Chapter 51: Relocating Residence
On the day of rest, Xilutiya and Talil tidied things up inside the house; tomorrow was the time they had promised Madam Fran to tend the flower field.
“Are we really going to move into such a big mansion?” Talil still found it somewhat unbelievable; to her, Madam Fran’s mansion was not much different from a legendary palace.
“Yes, because on weekdays we need to help that madam tend the flower field, we might not have time to shuttle between East City District and West City District.” Madam Fran’s mansion was in the affluent West City District, far from the East City District where they currently lived.
“It’s also very far from my workplace.” Talil felt a bit discouraged.
“For work…” Xilutiya thought about Madam Fran’s parting words at the time, which allowed her to bring one retainer servant to live together in the mansion.
“You can work at Madam Fran’s place; she will agree to take you in.” The maiden replied.
“Sigh, in such an environment? Though it’s nearly an ideal place, I feel very scared, afraid of breaking something that I couldn’t afford to compensate for even if I were sold.” Talil thought of the luxurious mansion decorations she had seen the day before yesterday.
“It’s okay, take it step by step.” When saying this, Xilutiya was not only cheering up Talil but also encouraging herself.
“Alright, if I really can’t do it well, Tiya has to plead for me and let me come back.” Talil was still a bit worried.
“Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.” Xilutiya comforted her once again.
After packing various personal things into boxes, the two found a horse carriage, loaded the boxes onto it, and transported them to Madam Fran’s mansion in West City District.
……
In the afternoon, after the luggage was properly placed, the servant named Lining came before the two.
“I’ll tell you about your future residences.” She had them follow her.
“First is Miss Tiya’s room; like the madam, it’s on the second floor, but the madam lives on the west side, while Miss Tiya’s bedroom is on the east side.”
Along the white stone-carved and polished handrail stairs, the three arrived at the equally luxurious second floor of the mansion. The corridor here was spacious. Leaning on the railing, one could gaze at the vast golden sea of flowers behind the mansion. Passing closed doors one by one, Lining arrived at the second-to-last room on the east side, opened the door, and revealed the interior.
Delicate veils draped around, adorned with light blue flower pendant decorations, soft ivory-like white furniture—this bedroom was as warm and luxurious as a princess’s room.
“This is where Miss Tiya sleeps.” Lining continued introducing to the two.
“Vanity, wardrobe, comfortable soft large bed—everything is provided. If you need anything else, you can tell me.” She curtsied, her manners impeccable.
“Wow, here, here…”
Talil was so surprised she couldn’t speak, unable to find the right words to describe such a room, even feeling a faint sense of inferiority. If she slept here, she would probably feel like she was tarnishing its purity.
However, for Tiya, she turned her head to look at the silver-haired maiden beside her and inexplicably felt it was fitting, as if such an environment could nurture someone so cute and beautiful.
Xilutiya sighed; living in such an environment felt like an invisible pressure bearing down.
It was like having received so much from someone—shouldn’t you also take on some responsibility? But since they had come, being coy and polite would be unbecoming.
“Thank you for the arrangements, Miss Lining.”
“No need to address me that way; just call me Lining.” The servant, who also had pale golden hair, responded calmly.
“Okay, Lining.”
Afterward, Lining led the two back to the first floor, to another house on the side of the mansion. On the first floor here, passing a short reddish-brown floored corridor, there were two rooms.
“The one inside is Miss Talil’s room; the one on the outer side is where I usually live.” After speaking, she pushed open the door and walked in.
The room prepared for Talil was much simpler; inside were a single bed, wardrobe, small table, and wooden chair, with a copper candlestick on the table.
That said, the bedsheets and quilt were woven from finely combed cotton cloth, equally soft and comfortable, and the furniture was crafted from fine-grained rosewood—plain-looking but not cheap.
“Wow, this is also very nice.” Talil was a bit moved; she even wanted to step forward and touch the soft fine cotton cloth.
“For bathing…” Lining thought for a moment.
“If Tiya wants to soak in a hot bath, please tell me in advance; ordinary showers are available anytime.”
“Shower? What’s that?” Talil felt she had never heard of the term.
“Probably fine water streams sprayed from a water pipe, bathing the whole body.” Xilutiya didn’t know what showers were like in this world and was just inferring roughly from the word.
“Correct. Since Miss Tiya knows, I won’t explain further.” The other nodded slightly, a hint of satisfaction flashing in her calm eyes.
“Just put changed clothes in the bathroom bamboo basket; I’ll collect and wash them.”
“I also prepare the daily meals; Miss Tiya just needs to go to the dining room on time.”
“If you want to eat something specific, tell me in advance, and I’ll prepare it as much as possible. Also note that the madam doesn’t like outsiders dirtying the house.”
“So, unless specially permitted by the madam, please don’t invite other friends to the mansion for meals or gatherings, Miss Tiya.”
“I understand.” The maiden nodded in understanding.
“If other guests visit while the madam happens to be away, Miss Tiya should receive them on her behalf; please try to conduct yourself appropriately during that time.” This was probably the requirement and price of living here.
“For catering during receptions, Miss Tiya may arrange freely, but cannot let guests stay overnight or bring people into the back mansion flower field.” She reiterated the rules.
“If Miss Tiya promises a guest something, it’s equivalent to the madam promising it, so please act with caution, Miss Tiya.” She still held some vigilance and distrust toward this unfamiliar silver-haired maiden and had to remind her in advance.
“If it’s an especially distinguished guest, Miss Tiya can postpone the matter, saying to wait for the madam to return and decide.”
“So what counts as relatively important matters?” Xilutiya inquired curiously.
“Generally, guests visit for one of three purposes: first, to request something; second, to plead for something; third, to hope the madam intervenes.” Lining analyzed and explained in a steady tone.
“For requesting something, if the value doesn’t exceed second order, Miss Tiya may decide herself.”
“For pleading something, if Miss Tiya can easily do it herself, it’s fine to agree.”
“For hoping the madam intervenes, if it can be coordinated with just the madam’s letter, Miss Tiya may also agree.”
“That day when Miss Mailin came to deliver things and inquired about books and seeds, I agreed on behalf of the madam, because for similar requests, the madam has seen many. She prepared complete sets of books and seeds; if someone comes, I can just give them directly.” As Lining said this, she looked at Xilutiya with a hint of appreciation in her eyes.
“Though the madam has given gardening introductory books and seeds to many people, those who return with results are few and far between.”
“Someone like Miss Tiya, who on the first try cultivated flowers and grass that condensed nature, is the first I’ve seen.” She gave Xilutiya a small compliment.
This also made Xilutiya understand why Madam Fran appreciated her so much.
After the explanations were finished, Xilutiya settled down in this luxurious mansion.
