Her sister and brother-in-law had to leave for the restaurant before dawn, so by the time Xu Yu got up, the two were already gone, and the food left on the table was still warm.
After eating, she washed the dishes, tidied up the room, and then sat inside waiting. She made do with a simple lunch, kept an eye on the time in the evening, prepared the meal, and waited for her sister and brother-in-law to come home.
Xu Yun pushed open the door, carrying vegetables in her hand, and said with a smile, "I was just thinking I'd come back and cook, but you've already got everything ready. I've got half a bowl of pork head meat here—untouched by the customers. Have your brother-in-law heat it up, and we'll eat."
"It's so cold outside, Sis, come warm yourself by the fire." Xu Yu turned up the glowing coals and pulled her sister close, whispering, "I'm going back tomorrow. Sis, take the money—save a portion, keep one share for yourself, and send one share back to Big Brother."
"He's still in mourning, so Big Brother can only stay home and farm. I don't know how things are going or whether he can carry on the family line. I'll take less and send more to Big Brother."
"That's fine. It's been so long since we've been back—I wonder how he's doing."
"New Year is coming soon. When the New Year holiday comes, we can go home. The money you've given me, I've been saving it all—we can buy plenty of New Year goods." Xu Yun smiled and patted her head. "Yutou, if it weren't for you earning money over there to support the family, we wouldn't know what to do."
She took her sister's hand and said softly, "Ever since I was little, with Big Brother and you protecting me, I've never done any heavy work or suffered any hardship. Now that the family is in trouble, it's only right that I do my part."
Xu Yun hugged her, her voice choking a little. "Yutou, if it weren't absolutely necessary, I would never have let you work in a place like that. Bear with it a little longer. After the New Year, I'll find a chance to speak with the manager and get you transferred over to work with us."
Zhang Ping came back carrying the heated dish and called out cheerfully, "Come eat! Whatever it is, talk after we eat—don't let the food get cold."
Xu Yun wiped her tears and smiled. "Yutou, come, let's eat."
By the time they finished the meal, it was already late. Before bed, Xu Yun reminded her once, and early the next morning she whispered in her ear again: "Yutou, I left some money by your pillow. Take it, get yourself something good to eat out there, and then head over."
She answered groggily, rolled over, and went back to sleep, only slowly waking when the sky was fully bright. Not daring to delay, she quickly got herself ready, tidied the room once more, and strode out the door.
The old man in the alley saw her and greeted her with a smile. "Lass, heading off already?"
"Mm! The master's household still has things for me to do. You take care." She called back a farewell, ate a bowl of vegetarian soup at a bustling street stall, boarded a cart, and jolted and swayed her way back to the mansion in the city.
The mansion was in the inner city, quiet and prosperous—a place where officials and the powerful came and went. The main roads were paved with stone bricks, so even the ride was no longer so bumpy, but Xu Yu's heart sank lower and lower.
These past two days she had been too caught up in her happiness, and only now did she remember what she was about to face.
She had chosen Lord Nie over Xiang Yuxue. She might fool Xiang Yuxue for a while, but not forever. Given Xiang Yuxue's temperament, if she ever learned the truth, it might truly cost Xu Yu her life.
The bundle she'd carried out had held a packet of silver; when she returned, only an ordinary garment remained. Holding it, she stepped down from the carriage and walked slowly toward the side gate of the residence.
The deeper she went, the more her heart grew uneasy. By the time she stepped into Chengguan Pavilion, her heart was nearly pounding out of her chest—until an unfamiliar maidservant emerged from the main hall.
She froze for a moment, stepping back a few paces to confirm she hadn't come to the wrong place, then stepped forward and asked, "And you are?"
The maidservant came forward, sizing her up as well, and said, "You're Xu Yu, aren't you? I'm Fen'er, the new maidservant."
Xu Yu nodded blankly and walked slowly toward her quarters, asking in a low voice, "New? Did Lord Nie send for you?"
"Yes," Fen'er replied, eyes lowered and demeanor deferential.
Qin Rusu came out of the room, smiling faintly. "You're back! You don't know yet, do you? Lord Nie felt that Liu Shanyue and Xiang Yuxue weren't efficient enough in their work, so he sent them away."
Xu Yu was slightly stunned. "Is that what he told you himself?"
"Where would I get such standing, that Lord Nie would explain things to me personally?" Qin Rusu stepped into the room and continued, "The day you went home, the head steward sent people to take those two away. I was anxious, so I asked Qizhang, and it was Qizhang who told me."
Xu Yu followed her inside and sat on her own bed, lost in thought.
She had only just left, and Lord Nie had already driven those two out? But hadn't he wanted her to figure out for herself how to handle things? Was he toying with her? Had he driven those two away for her sake?
Her heart fluttered lightly.
No, surely not. Most likely Lord Nie knew those two were spies, and that was why he'd dismissed them. But then why not send Qin Rusu away as well? Qin Rusu had been planted there by someone else too.
"What are you thinking about? Don't tell me you already knew Lord Nie's plans?" Qin Rusu was still smiling faintly, gentle and friendly—entirely unlike those two.
Xu Yu looked at her, still wary in her heart, and shook her head slightly. "I knew nothing. Like you, I'm merely a servant. Why would Lord Nie discuss such things with me?"
