A Maid Dressed As A Cannon Fodder Female Supporting Role (Transmigration) - Chapter 4

By the time a cup of tea had cooled, the two punished maids, Xiao Yan and Xiao Que, finally rose from the ground outside the door, grumbling under their breath.

Xiao Yan wasn’t too bad off. She dusted off the snow on her cotton trousers and could walk normally, though the melted snow soaking into her knees stung sharply in the wind.

Xiao Que, on the other hand, looked like she had endured torture. Her legs were shaking, her knees nearly numb, and she could barely stand up.

Her pampered and delicate appearance—like some spoiled daughter from a wealthy family—made Xiao Yan roll her eyes in exasperation. She opened her mouth and jeered:

“This isn’t the study, and the little princess isn’t some young master who holds you in the palm of his hand. Who are you putting on that pitiful act for?”

Still, seeing Xiao Que in this sorry state did satisfy her a bit.

Normally, Xiao Que looked down on her for being uneducated and rough around the edges. Having served in the study, she considered herself worldly and often mocked Xiao Yan for her uncouthness.

Well, look at them now. Both punished, both kneeling. And honestly, Xiao Que looked even worse off.

Serves her right!

Xiao Que’s face was flushed red; whether from the cold or anger, it was hard to tell. She glared at Xiao Yan with resentment, then lowered her head and began furiously scrubbing the wet patches on her trousers with her sleeves.

“I’ve never been treated like this before,” she mumbled, on the verge of tears.

After all, she’d grown up serving in the study. Her tasks were no more than pouring tea and serving snacks—never any real labor.

Even if she did something wrong or said something out of line, all she had to do was flutter her lashes and sob a little in front of the young master, and the matter would be forgotten.

It was precisely because of this preferential treatment that Xiao Que had started to harbor ambitions of becoming a concubine.

Back then, even as a maid, she’d never been scolded, let alone physically punished. But now, she’d not only been slapped but also made to kneel in the snow for an entire cup of tea’s time.

It was too much. The fall from grace was too sudden.

So sudden that she no longer wanted to stay in the Qi residence. She wanted to go back—back to the young master.

Sniffling and wiping away her tears, she wept as she spoke about how well the young master had treated her in the past. “If I can’t go back… I don’t want to live the rest of my life like this…”

Xiao Yan had only been enjoying the show until now. But hearing this sparked an idea in her mind.

Feigning a casual tone, she muttered, “If you could become the head maid, life wouldn’t be so hard.”

She glanced sideways at Xiao Que and said slowly, “But too bad… A’Zhi beat you to it.”

Xiao Que’s hand, still mid-motion wiping away her tears, paused slightly.

Compared to a lowly maid doing hard labor, the privileges of a head maid were too tempting to ignore.

Not only did the head maid handle everything related to the little princess, but in a prestigious household, her status was significantly above that of commoners.

Most importantly, head maids didn’t need to do menial tasks, and there were plenty of benefits.

With the princess’s status, gifts and supplements from the palace arrived regularly. Plus, as a titled noble, the princess received a monthly stipend, just like any court official.

And she was General Qi’s youngest daughter. The Qi residence also provided monthly allowances and treatment in line with her noble identity.

A girl like the little princess wouldn’t bother managing these trivialities. Everything would fall to the head maid.

As Xiao Que blinked away her icy tears, just the thought of all the possible gains made her heart stir with warmth.

A’Zhi…

Blocking someone’s path to riches was no different from killing their parents.

And after the humiliation they’d suffered at A’Zhi’s hands today, it was more than enough to make her a sworn enemy.

Xiao Que wiped away the last of her tears, then reached up to touch her hair. Clenching her teeth against the pain, she pulled out a silver hairpin shaped like a plum blossom.

Unlike Xiao Yan’s dull, plain appearance, Xiao Que’s accessories were far more elegant and vibrant.

These were things she had bought with money the young master had gifted her while she served in the study.

Holding the hairpin in one hand, she took Xiao Yan’s hand with the other and placed the pin into her palm.

“Sister,” she said gently, “I was in the wrong earlier. My temper got the best of me. Can you forgive me?”

“We’re of the same rank,” she continued. “In a place like this, unfamiliar and full of strangers, we should stand together like real sisters—not fight and make it easy for others. No matter what happens, good or bad, it should be between the two of us. Don’t you agree?”

Xiao Yan wasn’t stupid. Seeing Xiao Que finally playing nice, she joined the act.

“You’re right,” she said, her voice warm. “What’s ours shouldn’t be handed over to someone else.”

Both women glanced in unison toward the tightly closed doors behind them.

“You really don’t mind giving this to me?” Xiao Yan asked, already tucking the hairpin into her hair with greedy delight. Her round face beamed with joy.

She’d never had anything this nice before.

Xiao Que’s generosity really did show she used to serve in the study.

Of course Xiao Que minded. Her heart ached just watching the other girl put on her pin. Her gaze hadn’t left it the entire time.

Stupid maid, she thought. I’ll use you to deal with A’Zhi first. Once I become the head maid, I’ll deal with you next.

Still, she forced a smile. “What’s mine is yours, sister.”

Both girls wore masks of camaraderie while secretly guarding against one another. But for now, they had a common enemy: A’Zhi.

And so, they held their noses and agreed to work together.

