When the sky was brightening, in the Zhang family courtyard, the young girl had already looked out the door several times.
“Ban Qin, what are you waiting for?” the old gatekeeper asked curiously.
“I’m waiting for someone,” the girl replied, her expression tense, uneasy, and excited.
“It’s still cold. Go back. I’ll let you know as soon as the person arrives,” the old gatekeeper smiled.
The girl smiled awkwardly and thanked him.
“Ban Qin!”
A familiar voice called out from behind.
The girl turned around and saw two maids smiling as they approached and took her arm.
“Good sister, you’re here! We were looking for you.” they laughed.
These were two maids from Madam Zhang’s side. The girl smiled and returned their greetings.
“Are you free?” they asked.
The girl was the old master’s maid and cook, but she was not the cook for the entire Zhang family. Apart from the old master, no one else could give her orders.
“Not sure what you want me to do?” she said with a slight smile.
This was a polite refusal, but the two maids showed no signs of displeasure. Instead, they smiled even more warmly, with a hint of pleading.
“Good sister, the soup that Madam had yesterday at the old master’s place was really liked. We were wondering if you could spare some time to make another bowl for her?” they asked.
The girl couldn’t help but glance at the door.
“If you need anything, just tell us, and we’ll do it for you,” the two maids immediately said.
“No need, no need. How about this,” the girl thought for a moment, “I’ll make a small snack for the old master, and then I’ll stew some soup for Madam.”
The two maids were overjoyed and thanked her repeatedly.
“Thank you so much! If there’s anything we can do to help, just tell us.” they said in unison.
The girl smiled slightly, pressing her lips together.
“I still have a few plates of small snacks left, but they weren’t made well. The old master didn’t like them, and it’s a shame to just throw them away. How about you help me eat them?” she asked with a smile.
She was no longer the ordinary maid at the Cheng family who no one paid attention to.
Now, when she spoke, everyone listened; when she laughed, others would laugh along. The grace and wit that the older maids back home had once displayed, which she had envied, now came to her easily and effortlessly.
The two maids giggled when they heard this.
“Made poorly? The old master didn’t like them? That’s just because the old master is picky with his mouth. It doesn’t mean the snacks weren’t good. People are lining up to eat the food made by the old master’s little cook!”
“Ban Qin, I have some fine silk here. Would you let me make you a skirt?”
“Ban Qin, I heard you want to send something home. My brother is going back to the south; let him take it for you.”
The two maids, arm-in-arm with the girl, smiled widely, chatting and laughing as they walked inside.
At this moment, Cheng Jiao-niang had finished her breakfast. Her maid had tied her hair up and inserted a small silver comb into it.
“Alright, looking pretty,” the maid said after carefully inspecting her, smiling mischievously, “Ban Qin won’t complain that I didn’t take good care of you.”
Cheng Jiao-niang turned her head to look at her.
“You, what’s your name?” she asked.
The maid was stunned for a moment and couldn’t help but take a few steps back.
“I’m called Ban Qin,” she replied, blinking her big eyes with a confused look. “Why don’t you remember?”
Cheng Jiao-niang didn’t speak. She glanced at her, then lifted her foot and stepped forward.
The maid let out a slight breath of relief, reaching up to pat her chest, feeling her heart still beating heavily.
“Would anyone believe this if I said it? Miss asked me my name, and I was so scared that I broke out in a cold sweat,” she muttered to herself.
After speaking, she paused again.
Why did she feel scared? Why did her question make her so nervous?
Was there something wrong… something bad?
Looking at Cheng Jiao-niang, who had already stepped out the door, the maid suddenly didn’t feel like leaving. It was as if once she stepped out, she wouldn’t be able to come back.
For the first time, she didn’t walk ahead of the lady or closely behind her. She watched as the lady walked slowly, but without any hesitation, not even turning her head, and was about to walk out of sight.
The maid snapped out of her thoughts and hurriedly lifted her foot to follow.
Outside the second gate, the carriage was already ready. As they were about to board, Zhou Liu-lang walked over briskly, holding a three-foot long recurved bow in his hand, with beads of sweat still on his forehead.
“You’re leaving at this time?” he said with a stern face.
The maid glanced at him and smiled mischievously.
“Young Master, are you going to take us there?” she asked.
Zhou Liu-lang looked at Cheng Jiao-niang.
The lady didn’t even glance his way, seemingly unaware that anyone had arrived.
“Where are you going again?” he gritted his teeth and asked.
Cheng Jiao-niang turned her head and looked at him.
“Going to eat,” she said.
Eat!
