Great Qian Kingdom, Dingguo Duke’s Mansion.
Servant quarters, rear courtyard.
“Wow, Sister Yun Shu, not only are you beautiful, but even your skin is so fair and tender. No wonder the Madam chose you to be the Heir Apparent’s bedchamber maid. As long as you get pregnant, you’ll immediately become a concubine in the mansion, making you half a master.”
The maid Lu Liu said enviously while scrubbing her back.
Yun Shu lay against the wooden tub, her fair and beautiful back tracing an alluring curve. Hearing this, she let out a faint sigh.
“How can a child be conceived just by saying so? The Young Mistress has been married into the family for three years now, and there’s still no news.”
Sigh. She thought back to her past life as a miserable corporate slave who worked herself to the bone to climb the ranks. She had reached middle management, only to be screwed over by her boss. Unable to find a suitable job after being laid off, she went to deliver food out of spite.
On her very first day, she was sent flying by a car and died on the spot.
Tragically, she couldn’t find a job while alive, but her soul found “re-employment” after death. She ended up with a job that had lifelong security—a maid in the Dingguo Duke’s Mansion!
She was even a house-born servant, the kind where, barring life-or-death issues, she was guaranteed never to be unemployed!
Moreover, her parents were both managers in the mansion, so she was considered a minor beneficiary of connections.
In these ancient times, these conditions were far from the best but more than enough for comfort. Yun Shu had been satisfied and planned to just “lie flat” and take it easy.
However, workplace sexual harassment was far too severe.
She was scouted by the mansion’s fourth young master, born of a concubine, who wanted her as his bedchamber maid. That fourth young master was obsessed with women, and rumors in the back courtyard suggested he had some unspeakable, perverted hobbies. Following him would only lead to a faster death.
Yun Shu was forced to become a high-achiever once again. Relying on her hard work and sharp wits, she rose step by step to become a first-class maid by the Duchess’s side.
With the Duchess as her backer, she finally got the fourth young master to leave her alone.
She had planned to wait a couple more years, pick a decent-looking house-born servant in the mansion to marry, and then upgrade from a maid to a managing matron.
But who would have thought!
The Young Mistress had been married to the Heir Apparent for three years and still hadn’t conceived. The other two concubines hadn’t had any luck either.
Because of this, the Madam grew anxious and wanted to add two more bedchamber maids for the Heir Apparent. One was Yun Shu, and the other was Hong Ling. Their task was to quickly give birth to an heir for him.
That silly girl Lu Liu was actually envious and full of longing.
But Yun Shu was worried to death!
If the Heir Apparent couldn’t get other women pregnant, either he had a problem or someone was sabotaging things in the shadows. Even if she seduced the cold Heir Apparent and worked hard, it would be useless!
If she couldn’t produce a child and failed to meet her “performance targets,” it meant she could never be promoted and would remain the lowest-ranking bedchamber maid forever.
But if she did get pregnant, that would also be a nightmare.
In modern times, pregnancy and childbirth already came with a host of problems—pain during pregnancy, the risks of labor—let alone in ancient times, where giving birth was truly a life-or-death gamble.
As a bedchamber maid, the moment she gave birth, she might be subjected to the “keep the child, discard the mother” treatment, losing even the right to live.
She had previously focused all her energy on being promoted to a top maid by the Duchess’s side, rather than using her beauty to become the fourth young master’s bedchamber maid, precisely because she didn’t want to give birth or deal with harem infighting!
But after dodging the fourth young master, she couldn’t dodge the Heir Apparent.
Furthermore, if she didn’t follow the Madam’s arrangements to serve as the Heir Apparent’s bedchamber maid, the consequences awaiting her would be even more unbearable: ranging from being beaten with planks and sold to a brothel, to being married off to an old man to warm his bed, or being sent to a manor to be abused by others.
Sigh, sigh, sigh.
She had to attend the bedchamber in a moment, and Yun Shu was annoyed to death.
【Ding! Childbearing System bound! Host, you only need to enjoy the conception and give birth with your eyes closed; it won’t let you feel even a tiny bit of pain!】
Startled by the sound, Yun Shu stood up abruptly from the tub, splashing water everywhere.
The Childbearing System?!
This truly struck right at her pain point, instantly resolving the greatest anxiety of her future career.
Yun Shu pinched her palm hard to stop herself from grinning out loud in excitement.
“Yun… Sister Yun Shu, what’s wrong?”
Lu Liu was startled, but when her eyes landed on Yun Shu, she was immediately captivated by the surging waves of her chest.
Sister Yun Shu’s waist was clearly so thin and she had no extra fat, so how was her chest so well-endowed!