It was their own fault for underestimating A’Zhi. Until yesterday, neither of them had taken the silent, timid little quail seriously. Who would’ve thought she would seize the perfect opportunity, “saving” the little princess and managing to sleep in the princess’s bed?

She was clearly playing dumb before.

She hadn’t even been named thehead maid yet, but she was already throwing her weight around, slapping them and showing them up. If she really secured that position, there’d be no end to her arrogance.

So the two of them made up their minds: they would squeeze A’Zhi out from the princess’s side!

To them, A’Zhi’s “change in personality” after waking up could only mean one thing. She had been pretending all along. This bold, calculating version of her was the real A’Zhi.

Just a glance from the little princess, and she was already wagging her tail!

People like her, once they got a taste of power, always forgot who they were—and that made them easy targets.

*****

Meanwhile, the very A’Zhi they were plotting against quietly got out of bed and began cleaning up the broken pieces of the shattered teacup.

Back when she was still a respected consort, she would never have had to do such menial work herself. Even if she threw a tantrum and smashed things, a palace maid would be summoned to clean up after her.

The sheer contrast between past and present made a pang of sorrow rise in her chest.

It’s hard to serve others again.

After tidying up, A’Zhi climbed back into the little princess’s bed.

Earlier, she caught a glimpse of herself in the bronze mirror on the vanity. Her head was still wrapped in white cloth, and bl00d could still get through slightly. It was probably the source of the headache she’d felt in her dream.

Her appearance, surprisingly, was about 80–90% similar to her original face: delicate and soft, not stunning, but definitely pleasing to the eye.

Compared to before, however, her features lacked the steadiness and authority they once held. Now, she looked younger, like an unripe jujube or a tender green leaf.

Well, this body was only fifteen, after all. A little immaturity was natural.

Thinking of this, A’Zhi instinctively lifted the blanket and looked down at her chest.

Still flat.

She was young now. If she started eating well and nourishing herself early, maybe she would still have time to grow… right?

Not that she was obsessed with such things. But after years of following her aunt, she couldn’t help but occasionally envy her aunt’s graceful curves and voluptuous figure.

After all, though Dowager Empress Dou held the title of “Empress Dowager,” she was only in her thirties.

After drinking her medicine and finishing lunch, A’Zhi fell into a deep sleep until afternoon. She only woke groggily when she heard that slow, soft voice: Little Sweetcake’s.

She barely opened her eyes when she spotted a middle-aged man leaning over her and reaching out his hand.

Every nerve in her body went on high alert. She shot up from the bed, grabbed the pillow, and prepared to strike!

Her first year in the palace, she had been small and naïve, an easy prey. A eunuch had once tried to take advantage of her.

She had cracked his head open with a hard pillow. 

This pillow, however, was soft like the little princess’s voice, sinking easily between her tense fingers.

Still, A’Zhi didn’t lower her guard.

“A’Zhi?”

It wasn’t until the little princess’s head peeked out from behind the man that she finally calmed down.

Those large, watery almond-shaped eyes were full of concern and confusion. “Did you have a nightmare?”

A’Zhi blinked, confused, and slowly changed her grip on the pillow from an attack stance to a hug. She nodded. “Mm.”

“There, there,” the little princess said gently, reaching out to pat A’Zhi’s leg through the covers. “This is Doctor Xu. He was the one who dressed your wound this morning.”

She added, “I told you the doctor would come back this afternoon to check on you. You must’ve forgotten in your sleep.”

A’Zhi hadn’t forgotten. She was just too dizzy to separate memory from reality.

She hugged the pillow tightly and looked up at the man.

Doctor Xu looked to be in his early thirties, with a neatly trimmed beard and a kind, clean gaze. The calm air of a healer. Nothing like the shadowy aura of a eunuch.

“I’m so sorry, Doctor,” A’Zhi quickly apologized. “I was confused when I woke up…”

Doctor Xu waved it off. “It’s nothing. The princess said you were sleeping soundly and asked me to be quiet so I wouldn’t wake you.”

Which was how the misunderstanding had happened.

A’Zhi turned to the little princess, who gave her a small, dimpled smile.

Princess Chao Mu leaned slightly around the doctor and whispered, “You were sleeping so sweetly, A’Zhi.”

She even pointed to her own mouth and winked.

A’Zhi blinked, then hurriedly reached for the corner of her mouth. Her face flushed bright red.

“I—I don’t usually…”

She always slept quietly and properly. She barely even turned over, let alone drooled!

It was this body’s fault—not hers! Not her as Consort A’Zhi!

A’Zhi sat up straight and extended her arm for Doctor Xu to take her pulse.

So embarrassing. So humiliating.

She had drooled in her sleep, and the princess saw it. Worst of all, she did it while sleeping in the princess’s bed and on her pillow!

As the mistress, the princess would surely think her maid was “dirty.”

A’Zhi lowered her eyes, filled with regret.

If she gave the princess a bad impression, how could she hope to be trusted—let alone escape the Qi household and her cursed fate?

But the little princess simply smiled sweetly, as if she’d found a kindred spirit:

“You must really like my bed and my pillow, A’Zhi, because you slept so soundly.”

She added, “I like them too.”

Her soft, slow voice was like honey, dissolving in the air and melting away A’Zhi’s shame and putting her heart at ease.