Who was this woman? She was Madam Wei Lianhua, the Fourth Concubine of the household. Having been the spoiled only daughter of a decent family, she had entered this new life expecting the same constant admiration. When she didn't get it, her pride festered into pure pettiness.
Seeing Zhao Lingxi standing there, a cruel thought crossed Madam Wei's mind. Let's see you act high and mighty now.
She glared at the young girl. "Lingxi," she sneered, using the familiar name to show her disrespect. "You should be grateful the Master is so merciful. A killer like you should be in chains. Pah!"
Her voice dripped with the contempt she felt in her heart.
Zhao Lingxi didn't flinch. Her face was a mask of ice and she remained calm as if whatever the woman was spouting had nothing to do with her.
Liu Ruyan, her loyal maid, took a furious step forward. "Madam Wei! How dare you..."
"Ruyan." Zhao Lingxi's voice was quiet, but it cut through the air like a whip. She didn't even look at her maid. "Silence."
Liu Ruyan froze, her face a mixture of anger and hurt, but she obediently lowered her head and stepped back.
Madam Wei's smile widened. She savored this victory. "Smart girl. You finally learned some sense after ten years. You should teach your dog to heel as well."
She looked around at the watching servants, her expression triumphant, before turning back to Zhao Lingxi. "The Master is waiting for you in the main hall. Don't keep him waiting. He has... little patience for you as it is."
With that final, poisonous remark, Madam Wei turned and swept away, her laughter tinkling mockingly in the evening air. The servants, seeing the show was over, also dispersed, not even bothering with polite bows.
Zhao Lingxi stood still for a long moment, her back straight as a rod. Little Zhao Han peeked out from behind her, his small hand clutching her sleeve. "Elder Sister...?" he whispered, his voice trembling.
That single whisper seemed to break her trance. She looked down at him, and for a fleeting second, her icy mask melted into something pained and tender. "Go back to your studies, Xiao Han," she said softly. "I must see Father."
A tough-looking older maid appeared from a side corridor, her face stern. She grabbed Zhao Han's arm. "Come along, Young Master. You shouldn't be here."
She pulled him away without a single glance at Zhao Lingxi. The boy looked back over his shoulder, his eyes wide with worry, until he was dragged out of sight.
Zhao Lingxi watched him go, her expression once again unreadable. Then, without a word to her three companions, she turned and walked alone toward the main hall, a solitary figure against the sprawling, hostile estate.
A young kitchen maid, her apron stained, scurried up to them. "You're for the Clear Frost Garden. Follow me. And don't touch anything," she snapped, before turning and walking quickly.
The message was clear: they were beneath even the lowliest servants.
They picked up their pitiful bags and followed. Liu Ruyan walked with her head held high, but tears of humiliation welled in her eyes. Yet, Lan Yue noticed that every time a particularly harsh whisper reached them, Liu Ruyan's shoulders would tense, and she would subtly shift away from Lan Yue, as if putting physical distance between herself and the source of her misery.
... What's up with her? She didn't do anything!
Chen Mei simply trembled, clutching her small bundle to her chest.
They arrived at the farthest, most dilapidated corner of the estate. The 'Clear Frost Garden' was more of a storage shed than a residence. The gate was rotting, the garden was a jungle of weeds, and the windows of the small house were covered in grime.
Such an elegant name given to some run down building that looked like it might actually collapse while they were inside.
"The well is out back. It might be dry," the kitchen maid said with a smirk. "Do you know? No one's lived here since the last madam went mad and died. Fitting, isn't it?" She laughed and walked away, leaving them in the crushing silence.
Chen Mei burst into tears. "We're going to die here! This place is haunted!"
Liu Ruyan sank onto a broken step, her defiance finally crumbling. She didn't look at Lan Yue. "There's no one. No one at all on our side," she muttered, feeling lost. "I was not expecting this kind of welcome."
Lan Yue looked at the despair on their faces and then at the overwhelming mess around them. A deep anger began to simmer in her chest. This wasn't just neglect; it was deliberate cruelty. They were being thrown away like garbage.
But she was Bethany. And Bethany had never backed down from a challenge, not even when faced with hideous monsters from her world.
She walked to the center of the weed-choked yard, put her hands on her hips, and let out a long breath.
"Okay," she said, her voice firm. "Listen up."
Liu Ruyan and Chen Mei looked at her, but where Chen Mei's gaze was lost, Liu Ruyan's was guarded and cold.
"This?" Lan Yue said, gesturing to the ruin around them. "This is nothing. This is just dirt and broken wood. The real problem isn't this house. The real problem is that they think they've already won. They think we're beaten."
She picked up a fallen branch and snapped it in half. "They want us to cry. They want us to feel sorry for ourselves. So, we're not going to give them the satisfaction."
She tossed the broken branch aside. "First, we clean. We clean until this place is spotless. Then, we make it safe. Then, we make it ours."
Liu Ruyan finally spoke, her voice flat. "And why should we listen to you? How do we know you're not making things worse?"
The challenge hung in the air. Chen Mei looked back and forth between them, frightened by the new tension.
Lan Yue met Liu Ruyan's stare without flinching. "You don't," Lan Yue said simply.
"But right now, I'm the only one with a plan. You can sit on that step and wait for the Young Miss to return to this filth, or you can help me make it slightly less miserable for her. Your loyalty is to her, isn't it? So prove it. Stop sulking and start sweeping."
The direct hit on her loyalty made Liu Ruyan flinch. She glared at Lan Yue with pure, undiluted hatred when Chen Mei wasn't looking, but she also slowly, stiffly, stood up. She would do it for the Young Miss, not for this strange maid who seemed to harbor ill intentions towards her mistress.
"Fine," Liu Ruyan bit out.
"Okay then!" Lan Yue clapped her hands. "Let's get to work."