Chapter 8: Disciplining the Wicked Woman

Yan Lingtong glanced at An Ran, then averted her gaze, her noble head nodding slightly. "Just don't cause any deaths."

"Don't worry, Big Sister, I know my limits."

Yan Ling'er waved her hand, and four of the maidservants following her stepped forward. "Go, give her a taste of color, let her know who she's dealing with."

The four of them were accustomed to such tasks; they merely exchanged a glance before walking up and surrounding An Ran.

These four were no ordinary maidservants. As Yan Lingtong’s personal attendants, they all knew a thing or two about martial arts. In the past, whenever the original owner was beaten, there would be no visible wounds on the surface, yet the pain would be so severe that she would have to spend over half a month in bed before she could get up.

As the four surrounded her, An Ran instinctively shrank back, and then her body began to ache inexplicably.

An Ran’s eyes turned cold. Although she had no memories in her mind, her body remembered that pain; it seemed the original owner had been beaten quite often.

However, she was not that ignorant fool. If they dared to hit her, they could try.

"Beat her!" Yan Ling'er laughed, her face full of anticipation. What she loved most was seeing that annoyingly beautiful face of Yan Lingmeng covered in pain and tear stains.

"Yes!" The maidservant Qiu Yue responded, raising her hand to slap An Ran across the face.

She knew that her mistresses loved seeing the fool’s little face swollen and red, and in truth, she enjoyed it too, so she put her full strength into the slap.

An Ran did not dodge. Instead, she lifted her small face, smiled innocently, and leaned into it. "Sister Dongmei, why are you hiding in the back? Come over and play with me!"

Qiu Yue’s movement came to an abrupt halt. Her large palm stopped barely a centimeter above An Ran’s face. It was only a centimeter, but for some reason, Qiu Yue could not bring herself to strike.

An Ran acted as if she felt nothing, merely staring behind Qiu Yue. "Sister Dongmei, why are you clinging to her back? Come down and play!"

Qiu Yue’s body began to tremble. Dongmei had originally been the head maid serving this fool, but because the fool had fallen gravely ill, the Old Master had ordered Dongmei to be beaten to death just two days ago. How could she possibly be clinging to her back?

An Ran looked earnestly at Qiu Yue’s back, and Qiu Yue’s face grew paler and paler.

An Ran suddenly pouted. "Why are you playing with her and not with me?" After a moment, she added, "The road is too dark, are you looking for someone to walk with you?"

Qiu Yue’s body began to shake violently. The other three maidservants turned pale and backed far away, their expressions filled with terror.

An Ran suppressed a laugh and frowned. "I don't like the dark, so you can play with her; I won't play with you anymore!"

Qiu Yue finally couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to her knees with a thud. "Dongmei, I have no grudges or grievances against you from the past or present, please don't haunt me!"

The other maidservants were too terrified to step forward. Even if they weren't afraid of ghosts, they were afraid of the Old Prince Yan. Those servants who were beaten to death were carried straight out of the Prince’s mansion and thrown into the mass grave, with no one to even collect their bodies. They didn't want to keep Dongmei company.

"Hmph." Yan Lingtong sneered. She looked at the limp Qiu Yue on the ground, then at the three who had hidden far away, her smile growing colder. "A bunch of useless things!"

After she finished speaking, she gave Yan Ling'er a look. "You go!"

Although Yan Ling'er was reckless, she still held a sense of awe toward ghosts and gods, so she shrank back, refusing to move forward. "Big Sister, she wouldn't really, really have seen a... a ghost, would she?"

Yan Lingtong glared at Yan Ling'er’s cowering form. "Even if she did, so what? What is there to be afraid of with ghosts? Go!"