Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The sons of noble families in the capital all wore jade pendants, carved with their family crest as a symbol of their identity.

This piece of jade was of the finest quality, white as mutton fat, and carved with the character Yan.

“Perhaps… the Eldest Young Master dropped it when he came to visit the Second Young Master during the day…”

I thought to myself.

The jade was warm to the touch.

As I stared at that character, Yan, the Eldest Young Master’s face rose unbidden before my eyes.

In a moment of carelessness, I ended up soiling the jade.

When I realized what I had done, I panicked so badly I did not know what to do.

“I… I didn’t mean to!”

This jade… I would wash it clean tomorrow before returning it!

The general and his wife were lavish in their spending, yet in the Second Young Master’s courtyard, aside from me, his wet nurse, there were only Caijuan, a senior maid who helped out, Nanny Li, who kept watch at night, and Chunzhi, a little maid who did the rough cleaning work.

During the day, Caijuan helped me change the Second Young Master’s clothes and wipe him down.

Nanny Li was an old servant of the household. It was said she had been part of the dowry of the Old Madam. She had already left the estate and was living comfortably with her son and daughter-in-law.

When she heard that the General’s Wife had given birth to another son, she returned to the mansion to help care for him for a few years.

I took out the jade pendant and handed it over.

“Nanny, could you take a look at this jade pendant? Whose is it? Did the Eldest Young Master drop it when he came to visit the Second Young Master yesterday?”

Nanny Li was very old, and her eyesight was not too good. She took the jade pendant and felt it in her hand, then smiled and said, “It is Brother Yan’s, all right! How did it end up here?”

I said, “The Second Young Master cannot be left alone. Could I trouble you to make the trip and return it to the Eldest Young Master?”

To my surprise, Nanny Li immediately refused.

“No, no, no! You were the one who found this jade pendant, so of course you should go.”

“Surely you don’t mean to order around this old woman?”

I looked toward Caijuan beside me.

“Sister Caijuan…”

Caijuan immediately said, “I’m in the middle of changing the Second Young Master’s clothes. I can’t be delayed. In any case, you’re not nursing him right now, so just make the trip yourself!”

Well then…

I had not wanted to go. I was afraid he would recognize me as the woman who had fed him milk between the field ridges that day.

But the jade pendant was far too precious. If it was chipped, damaged, or lost, I would never be able to bear the responsibility.

I could only steel myself and leave the courtyard.

Chapter 8

I had been at the General’s Mansion for over a month, and this was the first time I had left the courtyard.

The General’s Mansion was enormous.

It was said to have once been the residence of a prince from the previous dynasty. After the change of regimes, several neighboring smaller residences had been merged into it as well.

I wandered around in circles and asked quite a few people before I finally found the Eldest Young Master’s residence.

By then, the sky was already beginning to darken.

The guard at the gate looked young, a baby-faced youth.

I explained why I had come, and he did not make things difficult for me.

“Sister, please wait a moment. I’ll go inform the Eldest Young Master right away.”

I frowned. “Ah? There is no need for that, is there? Can’t you take it inside for me and hand it to the Eldest Young Master?”

The youth smiled. “That won’t do. Such a valuable item-if it got bumped or broken, I couldn’t bear the responsibility.”

With that, he turned and went inside.

Before long, the Eldest Young Master’s voice drifted from the room, carrying a trace of languid authority.

“Let her in!”

The youth smiled at me, revealing a row of white teeth.

“The Eldest Young Master is calling you in to answer him!”

When I saw that smile, for some reason, my heart gave a sudden thud.

By the time I came back to my senses, I had already been pushed into the room.

Inside, layers of gauze curtains overlapped. Mist filled the air, along with a faint fragrance.

The candlelight was dim, and I could not see clearly.

I walked inward in a daze, only to find myself beside a pool.

This was actually a bathing pool!

The man in the pool had removed all his clothes and was seated in the water. The water rose to his chest, yet one could still faintly make out his firm pectorals, his abdominal muscles… his long legs bent slightly beneath the water, and that shadowed, indistinct place…

I was startled.

I immediately raised my hands to cover my face.

“Eldest Young Master, please calm your anger. This servant did not mean to barge in. It was that young man outside who…”

A wet cloth was thrown straight at my face.

“Come here and scrub my back.”

The cloth was soaked through. When it hit my face, it did not hurt, but it drenched my temples and cheeks. Even the front of my chest grew damp.

It left me in quite a wretched state.

“E-Eldest Young Master… this servant is the Second Young Master’s wet nurse…”

My voice trembled. I did not know if it was my imagination, but I seemed to see the Eldest Young Master, known as a baleful star, smile at me.

“What? You can serve my second brother, but when it comes to serving me, you make excuses?”