Irene suddenly shivered as if struck by a chill, her little face instantly drained of color.

　　“Madam…”

　　“You know who it is now?”

　　“Irene doesn’t want to go, Irene doesn’t want to go… Irene heard from people in the household that he’s a monster. And a few days ago, he killed a lot of people—rumor has it he even ate their bodies. Madam, if Irene has done something wrong, you can hit me, scold me, just please don’t make Irene serve that monster.”

　　Mrs. Brooks raised her hand and slapped Irene across the face.

　　“You wretched little maid, do you think you get to pick and choose, refusing to serve this one or that one? Who told you that Mildred is a monster? Who said Mildred eats people? A bunch of insolent fools—do you think the affairs of the master’s family are for you to gossip about? If word of this reaches the old madam, none of you lowly things will survive.”

　　In Irene’s memory, this was the first time the madam had ever hit her.

　　Clutching her face, tears shimmered in Irene’s eyes, full of grievance. But it was precisely this slap that woke her up—no matter how much the madam favored her, she was still just a servant.

　　“This matter is settled!” Mrs. Brooks declared resolutely. “Don’t think I’m throwing you into the fire—maybe one day you’ll thank me… Remember, once you go, serve the young master well. If you offend him, even I won’t be able to save you.”

　　And so, that very day, Irene became Helen Brooks’s maid.

　　Young master Mildred was indeed very ugly, but not nearly as frightening as the rumors claimed.

　　At the very least, Irene never saw young master Mildred turn into a monster, nor did she see him eat anyone. On the contrary, the day after she became Helen Brooks’s maid, Mrs. Brooks beat a few gossiping servants to death in front of a hundred household staff. The scene of blood and flesh flying everywhere left Irene sleepless for nights, and she even fell seriously ill.

　　The young master stayed with her every day and found a doctor for her.

　　While she was unconscious, Irene heard the young master telling stories by her side—about the big bad wolf and the little white rabbit, about Pigsy carrying his wife… Unfortunately, she was too muddled at the time to really hear them clearly. After she recovered, she wanted to ask the young master to tell them again, but couldn’t summon the courage. But for Irene, this was already enough. What other master would treat his maid like the young master did? At least, Irene didn’t know of any. After she recovered, Irene became utterly devoted to following Helen Brooks.

　　Though she was still a little afraid, the rumors from her early days had already fallen apart on their own.

　　…

　　How could Helen Brooks, walking ahead, know about the little maid’s change of heart?

　　He strode quickly to the old madam’s room, lowered his hands respectfully, and said, “Grandmother, Mildred is here. You wanted to see me?”

　　“Mildred, come in!”

　　Helen Brooks entered the room and found there was another person inside.

　　This person looked to be about sixty, appearing even older than the old madam. He was eight feet tall, kneeling in the center of the room, with the old madam seated below him.

　　Helen Brooks was taken aback and glanced at the old madam in confusion.

　　The old madam seemed to sense Helen Brooks’s gaze and smiled, “Mildred, grandmother has invited a teacher for you.”

　　Helen Brooks immediately understood, but was still puzzled. He already had three teachers—why invite another?

　　“Mildred, this is grandmother’s elder brother, Charles King. Go and pay your respects.”

　　Grandmother’s brother? Helen Brooks had never heard anyone mention that grandmother had a brother. But since she said so, he dared not hesitate, and quickly stepped forward, knelt, and bowed, saying, “Mildred greets grandfather.”

　　“Xiao Shuang, is this the Mildred you mentioned in your letter?”

　　Charles King ignored Helen Brooks and looked at the old madam, saying, “He’s certainly tall. Is he really not yet seven years old?”

　　“Silly brother, do you still not believe what I say?”

　　“It’s not that I don’t believe you, I just find it hard to imagine a child like this could say such things.” Charles King replied with a smile, then looked at Helen Brooks and suddenly grew serious. “Mildred, your grandmother has told me everything you said to her that day. Do you really think the Dong family will face destruction because of your father?”

　　Helen Brooks was stunned at first, then understood.

　　Grandmother must have told this old man what he’d said that day. He hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “Mildred once heard a saying in the marketplace: ‘where you sit determines how you think.’ When father was a Xusi Colonel, he thought about how to become the Prefect of Hedong. Now that he’s Prefect, I fear he’s thinking about how to climb even higher. Mildred just worries that if one day father sits at the very top, what will be on his mind then?”

　　Charles King frowned, staring at Helen Brooks in silence.

　　Helen Brooks grew a little nervous—the old man’s gaze was so sharp, as if he could see right through him. But he knew that since grandmother had invited him, there must be a reason. Now was not the time to show weakness; he could only brace himself and face it.

　　He met Charles King’s gaze without saying a word.

　　The old and the young simply stared at each other in silence, while the old madam closed her eyes as if she had fallen asleep.

　　“Hahaha!”

　　Charles King suddenly burst out laughing, and the old madam opened her eyes. Charles King said, “Xiao Shuang, your grandson is truly remarkable.”

　　“Thank you for the compliment, elder brother!”

　　“Mildred, what is it that you want to do?”