"Reporting to my Lord," Attendant Five didn't change her attitude toward Ethan just because something had happened between them. She still spoke respectfully, "Mr. White brought a group of strange people here, saying they were going to help renovate the manor."
"I told him that before you returned, no one was allowed to touch a single blade of grass in the manor."
"But Mr. White said those people were very expensive."
"He insisted they had to start work immediately."
"And then..."
As Attendant Five spoke, she lowered her head and stopped there.
Hearing this, Ethan suddenly stopped walking and looked at Attendant Five.
"So... you rallied everyone in the manor and put Mr. White under house arrest?"
"My Lord, I'm sorry," Attendant Five was so frightened that she didn't even dare raise her head, "I shouldn't have treated your honored guest that way. If you're angry, please punish me severely!"
"You did very well. There's no need to apologize."
Ethan gently lifted Attendant Five's chin.
"This is our manor. It's our home. I won't allow anyone to touch our home, even if they're honored guests... that's still not allowed!"
"My Lord, you... you're really not blaming Attendant Five?"
"Why would I blame you?", Ethan said with a smile, "From now on, you'll be the manor's chief steward. Whenever I'm away, you'll be in charge of the manor."
"Really?"
Attendant Five looked up, her eyes shining.
Whether from happiness or gratitude that Ethan understood her, it was impossible to tell.
Ethan smiled, "I'm the lord of this territory. Would I really go back on my word over appointing a steward?"
"Thank you, my Lord!"
Attendant Five immediately dropped to one knee.
At that moment, all the citizens who had come out to welcome Ethan also knelt on one knee and said together, "Congratulations, my Lord! Congratulations, Chief Steward."
"Alright, everyone, get up."
After saying that, Ethan turned back to Attendant Five, "Where's Mr. White now? Take me to see him."
"Reporting to my Lord, we were afraid Mr. White and that group would cause trouble, so we've temporarily arranged for them to stay in the unoccupied residential building, Building Three."
"Alright, let's go take a look."
Just as Ethan was about to leave, Cook Four suddenly stopped him.
"My Lord, haven't you forgotten about me too? I can help out around the manor as well. Could you give me a position too? That way I can do even more for the manor."
"You?"
Ethan stopped and gave Cook Four a meaningful look.
Her heart immediately skipped a beat. She seemed flustered, but still forced herself to look up at Ethan, trying to show her "courage."
"Yes, my Lord. Please!"
As she spoke, Cook Four deliberately glanced at Attendant Five, her eyes full of envy and jealousy.
Ethan raised an eyebrow, "Sure."
"Really?"
Cook Four was excited.
She had thought that the Lord liked the new and had grown tired of the old, that now he had Attendant Five, he didn't want her anymore.
But now it seemed that the Lord was quite generous with his affection.
'Then tonight...'
'I will quietly go to the Lord's room and repay him.'
"Mm. I'll appoint you as the Chief Director of the Imperial Kitchen," Ethan said, "From now on, everything in the kitchen will be under your authority."
"Thank you, my Lord."
Seeing that Ethan had agreed and had actually given her an official position, Cook Four was so excited that she forgot to think and simply nodded repeatedly.
When Ethan turned around, she even deliberately shot Attendant Five a look.
'See that? I've been promoted too.'
'What's so great about you?'
Attendant Five didn't say a word. She simply covered her mouth and laughed softly before quickly following behind Ethan.
Just as Cook Four was feeling pleased with herself, her team members and the others in charge of the kitchen suddenly spoke up.
"Chief Director of the Imperial Kitchen... isn't that still in charge of the kitchen?"
"Sister Cook Four, weren't you already the boss of the kitchen? Even if your title gets bigger, isn't it still the same job?"
"Uh..."
Only then did Cook Four realize she had been fooled by the Lord again.
'So the Lord still... likes Attendant Five more?'
———
[Area A1]
[The Lord's Villa]
At that moment, the small garden in the villa grounds was covered with lush little white flowers.
Whenever the wind blew, the flowers swayed everywhere, even producing sounds like wind chimes.
They were pleasant and soothing to hear.
"Don't you think these flowers are strange?", said Guard A, one of the soldiers stationed at the Lord's Villa. Looking at the white flowers covering the hills, he scratched his head, "Just a few days ago, there wasn't even a single bud. But in such a short time, they've bloomed all over the place."
"Tell me about it," Guard B replied, "Not only do they grow incredibly well, they're also really strange! Our new lord came by once, took one look at these flowers, said he didn't like them, and ordered them removed. Guess what happened?"
"Will you die if you stop dragging it out?"
"Come on, you'll kill the conversation like that," Seeing Guard A's impatient expression, Guard B gave up keeping him in suspense, "That day, the entire villa guard was mobilized to dig up the flowers everywhere. By nightfall, every last flower had been cleared away. But the very next day, another huge patch had grown back! Tell me, isn't that creepy?"