Chapter 2

Yu Jing was helped out of the ancestral hall. The boy's body wasn't strong, and he was shorter than her. He struggled to support her, who was about to faint from hunger, and his footsteps were a little unsteady.

As soon as she stepped outside, Yu Jing confirmed that she had indeed come to ancient times. She had only seen these richly ornamented buildings in the past. Bathed in the moonlight, it was so unrealistic, but it was so real.

Knowing that this boy was the younger brother of her previous self, Yu Jing didn't take the initiative to speak in order to prevent him from noticing anything amiss. The boy remained silent as well.

They didn't meet anyone along the way, and Yu Jing didn't notice that the boy was taking her on a secluded path. It wasn't until they walked more and more secluded, passing through those magnificent buildings, passing through a small forest, and arriving in front of a row of low, old single-story houses.

There were about four to five houses in this row, and in the courtyard, two middle-aged women wearing old-fashioned lined jackets and long skirts were fetching water from a well. When they saw the siblings return, one of them, who had a floral handkerchief wrapped around her head, quickly put down the bucket of water and ran over.

"Sigh, why didn't Young Master call this servant when he went to pick up Young Miss? It's such a long way, and it's so dark. What would we do if we stumble? Come, I'll support Young Miss, you go open the door."

Young Master? Young Miss? Although the people here had a slight southern accent, it didn't prevent Yu Jing from understanding what they were saying. She raised her head to look at the shabby house in front of her, and then thought about the exquisite buildings from earlier. She couldn't help but feel puzzled. Since they were Young Master and Young Miss, why were they living in such a place that was obviously for servants?

"Thank you, Aunt Liu."

The boy thanked her and let the woman support Yu Jing, while he ran forward and opened the door to the house in the westernmost corner of the courtyard.

With an adult supporting her, Yu Jing didn't have to forcefully support half of her body to lessen his burden. She was supported by Aunt Liu to the door, and with the help of the moonlight outside, she saw the boy skillfully light an oil lamp on the wooden table.

"Young Master, I'll get you something to eat. Hurry and get some water for Young Miss. She's been locked up for three days."

Aunt Liu helped Yu Jing to lie down on the bed and hurriedly went out.

The boy poured a bowl of warm water and helped Yu Jing drink it. He then took out a wooden basin from behind the door and went outside to get water.

Yu Jing really did not have the strength to help. She lay on the bed and looked at the small room from the corner of her eyes. It was less than ten square meters, the floor was rough, and there was only a set of tables and chairs at the door, two old wooden cabinets by the wall, and two narrow wooden beds.

Yu Jing, who was proficient in mathematics, was not deeply involved in history and literature. Based on what she had seen so far, it was impossible to determine which dynasty she was currently in.

Where was this? Why was she living with a servant even though she was a Miss? What? What was her now?

These were the most important things for Yu Jing to figure out. She turned her head and looked at the busy child. She couldn't help but think of Xiao Lei. Did he know that something had happened to her? When Mom and Dad received the news, they would probably hide it from him, right?

She hoped that they would not be too sad and live on. Only then could she feel at ease in the other world.

She didn't know how to address her brother, so she chose the most common title. The boy, who was putting the clothes back into the cabinet, turned his head and looked at her strangely. He seemed to think of something and turned his head back.

He said coldly, "Just behave for a few days and don't think about causing trouble again. Although Fourth Miss went back to the capital yesterday, the Old Lady is still angry about you breaking her jade pendant. If someone finds fault with you again, it won't just be a few days in the ancestral hall."

"Just behave yourself for a few days. Don't think about causing trouble again. Although Fourth Miss went back to the capital yesterday, the fact that you broke her jade pendant still hasn't calmed down yet. If people find fault with you again, it won't just be a few days in the ancestral hall."

Yu Jing thought, "Just behave for a few days. Don't think about causing trouble again. Although Fourth Miss went back to the capital yesterday, the Old Lady is still angry about you breaking her jade pendant. If someone finds fault with you again, it won't just be a few days in the ancestral hall."

Who was Fourth Miss? Wasn't she a miss in the past?

"Come, Young Master, come and eat. I've cooked some noodles. It's hot."

Aunt Liu walked into the room with two big bowls of hot noodles. She put one bowl on the table and urged the boy to eat. She took the other bowl to the bedside and helped Yu Jing up. She sat by the bedside and fed her.

A bowl of noodles with a light broth and only a few vegetable leaves floated on it. Yu Jing was too hungry and had no appetite. But she knew that her body couldn't stand it if she didn't eat, so she obediently opened her mouth to be fed.

She looked at the boy and saw him sitting by the table with a big bowl of noodles, eating with relish. She couldn't taste the sweet and salty noodles in her mouth, but when it entered her stomach, it became warm.

***

Yu Jing lay in bed for three days before she recovered. During these three days, Aunt Liu took care of her food and drink. Yu Xiu went to school in the morning and came back in the afternoon. He wouldn't talk to her unless there was something urgent.

Thanks to Aunt Liu's enthusiasm and talkative, Yu Jing got the information she wanted to know by beating around the bush. Only then did she know why a miss had to live with a servant.

