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墨書 Inktalez
This shouldn't be the case. Logically, if someone is here to serve, how could they wait for their master to speak first?
With such an attitude, they would have been fired long ago.
Ye Xiaohan approached quietly, and when the maid saw her coming, she stepped forward to assist with her grooming.
"Miss, what is your name? What surname do you have? Were you the one who brought me to this room last night?" Ye Xiaohan casually asked a few questions. She wouldn't directly ask anything too probing, as that might raise the other person's guard.
Once someone becomes wary of you, it becomes difficult to get close again.
However, contrary to Ye Xiaohan's expectations, the maid did not respond at all, not even glancing her way.
It was as if she hadn't heard anything.
A possibility began to dawn on Ye Xiaohan, sending a chill through her.
"Miss, could you come a bit closer so I can check something?" Ye Xiaohan asked loudly.
As before, the maid remained unresponsive.
Ye Xiaohan waved her hand in front of the maid's face, and only then did the maid show a hint of alarm, immediately dropping to her knees.
"Don't do that!"
Ye Xiaohan quickly pulled her back. Even after being here for so long, deep down she was still very much a modern person and couldn't accept the feudal practice of kneeling as a form of hierarchy.
Supporting the maid by her shoulders, Ye Xiaohan leaned in to look at her. The maid flinched in fear but didn't dare to move away; her face was on the verge of tears.
"Don't be afraid; I won't hurt you. Can you speak?"
As she gestured with sign language while asking, Ye Xiaohan suddenly realized how foolish she was—people from this era wouldn't understand such gestures.
The maid remained silent, only retreating in fear while repeatedly bowing and making short gasping sounds.
Ye Xiaohan released her and felt certain now: this maid was mute; she couldn't speak at all. In fact, it was very likely that she couldn't hear either.
She quietly threw a porcelain vase on the table to the ground, producing a crisp sound of collision, but the maid showed no reaction, merely focusing on tidying up the washstand that had been accidentally knocked askew.
At this moment, Ye Xiaohan was completely certain that this maid was deaf-mute.
A chilling sense of dread surged in her heart. Ye Xiaohan rushed out the door and ran outside, startling the maid who hurriedly chased after her.
Ye Xiaohan quickly dashed around the courtyard, grabbing anyone she saw to check on them. Several servants were so frightened they dared not move.
The courtyard was small, with only four people responsible for Ye Xiaohan's daily needs, and without exception, they were all deaf-mute.
As the servants regained their composure, they quickly blocked Ye Xiaohan. Two maids, one holding her waist and the other her leg, prevented her from running away.
These two seemed to have been specially arranged by Liu Yuan; both were robust and strong, and Ye Xiaohan was no match for them. No matter how she struggled, she couldn't break free and didn’t even see the courtyard gate before being dragged back to her room.
"Sisters, I’m not trying to escape. If I wanted to run away, I wouldn’t do it so openly in front of you. I would sneak away, wouldn’t I?"
Ye Xiaohan stood at the threshold, addressing the two maids who stood like iron towers at the door.
Of course, no one responded to her.
She didn’t truly expect an answer; she just felt that in such a silent courtyard where shadows moved yet no sounds were heard, if she didn’t make some noise soon, she would go insane.
In the time that followed, Ye Xiaohan obediently ate, trying to consume as much nutrition and calories as possible to prepare for the future. After filling herself up, she began to test her boundaries little by little, gradually expanding her range of movement to probe where these servants had been instructed to monitor her.
Eventually, Ye Xiaohan discovered that Liu Yuan seemed quite confident about this villa; he hadn’t restricted her freedom of movement at all. As long as she didn’t approach the courtyard gate, she could come and go freely in other areas.
This outcome brought mixed feelings. On one hand, she still had freedom which made it easier for her to act. On the other hand, Liu Yuan’s confidence wasn’t without reason; there was no information left in this villa.
