"Waiter, do you have any superior rooms?"
Nan Shiying turned and asked the waiter.
The waiter, suppressing his fear, stammered, "Yes, but there's only one left!"
As he spoke, a guest staying in a superior room hurriedly said, "We are willing to give up our room." They were afraid Nan Shiying might kill them over a room.
Nan Shiying felt a bit bewildered. Did these people have something wrong with them?
"No need!"
She refused everyone's good intentions and had the waiter open a superior room.
"Young master, little miss, this way please!"
Under the innkeeper's angry glare, the waiter gave up the idea of feigning a sprained leg to have the innkeeper lead this harbinger of doom to the guest room. He took a deep breath, walked to Nan Shiying's side, and made a gesturing invitation to Nan Shiying and Xiao Man.
Nan Shiying nodded and followed the waiter to the guest room.
Nan Shiying's figure disappeared at the end of the stairs, and the group of guards dressed in black brocade also followed. Kuang Dao sat down on the ground with a thud and let out a relieved cry, "Damn, that scared the life out of me!"
The lobby, which had been as silent as cicadas in winter, finally regained its liveliness. The hearts of everyone who had been suspended in mid-air finally landed. They all looked as if they had just crawled out of the water, dripping wet and covered in cold sweat.
...
After dismissing the waiter, Nan Shiying leaned back on the soft couch. Xiao Man took off her shoes and climbed onto the couch, sitting behind her and massaging her shoulders. "Miss, are we not continuing our journey?"
Nan Shiying put a hand on Xiao Man's and pulled her closer, gesturing to the other side of the couch.
Xiao Man was sometimes obedient and sometimes stubborn. She pursed her lips and stopped massaging her shoulders, instead beginning to massage her legs.
Xiao Man's strength was just right, neither too heavy nor too light. Xiao Man had never served anyone before. Back at the Nan Manor, Nan Shiying had never treated her as a maid, but rather as a sister.
However, this child, after experiencing so much, had become more thoughtful and prone to overthinking. She had learned a lot from Lü Wan and others when she was at the Qing Yuan Pavilion, and she served people with a semblance of skill. Just as Nan Shiying didn't want her hands stained with blood but ultimately respected her choice, Nan Shiying remained silent for a moment before letting her be.
"I'm tired!"
Nan Shiying lowered her eyes, resting her elbow on the armrest of the couch, her hand clenched into a fist supporting her temple, feeling drowsy.
Xiao Man wanted to say something but hesitated. Nan Shiying lifted her eyelids to look at her. "Wan Ku Lou won't come looking for trouble. With Gong Zixun dead, Wan Ku Lou's priority is to stabilize internal affairs. As for revenge, that will be for the new楼主 to handle after they take office."
"So there's no need to rush our journey."
Xiao Man understood. She was just young and inexperienced, unable to see through some matters. But after Nan Shiying spoke, she also understood and felt as though she had asked a foolish question.
Nan Shiying remembered the nightmare she had after being hypnotized. It was a nightmare buried deep in her heart. She recalled that Xiao Man had previously said that she saw strange scenes after being hypnotized. So, for her, what was the deep-seated nightmare?
"What did you see after you were hypnotized?" Nan Shiying asked casually.
Xiao Man looked up at her. She still looked listless, her long eyelashes drooping to her eye tails, deepening her eye contours and giving her a sense of decadent beauty. Xiao Man always had an illusion that the person in front of her was just someone who looked exactly like Miss. She really couldn't connect the current Miss with the Miss from before.
They were two different people!
But Miss knew about the past. Those were things that no one else would know besides her, Miss, and Grandmother. So she was Miss!
Her topic shifted rather quickly. Xiao Man愣了一下 (was stunned for a moment) before recalling the scene she had seen at the time, still feeling lingering fear. She began to describe everything she had witnessed.
Nan Shiying's expression was a little off, but it was obscured by the light, so Xiao Man didn't notice.
If her nightmare was a sense of fragmentation and loneliness mixed with past and present lives, then Xiao Man's nightmare was more like two different souls growing within one body, with another trying its best to replace Xiao Man and occupy this body.
Nan Shiying didn't know if her understanding was correct or not, but she felt a sense of worry.
She raised her hand, rubbed Xiao Man's head, and smiled, "What a strange and bizarre dream!"
Xiao Man nodded repeatedly. "Miss, you have no idea. At that time, when that person who looked exactly like me grabbed my ankle and dragged me to the bottom of the lake, I didn't think of resisting at all. I felt particularly calm, and even had the thought, 'Ah, it's nice to sink to the bottom of the lake like this.'"
Nan Shiying's expression worsened!
She rubbed Xiao Man's head with a little more force, messing up the little bun on her head.
"Miss!"
Xiao Man pouted in dissatisfaction.
Nan Shiying sent her to find the waiter and have the inn prepare dinner. Ever since the two of them entered the room, the previously full inn now only had the stubborn Kuang Dao besides them.
However, the innkeeper dared not show any displeasure. Upon learning that the harbinger of doom wanted to dine, he personally went to the kitchen to supervise the cooks, fearing that a cook might lose his mind and put 'white food' into the meal.
The food at the inn couldn't compare to the food at the manor, but it had its own unique flavor.
Xiao Man looked at the silver chopsticks in her hand. They were carved with silver, much more exquisite and high-class than the chopsticks in the lobby. As soon as she held the chopsticks, Nan Shiying sensed the difference. These were chopsticks that could be used to test for poison. Nan Shiying didn't pay much attention to it. After the meal, she asked for a tub of bathwater, took a hot bath, and then comfortably lay down on the bed.
She lay in the inner side, letting Xiao Man sleep on the outer side.
They slept soundly. In the morning, after Xiao Man helped Nan Shiying wash up, she opened the door. The waiter was standing at the corner of the stairs. Seeing the two of them come out of the room, he quickly went to greet them. "Did the young master and miss sleep well last night? Would you like to have breakfast now?"
Nan Shiying nodded. The waiter led them downstairs and then ran to the kitchen.
The lobby, which had been bustling with activity yesterday, was now so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. The bodies had been cleaned up, and the broken tables and chairs had been replaced with brand-new ones. Nan Shiying looked around and saw a burly figure in a corner of the lobby.
Kuang Dao had heard the sounds from behind for a long time but hadn't dared to turn around.
Seeing him burying his head in a steamed bun, Nan Shiying didn't disturb him and sat down on a chair, pulling up her clothes.
After finishing their meal, Xiao Man took out a gold ingot from her embrace and threw it to the waiter. The waiter, trembling with fear and awe, held the heavy gold lump. His waist was bent as if carrying a mountain, and his legs trembled uncontrollably. When he spoke, even his teeth chattered, "It is our inn's honor to have the young master and young lady stay with us. How can we possibly accept your money..."
"Hmm?" Xiao Man glared, not letting the waiter finish his sentence, and rebuked, "What do you mean? Do you think my brother and I are freeloading hooligans?"
"No, no, I absolutely have no such intention, absolutely not!"
The waiter's legs went weak, and he almost knelt on the ground.
These two were harbingers of doom who didn't even spare Wan Ku Lou. If they were angered, killing him would be as easy as crushing an ant.
He almost knelt and begged for mercy.
"Alright, alright, I was just joking with you. Look at you!"
Xiao Man disdainfully helped him up and then waved goodbye to him. "Waiter, goodbye~"
The morning sun cast her silhouette infinitely long, and the waiter, watching the shadow creep to his feet, silently took a step back.
Then, he bowed deeply to Xiao Man.