"Mom, the dishes at home weren't washed very clean. I need to wash them again for you. I brought back a bottle of dishwashing liquid."
Xili carried a basin, placed all the household dishes inside, poured in some detergent, and began washing them thoroughly.
"Heavens, Xili, did you steal dish soap from your employer's house?"
"I didn't steal it. I took it from the storage room. I reported it to Mr. Alfred. The cost of anything I bring home is deducted from my next month's salary."
"Oh, is that so? You scared your mother half to death. But why wash them so clean? Detergent is so expensive! You, you need to wash thoroughly at your employer's house—that's your job, as it should be. But at home, what's the need to be so particular?"
"They have to be washed clean, otherwise dirt goes into our stomachs with the food, and people easily fall ill. How much does a hospital trip cost for our family? How many bottles of detergent and how much water could that money pay for?"
"All right, all right, I can't win an argument against you, okay?"
"That's how it should be in the first place. Back when our family was worse off, it was you, Mom, who taught me: even if circumstances are tough, we must keep things clean and tidy so life feels spirited. Our circumstances are better now, and my little brother is attending school. Shouldn't our life be even cleaner and fresher?"
"Sigh, let Mom help you wash."
"Sit down and rest a bit, Mom."
"No need. You came home, so I came over to keep you company. Otherwise, I'd probably be next door folding cardboard boxes with your aunts right now."
"You can do less work in the future. Don't stay up late doing those odd jobs—it ruins your health."
"Every little bit counts. Mom has let you down. Earning wages as a maid isn't easy, yet you barely spend anything on yourself; you give it all to the family and our relatives."
Xili's family initially lived in a shantytown, which sounded only slightly better than a slum. Later, after Xili found work as a maid, more and more relatives came to seek shelter with them. Now, two uncles on her father's side and an aunt on her mother's side had all brought their immediate families over.
Early on, Xili couldn't even return home because there was no longer a place for her to sleep. Later, Xili spent money to rent three rooms in this grey-white building for her own family and their relatives.
Karen had seen grey-white buildings before—they were very much like the communal tenement blocks in his memory: cheap to build, accommodating more residents, generally with one shared washroom per floor.
Xili's salary was considered quite high for a maid, but with one person's income supporting so many people, barely anything was left over.
However, mutual aid among relatives was very common in illegal immigrant communities. Arriving in an unfamiliar environment, the bond of blood relations was amplified tremendously.
Besides, back when their family had been struggling, these relatives had also helped out, pooling money for her father's medical bills to pull him through. There was no reason to cast them aside now that her circumstances had improved.
Still, as a mother, she ached at her daughter's sacrifices.
"Mom, I eat, drink, and live at the young master's house. Whatever the young master's family eats, I eat too. Heh, the food is wonderful, and I even have my own private room. I get an allowance for clothes across all four seasons, so I don't have to spend a cent on clothing. I have no place to spend money at all."
"Still, you should save some for yourself. What will you do when you get married later?"
"Get married? Mom, do you think getting married would give me an easier, more comfortable life than what I have now?"
"This..."
As a mother, worrying about her child's marriage was instinct, but facing her daughter's words, she found no grounds to rebut.
Could finding a man to marry, just like she had, truly lead to a happy life?
Ever since her daughter became a maid, her hands were no longer as rough, her skin was fairer than before, and leaning close, one could catch the faint scent of perfume on her. She was more confident, more graceful; walking into this grey-white tenement, she didn't look like someone who belonged here at all.
This showed that her daughter wasn't lying. The young master's family she described truly treated her well; otherwise, such an aura could never be nurtured.
In fact, Xili herself hadn't realized many of the changes in herself.
When she first started working as a maid at Allen Apartments, she had merely tried her best to fulfill the duties of a domestic servant. But once the black cat in the house started speaking to her, everything changed.
Pu'er was quite good to Xili, even though she always called her "Big Butt."
Yet Pu'er also constantly called Alfred "Radio Goblin." In Pu'er's habits, calling someone by a nickname signified acceptance in her circle.
Moreover, Young Mistress Pu'er's extremely high standards of living at home ultimately had to be carried out through Xili. Over time, Xili gradually elevated her own role.
In this era, maids were graded into tiers. Capable, experienced maids were in high demand on the market.
"Growing older without getting married just isn't good in the end."
"Mom, it's still early for me. No rush."
The mother sat on a stool, while Xili, wearing a floral maxi dress, squatted down.
For a long time, at Mr. Alfred's request, Xili had to wear jeans to work.
As to why, and for what purpose—the young maid wasn't foolish; she understood in her heart. But what could she do? They simply paid too much!
Also, Xili noticed that every time the young master's gaze lingered deliberately on her rear, though she felt terribly shy inside, she also felt an indescribable flutter of delight.
