Resentment and envy surfaced on the young servant’s and female servant’s faces. Miss Chu Zhao hadn’t captured them too. Otherwise, they could have made a fortune.
Speaking of working ability, they were Master and Madam’s most capable attendants, better than any other household servant. If they had gone, they surely would have received the most money!
Unfortunately, precisely because they were Master and Madam’s capable attendants, Miss Zhao hadn’t taken them—being a junior after all, she wouldn’t really pull away all the people serving her elders.
Alas.
Chu Lan felt his ears must be mistaken—he seemed to hear sighs from these two servants before him.
This was truly infuriating! Chu Zhao was using money to buy people’s hearts. No wonder his beloved maid, even after being captured, refused to sneak back!
Jiang Shi clutched her hands, turning her palms over and over, calculating how much money was earned, then calculating that it was all distributed. Her breathing alternated between rapid and choked. She didn’t even know what to say, only murmuring: “She’s really willing to part with it! How can she bear to part with it!”
Perhaps—she should take over after all. She was, after all, the mistress of Chu Garden.
……
……
Qi Leyun lifted the carriage curtain to look ahead, her expression somewhat surprised. She said to Chu Tang: “There are so many people by your house.”
Chu Tang also looked out and nodded: “Not surprising.”
It had spread throughout the city. Along their way here, they had heard “Small Spring-Gazing Garden Literary Gathering” mentioned several times.
“So where do we enter from?” Qi Leyun asked. “Chu Garden also has a gate on this side.”
Chu Tang thought for a moment: “We’re here to see the literary gathering, so let’s enter from the Chu Garden side.”
Another girl was somewhat worried, watching the scholars coming and going: “What if they don’t let us in?”
The Third Prince’s Spring-Gazing Garden Literary Gathering didn’t allow women. Even the two princesses arguing with the Third Prince couldn’t change that.
Chu Tang laughed: “What are you thinking? People come here precisely to compete with women. How could they not let women enter?”
That’s right. The girls all laughed. How confused. So they got out of the carriage and, led by Chu Tang, walked in.
Outside Chu Garden’s gate were ten servants responsible for guiding people and checking—not like the Spring-Gazing Garden Literary Gathering which required demonstrating talent before entry, but asking for names was still necessary.
Seeing Chu Tang, the servants recognized her and quickly bowed: “Miss Tang.”
Because they were women, other scholars entering and exiting also looked over. However, they said nothing.
Chu Tang said: “I’m just showing everyone around casually. You don’t need to pay attention to me.”
That servant hesitated briefly, then indeed stopped attending to her, saying with a smile: “Miss Tang knows the way, so I won’t guide you.” Having said this, he left Chu Tang and hurried off busily.
More work meant more money. Guiding one less person meant one less share of money—Miss Tang was family, so money couldn’t be charged.
Though Chu Tang indeed hadn’t planned to have servants attend to her, she hadn’t expected the servant to be so unceremonious, really abandoning her the moment he said he would.
A girl beside her laughed softly: “Ah Tang, this doesn’t even seem like your home anymore.”