Lu Liu looked down at her own flat chest and felt even more envious. If she were a man, she would definitely favor Sister Yun Shu.
Although Hong Ling and Sister Yun Shu were chosen together, Sister Yun Shu was the one who got the chance to attend the bedchamber first.
Recovering from her surprise and excitement, Yun Shu sat back down and said softly to Lu Liu, “Alright, let’s stop the soak here. Hurry and help me dry my hair and do my makeup. I can’t let the Heir Apparent wait for me.”
Lu Liu complied, helping her dry her body and hair, and brought over a charcoal brazier to speed up the drying.
Once Yun Shu had finished preparing, she headed to the Heir Apparent’s courtyard.
Even though they were married, the Heir Apparent and the Young Mistress had their own separate courtyards.
When Yun Shu reached the courtyard entrance, the page Qing He said politely to her, “Miss Yun Shu, please go inside and wait. His Lordship is still writing official documents in the study.”
Those who stayed by Lu Jin Yan’s side called him “Lord,” while the servants in the mansion were used to calling him the Heir Apparent.
Yun Shu smiled and nodded, then entered the room. She laid out the handkerchief on the bed intended to prove her virginity, removed her outer and inner layers, and was left wearing only a yellow bellyband. She lay on the bed and pulled up the covers.
After waiting a moment longer, a sound came from outside—Lu Jin Yan had returned.
Hearing him push the door open and enter, Yun Shu pursed her lips nervously and looked toward him through the bed curtains.
Lu Jin Yan had received word from his page that Yun Shu was already in the room. After entering, seeing her shoes by the bed, he walked straight over.
Drawing back the curtains, Lu Jin Yan met a pair of beautiful eyes, shimmering with emotion and brilliance. Her small face featured ruby lips and pearly teeth, her features as exquisite as a painting—truly peerless beauty.
However, Lu Jin Yan’s eyes remained completely impassive, as if he were inspecting an inanimate object.
“Heir Apparent.” Yun Shu glanced at him with feigned shyness, calling out to him before lowering her gaze.
One had to admit, the Heir Apparent was incomparably handsome, talented, and elegant. Sleeping with such a man wasn’t a loss for her.
Lu Jin Yan withdrew his gaze expressionlessly and said coldly, “Prepare for bed.”
“This servant will undress the Heir Apparent.” With that, Yun Shu rose from under the covers into a kneeling position, reaching out to unfasten his robes.
She was only wearing a bellyband and the undergarments she had made for herself. In this kneeling position, her sexy and exquisite figure was perfectly presented. Combined with her cream-colored skin, half-hidden and half-revealed, it was the ultimate temptation.
However, even with such a vivid and alluring scene before him, the look in Lu Jin Yan’s eyes didn’t change at all.
As Yun Shu unbuttoned his clothes, she stole a glance at him. Seeing him completely unaffected, she couldn’t help but complain inwardly that a beauty like her was apparently no different from a piece of pork in his eyes.
Was the Heir Apparent just… incapable?
After removing his outer robe, Yun Shu got off the bed and placed it on the nearby clothes rack.
“Extinguish the lights,” Lu Jin Yan ordered.
Yun Shu complied, blowing out the two nearest candles while leaving the one on the distant desk. The room darkened instantly, though things were still visible.
Lu Jin Yan got onto the bed first and lowered the curtains.
Yun Shu also climbed back onto the bed and proactively wound herself around him to continue removing his inner robe.
However, Lu Jin Yan pushed her hand away directly and told her to lie down. He didn’t kiss her; he simply followed the steps mechanically.
He stripped her bare first, while he still wore his upper inner garment. The subsequent movements were cold, roughly equivalent to someone kneading a radish.
Yun Shu was completely taken aback by his procedural actions and gave him a scathing review in her mind!
Could he have a little bit of “driving skill”?! She didn’t want her first experience to feel like being run over!
To save her life, Yun Shu quickly opened the gift bag provided by the system, applying both the Tender Body Soft Pill and the Voice Alluring Cry Medicine to herself.
“Heir Apparent, this servant is afraid… may I do it myself?”
Yun Shu grasped Lu Jin Yan’s hand, speaking to him in a voice that was pitifully sweet and alluring.
With the enhancement of the medicine, Yun Shu’s voice was like a small hook. Even someone as abstinent and cold as Lu Jin Yan felt a wave of tingling numbness spread through his body.
Lu Jin Yan frowned and stopped his movements. The arm propping him up beside her tensed, and his eyes darkened as he looked at her.
After a long silence, he spoke in a deep voice, his tone devoid of either anger or desire: “What do you mean by… doing it yourself?”