Half an hour later, Lan Fang still hadn't finished counting the clothes when Zhu Qing came in from outside the door.
She was holding a plate of fragrant but unidentified objects in her hands, and there were two old women following behind her, each also holding a plate.
After coming in, Zhu Qing put the plate on the table and motioned for the old women to put down their things.
Xie Fengran smelled the fragrance and came out from the inner chamber. Seeing the things on the table, she asked in surprise, "Why are there so many?"
"Your maid saw that both you and Sister Lan Fang wanted to eat, so I went to the garden to catch some more. I wanted to share them with the other sisters."
"..." Xie Fengran pointed at the plate, speechless for a moment. "You... you didn't catch all the sparrows, did you?"
Zhu Qing shook her head. "No, I didn't."
The sparrows were not roasted by the cook but deep - fried until they were crispy and fragrant, and they were very chewy when eaten.
Xie Fengran took one and told Lan Fang to take them out and distribute them. Zhu Qing stared longingly at the things in Lan Fang's hands, wishing she could carry them herself.
"Come on, stop looking. You can have my share."
"That's not appropriate!" Zhu Qing waved her hands quickly. Even if she didn't know the rules well, she knew there was a distinction between the master and the servant.
But Xie Fengran ignored her refusal and told her to close the door. "Go and move a stool here."
Zhu Qing obediently moved a small stool. Xie Fengran told her to sit down and stuffed a pair of chopsticks into her hand. "Eat. I have something to ask you."
Zhu Qing had been wanting to eat for a long time. Seeing that Xie Fengran really wanted her to eat, she thanked her and picked up one, slowly putting it to her mouth. "Ask, Miss."
"Yeah, it's nothing much. I just want to know what your daily life was like on the estate."
Zhu Qing swallowed the food in her mouth, thought for a while and said, "On the estate, your maid usually practiced martial arts. When I was a child, my senior brother would let me go out and play with the children nearby, but he didn't allow me to go out when I got a bit older."
"Why didn't he let you go out?"
Zhu Qing shook her head. "Senior brother didn't say. Usually, we didn't go out much. The estate was generally self - sufficient, and there were people who would bring us other things. The estate was very big, so we didn't have to go out."
"So you just practiced martial arts on the estate?"
"Right! Your maid started practicing martial arts as soon as I could remember. But senior brother doted on me and always secretly went easy on me behind Master's back. But later he watched me closely." As she was talking, Zhu Qing forgot to use the self - depreciating form of address. After realizing it, she stuck out her tongue and didn't dare to say more.
Xie Fengran thought that these people were definitely not ordinary guards.
She had seen Zhu Qing's skills. Even the head of the guards in the Marquis Mansion might not be able to defeat her.
Now it seemed that this group of guards was full of strange things.
The Dayue Dynasty had been established for more than two hundred years, and by the current emperor's generation, it had already had its ninth emperor. But these guards had been able to inherit their duties so diligently all this time. It was really a miracle.
They were alone, and even if the Marquis Mansion didn't use them, they were neither discouraged nor traitorous. They just lived quietly on the estate.
"Miss, if you're interested in the things on the estate, you might as well ask your maid's senior brother. He's the steward now. You'll definitely get the right answer if you ask him."
"Your senior brother?" A simple - looking young man appeared in Xie Fengran's mind. "What about your master?"
"Senior brother can already defeat Master, so Master doesn't manage things anymore."
Xie Fengran nodded. Seeing that Zhu Qing had already eaten three sparrows in such a short time, she coughed. "You go to the estate now and bring your senior brother to see me. Just bring him..." After thinking for a while, she said, "Bring him to the meeting hall in the outer courtyard. Later I'll tell Lan Fang. When you bring him back, wait for me there."
"Yes, Miss. Your maid will go right away."
Saying that, she got up and quickly went to find someone.
Zhu Qing could ride a horse. In just over an hour, she brought the man back.
Xie Fengran took Hexiang with her and told Lan Fang and Liuyi to stay. "I'm going to the front courtyard. If someone from grandmother's place comes to call me, you block them."
"Yes, Miss. Don't worry!"
Zhu Qing's senior brother was a tall and strong man in his twenties. Maybe because he had lived on the estate all year round, his skin was very dark.
The last time they met was at night, and Xie Fengran hadn't had a good look at this man. Seeing his skin color today, for some reason, she thought of Qin Junxing.
She remembered that the first time she saw the Prince in the Sun's Mansion, he had a wheat - colored complexion at that time. But in just over a month, he had become a bit fairer.
The air of killing that made people stay away from him had also taken on a bit of the aristocratic air, but he was still an unlikable person.
Xie Fengran curled her lips, shook her head, and threw this person out of her mind. Then she asked Zhu Qing's senior brother to sit down.
Coming straight to the point, she said, "I asked Zhu Qing to call you here today because I want to know how you've passed down your traditions on the estate all these years. I'm really curious about this."
Zhu Qing's senior brother scratched his head, glanced at Xie Fengran and quickly lowered his head. He said in a muffled voice, "This is our secret. Only the head of the family knows."
Xie Fengran took out the token of the head of the family and put it on the table. She tapped it and looked over, with a look in her eyes as if to say, "Now you can tell me, right?"
Zhu Qing's senior brother's eyes swept over the token. He wanted to say that this token had never been in the hands of a woman from the Xie family, but when he met Xie Fengran's eyes, he couldn't say it.
He looked at Zhu Qing beside him, gritted his teeth and said, "Why does the miss want to know? Your subordinates will swear to be loyal to the Marquis Mansion of the Defender of the Nation and will never betray it."
"Since you've asked this, I might as well tell you the truth." Xie Fengran reached out and picked up the token of the head of the family. Looking directly at the man opposite, she said, "Because you're going to work for me now. Naturally, I want to know if you'll be on my side."
"Is the miss doubting our loyalty?"
"I'm just curious!"
Xie Fengran didn't give in at all. Looking at Zhu Qing's senior brother, she said, "After all, the Marquis Mansion hasn't thought of using you for so many years. Now that it suddenly does, I'm sure not only I'm not confident, but you're also a bit nervous, right?"
"Your subordinates wouldn't dare. No matter whether we're used by the Marquis Mansion or not, your subordinates never dare to slack off for a moment."
"Of course I know this. After seeing Zhu Qing's skills, I can also guess a bit. But do you really only have one master from the Marquis Mansion?"
Zhu Qing's senior brother's expression immediately changed. He knelt down and said, "Please, miss, make a fair judgment. The Bloodthirsty Guards will be loyal to the Marquis Mansion for life and will never betray. Otherwise, we will surely fall into hell forever."
"Fall into hell forever?" Xie Fengran raised her eyebrows and continued to ask, "So according to what you said, everyone who joins you will remember this rule?"
"Right. Being loyal to the master is the most basic quality of the Bloodthirsty Guards."
Bloodthirsty Guards!
Xie Fengran silently repeated the name. Looking at the man on the ground, she said, "Get up. So you still won't tell me about your inheritance?"