This was because she wasn't the miss of this family at all. She was a burden that her mother remarried with her younger brother. This family's surname was Ji. Their biological mother was only a concubine in Third Master's courtyard and wasn't favored.

The reason why she was locked in the ancestral hall was because she broke a jade pendant belonging to Second Master's Fourth Miss. Third Master didn't care about the family affairs and Aunt Cui was timid and afraid of causing trouble. No one helped to plead for her, so she was thrown into the ancestral hall by the Matriarch in a rage and locked up for three days.

From Aunt Liu's tone, Yu Jing knew how disliked she was in this family.

Aunt Cui only came to see her yesterday. In an unfriendly tone, she warned her not to cause trouble again. She didn't even ask about her health and just threw a few copper coins to send her away. Aunt Cui was her biological mother.

In her previous life, although Yu Jing wasn't loved by everyone, she was at least popular and had a lot of friends. Now, she became a burden that her parents didn't love and even her own younger brother despised.

She even changed her name to Yu Shu. The remainder was the annoying part that couldn't be removed. How could she, who used to deal with numbers all day long, endure this?

After being depressed for an afternoon, Yu Jing accepted her fate. She was now called Yu Shu. She had a brother called Yu Xiu whom she depended on for survival. She also had a mother who didn't care about them as a concubine.

Thanks to her optimistic nature, she was able to accept this reality in such a short period of time. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to bear the burden of supporting the whole family alone after her parents were laid off and her brother became disabled.

"Miss, you have to learn your lesson this time. Don't cause trouble again. When you go to the private school tomorrow, learn some proper skills from the teacher. Don't let the young master always be implicated by you."

These were the words that Aunt Liu said the most in the past few days. It made Yu Shu more or less guess that she was an insensible little girl in the past. She really didn't know what she had done to Yu Xiu to make her only brother hate her so much that he didn't even want to talk to her.

"Got it, Aunt Liu." Yu Shu had heard Yu Xiu's accent before. Coupled with her hoarse throat, it wasn't a problem for her to forcefully imitate his tone. If one didn't pay special attention, they wouldn't notice that there was a problem with her accent.

The sun was very good at noon. Aunt Liu sat in the yard cutting vegetables. Yu Jing moved a stool from the house and talked to her. Yu Jing wanted to help her, but she didn't allow it.

Aunt Liu came to the Ji family with Aunt Cui. She was a servant who did odd jobs in the backyard. She was the only person who insisted on calling Yu Shu and Miss Yu Xiu young master.

"Young Master, you're back from school." Aunt Liu greeted him loudly. Yu Shu heard the voice and turned her head. She saw Yu Xiu holding a small gray cloth bag. He lowered his head and entered the small yard that didn't even have a door.

Yu Shu was fifteen years old this year. Her younger brother, Yu Xiu, was two years younger than her. A twelve or thirteen year old boy was at the age where he was growing. He was shorter than her by a bit and had a skinny figure. He had a cloth wrapped around his head and wore an ill-fitting shirt, which made him look shabby.

This reminded Yu Shu of the pink silk dress in the closet. When she was home alone for the past few days, she had turned the house upside down, but she could only find one decent dress. The rest of the clothes were made of coarse cloth.

In the Ji family, the siblings didn't have to work to eat and could go to school. Other than that, they were no different from servants. There were a few servants living in the small yard. When they saw them, they either ignored them or called them by their names.

"Aunt Liu," Yu Xiu greeted Aunt Liu. He only glanced at Yu Shu before he lowered his head and went back into the house.

Yu Shu noticed that his footsteps were a bit strange. She said something to Aunt Liu and followed Yu Xiu into the house.

"Xiaoxiu." Yu Shu called out. Yu Xiu didn't pay attention to her. He put the gray cloth bag with the books on the bedside table.

Yu Shu didn't know what to do with this child's stone-like personality. She didn't dare to act too close to him and provoke him. She could only give up on talking to him. She poured him water and stared at his back as she thought.

Upon closer inspection, she noticed that there was something different about him. Yu Xiu had just changed into his robe that morning, but it was now wrinkled and there was some dirt on his back, which seemed to be in the shape of footprints. Coupled with his slow pace, she, who had been a good older sister for more than twenty years, couldn't help but think of something …

This child got into a fight.

Without batting an eyelid, she walked over with the teacup. When she got closer, she confirmed her guess. No wonder Yu Xiu came back with his head lowered. There was a large bruise on his forehead and the corner of his mouth was bleeding. It was obvious that he had been beaten by someone.

Yu Shu was angry. She didn't have a good temper. In her previous life, her family was poor. They didn't eat well and dress well. When she was in middle school, her younger brother, Yu Lei, was often looked down upon and bullied. She didn't want her parents to worry, so she hid it from her family. Later, when she was in the same high school as Yu Lei, she found out. There was a period of time when she and her friends followed Yu Lei after school to teach those brats a lesson. No one bullied her younger brother again.

In her mind, as an older sister, she should take care of her younger brother. She absolutely couldn't let him get beaten!

"My body is almost healed. I'll go to school with you tomorrow." Yu Shu stuffed the teacup into Yu Xiu's hands. In order to give the child some dignity, she pretended not to see the wound on his face. She turned her head and gritted her teeth.