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Ann, thank you. You are a genius!'
Ann had worked as a housekeeper for a long time, so she had to know well how to get rid of such tormenting visitors. She couldn't have asked to bring refreshments for no reason. Rubica nodded and Ann went away.
Now only Rubica and Mrs. Shaynie were left in the reception room. As the room was for the Claymores to talk in private, other maids couldn't come in most of the times. Mrs. Shaynie frowned much less when Ann was gone. She still had wrinkles on her face, but it was like four wrinkle lines instead of five on her forehead.
"Your Grace, do you know that it is an insult to you for the housekeeper to leave in the middle of a meeting?"
"What?"
"How can the housekeeper dare to leave her mistress?"
"But I just gave her permission to..."
"And she hasn't hired maids for you yet, how can she ignore you like that?"
Rubica hadn't known Shaynie would criticize Ann so severely and was surprised to hear that. She hadn't liked Shaynie that much, but now she looked like the evil hag of fairy tales. Rubica was so shocked that she didn't know what to say. Ann hadn't hired maids yet not because she was ignoring Rubica. It wasn't like that at all. As Rubica was from a baronet family, she hadn't been able to bring any maids herself. However, she couldn't just hire the daughters and wives of the nearby retainers. Then they would busily spread words on what happened in the household every day.
Those words could come back to harm Rubica. She had already been given a list of potential maids from Ann, but she hadn't made her decision yet because she talked about it with Ann for long. Plus, it had been only a week since she became the duchess. It had been too short to even use the word 'yet'.
"Really, Ann is not good enough to serve you. I worry she might not be able to give you the necessary advice when you meet the king and the queen at the capital. She knows almost nothing about manners."
Shaynie sounded really worried. Then, she smiled warmly to Rubica as if saying she could take care of all that. But to Rubica, it only looked like a hag's evil smile.
'So this is what you are after. '
The manner teacher in a duke's family wasn't a lower role compared to the housekeeper and it came with a huge salary. However, that was only an honorary job. The housekeeper could stay right next to the duchess to meet those who had great power and influence on the noble society. Moreover, she could give direct advice on the uses of the family's budget and recommend people for certain jobs.
In short, she had some real power.
Teaching manners to Rubica was just an excuse, Shaynie had made all those visits because she wanted to replace Ann.
'Should I tell her not to criticize Ann in front of me?'
Rubica wondered what she should say, but then she heard knocking on the door. Ann, who knew nothing about what happened, came in with refreshments. She poured out a glass of Rubica's favorite apple juice and poured grape juice into Shaynie's glass. Moreover, the refreshments on each plate were different. Ann had thought of both Rubica's and Shaynie's taste. Rubica found it so sad that such a nice lady had to be criticized by Shaynie on her back.
"Ann, according to the Claymore Family's traditional manners, the coffee spoon should be on the dish. Putting it next to the napkin like this has been done by nobles only lately. How can a family with a long history and traditions like Claymore be shaken by such a trend?"
"Oh, I made a mistake. Thank you for telling me. You are indeed the manners teacher in this family."
Ann apologized and thanked her while Shaynie smiled with satisfaction. She looked at Rubica with a show-off smile. It was as if she was proclaiming that she should be the family's housekeeper. It made Rubica lose her appetite in an instant. She was both mad and felt sorry for Ann, she didn't even want to waste another second on Shaynie.
"Stop, my stomach hurts."
If you want to call me fickle and selfish from behind, do as you want. Rubica put down the coffee cup she hadn't even taken a sip from.
"Call my doctor."
She didn't even pretend to eat. Pretending to have a stomachache was for when she wanted to protect the person's dignity. Rubica didn't want to protect Shaynie's dignity as she had criticized Ann in front of her. Shaynie immediately realized what she meant by that and her face turned red. The duchess was openly shunning her.
"Your Grace! There are manners you must keep when greeting visitors. You are not an ordinary woman. You are Duchess Claymore. If you had been properly educated, you would have never..."
