Chapter 33: Remove it
Anning’s hand beside her body curled into fists before she could stop herself. She absolutely didn’t want to be ordered around, not after everything that had happened today.
She already understood where she stood in this place as a slave, maid or even someone’s property... Whatever title these people deemed fit to call her, but none of them sounded pleasant to her.
But like people say, you just have to accept things and move on. She had already accepted things to some extent but Wanqing kept throwing orders at her every few minutes and it was becoming increasingly annoying.
"Han Luo, your job comes first. Do not forget that"
The frown on Anning’s face deepened at those words, her gaze remained fixed on Wanqing’s back. The woman didn’t even bother glancing at her, even though she actually said something. She just turned and continued walking down the hallway as if ordering people around was as natural as breathing.
Anning bit on the nail of her thumb, her eyes narrowing at Wanqing’s fingers.
One day. Just one day she would make sure to shove her shoe down Wanqing’s throat. Even with this thought in mind, she knew dreams would always remain dreams.
Han Luo let out a small sigh. He turned, flashed her a small smile before continuing after Wanqing. "Come on."
Anning stomped her foot lightly in frustration but still found herself hurrying after them.
The hallways of the Yun residence were surprisingly empty compared to the bustling atmosphere outside. Considering the amount of carriages and guests that had arrived, she expected to see servants rushing around with trays in hand and nobles that had formed some sort of clique wandering through every corner of the hall.
Instead, she only got to see a few maids who occasionally walked past them with lowered heads. Some moved quietly from place to place as though they had all been ordered beforehand not to make a single noise.
She glanced around curiously, opening her mouth to ask why this place felt so deserted. But when she remembered Wanqing’s earlier warning in the carriage, she ran a tongue over her lower lip and remained quiet.
Well, that was a first.
The three of them continued walking and since there was nothing to say or even do, Anning began counting inwardly to distract herself.
’One. Two. Three. Four. Five... Fifteen
By the time she reached seventy, they finally stopped. Anning raised her head and on seeing the door in front of her, her eyes widened slightly.
The doors before them were massive. Dark polished wood that stretched above them, with small petal like carvings on the side. Even the handles looked expensive as they gleamed beneath the lantern’s light.
Rich people truly enjoyed showing off. But naive Anning had no idea it wasn’t really about showing off at all. When people spent their lives worrying about survival, luxury looked excessive. But for those born with everything, beautiful things were simply normal. They bought things because... they could.
The two guards standing on either side of the entrance immediately stepped forward and slowly pulled the huge door open just as Wanqing took a step forward.
The maid bowed once and decided to take her leave but Anning turned to the maids, smiled lightly at her and then muttered a small, "Thank you."
The young girl blinked, looking a little surprised before lowering her head.
Han Luo gave her a small nod and our ice queen, Wanqing, didn’t even look at her.
Anning stared at them briefly. At times like this, Han Luo and Wanqing felt strangely alike. Neither of them liked talking but somehow managed to communicate what they thought through their expressions.
Wanqing stepped into the hall first, with Han luo following right behind her. Anning was just about to walk in too when a hand suddenly grabbed her by the wrist and yanked her backward.
She stumbled a little before swiftly turning to face the bastard that had just touched her.
One of the guard’s dressed in armour stared down at her with a neutral expression. "Only invited guests and their warriors may enter. Maids..." He paused, his hair lingering on her hair. "Or slaves are to remain at the back of the residence."
Anning blinked, "Huh?"
The guard rolled his eyes at her expression and said softly, "I’m only doing my job."
"I didn’t say you weren’t doing your job." She said with a frown. "But why can’t I just stay here?"
The man looked mildly offended at her tone and before Anning could continue speaking, movement from inside the hall caused her to pause.
Wanqing had turned around, her eyes first fell on Anning’s face before slowly traveling down her body and toward her wrist that was being held by the guard.
The atmosphere seemed to change instantly. Anning couldn’t even explain why, but even the guard beside her had gone stiff.
Wanqing stared for a few moments before calmly saying, "Remove it."
She didn’t yell, but only the look she had in her eyes had the guard releasing Anning’s hand as if he had just been burnt.
Anning rubbed her wrist, absentmindedly staring at Gu Wanqing. She felt a strange warmth spread through her body and that had her frowning.
Because with everything that had happened today and in the past, she genuinely hadn’t expected Wanqing to stand up for her.
Not even a little.
The guard lowered his head as he spoke with a trembling voice, "Young miss Gu, I mean no disrespect. I was only informing—"
"Touching my maid wasn’t necessary."
The guard bowed even lower, "My apologies."
Anning glanced toward Wanqing, her gaze lingering for a few seconds. Maybe, just maybe this arrogant mistress of hers did have a heart.
It could be an extremely tiny one, but it was still a heart, right?
Wanqing didn’t look at her again. She simply turned toward Han Luo and said, "Take her where she’s supposed to stay and come back after that."
Han Luo frowned immediately. His eyes flickering briefly to the hall and then to Wanqing. He knew exactly what kind of people attended these gatherings.
Leaving the young miss alone and among all those nobles who enjoyed provoking others just to get what they want, felt wrong.
He looked at Wanqing and surprisingly, she was still as calm as usual.
Then he turned toward Anning. She was still glaring at the guard despite the fact the poor man had already released her wrist.
Between leaving Wanqing alone for a short while and allowing Anning to remain here long enough to start another argument, escorting Anning away felt like the safer option.
He let out a small sigh before finally nodding, "Understood."
