Chapter 8: Someone Took Her Room

A young woman's voice.

Yun Manxia's eyes darkened. She handed her suitcase to a maid. "Take this upstairs for me later." Then she walked toward the staircase.

She went straight to the guest bedroom door.

Inside was a girl dressed to impress, sitting on the bed like she owned the place, bossing the maids around as they cleared the room. The few pieces of clothing Yun Manxia had put in the wardrobe just yesterday were now pulled out and tossed aside. Her suitcase, which she'd left in the corner, had been dragged out and dumped in the middle of the room like garbage.

Yun Manxia's gaze turned ice-cold.

"M-Madame?!" The two maids spotted her and their faces went white. They were still holding her things—couldn't drop them, couldn't put them back—frozen in place, instinctively looking toward the girl.

Yun Manxia looked at her too. She'd recognized the voice the moment she heard it downstairs. Wu Xiaoya. Aunt Wu's daughter.

Aunt Wu's husband had been the Bai family's driver years ago. He'd died saving the old madame in an accident. From that day on, Aunt Wu and her daughter held a status in the Bai household that ordinary servants could never touch. Wu Xiaoya might be a servant's daughter on paper, but the old madame doted on her, and over time, she'd started carrying herself like she was half a young miss of the Bai family. She'd picked plenty of fights with Yun Manxia in the past life too.

"Who gave you permission to touch my things?" Standing in the doorway, Yun Manxia swept her eyes over the mess someone had made of her room. Her voice was cold.

The two maids opened their mouths, too guilty to make a sound.

"These things are yours?" Wu Xiaoya stood up, sizing Yun Manxia up. "Why are your things in my room? Are you a new maid? Didn't anyone tell you these are the family quarters? You can't just wander in here."

Her tone carried a lofty, condescending edge, like Yun Manxia really was just some maid. But Yun Manxia's clothes and bearing—did she look anything like a maid? Anyone who could mistake her for one was either blind or doing it on purpose. Wu Xiaoya didn't look blind. And those two maids had just called her "Madame"—Wu Xiaoya didn't look deaf either.

Yun Manxia lifted her eyes lazily. She didn't bother addressing Wu Xiaoya. Instead she asked the two maids: "You don't recognize me—is this a new maid?"

Wu Xiaoya's expression froze. She glanced down at her own expensive outfit, clearly nothing like what the maids wore. "I'm not a maid!" she shot back.

"Then who are you?"

"I'm Wu Xiaoya!" Her tone was strange—restrained, with a subtle hint of superiority, like saying her name should be enough for Yun Manxia to know exactly who she was.

Yun Manxia folded her arms and tilted her head, looking genuinely puzzled. "Wu Xiaoya? Who's that? Is there a master of the house by that name?"

"You—!" Wu Xiaoya felt deeply insulted. She gritted her teeth. "My mother is Aunt Wu!"

"Oh. So you're Aunt Wu's daughter." Yun Manxia sneered inwardly. Aunt Wu really had quite the reputation. The way this girl said it, you'd think she was announcing the emperor himself, not a housekeeper. Outwardly, Yun Manxia just looked enlightened. Her voice stayed flat. "But Aunt Wu's daughter isn't a master of Imperial Garden Villa either. Who gave you permission to enter my room?"

That one line—"Aunt Wu's daughter isn't a master of Imperial Garden Villa either"—landed like a slap across Wu Xiaoya's face. She forced down her fury and smiled, provocative. "Ninth Master personally told me this room was mine!"

Bai Hedu had said that himself? Yun Manxia didn't believe a single word. If he'd really promised this room to Wu Xiaoya, why would he have assigned it to her? She listened to Wu Xiaoya's nonsense and smiled, not quite a smile. "You just said yourself—these are the family quarters. Before you spin tall tales, think about what status you actually hold. Out of respect for Aunt Wu, I'll pretend you just walked into the wrong room this time."

She knew Wu Xiaoya hated when people talked about her background. Outside these walls, Wu Xiaoya never admitted she was just a servant's daughter—she let people assume she was a legitimate young miss of the Bai family. So Yun Manxia said it on purpose. And sure enough, Wu Xiaoya's face twisted horribly.

Ignoring her expression, Yun Manxia swept a cold glance over the two maids and ordered: "Before Ninth Master returns, put my room back exactly the way it was. This is the only chance I'm giving you. I suggest you treasure it."

She turned and walked out. The几个人 in the room were stunned silent by the force of her presence for a few seconds. The two maids exchanged glances, then looked nervously at Wu Xiaoya. "Xiaoya, what do we do now?"

Wu Xiaoya was choking on her rage. "What do you mean what do we do? Are you actually going to listen to her? Keep going—bring my things in!"

"But what if she complains to Ninth Master…"

"Then let her complain. Guess who Ninth Master will side with—her, or me?" Wu Xiaoya laughed coldly, lifted her chin, and spoke in a spoiled, confident tone.

The two maids immediately remembered: Wu Xiaoya had pulled this exact same stunt on the previous wives too. Ninth Master had never bothered to intervene. Wu Xiaoya was still here, completely untouched. They relaxed instantly. In this villa, sucking up to a wife got you nowhere. Sucking up to Xiaoya, on the other hand…

Downstairs, Yun Manxia kept an ear on the second floor. The commotion in the guest bedroom was still going. She smiled coldly but didn't go back up to stop it.

Two hours later, Bai Hedu came home. The moment she heard him at the door, Yun Manxia's eyes lit up. She hurried out to meet him, footsteps light and happy.

Bai Hedu was wheeled in. Behind him, besides Lin Shen, trailed several other subordinates.

"You're back!" The girl running toward him with that bright, radiant smile—Bai Hedu's deep, cold eyes softened, almost imperceptibly, for just a moment. He gave a quiet "Mm," then his gaze caught the suitcase she'd brought from the Yun house, still sitting beside the sofa. "You just got back?"

Yun Manxia shook her head, her voice sweet like she was撒娇. "I've been waiting for you for over two hours!"

The words were sweet enough to melt anyone's heart. But Bai Hedu's gaze quickly darkened again as he glanced at the suitcase. "You've been back this long and your things still aren't upstairs? The servants won't listen to you?"

His tone was displeased, a faint edge of killing intent bleeding through. The maid nearby panicked, her face going pale. "Madame…" She looked at Yun Manxia pleadingly, begging her to explain. It wasn't that she didn't want to take the suitcase up—it was that Wu Xiaoya had taken over the guest bedroom, and she had no idea where to put it!

Yun Manxia glanced at the maid. She recognized this one—honest, not mixed up with Wu Xiaoya's crowd. "It's not her fault…"

Before she could finish, Wu Xiaoya came down the stairs. Strangely enough, she was dragging a suitcase, like she was about to leave. When she saw Bai Hedu, her face lit up and she ran over. "Ninth Master!" But then she spotted Yun Manxia standing beside him. Her eyes instantly reddened, and even her smile turned strained.

Yun Manxia's eyes narrowed. What was she trying to pull now?

"Xiaoya, you're back?" Lin Shen knew her well enough and asked casually, "What's with the suitcase?"

"I…" Wu Xiaoya put on a deeply wronged expression and shot a quick glance at Yun Manxia. "Someone here can't stand having me around. Ninth Master, I think I should just move out."