After dinner, the hosts went to the flower room to have tea.
The decoration of the flower room is very luxurious, and the wall coverings are new fabrics with light purple accents of velvet yellow flowers.
The seats come in different sizes and shapes, and can be placed freely. There are benches, small armchairs, round piers and stools, a piano with a black shell placed at the window, and tall bookshelves. The guests sat together in twos and threes, while the women shook their fans and whispered to each other. The men talked loudly, complaining about politics and being full of grievances.
The butler nodded at me, and I followed him out of the small living room. The work inside no longer required too many people.
"You did a great job tonight, "the butler said with satisfaction.
"You're very generous." I said.
Claude broke his leg, you can replace him during this period. If you do well, I will tell the master to promote you to become a senior male servant and work hard He patted my shoulder.
I was a little surprised, but I didn't expect it.
The butler complained as he walked, "I still need to find another subordinate male servant to replace your position. We can't find a good male servant in the countryside, so we need to retrain."
I followed him down the open corridor.
"What do you think of the Baron? "He suddenly asked me.
I looked at the old butler, his wrinkled face slightly embarrassed: 'No, I'm not talking about the master. It's just... you know, I'm just curious about your opinions, after all, that gentleman may become the new master of the Momong Manor.'
"Today is our first meeting, and I can't say for sure... but you already know him, right? "I said.
That's not true The butler said, "Although our family has served the Bruce family for generations, this is the first time I have seen young master Oscar. You know, his late father had a bad relationship with our Viscount. If he agrees to marry a young lady, there will be no problem, I'm just worried that he won't."
"You don't have to worry too much, that gentleman looks like a respectable gentleman. He will understand the difficulties of the Viscount and there won't be any problems I said.
"I hope we don't tell anyone about our conversation tonight." 'said the butler.
"Yes, Sir." I stooped to bow to him.
"Get some rest. You'll know tomorrow." 'said the butler.
...
The next day, after serving breakfast to the masters, Anne quietly told me, "Madam's personal maid Eve told me that the Baron directly refused the suggestion of marrying a young lady and said he would leave the estate tomorrow. Madam was furious."
I fell silent for a moment and continued working with my head down. After the masters had breakfast, I sat quietly in the servants' lounge, waiting for that to happen.
The fireplace was burning brightly, and sparks were crackling.
Two maids were embroidering while whispering about something.
Thick ice flowers grew on the glass windows, and the weather outside was very gloomy, as if a heavy snowfall was about to fall.
I don't know how long had passed, but the housekeeper Selena hurriedly walked in and ordered the two maids, "Hurry up! Prepare the brazier."
I immediately stood up and asked her, "Is something wrong?"
The housekeeper's face was pale, looking at me with confusion, as if she wanted to say something but had some reservations. I walked over and whispered to her, 'What exactly happened? You look really bad.'
Seeing that the two maids had already left the room, the housekeeper hurriedly said to me, "Something's not going well! What should we do!"
What's wrong? Speak slowly, don't be nervous!"
"How can I not be nervous! That man, that man brought that dirty disease from somewhere! He will kill us, my goodness!"
"Are you referring to the Baron who just arrived yesterday?"
"Who else is there besides him? He didn't wake up this morning and said he was sick with a fever all over his body. The doctor came to see him and said he had a slight fever. But before noon, many red bumps had already appeared on his face, one by one. It was really disgusting and terrifying! It was actually smallpox!"
"Has the doctor come to see again? Did he say it was smallpox?"
"The doctor heard it might be smallpox and refused to come back. The host and guests heard about it and hid in their rooms, afraid to go out. The host instructed me to burn, throw away, and bury everything he had touched yesterday."
"The situation is still uncertain, don't panic, "I said.
"What's uncertain? One of his two servants with him has already fallen ill, with fever all over his body and the same symptoms. If it weren't for smallpox, what would it be! "Selena paced back and forth anxiously." My master wants me to find someone to take care of him for the sake of face. It's really scary. He should be sent away directly."
"Who is taking care of him now?"
"No one wants to go, not even his healthy personal servant, saying he wants to resign."
"I'll go."
'What did you say?
I said, I'll take care of him."
Are you crazy! That could be smallpox, which can kill people if transmitted! There are other subordinate male servants, so there's no need for you. Just let Simon go. "Selena and I have a very good relationship in this life, completely opposite to our previous life, and they actually want Simon to replace me.
"It's okay, I'll be fine. That shouldn't be smallpox."
I ultimately convinced Selena.
Dragging the tray, I walked into the Baron's room alone.
The light in the room was very weak, and they covered the windows with thick deep red curtains.
On the spacious bed, under the deep blue bedding, a man is lying quietly. His face turned red, he was breathing rapidly, and there were many red rashes on his face. He seemed to be sleeping very restless.
I placed the tray on the bedside table, and there was cold water in the tray.
Touch his head, it's scorching hot. My actions woke him up, and he looked at me for a moment before frowning and asking, "Who are you? Why are you in my room? Where's my servant
His voice was hoarse and weak, as if saying these few words had exhausted him.
"Sir, your personal servant is sick, and I will take care of you during this period. "With one hand in front of me and the other behind me, I bent down and bowed.
The room was very quiet, the firewood in the fireplace had long stopped burning, and the room was a bit cold.
"He took a few rough breaths, as if trembling, and said, "I feel very cold."
"I'll start a fire now. "I walked over to the fireplace and lit it again. I'm not very skilled in this job, so I made the room full of smoke and dust. When I walked back to the bed again, he had already fallen asleep again.
I took out a piece of cotton cloth, wetted it with cold water, folded it neatly, and gently covered the Baron's forehead.
There is a cushion by the bed, and I sit down to try not to make any noise.
The fireplace is gradually heating up, and the room is getting warmer.
This afternoon, I sat next to him and replaced the handkerchief on his forehead. As dusk approached, the room darkened and the flames from the fireplace shone on his face. I watched with a daze.
The man on the bed woke up, struggled to sit up, but immediately vomited violently. He didn't eat any food at all, his stomach was empty, and at this point he just vomited a lot of sour water. The sheets and underwear were already covered in vomit.
I helped him change out of his dirty clothes and then found new sheets to lay on.
After spitting it out, he looked much better and sat in a chair asking me, "What illness am I suffering from? Why hasn't a doctor come to see me?"
"It's snowing heavily outside, making it difficult for the carriage to travel, "I lied to him.
"What's on my face? "He sat groggily in the armchair, facing a mirror directly across from him. He touched his face in front of the mirror.
Suddenly, he widened his eyes, gasped heavily, and loudly questioned me, 'Tell me, what is this! What illness do I have! Where are my servants! Where is the doctor! Call the doctor! Call the doctor!'!"
His widened eyes were bloodshot, which made people feel scared.
"It's nothing, my Lord. Don't panic."
But he lifted his clothes and looked at his chest. There were also many red rashes growing on it. He couldn't believe it and his lips trembled slightly. "What is this? Smallpox?"
"No, my Lord."
"No! Then tell me what this is! Go call a doctor!"
Call a doctor!" "He cried, and then began to cough violently.
I patted his back to give him a sigh of relief, and after he calmed down, I said, "The doctor will come, wait until the weather outside improves."
"The weather is getting better? You're talking nonsense. They won't come, they're leaving me to fend for myself. Will I die? Will I die? "He held my hand, his face pale and looking very alarmed.
"No, sir. I will take care of you. You will be fine."
He leaned weakly in the armchair, then fixed his gaze on me for a while before suddenly asking me, "What's your name?"
Owen, Owen Eric I said.