She was forcibly pushed out of bed, and without clothes, she could only hold her hands over her chest. The two maids seemed to uncover some secret, peeling back the layers of blankets and stripping off the pillowcases and duvet covers. After doing all this, the two maids carried everything that needed washing out with the sheets, chatting and laughing as they went down the stairs, their voices loud as if deliberately meant for Nhanyi to hear.
“How could the general take a liking to her?”
“Who knows?”
“Will she stay here? We have to serve a yellow-skinned person from an inferior race.”
“She shouldn’t last more than a few days.”
“Haha, yes.”
“Bang bang bang bang—bang bang bang bang.”
The bathroom door was about to be knocked down. Nhanyi opened the door to see the plump woman glaring at her angrily. “What are you dawdling for? Quickly put on this dress! The general requests that you come downstairs for breakfast immediately.” With that, she threw a silk nightgown onto Nhanyi.
Nhanyi looked at her coldly. They all said “please,” but this word held no respect whatsoever. “I’m not hungry; I don’t want to eat.”
“Don’t make me say it a second time; it’s the general who wants you downstairs.” His intention was to have her accompany him for breakfast.
Nhanyi slipped on the lace light blue nightgown. Her ankle sprain had not fully healed, and going down the stairs still caused a dull pain. She paused at the turn of the staircase on the second floor and saw him sitting at the dining chair with his legs crossed, reading a newspaper. The radio was broadcasting the news, and he lifted a cup of warm coffee to his lips, taking a sip.
“Good morning.” He raised his coffee cup to her, his sapphire blue eyes sparkling. He was not wearing that black uniform, just a white shirt and suspenders, looking very handsome, with the buttons of his shirt only half fastened, revealing his firm chest.
This despicable, shameless pervert… Nhanyi cursed inwardly as the plump woman shoved her shoulder. She went down the stairs and was pushed into the dining chair beside him, sitting stiffly with no expression on her face.
“I thought you must be hungry, so please come down and have breakfast with me.” He put down the newspaper and signaled the servant to turn off the radio. “Let’s begin.”
The servant lifted the iron lids off the dishes one by one; the food was abundant: long loaves of black bread, frosted doughnuts, creamy pastries, drinks of milk, coffee, juice, as well as ham and sausages, and some other fruits.
He lowered his head, elegantly cutting the ham on his plate with a knife, seemingly engaging in friendly small talk, “What do you usually eat for breakfast in your country?”
“With years of war, the people are suffering; the poor can’t even afford to eat.” Nhanyi shot him a glance, but her taste and senses were slowly returning. She pressed her lips tightly together, her stomach gradually awakening from numbness to hunger.
He stuffed the ham into his mouth and took a piece of bread, “This world is the same everywhere, but you should be a girl from a middle-class background.”
She did not respond to his pretentious concern and questions. She had long made it clear that she was a Red Cross nurse; even if she said it a thousand times, he would not react. Besides, did her background matter? She was now merely his prey, his slave.
“What’s wrong? Not to your taste?” Seeing her sitting still, he tilted his head slightly, smiling as he asked.
Nhanyi still did not answer. In fact, she was already starving, her front pressed against her back. In the c camp, the only food was hard bread that felt like stone and cold water. After being electrocuted by Margaret, she had been unconscious and unable to eat; the nutrient solution could only sustain her life, not alleviate her hunger at all. Now, the aroma of food was drilling into her nostrils.
She was desperately resisting the temptation of that aroma when a voice reporting something came from outside the door. The maid went to open the door, and a serious-looking officer walked into the dining room, going straight to his side and whispering a few words in his ear. He lowered his gaze, his eyes blinking slightly, and ordered, “Prepare to leave immediately.”
“Yes—!” The officer stood at attention.
He turned his ice-blue eyes toward her, “Sorry, I have to go out. Enjoy your meal.” With that, he wiped his crimson lips with a napkin, quickly left the dining table, and walked to the door, putting on his coat and hat next to the cloakroom, surrounded by several SS officers as he burst out the door.
As soon as he left, she could not care about the maids’ disdainful looks any longer and immediately began to wolf down the food on the table. She was truly starving. She had no time to consider why he had left breakfast unfinished or what despicable business he was rushing off to; her primary concern was to fill her own stomach.
