Ran Yan was a generation older than them and logically should sit in the main seat, so she didn't refuse. Just as she knelt down, a young woman around sixteen or seventeen said, "Aunt, why is there only one maid by your side?"
Ran Yan looked at her indifferently and replied, "These days I've been attending to the lady dowager, who doesn't like to be surrounded by people, so I sent the maids away." After a pause, Ran Yan continued, "Performing filial duties should be done personally, to ensure it's properly done. Why, niece-in-law, why do you ask?"
Clearly, this woman was looking for trouble. Ran Yan responded with a direct counter.
Ran Yan didn't like using the maids sent by the Xiao Family, so she privately bought a few clean young girls and entrusted them to Nanny Xing for training. In the future, when Wan Lu and Ge Lan married, Ran Yan would have reliable personal maids she could trust, but for now, she was temporarily short-staffed.
