The lobby of this single apartment on the first floor also has a building manager; the property management is quite good, and the environment is also very nice, with young people living in the building. Lin Wanwan decided to rent it after seeing the place, but she only planned to rent it for a month. Her explanation to the agent and landlord was that she was a web fiction writer, and she came to the West Lake to find inspiration, so she wouldn’t stay long, but she’d be willing to pay a bit more rent. Originally, the landlord was unwilling to rent for just a month, but Lin Wanwan’s looks and excuse were too convincing, and the landlord eventually agreed. Lin Wanwan rented this duplex apartment for five thousand a month, and after signing the contract, bid farewell to the agent and landlord, ready to move in with her suitcase. This apartment is just a stone’s throw away from the Sofitel Hotel, so Lin Wanwan wasn’t in a hurry to move her belongings. She first looked up the nearest hardware store on the map and then took a taxi straight to buy some calcium chloride. After purchasing all the supplies, Lin Wanwan checked the time; it was already twelve noon, which would be two in the deep night at the Great Tang. She needed to go back; otherwise, there’d be no energy for climbing tomorrow. Of the newly bought supplies, she only brought calcium chloride, cherries, a big bottle of Nongfu Spring water, and chocolate balls back to the Tang Dynasty, leaving the rest temporarily at the hotel. The chocolate balls, as usual, were taken out of their packaging and placed into a crystal glass candy container tower. The Nongfu Spring water was opened and poured from the plastic container into a ceramic jar. Cherries were placed into a bamboo woven box, and calcium chloride into a wooden box. Then Lin Wanwan changed out of her modern clothes, put on ancient attire, opened the Space-Time Gate, and returned to the Tang Dynasty holding the water jar, bamboo box, glass tower, and wooden box. Little Qingyu was sleeping soundly without a stir, so Lin Wanwan quietly put everything away. Though she moved lightly, the room’s soundproofing here was not as good as at Mao County’s home, and the noise still woke up Hua Nong, who was dozing on the little bed outside the room. She asked sleepily, "Mistress, are you up? Shall I light the lamp?" Lin Wanwan replied in a lowered voice, "No need, just sleep." "Oh," Hua Nong turned over and continued to sleep soundly. In the dark, Lin Wanwan took off her clothes and got into bed. Little Qingyu, with an instinct of sorts, wrapped herself around her, not minding the chill of Lin Wanwan who had just gotten into bed. Having slept for less than two hours, Lin Wanwan was woken by the crowing of roosters outside. Lin Wanwan, looking slightly fatigued, dressed herself and sat at the dressing table for Hong Yan to style her hair. Hong Yan was truly a maid meticulously trained by Madam Xiao since childhood; the hairstyle she created was absolutely luxurious and elegant, complemented by Lin Wanwan’s modern purchase of ornaments studded with artificial gemstones, which was undeniably beautiful. "Mistress, your hairpieces are so pretty, so noble on your head; even Madam Lu doesn’t have such amazing items," Hong Yan commented with a smile after styling Lin Wanwan’s hair. Chapters fırst released on 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵✦𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✦𝙣𝙚𝙩 Her slave contract had already been given to Lin Wanwan by Madam Xiao. Hong Yan, having been sold into service without knowing who her parents were, was now thoroughly Lin Wanwan’s, naturally aligning herself wholeheartedly with Lin Wanwan. During such times, a servant’s fate was closely linked to the master’s, sharing in both honor and trouble. Lin Wanwan was quite pleased with Hong Yan’s hair styling skills, smiling, she praised her and opened the glass jar to pull out two chocolate balls, handing them to her: "Good job, here’s a reward for you." Curious, Hong Yan took the chocolate balls, asking, "Mistress, what are these? Forgive my ignorance, I’ve never seen them before." Nearby, as Yun Shang finished dressing the sleepy little Qingyu, she laughed and said, "These are called chocolates, they’re sold in the town of Mao County and our mistress can make them too. How come in Qiantang, such a big place, there aren’t any?" Hong Yan shook her head and said, "I’ve never heard of them; maybe they’re a local specialty of Mao County." Little Qingyu interjected, "So there’s no chocolate here; our estate is better." Yun Shang and Hua Nong exchanged glances, both a bit surprised; this Qiantang seems quite lacking—it doesn’t even have what we have in Mao County. But that makes sense, Mao County being an outer port, frequented by ships and merchants from the Western Regions, with more imported goods available, so rarities are normal. "Cluck, cluck, cluck! Cock-a-doodle-doo!" Lin Wanwan’s hair was all done, and outside the roosters kept crowing. While Hua Nong wiped her face and applied moisturizer, Lin Wanwan gestured that she could handle the rest, and upon finishing with the foundation, she suddenly turned to Little Qingyu asking, "Xiao Yu’er, want some chicken soup? We can add the mushrooms we grow ourselves, the flavor is wonderful." Little Qingyu, sitting obediently for Hong Yan to style her hair, clapped her hands upon hearing, "Sure, sure! Mother, did you bring all the mushrooms we planted?" Lin Wanwan replied with a smile, "Yes," then turned to Hua Nong saying, "Hua Nong, fetch a tray of red cherries from the bamboo box at the foot of my bed and take them to my aunt. Tell her I’d like some chicken soup in the morning." Hong Yan paused with the comb in her hand, glanced at Lin Wanwan, who appeared unfazed, and felt a subtle tension in her scalp. "Yes," Hua Nong quickly opened the bamboo box, exclaiming, "Mistress, you filled this box with so many cherries!" "Yes, divide them up, distribute some to each room in the mansion, and prepare a separate portion to bring when we greet the old lady," Having got the cherries, Hua Nong soon went towards the main room while the sky was not yet fully bright. A moment later, the sound of roosters flapping outside was heard, but it quickly subsided like a deflated balloon, and quietness returned to the surroundings. By this time, Lin Wanwan and Little Qingyu were all cleaned and dressed, with Lin Wanwan also applying flower marks on the brows of herself and Little Qingyu. "Mistress, the water is ready," Yun Shang came to Lin Wanwan with a bowl of cooled warm water; every day upon rising after dressing up, she habitually drank a cup of water on an empty stomach, something Yun Shang and Hua Nong were accustomed to, easily accommodating her habits without needing explicit instructions. But today, as Lin Wanwan took the ceramic cup of water and looked down, she found herself without appetite; the water from Xiao Mansion’s well was salty and bitter, not quality. The mansion did have sweet spring water fetched from the mountain, but fetching from the mountain wasn’t easy; that spring water was mainly reserved for brewing tea, while daily drinking water came from the well. Lin Wanwan put down the cup and said to Yun Shang, "Go fetch the jar of spring water from the corner and boil another pot; this water is undrinkable." "Yes," Yun Shang followed Lin Wanwan’s gesture with her eyes and, though surprised that Lin Wanwan had brought water over, she didn’t say anything further, silently fetched the water and left. Yun Shang understood very well what a servant should and should not say. Before Yun Shang could boil and bring the water back, Lin Wanwan yawned, squeezing out two drops of tears, and said, "Let’s go; it’s time to pay respects to the old madam." Hua Nong gave her a White Fox cloak, showing concern, "Mistress, did you not sleep well last night? Why are you so drowsy today?" Lin Wanwan sighed and replied, "Probably can’t sleep in a different bed."