Chapter 9: ♡ | VI : Gossiping Hens

The next morning, the sun began to rise but my eyes were already wide open because I didn’t get a wink of sleep last night. “Haha, as if I could sleep after all that drama!” I mumbled to myself while staring at a sleeping young man who made himself very comfortable in my bed. This is so awkward! My God do I wake him up or leave him alone and come back later? I should probably wake him up, right? RIGHT?

My mind was fumbling in confusion, unsure if I should wake Mei Shen or let him rest some more. It was still very early so it would be rude to wake him but I was wide awake and really didn’t want to stay in this position for a second longer! THE MAIDS WILL SEE US, AND BOY WILL THEY NEVER LET ME FORGET IT IF THEY SEE US! I was screaming in my head at this point. It was as if I just brought home my secret lover and my mother, grandmother, and six sisters-in-law were about to head into my bedroom to go ‘Oooh lala, she finally got a man!’ I would rather die than be caught in a situation even remotely similar to that!

 

Old hag, I know you hate me but please don’t let anyone knock on my door until this kid wakes up! For fucks sake everyone here thinks I’m like fourteen! They are going to flip their shit if they see us in bed together. And what’s worse! IS JAHEI! He won’t even try to help, he’ll just shrug and walk away and go work at the clinic like nothing even happened, that moron!

 

UGHHH! This is terrible, God please just smite me! I want to die right now! PLEASE KNOCK A BITCH OUT! While I was screaming for bloody murder in the inner recesses of my mind, Mei Shen started to move a little bit. Delicately, his eyes twitched as if he was an unborn hatchling coming into the world for the first time in his entire little life. Admittedly, this was a wholesome moment but alas, timing was shit! THERE IS A GOD! My internal thoughts cried praying he would wake up and no one would ever see us in bed together.

“Mmmm,” the sleepy boy in front of me whined while rubbing his eyes and rolling in bed. “Eh- ummm, ahh!! ...good morning,” I stuttered as I greeted Mei Shen in the least most subtle way possible. This is more precarious than having those old ladies walk in on us, OH MY GOD JUST SMITE ME! I laid still in bed sweating bullets hoping Mei Shen would smoothly glide by this awkwardness and say something to break the ice.

 

“Oh, good morning,” he said with an innocent bambino yawn as if waking up in the bed of a young lady was a normal part of his daily routine! But then, ooohhh but then! As if a bolt of lightning just struck him down, Mei Shen’s eyes shot wide open and he almost glared at me in fear. “Wait, what-” I blurted out in disarray after seeing him go from innocent baby deer to dead on arrival road kill.

 

“MY LADY- I, I can explain! Wait, did we do something last night? I can’t think of anything. OH MY GODDESS! YOUR FATHER IS GOING TO KILL ME! I don’t remember anything. I just fell asleep after crying and then we hugged and…!!” Okay, yeah, Mei Shen was absolutely delirious and panicking much more than I was at this point. He broke his own dialogue by trying to jump up, which caused him to fall right off the bed and hit the ground with a loud thump!

Ouch, I winched just thinking about how much that was gonna hurt. “Hey, Mei Shen, are you okay?” I chimed in while peeking down to see a toppled young man with a small bump on his head. “Mei Shen?” I questioned the toppled youth, while trying to help him off the ground. “My lady, please lower your voice, others may hear us. Don’t worry, I’m fine, it’s just a little bump- ouch! I’m fine really!” He tried to act cool but it was obvious he hit his head pretty hard and it hurt quite a bit.

 

Unimpressed by his brave display, I stared at him like a judgmental cat and crossed my arms as he picked himself up and panted for breath. “Well, that is one way to start your morning. But seriously, please calm down and have a seat Mei Shen,” I said, trying to be the adult in this dynamic. He looked at me shyly and I beckoned for him to sit beside me on the bed. With a gentle touch, I rubbed his head and blew warm air into his bump to ease the pain. Mei Shen looked really out of place when I touched him and fidgeted uneasily. Despite this, he remained seated near me and allowed me to tend to his injury.

