After staying at Yuan Cheng’s place for half a month, when Mo Zi was able to get out of bed and walk around, she had Xiao Yi take her back to the bamboo grove at Mozhi Residence, where Bai He and Lu Ju took turns caring for her. To the other maids, they only said she had carelessly fallen and injured her back while working and needed to rest quietly for some time.

Mo Zi kept a low profile at Mozhi Residence. Among the newly arrived maids, aside from Hong Mei, no one was particularly close to her, so naturally no one made a fuss about coming to see her. Hong Mei did come to check on her once, and seeing her pale-faced and bedridden, she didn’t suspect anything was amiss.

On this day, Lu Ju brought Mo Zi her meal. While watching her eat, she sat to the side with a bamboo embroidery frame, chatting with her as she worked—doing three things at once.

“You don’t know this, but ever since Miss had you demoted to watching the bamboo grove here, Mo Yan, Mo Yu, and Mo Xin have all been competing for the position of Fifth Maid, secretly vying with each other. I think you’re actually more comfortable living here than inside, and you don’t want to return to Miss’s side, right?”

Mo Zi had things on her mind. Her mouth was busy eating, her ears listening, also doing three things at once, but she wasn’t as chatty as Lu Ju—she just smiled.

“No matter how slow I am, after these past days I understand—Miss deliberately moved you out so you could run errands outside. But running errands is one thing, coming back injured is another matter entirely. If you ask me, you should still stay safely by Miss’s side. A young woman constantly dealing with those men outside—if word gets out, what decent man would dare marry you? Mo Zi, why don’t we pull Bai He in and talk to Miss together?” Lu Ju was embroidering an autumn scene of red leaves dancing on water, planning to use it as trim for Qiu Sanniang’s autumn skirt.

“Lu Ju, I think you’re the one feeling spring fever in the summer heat, your thoughts wandering, right?” With Lu Ju’s idle chatter, Mo Zi’s heart grew calm. The emerald green outside the window, eating a meal, sitting together chatting with someone close—this was real, something she needed to cherish herself. So she stopped thinking about those old, trivial matters and focused on two things at once.

Lu Ju spat in mock disgust. Having joked like this many times, she didn’t even blush anymore. “Forget it. In a whole courtyard of maids, who would I set my sights on?”

“That doesn’t matter—don’t you have me? Tell me what kind you like, and when I’m out and about, I’ll keep an eye out for you.” Mo Zi laughed heartily, the clouds in her heart parting to reveal clear sky. “Oh right, you said you wanted to be a proprietress. What about Cen Er? The young fellow is now head steward, and he’s fairly good-looking too.”

Lu Ju had seen Cen Er. She wrinkled her nose and said, “He’s too monkey-clever. I don’t want him.”

When Mo Zi heard this, well! She even had her own opinions. She laughed and said, “Lu Ju, you’re something else—even Cen Er doesn’t catch your eye.” This must be what Qiu Sanniang had influenced—or perhaps she herself? Looking at people based on feeling? In Great Zhou, where blind arranged marriages were everywhere, was Lu Ju’s evolution a bad thing?

“Cen Er is monkey-clever—perfect match for you, Miss Forgetful.” Bai He came in carrying a basket with a smile. “I told you three times not to forget the pastries in the steamer, and you still forgot them completely.”

This time Lu Ju’s face turned red. “Didn’t Miss ask us to think of a birthday gift for the Old Princess? I’ve been preoccupied with that lately, so I keep forgetting things.”

Mo Zi remembered—last time the Old Princess Consort had said her birthday was in the seventh month. She asked, “When in the seventh month?”

“The seventh day of the seventh month, the Qiqiao Festival. Is that a good day?” Bai He took out a plate of pastries from the basket, along with a bowl of crystal-clear green bean ice.

Mo Zi’s eyes lit up. She didn’t care whether the day was good or not—in any case, she didn’t need to worry about it. “Where did the ice come from?”

“It got hot early this year. A couple days ago, Miss had Steward Tian bring it in—three whole cartloads. Every household got plenty. The Old Princess and the Princess Consort were delighted, praising Miss for being so thoughtful. And so Steward Tian made an appearance before the masters and was given permission to visit regularly. From now on, even though Miss can’t easily go out, she can have people called in.” Bai He handed the green bean ice to Mo Zi first. “I know you like it, so I made it specially. Your body hasn’t recovered yet, so eat slowly.”

But Mo Zi didn’t eat slowly. “Bai He, if you gave out the recipe for green bean ice, every household would be thrilled.”

But Bai He said, “Miss hasn’t instructed me to, so I won’t. If they want to eat it, they can come here.”

Lu Ju casually grabbed a pastry and ate it with relish. “Mo Zi, you don’t know, do you? These past few days, so many people have been coming to our Mozhi Residence. Several young ladies have been circling around our Miss, and when mealtime comes, nobody leaves. And there’s Lu Bi from Second Master’s household—she specially came to follow Bai He in the kitchen for several days, learning four dishes and a soup before leaving. Today, Lu Bi specially brought a gift to thank her, saying that Second Master’s appetite has improved these past days, all thanks to Bai He’s teaching.”

“Bai He, next time someone comes to learn, charge them tuition—one tael of silver per day. Your skills are precious.” Mo Zi didn’t make money herself, but loved giving others business advice.

“As if I wanted to teach her. Lu Bi heard the young master say I could cook, so she begged him to ask Miss, and Miss agreed, so I took her on for a few days. Using the seasonings and herbs you and I developed together, what wouldn’t taste good? Today she even took a jar of my meat sauce, saying she’d use it for dinner. She hinted at wanting those seasoning recipes, but I pretended not to understand—remembering what you said about not giving them to people casually.” The reason Wangqiu Pavilion’s dishes were so popular was also due to recipes Bai He and Mo Zi had developed together—trade secrets that shouldn’t be shared no matter how kind-hearted one was.

