After the two finished writing the agreement and stamping their fingerprints, Ruby still wasn't satisfied and said, "Writing an agreement isn't enough. Let's call Lily and Anna to be our witnesses, okay?"
Lily and Anna were also Evan Xiao's maids.
Evan Xiao had four main maids: Ruby managed his clothes, Lily cleaned the rooms, Anna handled the food, and Grace brewed the tea.
"Sure! Call them over!" Chloe Zhu said.
So, not only did they have a written agreement for their bet, but now they had witnesses too.
Ruby was practically bursting with joy.
She'd worked at the General's Manor for five years and knew the General's temper like the back of her hand.
He had zero tolerance for servants who made mistakes.
Someone like Lily Bai, who got ridiculously lucky and managed to cure Cecilia Chen, was already getting way more mercy than usual.
There was no way he'd ever let Lily Bai step foot in the General's Manor again.
As for Lily Bai saying the General would personally invite her back... she must be out of her mind!
Even if, by some miracle, Lily Bai actually won, Ruby wouldn't lose anything.
Because even if she volunteered to give up her spot, the General would still have to agree!
After serving the General for so many years, Ruby knew all his taboos and preferences. Why would he just swap her out for someone else?
Plus, her brother was a guard in the General's Manor!
So win or lose, Ruby was the real winner!
Honestly, someone like her didn’t seem like she came from a regular scholarly family—more like a noblewoman who’d been trained since childhood.
And just like that, Chloe Zhu packed her bags and got kicked out of the General's Manor.
On the road, she ran into a group of refugees—barely clothed and starving. She split the two hundred taels of silver among them.
If there was one thing she never lacked, it was silver.
The Zhuo Family was the top clan in the Blue Moon Kingdom.
Her father, Minister Zhuo, was the head of the Zhuo Family and Prime Minister of the Blue Moon Kingdom.
And Chloe Zhu was Minister Zhuo's eldest legitimate daughter.
That jade she wore around her neck? Honestly, it wasn't some family heirloom—she just grabbed any old piece before heading out.
She had an entire box full of stuff like that in her room.
She really didn't care about those two hundred taels of silver. The only reason she wanted to win was... just to mess with Ruby!
Any maid entering the General's Manor had to have a spotless background.
So, to get in, she bought a rundown house at the foot of Xianhe Mountain, where Moonwater Abbey stood. She had her nanny pretend to be her mother, and the maids, Pan'er and Xi'er, act as her sisters. That way, she fooled the agents investigating her background.
Now that she was going "home," of course she was heading back to Moonwater Abbey.
Her nanny, Pan'er, and Xi'er were all there!
When she arrived at Moonwater Abbey, she snuck in over the back wall and tiptoed toward her old room.
But just as she reached the back window, she heard Grace Wan's stern voice inside: "Where did the young miss go? You useless servants want to die? Tell me the truth, now!"
Grace Wan was the second wife of Minister Zhuo, Chloe Zhu's stepmother.
Because Chloe Zhu's mother was always sick, and Grace Wan was the only concubine in the Prime Minister's Residence, she managed all the household affairs.
And she really did a great job!
Seriously, she had skills and strategy—she ran the whole Prime Minister's Residence like a well-oiled machine!
Someone like her didn't seem like she came from a regular scholarly family, but more like a noblewoman raised with strict training.
Honestly, if Chloe Zhu's mother managed the house, she wouldn't do it any better!
Uh... I mean, with her mom's delicate, pitiful beauty, there's no way she'd outdo Grace Wan.