Chapter 11: Such Heavy Taste

"What?" Ji Ruoling looked at Liu San, her eyes filled with astonishment.

"Master, please accept me. I, Liu San, have never been good at anything since childhood, except for reading people. The first time I saw you, I saw the aura of great fortune surrounding you." Liu San kowtowed heavily to Ji Ruoling.

"Hey, hey, get up, get up quickly." Ji Ruoling stepped forward, wanting to help Liu San up.

Liu San raised his head; his forehead was a bit red and swollen, his bloodshot eyes carrying a hint of pleasant surprise. "Master, does this mean you've accepted me?"

"Mhm." Ji Ruoling frowned and nodded. What else could she do? Looking at his state, if she didn't agree, he'd probably keep kneeling and kowtowing right here. And with so many people watching them, how could she refuse?

"Wonderful, Master!" Liu San jumped up in excitement, but accidentally stepped on a stick on the ground, slipped, and fell flat on his face.

Ji Ruoling held her forehead. She had taken in a weirdo.

Glancing at Er Niu lying on the ground, Ji Ruoling composed herself and said, "Handle things here and come out. I'll wait for you outside."

Since she had accepted him, there was no going back. Walking out of the room, the crowd outside parted ways, leaving a path for her to walk through.

She glanced once more at Granny Zhao and the child still lying on the ground. No one dared move their bodies. Her eyes darkened, and she quickened her pace, walking out of the alley.

Back inside the room, Liu San picked up Er Niu from the ground and handed her to Grandpa Zhao. "Grandpa Zhao, Er Niu is in your care. I'll return tomorrow to give her a proper burial. And Granny Zhao and... the child, bury them properly together."

Having said that, he took one last deep look at Er Niu's pale face, used his hand to smooth her hair which had been messed up during her struggle, turned his back on them, and strode away.

He walked into the alley, picked up the child from the ground, and handed him to a man he was on good terms with, asking him to carry the child into the house.

Walking out of the alley, he spotted Ji Ruoling in the crowd at a glance.

Ji Ruoling possessed a unique temperament, different from ordinary people, allowing him to recognize her instantly.

"Master." Liu San walked toward Ji Ruoling and addressed her respectfully.

"No need to call me Master. 'Miss' is fine. Also, your stall—go take care of it." Ji Ruoling silently turned around and walked toward the market.

Liu San followed behind Ji Ruoling's right side, keeping to his proper place.

After Liu San finished handling everything, he brought him back to the Ji Residence.

This trip out bought nothing, but she picked up a servant for free—though Ji Ruoling had accepted him unintentionally.

Only when Liu San reached the main gate of the Ji Residence did he realize his master was the Young Miss of the Ji family.

He just didn't know which one.

Liu San followed obediently behind Ji Ruoling. The deeper they went into the residence, the stranger he felt. Why did the maids and manservants they passed say not a single word upon seeing the Master? It was as if she were a transparent person.

Could it be the Master wasn't favored in the Ji family?

An unfavored Young Miss in the Ji family... could it only be the legitimate Sixth Miss, Ji Ruoling?

There were three famous people in Maple City. One was the number one genius, Hou Mochen. One was the Ji Family's Eldest Miss, Ji Qianjing, whose strength rivaled Hou Mochen. The last was the Ji Family's good-for-nothing, Ji Ruoling.

If the first two were famous for their strength, Ji Ruoling was famous for being unable to cultivate martial arts and the various slanders from Ji Qianxue.

Ji Ruoling was already used to being ignored; she didn't care anyway. Being greeted respectfully would actually make her uncomfortable.

Returning to Ya Garden, Ji Ruoling dragged the two men hiding in the room out—of course, while the four maids were all absent.

She had returned today openly bringing Liu San back. Those who should have seen it had seen it; those who shouldn't have seen it had also seen it. She took this opportunity to make the two guys in the room scram out.

She bathed and changed clothes inside the room; she couldn't very well do that in front of two grown men.

Ji Ruoling disguised the three of them first, then led them toward the Steward's office.

The Steward's workplace happened to be on the necessary path back to Ya Garden, so Ji Ruoling knew where it was without asking.

When the Steward saw the three "little manservants" Ji Ruoling had brought, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

The four of them were already numb to such looks. All the way here, everyone they saw had that exact expression. The Steward's reaction was actually considered relatively calm.

Ji Ruoling's so-called disguise consisted of smearing an unknown herb on their faces. Once applied, their faces turned black!

Then she drew several large knife scars on their faces, making them look fierce and sinister.

Hou Mochen suffered the biggest blow. Ji Ruoling "took the most care" of him. Not only did she draw large knife scars, but she also found a fake beard from somewhere and stuck it on his face. Even he couldn't recognize himself.

This was exactly the effect Ji Ruoling wanted. It wasn't that she held a grudge, but Hou Mochen was so famous in Maple City and so high-profile that almost everyone knew what he looked like. If he wasn't disguised and someone recognized him, she would be the one in trouble.

Liu San looked ordinary. Although he hadn't been disguised when he entered, no one would pay attention to him anyway, so drawing two simple knife scars was enough.

As for Lin Huaxi... Ji Ruoling felt he wasn't from Maple City. A young man stronger than Hou Mochen in Maple City—how could he not be famous? So he was relatively safe too.

He was just too bewitchingly handsome. A few smears were enough, and having him restrain his aura a bit made him unremarkable.

"Sixth Miss, who are these three?" The Steward looked at the three incredibly ugly men, the corner of his mouth twitching, and asked Ji Ruoling.

"These three are new manservants I've hired. Please register them, Steward." Ji Ruoling said expressionlessly, her tone flat.

If the Ji family's servants didn't require registration, she wouldn't have wanted to parade these guys around.

Upon hearing Ji Ruoling's words, the Steward's mouth twitched violently again. *These* three were the manservants Sixth Miss hired? Sixth Miss's taste was really... heavy.

The Steward fished out the servant registry ledger from the table and wrote down the three names.

His hand trembled slightly as he held the brush to write.

After the four returned to Ya Garden, they saw three of the four little maids surround them, curiously sizing up the three "new manservants."

They had heard back at the garden gate that Ji Ruoling had brought three incredibly ugly men, and they had been guessing who these three men were.

Before seeing the three of them, the three maids thought the people outside were making a fuss over nothing. They hadn't expected these three to really look... quite ugly.

The three little maids surrounded Ji Ruoling and asked in a chorus: "Miss, Miss, who are those three?"

"They are three new manservants I hired. They will work alongside you from now on." Ji Ruoling spoke indifferently.

The three little maids were shocked. "Miss, aren't we serving you well enough? Why hire manservants?"

"What can you four women do? Can you handle heavy lifting? Moving chairs is fine, but moving cabinets and such—isn't that men's work? I'm lightening your load." Ji Ruoling walked toward her own room. She had originally wanted to go for a stroll this morning, but never expected so many things to happen, even picking up a manservant to bring back.

"Makes sense." The three little maids nodded thoughtfully.

"Xiaoju, go prepare rooms for the three of them. If there are no spare rooms, let the three of them squeeze in together."

"Yes."

Ji Ruoling only felt that when she spoke that last sentence, two gazes were fixed on her back.

One was resentful—that was definitely Hou Mochen.

One carried a hint of coldness. No need to guess, that was Lin Huaxi. He had refused to share a chaise lounge with Hou Mochen last night; now he'd have to squeeze onto a small bed with two other people from now on.