HThe moment Lin Anning finished speaking, she was still caught between disbelief and admiration, when the door of the small room was suddenly pushed open without warning.
"Ah!" She yelped softly, turning around as quickly as she could. Her body reacted before her mind could catch up.
She clutched the thin disposable undergarment closer to herself, desperately trying to cover whatever she could.
Lanzhin stepped in first, followed by a maid whose damp hair clung to her shoulders, her face held a kind of freshness that indicated she just finished showering.
Whatever privacy Anning thought she had was instantly thrown out of the window and she could only stare at them with flushed cheeks.
"We heard you scream from outside. Besides, what is taking you so long?" Lanzhin said, her sharp voice cutting through the awkward atmosphere. "You do know we don't have all day."
The other maidbowed slightly toward Lanzhin, then nodded at Anning. Although her gaze lingered for quite a while making Anning feel uncomfortable, before she quietly moved to a corner of the room to put on her clothes.
Anning remained where she was, her grip around the thin fabric tightened as she waited. Waited for them to leave.
But Lanzhin quietly moved around the room, looking for something while the other maid seemed entirely occupied.
Her heart raced against her chest, loud enough that she could actually hear it. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
It's fine, we're all women here. This is completely normal.
To other people, this seemed utterly normal. But to Anning, it was nothing but pure madness.
Still, she could stand here forever.
She let out a small sigh, then lowered the undergarment just a bit. Even now, she just forced herself to move as she finally slipped into it.
The fabric in her hand was light and almost transparent, rubbing against her skin in a way that made her feel sensitive. She adjusted it a few times over her body, but it was tight around her chest area and her hip, but she couldn't bring herself to actually look down.
She kept her gaze fixed on a particular wall, not wanting to meet Lanzhin or the other maid's gaze.
Just in a corner of the room, Lanzhin had been momentarily distracted, her thoughts drifting elsewhere, till her gaze finally came to settle on Anning.
But then, she froze.
It wasn't how curvy Anning was that caught her attention, but the scars that were scattered over her skin.
Some looked old and slightly faded, while others even looked fresh. Some of the scars looked like they had been left behind by whips, uneven marks that could only come from blades and just on one of her shoulders sat a jagged scar.
This one was even more horrendous than the rest. It had about six deep lines layered across each other.
'Who could have done this to such a girl?' Lanzhin wondered inwardly. But at last, she said nothing about it.
Anning, unaware of how Lanzhin was looking at her, finally managed to calm herself down. Then, she turned to where Lanzhin was standing and gazed at her with a small, cautious smile.
"I-i'm done." She said,
Lanzhin nodded back at her without responding, then she proceeded to step out of the enclosed space with Anning following closely behind.
The warmth of the bathhouse enveloped her once more as she stepped out, the steam making the place seem a bit blurry. Lanzhin guided her towards one of the empty pools, explaining briefly the process of how she would do things. Although, she sounded really strict and firm...it made Anning feel glad that she even considered doing this.
Anning watched her seriously, she got lost a few times but still did her best to follow alone. Once Lanzhin stepped aside, she took over.
She sat on a small stool placed at the far edge of the hall. Then she grabbed a small bottle filled with lightly scented soap, poured it into her palm before rubbing her hands together and working it into her hair.
With how she scrubbed, the foam built slowly and as she rinsed it away, she watched the water carry away thick layers of dirt and grime that had clung stubbornly to her hair, making it almost unbearable.
Because of how dirty she was, she had to wipe down her body before actually stepping into the pool. As she vigorously wiped down, the water she was using slowly became clearer and her skin felt smoother.
By the time she finally stepped into the warm pool, she had already wiped off most of the dirt, since Lanzhin had warned her not to cloud the water with dirt. The heat sank into her body immediately, loosening the tension in her muscles.
She let out a sigh. For a moment, she simply considered this her resting, even if it was just for a second.
As she sat in the pool, she was completely oblivious to the glances that were being thrown her way. The other maids noticed that once cleaned up, she looked oddly different.
By the time Anning finished, she stepped out of the pool, reaching for the towel she had brought with her and drying herself off as best as she could.
Lanzhin, who was also then taking her bath, calmly approached her.
"Hurry. The mistress and master will be home soon."
Anning paused slightly, her eyebrows raising in confusion.
What did that have to do with her?
That response was just at the top of her tongue, but she instantly stopped herself.
If she continued giving sarcastic replies and defying people higher than her like this...what would happen?
Her grip on her towel tightened slightly. Wouldn't that just get her killed?
The thought lingered in her mind longer than she had expected. And if she does die again... would she even get another chance?
She pressed her lips into a thin line as she stared at Lanzhin. She didn't want to stay here but that doesn't mean she wants to disappear either.
"... Understood."