Everything had gone well. Mrs. Zhou would not feel worried about saving her husband anymore. She felt relaxed and full of joy.

She was grateful and lucky. It was all thanks to Master Yan. If he hadn't come, who knew what kind of suffering her husband would have experienced and what he would have become.

They were also lucky in another aspect. Mrs. Zhou felt happy at the thought of it. They not only did not have to pay the fee to get into the lake, but they could also go fis.h.i.+ng at any time. This was the Zhang family's blessing.

Mrs. Zhou was somewhat emotional. As she glanced at Yan Xiaopeng, who had stepped into the house, she was walking and thinking, "It is said that Living Yama is a man with pustule on his head and feet. He is too vicious. They must have misunderstood. Lord Yan is not that kind of person. He is really kind. Alas, to see is to believe. He is a good, kind man."

Mrs. Zhou entered the house and found Yan Xiaopeng sitting there and looking at her. She asked hurriedly, "Master, you can give me some orders. I can do the laundry and cook."

Yan Xiaopeng smiled and took a sip of tea. He put down the cup and said, "How could you do that kind of rough work? I have maids and servants for this."

"Then I can sweep the floor and clean the dust. I promise to tidy the house up inside out."

"You don't have to do this. This is what the servants are for."

Mrs. Zhou felt somewhat confused. "What will you ask me to do?"

"You don't need to worry. You will understand." Then, Yan Xiaopeng ordered, "w.a.n.g Mah, take her upstairs to clean her up."

A nearly 40-year-old woman led Mrs. Zhou upstairs.

Mrs. Zhou, who was confused, answered, "I have done nothing yet. Why should I take a shower?"

Yan Xiaopeng smiled and looked at her. "Look at you. Both your clothes and body are dirty. How can this be? Go clean up first. w.a.n.g Mah, go find her some suitable clothes and throw her dirty clothes away."

Mrs. Zhou was somewhat uncomfortable. She followed w.a.n.g Mah upstairs while thinking, "It's not right to be dirty in this home when I'm here to work. How could I compare to your rich family? It's nice to have a complete set of clothes. A poor woman like me is always busy working. How could my clothes be clean? How can I compare to the ladies in your mansion?"

w.a.n.g Mah prepared the bathwater in the big tub and added some light-yellow water. A fragrant smell was emitted.

Mrs. Zhou, who was curious, asked, "w.a.n.g Mah, what's this? It smells good."

w.a.n.g Mah smiled and said, "It's made with spices. After you use it, you will smell nice."

"Ah, rich people are different. You guys use this thing to wash yourselves. It's too expensive!" Mrs. Zhou felt emotional. She suddenly remembered and asked, "w.a.n.g Mah, do you know what the Master will ask me to do?"

w.a.n.g Mah hesitated for a moment and shook her head. "The master doesn't tell servants like us. How could I know?"

"I don't know whether I can do a good job. I am not confident. If he needs me to embroider, I could only use core needles. I can't create delicate designs. I hope I don't get in trouble for offending the master."

w.a.n.g Mah seemed a little bitter as she asked, "Sister, have you gotten married?"

"I have gotten married. I also have three kids."

"Oh, I really can't figure this out. You look so young. You seem to be younger than 20 years old. Sister, were you... willing to come here on your own?"

"My husband was captured by them for going fis.h.i.+ng in the lake. In order to save him, I have to beg the master. Alas, I have no other choice."

"I see. You really have no other choice. Sister, don't think too much. Since you're here, you should accept this. In order to reunite with your husband and kids, you should endure whatever he asks you to do."

Mrs. Zhou, who felt that there was some hidden meaning behind her words, hurriedly asked, "w.a.n.g Mah, what the h.e.l.l does the master want to ask me to do?"

w.a.n.g Mah looked at the stairs and shook her head. "I don't know. I just want to show you that women do not lead easy lives in this world. In order to save your husband, you should follow the master's orders. You should think positively about anything you do. Well, let's give you a shower and put you in this new dress afterwards."

Mrs. Zhou looked at the dress and sighed again. "This is beautiful. It's made of silk. Alas, I am from a poor family. How can I accept this? Keep it."

w.a.n.g Mah smiled and said, "My silly sister, you should put it on if he asks you to. You don't have to save money on his behalf. After you leave the Yan Mansion, you will have nothing to wear."

Mrs. Zhou was somewhat excited. Her beautiful blus.h.i.+ng face looked tender.

She said, "w.a.n.g Mah, I will listen to your words and put it on after was.h.i.+ng. However... I feel somewhat shameless about wearing it."

w.a.n.g Mah sighed. "Yes, a woman from a poor family would never dress like this. Sister, since you have this chance, you should wear it all day long. Don't try to save his money."

"Well, then I will enjoy it for a few days," Mrs. Zhou thought. "Since I will be working in the Yan Mansion, it would not be right to wear my own clothes. People will make carping comments about it. Otherwise, he would not have asked me to change clothes."

Mrs. Zhou no longer thought about it. She just took off her clothes and got into the large tub.

The smell of the fragrant spray spread around, making her feel very pleasant. She felt very comfortable as she soaked in the water and enjoyed this quietly.

w.a.n.g Mah looked at Mrs. Zhou and sighed. The expression on her face was bitter.

"Sister, since you are here, you don't have to think too much. No matter what happens, you should follow the master's orders," she advised her before going downstairs.

Mrs. Zhou said, "w.a.n.g Mah, keep an eye for me downstairs, please."

She looked at w.a.n.g Mah, who was stepping downstairs, in confusion. What kind of job would she have to endure? The woman seemed bitter and tired.

She was not afraid of difficulties. In order to save on the annual fee for getting into the lake, she would not be afraid of any job, no matter how tiring it was. Half a month would pa.s.s in an instant.

