Even though a very long time had passed, the abandoned lobby of the foundling home located in the southwest corner of the Duke's Mansion, where the people of the Duke's Mansion were too lazy to even hang a plaque, was already covered with thick dust.

Even those abandoned maids who stood in the lobby waiting for fate to roll the dice have now all met their own fates and the dust has settled.

Some of them still worked as low-ranking servants serving tea and water in the Duke's mansion, some were clever and careful and became high-ranking maids who took care of their masters in the mansion, and some were lucky enough to be taken in as concubines by the sons of the Zhao family and became the masters.

Some people redeem themselves and leave home, marrying into an ordinary family and living a simple life.

But there are some people who are destined to be different, as if they are a phoenix with broken wings, and they cannot associate with sparrows and ants. Suffering and pain, cold and hunger are not their graves, but the flames of nirvana that celebrate their birth.

Coming out of the fire, it is destined to spread its wings and soar into the sky, turning the clouds over, singing like a phoenix in the sky, leaving all the mortal birds behind and never looking back.

But even everything above has changed.

These memories were also swept into a dusty corner by everyone.

But for a certain little girl, it still seems like yesterday...

The orphanage at that time was closed down early on.

Everyone, including the managers of each room and the abandoned maids waiting to be selected, almost forgot about the sunny morning of that day when the little girl, with a dirty and scratched face, was curled up behind the crowd. They also didn't know the bright smile on her little face at that time.

Also forget the series of events that happened on that spring morning.

It was not until many years later that the stories of what she and the second young lady of the fourth room did while practicing outside were reported back to the Duke's Mansion again and again.

The palace was filled with joy as if it were a festival. The imperial edicts of reward from the Emperor of Chu were delivered to the Duke's Mansion time and time again. The relatives and dignitaries of the Chu Dynasty who came to visit also walked into the side door of the Duke's Mansion with smiles on their faces time and time again.

Beside the cold and arrogant Second Miss, there was a slender and graceful little maidservant who was as legendary as her. She became the second only to the Second Miss and the object of fawning by the Zhao children of the Duke's Mansion. They all inquired about her enthusiastically and admired her.

At the same time, this "little maid" who is known to everyone in the mansion for her love of the swing has also become a great figure that the other lowly maids in the Duke's mansion envy, a role model hidden in their hearts, and a fantasy before going to bed day and night.

There are many more swings in the palace, and they can be seen everywhere.

It was not until this time that all those who had personally experienced the selection of maids in the foundling home that morning suddenly realized that they had actually had such an intersection. Afterwards, many of them could not help but shake their heads and sigh that such a person could have such a low starting point.

If nothing unexpected happens, this incident will become a topic of conversation that they will be very proud to talk about in front of others while looking up to him.

However, some of them, such as the seven maids with abandoned babies, shuddered all over when they thought of something bad. When they came to their senses and listened again, all they could hear were the excited discussions of their masters, and hidden in their ears was a tone of awe and caution towards the "little maid".

Amid the enthusiastic reception given to the female master and servant by the whole mansion, some servants, including the seven maids with abandoned babies, were trembling with fear and unable to sleep or eat.

Except for one or two people who overreacted and tried to flee the Duke's Mansion frantically for fear of retaliation, but were caught by the guards of the Duke's Mansion and had their limbs broken.

On this day, all the other people who had participated in the bullying of the weak in the past finally knelt down on the corridor where Zhao Qian'er was about to pass by.

For these people who kowtowed their heads, lay on the ground tremblingly, and spoke incoherently.

No one knew why Zhao Qian'er was laughing happily, but her smile remained the same, as if someone else was passing by, her eyes did not linger on her for a moment.

Her steps on the porch were light and joyful.

As everyone behind her looked on with stunned expressions, Zhao Qian'er happily ran to the kitchen and personally served food that suited the taste of a guy who seemed to be becoming more and more nerdy.

Although she was happy, she couldn't help but frowning.

Brother Rong'er is so stupid, a big idiot. Even though it is the mourning period for mother, you can't not even eat. Every day, except going out to sweep Aunt Liu's grave, you just stay in the room to read when you come back. Health is the most important thing.

Zhao Qian'er took the food box and did not avoid it, but returned the same way.

Just like before, he walked straight past the strangers who were kneeling on the ground and left on his own.

She carefully carried the food box back to someone's yard and came to the door of the house.

But the little girl hesitated and lingered outside the door for a long time, her pink lips slightly opening and closing, as if she was rehearsing the appropriate words to say after entering.

At present, Brother Rong'er is engaged to the young lady, and Aunt Liu passed away half a year ago.

Brother Rong Er is in mourning and studying, and she and her young lady are out practicing in plain white clothes. Now she has returned home for a short time, saying that she is visiting the old lady, but the person she really wants to visit is in this room in front of her.

