Chu Linyuan's lips curled into a dangerous arc: "You're afraid now?" He slowly and deliberately took a cheongsam out of the velvet box, "Too late."

Liu Ruyan stared at the cheongsam embroidered with gold thread, her back suddenly feeling cold—the cut was clearly made according to the style of the Republic of China concubines in the museum!

"A woman's etiquette lesson..." The man's icy fingertips traced her collarbone, "The first lesson." The red candle that the housekeeper handed over in a timely manner cast dancing shadows on the dining table.

A woman's etiquette? What is that? And what was that candle that the housekeeper just brought for? It couldn't be a romantic candlelit dinner while drinking soup at night, could it!?

Liu Ruyan's pupils shook. He wouldn't want her to...?

"Wearing a vase on your head." Chu Linyuan's light words struck her dumb. What era is this! There are still people playing those domestic-drama power-struggle games?!

"How about..." She retreated with a dry laugh, "How about we just go straight to foot-binding?"

Chu Linyuan suddenly chuckled, and the candle "popped" as its wick burst: "Baby, you're so smart..."

The pearls gleamed with an eerie luster in the candlelight, and Liu Ruyan suddenly realized—what kind of retro punishment is this? It's simply a perverted Renaissance!

Liu Ruyan felt her pupils shrink; this retaliation came unexpectedly.

She stared at the cheongsam embroidered with gold thread, her whole body stiffening—what kind of etiquette training is this? It's clearly just another way to torment her!

"Wearing a vase on my head?" Her voice changed its tone, "Chu Linyuan, did you transmigrate from some ancient domineering CEO novel?! What era is this? You're still doing this?! Why not just add foot-binding and tiny shoes?"

Chu Linyuan slowly smoothed out the wrinkles on the cheongsam, a wicked smile on his lips: "What's wrong? Can't my Xue'er even accept this little challenge?" He flicked his fingertip, and the cheongsam's frog fasteners made a crisp clinking sound, "Or could it be... you're afraid?"

Afraid? Liu Ruyan itched with anger. How could she not be afraid? Mr. Chu's one word makes her tremble three times, but what made her scalp tingle even more was that vase...?

Holy crap?!

"These candles... paired with a vase on my head?! What kind of modern retro palace drama is this?!" Her eyes widened, and her voice rose an octave.

Chu Linyuan chuckled, his slender fingers stroking the edge of the candlestick: "Don't worry, it's just to set the mood." He paused, his eyes meaningful, "After all, if the lights are too bright... some 'etiquette' details won't be seen clearly."

Liu Ruyan: "..."

It's over, this pervert not only hasn't restrained himself, but has evolved into the ultimate form! Is it too late for her to run now?!

"If you perform well..." Chu Linyuan shook the latest model of a certain brand's foldable screen phone, "Not only will I reward you with this..." He swiped open the chat interface named 【The Self-Cultivation of Married Men】, "I'll also pull you into the core group."

There's even a core group?!

Liu Ruyan stared at the record of perverted comments in the group, such as [What position does Mr. Chu want today?], her mouth twitching—how was this a chat group? It was clearly a repository of criminal evidence with excessive pervert concentration!

But that phone with the metallic sheen... she swallowed. In her previous life, she hadn't craved getting the latest model phone release this much.

"So... so just holding up a vase, right?" She stood up with her neck stiff, looking exactly like a martyr about to bravely meet her end, "Let's agree now! If it takes longer than half an hour, the price increases!"

As she spoke, she tremblingly held up a five-character gesture, which actually meant five hundred, but who knew if Chu Linyuan, this domineering CEO, would interpret it as five major targets?!

Chu Linyuan suddenly chuckled low, his fingertip lifting her chin: "My Little Xue'er..." The other hand, as if by magic, produced a pearl waist chain, "I forgot to mention..." The ice-cold pearls touched her waist dimple, "You need to practice wearing this as well."

Liu Ruyan's legs instantly went weak. It was over; she had fallen into Pang Tong's chained fleet maneuver!

Liu Ruyan's pupils instantly shook violently.

—Did she want the phone? Or did she want her dignity?

This epic dilemma made her struggle for a full three seconds.

"Hold... hold for how long?" she heard her own weak voice, the final tone even carrying a hint of expectant upward inflection.

Chu Linyuan's lips curved into a triumphant arc, his fingertips lightly tapping the celadon vase: "Half an hour, and the vase doesn't fall..." He shook the brand-new phone in front of her: "Not only will I give you a phone, but I'll also let you personally @ Loser Deng in the group and curse him with 'Old Deng quickly drop gold coins'."

Liu Ruyan: "!!!"

This temptation was too great! Not only could she get a communication device, but she could also publicly execute the main culprit who had misled Chu Linyuan?!

"Fine! I'll hold it up!" She snatched the qipao and rushed toward the dressing room as if facing death, only to trip on a silk ribbon and fall flat on her face, "But you are absolutely not allowed to peek!"

Chu Linyuan slowly played with the riding crop: "Do you need my help tying the frog buttons? The back straps of that qipao..."

"No need!!" Liu Ruyan slammed the door shut with a "bang," then poked her head out three seconds later, "Um... this outfit doesn't have any other mechanisms, right?"

The response she received was Chu Linyuan suddenly playing a group voice message on full volume—

[Old Man Next Door]: "Brother Chu, we just researched a new move. When the woman is holding the vase, you should light agarwood nearby; this is psychological warfare..."

Liu Ruyan: "..."

Grass! (A type of plant) She was determined to join this damned group! The first thing she would do after getting the phone was to delete all those 'Wife Training Manuals' and other strange items from the group files!!

She didn't know if she was starting to get used to being a woman, but Liu Ruyan felt that she was now getting the hang of wearing women's clothes.

As Liu Ruyan skillfully fastened the frog buttons on the side of her cheongsam, she suddenly realized a terrible fact—she could actually distinguish between the front and back with her eyes closed. Once upon a time, it took her half an hour just to fight with the back clasp to put on a bra...

"Look up."

Chu Linyuan's command interrupted her thoughts. The man's hawk-like gaze scanned her body inch by inch, finally settling on her exposed neck. She was too familiar with that look—like an antique dealer appraising a newly unearthed piece of porcelain, calculating what price to mark it.

"Turn around."

She mechanically turned, the silk fabric rubbing against the skin of her thighs, making a soft rustling sound. In the dressing mirror, the figure with pearl hairpin was so unfamiliar that it startled her—since when had every move of this body become so... feminine?

The moment the vase was handed to her, Liu Ruyan suddenly wanted to laugh. How ironic, what she was worried about now was not whether she could hold up the vase, but... whether the slit of her cheongsam would reveal too much.