"Why do you even care, anyways? You usually don't talk about him. Furthermore, the Young Master is gone and there's nothing you nor I can do about it." Meixiu said when her mother continued glaring at her like she did something wrong.
"Do you really not care about the Young Master? Did your feelings for him change after he became a cripple? I guess you're no different from the other maids— always filled with disdain towards him and forgetting who he used to be." Her mother shook her head.
Meixiu gritted her teeth after hearing her mother's words before shouting in a loud voice, "Don't compare me to those trash!"
"..."
Her mother remained a calm expression despite Meixiu's unexpected outburst— or maybe because she expected Meixiu's outburst that she didn't react. Regardless, she has always managed to break Meixiu's nonchalant appearance with ease.
"I see." Her mother said in a nonchalant voice before turning around and walking away.
"Follow me," she suddenly said.
Meixiu didn't say anything and followed her mother inside the house.
A few minutes later, they arrived in front of Yu Rou's room, something Meixiu expected when she saw the direction they were walking in.
Meixiu's mother knocked on the doors immediately after they arrived, and she proceeded to stand in front of the doors in a manner that reeked of professionalism.
Meanwhile, Meixiu stood beside her in a similar fashion.
A few moments later, Yu Rou opened the doors.
"Greetings, Young Lady."
Meixiu's mother bowed to Yu Rou and greeted her. Meixiu followed despite already meeting with Yu Rou before this.
"Hello, Miss Meifeng. It's been a while." Yu Rou returned the greeting in a graceful manner.
"May I come inside for a moment?" Meifeng asked her.
"Of course." Yu Rou nodded.
Meixiu and her mother, Meifeng, entered Yu Rou's room a moment later.
Upon entering the room, Meifeng immediately started looking around the room with her sharp gaze, clearly looking to see if the room was clean.
"Don't worry, Miss Meifeng. Meixiu has been doing her job flawlessly." Yu Rou said with a smile on her face.
"I just wanted to make sure that my daughter hasn't been slacking on her work." Meifeng nodded her head, yet she still continued to inspect Yu Rou's room for another minute afterward, even wiping uncommon areas behind Yu Rou's desk with her fingers to see if there was any dust.
"Anyways, why did you come here today, Miss Meifeng?" Yu Rou asked her as she took a seat on the bed.
Meifeng then said, "I just wanted to make sure you were doing fine, Young Lady. Even though I work at the main household now, I used to be your caretaker. Is it weird for me to come by once in a while to see your condition?"
Yu Rou showed a bittersweet smile before speaking, "As expected, you're here because of my brother's situation."
"I'm sorry you had to go through this, Young Lady. Don't tell the Masters I said this, but I really don't think the Young Master deserved to be disowned. Even though he's still so young, he'd already worked enough and deserves to rest for the rest of his life."
Meifeng's words dumbfounded Meixiu. In her mind, there was no way her mother could show such compassion— at least she has never seen it before.
"If there's anything I can do for you, please let me know."
Yu Rou nodded, "Thank you, Miss Meifeng, but I am fine."
After a moment of silence, Meifeng suddenly asked, "The Young Master… where is he right now? I cannot imagine leaving someone in his condition in the street and without a place to stay. Furthermore, his caretaker… Who's currently taking care of him?"
"That's…" Yu Rou immediately hesitated on responding.
Seeing this, Meifeng continued, "I know you're hesitant about telling me anything, and rightfully so. However, I am truly worried about the Young Master's wellbeing. You may not know this, but I was the Young Master's personal caretaker at one point."
"Eh? Really?" Yu Rou's eyes widened at Meifeng's words.
Meixiu was also surprised to hear this since she doesn't remember seeing her mother assist Yuan before.
"I was only assigned to him for a very brief moment, but during that short time, I've come to adore the Young Master and his talents that took the world by storm. I wanted to continue being his caretaker so I can personally witness his growth as a prodigy, but there were too many other things that needed my attention, so I was eventually reassigned by the Masters." Meifeng said with a disheartened look on her face, her voice sincere.
However, before Yu Rou could even respond, Meifeng continued, "I'm sure the Young Master has a place to stay now, but that's not what I'm worried about. I am worried about his caretaker more than anything else."
"In fact, I have someone in mind. If you allow me, I will have that person take care of the Young Master."
"That's a bit…" Yu Rou didn't know how she should respond, and her eyes subconsciously turned to look at Meixiu for help.
"..."
As the head of all servants who could spot dust even from across the room, there was no way Meifeng could've missed the obvious shift in Yu Rou's eyes.
"I see… It's no wonder why I don't feel any sadness coming from you, Meixiu." Meifeng slowly turned around to look at her daughter with a narrowed gaze, and she continued in a slow but clear voice, "It's because you were never separated to begin with. You are the Young Master's new caretaker, am I right?"
Meixiu swallowed nervously after hearing Meifeng's words that were right on the spot.
"Miss Meifeng… This is…" Yu Rou also began panicking. What if she tells Meixiu that she cannot take care of Yuan? What if she assigns another individual to be Yuan's caretaker?
"That's right, mother. I am currently taking care of the Young Master. Do you have a problem with that?" Meixiu responded, not even bothering to hide the fact.