Chapter 599 It's all up to you
Upon finally hearing the news that Gu Shuyan had arrived, Niao Cui disregarded the fact that she was still lying in bed, turned over, got out of bed, and went out to greet her.
"Why is Aunt Cui up? Quickly help her back."
Seeing Niao Cui like this, Gu Shuyan's expression turned slightly cold, and she quickly had Pearl press the person back down.
Niao Cui knew that her behavior was inappropriate, so she quickly lay back down.
"Thank you for your visit, Miss. It's just a pity that my health is not good enough to pay my respects to you," Niao Cui said, giving Gu Shuyan an apologetic smile.
Gu Shuyan waved her hand dismissively, "Auntie, you should rest well while you're sick. Don't worry about these formalities."
After speaking, Gu Shuyan glanced at the furnishings in the room. It seemed that no new items had been placed there for a long time. Coupled with the faint smell of medicine throughout the room, it did indeed have a somewhat desolate feeling of being neglected.
"Pearl, you all go down first. I have something to say to Aunt Cui alone." Gu Shuyan glanced at Pearl.
Pearl nodded immediately and gestured for the other two maids standing in the room to leave.
"I see that there are only those two maids in your courtyard. Where are the others?"
Gu Shuyan didn't ask about Niao Cui's health when she spoke; instead, she went straight to talking about the maids in the courtyard.
Hearing this, Niao Cui smiled sarcastically, "Those people only came to the courtyard because I was favored. Now that the madam is in charge, and the master is unwilling to enter my room because I am bedridden, how can the servants in this courtyard be kept?"
However, Niao Cui didn't care about these things. Since others wanted to leave, so be it. She was going to leave the Marquis's mansion anyway, so the departure or stay of these people was of no concern to her.
Gu Shuyan wasn't surprised by this answer. Unlike the main branch, the second branch's maids and servants were all bought from outside, so how could they possibly be loyal to only one master?
Now that Niaocui is clearly in dire straits, anyone who doesn't want to stay and suffer any more must hurry up and find a new patron.
"Although those two maids stayed to serve you, they may not be reliable, so you should be careful in your actions and not let anyone find a loophole."
Gu Shuyan never easily trusts anyone, especially when everyone else is looking for a way out. The fact that these two maids stayed means they must have ulterior motives or be scheming.
Either way, it could ruin Niao Cui's plan.
Niao Cui could tell that Gu Shuyan was genuinely considering her feelings, so she nodded in agreement.
Having said all that needed to be said, Gu Shuyan took out a small porcelain bottle from her sleeve and handed it to Niao Cui.
"There's a pill in here that can make you appear dead. I've also made arrangements for what I promised you. As soon as news gets out, those people will be ready to meet you. But I still want to advise you that life in the Marquis's mansion is definitely not worse than outside. If you don't want to leave, you don't have to. In the end, whether you stay or leave is entirely up to you."
Gu Shuyan had, after all, collaborated with Niao Cui, and at this final moment, she couldn't help but offer a reminder.
Niao Cui smiled gently as she listened to Gu Shuyan's words. She knew that although Gu Shuyan was not easy to get along with, she wasn't truly heartless. Gu Shuyan's reminder was for her own good, but unfortunately, she had something else to attend to.
Niao Cui thanked Gu Shuyan for her kindness and took the bottle of medicine into her sleeve.
"I fear that I will never see Miss Niao Cui again. Please take care of yourself, Miss."
As she spoke, Niao Cui sat up from the bed, raised her hands to Gu Shuyan, and kowtowed deeply.
Gu Shuyan disliked farewell scenes the most; she had had enough of too many partings in her past life, so she quickly helped her up when she saw this.
"Your future depends entirely on your own destiny."
After Gu Shuyan finished speaking, she walked towards the door without turning her head. Watching Gu Shuyan come out, Pearl handed the ginseng she had brought to the maid.
When the maid entered the room, she saw Niao Cui with a silly smile on her face. The maid couldn't help but ask, "Auntie, what's wrong with you?"
Niao Cui's smile was somewhat eerie. The young maid was already quite old, and seeing this, she couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.
"It's nothing. My last wish has been fulfilled, and I have no more attachments to this world."
Niao Cui's words made the maid's heart skip a beat. She forgot where Gu Shuyan had left. She had a feeling that Gu Shuyan had come to tell Niao Cui something that she had asked her to do before.
After all, Niao Cui's relieved expression was too obvious, and even if the maid didn't want to make such a guess, she couldn't help it.
That evening, the maid secretly went to He Yin's courtyard and told He Yin about Gu Shuyan's private conversation with Niao Cui and Niao Cui's expression.
He Yin just snorted coldly at this. In her mind, Gu Shuyan was not the kind of person who would help others. She was probably only helping Niao Cui because of the time when Niao Cui saved Gu Congzheng.
"Alright, go and serve her. If there's any disturbance, come and tell me." After giving the instructions, He Yin immediately left.
"Auntie, what should we do with the ginseng that Miss sent?"
Another maid was looking at the ginseng in the box and asked a question.
Upon hearing this, Niao Cui turned around and looked. Logically speaking, wild ginseng is not a particularly precious medicinal herb and is not as valuable as ginseng. However, Gu Shuyan had placed such a wild ginseng in such a box, which was really strange.
"Bring it here so I can take a look."
Niao Cui was puzzled, but deliberately gave the instructions in a weak voice.
The maidservant didn't think much of it and immediately handed the box to Niao Cui. Niao Cui looked around and eventually found a hidden compartment.
"Go and get me a glass of water." Niao Cui said, licking her lips. The maid saw that she was thirsty and didn't think much of it, so she immediately took the glass and left the room.
Upon seeing this, Niao Cui quickly opened the hidden compartment, and to her surprise, there was a five-hundred-tael silver note inside.
Niao Cui knew that Gu Shuyan was worried that she would have a hard life after leaving the Marquis's mansion. She was grateful but didn't have time to think about it. She quickly took out the silver notes and stuffed them into her bosom.
At the same time, the maidservant brought in water and went to Niao Cui. The maidservant personally served Niao Cui the water, and then Niao Cui said, "I don't need this ginseng anymore, so you can have it!"
"Auntie, no! This is what the eldest young lady brought for you to nourish your body. How can I take it away?"
The young maidservant looked terrified upon hearing this. Although ginseng was not considered a rare commodity even by the wealthiest families, it was something they, as maidservants, could not afford even if they sold their entire fortunes.
“Take it if I give it to you. I know your mother is sick and urgently needs tonics. Although this ginseng is not as good as other medicinal materials, it is still somewhat useful.”
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