Yue Xing was one of the most unlucky people to have ever walked the empire. One moment he was dutifully carrying the wooden basin, the next he collided with one of the other kitchen boys and sent the water tumbling out all over the floor.

  What followed was a cacophony of yells, a screech from the boy he splashed with warm water, a laugh from somewhere behind. Yue Xing himself got soaked too, his sleeves and trouser hems clinging cold and heavy to his skin as the basin clattered away with a hollow crack.

  “Idiot! Watch where you’re going!” someone barked.

  The boy he’d soaked shrieked, “It’s hot, it’s hot! Are you blind?!” before the head cook whirled around, face dark as a thundercloud. The head cook was the scariest man Yue Xing had ever seen; he was tall, his form filled out, but when he rolled up his sleeves his strength became undeniable. Yue Xing had been terrified of him since the day he started helping out in the kitchen.

  “Get out! Out of my kitchen before you break something else!” the cook roared and the boiling ladle he used to stir the soup with only a moment before only narrowly missed Yue Xing’s ear.

  The curses chased him across the threshold, and Yue Xing fled into the courtyard with his heart in his throat, clothes dripping and palms stinging, convinced that out of all the gods, the kitchen gods must have hated him the most.

  Or maybe he was just cursed. He had always been a menace to kitchenware, as was apparent by his record numbers of broken porcelain, clay pots, and now a basin too. If the head cook didn’t ban him from the kitchen forever, then maybe Yue Xing should ban himself anyway.

  He could tell Auntie Ye that it was quite clear he wasn’t cut for this kind of work, and that he should look for a job elsewhere. He could probably sweep the courtyards; that didn’t seem nearly as dangerous as working with hot food and their extremely fragile containers.

  He slumped down on the lowest stone step, pulling his knees to his chest and buried his face into his arms. At least the late summer sun was nice against his skin, like a warm embrace.

  And wait, no, that wasn’t the sun, it was a hand on his shoulder. At the revelation Yue Xing flinched, snapping his head up. Ye Huiqing only chuckled, shaking her head in disbelief.

  “Have you always been so skittish? I swear, any time someone even remotely approaches you, you immediately jump out of your skin.” the woman said, her tone playful. She lowered herself beside Yue Xing, who bashfully turned his head away.

  “I don’t know… It’s instinct, I guess.” Yue Xing shrugged. “I had a few run-ins with bullies before.” Auntie Ye gave a thoughtful hum in return, her hand soothing down Yue Xing’s back.

  It was nice. Auntie Ye was nice. Yue Xing sighed, letting his knees down, he stared at his hands. Thin, red lines still decorated it from earlier that week. One of them had reopened slightly at the collision; a small crimson bead rested on the tip of his finger.

  “Everyone is so angry all the time. It’s like the air is overcharged with pressure everywhere I go.” Yue Xing lamented. Auntie Ye smiled.

  “Don’t dwell on it too much. It’s not your fault.” the woman said, trying her best to console him. Yue Xing frowned, not all that convinced by Auntie Ye’s words. It sure as hell felt like his fault.

  Auntie Ye shook her head, as if she was able to read his thoughts. “It really isn’t. People around here have been stressed for a long time, years almost. They’re not very satisfied with how things have been going on ever since Lord Song got appointed.”

  That piqued his interest. “Why? Is he a bad boss?” Yue Xing asked curiously. Auntie Ye hummed.

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  “Not exactly. It’s just… Well, there are rumors. Ah, I’d rather not delve into it. It doesn’t matter what people say about him anyway as long as there’s food on the table and a roof over our head. Don't you think so?” Auntie Ye asked. Yue Xing wasn’t so sure about that. He chose not to say anything either way.

  “Are these rumors bad?” he asked instead, turning his head to watch her face. Auntie Ye pursed her lips, her eyes darting around the courtyard for a moment, as if in thought whether she should divulge such things to Yue Xing or not.

