Nancy, however, shot her an angry look and scolded her in a hushed tone, "Little Young Master is calling you! Why don't you hurry upstairs?!"
"Calling me?"
Flora raised her head, puzzled, and looked in Robin's direction. He was indeed calling her. She stood up from the floor and quickly ascended the stairs, standing one step below Robin. She bent slightly at the waist, suppressing a smile, and said, "What can I do for you, Little Young Master?"
"Come play with me!" Robin ordered and then turned to walk toward the bedroom.
"Yes, Little Young Master!" Flora followed closely. With one hand gently touching her stinging cheek, she resented how forcefully the woman had struck her. She had only just regained some strength, and now she had to endure another blow.
Robin opened the bedroom door and walked in. After rummaging through a few drawers, he pulled out a small toy ambulance. Opening it, he found a tube of ointment and handed it to Flora, saying, "Here, use this to apply on your face. It won't hurt anymore."
Flora, tears of gratitude in her eyes, took the ointment from him. But when she looked at it, her face fell as she whispered, "This is for feet." The words were written so clearly; couldn't he see it?
Robin hadn't failed to notice that, but he didn't understand German at all. He chuckled and said, "Your face is so swollen, uglier than your feet, so it doesn't matter what you use."
Annoyed and resentful! Flora gritted her teeth and turned to leave.
"Hey! You can't leave! Stay here and play with that!" Robin raised a finger and pointed to the large jigsaw puzzle in the middle of the bedroom. He also pushed the medicine box he was holding into Flora's arms, indicating that she should find the ointment herself to apply on her face.
Flora hugged the medicine box and followed his finger to look at the chaotic pile of puzzle pieces in the center of the bedroom. No wonder he couldn't find the right pieces. Grateful for him rescuing her from Nancy, she kindly suggested, "Puzzles have rules; let me show you how to play."
Robin responded, "Then help me put it together. If my second brother comes back on Saturday and finds that I've messed up his things, he'll scold me."
Second brother? Was that Oliver Smith, the man who looked exactly like Maxwell?
Flora had an idea and said, "Okay, but in return, you have to take me to the backyard to play, or we can do the puzzle out there."
Robin Smith is now her savior, with him, she can walk around the entire mansion without any worries.
Robin pointed at her with his finger, laughing heartily, "Flora, you silly girl! Do you think you can escape over the plum tree? I'm just messing with you!"
"You!" Flora was once again infuriated by Robin's words. She knew he wasn't that easy to deal with. Through gritted teeth, she said, "I don't care if your second brother skins you alive; I won't help you with the puzzle!"
"Dare not help me?! I'll tell my big brother you're bullying me!" threatened Robin.
"I...I'll help, okay?" Flora begrudgingly knelt on the floor, carefully putting the puzzle pieces into a nearby box. Then she turned and walked towards the bedroom door.
"Where are you going?" Robin followed her.
"Where do you think I'm going?" Flora replied sarcastically.
Robin waved goodbye as she left, calling out loudly, "Flora, you can't escape; I can't bear to part with you!"
As Flora walked away, his words continued to haunt her. She desperately wanted to escape from this mansion, but she had no opportunities. She had no idea how long Maxwell intended to torment her, and even if she were set free, could she ever return to the White Family or be by Henry's side again?
The night was dark, and Flora finally had some respite from Nancy's exploitation. She stood in front of the bedroom that had filled her with fear. She would rather continue working than stay inside.
Despite having lived in these freezing conditions for nearly half a month, she still felt miserable. With hesitation, she entered the room. The first thing that caught her eye was the half-finished puzzle in the center of the bedroom, with only four days left to complete it. While it might sound like a long time, in reality, she had very little time to work on it. Nancy kept her under such pressure that she hardly had a chance to catch her breath.
Gently taking a deep breath, Flora tightened her clothing and knelt on the floor to start working on this seemingly simple but quite challenging task. She had initially thought it was just a regular jigsaw puzzle, but as time passed, she found it increasingly difficult to complete.
Only when she was about to collapse from exhaustion did Flora manage to get up from the floor. At the very moment she stood up, the door to the bedroom was abruptly pushed open. Who else but Nancy would barge into the room so crudely? Even Maxwell wouldn't enter in such a manner.
Maxwell! Every one of his actions was charming yet cruel, just like those enticing chestnuts in full bloom.
Flora stood in the center of the bedroom, looking at Nancy, who had a clearly jealousy expression on her face. Jealousy? Flora couldn't fathom the source of her feelings; shouldn't she be feeling sympathy for her?
"Clean yourself up and go to Big Young Master's bedroom immediately!" Nancy's voice was imposing, leaving Flora frozen in place, overwhelmed by a wave of humiliation.
Maxwell Smith! That devilish man had made such a request of her, treating her like a call girl?!