Don’t You Dare Tell Your Papa!
Layla was taken aback for a moment and did not answer. Is Elise trying to get on my good side?
“Huh? What are you doing?” Quentin was anxious. “We have our own hands and feet, plus there are
servants in the house too. How can we let you do this kind of thing? That basin must be heavy. Put it
down quickly! Don’t hurt your hands!”
While speaking, he walked over and helped Elise put the basin on the floor.
Elise didn’t know if she should laugh or cry at his reaction. “You’re overexaggerating if you think I can’t
even lift a basin. You’re really treating me like a princess.”
“You’re more precious than a princess,” Quentin said angrily.
Layla didn’t want to put Elise on the spot at first, but when she saw them being so close, her expression
immediately darkened. She deliberately walked loudly in her slippers and sat down on the sofa, saying in
a prideful voice, “Then I’ll have to trouble you.”
“You old woman, are you out of your mind?” Quentin went over to pull her. “We’re going to sleep already.
Why are you soaking your feet? Get up and go to bed quickly.”
Layla shook him away and settled down again, replying impatiently, “A woman’s business has nothing to
do with you. Besides, Elise wanted to do this. If I don’t appreciate her efforts, I’d be a horrible person!
Stop making trouble and trying to drive a wedge between us!”
“What kind of logic is that…” Quentin finally understood how unreasonable women could be.
Of course, it was impossible to live to this age without experiencing these things. However, he didn’t
need to pay attention to those women in the past, but now one of them was his wife and the other was
his goddaughter. He was caught in between a rock and a hard place, and it made his head hurt.
“It’s fine, Papa. Mama is right; there are bound to be some little secrets between women. You should go
to the bedroom and rest,” Elise persuaded him.
When she said that, Quentin couldn’t really stay around anymore. “All right, then. Call me if you need
anything.”
After a long and thoughtful reminder, Quentin stepped back into the bedroom.
Seeing his figure disappear behind the door, Elise took out the basin again and walked to Layla, where
she squatted down and put Layla’s feet in the warm water for her.
As Layla looked down from above, watching Elise calmly cup some water in her hand and pour it on her
ankle before rubbing it patiently and gently, she felt her cold heart gradually soften.
Still, she was stubborn and asked vindictively, “Were you this respectful to your papa before?”
“Not particularly,” Elise said nonchalantly. “I don’t have to do that for Papa. You saw it earlier too. He
wouldn’t let me wash his feet.”
“That means that you’re deliberately trying to butter me up.” Layla’s expression turned cold. “Anyway,
since there are only the two of us here, and Quentin can’t hear me, I’ll just give it to you straight. I don’t
like you, and I don’t like you approaching my husband’s daughter even more.”
“All right, I understand. I’ll try hard not to disturb Papa and Joey in the future,” Elise said pleasantly.
Her easygoingness made Layla look narrow-minded instead, and she suddenly couldn’t find the words to
answer.
A long pause later, she finally managed to squeeze out a sentence. “That’s what you say, but in reality,
you’re always making Quentin and Joey happy, and they can’t stop thinking about you.”
“If that’s the case, I have to thank you for telling me this.” Elise suddenly smiled. “I was abandoned by my
parents when I was very young. My grandparents found me later and raised me, but I rarely had the
experience of getting along with my parents and sisters. Papa is good to me and treats me as his own
daughter, and Joey also likes me as if I were a part of her family. I’m truly grateful for all these, and I
never thought about asking for more.”
“Therefore, Mama, as long as your family is doing well, I can get out of your lives and stop disturbing
you. If, and only if, you need me one day, you have to bring Papa and Joey to my place. Can you
promise me that?”
Layla didn’t expect that Elise had such a past. As a mother, she really couldn’t help but feel distressed
that a girl who was around the same age as her daughter had lived such a bitter life.
However, she still acted tough. Even if her concern and worry were already showing on her face, she
refused to take the initiative to give in.
As though they had been talking about someone else, Elise easily diverted the topic. “I had specially
prepared this bath water. It has detoxification and moisturizing effects, and it can improve blood
circulation as well. When I have time later, I can give you an acupuncture massage as well. I believe it
won’t be long before you’re able to lose weight without going on a diet.”
“Really?” Layla’s eyes lit up. A woman’s figure was her lifelong pursuit, and she couldn’t be bothered
about keeping up her facade anymore at this moment.
“Of course.” Elise raised her head and smiled. “The other day, you said you wanted to lose weight.
Besides, when I saw that your temper was a little uncontrollable, I knew that there was a problem with
your body. Today, I finally got the prescription right, so I wanted to give you a soak to try out the effects.”
“No wonder. I was just wondering why I felt so comfortable just now, so it turned out to be a medicinal
bath…” Layla thought for a while, and then asked, “Then, about my acne…”
“You can get rid of that too. I’ve already prepared the prescription. As long as you drink it on time, it’ll be
fine. I was worried that you would think it’s too bitter, and I didn’t know how to tell you,” Elise said.
“Of course not. I managed to bring up my daughter alone. What else would I be afraid of? Just have the
servants prepare it and I’ll drink it!” Layla said readily.
“All right, I’ll ask them to prepare it tomorrow.” Elise wiped Layla’s feet dry for her, and then wiped her
own hands clean. “Well, I won’t disturb you and Papa anymore. I’ll go out first and come back tomorrow.”
Saying that, she carried the basin and headed out.
Layla hurriedly chased after her and grabbed her, warning in a low voice, “Don’t tell your papa about
this!” She had been overweight for more than ten years, and she really wanted to return to her previous
figure so that she could be more confident in front of Quentin.
Amused, Elise said in a low voice, “I won’t. This is a secret between us.”
“All right.” Layla then let go of her hand and pursed her lips in satisfaction. “You can go now.”
…
In the dim chamber, Charlene was tied to a stone stool. There was a window on the ceiling where the
moon and the night sky were visible.
However, all she could see was the bucket hanging above her head, dripping water at a uniform speed.
Every drop of water hit her brow accurately.
Charlene was about to break down. Her eyes were hollow, her mouth ajar. She couldn’t even remember
when was the last time she had slept.
Creak—
The door of the chamber opened, and Alexander walked in. When he smelled the stench of decay inside,
he subconsciously raised his hand to cover his nose.
Cameron greeted him and reported respectfully, “The water dripping punishment is already on the tenth
day, but she hasn’t given in yet. Do you want to try another way?”
Alexander waved his hand, motioning for him to stand down. He then raised his feet and walked to the
stone stool, looking at Charlene condescendingly. “You still don’t remember what happened back then,
do you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about…” Charlene’s cheeks trembled and her teeth clattered, making a
faint chattering sound.
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