21

At one in the morning on Thursday, in the piano room of the An family, Xia Yu sat up straight, his fingers dancing across the keys as he played The Pope's Dancing Maiden.

The name of this piece comes from a medieval folk tale. In history, the pope who betrayed the Dark Moon Church and usurped national power had a most valued subordinate, a knight who wore armor and wielded a double-handed sword. No one had ever seen the knight's face, and it was rumored that she never took off her helmet. She led her troops to cut through thorns for the pope, waging war in all directions.

Because of her lightweight armor, her agile figure, and the pope's reliance on her, she was hailed as the Pope's Dancing Maiden. According to the rumors, she was originally a descendant of the former royal family, captured by the pope, brutally trained, and transformed from an elegant noble into a bloody assassin.

This piece depicts the process from comfort to turmoil to madness. It was composed during a chaotic period when this world had not yet been unified, and it is the composer from District 9's protest against the conscription of minors by the military. The first part of the piece has a relaxed rhythm, portraying the noble life of the dancing maiden. The second part sees the rhythm begin to change, reflecting the turbulent events of the rebellion. By the third part, the pace is nearly frantic, expressing the madness and distortion of the dancing maiden, and this part tests the dexterity of the performer.

After playing the final note, Xia Yu's hand quivered slightly. "You've learned this piece," An Siyao said happily, "What do you want to learn next? The Tale of the Two Princes? Or the Praise of the Sun?"

"No, let's take a break," Xia Yu said, not wanting to learn a new piece for the time being.

He played The Pope's Dancing Maiden again, then paused the five-fold experience card timer and recited quietly, "Skill Panel." His music skill was now at lv3, and his dexterity had become lv2. At this level, could he go apply for a position as a piano teacher?

So far, he had learned Gouda Etudes, Aimless Saintess, Los Rick's Tower, Rosalia's Bedside, and just now, The Pope's Dancing Maiden. He didn't know many pieces, but it was enough to play at a cafe.

With a satisfied smile, Xia Yu stood up and left the piano room. There was an hour left until the end of the game, so he decided to rest in the girl's room. His early departure caught the maid waiting outside the piano room by surprise. It took her a while to react and greet Xia Yu.

She was somewhat flustered by her own impoliteness, and she became even more panicked when she saw Xia Yu staring at her. A few days ago, Xia Yu had disciplined the head maid so thoroughly that the maids were now quite in fear of him.

"What did you just do?" Xiayu asked.

Hearing this question, the maid's heart skipped a beat.

Was it because she was caught secretly playing with her phone just now?

Xiayu added, "I mean, what kind of work did you just do?"

"I just cleaned the storage room." Seeing that Xiayu wasn't talking about playing with her phone, the maid became even more nervous than before – the unknown was more frightening than the known.

"I see, that explains it."

As the maid grew more puzzled, Xiayu reached out his hand towards her. Thinking of the scenes in TV dramas where maids were slapped by evil mistresses, the maid closed her eyes.

However, Xiayu's hand didn't land on her cheek, but on her head.

From the maid's hair, Xiayu pulled out a small grey fluff ball.

He took the maid's palm and placed the fluff ball in it.

"Wear a hat when you clean next time." After saying this, Xiayu continued to walk forward.

The maid stood there for a moment, put the fluff ball in her pocket, and followed Xiayu. Her heart was no longer filled with fear.

After escorting Xiayu to his room and making sure he no longer needed her, the maid took out her phone and sent a message to the group chat.

Miss touched my head today!

There were quite a few maids who practiced cultivation, and soon someone replied to her.

What happened?

Are you sure she touched your head and not hit it with something?

No, I got some dust on my head while cleaning the storage room tonight, and Miss helped me take it off. Thinking back to the scene just now, the maid smiled.

Really?

Yes, really, I even smelled her scent, it was amazing! Her hands were so beautiful too! The maid's face flushed.

Emmmm, are you sure it's not because of too much pressure that you've gone mad?

You're the one who's mad. Don't you guys feel that Miss is super handsome at night recently?

The maids in the group chat fell into deep thought.

That seems to be true.

The maids in the group started a heated discussion.

They talked for a while, and the topic, as usual, began to digress.

I heard that the wife's birthday is coming up soon.

What does that have to do with us? The banquet won't be held here anyway.

No, I mean won't Miss go too?

...

In the bedroom, unaware of the immense impact he had just had on the maid, Xiayu stood on the balcony, looking at the night view outside while enjoying the White Jade Balls that were just delivered.

It's a pity that you can't take these home; otherwise, I would have shared some with Yuxue.

Xiayu thought about the price he had found earlier, one thousand per plate, and sighed.

The reason why these balls taste so good is not due to any novelty in the recipe, but because of the careful selection of ingredients.

One of the ingredients required in it is a kind of octopus meat that Xia Yu has never heard of. This kind of octopus is only produced on a small island in the whole world.

"Will you not come tomorrow?" An Siyao asked.

"I said I would give you a day off every two days," Xia Yu replied.

An Siyao's body is in a state of exhaustion, which has a significant impact on her spirit.

"What song do you plan to learn the day after tomorrow? There are some songs that I don't know how to play, so if you want to learn them, I can ask Aunt Dong to find a pianist," An Siyao continued to ask.

"No need, I don't want to learn any songs for now," Xia Yu decided to take a break. He had played the piano for so many days, and each time for a full eight hours. He was already a bit tired.

Upon hearing Xia Yu's words, An Siyao panicked a little. Ever since Xia Yu had entered her body, she was almost always learning piano. Now that she suddenly didn't want to continue, what had changed?

"Will you really come the day after tomorrow?"

"Don't worry, I won't let you down," Xia Yu said.

"Hmm."

Ending the topic, Xia Yu chatted about the young girl's life, learning about many interesting stories from high society.

At two in the morning, Xia Yu returned to his own body.

As he sat up, a line of subtitles floated in front of him.

[Upon reaching lv3 in your first skill, you have received a reward.]

[Body Retrieval 1/1: Select body functions based on conditions.]

Unexpectedly, Xia Yu was pleasantly surprised. Body retrieval is a practical function.

Moreover, it is even more important to know that rewards will be given upon satisfying certain conditions.

If there's a reward for reaching lv3 in the first skill, there'll likely be one for reaching lv4 as well.

Today, he couldn't enter An Siyao's body, and was still torn between entering the black cat or finding someone else.

He has already acquired the most crucial agility bonus from the black cat. It's not very meaningful to enter the black cat's body, but his choices are limited if left to pick freely.

Now he doesn't need to worry. With body retrieval, he can find a suitable body.