Every time he thought he could win her favor by treating her to a meal, it always backfired.
Now, her saying this was clearly a reminder of past events, mocking him.
Zhou Liu-lang gritted his teeth, staring at her, then threw the recurved bow over his shoulder and strode past her.
At noon, it was the time when Madam Zhou usually attended to family matters, and there were many maids moving about in the courtyard.
Hearing footsteps inside the door, the maids outside opened the door, and several older maids filed out.
“Call for the steward,” the leading woman said.
Ban Qin, who was kneeling in the yard, looked up in shock.
How could this happen? How could they want to sell her?
“Ma’am, Ma’am!” She looked panicked, crawling forward on her knees. “I was wrong, beat me, scold me, punish me, just don’t… don’t send me away!”
The leading woman seemed a little impatient.
Seeing this, the others quickly waved their hands, and two maids stepped forward to restrain Ban Qin.
“Madam, Madam, I was wrong! You can beat me, scold me, punish me, but don’t sell me! Don’t send me away, I don’t want to leave!” Ban Qin struggled fiercely, pushing the two maids away and running toward the house.
“What’s going on? Madam is ill!” A woman from the corridor shouted angrily, “Such a trivial matter, and you’re causing such a disturbance!”
The maids in the yard panicked, quickly stepped forward, and gagged Ban Qin before dragging her out.
“I don’t want to leave, I don’t want to go!”
Ban Qin struggled, watching the door of the house getting further and further away. She reached out her hand helplessly, her tears blurring her vision.
In front of the Zhang family’s house, the maid knocked on the door.
“Su Xin!” The old gatekeeper opened the door and called out, but saw the maid looking startled and hurriedly waving her hand at him.
“Uncle Cai, I’m not called Su Xin anymore, don’t call me that,” she quickly lowered her voice and said, glancing behind her as if afraid of something.
The carriage was quietly parked.
Maid names were usually given by their masters, and since each master had different preferences, it was common for a maid to change her name.
The old gatekeeper quickly nodded.
“Then what’s your name now?” he asked.
“Ban Qin,” the maid replied.
“Ban Qin?” The old gatekeeper was momentarily stunned. “Are you looking for Ban Qin, or is that your name? Oh.”
He suddenly realized.
“Yes, yes, the old master must have switched you around. So Ban Qin was waiting for your master. That’s it, quickly, quickly!” he said, calling to a young servant behind him. “Ban Qin has been waiting all morning, go tell her that the person has arrived.”
The young servant immediately ran off.
The maid couldn’t help but laugh, knowing that explaining would only complicate things, so she simply stopped trying to explain.
“Uncle Cai, go inform the old master and tell him that my mistress has arrived,” she said, quickly turning and walking toward the carriage.
She didn’t even mention whether the old master would see her or not, how could she be so sure?
The old gatekeeper shook his head, following her instructions and sending someone to deliver the message. Sure enough, as soon as the maid helped a lady dressed in a cloak and hood down from the carriage, many people came rushing out from inside.
The girl hurried toward the door, but when she reached the entrance, she stopped in her tracks. Tears had already started falling, plopping down one after another.
“Lady Cheng, the old master has asked you to come in.”
The woman in charge of receiving guests on the old master’s side greeted them with a respectful smile.
The maid stood behind them, watching as the maid helped a lady in a cloak step inside. Although the cloak almost covered her entire body, obscuring everything, the maid couldn’t help but hold her breath for a moment.
She remembered the first time she saw that lady, sitting stiffly by the bedside, her expression blank. She remembered how she had blamed herself for being dull, and the mistress had comforted her with a few words. She remembered the mistress saying she would seek a stable life in the temple.
“It’s not impossible for everything to go as one wishes.”
That was what the mistress had said.
It turned out that those words weren’t just casual. The mistress truly did what she said.
The mistress had given her skills that were not dull, had given her food and drink, had given her reputation, had given her status, and had given her everything one could hope for in life.
It certainly is possible for one to have a life that goes as one wishes.
“Miss.” She finally called out, hurriedly rushing forward to bow her head and crying on the ground.
The scene startled everyone outside the door.
The Zhang family’s courtyard was small, and the sound of crying pierced through the walls, reaching Zhang Chun’s study.
“What’s going on?” Master Zhang, who was reading scriptures, couldn’t help but furrow his brows.
There weren’t many maids in the household, and they practiced leniency and kindness. Not only was there rarely crying, but even bickering was almost nonexistent.
He was about to send someone to inquire, but then the crying ceased.
Zhang Chun shook his head, lowered it, and continued reading his book.
