Chapter 36: Teaching Lin Xiaoyue a Lesson

It was only because her sister had been present that her plan to seduce that man from the past had been ruined.

Once she had another chance to get close to him, what was there to fear? She would surely win him over. Lin Xiaoyue was confident.

"Madam, it is written," Li Xiu said, emerging with the slave contract. "I have also brought the brush dipped in red ink."

"Good." Liu Shuanger looked at Lin Xiaoyue. "Press your thumbprint here."

"Yes, Madam!" Lin Xiaoyue replied, affecting a raspy, mock-servile tone. She flashed a cheeky grin and gave the contract a cursory glance. It was nothing more than a document stating she was a voluntary servant of the Chu household, forfeiting her freedom for life.

She dipped the brush to coat her thumb in ink and pressed it firmly onto her own name.

*Smack!*

A resounding slap left Lin Xiaoyue dazed. She fell to the ground, completely bewildered by what had just happened.

Liu Shuanger held her hand high, smiling elegantly. "Nanny Xiu, drag her over."

"Yes." Li Xiu felt a sense of immense satisfaction. This devious woman, who had feigned idiocy to exploit the Madam’s kindness, offended the eldest young master twice, and caused trouble for the young lady twice over—she deserved a harsh lesson!

Li Xiu grabbed the collar of the still-dazed Lin Xiaoyue, pinned her arms, and kicked the back of her knees, forcing her to kneel directly before Liu Shuanger. Once she was positioned, Lin Xiaoyue finally realized what was happening. She looked up and shouted indignantly, "What are you doing to me?! How dare you hit m—"

Before she could finish, Liu Shuanger struck her across the face again. She slapped her left and right, over twenty times, until Lin Xiaoyue’s cheeks were swollen, her lips split, and blood trickled continuously from the corners of her mouth.

Li Xiu released her, and Lin Xiaoyue collapsed, utterly weak and consumed by pain. She whimpered, tears streaming from her eyes.

Liu Shuanger’s expression remained indifferent. "Nanny Xiu, take her to the woodshed and hand her over to Liu Da. See that she learns how to chop wood properly."

"As you wish." Li Xiu responded.

Liu Shuanger turned and walked away. On the ground, Lin Xiaoyue lay like a dead fish, sobbing. However, the hatred and malice in her eyes were almost palpable as she glared fixedly at Liu Shuanger’s retreating back.

"Stop looking," Li Xiu said, her voice dry and aged. "A servant bound to the Chu household for life is meant to be at the mercy of her masters. To think you dared to refer to yourself as 'I' instead of 'this servant' in front of the Madam—she has shown mercy by not having your tongue cut out." Li Xiu continued, "Get up and follow me to the woodshed."

Li Xiu’s face, etched with deep lines, fixed a cold, gloomy gaze upon her. "Otherwise... I don't think you would want to be dragged along the ground until your skin is raw and bleeding, would you?"

Lin Xiaoyue clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms. She finally understood why Liu Shuanger’s punishment was merely sentencing her to a lifetime of servitude. That old woman was truly despicable! She hadn't made her a slave for life to spare her; she had done it so that, as a lifelong servant, she could be beaten, abused, and tortured at will, making her life a living hell!

Lin Xiaoyue was filled with hatred, but she obediently stood up. She looked at her darkening skin and the blood dripping from her mouth onto her palms, her resentment toward Liu Shuanger deepening. That old woman dared to strike her and concoct such a vicious scheme!

*Fine,* she thought. Her original plan had been to seduce the eight sons and turn them into her lapdogs to help her secure the position of Empress. Now, she decided that before she made them her sycophants, they had one task to complete: they would be the ones to beat their mother, this old woman, to death!

"Let's go!" Li Xiu commanded.

Under the eaves of another, one must bow one's head. Lin Xiaoyue suppressed her seething hatred and followed Li Xiu. Soon, they arrived at the woodshed.

*A woodshed, is it?* Lin Xiaoyue thought to herself. *That old woman thinks that by assigning me to chop wood, she has me trapped? I have plenty of ways and means!*

Just as she was thinking this, Li Xiu brought her to the door. "Knock, knock." Li Xiu tapped on the door, and moments later, it opened to reveal a rugged, middle-aged man who looked unlike an ordinary servant.

"Liu Da, the Madam specifically ordered that this servant girl be sent to help you chop wood," Li Xiu said, emphasizing the word "specifically." "Don't be too polite to her."

Liu Da was a bandit chief captured by the sixth young master during a raid. To repay the debt of his life being spared, he had come to serve the household. The Madam had made him the woodshed caretaker, a man who guarded the shed in isolation, only disturbed when necessary.

Liu Da caught the subtext, glanced at the swollen-faced Lin Xiaoyue behind Li Xiu, and fixed her with a sinister look. "Don't worry, Nanny Xiu. I shall strictly follow the Madam's orders."

Li Xiu nodded and left. Lin Xiaoyue had no idea how much suffering she was about to endure.

"Get in," Liu Da said, eyeing her sideways.

"Yes." Lin Xiaoyue followed him into the woodshed.

The shed, large enough to hold ten people, was half-filled with neatly stacked firewood. Lin Xiaoyue curled her lip in mockery. *Hmph. A servant who suffers from obsessive-compulsive cleanliness and order? Look at this wood—all cut to the same length, stacked to the same height, the same quantity, even the gaps between the piles are identical. What a pretentious display for a mere servant!*

"What are you looking at?" Liu Da’s cold voice rang out.

Lin Xiaoyue turned around. "This servant was looking at nothing."

"Come here," Liu Da commanded.

"Yes." Lin Xiaoyue walked over, reluctant. Before she could stand steady, Liu Da slapped her across the face. The force was entirely different from Liu Shuanger’s; one blow felt as if it had shattered her very bones.

"You... what are you doing?" Lin Xiaoyue’s tears, which hadn't yet dried, spilled over again. The already split wound on her lip tore open even further.

"You are standing on my arrangement and making it dirty," Liu Da said.

"What?" Lin Xiaoyue turned, disbelieving. She realized that the empty space she had been standing on, a foot away from the woodpiles, wasn't empty because it hadn't been filled—it was space Liu Da had deliberately left as part of his design.

Lin Xiaoyue’s twisted face twisted even further. *This servant—is he insane?*

*Bang!*

A fierce kick landed in her stomach. Lin Xiaoyue curled up in agony, rolling on the floor.

"Look at my artwork again, and I’ll kick you again," Liu Da said.

Lin Xiaoyue was in excruciating pain, her mind boiling with absurdity and hatred.