 

“Today, we’ll go eat something and then I’ll take you to the clinic so father can give you a medical exam,” I said calmly. “An exam?” Mei Shen asked cautiously. “Mhm! Father is a skilled doctor and given your previous living conditions its best to get an exam just to be safe, right?” I said hoping this manner of speech would ease the flow of our conversation. Hesitantly, Mei Shen looked at me like he also knew what I meant and nodded modestly.

“Well, if that’s what you think is best then we should do it. I’ve never been to a doctor before so... I feel a little nervous to be honest,” the shy boy fumbled with his fingers as he replied to me. “Oh, I see. Well don’t worry, father is really good at his job so you’ll be safe and comfortable! He’s a wonderful doctor and has a kind approach so you won’t feel hurt or scared with him. Oh, I can come with you and hold your hand if you feel nervous. That way it’ll be less uncomfortable,” I spoke energetically trying my best to act like a young lady.

 

Baffled by my statements, the boy looked at me as if this was the first act of kindness anyone has ever given him and his face flushed slightly. “Umm, my lady, thank you. I would like that very much,” Mei Shen mumbled his answer with a soft timid voice. He was so cute! I admit it felt like I was raising a baby squirrel whenever Mei Shen spoke timidly. “Mei Shen, you’re really precious. I’m glad you are living with me,” I confessed openly.

For a moment, he looked at me speechlessly but then he turned to me and held my hands firmly. “Pardon me, my lady but I have a request. Please do not call me Mei Shen. I truly hate that name. If you must call on me, please call me Zhou Bai. That is my real name,” he announced suddenly. Knowing it was best not to drill him for answers the first thing in the morning I decided to just play it cool and not obsess over the details. Instead, I just grinned humbly and replied, “Okay Xiao Bai~! I like your real name even more.”

Upon hearing me say his name, Xiao Bai’s face turned scarlet red. Unfortunately, before we could continue our conversation, someone was knocking on my bedroom door rather loudly. “My lady, it’s time to wake up! Granny Suyin prepared breakfast for you and your guest. Please come to the dining room soon before the food gets cold!” Rui was calling out to me and apparently the whole house knew we had a guest?

Wait... JAHEI WHAT DID YOU TELL PEOPLE?! Once again, my mind was spinning but I tried not to shit myself and die right there and then since that would be really unladylike! “Umm, Xiao Bai, I guess we should go eat then?” I suggested with sweat dripping down my face. “Yes, let’s go eat, my lady,” he responded so enchantingly one would think he was the fair lady of this house not me!

My goodness, what on earth did Jahei tell people? With a brave face, I sucked up my pride and dignity or whatever bits was left of it and got up. Wasting no time, I ran over to my dresser and began brushing my hair and rinsing my face with a bowl of fresh water. All the while, I was wondering how am I supposed to get dressed? Looking at myself in the mirror, it was obvious I was still in my outfit from yesterday!

It’s not my fault, I couldn’t get naked last night and change outfits while Xiao Bai was in my room! If I did that he would misunderstand even more and then it would turn into a situation that was all kinds of inappropriate! But now we face yet another scandalous dilemma! Even though I was innocent and didn’t do anything suspicious, it was gonna be weird going to the dining table in the same outfit because normally young ladies dress to impress and don’t come out of their bedrooms with young servant boys at the butt crack of morning sunrise!

 

THOSE HAGS WOULD SURELY GOSSIP ABOUT THIS FOR THE ENTIRE MONTH! “My lady, should I wait outside while you get ready?” Xiao Bai asked courteously. I almost cried from relief at his manners! “Ah well then, can you go ahead with the maid, her name is Rui. She will escort you to the dining room while I change my clothes and refreshen up. Oh, she can show you to your room and you can wash up too if you want,” I started babbling while the shy boy began to giggle. I wasn’t sure what amused him so much but it was fine if he was happy at least.

