The bald servant, perplexed by the head stable master's sudden departure, called out anxiously, "But... But... Brother Han! Brother Han! Wait!"
Despite hearing him, the stable master ignored him and walked away without turning back. The bald servant sighed, scratching his head with a troubled expression as he mulled over his next move.
'If there are five horses, then I'll need five people capable of handling them properly. But who around here even knows how to ride an Earth-Horse?'
After a moment of pondering, he thought, 'I know at least two junior servants who can handle them. If I head back to the house and tell them to go wait at the stables, I'll only need to find two more.' With that plan in mind, he started walking back toward the Han family's house.
A few minutes later, having located the two junior servants and sent them to the stables, the bald servant scratched his head again. 'If I head to the Lee family house now to fetch the junior there, I'll only have one more person to find, and I can deal with that later,' he thought. With a plan in place, he set off toward the Lee family's house.
Before long, the bald servant reached the door of the Lee family house on the western side of the Han family's house. Entering through the door, he made his way to the senior servants' quarters.
Reaching the entrance to a spacious, open room, he stepped inside without hesitation. Approaching a group of figures seated around a table, he asked, "Where can I find Young Master Lee Zhong's head servant?"
Hearing his voice, one of the figures, who had been cracking sunflower seeds and chatting with the others, looked up with a curious expression. "Who are you?"
The bald servant's eyebrows twitched slightly at the group-leader like figure's tone, but he ignored it and replied, "I am the head servant of Young Master Han Fei from the Han family."
Though visibly annoyed by the bald servant's way of introduction, the group at the table held their tongues, seemingly unwilling to make noise in front of the man who appeared to be their leader.
As both the bald servant and the group of Lee family servants turned their attention to the group's leader, the man spoke calmly, without waiting long. "I can tell that much from your shiny bald head. Now, tell me something I don't know. Why are you looking for the head servant of our young master?"
The bald servant frowned slightly at this remark but replied bluntly, "That doesn't concern you. Just tell me where the junior is."
Hearing this, the leader of the group, who had been about to sip from his teacup, paused mid-motion, visibly taken aback.
The other servants at the table stared at the bald servant in shock. One of them stood up and pointed his index finger at him, shouting, "How dare you speak to the family leader's chief servant like that?"
Though surprised to hear this, the bald servant couldn't help but think, 'So that's why they're acting so smug.'
"Enough, lower your hand and sit down." The chief servant of the Lee family leader, after briefly sizing up the bald servant, turned to the servant who had gestured and ordered coldly.
Hearing the rebuke, the servant quickly dropped his hand and sat back down, restoring silence to the room.
The bald servant and the chief servant locked eyes for a moment before the latter laughed and said, "Haha! If you're not willing to explain, that's fine." Then, with a calm expression, he took a sip of his tea and added, "He should be at the stables right now."
Relieved to have finally gotten the information he needed, the bald servant gave a slight bow. "Thank you, Senior." Without further ado, he turned and left through the open door.
As the bald servant left through the door, one of the servants at the table, clearly bothered by the situation, turned to the chief servant sitting at the table and respectfully said, "chief servant, you are a Martial Master practitioner. Why did you respond to that servant, who is only a Martial Senior? If you had allowed us, we would have taught him his place."
"Yes!"
"He deserved a beating for that attitude!"
The chief servant ignored their complaints, taking another sip of tea before smirking slightly as he stared in the direction the bald servant had gone. "I was planning to have a little fun with him, but he doesn't seem like much of a joker."
"But—"
Seeing that the servants at the table were still unwilling, the chief servant said, "Moreover, even if you attack him, you won't win."
The younger servants' expressions soured at this remark. One of them, clearly offended, spoke up, "I'm a Level 4 martial senior! There's no way I'd lose to him!"
"Exactly! I'm also at the fourth level."
"I'm a Level 3 martial senior. Even if I can't win, at least I won't lose."
Annoyed by their incessant chatter, he said, "Silence! That young man is a Level 6 Martial Senior Apprentice. Even if all of you attacked him together, you'd stand no chance."
Hearing this, the young servants fell silent, though displeased with what the chief servant had said, as they understood that he was angry.
Satisfied with the quiet, the chief servant added calmly, "The Han family's defensive and endurance-enhancing techniques are the best in the town. Engaging them in an endurance battle is nothing short of foolish."
As silence returned to the Lee family's senior servant quarters, the bald servant was already on his way to the Lee family stables.
A minute later, he arrived at the stables only to be stopped by the guards at the entrance.
The guards scrutinized him warily before one of them asked gruffly, "Who are you, and what do you want?"
"I am the head servant of Young Master Han Fei. I'm here to see Young Master Lee Zhong's head servant. I was told he's here," the bald servant replied politely.
"Han family? Sorry, even though we're allies, I can't let you in. Not many people from the Lee family itself have clearance to enter here," the guard said with a shake of his head.
The bald servant, having anticipated such a response, maintained his composure and smiled courteously. "Brother Guard, this is a very urgent matter. I can't explain the details, but if you can't let me in, could you at least deliver a message for me?"
The two guards exchanged a brief glance before one of them nodded. "Alright, wait here. I'll go and inform him."
Relieved, the bald servant bowed slightly and said, "Thank you, Brother Guard."
As one guard went inside, the bald servant stood awkwardly with the remaining guard, unsure of what to say. Thankfully, the other guard soon returned with bald servant's junior by his side.
Seeing the familiar face of the servant with a sword at his waist, the bald servant called out excitedly, "Junior!"
The young servant frowned, concern evident on his face. "Senior, what's wrong? You look exhausted."