All the way back to the capital, Hua Zhi kept thinking about the marriages of her senior maids. In an environment like this, she could not say she treated them as sisters—yet in her heart, these women who had accompanied her with unwavering loyalty through countless storms and trials over the years held a bond deeper than that of sisters bound only by blood. Now that she herself had found happiness, she could not forget about them.

With her current standing, she could marry them off as proper mistresses of their own households without anyone daring to bully them—but she knew they would not agree to that, just as she knew they had placed their indenture papers back into that box.

Perhaps that was for the best. Keeping them under her own watch meant she could see clearly whether things went well or ill, and that at least gave her peace of mind.

Before she had even settled on candidates, Chen Qing—who had learned the news from his master before anyone else—came to request an audience.

Chen Qing had already been within Hua Zhi’s considerations, but the person he wished to court was something of a surprise to her. “Fu Dong?”

“Yes.” Chen Qing steeled himself and said with a shameless air, “This subordinate has feelings for Miss Fu Dong, and humbly requests the Princess Consort’s blessing.”

“I don’t question your taste—I know my own maids better than anyone, and girls from other households may not necessarily match them—but I still want to ask you something.” Hua Zhi’s brow furrowed slightly. “Although her appearance is striking, she is timid; she doesn’t even dare to look people in the eye. I trust you wouldn’t be taken with her merely for her looks. So what is it that you like about her? Surely it can’t be that you fell for her cooking.”

“At first, it really was that.” Chen Qing laughed. “Having followed my master for so many years, I’ve eaten no shortage of rare delicacies, and anyone who has dedicated themselves to that craft has a few signature dishes—yet for some reason, I always felt that no one’s cooking tasted as good as Miss Fu Dong’s. There’s something different about what she makes, though I couldn’t say exactly what. After that I found myself paying more attention to her without meaning to. You may not have noticed, but among all the maids by your side, her change has been the smallest. In times of danger she stood by you and pushed herself forward to shoulder the burden, yet once the Hua Family found stability she stepped back again. If I may say something impertinent—the way she looks when she is in the kitchen is the same as the way you look in your library. I’ve seen her there, completely in her element, nothing at all like the timid, bashful girl she is outside of it. It was probably around that time that I came to admire her. I have seen too many people whose desires are never satisfied; someone as simple and easy to understand as Fu Dong is all the more appealing to me.”

The heart is inherently partial, and though Hua Zhi had always tried to be evenhanded toward all her maids, she did in truth have a slight fondness for Fu Dong above the rest, and had given her marriage more thought than any of the others. She had always worried that the timid girl would be mistreated if she married out. Just as Chen Qing had said, even Nian Qiu had grown somewhat more assertive over the years, yet Fu Dong had never changed in the slightest—she was still the same girl whose eyes would light up the moment she stepped into a kitchen, and if not absolutely necessary, she could bury herself in there all day without setting foot outside.

But Chen Qing paired with Fu Dong?

Hua Zhi did not give her answer on the spot. After dismissing him, she turned to her husband, who had been watching from the sidelines. “You knew already?”

“I had some inkling.” Gu Yanxi moved to sit beside her, took her hand, and began to knead it with practiced ease. “Fu Dong probably knows too.”

“You mean the two of them have feelings for each other?” Hua Zhi was genuinely surprised; she had not detected any sign that Fu Dong was carrying someone in her heart.

“Before, Chen Qing could get food from Fu Dong. Later he stopped being able to. My guess is she figured it out and stopped giving it to him.”

“…” So that was another way to look at it. Hua Zhi felt somewhat amused and exasperated at once—why was it that whenever Fu Dong came up, food was always involved?

“Chen Qing has followed me for many years. I know him inside and out. Fu Dong won’t suffer with him.” Gu Yanxi lowered his eyes, his voice gentle and mild; he looked almost docile. “His bond with me is different from others—I have never treated him poorly, and the savings he has accumulated over the years should be quite substantial. Since you worry so much about Fu Dong, wouldn’t it be ideal to have them live right under our eyes?”

Hua Zhi tilted her head and looked at her husband, then reached out and touched his face. “And the other three?”

Gu Yanxi nuzzled her palm, like a well-behaved cat. “Now that Daqing no longer faces any great crisis, I cannot keep all those men in my service. When the time is right, I will give them their freedom. Over the years they have earned no small amount of merit, and I will not shortchange them either. At that point, whether they choose to go into business on their own or manage affairs on our behalf—both are fine. In any case they will no longer be servants. Shall we choose from among them?”

“Agreed.” Hua Zhi answered readily. “I was already thinking of choosing from within the household—one way or another, one’s own people are more trustworthy, and if they ever bully those girls, it’ll be all the easier for me to deal with.”