Rubica calmly put a hand on her stomach.
"What does getting a stomachache suddenly have to do with manners?"
Nothing. Anyone can get a sudden stomachache. Shaynie was dumbfounded, but she could see what Rubica was doing. She had called the doctor saying she had a headache yesterday, and now she was doing it again saying she had a stomachache even though she hadn't eaten anything. It was a huge insult.
"How can you get stomachache before eating anything?"
"I must eat something first to get a stomachache... Ann, please tell me, was that among the manners I must keep as the mistress of such a historic and prestigious family in this kingdom?"
Rubica called Ann to get her help, but she was shocked when she looked at her. Ann's face was deadly pale. She had been so nervous since Rubica put a hand on her belly. She couldn't take it anymore. She held Rubica's hand and shouted to Shaynie, "Stop! Mrs. Shaynie, stop it! If anything happens to Her Grace... ah!"
Ann was probably imagining something horrible and shook her head.
"Your Grace! You must lie down on the sofa."
Rubica was surprised to see that Ann was such a great actress. She acted as if Rubica had been stabbed in her belly. Mrs. Shaynie was surprised as well and took a step back. In the meantime, Ann brought cushions and put them under Rubica's back. Rubica hid her confusion and reclined on the sofa. Ann then checked if her hands and feet were cold and looked at her belly with all the worries in the world.
"Your hands are cold."
"No, I'm not that ill."
"Are you alright? Oh..."
It looked like Ann wasn't pretending but was really worried. It made Mrs. Shaynie think things were serious. She didn't know what to do and nervously shifted.
"The doctor! Call the doctor, now!"
"Ann."
Rubica grabbed Ann's arm. She really wasn't sick, and she didn't want to see the doctor. It would only reveal that she wasn't sick at all.
"I'm fine. It was just a temporary pain. I'm okay now."
Ann let out a sigh of relief. She took out a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped the sweat. She wasn't pretending at all. Who could sweat that much while pretending to be worried?
"But I think it would be better to call the doctor."
"It's okay. It was just temporary."
Ann worriedly looked at Rubica's belly. It hadn't swollen at all but, contrary to what most people thought, that was the most dangerous period. She might miscarry the baby.
Sudden pain in the belly... just thinking that something might happen to the baby made Ann shudder.
"Your Grace, I have made you work too hard. You must take care of yourself more than anything now..."
Ann looked at Rubica as if she hadn't eaten anything for days. Rubica, however, looked better than ever now thanks to all those delicious and nutritious dishes she had had and the an hour of afternoon strolls every day, so she was really confused.
"I'll get better if I rest a little."
"Okay, I will call Jennie. I will cancel all of your afternoon schedules, so please rest in your bedroom. I'm sorry, but don't drink any coffee."
"Okay, Ann. Don't worry too much. I'm okay now."
Rubica patted her hand. She was so kind-hearted. Ann was touched to see Rubica was even worrying about her and relaxed a little. Then, she turned to Mrs. Shaynie who was still standing.
Rubica was pregnant. Her belly could hurt without any reason. Shaynie didn't know that, but that didn't matter. The duchess had just gotten married, and it was her inferiors' duty to worry first if she had a stomachache. However, she had dared to mention manners in that situation?
"Mrs. Shaynie, let us go out and have a little conversation."
Her voice was as cold as the winter breeze. Rubica realized Ann could turn so cold for the first time. Shaynie couldn't say anything and just followed Ann.
What Ann and Mrs. Shaynie talked about that day, Rubica never got to find out. But after that, Mrs. Shaynie's bothering visits ended. She didn't even come near the main building.
'Ann is scarier than I thought. '
Ann had managed the household without the mistress for the last three years. Even though Edgar fully trusted her, the real mistress and the housekeeper were different. However, there hadn't been any big problem. Rubica thought maybe the real Ann could be very different from what she knew.
***
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