It was finally finished.
After spending almost two weeks working on the nine-tailed fox embroidery, he spent an additional hour poring over the details, making sure that he did not miss on any imperfection.
Embroidery was the one oga skill that his mother taught him, in the hope that he would one day be able to make his own wedding robes.
It turned out that the first wedding robes he crafted would be dedicated to another couple unrelated to him.
The bittersweet feeling washed over him, and he let himself be carried away by the tide.
Oh, well.
After completing one last round of inspection on the embroidery, Liu Chengjiu wrapped the wedding robe carefully and placed it in a beautiful box he procured with his first week’s salary.
Afterward, he handed it over to his younger brother, who was more than happy to pay Shuiran Palace a visit one more ti.
Jiang Rufeng was a good person.
He not only provided a good position for Liu Chengjiu within his palace, but also arranged for Liu Chengyun to study alongside other alphas at the Crystal Jade Pavilion under the Grand Tutor’s guidance.
This way, if one day they decided to return to Wuyang Palace, it was not impossible for Liu Chengyun to take up a good position within the palace and marry a good wife from a good family.
Liu Chengjiu was content with everything in his current life.
Almost everything.
"Liu Chengjiu."
When he heard his na being called, Liu Chengjiu turned his head and his gaze landed on a sour-looking maid, who stood at the door with her hands propped against her waist.
It was Maid He, his superior.
"Are you done with your side job?" she snarled. "If yes, maybe it’s ti to roll up your sleeves and get on with your main job."
"Yes, Senior He."
Maid He, who had been working for five years under Jiang Rufeng, was effectively Liu Chengjiu’s senior. When Jiang Rufeng handed Liu Chengjiu over to her, she was all sweet and accommodating.
"Little Brother Liu, You can call Big Sister He," she chirped ecstatically at that ti. "We are all sisters and brothers here. Don’t worry, I am going to take very good care of you."
Liu Chengjiu, who had gone through a lot of hardships in his life and t a lot of horrible people along the way -- most of them ironically hailed from his own clan --, only dared to accept Maid He’s kind words with a pinch of salt.
His instincts proved to be true.
Maid He’s deanor changed drastically as soon as the Imperial Consort left.
Suddenly, it was offensive to refer to her as a "Big Sister He", because she should only be referred to as "Senior He".
Maid He took very good care of Liu Chengjiu indeed. She made sure that Liu Chengjiu finished not only his workload but also half of her workload every day. The other half was handled by another maid who entered the palace only a year earlier than Liu Chengjiu. Her na was Su Liyan, and she was an oga from the tortoise clan.
Su Liyan was the happiest person to have Liu Chengjiu around, because before Liu Chengjiu showed up, she was the sole target of bullying for Maid He. The other maids kept both eyes and their lips shut, for fear of earning Maid He’s wrath.
With Liu Chengjiu around, at least she didn’t have to suffer alone. Her workload also decreased substantially.
Liu Chengjiu specifically asked Jiang Rufeng for two hours every day to work on his embroidery during the day. In addition, he promised to work two hours extra after dinner ti, so that he did not end up inconveniencing anyone, particularly Maid He.
Maid He was unhappy with this arrangent, but Jiang Rufeng had already given Liu Chengjiu his permission, so she could not do anything about it.
All she could do was lurk around Liu Chengjiu every day, making sure that the latter did not take even a minute longer than two hours every day to work on his "side job".
It was one hour prior to dinner ti.
Most maids had already finished the majority of their daily work, save for Liu Chengjiu and Su Liyan, of course.
Today, the two of them were tasked with cleaning the chamber pots. Su Liyan had wanted to finish as soon as possible, but Liu Chengjiu asked her to wait for him until his two-hour break ended. He didn’t want Su Liyan to do the horrible job without him. And for a good reason too, because those lords and ladies might sll as fragrant as a thousand flowers, but what ca out of their rears slled like three-day vomit no less.
"Huekksssss...!!!"
One step into the room sufficed to make Su Liyan bolt outside again to throw up her entire stomach content.
"Ahhhhh~ I can’t do it, don’t make do it," she cried out as she hugged the withering willow tree outside of the room.
"It’s alright, I can rinse them off on my own. Help with drying and perfuming, will you?"
The nobles liked their pots not only clean but also fragrant.
Liu Chengjiu rolled his sleeves and grabbed the first chamber pot.
Su Liyan’s eyes shone like she just caught sight of her savior.
"You can? But wait, no, that won’t be fair!"
Wolves had a keen sense of sll. If she, a tortoise, couldn’t handle the sll, imagine how horrifying it would be for a wolf!
"Don’t worry about it," Liu Chengjiu casually answered as he poured the first load into a huge, empty basin. "I have a particularly strong stomach."
"..."
Su Liyan wanted to help, but the sll was too strong for her to handle. In the end, she silently did what Liu Chengjiu asked her to do.
Since he was working alone to clean out the stall, it naturally took him more than an hour to complete.
"Go ahead and have dinner first," he told the maid, but she shook her head fervently.
"I can’t leave you here alone!"
In the end, they worked throughout dinner ti.
Liu Chengjiu was just wondering whether the other maids cared to leave so crumbs behind for them when Maid He’s thunderous voice bood behind them.
"What the hell are you two still doing here???"
Neither oga had an answer to give, so Maid He continued bellowing, "Quick, quick, clean up, several important guests have co to visit!"
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Author’s note : Heya everyone~
Please join at patreon @LuShui for BL reviews, recomndations, and my newest work (◍•ᴗ•◍)❤
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