Since You Have Nowhere to Go, Come to the Golden...

"What are you skulking about for? Come out." Zhou Yao spotted the hem of a skirt peeking out from behind the pillar and paused her work, watching with interest.

The moment she came out, she dropped to her knees, bowing her head in fear, not daring to meet Zhou Yao's gaze. "This... this servant is named Qing'er. I was originally a maid serving at Golden Curtain Terrace before. I know the layout of Golden Curtain Terrace very well, so perhaps I can be of use to you..."

Zhou Yao studied her with a lowered head, uncertain of her intentions.

"This servant has no other motives, only... only I wish to beg the noble lady to save my sister." Tears and snot streamed down her face as she wept pitifully.

"Before, when Sister Xiang'er was at Golden Curtain Terrace, she always targeted my sister and me. She was involved with the steward's boy, Xiao Lin, and every month she would steal our wages. Now my sister is gravely ill, and no one cares for her..." As if realizing what she had said, she quickly kowtowed and begged tearfully, "My sister is very sick. I beg you to save her. I am willing to be your servant for life, to work like an ox or a horse! Wuwu..."

"Why should I believe you?" Zhou Yao glanced at her sideways, her wariness growing. Before she could let her mind run wild, the woman kneeling at her feet rose and carefully tugged at the hem of Zhou Yao's robe.

"This servant's words are absolutely true. If the noble lady does not believe me, you may follow me to the back courtyard to see for yourself—though that place is filthy and might soil your garments..."

Her choked sobs seemed genuine, and after a moment's thought, Zhou Yao agreed.

Following Qing'er's direction, Zhou Yao and she wound their way along a long gravel path for quite some time until they reached a remote corner of Golden Curtain Terrace. What came into view was a badly rotted wooden door creaking and swaying in the breeze.

When Qing'er pushed it open, she had to steady it with her other hand, afraid the door might fall off and injure someone.

The roof of this room had a large gaping hole, which immediately reminded Zhou Yao of the days in the palace when she was bullied by the servants and dared not fight back.

Even without stepping inside, one could hear the coughing from within. Zhou Yao stopped in her tracks, staring blankly at the cramped, narrow room.

"Noble lady..." Qing'er reminded her carefully. "You are delicate and refined; you might not be able to bear it. Please stand farther away, lest you catch the sickness."

"How long have you been here?" Zhou Yao looked at a thick layer of dried straw spread across the courtyard, on which were scattered bits of discarded cloth that others had thrown away.

"Ever since Golden Curtain Terrace was investigated," Qing'er said, sniffling with her head bowed. "Noble lady, please be so kind as to summon a physician for us."

"Rise from the ground first." Zhou Yao reached up and plucked a hairpin from her head, then instructed Qing'er, "Convey my order: have them arrange for a guard right away, and go with you in the carriage to fetch a physician. All the medical expenses are to be sent to Qi Manor."

"This environment is not suitable for recovery. Once I have sorted out the other courtyards of Golden Curtain Terrace in a couple of days, you may move there." Even as she said this, she looked somewhat dazed, her fingers unconsciously rubbing the web between her thumb and forefinger on her other hand.

"Yes, yes!" Qing'er was so moved she moved to kneel and kowtow in gratitude, but Zhou Yao grabbed her arm. "Why aren't you going?"

Qing'er quickly scurried off toward the front hall of Golden Curtain Terrace. Zhou Yao did not follow; instead, she walked straight into the courtyard.

Though the courtyard was dilapidated, it had been kept clean and tidy. The leaky room was so small it could barely fit a crude bed—no room for even a table or a place to stand. It was a converted storage room they used for the two sisters to live in.

The elder sister lay sick in the inner room; that pile of straw must be where Qing'er slept.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

The room was too small for Zhou Yao to even stand inside, so she simply inspected it from outside. The person on the bed was pale as paper, in poor condition.

"Are you alright?" Zhou Yao looked at the patient on the bed with concern. Though calling it a bed was generous—it barely qualified.

"Get... out... cough, cough, cough." She coughed so much she couldn't speak, but still tried to shoo the outsider away, no doubt afraid of passing the illness on.

Zhou Yao nodded. Now that she roughly understood the situation, it would be easier to handle.

A guard soon came to report to Zhou Yao. He bowed respectfully and said, "Your Highness, the matters you entrusted to your subordinate have been handled. The two who were disrespectful to you earlier have been taken to the government office. Magistrate Zhao has also been informed; everything is being handled according to the law."

She waved her hand, signaling him to leave, but he did not obey and instead reminded her, "Your Highness, the master instructed me to remind you that your identity must never be revealed to others."

Zhou Yao shot him a sidelong glance, and before she could say anything, the guard quickly added, "It was your subordinate's impertinence..."

"If you know you talk too much, shut up!" Zhou Yao headed toward the front hall of Golden Curtain Terrace. "Prepare a horse. I'm going out of the city."

