The next day, Zhao Baozhu went to the front courtyard as instructed.
There were layers upon layers of courtyards; he had to pass through several gates to reach the very front. Fortunately, he had followed Fang Li once before and remembered the way. Before the final gate stood a huge parasol tree, beneath which stood two maids in light yellow dresses. Zhao Baozhu was about to step forward to ask where Fang Qin was when they turned and smiled at him: “You must be Baozhu.”
Zhao Baozhu was startled, cupping his hands: “That is indeed me.”
The two maids looked at his scholarly manner, exchanged a smile, and covered their faces with handkerchiefs, their beautiful eyes examining him up and down: “Truly handsome.”
Having been praised repeatedly these past few days, Zhao Baozhu felt his skin had grown thicker. He bowed and said: “You flatter me. You ladies are the truly beautiful ones, like people from an immortal realm from afar.”
Ordinarily, such words from a man might seem frivolous. But Zhao Baozhu was young, good-looking, and carried himself naturally, so it didn’t seem offensive. The two maids were delighted, their eyes sparkling as they smiled: “No wonder the young master likes you and transferred you to the front courtyard.”
Zhao Baozhu froze. The young master liked him? Yesterday, that young master had spoken only a few calm words, nothing revealing like or dislike. He paused, lowered his head, and smiled shyly: “I didn’t know that.”
The maids were about to continue when a voice interrupted: “Didn’t know what?”
They looked up to see Fang Qin standing not far away, looking at them indifferently.
The two maids immediately paled and lowered their heads, not daring to speak. Zhao Baozhu didn’t notice their reaction. Seeing Fang Qin, his eyes lit up, and he called: “Qin Gege.”
Fang Qin had been glaring at the maids. Hearing this form of address, he frowned slightly and turned. Zhao Baozhu stepped forward and explained: “I didn’t know Fang Li Gege had a brother, so I called him Fang Gege. Since you share the same surname, I’ll call you Qin Gege.” He paused, seeing no change in Fang Qin’s expression, and smiled: “If there’s another way to address you, you can tell me.”
Fang Qin lowered his eyes and looked at him coldly, neither approving nor rejecting. He turned and said lightly: “Follow me.”
Seeing no objection, Zhao Baozhu assumed he didn’t mind. This Fang Gege seemed harder to deal with than the straightforward one. Seeing Fang Qin in a poor mood, Zhao Baozhu kept quiet and followed.
After walking for a while, Fang Qin suddenly said: “What those maids said just now was teasing. Don’t take it seriously.” He glanced at Zhao Baozhu. “You were brought to the front courtyard because Steward Li is reorganizing the back courtyard. You’re of no use there.”
Zhao Baozhu froze, then nodded: “I understand. As long as there’s a place that needs me, anywhere is fine.”
Hearing this, Fang Qin’s expression softened slightly. Regardless of what Baozhu was thinking, at least he appeared obedient on the surface.
After Fang Qin turned away, Zhao Baozhu lowered his eyes, pressing his lips together. For some reason, a fleeting trace of disappointment crossed his heart, but it passed quickly. After all, he had barely spoken with that young master.
He looked up again and asked brightly: “Qin Gege, what will I be doing in the front courtyard?”
Fang Qin paused, glancing at Zhao Baozhu again. Seeing Zhao Baozhu staring at him with wide eyes, his brow twitched almost imperceptibly.
Fine, even if he likes acting cute and sweet-talking people, just keep him in this yard so he can’t see anyone.
In the end, he exhaled and said calmly: “In the future, you’ll be responsible for cleaning the courtyard.”
He led Zhao Baozhu through the corridors, passing beneath the eaves and through a courtyard gate. Looking up, Zhao Baozhu saw three characters written on the plaque: “Ruilai Courtyard.”
Inside were several side rooms, a single osmanthus tree in the center, and a few delicate ornamental displays set beside an arched doorway. The place clearly had not been maintained for quite some time. Everything was coated in a dull layer of dust. The small pond had long dried up, and although fresh buds had sprouted on the osmanthus tree, the fallen leaves on the ground still had not been swept away.
