Debt.
“By the way, I still don’t know how to address you, young master.”
“After all, just calling you ‘young master’ all the time feels a bit… um… the steward said this is called good manners.”
“Of course, if you mind, it’s fine not to tell! Xiao Hua just thinks that as a servant, it’s better to know the guests’ names and such.”
The two of them weaved through one identical courtyard after another, dizzyingly similar. Along the way, Xiao Hua’s mouth never stopped, chattering away like a little sparrow.
As the accompanying guest, Liu Yao was mostly responsible for listening to the little maid’s rapid-fire questions, occasionally responding with an “Mm-hmm.” But after listening for a while, it inevitably became tedious.
“Whaa—!”
Liu Yao followed behind Xiao Hua, and while the girl was still chattering without paying attention, she opened her mouth wide and let out a huge yawn.
‘This little girl sure talks a lot… Sigh, we’ve been walking so long, why haven’t we arrived yet? Just listening to her talk is making me drowsy… Walking through so many identically decorated yards and listening to her endless chatter—I have to say, if I had insomnia, a few laps here would probably put me to sleep…’
As she walked, the young girl wiped away a few tears that had seeped from the corners of her eyes. Just as she was yawning, the two turned another corridor, and Xiao Hua, who was walking ahead, suddenly turned around.
“Young master… young master?”
“Huh… Mm?”
“Young master, why aren’t you responding to Xiao Hua? Am I too annoying? I guess so, since the other servants always say I’m a chatterbox.”
“No, no! Not at all! It’s just that I didn’t sleep well last night, so my reactions are a bit slow.”
Seeing Xiao Hua feeling down and blaming herself for affecting the guest with her talkativeness, Liu Yao quickly waved her hands to explain.
“What did Miss Xiao Hua just say? Ah… I lost my train of thought just now and can’t remember.”
Liu Yao tilted her head to the right, rubbing her chin, pretending to look troubled. The girl’s movements were deliberately exaggerated and comical, all to console this little one who was overly self-blaming.
Of course, this trick for soothing a child wasn’t very effective on a girl of Xiao Hua’s age, but Liu Yao’s clumsy attempt still managed to cheer her up a bit.
“Hehe! Young master, that was so obvious.” Xiao Hua covered her lips with a light laugh.
“I was actually asking for your name just now. After all, Xiao Hua still doesn’t know your name. If I don’t know, how can I report to the young lady?”
“So it’s a name…”
The white-clad “young man” chuckled, but after a moment’s thought, she was taken aback.
‘That’s right—so far, whether it’s Lady Yao or the white-clad young man… I haven’t thought of a name for any of these identities. I can’t let her call me A Yao like Yi An, right? That would be too intimate.’
And so, the girl went from pretending to be troubled to actually being troubled.
‘Liu Yao… Huh? Got it!’
A flash of inspiration struck Liu Yao. She rolled her eyes, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.
“Mm… I’m surnamed Lu, given name Yao. Lu as in ‘land,’ Yao as in ‘distant.’ Miss, you may call me Lu Yao.”
After hearing this, Xiao Hua muttered the “young man’s” name, then her eyes lit up. “Young master, your name is really cool—it gives off the same cool vibe as you!”
“Heh, is that so?”
Although Liu Yao appeared calm and unaffected by the compliment on the surface, the tightly pressed corners of her mouth betrayed her. ‘Heh, look who came up with the name.’
She didn’t say much else, but Liu Yao was still rather pleased with herself.
Xiao Hua, however, didn’t notice Liu Yao’s little scheme and continued chattering as she led the way, talking nonstop as they walked.
“Young Master Lu, you may not know this, but our Elder Master actually had quite an unusual experience.”
Perhaps unable to stay quiet, Xiao Hua began to tell tales of the Wang Family’s past peculiarities.
“Elder Master… oh, that is, the previous head of the family, Miss Wang’s grandfather. The old steward says that when Elder Master was young, he had a special temperament… um… lively?”
“Anyway, because of this restless nature, Elder Master suffered a great loss.” She tilted her head as if thinking.
“I heard that the previous caravan leader brought a Taoist priest from somewhere, claiming he could solve the problem.”
“The old steward didn’t elaborate on the problem… but after that, Elder Master ordered all the courtyards to be built exactly the same.”
Xiao Hua turned around and looked at Liu Yao, who was listening quite seriously, drawn in by the topic.
“Now you know why all the courtyards in the Wang residence look the same, young master?”
“To be honest, I still can’t quite understand.” Liu Yao gave an awkward smile. “This kind of talk about ghosts and gods is just too… hard to believe for someone like me who uses their fists.”
‘Well, except for that peach tree spirit.’
She nodded inwardly, making a small excuse for her own words. Xiao Hua heard this and didn’t say much more, simply continuing to walk forward.
Before long, after turning a few more corridors, the courtyard ahead finally showed some change.
Although the layout was still the same monotonous pattern, there were a few neatly trimmed potted plants at the entrance, and two celadon vases under the eaves, making it look much more refined than the others.
The building directly opposite the gate was also several times larger than the others, with upturned eaves and a much more imposing presence.
Xiao Hua stopped, turned back, and made a shushing gesture to Liu Yao, lowering her voice. “Young master, this is the place. Please wait here for a moment. Xiao Hua will go report first, and then come to fetch you.”
Having said that, she turned to leave, but muttered a few words under her breath. “Mm… I’ve stalled long enough, right? I’m almost dizzy from going in circles…”
Although her voice was soft, Liu Yao’s ears were sharp enough to catch every word clearly.
‘This girl… so she’s been leading me in circles. I was wondering how a Wang family servant could take such a long route—turns out she was just stalling me.’
Liu Yao curled her lips and shook her head helplessly. ‘Oh well, considering she gave me so much information, I’ll let it slide. Looks and kindness—huh!’
While lost in thought, Xiao Hua had already hurried to the door, knocked twice gently, and pushed it open. Liu Yao stood waiting in place, idly looking around.
After quite a while, the door finally reopened. Xiao Hua came out, but her expression was strange. Her eyes were darting, her lips pressed together, looking distracted.
“Miss Xiao Hua, what’s wrong?”
“Ah? Nothing, nothing!” Xiao Hua seemed startled, her voice rising half an octave before quickly lowering it. “Young master, please wait a little longer. The young lady… she has something to attend to.”
“This…”
Before the young woman could finish her sentence, a scolding voice came from inside the room.
“Liu Shan, get out!”