When Zhao Qianer just came back, the first thing she saw was how haggard Brother Rong'er looked, with his little face pale.

Because of his upcoming marriage, he kept meeting the young lady and was a little nicer to her and could talk to her. However, he was not very happy with Zhao Qian'er and disliked her for disturbing his studies.

In fact, Zhao Qianer knew that Brother Ronger was angry.

Betting on Aunt Liu’s anger.

The gambling lady is angry.

Even betting on his own anger.

Rong Erge is a Confucian scholar, and he dares not disobey or resent his mother who was the one who facilitated his marriage into the wife's family.

But this is also the age when we should be rebellious.

So he took out his anger on the young lady and himself.

It hurts others and yourself, but in the end you don’t know who is hurt the most.

Thinking of this, Zhao Qian'er let out a deep breath, straightened her skirt, then smiled sweetly, pushed the door open, and let the sunlight shine into the closed and dim room.

"Brother Rong'er, it's time to eat."

“No.”

"Brother Rong'er, you just promised me that you would let me take care of you while you study these few days."

"...Just leave it there and eat it later. Don't make any noise."

"Oh, I'll just sit there and not say anything... But if you're hungry, just tell me. Well, Rong'er, you'd better finish eating first, otherwise it'll get cold..."

"Don't eat it if it's cold."

Zhao Qian'er was quiet, with a soft smile still on her little face. She looked at him tenderly without saying a word.

"Alright, alright, let's eat later. You girls, why are you so long-winded?"

Zhao Qian'er shook her head. "Qian'er won't say anything more. I really won't say anything more. You study. I... I won't bother you."

"If you keep making noise, get out. Also, sit over there and stop staring at me. It's annoying."

"Okay, okay, don't be angry. The food is here. Don't forget, I'm here too. If you need anything, you can call me. I'll run errands for you..."

In an instant, Zhao Qian'er closed her mouth and swallowed the rest of the words.

She glanced secretly at Zhao Rong. He was wearing mourning clothes and was holding a book, looking at her expressionlessly.

Zhao Qian'er quickly opened the window in front of Zhao Rong's desk, and before he could say anything, she turned around and ran to the other side of the room far away from the desk.

She opened another window here.

The morning sun shines through the window next to me again.

Zhao Qian'er sat obediently on the wooden bench in front of the window with her back to him.

This scene seems somewhat familiar.

But at this moment, she was bathing in the sunshine.

The "little maid" who was regarded as the ancestor by everyone in the Duke's Mansion sat on a high stool, with her elbows on her legs, her chin supported by her small hands, and her back to Zhao Rong who was buried in his books.

Even though he had his back to him, Zhao Qian'er, who had cultivated herself, knew every move of the nerd, whom she did not dare to be harsh to and could only coax gently.

There are some things that the whole world knows, but he doesn't know.

However, there are some things that the whole world does not know, only he knows.

The little girl, who is no longer a child, sat quietly in the sun.

At a certain moment, she turned her head to look at the swing in the yard outside the window that was pushed by the spring breeze. She supported her chin with both hands and stretched her slender legs to the rhythm of the swing.

The spring morning sunshine coming in through the window, the swing being blown by the wind, and Brother Rong'er who is becoming more and more nerdy behind me.

They have always been there.

It's like... yesterday all over again.

How could she not know who those strangers she had just ignored on the corridor were?

What happened in the lobby of the foundling home many years ago.

The little maid has always remembered it.

She stared at the windowsill quietly, and suddenly, as if thinking of something interesting, she tilted her head and smiled.

“Puff.”

…

Sometimes memory is a very strange thing. Many things will be forgotten, just like enthusiasm being worn away by time. Even if you were confident that you could remember it for a lifetime, you still broke your promise.

However, there are always a few unexpected things that leave a deep impression on you.

Usually you don't realize it at the time, but it will always remain in your memory as 'yesterday'.

Just like at this moment, Zhao Qian'er, who was curled up in the back hall of the orphanage, caught some strange noises behind her with her hearing, amidst the endless pain caused by her "smile".

The ignorant little girl was wondering with fear and confusion in her little head, if she chewed the wood, would there be a lot of thorns?

Because she slept in the woodshed, what if one day the servants who were carrying firewood didn't see her little body and buried the inconspicuous little Qian'er when they were stacking the firewood.

When she woke up early and opened her eyes, she saw wood all around her. She couldn't move and was so hungry that she could only chew on the wood.

I don’t know if I have enough teeth.

However, Xiao Qian'er was not very afraid of this, because she heard from an older maid that children's teeth can grow again, and if they fall out, at most they will leak air for a while and look ugly.