After making three rounds of exploration with no results whatsoever, Ye Xiaohan returned to her room dejectedly and lay motionless on the table. Was this really it? Was she so powerless that she could only watch as darkness descended?
Liu Yuan was coming back tonight to marry her; would he really allow himself to be taken advantage of by a little brat?
If she had known it would turn out this way, she wouldn't have been so entangled in her thoughts. She should have just agreed to Liu Yuan earlier; he was better than Six North!
Ah, no! Ye Xiaohan spat silently to herself; she didn't want either of them!
No matter how anxious she felt, her emotions remained unchanged from day to night, gradually dimming little by little.
Ye Xiaohan couldn't sit still any longer. She stood up abruptly, took a few steps, and picked up a teacup, wondering if she could break it and use a shard as a weapon for self-defense.
After a moment of consideration, she realized it wouldn't be very effective; it was too easy to cut herself. All the medicine on her had been taken away by Liu Yuan's people. If her wounds got infected, it would be troublesome.
Her gaze fell on the jewelry box on the dressing table. She picked up a gold hairpin inlaid with rubies and examined it. The gold was too soft; unless she aimed for a specific spot, it would likely bend halfway through.
The servants around Liu Yuan were not idle either. Would they just stand there watching her fumble with the pin?
After pacing around and failing to find a suitable weapon to thwart the wedding, all her ideas were shot down in her mind.
Here she was, a frail girl facing a group of strong men armed with weapons, possibly even other special tools. The chance of escaping unscathed was zero.
Could this really be the end? Was she truly destined to marry that cunning, despicable, pretentious Liu Yuan and then figure out how to escape?
Lost in such chaotic thoughts, Ye Xiaohan felt drowsy. She slapped her face to wake herself up and glanced at the hourglass, realizing it was already past midnight.
Liu Yuan hadn't arrived yet?
Ye Xiaohan suddenly became alert. If he wasn't here now, he probably wouldn't come at all. Who would hold a wedding ceremony in the dead of night?
Was something wrong? It must be something serious for Liu Yuan to give up such a perfect opportunity for revenge.
As long as Liu Yuan faced misfortune, it would be good news for Ye Xiaohan. She wished he would trip and never get back up again.
Though she thought it was too late for Liu Yuan to come back, Ye Xiaohan instinctively remained alert, watching as the light outside gradually brightened.
She had never felt that one night could last so long. From dusk until dawn felt like an entire era had passed.
However, the situation was far from over; Liu Yuan could arrive at any moment. As long as she remained in this courtyard, she was not safe.
The following morning and afternoon, Ye Xiaohan felt anxious, like a hedgehog with its quills raised. Yet, Liu Yuan did not appear.
His absence gave Ye Xiaohan some relief; for the time being, there was no immediate danger. But with Liu Yuan's treacherous nature, who knew what schemes he might be plotting behind her back?
She needed to find out what was happening on his end to devise an appropriate countermeasure.
Staying in her room yielded no progress, so she decided it would be better to go out for a stroll. Perhaps something unexpected would happen. With renewed determination, Ye Xiaohan stepped outside.
Liu Yuan had only sent people to take care of her meals and daily needs; beyond that, there seemed to be no special instructions. After signaling to the attendants that she wanted to explore alone, they returned to their own tasks.
This villa was not particularly large or special; it was just an ordinary courtyard that looked leisurely and beautiful, the typical kind of retreat for the wealthy.
Ye Xiaohan wandered around for psychological comfort. She had already walked through the area several times, and there was nothing of interest to be found.
However, regardless of whether she discovered anything or not, familiarizing herself with the surroundings would help her plan an escape route, even though she still had no idea where this villa was located.
During her journey here, although it had seemed lengthy and complicated, Ye Xiaohan understood that it was merely a common tactic of misdirection.
If she calculated the distance based on that time frame, she should have been hundreds of miles away by now. Yet, as she observed the plants and climate around the villa, they were strikingly similar to those in the town.
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