"Then it seems no one can guess Lord Nie's mind. Not a single sign, and suddenly he just sent them away."
Qin Rusu had pondered it for two days and concluded that this Xu Yu must have reported those two to Lord Nie—after all, they had been quite rude to her. It seemed that from now on, she really must not offend her.
Qin Rusu said with a smile, "Well, that's true enough. Those two were always arrogant and domineering. I couldn't get along with them either, but knowing I was no match for them, I never dared cross them. That's why, when they bullied you before, I didn't step forward. Do you hold a grudge against me for that?"
Xu Yu lowered her eyes. "I don't know what you mean. You were always the honored ones of this residence, and I was just a lowly servant. I have nothing to hold a grudge about."
Qin Rusu didn't press further, and added, "Fortunately, they've sent two easy-going ones this time. One is called Fen'er—you saw her just now—and the other is called Ruyi. Both are as mild-tempered as we are. From now on, things here will be peaceful. Well, I won't disturb you any longer—I have to go out and do the sweeping. Go ahead and unpack."
Xu Yu rose, opened her bundle, folded the garment, and placed it back in the small cabinet beside her bed, then turned her gaze toward the folded bedding on the bed.
The two bottles of chilblain ointment were hidden under the bedding. Afraid that those girls might go through her things while she was away, she had deliberately placed a strand of hair under the folded bedding before leaving—and now… that strand of hair was gone!
Xu Yu immediately moved the bedding aside and picked up the two porcelain jars, opening them to check.
If they had seen the jars, they would certainly have opened them—she just didn't know whether they had touched the contents.
Holding them up to the light by the window, she examined them carefully and spotted a fingerprint in the ointment. She breathed a sigh of relief.
The fingerprint was one she had left herself. Since it was still there, it proved they hadn't touched the ointment—at most they had picked up the jars and smelled them.
She sat back on the bed and gently scooped out a dab of ointment, slowly spreading it over the back of her hand. The ointment's mild fragrance drifted up, and despite herself, she found herself thinking of Lord Nie again.
Why hadn't Lord Nie sent Qin Rusu away as well? Could it really be, as she had imagined, that he had driven those two out for her sake?
"Paying respects to my lord." The maidservants' voices came from outside.
Xu Yu froze, quickly capped the porcelain jar, and stuffed it back under the bedding.
Qin Rusu returned with a smile: "My lord is back. You've returned from your day of leave—you ought to pay your respects to him."
"You're right," Xu Yu said.
Qin Rusu smiled at her and stepped back out of the room.
She pressed her lips together, took the small silver hairpin from her box, tucked it into her sleeve, and hurried out the door.
Qizhang was in the main hall. Seeing her come, he walked over to greet her: "Xu Yu, you're back."
"Yes, I only arrived around noon. I heard my lord has returned, so I was just on my way to report to him."
"My lord—"
"Qizhang, let her in." A voice from the study cut them off.
"Yes." Qizhang acknowledged, then said to Xu Yu, "My lord is calling for you. Go in and give your report."
The moment Xu Yu heard that gentle voice, her heart involuntarily rose. She nodded lightly, carefully stepped into the study, and bowed softly: "Paying respects to my lord."
"Come and sit." Nie Huiming was reading bamboo slips and did not look up.
Xu Yu quietly approached, but still knelt and sat diagonally across from him. After waiting a while without him speaking, she picked up the half-ground ink stick on the desk and gently began grinding it in the inkstone.
After a moment, Nie Huiming seemed to finish reading. He set down the slip softly and looked at her: "You're back?"
"Mm." She kept her eyes lowered, not knowing why he would say something so pointless, and still undecided about how to broach the matter of changing maidservants.
"What have you been doing these past two days?"
"Nothing much. My sister and brother-in-law are ordinary folk—it was just cooking, eating, and chatting, that's all."
"Not happy about going back for a visit?"
Xu Yu shook her head in confusion: "No."
Nie Huiming looked at her with a smile: "Then why do you look so burdened?"
Seeing his smile, Xu Yu's heart skipped another beat. She prostrated herself on the ground: "This servant only just learned that Liu Shanyue and Xiang Yuxue were sent away by my lord."
He lowered his eyes, gazing at the top of her head, at her dry, yellowed strands of hair, and continued: "You didn't want them to leave?"
"It's not that. It's just that that day, my lord told this servant to think of a way to handle things, and now that I've returned, the two of them have been sent away. This servant doesn't understand…" Xu Yu pressed her lips together and asked in a small voice, "My lord, were you toying with this servant?"
"You're just a little girl—how could you contend with them? I wanted you to work for me, not to get yourself killed. Get up." Nie Huiming withdrew his gaze.
"This servant still has one question." Xu Yu slowly rose to her feet, lifting her eyes to look at him as she asked cautiously and tentatively, "Then why doesn't my lord send Qin Rusu away as well? She too seems to have been sent by someone to deliberately get close to you."
"Do you wish for me to send her away?"
"I… This servant did not mean that…"
Nie Huiming watched her with a smile: "Then what would you have me do?"
"I…" Beneath his warm smile, her heart suddenly skipped a beat. She quickly lowered her eyes, not knowing how to answer.