As he stared at her deliberately seductive and ingratiating demeanor, his deep black eyes remained calm and still, undisturbed.

These past few days, rumors about her being arrogant and trying to curry favor with her master have been circulating wildly in the mansion... It seems it's time to change the person who serves her closely.

You Shuyao remained undeterred, her large, almond-shaped eyes gazing at him with a mixture of reluctance and shyness, as if to say, "How about it? Aren't I beautiful? Shouldn't you fall for me now?" Come on, come on, come on...

Damn it! Without saying a word, Huo Jingsha transferred her from the main courtyard to the outermost courtyard, so that she would never be allowed to serve him in person again.

Wow... she's finally fallen out of favor.

This explosive news spread among the servants. Everyone knew that the maid Shu Yao had risked her life to save her master, which was why the master cared for her so much and favored her. However, the master was also fair in rewarding and punishing. After she spilled the tea, he still punished her by making her clean the most remote courtyard, which fully demonstrated the master's upright and incorruptible character, and his inability to be tempted by beauty.

Merit is rewarded, transgressions are punished—that's all. What good are a few gold ingots as a reward? What good is letting an adult touch them? They'll still be chased away!

"Pah! Look at how arrogant she was a few days ago. Anyone who didn't know better would think she was going to become the young mistress of the Huo family. She's just a servant girl. She got lucky and made a contribution, so she got cocky and arrogant. Now she's dumbfounded!"

"Who says otherwise? She keeps taking out the gold ingots to count them, what's with all the showing off? In my opinion, she did it on purpose, deliberately spilling tea on the master so she could use the opportunity to help him change his clothes, and then shamelessly climb into his bed!"

"Look at her shameless face! She thinks she can get away with anything just because she's a little pretty. Does she really think she's some kind of beauty that can put the moon and flowers to shame? What beautiful women haven't we adults seen? She's just humiliating herself. It's good that you punished her!"

Several old women and maids gathered in a corner, gossiping and mocking You Shuyao. They had long disliked her "shameless" attitude, and now that they knew she had been kicked out of the main courtyard and was doing rough work in the outer courtyard every day, they were all grinning from ear to ear, and their jeers rose and fell.

To those who gossip and make malicious remarks, You Shuyao would pretend to be furious and sometimes even deliberately sweep some dust at them to show her dissatisfaction.

In other people's eyes, she is now just a stray dog ​​abandoned by her owner.

But in You Shuyao's heart, she had made the right move. Successfully transferring away from that devil was exactly what she wanted; the next step was to find an opportunity to leave the Huo family mansion.

Turning her back, her beautiful eyes beneath long lashes held a smile no one else could see. Go ahead and mock her, but my happiness... you wouldn't understand!

The night after she was transferred, Shu Yao tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep even at midnight, because she had a premonition that Qi would come to see her that night.

Just then, she suddenly sensed the presence of another person in the room. She turned around and indeed saw Qi standing not far away.

The man was still dressed in black, deliberately blending into the darkness, his face covered with a black cloth, making it impossible to see his entire appearance. Only two sharp, gleaming eyes were visible, staring at her intently in the dim light.

"What did you do?" he asked in a deep voice. A simple question, no further explanation needed; both of them knew what he was asking.

This is just something he said offhand. You Shuyao was prepared and was just waiting for him to question her.

She got up and sat on the edge of the bed, staring at him coldly.

"I just wanted to finish the mission as soon as possible. Yesterday, I tried to seduce him in the study when no one was around, but I didn't expect... not only was he unmoved, but he also wouldn't let me get close to him to serve him." He sounded very frustrated.

"Seduction? You're usually very cautious, why didn't you wait until things calmed down before using this method?"

Shu Yao frowned. "After a while, it won't just be the assassination attempt that subsides, but also his passion for me. This is a golden opportunity. When he was treating my wounds, he hugged me, touched me, and took special care of me. He clearly has feelings for me, but he's just holding back because my poison hasn't healed and I need to rest. Now is the time to strike while the iron is hot. Yesterday, it was just the two of us in the study, a lone man and a lone woman. How could I miss this opportunity? I can only make my move when he's most relaxed. This is called seizing the moment. Am I supposed to wait forever?"

She had carefully considered her words several times and felt that they were flawless, reasonable, and convincing him should not be a problem.

Qi fell silent, his dark eyes, hidden in the shadows, meeting her angry gaze, as if he were carefully considering her words.

A few strands of silvery moonlight cast a faint glow on the bedside, giving Shu Yao a mysterious hue and making her features appear even more striking and beautiful. Her cool and aloof temperament seemed to blend seamlessly with the moonlight.

You Shuyao was born with a delicate and charming appearance, and her beauty was not vulgar. When she silently grabbed you, you would unconsciously submit to her charm.

Qi stared at her, thinking that it was a wise move for the higher-ups to choose her to enter the Huo family mansion. With You Shuyao's beauty and methods, she should be the type that Huo Jingsha would find hard to resist, but he did not expect that... Huo Jingsha would remain unmoved.

After a moment of silence, Qi slowly spoke: "He has transferred you away from his side, so you no longer have a chance."

"I know," You Shuyao retorted unhappily, her tone filled with resentment and frustration.

"Alright, you just stay in the backyard for the next few days. I'll take care of the rest; you don't need to get involved."

Upon hearing this, her mind stirred slightly. "Do you have a plan?"

He didn't reply, only saying, "When the time is right, just follow my orders."

Seeing that he was about to go out the window again after he finished speaking, she immediately called out to him, "Wait a moment."

Qi turned to look at her, as if waiting for her to speak.

"Next time you come, please give me a signal in advance so it won't be inconvenient for me." She glanced at him.

Qi snorted coldly. "You've got a lot to do." With that, he disappeared without a trace, vanishing from the window in the blink of an eye, like a phantom fleeting through the night.

As soon as he left, You Shuyao immediately followed her usual routine and got out of bed to check on him.

This man always appeared and disappeared without a trace, as if by magic, and without making a sound. If it weren't for her basic martial arts skills, which allowed her to sense other people's breathing, she wouldn't have known he was there. This was bad; what if he saw her one day while she was changing or bathing?

She entered the inner room, where the maid Minghui was sleeping on the innermost bed. She hadn't woken up at all, probably because she had been put to sleep by acupressure.

You Shuyao glanced at Minghui, then walked back to her bed. Sigh! Two days of physical labor, it's impossible not to be tired. Time to go to bed and rest!