Mama Wang clutched her head with a pained cry, her fury boiling over as she scanned her surroundings.
Qingzhu came running out of the room, wearing her inner garments as outerwear, her hair disheveled like a bird's nest. She clapped her hands and giggled madly:
"Kill the cockroaches! Kill the big cockroaches! Hee hee hee!"
When Mama Wang saw it was this madwoman, her face turned livid with rage, her eyes filled with disgust:
"She's just a crazy…"
Clang!
Another bamboo winnowing basket landed squarely on her head.
"You! You damned lunatic! I'll beat you to death!"
Mama Wang completely lost her composure, flailing her arms as she prepared to charge forward.
Song Yiqiu barely suppressed her laughter and hurried forward to stop her. Her tone sounded conciliatory but was actually meant to stir the pot:
"Please calm down, Mama! Calm down! Qingzhu was the personal maid Grandmother bestowed upon me back then. Though she's not in her right mind now, we're as close as sisters."
"She's suffered many hardships and has just returned. She's merely unwell and didn't mean any offense. Please be magnanimous and tolerate her, Mama."
Mama Wang stared at Qingzhu for a long moment, confirming she was truly mad.
Just as she prepared to speak,
Song Yiqiu shifted her tone, her gaze sweeping over the several pretty young maids standing behind Mama Wang with bowed heads:
"Surely Mama didn't come today just to inquire about my household expenses?"
Mama Wang felt a surge of anger stuck in her chest, unable to vent it. Having been read so accurately, she could only roughly push the maids forward and snap:
"Madam thought it improper for the young mistress to have no attentive servants upon returning to the estate. She specially selected these clever girls. Young mistress may choose two to keep in your courtyard!"
Song Yiqiu quickly assessed the maids.
The ones in front appeared delicate and frail with tender skin, their eyes shifting nervously. They were clearly carefully chosen spies – here to act like mistresses rather than do any actual work.
Finally, her gaze settled on the last maid who had kept her head bowed, trying hard to extend her hands.
Though she tried to appear demure, Song Yiqiu couldn't miss the thick, rough calluses on the web of her thumb and forefinger.
Those were marks left by years of gripping a sword.
Song Yiqiu felt a stir in her heart and pointed at her:
"You, look up."
The maid raised her head as commanded, revealing a delicate yet undeniably heroic face.
The moment their eyes met, Song Yiqiu froze in shock.
This… wasn't this Bai Mei, her deputy general from Longnan? What was she doing here? And dressed as a maid?
Bai Mei quickly winked at her.
Song Yiqiu immediately understood. Turning back to Mama Wang with a restored calm expression, she pointed casually:
"Mama, I'll take this one. She looks honest and hardworking. Having just returned from the military camp, I'm used to doing things myself and don't need so many servants. Please take the others back. Thank Madam for her kindness on my behalf."
Mama Wang cast a disdainful glance at Bai Mei – in her opinion, this maid was the plainest-looking – then looked contemptuously at Song Yiqiu, thinking this young mistress truly was coarse and ungrateful.
Just as she prepared to deliver more warnings, a panicked cry suddenly came from outside the courtyard gate:
"N-No! It's terrible! Mama Wang! Young mistress! Something awful has happened!"
Mama Wang, already in a foul mood, sharply rebuked:
"How dare you! Running around recklessly and shouting in the estate – what kind of behavior is this! What matter could be so urgent? Has the sky fallen?"
The little maid fell to her knees with a thud, stammering as her trembling finger pointed toward the front hall, her voice choked with tears:
"It's… it's the young master from the Yongyu Earl's residence… he… he's here!"
Matron Wang frowned and waved her hand impatiently:
"So he's here. The young master visits our residence often enough. Is that any reason for such hysterics…"
The maid nearly burst into tears, suddenly lifting her head to look at Song Yiqiu while trembling with fear:
"They say… they say he's come to break off the engagement!!!"
"The master and mistress are both in the front hall dealing with him. The second young lady has gone there too. The mistress sent me immediately to fetch the eldest young lady…"
"I… I saw the young master's face was terribly dark. I'm afraid… I'm afraid he comes with ill intentions…"
Matron Wang was momentarily stunned, then undisguised schadenfreude flashed in her eyes as she deliberately drawled:
"Afraid… afraid of what? How dare you presume to speculate about the young master's intentions? You ill-mannered creature, get out of here at once!"
The maid scrambled away as if granted a pardon.
Matron Wang immediately turned to Song Yiqiu, her face plastered with false concern though her tone carried veiled sarcasm:
"Oh dear, eldest young lady, you heard everything, didn't you? Everyone is waiting for you in the front hall!"
"This young master from the Yongyu Earl's residence is no ordinary guest. Keeping him waiting would reflect poorly on the master and mistress."
Song Yiqiu sneered inwardly.
The young master of Yongyu Earl's residence, Fu Langxing.
Her childhood sweetheart she'd been betrothed to since birth. In her previous life, right after she'd been framed for having an affair with the groom, he had rushed over to break off their engagement, pushing her completely into the abyss.
Her father Song Qingming, in his desperation to curry favor with the earl's household, had even shamelessly declared:
'The betrothal was made with the legitimate daughter of the Song family. Sang Yu is also a legitimate daughter and can substitute for the marriage.'
She only learned later that during her seven years away from home, Fu Langxing had already developed deep feelings for Song Sangyu. That scheme to ruin her reputation likely had their involvement.
Seeing Song Yiqiu remain silent, Matron Wang assumed she was frightened stiff and added with feigned concern:
"Eldest young lady, why are you still standing there? Have you forgotten the way to the front hall? Should… this old servant show you the way?"
Song Yiqiu lifted her eyes, her face showing no panic but instead blushing with shyness.
Ridiculous, of course it was an act.
She deliberately acted coy, covering her face with her sleeve as she spoke in a delicate, soft voice:
"Matron Wang is quite right. Since Brother Langxing has come, I must properly dress and make myself up before seeing him. How could I be so impolite? Please return first, matron. I'll be there shortly."
Matron Wang was taken aback by this response, nearly rolling her eyes in contempt:
Acting! Still putting on an act with me! Didn't you hear he's here to break off the engagement? Do you really still think you're the apple of the young master's eye?
But she couldn't expose this outright, so she could only say dryly:
"Then this old servant will take her leave first. Eldest young lady, you… should make haste."
Having said this, she turned away with a sarcastic expression, the maids who hadn't been dismissed quickly following behind her.
The courtyard suddenly felt empty.
The moment Matron Wang's figure disappeared around the corridor corner, Baimei—who had been standing meekly nearby—instantly revealed her true nature, bouncing over to Song Yiqiu's side.
She threw her arms around Song Yiqiu's arm, grinning as she looked her up and down:
"General Song! Didn't you say you returned to the capital to live the good life? Is this what you call the good life? Tsk tsk tsk, I'd say this is more thrilling than enemy attacks at our Longnan camp!"
Song Yiqiu tapped her forehead in mock annoyance:
"No sense of propriety! You should address me as 'Young Lady' now. Speak up—how did you end up here? And even managed to become a maid?"
Baimei rubbed her forehead, pouting with a wronged expression:
"The military camp was so boring!"
"After you, our backbone, left, although there weren't any major battles, drilling troops and patrolling defenses every day made our bones grow moldy from idleness."
"Besides, when you became a general and swept through Longnan, shouldn't I, Baimei, deserve at least half the credit for those military exploits? Now that you've returned to the capital to enjoy life and inherit the peerage, shouldn't I follow to claim some rewards?"