DLMSWSHH Chapter 8

Posted by , ? Views, Released on May 6, 2026

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TL: Hua

Chapter 8: Flowerbed

Without Jack’s disturbance, Zhong Ming slept soundly for the night, wrapped in two thick quilts.

The next morning, as the bell rang, Zhong Ming climbed out of bed to dress and wash; throughout the process, Jack was nowhere to be seen. Out of sight, out of mind. Zhong Ming was in a very good mood today.

Just as he was standing before the washstand, a tall, thin figure suddenly appeared by his side.

Through the mirror, Zhong Ming saw the gaunt face of an Asian youth. He wasn’t particularly handsome, nor was he ugly, but his complexion had a sickly sallow tint as if from chronic malnutrition. He pulled the corners of his mouth into a forced smile.

“Good morning.”

The man’s breath was somewhat weak, and his tall frame was hunched. Looking at Zhong Ming, he said, “It seems we haven’t talked yet… My name is Sun Qian.”

Zhong Ming nodded and spat out his mouthwash. “Zhong Ming.”

Seeing that his attitude was acceptable, the man named Sun Qian relaxed slightly and spoke tentatively: “Yesterday… do you, do you know Matthew?”

He was quite blunt; people here didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to the point. But then again, Zhong Ming realized he had previously thought too highly of the game. If NPCs could really die as Jack said, then these servants were living with their heads tied to their belts; they likely had no time for social pleasantries.

Thinking this, Zhong Ming calmly lowered his eyes. “We just know each other… Matthew is a very good person; he helped me a lot.”

Upon hearing this, Sun Qian’s expression froze. Just know each other? They all knew Matthew, so why hadn’t they seen him help anyone else? Looking at Zhong Ming’s expressionless face and perpetually lowered gaze, he somehow caught a familiar whiff of a “green tea[mfn]”Green tea” is a slang term for a person who appears innocent, pure, and kind on the surface but is actually manipulative, calculating, and two-faced underneath.[/mfn]” aura.

“I see.” He adjusted his expression and said with a smile, “Since you know ‘Matthew,’ you truly don’t need to pay mind to people like us—”

His words were dripping with bitterness. Zhong Ming raised his eyelids and glanced at him: “By ‘us,’ do you mean you and Jack?”

He put on a puzzled expression: “Don’t tell me you… are also his…”

Sun Qian caught the implication, and his face instantly turned a mottled blue and white. He gritted his teeth. “No.” Then, as if feeling his reaction was too extreme, he lowered his head to hide his expression: “I suppose I’m his lackey.”

Zhong Ming looked at him and nodded: “Oh, I see.”

Seeing this reaction, Sun Qian suddenly looked up and grabbed Zhong Ming’s shoulders, his cheeks flushed with an abnormal red: “I’m really not that kind of person! I, I’m normal—”

Zhong Ming’s eyes widened in surprise, looking at the humiliated and angry Sun Qian with confusion. He didn’t understand why the man was reacting so strongly to this: “I get it… let go of me.”

Sun Qian dazed for a moment, appearing to realize what he was doing, and abruptly released his grip.

“…I’m heading out first.” Zhong Ming felt that Sun Qian might have something wrong with his head and decided it was better to keep his distance. After a glance at him, Zhong Ming sidestepped through the gap and squeezed past.

As Zhong Ming walked by, Sun Qian’s right hand hanging at his side twitched. Only after Zhong Ming had stepped out the door did Sun Qian shudder as if waking from a dream and start to chase after him.

To his surprise, as soon as he stepped out, he saw Matthew standing at the end of the corridor.

The young man’s blonde hair was meticulously combed back, revealing his handsome features; standing there, he looked entirely out of place in the cold, damp corridor. Sun Qian froze in his tracks, watching helplessly as Matthew’s gaze landed on Zhong Ming and beckoned him.

“Come here.”

Zhong Ming obediently walked to his side. Matthew took the cigarette from his lips, dropped it on the floor, crushed it with his foot, and looked down to ask, “Did you sleep well last night?”

Sun Qian watched as Zhong Ming nodded, a sliver of his fair nape showing beneath his collar. Matthew gave a low chuckle, placed a hand on his shoulder, and naturally led him away as they turned around.

Sun Qian just stood there, watching them head upstairs.

Zhong Ming hadn’t eaten with them for the past few days; he had known for a long time that Zhong Ming was different from them.

Being favored by that group of monsters isn’t necessarily a good thing; a flash of mockery crossed Sun Qian’s face as he turned to leave.

—

Today, Zhong Ming finally didn’t have to scrub the steps. Madam Mary, disgusted by his low efficiency, had assigned another manservant to the task. As for him, he was sent to water the garden in the backyard.

This was the first time since his rebirth that Zhong Ming had stepped out of the mansion. Holding an iron watering can in his right hand, he looked up at the towering building behind him, dumbfounded.

He had been shocked enough by the grand hall inside, but he hadn’t realized that was just the tip of the iceberg. No, this wasn’t a mansion; it was a palace.

Zhong Ming looked at the stone castle soaring into the clouds. The entire structure was a dark blue-black, consisting of a main building and several tall, pointed towers. It stood amidst a dense, dark green forest, so majestic and magnificent that Zhong Ming couldn’t even see the whole thing from his vantage point.