Gu Yanxi could not help but smile. Her protectiveness really was something…

With a direction in mind, things became easier to arrange. All the way home, she turned it over in her mind, and by the time they returned to the capital the candidates were more or less settled. After the necessary social calls had been made, Hua Zhi summoned her maids. They all knew what it was about, and every one of them felt her heart beating like a drum.

“We have been mistress and servants for many years, sharing both wealth and hardship together. In my heart, apart from the fact that you do not carry the Hua name, you are no different from family. Now that we have finally found peace, I will take it upon myself to find you each a good match.”

Looking at the maids before her, Hua Zhi said warmly, “After I let word out, many came to make requests. I have chosen from among them those I consider suitable. If any of you find the match not to your liking, you may say so, and I will look further on your behalf.”

The maids exchanged glances. Ying Chun spoke for all of them, voicing what was in their hearts. “We will follow whatever arrangements the young mistress makes.”

It was precisely because she knew they would defer to her that Hua Zhi had taken such pains over this. “Ying Chun—you are steady and composed, with the ability to manage a household. Your one shortcoming is that your steadiness can make you seem overly cautious. The match I have arranged for you is Qu Qi, one of the Prince’s men. He is a man of few words, patient by nature—someone who can live a peaceful and stable life.”

Ying Chun had met Qu Qi before and had no objection whatsoever to this choice. She knelt and kowtowed in acceptance.

“Bao Xia—you are cheerful and lively, and the impulsiveness you once had has been worn away over these past years. Of all the suitors, the one I favor most for you is Yu Tao. You have had contact with him before, and I expect you do not dislike him.”

Bao Xia’s face turned red. Her mind went to that moment in Xiangyang when Yu Tao had taken her hand to help her off the boat—her heart had pounded then, and she had not disliked him at all. In fact, she had thought of him from time to time, and whenever she happened to see him these past two years she could not help but look a moment longer.

“Nian Qiu—you are the most meticulous among them, with a remarkable sensitivity for numbers. Had you been born a man, I would have recommended you for the Ministry of Finance without hesitation; your talent would have been put to good use. But you are a woman, and I imagine you have no desire to walk a path so full of thorns.”

“No, my lady. I only wish to be Young Mistress’s keeper of the keys.”

Hua Zhi smiled. “The man I have chosen for you is Chen Liang. I hope the two of you, combining your strengths, will manage my treasury well.”

Nian Qiu blushed and bowed her head in acceptance.

“Fu Dong.”

The timid maid raised her head, her expression flustered. She wanted to ask whether she could perhaps not marry—but in the end she only bit her lip and waited for her young mistress to decide for her.

“The match I have settled on for you is Chen Qing.”

Fu Dong stilled for a moment. What no one knew was that Chen Qing was the only person who had ever entered the space where she felt safe.

“Chen Qing was the first to come forward and ask for your hand. The reason I gave my consent was because of one thing he said.” Hua Zhi turned the string of beads at her wrist. “He said he loved seeing you happy in the kitchen. In other words, what he loves is the most genuine version of you—you don’t need to change or please anyone. Just stay as you are. So don’t be afraid. As long as you wish it, your life from now on will not be so very different from what it is today.”

Fu Dong silently kowtowed to her young mistress.

It was done. Hua Zhi exhaled with relief. She turned to the last person. “Liu Xiang—although you have not been with me as long as the others, your loyalty has been plain to see, and I keep that bond close to my heart. Zuo Fei has asked for your hand with great sincerity, and I have given my approval.”

Liu Xiang’s eyes reddened. She knelt and kowtowed.

Gesturing to one of the junior maids to bring over a small brazier, Hua Zhi opened the box and withdrew a stack of papers, slightly yellowed with age. “These are your indenture papers and the papers of their five men. From this day forward, you are all free. Your children and descendants will no longer carry the status of servants.”

As they watched the small flames rise and catch the paper, every one of them felt a sense of unreality. Did this mean they would no longer have to call themselves servants? That if their future children were capable, they could one day serve in government? That they were no longer among the lowly in society—only that henceforth their security would come not from their young mistress, but from another man?

At that thought, unease stirred in each of their hearts. No one would ever make them feel as safe as their young mistress.

“Young Mistress… do we have to leave you?”

“The Prince’s Manor is enormous. Surely it can’t be too small for the likes of you.”

So they could continue living in the manor after all. The maids settled down at once. The shy blush of impending marriage arrived belatedly, creeping up each of their faces. They looked at one another—embarrassed, and yet quietly, secretly, a little happy.

After discussion, all five chose to be wed on the same day. Hua Zhi prepared five identical, lavish dowry sets and sent them all off in a warm and festive celebration. Before she and her husband could even exchange a word or two about how strange it felt not having them around, all five came back to her side with their hair done up in the style of married women. They returned to their familiar places doing familiar things, looking just as they always had throughout all those years.