“But that Lu Bi is truly gentle and virtuous, just like a proper wife from a good family—nothing like a maid at all. She personally came to learn cooking for Second Master’s sake. Who else could do that? No wonder everyone says Second Master treasures her most. If Sixth Miss Wei could be this considerate, Second Master might have been moved. Facing such a beautiful person, who could truly remain hardhearted?” Lu Ju chattered on.

Mo Zi smiled. “How do you know Second Master hasn’t been moved?”

“If he were moved, would Lu Bi need to come learn appetizing dishes? Sixth Miss Wei alone would be enough to give Second Master a good appetite.” Lu Ju said it as if it were obvious.

Bai He reached over to pinch Lu Ju. “You shameless girl talking nonsense—I’ll tear your mouth off, so Hong Mei won’t hear and use you to establish rules. The masters’ affairs—except for our Miss—aren’t any of our concern.”

Lu Ju squealed and ran around the table, saying no, there’s also the young master.

Mo Zi collapsed on the table laughing.

So simple. So good.

Taking advantage of the deep night silence, Mo Zi went to the bamboo grove to walk, conducting recovery training. Since returning to the Prince’s Mansion, she had been doing this daily. She could ignore the past, but the past might not be willing to let her go. While seeking powerful external support, she needed to strengthen herself.

The wound had already healed, but her body tired easily. Walking to the far end of the grove, she leaned against several bamboo stalks to catch her breath.

Suddenly she heard voices.

Xiao Er loved bamboo, so this bamboo grove extended from Mozhi Residence through several courtyards in varying depths, including Xiao Er’s library pavilion. The shallow bamboo where Mo Zi stood led directly to the arched gate of the library pavilion. Therefore, hearing two people standing outside the bamboo grove, she initially thought Xiao Er had stayed up all night reading again, exhausting his servants who had run out to slack off. Listening more carefully, it wasn’t quite like that—two women’s voices.

One said harshly, “Be careful not to mess this up, or your parents’ lives are in danger.”

The other was clearly frightened, saying, “There’s always that dowry maid by her side. Everything she eats and drinks goes through that maid’s hands. I’m afraid if I do this, that maid will notice something.”

The harsh one spat. “What could she notice? As long as your hand is steady, there’ll be no problem. I’ve seen that maid—stupid and clumsy. She just takes it and gives it directly to her, doesn’t even taste it first.”

The other still hesitated—clearly not accustomed to doing bad things. “Actually, I think she doesn’t pay much attention to Third Master. Why are you all so nervous? Following her these past days, I think she’s the type who won’t cause trouble if you don’t provoke her.”

“Nonsense! Do you think my mistress hasn’t provoked her? Even if my mistress does nothing to her, she’s already borne Third Master a pair of children and won his favor—that itself is provocation. You’re too stupid—use your brain less and just follow orders. It’s precisely because she seems unconcerned on the surface, making her hard to read, that my mistress decided to strike first.”

The other couldn’t speak freely. “What if… what if she discovers it? What will I do?”

“I told you you’re stupid, and you truly are beyond saving. Didn’t I say this medicine won’t take her life, just make her ill for a while? Isn’t she supposed to be so capable? Always running here and there, busy with this and that, with outside stewards to meet—if she collapses from exhaustion, who would suspect you? By the way, that maid called Mo Zi fell and injured her back—did you investigate? Is it real or fake?” the harsh-voiced one said.

They were actually asking about her? Mo Zi thought to herself: If you provoke me, don’t blame me for provoking you back.

“She’s in the grove. I can’t go out every day. When I had my rotation off, I went to look and saw Bai He and Lu Ju carrying meal boxes in and out. I also saw her come out to walk around, needing Lu Ju’s support. Everyone in the kitchen has smelled the medicinal scent. It should be real.” But the other couldn’t provide any useful information.

“Can’t expect much else from you. Just remember—get this done before the Old Princess’s birthday, or we mean what we say.” The harsh one finished speaking and left.

Mo Zi quietly peeked her head out. Through the swaying bamboo leaves stirred by the wind, she saw a slightly plump figure walking away with a swaying gait—a woman of some years.

The other figure was somewhat hunched and trembling. The harsh one called her stupid, but she wasn’t that dumb—at least she knew to enter the bamboo grove to avoid prying ears.

That woman walked ahead, and Mo Zi followed behind. Only after personally seeing her enter the gate of Mozhi Residence did she slowly walk back to her own small room.

The moon rose. She lay on the bed, and even with closed eyes, could still see the silhouettes of bamboo leaves cast on the paper window screen. The rustling of bamboo in the wind continued ceaselessly in her ears.

Naturally, her thoughts turned again to the tyranny of bamboo. The cultivated bamboo, praised as the gentleman among plants, actually possessed a terrible monopolistic desire. Where its roots took hold, not a blade of grass could grow. They could clearly coexist—why did it insist on killing all other plants?

Qiu Sanniang detested polygamy, yet with her proud nature, she endured it. As long as the other party behaved properly and her husband favored her, she could turn a blind eye. Having achieved this level of tolerance, why did the other party still provoke trouble?

That golden canary had ambition but lost patience. Perhaps because Xiao San had married a third proper wife without it being her turn yet, she grew anxious. However, in wars between women over men, whoever cared more would lose more.

The golden canary had won two rounds—would she achieve a third consecutive victory?

Mo Zi gradually drifted into dreams.