Chapter 1

Chapter 1

I have terrible luck.

On my second day as a maid in the Wei Family, the Wei Family fell from grace.

When I was sold into the Wei Family, perhaps because they had paid a good price, the slave broker was in a fine mood and said a few extra words to me.

He said the Wei Family was at the height of its power, and if I could stay on as a servant there, I ought to count myself blessed.

The Wei Family’s servants ate very well. Round, plump white-flour buns were unlimited, and you could eat until you were full.

I ate three in one go and was happy the whole night.

Then the next day, several young manservants carried someone back on a wooden plank. That person lay facedown on the board, his lower half covered with white cloth, his hair loose and messy, so I couldn’t see his face clearly.

Only much later did I hear from others that the person carried back that day was Wei Zhao, the Eldest Young Master of the Wei Family.

He had been dismissed from office and publicly beaten with forty strokes of the court rod.

As for Old Master Wei, he had pleaded for the Eldest Young Master in court and was demoted to Baling.

Madam fainted as soon as she heard the news and only woke after three bowls of ginseng tonic had been poured down her throat.

The whole Wei Family was in chaos. The Second Young Master was studying far away at a famous academy, and for a time, the Wei Family didn’t even have anyone to take charge.

Taking advantage of the confusion, I secretly asked Nanny Zhou, who was responsible for teaching me the household rules, what a court beating was.

Nanny Zhou said a court beating meant having your pants stripped off in public and being beaten on the backside with a rod.

I was dumbstruck.

When I was little and naughty, Ma would get so angry she would pick up a straw sandal and smack my bottom hard. After that, I would know to listen to her.

But that was when I was a child.

Now, how old was the Eldest Young Master? How could he still be beaten on the backside in public-and with his pants stripped off, no less? He would die of shame. How could he bear it?

Though I had only just arrived at the Wei Family, I had already heard plenty of rumors about the Eldest Young Master, Wei Zhao.

Old Master Wei did not hold a very high post. He was only a sixth-rank official.

The height of power the slave broker spoke of was mainly due to the Eldest Young Master, Wei Zhao.

The Eldest Young Master was a prodigy in the classics.

He began his studies at three, never forgot anything he read, and at nineteen, he took first place in all three levels of the imperial examinations, becoming famous throughout the realm.

Since the founding of this dynasty, no one had ever achieved such a feat, much less at such a young age. His Majesty made an exception and promoted Wei Zhao, appointing him to assist the Crown Prince.

Now Wei Zhao was twenty-two and already the indispensable right-hand man of the Crown Prince.

Once the Crown Prince ascended the throne, with Wei Zhao’s abilities, being granted a princely title or appointed chancellor would only be a matter of time. Was that not the very height of power?

But now, the sky had fallen on the Wei Family.

Everyone was in a panic. The Wei residence was unnaturally silent. When it was time for dinner, in that vast estate, not a single person spoke.

I was frightened by that heavy, storm-is-coming atmosphere. Even the white-flour bun at my lips no longer tasted good. I only dared to nibble a few bites before putting it down.

The Eldest Young Master had been carried back on a wooden plank. His lower half was covered with a piece of white cloth, but in truth, the cloth did little good. He had bled too much, and the white cloth had already stuck to his lower body.

That night, the Wei Family invited nearly every well-known doctor in Shangjing City. Medicine boys came and went carrying medicine chests, all hurrying about. The entire courtyard was filled with the bitter smell of medicinal herbs.

It was said they were doing everything they could to save the Eldest Young Master and keep him from being left crippled.

Seeing panic everywhere, the servants discussed in private that the Eldest Young Master had angered His Majesty, and even His Highness the Crown Prince could not protect him from his crime. No one knew what exactly had happened in the Golden Throne Hall. Some said the Wei Family’s property would be confiscated. Some said the whole clan would be wiped out. Others even said nine degrees of kin would be executed.

It scared me half to death.

I had only just come to the Wei Family and still did not understand the situation. That night, I did not dare close my eyes. Smelling the medicinal herbs in the air, I thought in a daze-everything had been perfectly fine, so how had it come to the point of executing nine degrees of kin?

Nanny Zhou lay beside me. Seeing that I could not sleep, she sighed and took a steamed bun from inside her clothes, then handed it to me.

“Silly girl. Take it. You may not get to eat one again after this.”

Given the Wei Family’s current circumstances, it was true-we might not be able to eat such things again.

I took the bun and stroked it carefully, too reluctant to eat it. Instead, I tucked it under my pillow.

We barely managed to endure until dawn. Then the steward gathered the servants in the household on Madam’s behalf.

The steward mainly announced one thing: the Wei Family was going to dismiss a number of servants.

Those who wanted to leave, or who had somewhere good to go, would all have their indenture contracts returned by the Wei Family, along with ten taels of silver each.

It made sense, when one thought about it. The Wei Family was no longer what it used to be. The Eldest Young Master needed treatment, the Second Young Master needed to continue his studies, Madam needed to recuperate, and Master had to travel all the way to Baling to take up his post. There would be payments to smooth the way, carriages and horses to buy, and a few young manservants to hire for the journey. Everywhere they turned, money was needed.

They truly could no longer afford to keep so many servants.

The Wei Family had its difficulties.

But I had mine too.

That year, I was thirteen. I had followed a human trafficker to Shangjing City. Once I walked out the Wei Family’s gates, I would not know a single soul.

The world was vast, and the Wei Family had fallen. But it seemed that, aside from the Wei Family, I had nowhere else to go.

I could hardly take back my indenture contract one moment, then turn around and find another human trafficker to sell myself all over again.

So I stayed.

Nanny Zhou, however, left. Over the years, she had saved a little money for her old age, and I heard she had relatives outside the estate she could rely on. Now that her master was willing to return her indenture contract, there was truly no reason for her to remain.

Before she left, she gave me the sewing basket she had always used.

The Wei Family had once been a great household with a vast estate, yet overnight, most of it scattered.

In the end, only five or six of us remained, and I was the youngest. Aside from the steward and me, there was Zhu’er, who served in Madam’s courtyard; Jianru, the Eldest Young Master’s personal attendant; Cui Jiu, who had originally been in charge of tending the horses in the stable; and Liu Sanwan, an old servant of the household. With no sons or daughters, he had long since treated this place as his home.

In the end, Master chose Uncle Liu to accompany him to Baling.

With mountains high and rivers long between here and there, he needed someone familiar and trustworthy at his side to look after him.

As for the Wei Family household itself, Sister Zhu’er served in Madam’s courtyard, so naturally she could not be moved. The Eldest Young Master had injured his body, and for wiping him down and attending to him, it was more convenient to keep a man by his side. The steward continued to manage the household and the accounts.

That left only Cui Jiu and me.

He was assigned to sweep and clean the courtyards.

As for me, I had originally helped Nanny Zhou with tending the fire and picking vegetables. Once Nanny Zhou left, there was no one in the Wei Family to take charge of the kitchen.

The steward’s gaze fell on me, hesitation in his eyes.

I understood what he meant. I looked far too young. No matter how one looked at it, making meals for a household this size did not seem like work I could handle. Besides, I had only just arrived, and he did not know my character or temperament.

But if the Wei Family was unwilling to keep me, where else was I supposed to find work?

I bit my lip and said to the steward, “I used to cook often at home too. Why not let me try first? If you think I can’t do it, you can replace me then.”

Besides, the fact that I had chosen to stay already proved my loyalty to the Wei Family.

And in such a rush, if they went outside to buy another maid, given the Wei Family’s present state, they likely would not be able to find a good one anytime soon.

The steward considered for a moment, then agreed.