After sharing the strawberry-flavored mini cakes with everyone, Xu Yinsheng, under the strict supervision of Mary Head Maid, practiced diligently for a while.
Then, her attitude started to slip back into laziness.
Mary Head Maid felt utterly helpless about this.
If someone’s genuinely willing to learn, they naturally will, but if they’re not, no amount of forcing will make a difference.
Xu Yinsheng insisted: inward-pointing toes were absolutely impossible.
Even if Zhao Yicheng dragged her back and welded her whole body to the cat cage!
Even if she was force-fed milk every day, there was no way she’d have inward-pointing toes!
Originally, Xu Yinsheng thought her one-month stint as a maid would be filled with “skipping etiquette classes,” “sneaking treats from the pastry kitchen,” and “occasionally annoying Mary Head Maid.”
But it seemed like fate was out to get her—bad luck kept piling up.
Maybe it was the result of annoying Mary Head Maid too much recently; karma had caught up with her.
That night, during the usual draw for maid duties, Xu Yinsheng upset Mary Head Maid again by breaking the thin heel of her high heels.
Mary Head Maid’s expression turned pitch-black.
But karma’s wheel keeps turning, and no one escapes its justice.
Xu Yinsheng looked at the bamboo slip she had just drawn with tears in her eyes.
The slip was over ten centimeters long, with a few small characters painted in golden ink:
Maid Task: Warm the Bed.
“Mary Head Maid, don’t play like this…”
“I promise I won’t stomp on my heels next time…”
Xu Yinsheng frowned, looking over at the middle-aged woman a few meters ahead, also in maid attire but with a touch of noble elegance.
Viscount Vili was insane!
What if this time he treated her like a cat again?
Last time she was “tamed” for an entire hour.
Afterwards, not only was her back and waist aching, but the scent on that man, so much like Zhao Yicheng’s aura, haunted her with nightmares of Zhao Yicheng dragging her back and breaking her legs.
“Yinsheng, this is part of the job,” Mary Head Maid said calmly, elegantly sipping her coffee.
“Among all the batches I’ve trained, you have the most talent as a maid. Naturally, I have to cultivate you properly.”
Little brat, I’ll get you in line yet.
Xu Yinsheng’s lip twitched.
Wasn’t it her who said she was the weakest, most untalented, and the worst of all the batches?
They went back and forth for a while over the warm bed duty.
In the end, Mary Head Maid lost patience and clapped her hands, summoning several maids to carry Xu Yinsheng to Viscount Vili’s room.
Once Xu Yinsheng was placed on the bed, the maids quickly shut the door, making escape nearly impossible.
They efficiently helped Xu Yinsheng remove her clothes.
Soon, a pale, fair-skinned red-haired dominatrix appeared on the bed.
After finishing, the maids filed out one after another, making sure to close the door behind them.
“Ah, they should at least pay extra for this.”
Looking at the backs of the maids disappearing, Xu Yinsheng scratched her head and muttered, “Carrying me over like this, so rough… aren’t they afraid I won’t cooperate?”
“Whatever.”
Xu Yinsheng pulled the blanket over herself and yawned.
“Just a good chance to test my theory, so I won’t be scared every night.”
That night.
The darkness spread across the sky; the moon hung high.
Moonlight bathed the entire manor, covering it with a silver-gray sheen, like a piece of beautiful jade.
Viscount Vili had just finished his psychological treatment for the day.
His mental state had stabilized significantly.
He nodded to the maid who had been standing guard at the door.
After the maid bowed and left, Viscount Vili pushed open his bedroom door and stepped inside.
In the darkness, the quilt on the bed bulged slightly, as if someone was asleep beneath.
He switched on all the lights in the room, brightening the space.
The warm yellow light fell on the bed.
The quilt shifted slightly; a small head popped out.
She yawned, sleepy and drowsy, naturally noticing him.
“You’re here.”
Xu Yinsheng said lazily, her small hand lazily pulling out of the blanket.
She patted the mattress.
“Viscount, I want to talk with you.”
Saying this, she sat up and stretched comfortably.
