The maid knelt properly and kowtowed to the elderly man sitting in the hall, paying her respects.
“Alright, alright,” Old Master Zhang said with a smile, raising his hand. “Get up and speak.”
The young maid beside them had reddened eyes.
“When did Miss arrive in the capital?” she asked hurriedly. “Why did she come to the capital? Did Master and the others drive her away?”
As she spoke, tears flowed like a spring.
Both the maid and Old Master Zhang laughed.
“Ban Qin, you really underestimate your mistress,” Old Master Zhang said with a laugh. “Who could possibly drive her away?”
“No, no,” the maid also laughed, glancing at the young girl who couldn’t stop crying. “We arrived a long time ago.”
“Then why didn’t you come find me?” the girl sobbed.
“Aren’t we here now?” the maid replied with a smile, supporting the girl’s arm. “Ban Qin, stop crying. Those who know you would understand that you’re just being sentimental, but those who don’t might think the Old Master bullied you.”
Old Master Zhang laughed heartily and shook his head at Su Xin.
“You don’t need to flatter me on her behalf,” he said.
The young girl finally came to her senses and hurriedly wiped her tears away.
“Old Master, I was improper,” she said, choking up as she bowed to him, then turned to thank the maid. “You’re so clever and articulate. I’m really foolish.”
The maid giggled.
“It’s alright, it’s alright,” she said with a grin. “The Old Master is too smart—compared to him, we’re all the same.”
Old Master Zhang laughed again.
“You little rascal, are you this glib in front of your mistress as well?” he asked.
“My mistress is just as clever. In front of her, I’m like a gourd with a sawed-off mouth,” the maid sighed dramatically.
This time, the young girl laughed along too.
“Alright, stop flattering both your old and new masters,” Old Master Zhang said with a smile, glancing at the maid. “Why are you here as well? When did you arrive?”
“We came before the New Year. We’re staying at Miss’s maternal grandmother’s house now,” the maid replied with a smile.
Old Master Zhang nodded.
“How is Miss doing?” the young girl asked eagerly.
“She’s doing very well,” the maid said with a smile.
“Did her maternal family bring her here?” the girl asked. “Are they treating her well?”
The maid smiled.
“Whether others treat her well or not, Miss can still live well,” she said lightly.
—Which meant they weren’t treating her well…
If they were, how could they have only cared about her dowry while neglecting her as a person?
Bringing her over didn’t mean much. Not starving her or leaving her in the cold was the bare minimum—people could keep cats and dogs, too, but a person was not a pet.
The young girl’s expression hardened.
But what could be done?
For a family to give birth to a mentally impaired child was a disgrace. Nine out of ten families would choose to drown the infant. If they didn’t, that child became a permanent stain, clinging to the bright, polished robes of both families, a mark that others could always point at and whisper about.
That kind of disgust had long seeped into their bones, so much so that they neither wanted nor were willing to put in any extra effort for their daughter.
“With no desires, one remains strong. With no demands, one finds peace,” Old Master Zhang said, looking at the young girl. “Your mistress is fine, don’t trouble yourself over it.”
The young girl quickly lowered her head and responded, “Yes.”
“Alright, I should be going now,” the maid straightened up and said. “Miss sent me to check if the Old Master had returned. I’ve already stayed longer than I should.”
The young girl hesitated, reluctant to part, wanting to ask something but ultimately not daring to voice it.
Old Master Zhang nodded with a smile. He neither urged the maid to stay nor asked any questions.
“Alright, go on then,” was all he said.
The maid bowed, got up, gave the young girl a final smile, and then quietly withdrew.
The young girl watched the maid’s figure disappear into the courtyard, reluctant to part.
“Don’t stare any longer—you’ll see her again soon,” Old Master Zhang said with a chuckle. “In just a day or two. You’d be better off thinking about what delicious dishes to prepare for your mistress. Let her see how much your cooking has improved without her and make her regret leaving you behind.”
The girl immediately brightened up, smiling.