The water in the tub was at a suitable temperature. She felt comfortable soaking in it. Mrs. Zhou was cleaning herself while smelling the rich aroma, feeling somewhat intoxicated.

Outside, everything was very quiet. There was no sound inside the house. The smoke scattered from the tub and produced a faint aroma.

Mrs. Zhou remembered her husband and hurriedly cleaned up and got ready to get out.

Suddenly, a person came silently upstairs and walked towards the tub with no clothes on his body. It was Yan Xiaopeng.

Mrs. Zhou was so scared that she suddenly curled up and started trembling.

She was very scared as she pleaded, "Master, you... you should go downstairs soon! Master, you should go..."

Living Yama, who had been fascinated by Mrs. Zhou's beautiful appearance, ignored her pleading words and fear and rushed toward her with l.u.s.t on his face.

The woman screamed helplessly in this tiger and wolf nest while the man laughed loudly. This was a disharmonious world, full of horror and cruelty...

The windows on the second floor were closed and isolated from the world. It seemed that the air had been condensed. A harsh smirk squeezed in from time to time, tearing the condensed air, then condensing and tearing it again...

Although Mrs. Zhou struggled, it was useless. Before long, she could not move anymore. If she had not been breathing, she would have looked like a dead person.

She hated this demon who had ruined her. She did not open her eyes, as she did not want to see his sly face. She had no ability to resist, which made her feel desperate.

This was her fate, yet she hated it deeply. In this tiger and wolf nest, she was too weak to resist. She could only accept her fate and allow herself to be raped. She felt unable to endure, yet she had to swallow her bitterness. She had to accept this bitter result. She could not control her life after all.

Fear, helplessness, misery, despair... All those feelings flooded the tender and kind Mrs. Zhou. Although she hated this fate, she felt helpless!

Yan Xiaopeng vented his l.u.s.t until he was satisfied and went downstairs.

Mrs. Zhou lay there without moving. Then, she opened her eyes slightly and broke down.

She hurt a lot and felt weak as she said, "I am going to see my husband."

Living Yama stopped and said, "No, you have my word. I will let go of him."

"Then let him come here. I have something to tell him."

Mrs. Zhou was not strong enough to even utter a word. There was endless grief in her voice.

"No, we will go soon and allow him to go home."

"I... I want to bid him farewell." Mrs. Zhou's voice suddenly grew louder.

"Farewell? Alright. You won't be able to go back home for a few days. You can talk to him." Living Yama thought for a while before he said, "Well, I can ask him to come here to meet you. You have already cleaned up so you can't come into contact with him without making your body dirty. Tell him what you want here."

Yan Xiaopeng went downstairs and ordered w.a.n.g Mah to get downstairs as well. Then, he asked Li Tietou and Chen Dahu to take Zhang Erlin there.

Li Tietou and Chen Dahu answered and left.

w.a.n.g Mah came upstairs and looked at Mrs. Zhou, who was lying on the ground. She shook her head. "Ah, this is really a sin! Sister, get up. It's cold and hard on the ground. You may catch a cold."

She tried to lift Mrs. Zhou up and sighed.

The cave was silent and the air had been condensed. The atmosphere felt suffocating.

w.a.n.g Mah frowned. She could only try to persuade her.

She had known Yan Xiaopeng's intentions all along. That evil guy had been approaching Mrs. Zhou step by step. She had known that miserable things would happen to her soon, but she had dared not tell her.

She knew that it would have been useless to tell Mrs. Zhou anything. This would all inevitably happen.

Living Yama's laughter and Mrs. Zhou's cries had drilled w.a.n.g Mah's mind as she had hidden around the corner and felt poor Mrs. Zhou's sadness. Her face had been full of sorrow and misery.

w.a.n.g Mah knew that this result was tragic, but the poor Mrs. Zhou had to endure it. She could not stand being bullied by Living Yama. She could only grieve mentally and hide the bitterness and misery in her mind.

This was a helpless situation. In order to save her husband, she had to do this. Besides, she could not make any decisions about her life while she was there.

Mrs. Zhou had to accept her fate. What if she did not accept it? The fate of a poor person was always tough.

w.a.n.g Mah looked at the stairs and whispered in consolation, "Sister, I have no other way to help you. In order to save your husband, you have to accept this life. Since things have already reached this level, you should accept it. You have to endure this bitterness and hatred for your kids."

Mrs. Zhou, who was expressionless, said nothing. It seemed like she was a dead person lying in the tub without a soul. She dipped her body into the water and washed herself up and down.

w.a.n.g Mah looked around and sighed from time to time.

She advised Mrs. Zhou to think positively. She should swallow all the bitterness and hatred she felt and grit her teeth to endure this. It would get better as time pa.s.sed. She would reunite with her relatives soon. Mrs. Zhou was young, and her life was long. She should think positively about everything.

w.a.n.g Mah sighed and said, "Sister, I am a mere servant with no authority. When you come to the Yan Mansion, you can ask me for help if you encounter any problems. I will try my best to help you..."

Mrs. Zhou was still numb. She wiped her body and picked up her clothes to get dressed.

w.a.n.g Mah brought her new clothes and said, "Sister, wear these clothes and take off the other set. Let me wash your clothes and dress you up when you come back home."

Mrs. Zhou did not pay attention to her. She was still numb. She could not feel the existence of her surroundings. Her eyes were empty and her ears heard nothing.

The poor woman only felt grief and despair as she thought of her yearning husband and her three beloved kids.

She unconsciously put on her clothes. Then, she sat down on the chair and stopped moving. Her soul was still there, but her flesh had been conquered by Yan Xiaopeng. She had no ability to decide for herself anymore.