 

Just then, in a dainty manner, Xiao Bai walked over to me with a dignified stride and took the brush out of my hand. Politely, he urged me to sit on the dresser chair while he brushed my hair. In turn, he proceeded to braid my hair as well. “Uhhh- Xiao Bai?” I gasped at the turn of events. I didn’t know what to do so I just sat there letting him doll up my hair. Although, in the back of my head I was very confused about this hair styling la-di-da situation. The phrase, I have no idea what’s going on, kept echoing through my empty coconut shell of a head as Xiao Bai looked through hair accessories to set my braids in place.

 

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“What are you doing?” I asked nervously after several moments of silence. Was he trying to act like my lady in waiting? Or does he normally braid hair in the morning? Ignorantly, I was so stunned and my head was in circles trying to figure out how to ask what the heck was going on. But I must say, he was styling my hair so well I wasn’t against this lady in waiting gig either. “I am helping you get ready my lady, once your hair is done, I’ll wait outside until you finish dressing and then we can go eat together.” He spoke so calmly I could have sworn I hired a butler from some high classed association!

“But don’t you need to get ready too?” I inquired, wondering what he was up to. He finished braiding my hair and tying red ribbons on it before smiling at me. “I’ll wash up after I take you to the dining room so you can eat first. Then, I’ll eat with the other servants,” he stated bluntly.

 

“Huh?” I blurted out. “Xiao Bai, in this household everyone eats together, there are no servants or statuses here. We’re all just normal people. Although father does refer to the people, he pays to do housework as servants since that’s technically their job title. However, we don’t really care about statuses or titles or have strict rules here,” I explained firmly. Xiao Bai looked surprised by my statement but tried to hide his expression.

 

Unable to take this unease vibe I decided to just drop the girly act and be my normal self to some extent. “Ruiiiiiiiii~ can you come in?” I shouted and Rui opened the door to a rare sight. Me the innocently young lady and a young man alone in a bedroom together, oh what a sight to behold! “Miss what is it?” Rui asked rather calmly. In fact, too calmy. JAHEI TOTALLY SAID SOMETHING. I knew it!  

“Aren’t you going to comment on this scene Rui?” I said with a deadpan expression trying to fish for information on what Jahei said. “Oh well, the thing is, haha. That assho- I mean your father already explained things,” she was clearly ordered to shut the fuck up by Jahei that’s for sure. Just then, Jahei walked into my room with his usual dead fish expression.

“Rui stop gossiping nonsense and go to the dining room. Risa, hurry up and come too. I can’t take this nonsense anymore. The old lady is flipping her lid wondering where everyone is. She wants everyone to hurry up and go eat. It’s irritating me. Go silence her before she tries to stuff a rotisserie duck down my throat,” Jahei spoke with clear irritation in his voice. Unnervingly, I twitched my eyes in disgust knowing full well Jahei couldn’t handle these women anymore. At this point, if I just sat here playing house, he would flip his lid pretty soon which would definitely scare the shit out of everybody. With a deep sigh, I decided to not worry about the gossiping and just go see what’s up in the kitchen.

Although, my main reason for switching gears was because Jahei started glaring at me. Sooner after, he was sending me waves of telepathic rants about why everyone was so well behaved. Oh boy, he really hates socializing I thought to myself as his complaints flooded my head like a tsunami. “Listen mother, this is the last time you bring a male home and spend the night with him,” my son went off, his tone of voice harsher than a cold burn in the middle of a blizzard.

“Those two gossiping hens wouldn’t shut up about who the guest was. That pain in the ass Rui walked in on you two and you didn’t even notice! What on earth is wrong you with? Sleeping in bed with a mortal child! Mother, are you listening to me?! I had to tell them to shut up and mind their own business lest I throw them out on the streets because they were so curious and annoying! Now go to the dining room and make sense of this mess please!” Jahei finished his bitch fest and I could hear him scoffing like a petulant spoiled brat. This is what happens when you raise an only child, why didn’t my sister have a few more kids, then he’d act a little more reasonable!

 

My head was still rattling from getting cussed out by Jahei so much that I just got up, much to everyone’s astonishment and went up to Jahei. “Father, show the boy where his room is and help him get dressed before he comes to eat breakfast. I’m going to go eat now, Rui let’s go.” At this point I was too tired to argue and I needed some food so I wandered off. As a result of my abrupt actions, the men were left all alone to do whatever men do to get ready in the mornings.

