As dusk fell, households lit their lanterns, and the maids of Chu Mansion illuminated the corridor candles while murmuring among themselves.
"How long do you think the young mistress and her husband will keep up their cold war this time?"
"I bet it won’t even last half a day."
"Once the young mistress returns from shopping, she’ll make up with him as usual."
The new maid was puzzled. "The young mistress looks terrifying when she’s angry. If the master provoked her, would she really reconcile with him so quickly?"
"You’re new, so you wouldn’t know," an older maid whispered, lowering her voice. "Everyone knows the young mistress is utterly devoted to her husband."
"Exactly! Last time for his birthday, she set off fireworks across the entire city!"
"And remember when the master was injured by bandits while escorting the merchant convoy? The young mistress was so furious she donated a thousand taels of silver to the authorities to equip them with new weapons and recruit more men, wiping out the bandit stronghold in one go."
"Those are just small things. Don’t you remember? The master loves osmanthus cakes from Songzhai Pastry Shop, so the young mistress quietly bought the entire shop. Now, the first batch of fresh cakes every day is delivered straight to the mansion, right into his hands."
The new maid gasped. "The young mistress spoils him… that much?"
She hesitated over the word "spoils," feeling it was a bit odd. She’d only ever heard of men splurging to win a beauty’s smile—never of a woman pampering a man like this.
The maid knew she shouldn’t gossip about her masters, but she couldn’t help herself. Glancing around to ensure no one else was nearby, she asked softly, "Isn’t the master a live-in son-in-law? And his looks are… unique. From what you’re saying, does that mean he can get away with anything under the young mistress’s nose?"
Hearing this, the other maids exchanged glances before bursting into laughter.
"You’ve got it all wrong. The master would never dare act recklessly around the young mistress."
"If the young mistress is a cat, then the master is definitely the mouse."
"When she says ‘jump,’ he doesn’t even ask ‘how high.’"
The new maid was utterly confused. She couldn’t make sense of the relationship between the master and the young mistress.
"The master and young mistress are back with little master!"
Someone’s shout sent maids and servants rushing to the gate, unloading bundles and packages from the nearly overflowing carriage.
Chu'he had left in a rage. As usual, when in a bad mood, she went on a shopping spree, returning with carts of rouge, silk, and impractical trinkets.
She asked a maid, "Where’s my husband?"
The maid replied, "The master locked himself in his room all day and hasn’t come out."
A strikingly beautiful boy of about seven or eight—almost ethereal, with vivid red eyes—clung to his mother’s leg, whining.
"Mother, Father bullied me! Not only did he refuse to comfort me, but he also hid in his room sleeping. You have to teach him a lesson!"
Chu Xiaobao lifted his face, his crimson eyes shimmering pitifully. Most noticeable was the bruise on his delicate cheek, like a plum blossom fallen on snow.
Pointing at the mark, he pouted and said, "Mother, Father used me to test his poison! Is he even my real father? Can’t you find me a new one?"
Chu'he tenderly cupped his face. "Forget about changing fathers. Just wait—I’ll avenge you!"
With a huff—perhaps still simmering from her earlier anger—she marched forward, leading the crowd.
Bai Lian approached Chu Sheng with a sweet smile. "Master, I made sweet soup. It’s still warm—please try some."
Her hopes of bearing a child to inherit the Chu family were dashed, so she settled for squeezing as much money as possible from Chu Sheng before he passed.
Chu Xiaobao glanced up.
Bai Lian shuddered, freezing mid-step. This child was just as eerie as his father!
Chu Sheng said to her, "Drinking soup every night? Don’t you get tired of running to the outhouse?"
Bai Lian’s smile stiffened.
As Chu Xiaobao turned to leave, Chu Sheng grabbed his tiny hand, beaming.
"Grandson, aren’t you taking all the snacks you bought?"
"Grandfather, watching Father get beaten is way more fun than eating!" Chu Xiaobao snatched a candied hawthorn stick from Chu Sheng’s hand and scampered off gleefully.
Chu'he stormed ahead with an unstoppable aura.
A green snake dangled from a tree, its forked tongue flickering ominously.
The new maid trembled in fright.
Upon closer look, the snake had brown pupils and an unsettling emerald sheen—yet it held a red wildflower in its mouth, a bizarre contrast.
Chu'he grabbed it by the neck and tossed it back into the tree.
A few steps later, a knee-high yellow toad hopped out from nowhere. Its bumpy skin, bulging eyes, and gaping maw looked capable of swallowing a person whole.
The maid muffled a scream behind her hands.
The toad’s sticky pink tongue unfurled, presenting a ripe persimmon—drenched in its saliva—plucked from some distant hill.
Chu'he pointed. "Scram!"
The toad croaked, retracted its tongue, and vanished into the darkness.
At the corridor’s bend, the maid shrieked loud enough to pierce the heavens.
A black scorpion, half the height of a man, stood with menacing pincers and a stinger that made spines tingle.
Its barbed tail skewered a wild hare, which it offered to Chu'he with a flick.
She clicked her tongue. "Go!"
This time, she directed it to the kitchen. The scorpion skittered obediently away.
Approaching her courtyard, rustling sounds came from the walls. The traumatized maid glanced around—only to lock eyes with a spider’s multiple orbs.
She collapsed backward, caught by a fellow servant.
The hairy, brown arachnid had round, bulging eyes, and the night was thick with its webs.
It was unclear where it had caught so many butterflies, but now dozens of them in various colors were trapped in its web, forming a wall of butterflies—a beauty tinged with cruelty.
Chu'he's brow twitched. "I don't like butterflies, Big-Eyes. Let them go."
As she stepped through the courtyard gate, another massive creature lurked in the shadows. Unlike its companions, who had long been prepared, this one seemed slower, still unsure of what to offer.
But Chu'he had already arrived.