"Yes!"

At the Qi family's country estate.

Zhou Yao dismounted, presented her identity token, and entered the Qi estate with ease.

It was built in the style of a southern garden. Ever since His Majesty bestowed this estate upon the Qi clan, it had been renowned for its elegance.

That was why Zhou Yao had gone to the trouble of arranging for Ling Long to stay here back then. She had racked her brains over it, yet never imagined Ling Long would steal jewelry and sell it, even fleeing with the money. The wanted notice still hadn't turned up any trace of her.

If Ling Long managed to leave the city, the trouble would be endless...

As this thought crossed her mind, Zhou Yao raised her eyes and instructed the steward to summon the women she had redeemed from Qingyun Terrace.

Some of these women came from humble origins and had been forced into selling their bodies; some had been abducted and tricked; some had been sold by their husbands' families. There were all sorts of reasons.

The steward counted the people and bowed, saying, "Madam, everyone is present."

The word "Madam" startled Zhou Yao; she almost forgot her relationship with Qi Yanhan. Before outsiders, however, she had to put on a show.

"Very well, since everyone is here, you may go."

Zhou Yao looked at these women who had come out of Qingyun Terrace. After the place had been sealed off, these women would have been sold off as hard laborer slaves.

She had acted early enough to spare these poor women that suffering...

The women stood before her. Zhou Yao said nothing, but looked up and glanced at them, among whom was the woman she had spoken with that day. She picked up the tea that had been brewed on the table, lightly skimmed the foam, and took a sip.

"Since you've all come out of Qingyun Terrace, I won't keep you confined here forever."

She had a guard place the wooden box she had brought onto the table. Zhou Yao opened it and counted: there were twenty-six people in total, and the wooden box contained the deed of sale for each of these twenty-six women along with some money.

Their frail, delicate appearance was truly heart-wrenching—even Zhou Yao couldn't help but admire it.

"These are your sale deeds. Line up one by one and collect them from me shortly. After that, I'll give you two choices. One is to take your deed and leave. Out of sympathy, I'll give you a hundred coins to tide you over. Whether you return to your hometown, seek opportunities elsewhere, or get married—that's up to you. I have no say in it."

Zhou Yao held the copper coins in her hand, observing them as she spoke. "The other choice is to follow me. I'll provide you with a means of livelihood. Besides food, clothing, and lodging, you'll be paid according to your work each month. If you need to go out for weddings, funerals, or such matters, ask the head steward for leave in advance. If you want to quit, you can leave anytime. You'll also have eight days off each month."

Hearing this, they exchanged glances. The boldest-looking among them stepped forward first. "Why are you being so kind? Don't be a cat playing the mourner of a mouse. I don't believe a word you say. It's all sweet talk, just like those clients!"

Watching her feign composure, Zhou Yao didn't take the bait. She only lowered her head, flipping through the small stack of sale deeds, and asked, "What's your name?"

"My name is Su'er." She clutched her handkerchief and quickly walked up to Zhou Yao.

"What do you plan to do?" Zhou Yao looked at Su'er calmly, waiting for her choice.

Su'er was stunned by Zhou Yao's straightforwardness, staring blankly at her and forgetting to think. Just then, the woman Zhou Yao had spoken with that day stepped forward, tugged at Su'er's sleeve, and whispered something to her.

Su'er rolled her eyes, pushed her back, and announced, "I want to leave."

Zhou Yao took out Su'er's deed, counted out two hundred coins from the wooden box, and handed them to her together.

"Your deed says you're from Dunhuang. It's a long journey, so I'm giving you extra coins. If you spend them sparingly on the road, it should be enough. You may go now."

Su'er took the items, and tears immediately welled up in her eyes.

She hadn't expected Zhou Yao to actually give her the money. Gratefully, she kowtowed to Zhou Yao once and then left.

"Everyone else, line up. One at a time." Zhou Yao said gently to the rest. "If you get tired waiting, there are stools over there to rest on."

The next one was the woman who had just reminded Su'er. Zhou Yao looked up at her, waiting for her choice.

Zhou Yao genuinely admired her—she knew how to read the situation and was clever. If she had a sense of propriety and stayed honest and steady, Zhou Yao definitely wouldn't treat her poorly.

She smiled at her and said, "When I asked you that day whether you'd ever thought of redeeming yourself and earning a living by your skills, now you can give me your answer."

"This servant's name is Cui Wei. I come from a poor background and was sold to Qingyun Terrace by my elder brother." Cui Wei kept her head lowered, glancing up briefly to observe Zhou Yao. Then she bowed respectfully and said, "This servant is willing to follow the noble lady."

"Rise quickly." Zhou Yao helped Cui Wei up, found her deed, and set it aside. "Go wait outside in the shade for a while."

Cui Wei nodded. Once she stepped out, Zhou Yao began handling the remaining twenty-odd women. With the examples of the first two, the others soon made their choices...