John Carter and Steven Carter, the two brothers, strode out of the swirling dust with their upper bodies bare, looking like iron towers. In the eyes of the household servants, they were nothing short of gods descending to earth. Behind them marched nearly a hundred fierce and imposing men, who at first glance seemed like heavenly soldiers sent from above. The two brothers were already seeing red from the killing; today, they were determined to make the Hu family return justice to them!

Although Little William lived in the inner courtyard, with such a commotion outside, there was no way he hadn’t heard it. He carried Grace Carter back to his own room, and as soon as he placed her on the bed, the little lady woke up.

Of the four children in the Tang family, when it came to temper and courage, Grace Carter was the boldest. She opened her eyes to find herself tied up like a zongzi, lying soaking wet on a strange bed. Terrified, she let out a sharp scream, but before the sound could fully escape, Little William covered her mouth. He flashed a gleaming dagger before her eyes and said, “If you dare scream, I’ll slash your face!” It was a threat—pure intimidation. If it really came down to it, he probably wouldn’t have the heart to do it.

But the threat was quite effective. After all, what girl doesn’t care about her looks? Threatening to ruin her face was even more effective than threatening her life. Grace Carter bit her lip, blinked her eyes, and when she saw Little William slowly move his hand away, she finally didn’t dare scream again. In a low voice, she asked, “What do you want?”

Little William chuckled and sat down on the grand armchair opposite the bed, propping one leg up on it. He still hadn’t had time to put on clothes, and as soon as he lifted his leg, he noticed Grace Carter suddenly shut her eyes, her pretty face turning bright red, looking both shy and especially charming.

Only then did Little William realize that after snatching her and running all the way here, he hadn’t even had time to change. That careless movement just now had almost exposed himself. He coughed and said, “What a silly question. Why do you think I brought you here?” Little William felt he wasn’t that despicable. He wanted to say something ruthless, but in the end, he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.

Grace Carter opened her beautiful eyes and glared angrily at Little William: “You want to force a marriage? Let me tell you, my father is a high-ranking official, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Carriages, Charles Carter. If you dare disrespect me, be careful—my father will report you to the Emperor, and your whole family will be executed!”

Looking at this girl, Little William thought to himself, “How vicious! What did I ever do to you that you want my whole family executed?” Who the hell tied her up like this? The ropes outlined her curves so clearly—this was professional work. He’d only ever seen this kind of tying in Japanese AVs.

Seeing him staring at her, Grace Carter couldn’t help but panic a little. No matter how bold she was, she was still a girl, and now she was tied up like a zongzi, completely powerless.

Little William said, “Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Carriages? That’s just a stable manager.”

“You…”

Just as Little William was about to put Grace Carter in her place, he heard Robert Bennett’s breathless voice from outside: “Young master… something terrible has happened… something terrible…”

Little William pulled the dagger from the table, walked out of the room, and closed the door behind him. He saw Robert Bennett bent over, hands on his thick thighs, panting heavily: “They… they’ve broken in… they… have broken in…”

Before he could finish, the Tang brothers led nearly a hundred burly men, charging into the garden with overwhelming momentum.

Robert Bennett turned pale with fright and immediately tried to run, but after a couple of steps, he remembered his duty. If he ran now, once this was over, there would be no place for him in the Hu family. Weighing the pros and cons, he immediately drew his waist knife and, summoning his courage, said, “Y-young master… you should escape first… I’ll cover you…”

Little William looked at him with some disdain. From his eyelashes to his fingertips, the guy was trembling all over, scared out of his wits—how could he protect anyone like this? Little William said, “Do you even know what it means to avoid harming the innocent when catching a rat?”

Robert Bennett shook his head.

“Do you know what it means to act without scruples?”

Robert Bennett shook his head again.

“Damn! So uneducated. We have their person in our hands—what are you afraid of?” Little William couldn’t stand his cowardice and couldn’t help but curse.

The words snapped Robert Bennett out of his daze. Hearing this, he puffed out his chest: “Not… afraid… not afraid! I’m not afraid of anything!” He roared so loudly that Little William’s eardrums buzzed. Damn, a servant is a servant! Damn it, I had to waste so much breath teaching you.

Little William waved his hand: “Go, bring the girl out, and hold a knife to her neck.”

Robert Bennett nodded repeatedly and turned to the door, but then remembered something: “Young master, is she… dressed?”

Little William realized this servant was quite something—never smart when he should be, but now thinking of things he shouldn’t. He chuckled, “She’s stark naked. Lucky you!”

Gulp! Robert Bennett swallowed hard, picturing the girl’s tender skin. Before he could think further, Little William smacked him hard on the head: “Damn, you dare think about my woman?”

Chapter 7: Turning Black into White (Part 1)