She wore very little—just a scanty set of lingerie.
Her waist revealed a large expanse of snow-white skin that looked exceptionally alluring under the light.
The man’s pupils constricted, his dark eyes simmering with heat.
His Adam’s apple moved a few times as he swallowed hard, asking in a low voice, “Talk about what?”
Hearing the fluent Huayuan Federation language from him, Xu Yinsheng’s stretch froze, her heart sinking.
No way.
Such fluent Huayuan Federation language?
Could he really be Zhao Yicheng?
No, no, no. What if he just happened to be skilled in that one phrase?
Xu Yinsheng told herself not to panic, not to lose composure.
“Nothing much. Just wanted to ask if you’re in need of a Viscountess.”
Xu Yinsheng smiled, appearing completely indifferent to whether Viscount Vili was Zhao Yicheng or not.
But the truth was far from this.
If Viscount Vili could see through her, if he looked beyond, the truth would be clear.
Her fair right hand clenched the blanket tightly, gripping it hard.
To hide her inner turmoil, Xu Yinsheng casually asked, “Viscount, is there a surveillance camera in this bedroom?”
“No.” Viscount Vili shook his head.
He stepped toward Xu Yinsheng but stopped at the bedside.
Behind his mask, a mysterious smile appeared on his face.
He reached out to pinch Xu Yinsheng’s cheek, laughing softly.
“Xu Yinsheng, have you fallen in love with me?”
Xu Yinsheng was taken aback.
Immediately, she shook her head and pulled her cheek away, but a chilling fear crept up her spine.
Damn it, that tone sounded so familiar—could it really be Zhao Yicheng?!
Thinking this, Xu Yinsheng shivered, staring at the gray-white mask before her.
She took a deep breath to calm the storm inside.
Is this just a test?
If it is, then Xu Yinsheng’s future would be nothing but welded to a cat cage, drinking Anximu yogurt every day;
If not, then she could stop being scared and having nightmares about Zhao Yicheng every night.
“Look into my eyes.”
A deeply enchanting female voice sounded, making Viscount Vili lower his gaze involuntarily.
He was deeply drawn into those beautiful crimson eyes—so profound and captivating, like a handful of pink mist, impossible to resist, as if they could rip his heart out and keep it forever.
“Minor tone, is that you?”
Viscount Vili couldn’t help but reach out to touch that face, so delicate and tender, like baby skin.
Minor tone?
What the hell?
Never mind. If it got him talking, it was good enough.
The Succubus’s Gaze, though limited to one person at a time, ineffective on strong-willed minds, and sometimes backfiring if overused, was still Xu Yinsheng’s most effective external tool.
“Yes, it’s me.”
Xu Yinsheng’s voice was soft and warm, as if it could calm all anxiety and soothe the mind.
Even the sickly restlessness in Viscount Vili’s heart began to fade, scattered away like a breeze.
“My dear, long time no see.”
She gently stroked the man’s face with affection.
Her fingers tried to lift the mask, but…
The mask seemed glued to his face; no matter how hard she pulled, it wouldn’t come off.
At that moment, Viscount Vili caught those hands that kept trying to remove the mask.
He lowered his head, eyes filled with guilt.
“I’m sorry, Minor tone. I shouldn’t have locked you in the cat cage. I shouldn’t have imprisoned your life. I shouldn’t have hired a hypnotist to implant the psychological suggestion that we would always be together. I just loved you too much, you know? I never received love from my parents or relatives. Before I met you, my life was all gray, like a puppet on strings. You are a light in my life, you saved me, you brought color to my world…”
Tears welled in the man’s eyes, streaming down from those deep blue orbs.
But Xu Yinsheng could only laugh bitterly.
Love?
Love is an excuse for imprisonment?
The same scumbag as Zhao Yicheng!
Damn it, these scumbags should all experience “imprisonment is fun for a moment, but chasing your wife is a funeral pyre”!!
Xu Yinsheng coldly withdrew her hand.
She looked at Viscount Vili and then at those deep blue eyes behind the mask—the eyes full of scars and repentance.
“Are you Zhao Yicheng?”