When Anning opened her eyes the next morning, the first thing she felt wasn't relief.
But rather, all she could feel was pain. The same place Wanqing had struck the night before still stung. Her back ached from sleeping on the hard floor without anything soft, and even as she took in a deep breath, it felt as if her ribs had suddenly gone stiff.
She let out a small groan, pressing her palm gently against her cheek.
"I can't believe this..." She muttered under her breath.
All she had done was show a little concern and a bit of pity. And for that, she got slapped.
Her lips curled downward in annoyance.
"And besides, a little sass never killed anyone." She added, her voice low as she slowly pushed herself up from the floor.
Her muscles protested immediately, but she ignored it, dragging herself to her feet. She rubbed her eyes, stretching her arms as she got rid of any trace of sleep. Then, she glanced around the room.
Thankfully, the mistress wasn't there.
Perfect.
That alone made her tensed shoulders relax. She walked toward the window pulling the curtains open in one smooth motion.
The morning sunlight spilled into the room, soft and definitely refreshing. A gust of cool breeze followed, lifting a few strands of silver hair away from her face.
Outside, tall palm trees swayed lazily with the wind, they'd leaves rustling softly. The sky seemed slightly dark but still held some bright shades of blue, it seemed almost too peaceful compared to everything she had been through.
Anning exhaled slowly, allowing herself to calm down even for a little bit. For a moment, just one sad moment, everything felt... perfect.
"You're up? I thought you'd be dead by now."
A voice came from behind her, making Anning flinch. She turned around swiftly taking a step backwards.
Her eyes widened slightly as they came to settle on Wanqing, who stood a few steps away, looking as calm as ever.
She was dressed in a black silk hanfu; the fabric looked like it had been dyed in oil, outlining every part of her body. Her hair had been styled into a half bun, while the rest of her hair cascaded down her shoulders. The dark waves of her hair caught the morning light, just enough to make them glitter.
Anning found herself staring for a second longer than she intended.
She looks...
Her brows drew together slightly.
Annoyingly good.
The thought irritated her more than it should have. How could someone who is cold and unreasonable be blessed with such a look?
She quickly schooled her expression, forcing a small smile as she lowered her head.
"Good morning, miss."
Wanqing's gaze lingered on Anning's face, taking in the faint mark and swell left from the slap. It was then she finally heard Anning speaking to her and just nodded.
"Once we leave this room, you are to go find the head maid." Wanqing said calmly, turning slightly toward the bronze mirror in the corner. "She will assign your duties. Aside from attending to me, you will assist with household work."
Anning frowned, at this point, wasn't she getting cheated?
"If I'm supposed to serve you and also do housework," she began carefully, the irritation in her voice was hard to miss. "Do I get paid for the extra work?"
Wanqing stopped what she was doing and then glanced over her shoulder.
"No." She stated simply.
"And what do you mean by no?" Anning asked once more.
"You are my slave," Wanqing continued, she sounded almost indifferent. "I will use you however I see fit."
The moment she finished speaking, she allowed the word to linger for a while before turning back to what she was doing.
As if she hadn't just said something that would've started a fight, especially with Anning.
"Finish your tasks before sunset," she added. "You will be accompanying me somewhere."
She paused briefly.
"Do I make myself clear?"
Anning pressed her lips into a thin line. There were a hundred things she wanted to say.
Especially about yesterday. That stupid slap and now where they'd be heading to at sunset.
But she said nothing.
"Crystal clear," she said instead.
"As a slave, you don't say crystal clear. It's 'I understand, mistress'" Wanqing explained.
"But miss, I clearly explained to you what a mistress means last time. Are you really okay with me calling you that?" Anning asked, feigning concern.
"Do as you're told." Wanqing applied a faint tint to her lips before turning around and walking to the door.
Anning let out a soft chuckle as she followed closely behind her.
The moment they stepped into the hallway, that peaceful atmosphere changed instantly. Maids that had been moving through the corridors immediately stopped and bowed their heads as Wanqing approached.
"Good morning, young miss." They said in unison.
The respect and caution in their voice made Anning feel nothing but pity for them. After all, who wouldn't be intimidated by this block of ice?
Wanqing didn't even acknowledge any of them. She just walked past them as though they weren't even standing there.
Anning glanced back at the long line of maids, with a frown on her face. That was just downright...rude?
But strangely enough, none of the maids seemed to care. They kept their heads bowed until Wanqing had passed, then straightened and continued whatever they'd been doing... as if nothing happened.
Anning shook her head slightly, finding this place to be absolutely weird.
They walked for a while before Wanqing finally stopped in front of a set of doors and standing beside those doors was Lanzhin.
The head maid's gaze moved to Anning first, her brows lifting slightly, but she didn't comment on it.
Instead, she lowered her head and said, "Good morning, young miss."
Wanqing hummed in response and it was at this point Anning actually noticed, Wanqing chose to ignore the maids.
"You are to assign her to additional tasks while I'm out and make sure she stays out of trouble." She said, her tone leaving no room for arguments.
Lanzhin looked slightly taken aback by the order, but quickly nodded.
"Yes, young miss."
She stepped forward then, sliding the door open. Wanqing didn't move immediately.
She stood there for a few seconds, her gaze fixed on whatever was inside the room before she finally stepped in.
Anning on the other hand remained where she was. She had clearly seen Wanqing hesitate before stepping in, was she supposed to follow?
She looks at Lanzhin, hoping to get some sort of advice but all she got was a sharp glare.
A warning and Anning, she didn't need to be told twice.
She stepped into the room, keeping her gaze fixed to the floor just like Wanqing told her.
But that didn't stop her from looking around the large room. At the center of the room was a long wooden table, polished that one could even see their own reflection.
Cushions had been arranged neatly around it for seating, and the surface was covered with a spread of food that made Anning's eyes widen slightly.
There were more dishes than what she could count at a glance, and they even looked better than what she ate last night.
Meat, vegetables, soup, rice, smoked fish.
All arranged perfectly.
Around the room, maids stood at attention in the corners, their presence wasn't noticeable and if you stepped into the room without paying attention to your surroundings one wouldn't even notice the..
Anning quickly took it all in before forcing herself to look away. That was when she noticed the gazes that were fixed solely on her.
Her body stiffened slightly as she looked toward the long table. Four people were currently seated, including Wanqing.
Besides Wanqing was the brown haired girl from before—Yufang—her expression still as mocking as ever.
Across them sat a woman dressed elegantly, her presence dominated the room without effort. Her deep red eyes were fixed directly on Anning.
At the head of the table sat an older man. His long black hair had small streaks of white, his posture remained straight.
Unlike the others, he wasn't even looking at Anning at all, he just continued eating as though she didn't exist.
"Who are you?"