Chapter 12: Intimidation

At night, Xia Yu logged into the game and saw the familiar black piano.

As he opened the lid, Xia Yu started practicing and asked An Siyao, “Where is the head maid?”

According to An Siyao’s previous information, the head maid was supposed to return tonight.

“You haven’t seen her, right?” Xia Yu asked again.

In order to avoid giving the head maid the impression that he was still weak, Xia Yu had previously instructed the girl not to meet the head maid before his arrival.

In a battle of presence, first impressions were extremely important.

For example, a muscular bodybuilder could be very intimidating, but if he revealed a Pikachu tattoo on his shoulder, it would be difficult for him to maintain that aura of dominance.

An Siyao did not immediately answer Xia Yu; instead, she steered the conversation in an unrelated direction.

“You didn’t come yesterday,” the girl said.

“…Isn’t it a good thing that I didn’t come?” Xia Yu’s fingers paused, hitting a wrong note.

“You didn’t come yesterday,” the girl rephrased.

Helpless toward An Siyao, Xia Yu explained, “I also have other things to do. I can’t come here every day.”

“At least let me know,” the girl said with a hint of unhappiness in her tone.

“Alright, alright, I promise to tell you if I can’t come in the future.”

After making this promise, Xia Yu felt a complex mix of emotions, as if he were a husband who stayed out all night without telling his wife.

“Okay,” An Siyao’s voice slightly brightened.

“So, where is the head maid?” Xia Yu returned to his original question.

“She didn’t come to the villa. She went home first,” An Siyao replied, with a tone of guilt. She had given Xia Yu incorrect information.

Frowning, Xia Yu felt the situation was serious: “That person said she would come back today, and she stood you up?”

“No,” An Siyao explained, “I previously heard from other maids that Auntie Dong would return by this afternoon’s flight, so I thought she would come to the villa tonight. I didn’t expect her to go home instead.”

“When will she come here?” Xia Yu asked again.

“I don’t know.”

“…”

Xia Yu took out the girl’s phone and found the number labeled as belonging to the head maid, sending a message.

“When will you be back tomorrow?”

The message received a quick reply.

“Tomorrow afternoon”

Putting the phone down, Xia Yu said to An Siyao, “See? That works out. Why did you listen to other maids for information?”

The girl didn’t answer; she couldn’t do such a thing herself.

“If it’s tomorrow afternoon, there’s still a bit of a problem. I can only come here at six. That means you’ll have to stay with her for at least six hours.”

The game’s restriction was eight hours of login every twenty-four hours, and one couldn’t log out early in between. If Xia Yu had known this information yesterday, he could have adjusted his schedule, but now it was too late.

Six hours—if the head maid had already achieved victory, then when Xia Yu took over, he would be at a disadvantage in presence by more than just a little.

“I think it’s okay. I have school during the day and get home at three in the afternoon. Usually, from three to six, I finish my homework in my room. Auntie Dong won’t come during that time,” An Siyao said.

“You still go to school?” Xia Yu was surprised.

“Why are you surprised about that?” An Siyao couldn’t understand Xia Yu’s reaction.

“I thought you were taught privately at home,” Xia Yu had assumed she was always at this villa, which explained her personality.

“I’ve been attending Dongzhi Academy from kindergarten through high school. By the way, are you in university now, or have you already started working?” The girl took this opportunity to ask about Xia Yu.

“I’ll retire in another two years.”

“Eh?” She was stunned for three seconds. Considering Xia Yu’s past behavior, An Siyao became suspicious, “Are you lying to me?”

Xia Yu didn’t answer, which was confirmation enough.

“You’re such a bad guy!” the girl said angrily.

“Alright, let’s start the piano lesson!” Not wanting to reveal more about himself, Xia Yu changed the topic.

Spending seven and a half hours practicing piano, Xia Yu used the remaining half hour to ask the maids in the villa about some information regarding the head maid.

When An Siyao said the head maid had returned home, Xia Yu realized she actually had her own family, which surprised him. He had assumed she would be an unmarried older woman like those seen on TV.

After eight hours, Xia Yu logged out of An Siyao’s body.

He spent an ordinary day and logged in again at six in the evening.

This time, he didn’t see the black piano. An Siyao’s body was in the bedroom.

“Good evening,” the girl greeted Xia Yu, though her tone was not as cheerful as before.

“Did the head maid come back?” Xia Yu asked.

“Yeah.”

“Did you talk to her during dinner?” Xia Yu needed to know the details.

“No, we don’t talk during meals.”

“That’s good.”

“Isn’t there a problem? The head maid seems really scary,” An Siyao said anxiously.

“Don’t worry, everything’s under control,” Xia Yu comforted the girl.

Nodding in satisfaction, Xia Yu stood up and walked to the piano room. As usual, he began his piano practice.

He was waiting for the head maid to come to him. As the master, it would be beneath his dignity to approach a maid first.

An hour later, a knock on the door sounded.

“That’s Auntie Dong,” An Siyao recognized the unique knock.

Xia Yu didn’t invite the head maid in; he continued playing the piano.

Two minutes later, the head maid opened the door herself and approached Xia Yu.

Xia Yu finally saw the head maid’s appearance.

She was an elderly, thin woman wearing a pair of glasses on her nose, her expression stern—completely matching Xia Yu’s expectations.

“Miss,” the head maid spoke first.

Xia Yu seemed not to hear and continued playing the piano.

The head maid frowned slightly and continued, “I heard from Fang Chun about what’s been going on recently.”

She paused, hoping silence would pressure Xia Yu into speaking up and admitting his mistakes.

But Xia Yu completely ignored her, continuing to play on his own.

“A proper young lady wouldn’t deliberately ignore others,” the head maid said again.

Xia Yu still didn’t respond. He was now playing the third section of the Gudao Etude, needing to concentrate fully.

After waiting for a while, the head maid finally couldn’t stand it anymore and walked up to Xia Yu.

“Miss!”

After finishing the final note, Xia Yu slowly lifted his hands and looked at the head maid.

His calmness startled the head maid slightly.

“A proper young lady?” Xia Yu’s lips curled into a smile.

“Yes, as the heir of the An family, you should be a proper young lady,” the head maid suppressed her slight surprise and said calmly.

Staring at the head maid, Xia Yu said slowly, “Then, does that make you a proper maid beside a proper young lady?”

“I believe I deserve that title,” the head maid replied, her expression unchanged.

“So, being a proper maid means entering a young lady’s room without permission and interrupting her performance at will?” Xia Yu began his counterattack.

The head maid couldn’t remain as calm as before. She defended herself: “It’s just that you, Miss…”

“Are you, as a proper maid, blaming me?” Xia Yu interrupted her.

The head maid turned red-faced and speechless.

“You’re just a maid. Know your place.” Xia Yu withdrew his gaze and placed his fingers back on the keys. The sound of the Gudao Etude filled the room again.

After standing there for a while, the head maid slowly calmed down. She hadn’t admitted defeat yet; she had just been left speechless by Xia Yu.

She had never imagined that the previous young lady who used to follow her around obediently would become like this.

She took a step back: “I will report this…”

Bang—

Xia Yu’s hand heavily pressed down on the piano key, a loud sound echoing through the music room.

“Is interrupting someone’s performance repeatedly what you call being a proper maid?” He turned his head and looked at the head maid.