Chapter 1: Here? Kneel.

In the early morning, a black Mercedes van came to a halt before the gates of a luxurious villa in the suburbs. The driver stepped out and opened the rear door, allowing Jiang Zao to disembark with her luggage in hand.

He handed her a ring of keys, his tone courteous. “Miss Jiang, we’ve arrived. These are the keys to this villa. Please, take them, and go in on your own.”

Jiang Zao accepted the keys, nerves fluttering in her chest. “Thank you.”

“It’s nothing,” the driver replied, then climbed back into the car and drove away.

Only then did Jiang Zao lift her gaze to study the villa before her.

Never in her life had she seen such opulence.

It was an American-style mansion, and though she knew nothing of architecture, she couldn’t help but be awed by its bold grandeur.

Dragging her suitcase, she stepped through the grand entrance. Inside lay a vast courtyard, lush with lawns, flowerbeds, and a fountain.

Yet the fountain had long since run dry, filled with nothing but brittle branches and fallen leaves.

The autumn wind was desolate, and without a caretaker, the grass was beginning to yellow, lacking the vibrancy it should have had.

Jiang Zao inhaled deeply, whispering reassurances to herself. “It’s fine, it’s just the wind, that’s all.”

She drew her coat more tightly around her. The chill of autumn brought with it a sorrow she could not shake.

Her younger half-brother had caused a terrible scandal, getting into a street fight that inadvertently involved Zhou Lichuan—the sole heir of the Zhou family—and left him blind.

The Zhou family was the country’s most prominent clan: old money, a hundred years in business, with roots tangled deep in every industry.

Her father, a lowly middle manager at the Zhou Corporation, could not withstand the pressure from such a powerful family. He had no choice but to send Jiang Zao to Zhou Lichuan’s side, to serve him until he recovered.

Of course, her father knew what she would endure. But compared to the son he’d fought so hard for in his second marriage, the daughter left behind by his late wife was nothing but a burdensome spendthrift.

To save his precious son, all he needed to do was sacrifice his daughter. What a bargain.

Jiang Zao walked for a long time before finally reaching the villa’s main door.

She selected the largest key and unlocked it.

With a click, the morning light and crisp air from outside forced their way into the house.

The windows and doors were tightly shut, heavy curtains drawn against the bright dawn.

Jiang Zao entered cautiously.

She hadn’t expected to find a man sitting in the living room, and the shock stole the breath from her lungs.

“Hello… I—I’m Jiang Zao.”

The man wore a black silk scarf tied over his eyes—a clear sign of his affliction. His shirt was dark, unbuttoned at the collar, exposing a broad, muscular chest.

He did not move, nor did he respond.

“Are you… Zhou Lichuan? Young Master Zhou?” Jiang Zao ventured, her voice trembling.

After a long, heavy silence, the man finally spoke. “Come here.”

She set down her luggage and timidly approached him.

Zhou Lichuan reached out, seizing her sleeve, and his hand traveled up the fabric until he found her hand.

Jiang Zao’s hands, callused and rough from years of painting and holding brushes as an oil painting major, were nothing like those of an ordinary girl.

“Your hands are so rough. Does Jiang Jingyuan abuse you?”

Jiang Jingyuan was her father.

The question was strange and unanswerable. Unsure what to make of it, Jiang Zao shook her head, then, remembering he could not see, replied softly, “No… he doesn’t.”

Suddenly—

Zhou Lichuan yanked her hand downward, pulling her to her knees before him.

His hand found her face, his fingers pinching her chin. “I heard you just graduated. Young, never even dated… So naïve—do you know how to serve someone?”

Jiang Zao was trembling so violently her words caught in her throat. “I… I can learn,” she managed to choke out.

He let out a cold laugh. “Good. Then let me teach you, step by step. Kneel properly.”

Overpowered by the strength of his grip, Jiang Zao had no choice but to adjust herself and kneel obediently before him.

…

Forty minutes later, Jiang Zao had retreated to her own room, cowering in the bathroom as she scrubbed her teeth furiously with her toothbrush.

She brushed with all her strength, the hard bristles scraping the inside of her mouth until her tender flesh tore, blood mixing with the foam and dripping from the corner of her lips.

Warm water rained from the shower, but it could not wash away the chill that gripped her to her core.

She stood beneath the stream in only her thin underclothes, letting the sound of the water mask her sobs.

She had barely signed with a company when her own father confiscated all her documents and demanded she atone for his son’s sins.

They had bargained for her price and her worth, and now, like an object, she was left to degradation and humiliation within this gloomy house.

The thought brought a fresh wave of despair, tears mingling with the hot water streaming down her face.

Jiang Zao was assigned a room on the second floor, directly beneath Zhou Lichuan’s. The villa’s soundproofing was so thorough that nothing from above could be heard.

She’d expected Zhou Lichuan, with his devilish temperament, to torment her all day. Yet after that morning, he left her alone.

That night, just before bed, a housekeeper knocked at her door.

“Miss Jiang, Mr. Lin would like to see you in the living room.”

Jiang Zao had no choice but to rise and go out.

The butler’s name was Lin Rui, one of Zhou Lichuan’s most trusted men, raised alongside him since childhood as close as brothers.

The Zhou family had even sent Lin Rui to study at a hotel academy in Sweden, yet afterward, they still welcomed him back with a generous salary.

Jiang Zao recalled the things her father had told her about the Zhou family as she made her way down the stairs to the living room.

The sight of the sofa from that morning made her uneasy.

Had anyone witnessed what happened? She could only pray Zhou Lichuan wasn’t so perverse as to perform such acts before an audience…

“Please, have a seat, Miss Jiang,” Lin Rui said, gesturing for her to sit. He held a thick stack of documents in his hands.

Jiang Zao kept her eyes down and sat.

Lin Rui drew one document from the pile and placed it on the coffee table before her.

“This is the medical evaluation of the young master’s injuries, performed at the affiliated hospital. Severe head trauma resulting in temporary blindness, a fractured right leg, and several surface wounds.”

Jiang Zao didn’t touch the papers, but her eyes fell on the text, reading every word.

Lin Rui then produced another document. “This is the police investigation into the incident. It confirms that your brother, Jiang Zheyan, instigated a fight, and, during the pursuit, mistook the young master for one of the other party’s accomplices. Together with others, he beat the young master unconscious, until a passerby discovered them and called the police.”