The scene seemed to replay itself before her eyes, refusing to fade, causing Cai Qing to shiver involuntarily and shrink back.
Her entire arms and back were covered in goosebumps, her hair standing on end. Cai Qing nervously rubbed her arms, feeling slightly better.
“Sister Cai Qing, what’s wrong? You were trembling just now. Are you cold? Why don’t you go back to your room and put on some more clothes? I can watch here.”
“I… I’m fine…” Cai Qing stammered, waving her hand dismissively, and picked up a cup of hot tea to warm her hands.
The more Chu Qing looked at Cai Qing, the more she found her strange. Now, upon closer inspection, she realized that Sister Cai Qing’s expression wasn’t due to the cold at all, but rather appeared to be a state of fear and apprehension.
After a moment of hesitation, Chu Qing walked over and sat beside Cai Qing, taking her ice-cold hand. “Sister Cai Qing, did you just think of something bad? You seemed scared just now… You can talk to me about it, and I can help you…”
“I… I actually…” Cai Qing’s gaze fell upon Chu Qing, but the words that were on the tip of her tongue didn’t know how to be spoken.
After a pause, she changed her approach and asked, “Chu Qing, how do they deal with maids who make mistakes in your area? Have you ever witnessed it yourself?”
Chu Qing’s brows furrowed slightly as if she had to think for a long time. After a moment, she slowly replied, “There are many ways to deal with maids who make mistakes. Some masters directly execute them, while others are found to have been harmed by someone, accidentally fallen into a river and drowned, died of poisoning, or committed suicide by hanging. These are all too common…”
“Basically, every lake has a soul that died unjustly. After seeing so much of these things, one gets used to it and no longer makes a fuss… Oh, why are you suddenly asking about this? What exactly happened?”
Chu Qing increasingly felt that Cai Qing had something going on, otherwise she would never ask her these questions. She became even more eager to know what was happening with Cai Qing.
“Hearing you say that, I feel like my own troubles are truly not worth mentioning…”
Having known Chu Qing for so long, this was the first time she had heard her speak about past events. She had asked Chu Qing about her time in Xiliang before, but Chu Qing had always been vague and evasive, never telling her these things.
Such a pouring out of her heart today was truly a rare occasion and seemed very peculiar.
“A maid I was once very close to, simply because she spoke ill of her master without authorization, was found out by Steward Wu and was directly given thirty planks. Covered in blood, she was thrown out of the mansion, not knowing if she was alive or dead. I just suddenly remembered this incident, which made me tremble and feel a little scared.”
“Sister Cai Qing, we servants are born with humble lives and are not valuable. It’s quite normal for us to be hit or scolded by our masters. If we happen to have a good master, our lives can be a little better; otherwise, we won’t even know how we died.”
She had seen too many such incidents. Palace maids who grew up with her were punished by their masters for saying just one wrong word, and some even lost their lives.
Therefore, she lived in fear every day, only daring to quietly do her own work and not daring to say an extra word. She would never forget the saying that misfortune comes from the mouth.
“You’re right, the lives of us servants are indeed not valuable…”
Cai Qing sighed softly and murmured. She had been a servant since birth. Although her life had been difficult, she had grown up safely. She was considered lucky to have such a good master as the young madam.
In the young madam’s eyes, she was not treated as a servant but as a person. The young madam was truly the best… the best master she had ever met. Meeting such a good master in this life was the greatest fortune of her life.
“Speaking of which, we are also fortunate to have met such a good master as the young madam. We are already extremely lucky compared to others.”
“Indeed, the young madam is truly good to us.” Chu Qing said with a solemn tone. When she was first brought over by the young madam, she was also scared, thinking that the young madam only wanted her to torment and monitor her, and to learn other things from her.
Through their gradual interactions, she finally understood that the young madam was truly good and treated her with sincerity, regarding her as an equal.
Moreover, at that time, she had silently vowed that she would protect the young madam for the rest of her life, even if it meant going through fire and water, or sacrificing her own life.
While the two were talking, they didn’t notice that Da Bao and Er Bao were already sleepy. By the time they realized it, Da Bao and Er Bao were already lying on the bed, sleeping obediently.
Fearing that they might disturb the two children further, Chu Qing and Cai Qing carefully went out after tucking them in, closing the door very softly, afraid of waking the children.
Now that these two mischievous little ones were asleep, they could finally rest a bit. They wondered if Steward Wu, who was guarding outside the door, had left.
Just as she was thinking about this, another knock came from outside the door.
‘Bang… bang… bang…’
Hearing the sound, Chu Qing and Cai Qing immediately became tense again. Cai Qing froze for a moment, then stepped forward to ask, “Who… who is outside…”
As soon as her voice fell, a familiar voice came from outside the door: “It’s me. Why are you locking the door in broad daylight? Are you really planning not to receive guests anymore?”
The incredibly familiar voice immediately made them know who was outside. Their taut nerves relaxed slightly, and they let out a sigh of relief.
“You go and see. I’m too scared to move.” Cai Qing felt cold sweat all over her body, and her legs were trembling so much that she could barely stand. She squatted on the ground, catching her breath for a moment.
Chu Qing walked towards the door and, looking through the crack, confirmed that the person outside was Ling Mu Zhu.
“Second Young Master, why are you here at this time?”
“I heard that Eldest Sister-in-law has returned, so I came to see. Why are you locking the door in broad daylight? Are you guarding against thieves? Quickly open the door and come in.”
Ling Mu Zhu’s voice was filled with dissatisfaction. The doorway was like a wind tunnel with a chilling breeze. He had only stood there for a moment and felt his hands freezing stiff. He hurriedly urged Chu Qing to open the door quickly.
“Second Young Master, please check if there is anyone else around. If there is no one, I will open the door for you.”