't want to go out.
On a day like this, it was absolutely perfect for hiding in the inn and sleeping for three days and three nights.
Wang Suning also sat down to eat; her speech was unclear, and drinking the porridge wasn't very smooth.
What the waiter brought, besides pickled vegetables and scrambled eggs, was daylily stewed with tofu.
Combined with the large meat buns, it couldn't be more perfect!
After eating their fill, Ye Man started dozing off; days like this felt truly like being an Immortal.
Wang Suning went to clean up.
Although she had been nurtured for over half a year at Zhichun Pavilion, and she used to work at home, things were not as good as they were now.
Because the Master knew how to brew medicine, Wang Suning prepared some more things. Afterward, she continued practicing and still had to make clothes.
There was endless work, and Zhichun Pavilion was left behind by her.
That wasn't a good place; how could good parents sell their daughter there?
This inn didn't have very few guests, but since this was a separate courtyard, the sounds nearby were masked by the wind and rain.
The donkey occasionally made a sound in the shed; one donkey in a foreign land was not lonely.