Bao Xia looked at her unconscious young lady and stood up, saying, "I'll go check. You stay and take care of the young lady."
"Yes."
Having often moved between various courtyards on behalf of her young lady, Bao Xia was particularly skilled at remembering people. She was certain she had never seen this woman before, even though they hadn't formally met yet.
Bao Xia curtsied gracefully, her attitude neither humble nor pushy. "This humble maid presumes to ask, miss, could you tell us who sent you?"
The woman pulled aside her veil, revealing a face crisscrossed with scars. Seeing that Bao Xia was merely startled without showing any disgust, she nodded in satisfaction and produced a porcelain bottle from her palm.
Bao Xia immediately understood everything. Beaming with joy, she welcomed the woman inside. "This medicine is truly effective. I was just worrying about what to do when we run out. This is perfect - with this medicine, our young lady can suffer less."
The woman remained silent, but her aura softened slightly. With such a protective maid, the mistress probably wouldn't be too bad either.
Noticing the faint scent of alcohol in the room, the woman raised an eyebrow. After checking the pulse and carefully examining the wounds, she spoke her first words: "Cleaned with alcohol?"
Contrary to her appearance, the woman's voice sounded vibrant and not as aloof as her demeanor suggested.
Bao Xia quickly replied, "Our young lady instructed us to clean it with alcohol before she lost consciousness. Is there any problem with that?"
"Good." If she hadn't been so determined, she would have developed a high fever long ago. It was hard to imagine such a delicate-looking young lady could be so tough on herself. No wonder The Heir thought highly of her.
After reapplying the medicine, the woman took two porcelain bottles from her medicine chest and placed them on the table, then wrote out a prescription. Seeing this, Bao Xia carefully worded her request: "Our young lady is, after all, a woman. It wouldn't be proper for her to be left with scars. I wonder if you might have any medicine to remove scars..."
Suddenly remembering that this woman herself had a scarred face, Bao Xia feared she might have touched a sore spot and caused offense. She quickly added, "I don't mean anything by it, it's just... I've served our young lady since childhood, and it pains me to see her bitten by mosquitoes. Now she's injured like this mostly because she was protecting us. If she's left with these scars, I..."
Bao Xia's already swollen eyes reddened again, looking utterly pitiful. The woman glanced at her again. "Yes, but not now."
What did that mean? There was medicine before but not now? Or there is medicine, just not available now, but will be later?
Bao Xia blinked, hoping the woman would say more.
The woman slung her medicine chest over her shoulder and headed out. "I'll return in two days."
Delighted, Bao Xia hurried after her. "May I ask your name, miss? Our young lady will certainly ask when she wakes up. Please leave us your name."
"Shaoyao."
"Yes, this maid thanks Miss Shaoyao." Bao Xia walked alongside her, smiling and chattering continuously. "May I ask where Miss Shaoyao lives? Is it convenient for you to come here?"
"Convenient."
"Could Miss Shaoyao tell me if there's anything we need to pay special attention to regarding our young lady?"
"This will do."
"Yes, then this maid can rest assured. May I be so bold as to ask one more thing - did Miss Shaoyao know our young lady before?""I don't know her." Through the curtain, Shaoyao watched this maid trying various methods to probe her background without overstepping. She almost felt like staying. Despite such a major incident occurring, the maid had managed to keep all information sealed. The maid knew exactly when to advance or retreat, considering everything for her benefit. Chen Qing even mentioned that to divert Qin Zheng's attention last night, some maids had even undressed attempting seduction.
She was curious about what kind of mistress could make them go to such lengths. She had seen plenty of servants, and while some genuinely cared for their masters, they were always just one or two exceptions. Yet the Hua family's eldest young lady had won the loyal devotion of all her servants—there must be something special about her to achieve this.
When Hua Zhi woke up, it was already another evening.
Her maids bustled around her, alternately feeding her water and congee. Only after this flurry of activity did she have leisure to ask about the current situation.
Nian Qiu took up the report: "Old Madam said she would watch over the household and asked you to rest assured while doing what you need to do. Regarding Ying Chun, this maid has strictly kept it concealed from her. She assured you she would properly handle the matters you entrusted to her. Steward Xu, knowing you need capable people, specifically selected those who previously served the old and young masters. He said they were all previously trained and have assisted the masters with affairs, so they can easily handle whatever tasks arise. However..."
"Speak plainly." Hua Zhi listened with half-closed eyes, still extremely weary. Had she not been genuinely concerned about these matters, she wouldn't have bothered asking at all.
"Yes." Nian Qiu tucked the blanket higher and said softly, "While we can keep things hidden at home, we cannot conceal them from the people brought here. This maid worries they might send messages back home."
"During this period, everyone must remain at this manor—they'll have no opportunity to send messages. Did Steward Xu mention who should manage affairs?"
"He didn't, but he sent Xu Ying along."
"Xu Ying can handle these miscellaneous affairs, but he cannot manage the people. His experience is too shallow—those who previously served Grandfather and Father won't respect him. Observe for a couple of days to see who might be suitable, then submit names to me."
Having served her for so long, her maids were accustomed to her way of handling matters and simply acknowledged without further comment.
Then silence fell in the room.
Hua Zhi opened her eyes. "So difficult to speak of—did all three guards die?"
"No, no." Bao Xia shook her head repeatedly. "One died, but two were saved. Last night that person left two bottles of medicine—I sent one over. By the way, Miss, today a woman came claiming she was entrusted by someone to examine you. The medicine she left matches what last night's person provided—likely sent by that same person."
Two saved—better than she had expected. Hua Zhi sighed. "Did she leave any message?"
"She said she would return in two days. That woman's face was covered in scars—this maid thinks they looked like knife cuts. Please be mentally prepared so you won't be startled."
"Our young lady isn't even afraid of villains. If something didn't startle you, how could it startle her?" Fu Dong entered carrying a bowl of dark, bitter medicine. The maids by the bed quickly made way.
Before even drinking it, Hua Zhi could already taste the bitterness. Sighing, she pinched her nose and gulped it down herself. Her bold manner stunned the maids—Nian Qiu, holding a piece of preserved fruit, forgot to offer it to her mistress. Hua Zhi ended up taking it herself."Take good care of those two guards, don't treat them poorly. As for the one who died... keep the matter quiet for now. I'll compensate his family when I return."
"Yes, Miss. Don't force yourself to stay awake - rest. We servants will handle everything properly."
Hua Zhi didn't push herself, closing her eyes as drowsiness washed over her. With so many household affairs piling up, she needed to recover quickly.
PS: Since this is the opening chapter, I'm being careful not to introduce too many characters at once. Need to plant plot threads while keeping the story engaging and moving forward. That's why I keep revising before posting - please read slowly, Kongkong has put great effort into this! As usual, requesting monthly votes.
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