Later, Karen noticed his maid always wore jeans and didn't change her style even as spring arrived and the weather warmed up. Only then did he realize Alfred must have had something to do with it, and personally told Xili she was free to wear whatever she wished.
The mother patted her daughter's rear.
Xili looked around uncomfortably, chiding, "Mom, what are you doing?"
Her mother propped her chin, asking curiously, "Your young master must really like this part of you too, right?"
"Mom, what are you talking about! The young master is an upright, pure gentleman!"
"He's a young master, not a young lady. Sigh, actually, your aunts have mentioned it too—if possible, being a mistress wouldn't be bad either."
"Mom! What kind of nonsense do you talk about while folding cardboard all day?"
"Well, maids who become mistresses to their masters don't even get salaries or benefits as good as yours."
"Uh..."
Xili had actually wrestled with this thought before.
Originally, she figured that since the young master liked looking at that part of her, he could look all he wanted—it wasn't as if she'd lose a piece of meat. But later, it turned into: Young Master, you don't have to just look...
"Sometimes, with certain things, you have to take the initiative yourself. Otherwise, you'll regret it."
"Mom, you can hardly imagine what kind of person the young master is. I'm already content just being his maid forever. As for anything else, I don't want to think about it, nor am I willing to. To think even a little more would be a desecration of the young master."
"Then what if one day your young master gets drunk and crawls into your bed? What would you do?"
"Mom, you know I've always been a heavy sleeper."
After washing the dishes, Xili helped her mother prepare dinner for the entire family—or rather, the entire extended family here.
Her mother cooked while Xili only assisted. It wasn't that Xili was unwilling to cook, but rather that her current cooking habits were no longer suited for the meals at home.
At dinner, everyone sat around a round table. The main dish was a bowl of authentic Wien bean paste, and the staple was flatbread. Both uncles worked as porters at a flour mill and could purchase discounted flour.
During the meal, because Xili had returned, the two uncles and the aunt's husband jointly promised that in another month, Xili wouldn't need to help pay the rent here; they would be capable of paying their own rent.
The primary cause plaguing the lives of the lower classes was poverty. If broken down further, the next layer was their fragile resilience against risks. A single unexpected mishap—falling ill, or an abrupt layoff—even a month-long gap in wages could plunge the entire household into bankruptcy.
Their pockets rarely held next month's rent or food money, because keeping up with current life already took every ounce of their strength.
Once rent couldn't be paid and they were evicted, compounded by a food shortage, the family would enter a cycle of collapse. Finding a temporary job wasn't easy, and in the end, driven to desperation, the family members would head toward grim fates.
It wasn't that they chose to jump off the cliff; rather, they had been clinging to the precipice with both hands all along, and could simply hold on no longer.
Xili's parents comforted them, telling them not to rush, since they were family after all, yet dared not urge them too strongly for fear they might change their minds.
After dinner, Xili joined her mother, aunts, and relatives folding cardboard. These were odd jobs taken from factories. The men had to go out to labor, while the women stayed home minding children and doing piecework to supplement the household income.
The main light in the room wasn't turned on, only a small lamp. After folding for a while, Xili felt her eyes grow sore, yet she didn't get up to switch on the main light. She knew pressing that switch would invite lectures about "wastefulness" from her elders; if they got worked up, they might even make her reminisce about the bitter past to appreciate the present.
After folding a while longer, Xili decided to stop. She had to return to the funeral parlor tomorrow. With the young master back home, she needed to be in top condition for her work.
"I brought back a soup dish created by the young master. I'll cook some for you to eat."
"Not for us. Give it to your younger brothers," her mother said.
"Everyone have a taste."
Xili went to boil the wontons, scooping out several bowls for her cousins, then carried a bowl into her brother's room. Her brother's room was very small, partitioned off, containing both his bed and his desk.
A steaming bowl of wontons was placed before the youth. Seeing it, a bright smile spread across his face.
"Sis, let's eat together."
"You eat. I often have this for breakfast at the young master's. For this bowl, I specifically added lard and extra scallions and coriander just like the young master prefers. Hurry and try it."
"Mmm, smells so good!"
While her brother ate, Xili noticed a book on his desk. Picking it up, she asked with curiosity, "Brother, are you still reading Mr. Luther's publications?"
"Yeah, a classmate passed it to me. Sis, in the future, I want to be a great man like Mr. Luther."
"You should focus on your studies first and strive to get into a good school. I believe a truly great man must be able to take good care of his parents first."
"Yes, Sister is right. I understand."
"Aaaagh—!"
A bloodcurdling scream shattered the stillness of the night.
Xili immediately pushed open the window and looked outside. In front of the grey-white building, she saw a crowd wearing white robes and holding torches. From the distance, more torches were converging toward the spot.
