Maximum Security Prison—Yao Yao Edition

The morning sun streamed through the windows, and Yao Yao woke up with a mission.

She needed to know more about summoning. If she wanted to survive in this world, she needed knowledge.

And the best place to start?

The library.

Slipping out early, she navigated the quiet halls like a thief. The library was vast, quiet and filled with towering bookshelves. Her eyes scanned the spines, fingers trailing over the gold-embossed titles until—

"Summoning & Spirit Contracts: A Foundational Study."

Bingo.

She snatched the book off the shelf, flipped through the pages eagerly— and then froze. 

The letters were… strange. Unfamiliar. Unreadable.

Her stomach dropped.

Frantically, she flipped through the pages, her tiny fingers trembling. The sentences blurred together like a mess.

Was she… illiterate?!

Her heart pounded. Forty years of education in her past life—gone?! Just like that?

She had never even considered this possibility. The spoken language was the same, so naturally, she assumed the written one would be too!

Would she have to start over? Learn to read from scratch? Trace letters like a toddler?!

Her breath quickened. No. Absolutely not.

Her eyes locked onto the page, desperate..and then, as if the universe pitied her, the words shifted.

Not physically, but within her mind. The strange symbols began to take shape and started making sense. 

Was this magic? A reincarnation perk?

Strange…Or perhaps she was just a natural-born genius all along. She was able to read the book title earlier too..

She didn't know, and frankly, she couldn't care less—so long as she could read, that was all that mattered. 

At breakfast, she dragged the book to the dining table, flipping it open as she absentmindedly nibbled on a buttered bun.

Her tiny fingers flipped pages as she chewed, completely engrossed.

Everything was peaceful, until.. 

A shadow loomed over her and the air shifted.

Slowly, hesitantly, she lifted her gaze—

And there she was.

A weightlifter in a maid uniform.

No—wait… a woman? Maybe?

Her mouth fell open, her half-eaten bun slipped from her fingers as she stared at the figure before her in utter disbelief.

The sheer size of the woman was overwhelming, her presence domineering.

Her arms were thick and powerful, looking like they could bench-press a horse—effortlessly. 

Xiu Lin's thin eyes bore down on her, sharp like a blade. Her greenish sleek hair was tied back into a high ponytail. The contrast of her pink lipstick and green hair was almost like—like a character from a comic..

Yao Yao's survival instincts kicked in.

This woman is dangerous.

Her face was stone-cold. Her uniform was crisp. And the way she stood? Completely unshakable, like a fortress.

Then—she spoke. 

"I am Xiu Lin," her voice was steady and deep. 

Yao Yao's felt her brain exploded. 

This name DOESN'T MATCH THE DAMN BODY.

Xiu Lin? Xiu Lin?! Xiu Lin should be someone delicate, gentle, graceful!!

This is not a Xiu Lin!

This is "Iron Executioner." "Mountain-Splitter". "The Final Boss in a Maid Outfit." 

She had muscles on top of muscles. A towering frame that could rival the strongest knights. If she flexed too hard, the sleeves of her maid uniform would probably explode.

And yet—

"From today onward, I will be your caretaker."

Caretaker?

Yao Yao looked at her in horrified expression. 

This executioner in a maid uniform is her new caretaker?! 

Shang Qing Ye didn't just want her disciplined—she probably really wanted her dead. 

Yao Yao swallowed. Okay. No problem. 

She had faced worse. She had survived reincarnation, she could handle one muscle-bound maid.

Quickly, she adjusted her expression, widening her pink eyes just a bit, lips tugging into the perfect soft pout.

A tried-and-tested survival skill.

She tilted her head slightly, blinking up at Xiu Lin with the most innocent, most adorable gaze she could muster.

"Big Sister Xiu Lin," she chirped sweetly, her voice dripping with sugary charm, "would you… like to… err, um…p-playy…?"

For a moment, Xiu Lin simply stared down at her, unmoving.

Then—

She smiled.

And Yao Yao immediately regretted everything. "Errrr…"

It wasn't a normal smile.

Xiu Lin's sharp, muscular features twisted, revealing a terrifying, bone-chilling distortion of what a smile should be. Her eyes narrowing, lips curving just slightly and the sheer force of it was enough to whip Yao Yao's soul out of her body. 

Then, in a voice deep and commanding, she said, "I do not play. And a lady does not read while eating."

Yao Yao's brain shut down.

Her tiny hands trembled over the book, her whole body stiffening.

The sinking feeling in her stomach deepened.

She had a very bad feeling about this.

And she was right..

For the next three days, she was trapped.

No stables. No Su Mi. No freedom.

Instead, she was subjected to a brutal schedule of etiquette lessons, studying, and worst of all—

Piano practice.

It was torture.

She had never touched a damn piano in her entire life! The only keyboard she ever used was one that typed emails, and now she was expected to sit here and produce something civilized?!

The moment Yao Yao's fingers pressed down on the keys, the piano screamed in agony. The keys out of tune and every note came out differently from the piano score. 

Behind her, Nanny Fang looked at peace.

For the first time since Yao Yao had returned to the estate, she looked… happy.

While Lily, standing right beside her, looked absolutely shaken.

Yao Yao's eye twitched.

This is revenge, isn't it?!

Her pink eyes darted sideways. The door wasn't too far. If she could just bolt—

Just as she braced herself to leap off the piano bench—

THUD.

A massive hand slammed onto the piano above her head, its weight pressing against the polished surface, veins subtly popping beneath the skin.

Yao Yao's breath hitched.

Her gaze trailed up.

Up.

Up.

Xiu Lin's muscular arm loomed over her like a steel bar, her upper body overshadowing Yao Yao completely. 

"Try again," Xiu Lin ordered. 

Her piercing gaze locked onto Yao Yao like a hunter cornering prey.

Yao Yao gulped.

Her tiny fingers hovered over the keys, shaking before she pressed down again.

Another horrendous wail filled the air, a tune so unholy and deeply cursed it could probably summon a vengeful spirit from the afterlife.

But her suffering was far from over, the torture didn't end there.

After she butchered the piano enough times to warrant an exorcism, she was ushered into a new form of torment: Lady's Posture Training.

Yao Yao had never felt such a deep hatred for the words grace and etiquette before in her life.

She sat with her spine straight, chin tilted at just the right angle, hands folded neatly in her lap, and three heavy books neatly stacked on her tiny head.

Her back ached. Her neck stiffened. She had not moved in forever. 

Just as a book wobbled slightly atop her head, a shadow stretched over her.

Her pink eyes flickered—

And there it was.

Right in front of her face, Xiu Lin's muscular thigh in maid stockings. A tree trunk of pure muscle, wrapped in innocent fabric. 

A bead of sweat rolled down Yao Yao's temple.

"…Nice… nice legs," she croaked out.

Inside, she was screaming.

This should be a crime?!

Thighs like this should NOT be wearing maid stockings!!!

Xiu Lin did not react.

"If you drop the books," she said, voice firm and merciless, "One more hour."

Yao Yao wanted to die. 

She wanted to be reincarnated again. 

…

…

…

Somewhere in the stables, Su Mi paused mid-brush, glanced up at the entrance and frowned as she wiped the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand.

Peaceful and strange.

It had been three whole days since Yao Yao last showed up.

Did something happen?

…Then she shrugged.

Nahhh… she should be fine.

Probably.