Zhao Baozhu looked around the courtyard once before thinking that, with scenery this lovely, it was probably one of the inn’s premium guest courtyards and ought to be cleaned up for visitors to stay in. He could not stand seeing such a beautiful garden left neglected. Looking at the fallen leaves scattered across the ground, his hands already began itching to tidy the place up. Turning toward Fang Qin, he said firmly: “I’ll definitely get this courtyard cleaned properly.”
Fang Qin nodded, gave Zhao Baozhu a few instructions about where the various tools and utensils were kept, then turned and left.
Over the following days, Zhao Baozhu worked cleaning the courtyard. The task was far easier than the work in the rear courtyard. On the first day, he swept away all the fallen leaves from the ground. On the second day, he cleaned out the rooms. On the third day, Zhao Baozhu picked up every stone from the dried pond and carefully scrubbed them clean before refilling it with fresh running water.
After all the repairs and tidying, the courtyard became much cleaner and more orderly. From then on, Zhao Baozhu’s daily tasks consisted only of sweeping the grounds and wiping down various furnishings. Since no one disturbed him and no one came looking for trouble, his days passed in remarkable peace.
After visiting the courtyard during the first two days, Fang Qin never came again. Once Zhao Baozhu finished his chores each day, he would squat beneath the osmanthus tree and review his studies. Every meal even came with meat. After living like this for a period of time, he felt his learning had improved considerably, and he had even put on weight, his waistband was beginning to feel tight.
The days passed one after another in this leisurely fashion. Zhao Baozhu also learned from Fang Qin that servants in the courtyard were allowed one day out each month. He planned to go out at month’s end and ask around at the government office whether anyone had found his registration papers. These days, scholars were respected throughout the realm; if someone picked up a provincial graduate’s registration card and returned it to the authorities, there was even reward money to be earned.
With a plan settled in his heart, Zhao Baozhu no longer felt as panicked as he had when he first arrived. Instead, he counted the days on his fingers, waiting eagerly for the month’s end outing.
One day, Zhao Baozhu was reading beneath the large osmanthus tree.
Spring had deepened, and the sun was gradually becoming harsher. The north was unlike the little mountain valleys of Yizhou, where over half the year was cloudy. Barely a few days had passed since the new year when the heavy winter clouds dispersed, revealing a blazing sun.
The glare shone harshly onto the pages in Zhao Baozhu’s hands, washing his vision white. His eyes felt dry, and he reached up to rub the corners of them before glancing back at the osmanthus tree behind him. The tree looked newly planted. Unlike the luxuriant parasol tree in the rear courtyard, its branches and leaves were too sparse to block the sunlight.
“Useless.” Zhao Baozhu’s eyes hurt from reading, so he turned around and smacked the tree trunk, then felt sorry for it and rubbed it, muttering, “I water you so much every day, can’t you grow a bit faster? My eyes are about to go blind!”
He was talking to the tree by himself when he suddenly heard two bursts of laughter from somewhere.
“Look, he’s talking to the tree.”
“Pretty brother is so silly, how could the tree understand what he’s saying?”
Two crisp child voices teased Zhao Baozhu, then burst into giggles. Zhao Baozhu froze, looked up, and didn’t see anyone, only two little black buns bobbing at the courtyard entrance. Seeing him look over, the buns moved, and the crisp voices came again: “Oh no, he heard us.”
“What’s there to be afraid of, he must be second brother’s servant.”
Zhao Baozhu saw the buns bobbing along with the children’s muttering and found it very cute. He raised his brows and called out, “Who’s there?”
Hearing his voice, the two voices paused, and the buns withdrew. After a moment, two young girls in fine clothes stepped out from behind the arched doorway. They were dressed alike and looked exactly the same. One on the left and one on the right glared at Zhao Baozhu: “Who are you?”
Zhao Baozhu smiled, stood up from under the tree, and cupped his hands toward them: “Greetings, young ladies.” Then he said, “My name is Zhao Baozhu. I’m responsible for cleaning this courtyard.”
Hearing this, the girl on the right turned her head and pouted: “As expected, second brother’s servant.”
The girl on the left glared at her and whispered, “How can you say that right in front of him!”
