Ye Jingtang followed the Hua Residence's steward into a small room behind the book house. Inside was a desk with a dark blue robe laid on it. As clothing for a guard, the fabric was nothing special, but the workmanship was decent. A waist token lay on top of it.
Steward Wang sat behind the desk, copying information from the registry token into a register while explaining an assortment of rules:
"Our master once served as prime minister at the Imperial Court. However high their rank, officials passing our gates had to dismount and pay their respects. As the saying goes, even a prime minister's gatekeeper ranks as a seventh-rank official. Work for the Hua Residence, and even a county magistrate has to show you some respect."
"But even servants have their ranks. New arrivals are general servants and can only do things like washing clothes and grooming horses. After two full years, if you're hardworking and quick-witted, you can be promoted to headman and supervise a few people.
"Above headmen are stewards, like me. Our standing is different. We're put in charge of a particular area, and even the young masters and ladies call me Uncle Wang in private. After ten years without making any mistakes, if you've earned the master's trust, you have a chance of becoming housekeeper. A housekeeper is no ordinary position. His standing is like that of the chief eunuch in the palace; his words carry more weight than the imperial consorts'..."
Ye Jingtang was still thinking about Hua Qingzhi and her father. After listening for a while, he casually asked:
"Do I have to start by grooming horses too?"
Steward Wang was clearly the Hua Residence's personnel manager. He shook his head:
"You're not a household attendant. You're a guard, responsible for security. If