When Ye Zhibai said this, she wasn’t staring into the maid’s eyes.
Instead, she deliberately gazed down the pebble path as it stretched beyond the manor.
The world is so big. I want to see it.
With that gesture and expression—paired with her earlier words of melancholy longing—did you feel it, maids?
Steady as a rock, utterly calm, and shamelessly persistent. That was Ye Zhibai’s state right now.
The one advantage of her ice-cold face was that even in moments of tension, no one could tell. Not even the sun could melt it!
Even the well-trained maids needed a long moment to react.
After a wave of utter confusion, the younger maid clasped her hands together and ventured a guess.
“Ah…! I get it. Does Eldest Miss want to take a stroll in the courtyard? That’s no problem at all—as long as you don’t leave the villa…”
“No.” Ye Zhibai finally turned her gaze toward the maid, slow and deliberate. “I want to go to the school where Yun’er studies and take a look.”
“……”
What could make a maid break out in a cold sweat on such a sweltering day?
Eldest Miss’s meaning—and her request—could not have been clearer.
The two maids first nodded respectfully to Ye Zhibai. Then, in unison, they stepped back and turned away.
Launching into a heated discussion!
For the record, they had been standing outside the fence the whole time, not daring to cross even half a step.
It was Second Miss’s forbidden zone. No one dared violate it.
With them refusing to come closer, Ye Zhibai took two more steps forward.
After all, a shorter distance meant better understanding. Easier conversation. Things could be negotiated!
Guang Yu’s voice transmitted straight into Ye Zhibai’s mind.
“You didn’t do anything at all! Being that straightforward? Of course they won’t let you out!”
“What do you know?” Ye Zhibai muttered under her breath, responding without looking back. “When in doubt, take the shot. Didn’t you catch the longing in my eyes for the world outside?”
“Sorry… but I have to tell you: from start to finish, there was no expression in your eyes at all. Even a dead fish shows more emotion.”
“!”
By the time realization dawned on Ye Zhibai, it was far too late.
The two maids had already reached their decision.
They turned back around, faces etched with conflict, exchanging a glance that clearly passed the buck. Neither wanted to be the one to deliver such harsh words to Eldest Miss.
But someone had to say it. The sun blazed mercilessly, and Eldest Miss was still standing there.
The slightly taller maid finally stepped forward. Her expression set with resolve, she mustered a gentle smile and explained the situation to Ye Zhibai.
“Eldest Miss… I understand how you feel. The house feels too stifling, doesn’t it? But you were just discharged from the hospital yesterday. For now, please put your health first above all else. Second Miss gave strict orders: no matter what happens today, you must stay home and rest properly!”
“……”
In theory, orders from Ye Zhibai—the Eldest Miss—should outrank those from Ye Zhiyun, the Second Miss.
But there was a problem: without a soul, Ye Zhibai was little more than a puppet. And what authority did a puppet wield?
Tsk, tsk, tsk. Outing plan A—the bold gambit—had failed.
This outcome, however, was entirely within Ye Zhibai’s expectations.
If it had been that easy to slip away, why had she agonized all morning?
The two maids watched as Ye Zhibai slowly slipped a hand into her pocket. She withdrew a neat, square card and held it out to them in both hands.
“Actually… Yun’er’s student ID got left behind at home. I want to go to the school… and deliver it to her. It’s not because the house feels stifling…”
“……!”
The tall maid and the short one both leaned in close. Sure enough, it was Second Miss’s student ID card.
Their surprise had nothing to do with it being left behind.
No—it was that Eldest Miss, fresh from the hospital, could not only speak but articulated her thoughts so clearly!
She had laid it all out in a single, perfect sentence.
Oh, Eldest Miss! You’ve really come so far!
Still, one matter at a time. The younger maid shook her head apologetically.
“Eldest Miss… it’s really no issue? Second Miss doesn’t need any ID to go to school. If anything… her mere presence is a huge honor for the school leaders. Forgetting it won’t matter at all.”
“But… what if she does need it?” Ye Zhibai pressed on stubbornly.
“That’s just it, Eldest Miss… We guarantee you, Second Miss won’t need it.”
