Chapter 009
Chapter 9: Led Astray by a Pretty Man
Kneeling on the cold blue bricks, Xiao Man dug her fingertips into her palms until they hurt.
The Old Madam’s words had fallen like a heavy iron gate.
They smashed her eight years of hope and every plan she had made for the future.
[Transfer?]
[That sounds nice.]
[Transfer to Auspicious Cloud Residence, the courtyard of the Buddha’s Chosen, the Eldest Grandson Young Master.]
[How is that different from washing a little lamb clean and handing it to a big gray wolf?]
[And it is my direct boss doing the delivery!]
A blaze of anger rushed from her soles to the crown of her head. She wanted to jump up, slap the table, and shout at the Old Madam: “I quit!”
Reason pinned her down.
Her spine felt bent by an invisible deed of sale. She could not even take a deep breath, much less stand tall.
The contract was still warm.
She had signed a term indenture, yes, but the writing was clear: the household had the right to reassign her as needed.
When your top boss personally orders a transfer, what can a mere employee with a deed of sale use to refuse?
Turn in a resignation letter?
Threaten to fire the Old Madam, the chairwoman?
That was a giant joke.
She did not even hold her own indenture deed. [What freedom do I have to talk about?]
The frustration pushed at her chest until it almost burst.
[All because of that cursed dream!]
[And even more because of that so-called Buddha’s Chosen who looks pure and quiet, but in the dream was a wolf with teeth.]
She had told herself it was just a wild dream, probably some spirit creature making a dirty joke.
In the dream they rolled together, but when morning came, each would go their own way.
She had even felt a little smug.
[It was only a lovely dream. No loss at all. I might as well enjoy a top-tier handsome face for free.]
Who could have guessed it?
The real “handsome face” showed up to claim it himself.
He even acted like a chaste husband saying, “You dirtied me. You must take responsibility.”
Thinking of the Old Madam’s knowing, judging gaze and Lin Qing Xuan’s light word “ask for her,” Xiao Man’s face burned, as if invisible hands had slapped her several times.
And those eyes he gave her before he left…
[What broken-hearted look?]
[What hurt after being refused?]
[Pah!]
Her anger flared higher.
[Why does he act like a saint who has been stained?]
[In the dream, who was the one who held on and refused to let go?]
[Who kept calling my name again and again?]
[Who was it…]
She bit the thought off.
A shiver ran through her, and cold sweat beaded on her back.
A worse idea slid into her mind like a snake.
The Old Madam might, for the sake of the years Xiao Man had served her, press this down for now.
But what if the First Madam learned of it?
The First Madam who loved her son like her own eyes, who longed for him to marry and have heirs, who treated Lin Qing Xuan as a treasure.
If that lady learned that a lowly maid had “stained” her pure, almost-enlightened son in a dream…
Xiao Man’s vision went gray at the edges.
She could already picture the First Madam’s well-kept face twisting with fury and scorn.
Drowned in a pig cage?
Beaten to death with sticks?
Or sold to the lowest brothel, left to live a life worse than death?
Those might be the light punishments.
Cold vines of fear wrapped her heart and squeezed hard.
That smothering feeling swallowed her anger and unwillingness.
Freedom, leaving the manor, saving to buy herself back, all those dreams became cheap wishes before the need to survive.
Right now, only one thing mattered: seal this leak.
This must never reach the First Madam’s ears.
Never.
“Old Madam!” Xiao Man suddenly bent flat to the floor. Her forehead hit the hard, icy tiles with a deep thump.
Bang.
When she raised her head, her eyes were already red.
It was not an act.
She was scared, she was desperate, and she truly begged with nothing left to lose.
Her voice shook and came out thick with tears as she pleaded: “Old Madam, please show mercy.”
She forced each word to sound sincere as she said: “I know my low place. With my plain looks, how would I dare have any wild thoughts about the Eldest Grandson Young Master?”
She pushed on, shaking her head again and again as if she could fling off the shame: “The Eldest Grandson Young Master shines with Buddha’s light. He is like a clear moon and a clean wind. He is someone I could only look up to for my whole life.”
She took a hard breath and lowered herself even more, saying: “What happened today was a mistake. I was confused. I do not even know why I caught the eye of the Eldest Grandson, the Master, or how I disturbed the Master’s secluded cultivation. I deserve a hundred deaths.”
She tried to sound steady as she reminded the Old Madam: “I have served you in Green Briar Court these years. I am foolish, but I have been careful, never daring to be lazy or make big mistakes.”
Her voice softened with true feeling: “Old Madam is kind and treats her people with softness. I remember that. I only want to serve you well and repay the great kindness you have given me.”
She pressed her forehead to the floor again and did not dare lift it as she begged: “What happened today was not my wish. I have no desire to climb higher. I only beg the Old Madam to look at these years when I have been diligent and not caused trouble, and…”
Her voice thinned to a whisper: “And for now, please do not tell the First Madam.”
Trembling, she added: “I am truly afraid. My life is cheap. My death would mean nothing. But if my mistake angers the First Madam and harms the bond between you and her, I would be guilty beyond all measure.”
Her words ended as a cry: “Please pity me, Old Madam. Please give me a path to live.”
She stayed bowed to the floor, shaking like a leaf in a storm, ready to tear at any moment.
All her hurt, anger, and resentment were crushed under a stronger will to survive. Only a tiny, humble plea remained.
Eight years of walking on thin ice. Eight years of careful service. She could already see the light of freedom.
[It must not be ruined by this foolish trouble with a pretty man.]
Right now, the Old Madam was the last thin reed she could grab.
The room sank back into dead quiet.
Only a soft rasping filled the air.
The Old Madam’s nail kept tracing the carved pattern on the copper hand warmer, over and over, making that faint, hair-raising scratch.