 

“Jahei, don’t be silly! We didn’t do anything weird so please calm down. The boy just cried all night and fell asleep on my bed. I felt bad for waking him or bothering him since he’s clearly not well so I just let him rest. As if I would ever do anything vulgar to a child! Have you no shame?! Don’t ever make such ridiculous comments like that again or I’ll teach you a lesson you brat! You are 10,000 years too young to bitch at me and get away with it!

 

Anyways, I’m gonna some eat food so show the kid around and then come to the dining room. Be sure to explain the story we talked about too and don’t be an ass to him. He’s little and weak, so behave yourself. I’ll be keeping an eye on things so don’t fuck up. And for fucks sake son, the next time two women try to probe you for information just flash a smile and knock them out with your good looks!” I shot a telepathic message of my own to my loud-mouthed son before walking away.

 

In the background, I could hear him grumbling at my retort just before saying his last piece. “Fine, I’ll do what I can mother, but don’t expect me to put up with as much nonsense as you do. I have no interest in pretending to like humans,” Jahei grumbled his final telepathic message before going off to do as he was told. I rolled my eyes knowing he was a rebellious child and walked into the kitchen. To my surprise, I saw a frantic old Chinese granny plating food and running back and forth from the kitchen to the dining table like a mad woman.

 

“Was she always this energetic? I thought she said her osteoporosis was acting up the other day,” I muttered to Rui who raised her eye brows and shrug cluelessly. We ended up being forced to sit at the table while granny ran around with more food. “Before anyone asks, I’m wearing the same outfit because I forgot to change it. No, I didn’t do anything suspicious with the new kid. We just fell asleep in the same bed and I’m still a virgin so please leave it alone and bring me some tea,” I declared matter-of-factly.

 

Bluntly, I said what I said so that whatever weird gossip was going around in the house would be put to rest once and for all. In an effort to look authoritative, I held my empty tea cup forward and stared directly at Rui and Granny Suyin. Frankly, everyone knew I was a feisty cat despite being a lady so it was only Xiao Bai that saw me as a prim and proper lass at this point. Even now, I was starting to not give a shit about acting ladylike anymore, it was becoming too annoying to maintain this charade. Eventually, he’ll realize I’m a spunky broad too. I reassured myself with these thoughts in an effort to drop some of my formalities and be more authentic towards the people in this household.

 

While pouring tea into my cup, the ladies took turnings grilling me despite my announcement. “So, nothing happened? He’s really not your future husband, little miss?” Rui immediately dropped the bomb and asked her first unnecessary question. Granny Suyin smacked her over the head but peered in to hear my answer nonetheless. “He’s not. He’s just a friend. He’s the son of some people Jahei knew, but he lost his parents and was living in a whorehouse until yesterday. Please behave yourselves and don’t be nosy. He has already dealt with a lot of shady people so he’s sensitive to things. So, drop it, okay?” I stated and waited for their responses.

The two ladies nodded respectfully and decided to drop the topic before Jahei walked in to kick their asses. He wasn’t much of a people person and would say much harsher things than I would so they knew better than to snoop while he was home. “I wonder what’s taking the men so long? Think they are bathing or something?” I asked Rui who was handing me a bowl of soup and getting some side dishes for us to dine on.

“Probably getting him dressed and washed up? Didn’t you buy some clothes for the kid?” Rui mentioned while I got up to help Granny Suyin spread out the plates. “Oh yeah, Jahei had you unpack Xiao Bai’s room last week. We didn’t know what size he was so we got a bunch of adjustable clothes and things of various sizes that could be altered later on,” I responded while helping Granny sit. “Granny what do you think about all of this?” I inquired accepting the fact that it was now gossip time.

 

“Well, I just hope the new kid has an appetite and I suppose he is trying on new clothes too. You should change your clothes after you eat little miss. I’ll draw a bath for you and we can all wash up together once breakfast is done. Now let’s all stop yapping and eat our meals while its warm, once the boys get here there won’t be much left for us!” Granny exclaimed and we all agreed to stop babbling and eat.

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