Amid the flickering flames, the pointed hoods and masks they wore seemed like messengers of the Grim Reaper, fading in and out of the shadows.
Many residents inside the grey-white building leaned out to look.
"Purple pigs go to hell!"
"Purple pigs go to hell!"
"It's them again," her brother said. "Sis, quite a few people in our school joined that organization too. They usually love pointing at my nose and calling me a purple pig."
Rallies like this were not unprecedented; they had happened several times before. They would organize groups to throw stones and yell insults at the residents here.
Calling the police usually came to nothing.
If calls were made too often, the police would instead come over to investigate whether the immigrants in this building were legal.
It could be said that both the hecklers and the targets had grown somewhat accustomed to it.
But this time was clearly different.
What was that scream just now?
A leader held a megaphone and began shouting:
"This is Wien! This is God's blessed land, the light of Maclay civilization, the glorious heart of the Empire!
"And you are barbarians spurned by God! No, you aren't human at all, just a pack of monkeys with purple hair!
"I truly find it hard to imagine how anyone could have this hair color! You are the Creator's defective products, the root of all filth!
"You are a horde of swine who polluted our land, snatched our food, stole our jobs, and encroached upon our homes! You deserve to go to hell!"
As more Holy Fire Believers gathered, a bonfire was ignited. Immediately after, a horrifying scene unfolded: the Holy Fire Believers tossed seven or eight men and women whose hands and feet were bound with wire into the bonfire! Agonized screams rang out once again.
Terrified cries instantly erupted within the grey-white tenements. Everyone realized that tonight would be completely different from before.
"Come! Let the sacred flame burn away all this filth!
"Come! Let the sacred flame witness your courage and purity!
"Go and fight these swine! Send them to where they belong—the garbage dump, the boiler room, the swamp!
"Charge!
"Pure-blooded Maclay holy warriors, go defend this home that belongs to us, for yourselves and for your descendants!"
"Ooooh—!"
"Aaaaah—!"
All the figures clad in white robes and tall hoods screeched, pulling out weapons they had prepared in advance—some had knives, some axes, while others carried shotguns or revolvers. They charged into the grey-white building in waves.
In the corridors, whenever they saw someone with purple hair, they dragged them out to throw into the bonfire.
Anyone who dared resist was hacked to death or shot on the spot.
Next, they began kicking down doors. The flimsy, brittle wooden doors of the tenement could offer no defense at this moment; usually kicked open in a single blow, the men were hacked to death, while the women were violated.
The laughter of the white-robed mob mingled with shrieks and weeping, creating a true living hell.
Once the atrocities completely unfolded, their organization immediately disintegrated; everything deteriorated into an outlet for bestial savagery.
Because of this, the residents living on higher floors began choosing to flee, or grabbed sticks, clothes-drying poles, and similar objects at hand, preparing to resist. Yet before the white-robed mob, such resistance was utterly pale.
Still, however pale it was, it did stall the slaughter's advance. Furthermore, many white-robed men lingered on each floor to commit their atrocities, which to some extent reduced the number charging higher up, buying more time for residents on the upper floors to escape.
Xili's father, uncles, and her aunt's husband had taken up clubs and, together with the other men on this floor, barricaded the stairwell.
"Xili! Xili, run! Quick, run! Take your brothers and run!"
Her mother shoved Xili's back, urging her to hurry down using the rope made of tied-together bedsheets.
"Mom, you all come down quickly too!"
Xili didn't linger. Once her younger brothers went down first, she gripped the bedsheet rope and began descending.
After her cousins and younger brothers landed safely, Xili also touched down. She looked up anxiously, hoping her mother and the others could make it down as well.
Right at that moment, two white-robed men ran over.
"Aha, I thought we were late and wouldn't catch anything. Now look, we got here just in time!"
"I like this chick! Oho, just looking at her ass gets me hard."
"I'll go first when the time comes, you're second."
"Fuck, why you?"
"Because I'm faster than you!"
"You... fine."
"Run, quickly!" Xili picked up a tree branch from the ground, shouting for her brothers to flee while facing the two white-robed men alone. She was terrified, but she hadn't completely panicked; when it came to courage, it had been honed in her employer's home, after all.
"How about this? Spend a night with the two of us, and we'll let you go. What do you say?"
"I just love your ass. As long as you satisfy me and make me feel good, we'll let you go. After all, the two of us aren't like them—we're much more merciful and kind."
The words had barely left his mouth when two slender fingers appeared beside the two men's faces. A bone-chilling cold instantly swept through their entire bodies.
They instinctively tried to open their mouths and shout, only to find they couldn't make a sound. Moreover, an invisible force hoisted their bodies up, lifting their feet off the ground.
A handsome face slowly materialized between the two of them.
With a smile, he said:
"I hear that you want to snatch my young master's... ass?"
Chapter 389