  “They’re… Probably not true, that’s for sure. Zhan Wei is doing his best to dispel them, but I hear Lord Song’s image has shifted drastically ever since he took this position.” A rosy tint crept up her plush cheeks. It was clear from that alone that she was not one to usually dwell in gossip.

  Yue Xing sat up straighter. “What was his image like before?” From the very scant few—namely two—encounters he'd had with Song Chang, the man didn't strike him as someone worthy of badmouthing. While it was true that the man was terrifying in his own rights, mainly due to that particularly commanding aura that oozed off of him, Song Chang seemed much more kind than he had anticipated. He had even given Yue Xing his own handkerchief.

  At the thought, Yue Xing raised his hand to his chest, feeling out the outlines of the fabric. It was still there, unharmed.

  Auntie Ye averted her eyes anxiously. With every question Yue Xing asked she got more and more frustrated it seemed.

  “He was well known around the whole nation. He was celebrated as a hero by the Emperor himself after the Siege of Wuji Fortress. He was the kind of man who got along with everyone.” Auntie Ye said, her eyebrows lightly furrowed as she didn't meet Yue Xing's eyes.

  “Or at least that's what I've heard. I never met him back then. All I can say is that if the rumors are true, then he is a lot more sour than he used to be.” she finished.

  Yue Xing just couldn't stop himself from asking, “What happened to him then?”

  Auntie Ye’s face darkened for a moment, before her features softened and she looked at Yue Xing with a warm smile. “It’s not my story to tell. You’ll have to ask him if you’re so curious.” she reached out to pinch Yue Xing's cheek. “I’m not sure you’d dare.”

  Yue Xing could only smilingly swat at her hand in feigned indignation. She was right, he couldn't possibly dare to ask Song Chang to his face, at least not yet.

  But the whole conversation had awakened his curiosity to impossible ends. And if Auntie Ye wasn't willing to tell him Song Chang's story, then he would just have to find someone who did. It was clear from the look on Auntie Ye’s face that something awful must have gone down.

  They heard a shout from behind them. One of the kitchen maids was looking at the cracked open window, waving to them. “Auntie, auntie! Won't you come back? Uncle Xiao is getting angry at you too.” she yelled.

  Auntie Ye sighed, shaking her head with a tired smile. “I'll be just a moment, A-Li.” the woman answered. The maid seemed satisfied enough by that answer as she disappeared from the window the very next moment.

  Auntie Ye turned back to Yue Xing, who was eyeing him with big dark eyes. She smiled, patting his sun-kissed cheek. “I better get back in before Uncle Xiao starts yelling again.” she chuckled. Standing up, her knees gave two uncomfortable pops. Yue Xing cringed at the sounds.

  “I'll get in a few good words with him for you.” she continued as she ascended the rest of the steps. “But you'll have to promise you will never drop anything again. Or better yet, let's say just for the next week, huh?” she laughed, and Yue Xing felt his cheeks heat up at the teasing. He nodded anyway.

  “Alright. Just sit here in the meanwhile. I'll send someone to get you once Uncle Xiao is level-headed enough.” With that, she disappeared behind the kitchen door.

  Yue Xing sat alone again. The clamor of the kitchen could faintly be heard, but the sound of the wind tussling the nearby magnolia trees drowned out most of the noise. He sighed, closing his eyes.

  Liming Manor was oddly peaceful like this. A muffled laugh came from the kitchen, a woman's voice, undoubtedly Auntie Ye. Yue Xing let a smile pull on the sides of his lips. Without a care in the world he allowed himself to lay back against the stairs, basking silently in the warm sunlight.

  By the evening, Yue Xing was back in the kitchen, though this time he was more closely working under Auntie Ye herself. He couldn't even begin to imagine what she had said to the cook to convince him to let a clumsy, butter-fingered boy back between sharp knives and fragile kitchenware.

  When he deeply apologized for his mistake, Uncle Xiao only gave him a grunt. He didn't say anything, but with a simple motion of his hand he sent Yue Xing on his way.

  Yue Xing considered that his very first victory in the manor.