What she was actually afraid of was the thorns, the thorns that got stuck in her throat and were very painful.

I remember working in the kitchen with a few friends, and was fortunate enough to be given some leftovers from a certain lady in the mansion. She was given a small half of the meat at the fish tail, while most of the fish tail was meatless.

But I am already very happy.

This was also Xiao Qian'er's first time to eat fish. She still remembers the taste, but she didn't know there were fish bones, so she was choked by the bone for a long time. She had no rice to swallow, and the vegetable porridge with only a few grains of rice was no help.

So the little girl opened her mouth wide all day long, looking silly.

She was laughed at by many maids of the same age, but Xiao Qian'er didn't care. She continued to run around and do the light work that she could do at her age.

Therefore, Xiao Qian'er still remembers the feeling of being choked by the sharp thorn.

Later, she didn't know how she got rid of this thorn. Her memory of those days was vague, and everything she did was just to stay alive.

Xiao Qian'er vaguely remembered that it seemed that the purpose was to open her mouth wide and stuff a rag into her mouth when she slept, so that when she woke up, she could smack her little mouth.

The cloth also fell on his chest.

No one knew where the fishbone that had been with her for so long had gone.

Did he hear Xiao Qian'er's prayers and know that she was almost suffocating, so he took pity on Xiao Qian'er and let her go?

Or did it break and get swallowed into the stomach? How did the rag fall off?

Hmm, could it be that the noble man I dreamed of again took it out?

The little girl was confused, but because of this incident, she was happy for several days...

At this moment, the whimsical little girl was interrupted by the strange movement behind her and stopped daydreaming.

She kept on smiling brightly, not daring to move, and looked back foolishly.

I saw a big boy with messy clothes squatting on the windowsill behind me where the sunlight was falling. I don’t know when it started. There was a big hole at the right knee of his pants, revealing his red and scabbed knee.

But the older boy didn't seem to care. He put his hands on the wounds on his knees that had just healed and were torn by the action of climbing through the window. He blew a few breaths of air towards the wounds on his knees.

At the same time, he turned around and looked outside as if he was guarding against thieves.

After a while, the strange big boy seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, then turned around with a smile and looked around the lobby curiously.

His expression was eager, as if he was ready to jump into the hall from the high windowsill at any time.

However, the next second, the big boy raised his eyebrows, stopped his gaze, and noticed Xiao Qian'er who was closest to the window.

The older boy first glanced at her casually, then took out a fruit from his arms, and while chewing it, he looked up and down at the strange girl who was squatting at the back of the crowd, grinning foolishly.

He looked a little bored, as if he was just killing time.

Zhao Qian'er opened her eyes wide and looked at this strange boy who was much taller than her. Half of the sun was visible from behind his head, which made her blink many times before she could roughly see his face.

He looks handsome and seems to be fearless.

The two stared at each other and were silent for a while.

After a while, after seeing the person clearly, Zhao Qian'er avoided his gaze and prepared to lower her head, not daring to look at this big boy who looked so arrogant.

He must be the young master, the child of some noble in the Duke's palace.

Suddenly, Zhao Rong raised his head from where he was eating fruit, frowned and looked carefully at the dark and silly-looking little girl.

As if he remembered something, he nodded.

It seems to be more and more right the more I look at it.

He threw the fruit behind him, showing an expression that said "haha, yes, it's you", and prepared to jump off the windowsill.

Zhao Qian'er shrank her head, buried her silly smile between her knees, and curled up with her hands on her knees.

She used what she thought was the most powerful magic weapon to protect her, which was also a defensive posture.

I think he also finds me annoying and wants to hit me.

She smiled, thought, and waited quietly between her knees.

At this moment, a voice suddenly came from the lobby door.

It came from the steward of the fourth room, who seemed to be called Kunbo, and his tone was respectful, "Greetings to the Madam, and greetings to the Miss."

Zhao Qian'er came back to her senses immediately, and her bright smile quickly dropped. Then she felt a piercing pain. The red wound on her face split open because she refused to smile, and scarlet blood flowed out of it, instantly making her face red.

She turned into a little maid with a red face.

However, Zhao Qian'er didn't care about all this at this moment. Her eyelashes trembled and tears flowed unconsciously from her dry eyes. She couldn't control herself and slightly opened her mouth, making a humming sound, but she didn't dare to speak too loudly. She just froze in place.

She opened her eyes wide and looked straight in the direction of the lobby door, forgetting her defensive posture.

An indescribable expression appeared on the little girl's round face.

Like hope, like fear, like... dependence.

Yes...it's the benefactor from the fourth room who has arrived.

However, at this moment, Zhao Rong, who was about to land handsomely on the windowsill, suddenly changed his expression, and fell down with a clang...

"Ouch--!"