Liu Ya felt a little uncomfortable under Li Man'er's gaze. She subconsciously reached up and touched her face. "Miss, what's wrong?"
Li Man'er shook her head, her eyes fixed on Liu Ya, but she said, "Nothing."
Liu Ya immediately understood. There were still two pillars outside the door. The young lady must have something very important to tell her.
Liu Ya nodded, indicating she understood.
Not long after, Jiao Niang arrived with two wet nurses, bringing food.
It was decent. Four dishes and one soup, both meat and vegetables, looked quite good.
"Where's the chicken soup?"
Jiao Niang quickly replied, "Replying to Miss, chicken soup takes time. It's simmering on the stove. It will be ready later, and then it needs to be strained. Once it's properly prepared, it will be sent over."
"Good, you may go."
Jiao Niang added, "Your servant will wait in the side room. Miss just needs to give a word if you need anything."
"When the chicken soup is ready, you come serve it to the Marquis. Be diligent and don't let him choke."
Jiao Niang's eyes instantly lit up. "Yes, your servant understands. I will certainly serve the Marquis diligently."
Liu Ya really wanted to stamp the sole of her shoe on Jiao Niang's face. What a shameless person.
Li Man'er didn't even lift her eyelids and simply waved her away.
With Jiao Niang there, she couldn't eat.
Liu Ya sat at the other end of the table. "Miss, can we eat?"
"Don't worry." The Xiao family wouldn't stoop to poisoning dishes, that was too low. "Eat with confidence."
Seeing Li Man'er eating heartily, Liu Ya also picked up her bowl and started eating.
It wasn't that she had no manners. It was just that when she followed Madam Yu, they had faced life and death more often than enjoyed peace. Madam Yu said that on the battlefield, there were no masters and servants, only comrades. So they ate together, slept together, and never distinguished between each other, nor was there any hierarchy of status.
She only observed proper etiquette in front of others.
Following the eldest young lady from the capital to Mobei, on this journey, the eldest young lady had not treated her as an outsider. She had also eaten and lived with her, without any disdain.
This was why Liu Ya felt that the people in the capital were blind. Such a good eldest young lady, and they spread such rumors about her. Just thinking about it made her angry.
"Good!" Liu Ya raised her bowl and ate with gusto.
Soon, master and servant were full and satisfied.
Li Man'er then said to Liu Ya, "Ask the wet nurses to come in and clear these away. Also, call Jiao Niang over. I have something to ask her."
"Yes."
Liu Ya opened the door, about to go out, when two wooden posts reached out to stop her. "It's cold outside, Miss, please go back!"
Liu Ya sneered, "I remember Miss Xiao Qi's words very clearly. She said that we master and servant could come and go freely in this courtyard. Our mistress is not someone who likes to cause trouble. It's freezing outside, and your garden is bare. We don't care to wander around. Even if it's just in this courtyard, you stop us from calling a wet nurse to clear the dishes? What great authority you have!"
Perhaps it was due to the influence of the eldest young lady, but Liu Ya found her tongue becoming more agile. Her words left the two Xiao family guards speechless, and they could only let her leave.
Liu Ya snorted coldly and strode out of the room, heading for the side room.
The two wet nurses and Jiao Niang were waiting in the side room. It was clear they had all heard Liu Ya's words, and their expressions were not good.
They had hoped those two guards would stop Liu Ya and put her in her place!
Clearly, they were disappointed.
Seeing their expressions, Liu Ya guessed their thoughts. She snorted inwardly and said, "You all come with me. The young lady has something to do."
The three could only follow.
"You two, clear the table, clean it up, and bring a pot of hot water to brew some fresh tea." Li Man'er pointed at Jiao Niang. "As for you, I'm very tired. Sing a song for me to listen to."
Jiao Niang was stunned, a flicker of an unreadable light in her eyes. "Miss is joking. How would I know how to sing?"
"You are so pretty, with such a soft figure, haven't you learned to sing little songs?"
Jiao Niang had indeed come from a certain place, but she was lucky to be saved by the Xiao family. Of course, the Xiao family had saved her with conditions, and now she was being put to use.
But how did Li Man'er know?
She, a young lady from a proper family, would know such things?
The wet nurses had already cleared the table and soon brought the hot tea Li Man'er wanted.
"Miss, your servant really doesn't know how to sing." Jiao Niang's tears were about to fall, looking pitiful. "Your servant was also the daughter of a good family before, how could I know these things."
"Miss, the chicken soup is ready. The temperature is just right, not too cold, not too hot. Should we let Jiao Niang serve the Marquis some chicken soup?" A wet nurse entered carrying a food box.
Li Man'er said, "That's good. It wouldn't be good to starve Father. Since you don't know how to sing, then do what you should do. If you are not diligent, beware of dying from the poison."
Jiao Niang shivered. "Yes." She carefully took the food box and went to feed Li Shu chicken soup.
Whether it was an illusion or not, Jiao Niang felt that Li Shu's complexion had improved a lot today. The dark circles under his eyes had receded quite a bit, and his pale face seemed to have a hint of color.
Impossible, was she seeing things?
Jiao Niang dared not think further and meticulously fed Li Shu chicken soup.
She truly hoped Li Shu would wake up soon. As long as he woke up, her status would change.
But Jiao Niang knew that the time for Li Shu to wake up was not decided by her, but by the Xiao family. It was precisely because of this that the Ghost Doctor had not tried his best to treat Li Shu; otherwise, he would have woken up long ago.
Seven days~
Hmph, dreaming?
Even with the Ghost Doctor's full effort, it would take at least fifteen days for Li Shu to wake up. Moreover, as the poison permeated, the toxins in Li Shu's body would become increasingly difficult to clear. Waking him up in seven days was sheer fantasy.
Jiao Niang fed Li Shu more than half of a bowl of chicken soup, then put down the spoon and gave him some water.
As she put down the bowl, Jiao Niang sighed helplessly.
Li Shu was half-dead, but he could still eat and drink. As long as he drank water, he would excrete.
Before Li Man'er and the others arrived, this was done by the servants in the mansion. She had never personally dealt with such matters. Now it seemed she couldn't avoid it. Li Man'er would definitely call her to clean up.
Just thinking about it made her feel disgusted. The air suddenly seemed to turn foul and smelly.
But why was this smell so real? Could it be...
Jiao Niang's face turned pale. Trembling, she lifted Li Shu's quilt and indeed saw a wet patch...
She almost threw up, but remembering Li Man'er was outside the door, she could only put the quilt back down and diligently fetch water to wash Li Shu and change his clothes.
Li Man'er and Liu Ya were laughing uncontrollably. Serves them right.