On the way back, Lian Qiao held back and held back, but finally couldn’t help asking: “Miss, why did you give those plum blossoms away? They cost silver after all. If you were going to give them away, you should have at least kept one branch for your room. Giving them all to a stranger like that… what’s the reasoning?”
“Lian Qiao, when have you ever seen me like plum blossoms?” Jiang Ruan said.
“Well… Miss indeed doesn’t particularly like them.” Lian Qiao shook her head. Back when Madam was alive, their miss still quite liked flowers and plants, but since Madam’s death, their miss’s daily life had become extremely difficult, leaving no mood for such romantic pursuits.
“If I don’t like them, what use is keeping them,” Jiang Ruan said lightly. “Better to do someone a favor and give them away.”
“But this favor also cost silver!” Lian Qiao said urgently, her words becoming more direct: “That old man has no relation to us whatsoever—what benefit is there in giving them to him?”
Jiang Ruan walked forward unhurriedly while saying: “There will naturally be benefits. Everything in this world requires paying a price. Today I gave him a few branches of red plums—the price he’ll have to pay in the future will certainly be much higher than red plums. It’s just not visible yet.”
These words were confusing and unclear. Lian Qiao didn’t understand, and Bai Zhi followed silently behind, both extremely puzzled. Bai Zhi spoke up: “Miss, do you mean we’ll see that old gentleman again in the future? But today those red plums were bought on impulse. If Miss had already made plans, how could you have predicted that old man would appear and get into a dispute with someone?”
“I’m not an immortal—how could I have divine foresight,” Jiang Ruan said lightly. Her tone was extremely light, yet Bai Zhi and Lian Qiao felt the voice contained some inexplicable coldness that gave them goosebumps.
When they finally returned safely to the estate, from far away they could see a maid in a brand-new green padded jacket walking toward them. Her lips were painted with bright red rouge. Upon seeing the three of them, she immediately began shouting dramatically: “Oh my miss! In this freezing cold weather, still sick and you went out? Where did you go? This servant searched the entire estate and couldn’t find anyone!”
“Chunying,” Lian Qiao put her hands on her hips and immediately retorted: “What are you shouting about in broad daylight? Don’t tell me Miss needs to inform you wherever she goes?”
“I was just worried about Miss. Miss’s illness just got better, and now it’s near New Year—what if something happens?” Chunying was no pushover either, her tone quite sarcastic.
Bai Zhi frowned: “You know Miss’s illness isn’t fully recovered yet—why are you being so loud, giving Miss a headache?”
Chunying pursed her lips and looked at Jiang Ruan: “Miss, this servant only meant well. Since Miss is still sick, it’s better not to wander around, and don’t give outsiders opportunities to gossip.”
Jiang Ruan looked at her quietly. Like Qiu Yan, Chunying was one of the head maids on the estate, with extremely high status. Qiu Yan was always busy with affairs outside the estate and rarely saw Jiang Ruan, but Chunying specifically managed affairs inside the estate. She had a close relationship with Nanny Zhang and usually fawned over her, frequently creating obstacles for Jiang Ruan. Apparently having received instructions from above, Chunying showed no respect toward Jiang Ruan, not taking her seriously at all. Her attitude toward Jiang Ruan wasn’t even as respectful as toward Nanny Zhang.
Jiang Ruan remembered this Chunying very clearly. In her previous life, when rumors about her seducing Chen Zhao spread so quickly, Chunying had fanned the flames considerably, speaking among the servants as if she had witnessed it herself. Precisely because of this, the rumors spread so fast that she was ruined so early.
Seeing Jiang Ruan remain silent for so long, Chunying looked at her somewhat surprised, meeting Jiang Ruan’s gaze fixed on her. That gaze was gentle and soft, yet inexplicably heart-stopping, as if examining something about to be destroyed—cold and pitying.
“Miss?” Chunying frowned.
“Who’s doing the gossiping?” Jiang Ruan looked at her and suddenly curved her lips in a light smile. She smiled extremely slowly, the corners of her eyes lifting coquettishly upward. As if she had become a different person, she immediately appeared vivacious and alluring. Though Chunying was just a woman, that seductive charm actually made her freeze for a moment, unable to speak.
“The one gossiping—it wouldn’t be you, would it?” Jiang Ruan’s second half sentence pulled Chunying’s thoughts back. She was startled and instinctively shook her head: “Of course not this servant.”
“Dogs are raised to bite outsiders, not to bite one’s own people. If a dog you’ve raised also barks and makes trouble when it sees its own people, do you know what the outcome is?” Jiang Ruan asked her.
Chunying shook her head.
“Naturally it gets cooked into a delicious dish,” Jiang Ruan said softly. She spoke the four words “delicious dish” very slowly. Chunying stared at her blankly, feeling that under the sunlight, Jiang Ruan’s pale skin actually appeared somewhat ghastly white, and her delicate beautiful face also had an indescribably sinister quality. She unconsciously stepped back two paces: “M-Miss, Nanny Lan is still waiting in the room.”
Both Bai Zhi and Lian Qiao’s expressions changed. A servant actually using the word “waiting”—there was truly no sense of hierarchy. Nanny Zhang’s behavior was too arrogant. Usually she would comply on the surface while opposing in private, appearing faultless on the surface while being extremely harsh to Jiang Ruan in private.
“Waiting for me?” Jiang Ruan lifted her head slightly: “Then let’s go. We mustn’t keep Nanny Lan waiting long.” She smoothed the cloth buttons on her dark green cotton jacket.
In the room, two people sat by the brazier. A twelve or thirteen-year-old girl nestled in a middle-aged woman’s arms, her tone rather cutting: “This room is really cold, and there’s a smell too. No wonder she usually smells so unpleasant.”
“Fang’er, don’t talk nonsense,” the woman scolded. “She’s still the master after all. Don’t go too far usually, or people will catch you.” Though it was a scolding, her tone was full of affection.
The girl sat up a bit straighter: “What kind of master is she? Look how shabby she is. The master has already washed his hands of her. I know what I’m doing. Mother, look at this gold hairpin on my head—isn’t it beautiful?” She tilted her head, revealing a gold hairpin with pearls and rice-grain decorations.
This girl had ordinary features and slightly dark skin. She wore a brand-new peach-red silk jacket embroidered with peonies, a pink-purple horse-face skirt below, and a rouge-colored vest over it. Around her waist was a long five-colored tassel, gold hairpins in her hair, eight-treasure tassel earrings, and a large gold collar around her neck. Though she was just the daughter of a servant on the estate, her entire outfit could rival that of daughters from wealthy families.
“The quality is excellent—Fang’er looks beautiful wearing it,” Nanny Zhang praised.
Chen Fang smiled proudly and was about to say something more when a gentle, soft voice came from outside: “Nanny Lan has been waiting in my room for so long—is there some urgent matter?”