Chapter Twenty-One: The Grand Eunuch Steward

Upon further reflection, calling him a beast in gentleman’s clothing was far too generous.

When Zhu Bang returned, the scene that greeted him was me stripping his young master’s clothes and snapping photos without pause.

His lackey was dumbfounded, then lunged at me in a frenzy. I pressed the knife to his heart and gave a sly chuckle. “Don’t get worked up. Weapons don’t have eyes—if you get hurt, it’s not my fault.”

He froze, glaring at me in frustration. “You’re a shameless woman.”

I pocketed my phone, kept my grip on the knife, and retreated step by step to the prow of the boat. I leaped ashore and spotted the driver—an honest, unassuming man—waiting in that black luxury car. My heart, which had been in my throat, finally settled.

As long as I made it to the city, I could breathe easy.

I hopped into the back seat and pressed the knife to the driver’s neck. “Sorry, sir. As soon as I’m safe, you’ll be free to go.”

He didn’t panic, just nodded and started the engine.

I turned to glance at the twisted pervert and his lackey left behind on the boat, plastered on a perfect smile, and waved at them.

But for some reason, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the half-naked madman standing at the prow was giving me a devilish smile. And behind him, a pair of black wings seemed to unfurl.

The car sped away from Carefree Island, but I remained on guard, forcing the driver to hand over his cash.

He pulled out his wallet from the glove compartment and passed it to me. I took fifty yuan and left the rest.

He said, “You’re the bravest young lady I’ve ever met. I watched the young master grow up, and no one has ever dared treat him like that.”

Just thinking of that deranged man made my blood boil. “Sir, has your young master lost his mind practicing the Sunflower Manual?”

He snorted with laughter. “You’re quite witty, miss.”

I said, “You should really quit. Stick with him, and you’ll all end up eunuchs in the palace. He’s basically the chief eunuch.”

He laughed harder. “You’re not going to say that to the young master, are you?”

With heroic righteousness, I replied, “Of course I did. Why?”

He just shook his head. “Nothing.”

Once we reached the city, I got out and quickly hailed a cab back to the hospital.

As soon as I stepped off the elevator, I felt the commotion. The nurse who always administered my IV spotted me, seized my arm in excitement, and exclaimed, “Oh, thank goodness you’re back, little ancestor! If you hadn’t come back soon, your grandpa would have torn the hospital apart.”

I hurried to my ward and, sure enough, saw my grandfather pounding the table and shouting into the phone: “Go find her! Get your people to search! How can a grown person just vanish into thin air?”

I rushed in and called out, “Grandpa!” He turned, saw me, and rubbed his eyes as if he couldn’t quite believe it.

Then he raised his hand as if to strike me. “You wretched child! Were you trying to scare me to death? Why—why must you be so reckless?”

I didn’t dodge, because he’d never laid a hand on me. Instead, I clung to his waist, grinning mischievously and calling him again and again.

He stood there as if under a spell, and after a long while, he embraced me, repeating my childhood nickname, “Don’t worry, don’t worry. You nearly frightened me to death.”

Whenever he called me by that name, twice in a row, I knew he wasn’t angry—he was relieved.

There was a warm trickle on my neck; I knew he was crying, and I started crying too, promising never to run off again.

Soon Xia Qi and the others arrived. She and Li Wanqiu hugged me and burst into tears. Those two young ladies never spared anyone’s dignity when scolding.

Xia Qi berated me, “You might as well have died! Why come back at all? Do you realize we thought you’d been kidnapped? Li Wanqiu and I didn’t dare go anywhere, just waited at home for the ransom call. Qilin even had his dad’s checkbook ready. Tell me, why must you worry us so?”

Li Wanqiu joined in, “One day you’re going to get yourself killed, and when that happens, I’ll buy you the finest urn and sweep your grave every Tomb-Sweeping Day…”

Qilin, as always, smiled gently and patted my head. “It’s all right, you’re back, and that’s what matters.”

My grandfather came over with the phone and handed it to me. I glanced at the screen—it was Zhou Fan.