…This game’s modeling is too realistic, Zhong Ming marveled. If someone told him this was a castle that existed in reality, he would believe them.

Thinking this, he turned back to look at the massive flowerbed before him that seemed to have no end, feeling for a moment as if he had stepped into a fairyland.

The flowerbed was filled with red roses, each presenting a delicate, deep crimson, swaying gently in the breeze. In the distance, at the end of the flower field, he could see the blurred shadow of the forest edge. The cold green and vibrant red formed a sharp contrast, beautiful to the point of unreality, like a scene from a classical oil painting.

Enchanted by the scenery, Zhong Ming’s expression became somewhat dazed.

Whoever planted these flowers must have been someone who loved life.

Usually, the one who loved flowers was the mistress of the house. Zhong Ming instinctively thought of the Spider Duchess, paused, and the romantic atmosphere in his heart instantly vanished… This probably wasn’t planted by that “mistress.”

Zhong Ming exhaled, cleared his mind, and lifted the water-filled iron can with both hands. He tilted it down, watching the water sprinkle onto the bright red petals and run down the stems.

As he watered the flowers, Zhong Ming let his mind drift, thinking of various random things.

He had already met two of the masters of this manor, the young master and the spider duchess. So who was the head of the estate? Zhong Ming instinctively thought of the person in the portrait whose face was obscured by shadows behind the boy. That was likely the “Duke” Madam Mary mentioned.

Whoever that was, his wife being a spider was certainly bizarre.

Zhong Ming was amused by his own thoughts, and a slight smile touched his lips. Looking at the roses before him, which appeared even more beautiful with the water droplets, his mood was rarely pleasant. He crouched down, pulled a rose toward him, and lowered his head to catch its scent.

Just then, he suddenly heard a small rustling sound.

Zhong Ming turned his head and saw a long, slender spider leg extending from a second-story window, waving at him as if in greeting.

“Mistress.”

Zhong Ming’s eyes widened in slight surprise. The giant spider’s body was mostly hidden in the darkness, but her eyes looked toward him as she spoke in a faint, feminine voice: “Xiao Zhong, come here.”

Zhong Ming hesitated, put down the watering can, and obediently walked over. He looked up at the giant spider crawling by the window. She didn’t seem to be in a good state; the blue stripes on her body glowed weakly, nearly swallowed by the darkness.

“Mistress, are you unwell?” Zhong Ming asked, feeling the tip of the spider’s leg gently brush through his hair.

“I am weaker during the day,” she replied.

The spider duchess extended a second leg from the window and lightly touched Zhong Ming’s cheek, her voice sounding strangely aggrieved: “That person told me not to bully you.”

Zhong Ming was stunned. He realized she was talking about the hair-combing incident. Come to think of it, the duchess hadn’t sought him out for a few days. But who was “that person”?

Just as he was about to ask, he suddenly felt an intense gaze. Zhong Ming looked up and discovered that from a window on the third floor, the brown-haired boy he had seen that day was looking down at them.

The boy leaned against the window frame, one hand supporting his chin. It was unclear how long he had been watching; the expression on his pale, exquisite face was exceptionally cold.

Zhong Ming’s heart skipped a beat under that gaze. Following his line of sight, the spider duchess also saw the boy and suddenly let out a shrill scream.

Zhong Ming was startled. He was standing on the first-floor windowsill to reach the second-floor window, and his foot suddenly slipped, sending him falling straight down.

Thump!

A dull sound echoed. Zhong Ming hit the ground, landing right on his buttocks.

“Ah!” Zhong Ming let out a short cry of pain.

A sneer came from upstairs. Zhong Ming looked up to see the young master’s lips curled in an arc, seemingly amused by his clumsy display. But when Zhong Ming looked over, the boy’s expression stiffened, and he withdrew the smile.

The spider duchess had already disappeared.

As Zhong Ming stood up from the ground, he heard the Young Master’s mocking voice: “How stupid.”

Zhong Ming didn’t argue. He climbed up and silently patted his aching backside, picking up the watering can to continue with the flowers.

“Hey!” The boy’s somewhat annoyed voice came from behind him. Zhong Ming turned back and saw the brown-haired boy standing up, hands braced on the windowsill as he glared: “Rude fellow. Don’t you even know how to greet your master?”

Zhong Ming had no choice but to turn around and bow respectfully: “Good morning, Young Master.”

However, the boy didn’t seem satisfied, raising his eyebrows high: “Do you not even know my name?”

Zhong Ming froze, staring blankly at him. This young master had a name? Shouldn’t he be like the spider duchess, where “Young Master” was the name?

“Tsk.” The boy’s clear green eyes reflected Zhong Ming’s stunned appearance. He frowned and tapped the windowsill twice: “Remember it. Albert is my name.”

Zhong Ming nodded: “Yes, Young Master Albert.”

Only then did the boy seem satisfied. His gaze swept up and down Zhong Ming, and as if a wicked idea had suddenly struck him, a malicious light flashed in his emerald eyes.

Zhong Ming watched as he tilted his chin up, pointing toward the vibrant rose garden behind him:

“Pick a rose for me.”

Under Zhong Ming’s dazed expression, Albert curled his lips, the malice in his eyes growing:

“If you do, I will forgive your previous rudeness toward me.”