“Old Master, no matter how much I improve, it’s all thanks to Miss’s teaching. In front of her, my skills are nothing,” she said.
“Alright, alright, I get it—I get it. Your mistress is the best, unmatched in the world, with no one who can compare,” Old Master Zhang said, waving his hand with a laugh.
The girl laughed as well, bowed, and withdrew.
At the Zhou residence, two rough-clothed maids struggled to carry two heavy buckets of freshly washed laundry.
“Let’s rest for a bit if you’re tired,” Ban Qin said, glancing back.
It was clear that the wooden pole carrying the buckets was tilted more toward her side.
The girl behind her huffed in frustration, crouched slightly, and let the buckets down onto the ground.
“Why did we take this route? It’s the long way around—you’re going to tire me to death,” she complained.
Ban Qin smiled apologetically and thanked her for the effort, but her gaze unintentionally drifted toward a courtyard by the roadside.
The gate was open, revealing a few maids gathered inside, chatting and laughing together.
Unless they had to go out, women were expected to sit quietly indoors. That rule hadn’t changed for her—but the people around her had.
“Ban Qin!”
A voice called from the distance. Startled, Ban Qin turned to look.
A graceful-looking maid was approaching slowly along the road. The passing maids and attendants all greeted her with smiles.
Ban Qin quickly lowered her head and lifted the wooden pole.
“Let’s go, hurry up,” she said. “If we’re late, Nanny Yang will scold us again.”
The other girl muttered in irritation but lifted her side of the pole.
Ban Qin picked up the pace, walking so quickly that her companion stumbled slightly.
“Hey, slow down! If you were in such a hurry, why did we take the long way?” the girl grumbled, mumbling complaints as she followed after her.
In the laundry courtyard, their arrival startled the group of older maids who had been chatting together. Instinctively, they moved to shield the wooden basins in front of them. But once they saw who it was, their expressions hardened.
“Where have you been slacking off? You took so long!” one woman scolded with a stern face.
Before Ban Qin could speak, the other maid immediately started rubbing her shoulder and complaining.
“It’s all her fault—nagging and dawdling. That’s why we took so long,” she grumbled.
Ban Qin kept her head down as she carried the buckets over to the washing pool.
“Enough, go rest now,” the woman snapped, casting an annoyed glance at the other girl.
Grinning, the girl quickly bowed and chirped, “Thank you!” before turning and dashing away.
The woman turned to look at Ban Qin, who was pouring the clothes into the washing pool.
“You, go inside and gather the dried clothes,” she ordered.
Ban Qin responded with a quiet “Yes,” then wiped her damp hands hastily on her clothes before heading into the house.
The woman turned back to the group of older maids, her expression heavy with concern.
“What do we do now?” she asked, lowering her gaze to the wooden basin in front of them.
Inside the basin were two skirts, now dyed in a messy mix of colors.
“These are Madam’s favorite skirts,” another woman said. “Someone will have to take the blame for this.”
At those words, the women’s expressions grew uneasy, and they all avoided each other’s eyes.
“Bao-girl finally managed to get close to Madam, and her mother just secured a new job in the kitchen. Plus, her younger sister is friendly with Steward Cao’s wife. If we don’t cover for her this time, it’d be easy enough for Bao-girl to take the blame, but we’ll surely be on this family’s bad side in the future,” one woman said.
“Then what do we do? We can’t take the blame ourselves, can we?” another woman replied. “Even if we wanted to push it onto someone else, who could we pick? There are only a dozen or so people in the laundry courtyard, and every single one has their own connections. If we’re afraid of offending one person, won’t we just end up offending another?”
A heavy silence fell over the group—until one of the women suddenly let out a small exclamation and turned toward the house.
“Actually, there is someone who’d be a perfect choice,” she said.
The others were momentarily stunned before following her gaze.
Through the open doorway, they could see a small, thin figure moving back and forth, carrying and organizing bundles.
Welcome back! Thank you for your translations!