“No… I still think she does…”
She doesn’t need it. But I do!
After those words, Ye Zhibai bowed her head and stared silently at the card cradled in her palms. Seeing this display of apparent defeat, Guang Yu—trailing behind her—braced herself for the long walk home and an afternoon nap!
Pestering them like this was pointless. These maids were dead set against letting her leave today!
But then…
Something unexpected happened.
A flicker of doubt crept across the maids’ faces.
In their eyes, Ye Zhibai—clutching the student ID card—was no lofty Ye Family Eldest Miss.
She was merely a pitiable elder sister, fretting over her sibling yet confined to the house without a single step of freedom.
After all, flesh-and-blood hearts could only take so much. Orders were orders—no letting Eldest Miss go out—but other solutions existed.
The shorter maid pulled out her phone. “Eldest Miss, rest easy. I’ll call Second Miss right now! She can tell you herself that the ID won’t trouble her at all. You two can chat, pour out your hearts—that way, you won’t have to worry anymore!”
How did you get so clever?!
A phone call. Brilliant!
But Ye Zhibai was ready. She pressed her palm down firmly, halting the maid’s action.
Composed as ever, she struck at the heart of it.
“Don’t call… Yun’er might be giving a speech.”
“Oh, right…!”
The air grew thick with tension.
Truth be told, Ye Zhibai’s persistence wasn’t blind nagging. It was a calculated sympathy play.
What this soulless shell had bequeathed her—beyond the shell itself—was one more gift.
A past…
Pitiful enough to move mountains.
The “pitiful” Ye Zhibai clutched the student ID card tightly. Her hands fell limp at her sides in utter surrender.
She lifted her gaze—a cold, bewildered, vacant stare—to the horizon.
The sun’s glare stung… but she paid it no mind.
To ensure the maids heard her murmur, she even edged forward a tiny step.
“I wonder… if Yun’er is doing okay at school… if any classmates bully her… if she has good friends… she mustn’t anger the teachers… graduation’s almost here… I… won’t get to see it…”
“……”
The tall maid froze in place. Tears welled suddenly in her eyes.
The walkie-talkie slipped from her grasp, clattering to the ground.
She made no move to retrieve it.
This tall maid was no ordinary servant. She was the Ye Family’s current Head Maid.
At thirty-two years old, the Head Maid had joined the household a decade prior. She had watched both Eldest Miss and Second Miss grow up with her own eyes.
Back then, Second Miss was still in elementary school.
Eldest Miss had always remained at home alone. Each time Second Miss headed off to school, she would stand at the door, waving stiffly with an expressionless face to see her off.
She was just a sister who cared for her little sibling. Nothing more.
Powerless to voice her inner joys or sorrows. Yet surely, day after day… she prayed for Second Miss’s happiness and success at school.
But what of Eldest Miss herself?
In the prime of her youth—when she should have reveled in campus life—illness had chained her indoors, forever barred from the outside.
That confinement had lasted eighteen sweltering summers.
What had she done wrong?
She should have strolled to school hand in hand with Second Miss—laughing innocently, chatting the whole way, carefree and full of wonder.
Yet she had been denied it all. Worse, a car crash had stolen even the scant light of her previous two years.
Now, she had awakened.
This poor elder sister yearned only to glimpse her sibling’s final high school days. To witness the campus life she herself had never known—the curtain call she had missed entirely.
Was that so wrong?
Eldest Miss had never heard a school bell ring.
Never brushed her fingers over campus flowers or trees.
And now, denied even the sight of Second Miss wandering those grounds, graduation loomed. All she could offer was a simple “happy graduation,” and with that, their shared story would end.
It was too cruel.
Heaven should never be so cruel. And if it must punish, why target such a gentle soul as Eldest Miss?
Thus, before Ye Zhibai could turn back toward the house…
The Head Maid quietly bent down and retrieved the walkie-talkie from the dirt.
She drew a shuddering breath.
Then, into the mouthpiece—with steady, resolute conviction—she declared:
“All personnel, escort Eldest Miss to Qihai No.1 Middle School. I repeat: escort Eldest Miss to Qihai No.1 Middle School! I will bear all consequences!”