Zhao Baozhu found the two of them amusing as they went back and forth, his eyes curving into smiles. He thought that girls from big households were indeed different, girls their age in his village still walked unsteadily, yet these two were already so lively and clever.
The girl on the left turned her head, her almond eyes looking at him: “Do you know who we are?”
Zhao Baozhu smiled, bowed again, and said, “I don’t. But judging from your attire, I suppose you two are related to the young master.”
Hearing him behave respectfully and treat them like adults, both girls were delighted, smiles appearing on their faces. The one on the right said first: “I’m Ye Miao.” Then she pointed to the girl beside her: “She’s Ye Ning. We’re both second brother’s younger sisters.”
Zhao Baozhu was amused by the phrase “second brother’s younger sisters,” curved his lips, and then saw the two children run toward him, each extending a hand from either side.
Zhao Baozhu froze, looking at their fair little palms, were they asking him to hold them?
Seeing he didn’t move, Ye Ning on the left blinked and said crisply, “Hurry up!”
“Ah, alright, alright.” Urged, Zhao Baozhu quickly took one in each hand and led them into the courtyard. “I’ll show you two young ladies around, alright?”
“Alright,” the two girls answered in unison.
Zhao Baozhu led them around the courtyard, stopping at each scenic spot. The two girls found it interesting and, like little adults, nodded and commented on everything. Zhao Baozhu found it amusing and thought the two young ladies must be exploring this vast inn. Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be many guests now; otherwise, if they were bumped into, it wouldn’t be good.
After wandering for a while, the two unanimously decided the small pond in the corner was the most interesting. Ye Miao squatted by the pond, reaching out to touch a turtle in the water, while Ye Ning, tired from walking, was now lying on Zhao Baozhu’s back to rest.
“Oh my little ancestors,” Zhao Baozhu said, holding the one on his back so she wouldn’t fall, while using his other hand to grab Ye Miao’s sleeve that was about to dip into the water. “Careful of your sleeve, ”
At that moment, a cool voice came from behind them: “Ye Miao, Ye Ning.”
Ye Ning, on Zhao Baozhu’s back, immediately stiffened and whispered, “Oh no, it’s second brother.” She quickly jumped down, and Ye Miao, who hadn’t yet touched the turtle, withdrew her hand and sprang up. The two stood together and said in unison: “Second brother.”
At the courtyard entrance, Ye Jinghua stood outside the archway, his expression indifferent. Seeing the two girls standing side by side, he said calmly: “It’s almost time for lunch, and you’re still playing here.”
Ye Ning and Ye Miao giggled and ran over to him, leaning against him on either side, looking up and saying, “We knew second brother would find us.”
In the past, when they played hide-and-seek in the residence, none of the maids, nannies, concubines, elder brothers or sisters, nor even their parents could find them. Only this second brother, like a reclusive immortal, could always find them instantly. Often, before they even noticed, when they turned around, Ye Jinghua was already standing there. This made the two secretly feel that their refined and otherworldly second brother must be some kind of spirit or immortal in disguise, certainly not an ordinary person.
At the same time, although Ye Jinghua was distant in temperament, he treated all the children in the household kindly, never lost his temper, and was the most handsome in the entire residence, so the children all loved to cling to him.
Ye Jinghua lowered his head and lightly touched Ye Miao’s forehead. “Go back and wash your hands first, then eat.”
“Yes,” the two answered together.
Ye Jinghua nodded and turned to leave with them. However, Ye Miao and Ye Ning turned back and waved at Zhao Baozhu: “Baozhu, we’ll come play with you next time.”
The girls’ clear voices entered Ye Jinghua’s ears. He paused slightly and turned his head.
Zhao Baozhu stood under the pear blossom tree. Seeing the handsome, otherworldly young master looking at him, his brows moved slightly, and he said: “It’s you.”
After many days, Zhao Baozhu saw this young master again. He was still wearing a moon-white robe embroidered with gold thread, his star-like eyes looking straight at him. Zhao Baozhu didn’t even have time to blush and quickly bowed deeply with cupped hands: “Greetings, young master.”
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