cold clothes

Leng Yi was led to a corner to sit down. A Qi said that since she couldn't see, she would only cause trouble if she did anything. Leng Yi thought that made sense. What could a blind child like her do? She would probably just sit there all night.

Before her thoughts could linger, Ah Qi pulled her along, saying, "Get to work, Master Xu is coming tonight."

Master Xu?

Before Leng Yi could even think about who Master Xu was, she heard the wooden door creak open, followed by a blindingly bright light and a deluge of noise—male voices, female voices, laughter, music, singing…! This cacophony of sounds was the most she had ever heard. She seemed to have heard similar noise before, perhaps on the night she had been running so hard.

She came to the front courtyard of Fengxiang Tower again.

Aqi held Lengyi's hand and walked quickly. She couldn't keep up with Aqi's speed at all, and her ankle twisted uncontrollably. The fall on flat ground that she was most worried about still happened.

Unfortunately, she fell in such a crowded place, and as expected, she bumped into others, causing a few gasps and then curses.

"Who dares to bump into me, you blind fool!"

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't watch her properly." Ah Qi immediately helped Leng Yi up and bowed to apologize to the guest who had been bumped.

"He's blind? Can a blind person serve others?" The customer said with a disdainful tone. Fortunately, he wasn't a rude person. He muttered a few unlucky words and left.

At this moment, Aqi's hand gripped Lengyi like an eagle's claws clamping a chick. The fall had just taken a heavy toll on Lengyi, leaving her head spinning and following her in a daze.

Just as she was regaining some clarity, Leng Yi bumped her feet on something and almost fell, but A Qi quickly caught her.

...It's really pathetic that I'm no longer a prostitute; they didn't even bother to remind me of the threshold.

A wave of misty steam and rich incense wafts towards you, and the sound of splashing water is clearly audible.

Ah Qi pushed Leng Yi out, like a salesman promoting a product. Leng Yi only heard a splash of water, followed by a rather high-pitched male voice: "Is this the new guy today? Why is he blindfolded?"

"Xiaoyu has an eye disease and cannot see."

"It's so pitiful that you can't see, Xiaoyu. Come here to your master." Master Xu's tone was unusually gentle.

"Xiaoyu, go ahead." Aqi pushed Lengyi forward again.

"Come on, Xiaoyu, take a few steps forward. Don't be afraid."

Leng Yi clenched the hem of her clothes, stiffly taking a step forward. A wet hand touched her face, and Leng Yi shuddered. Master Xu pinched Leng Yi's cheek and smiled, "Xiao Yu, why don't you rub my arms for me?"

The person next to him immediately stuffed a towel into Leng Yi's hand. Leng Yi felt a little embarrassed when he touched Master Xu's bare arm, so he could only imagine that he was a dishwasher robot and was washing Master Xu's body like a bowl.

It's just washing dishes! Ahhhhh, I'll wash them, I'll wash them!

"Can't Xiaoyu speak?" Master Xu chatted kindly with Leng Yi.

--Won't!

Leng Yi answered in her heart that she only wanted to be a robot and didn't want to communicate with customers, but she still reluctantly said, "Yes."

"When did Xiaoyu's eyes get damaged? Did the nanny hit you?"

"No, I would have gone blind outside. The people here have kindly taken me in." Leng Yi lied with ease.

Then, Master Xu asked Leng Yi a few trivial questions in a kind tone, which Leng Yi answered one by one. Gradually, she lowered her guard, and being a bath attendant didn't seem so bad. However, this old man was taking a bath for far too long. She had been scrubbing his arms for a long time, and she didn't know how to switch to other arms. But it didn't seem right not to scrub them at all, and besides, it seemed that there were other people serving him.

She could tell that someone else was also scrubbing Master Xu's back. The sound of flowing water was gurgling. Leng Yi guessed that it was the same bathtub she used in Zhuoyu Pavilion, with a water outlet at the bottom and maids constantly adding hot water to maintain the water level and temperature.

Leng Yi could still hear chewing sounds; it must be Master Xu eating. She couldn't help but sigh at how damn luxurious it was to take a bath. She wondered if modern bathhouses were like this too.

"Xiaoyu looks so cute with her ears perked up," Master Xu suddenly remarked, but it sent a chill down Leng Yi's spine. She couldn't see anything now, yet others were observing her every move; it was somewhat frightening.

"Xiaoyu, guess what I'm eating right now?" Master Xu asked.

Since he was a customer, Leng Yi couldn't be rude. She was about to guess which fruit to choose when something was forcefully shoved into her mouth. She instinctively closed her lips, but pulled them away a moment later.

It's smooth, and it feels like it's touching your fingers...

The sound of teeth grinding and clenching could be heard, and Master Xu's pleasant voice rang out, "Grapes with Xiaoyu's saliva on them are sweet."

Leng Yi felt a chill run down her spine, then felt nauseous and couldn't help but back away and gag.

The next moment she tightly shut her mouth, and cold sweat broke out on the back of her neck.

But the fearful anger did not come. Master Xu's voice sounded gentle and compassionate, as if his actions just now were not absurd. He coaxed her like a child, saying, "Master was just joking with you. Don't be afraid. Xiaoyu has probably never eaten grapes before. Come here, Master will feed you."

Leng Yi was already cursing inwardly. This guy was a blatant pedophile and a pervert! Just thinking about what had just happened made her want to vomit again... No, she couldn't think about it. She was just a lowly maidservant now, and Master Xu was not someone she could afford to offend. She couldn't act impulsively. She had to think about why she had gone blind, and why she was a third-class maidservant.

Despite her heart screaming that she wanted to escape, wanted to escape, wanted to escape... she moved forward with leaden steps, her body so heavy it felt like it was crushing her soul. Her soul bent over, weeping like rain.

Mr. Xu asked her if the grapes were sweet, and she swallowed the juice and said they were. Mr. Xu asked her if she wanted to take a bath together, and she said yes. Her mouth felt astringent and bitter.

Leng Yi was carried into the bathtub, her clothes still on, as the Fengxiang Pavilion had a clear rule that guests could not have relations with third-class maids. Master Xu embraced Leng Yi tightly, pulling her hand downwards.

"I want Xiaoyu to help me wash this place..." Master Xu said, his breathing quickening as he eagerly covered the cold clothes with his hands.

She was crying like a puppy... She wanted to run away, she wanted to scream for help.

Someone please save me, someone please save me.

Leng Yi's inner cry for help abruptly stopped; she realized she didn't even have a single name to call for help in her heart. There was no one she could call for help from, just like having only fifty yuan left in her bank account—enough to pay the rent—but no one to lend her money.

My heart was filled with despair.

Suddenly, Leng Yi slipped. She had been kneeling in the bathtub with only her shoulders above the water, but she slipped and fell completely underwater. She hated drowning; even a few seconds were enough to make her gasp for breath.

Mr. Xu seemed startled and quickly pulled her up. She choked on water, then clutched her head and cried out, "It hurts! My eyes—"

Her eyes can't get wet right now, so hurry, hurry up and let it flow out—

Finally, as thick liquid flowed from her eyes, exclamations rang out: "Ah, her eyes are bleeding!"