Go Down And Accept Your Punishment

As the last syllable of Culver's sentence faded, the air grew heavy and still.  The surrounding environment became silent, so much so that even the sound of the wind ceased.  Culver quickly realized his mistake and paled in fear. "Mr. Joseph, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it..." Joseph turned around, and his limpid eyes were filled with an inscrutable coldness.  After a brief pause, he spoke sternly, "Go down and accept your punishment, leave my sight!" Culver shuddered, responding with a trembling voice, "Yes!" And, he quickly scurried away.  Joseph took a deep breath, turned around, and gazed at the moon behind him. The coldness and aloofness around him dissipated, leaving only the darkness and solitude that enshrouded him. The dawn began to break. The rest of the Jules family was still asleep, but Lucille had already started her morning exercise in the garden.  This body was too weak, and she needed to get stronger as soon as possible.  Otherwise, even with all her skills, this body would only hold her back if something happened. After finishing her exercises, Lucille panted lightly as she made her way back upstairs. However, she encountered Zoey, who was about to head down the stairs.  Zoey was surprised to see Lucille up and exercising so early. She smiled and said, "Lucille, you're up early. You seem to have recovered well." Lucille couldn't be bothered with her and walked past without even looking. Zoey wasn't offended at all. She turned to admire Lucille's graceful figure, boasting, "Do you know that Samuel only likes gentle girls like me? No matter how perfect your figure is, he won't even bother to take a glance at you." In private, Zoey had never bothered to hide her contempt for the previous owner of this body.  Lucille stopped in her tracks, her back turned to Zoey as a cold smirk formed on her lips.  Zoey really knew how to hurt her with words, as she clearly knew the previous owner well. The original owner believed Zoey's lies and thought that Samuel liked sexy girls, so she wore a sexy backless dress on his birthday.  Who knew that Samuel would publicly berate her as shameless and say that only girls like Zoey, who came from a reputable family, were the ones he liked.  Because of this incident, the original owner became everyone's laughingstock, and she never wore a dress again.  Lucille let out a light sigh.  What a silly girl, why did she have to do that?  "You can't force someone to love you, no matter how much you do for them," she mumbled silently.  Seeing that Lucille didn't speak, Zoey's smile became smugger. "This is just a kind reminder from me. After all, no one knows Samuel better than me."  Lucille turned around and looked at Zoey with a faint smile. "So what? The Gilbert family would never marry a mistress."  One light comment was enough to make Zoey feel both ashamed and angry. "Ugh!" Zoey huffed before sneering, "What's that you have to be proud of? Even if I'm no good, I'm still better than a mute girl like you that everyone loves to pick on." Lucille chuckled more confidently. "Oh, I almost forgot. I do have both wealth and power – I hold 40% of the Jules Group. I'm sure those pests in the gutter, such as you, are now green with envy." "You!" Zoey was breathless with rage. She couldn't understand how Lucille had suddenly become so sharp-tongued.  She used to be the kind of person who couldn't fight back or speak out.  Well, Lucille would soon find out she could not bask in her pride for long! Zoey narrowed her pupils, returned to her room, and deliberately hobbled down the stairs with a cane. In the living room, Samuel was waiting to take Zoey to school. As Zoey came down the stairs with a cane, Samuel immediately came forth to her. "Zoey, why didn't you let me come up and get you?"  As he spoke, he hugged her in his arms. Zoey's brows furrowed as she batted her eyelashes and pouted, "I'm sorry, Samuel, I didn't mean to trouble you. It's just that..."  She trailed off, deliberately looking downtrodden and helpless.  Samuel's expression grew stormy. "What's going on? Did Lucille give you trouble again?" Zoey shook her head with red eyes. "No..." "Zoey, you don't have to lie to me." Samuel was serious. "What did she do to you?" Zoey bit her lip and refused to speak, but gave a glance to the maid beside her. The maid, who had enjoyed many favors from Zoey before, quickly defended her, "Please don't blame Miss Zoey, Mr. Samuel. It's just that Miss Lucille has gone too far. She not only humiliated Miss Zoey and took away her room, but also threw away all of her belongings. She even threatened to kick Miss Zoey out, and mentioned that Mr. Howard can't do anything about it."  As soon as Samuel heard this, his face turned red with anger. "What?! That's outrageous! Where is she now?!" The maid hurriedly replied, "She hasn't come downstairs yet."  Zoey clung to Samuel's arm and pleaded, "Please, Samuel, don't do anything. I'm just a foster daughter after all. I can handle this little setback." "No!" Samuel was furious, "Your tolerance will only make her worse. Wait for me, I will teach her a good lesson today!"  As Samuel spoke, a drawling voice echoed down the staircase, "Oh? How do you plan to give me a lesson?" Samuel was taken aback and raised his head, only to see a black figure descending the stairs gracefully. She was dressed in an embroidered black gown that made her skin as white as snow. Her delicate waist looked as though it could snap at the slightest touch. And, her swan-like neck was exposed, revealing her prominent clavicles. Half of her palm-sized face was hidden by her jet-black hair, and her features were so beautiful that they were perfect. With just one glance, she captivated everyone's gaze. Samuel was dumbfounded. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Lucille Jules?!"  How could it be possible? Lucille seemed ordinary before, but where did this overbearing confidence now come from? Her whole demeanor has completely changed.  She had transformed into one that was detached, alluring, and beyond reach. Was this still the same old Lucille Jules?  Samuel hid his amazement and warned, "Lucille Jules, I'm warning you not to bully Zoey!"  Lucille descended the stairs with a cold curl of her lips, each step measured and deliberate.  Samuel stared at her intently and subconsciously swallowed his saliva.  Samuel braced himself for her explanation, but to his astonishment, she walked right past him to the door without even sparing him a glance.  Samuel snapped, "Lucille, haven't you heard me talking to you?!"  Lucille sneered.  She had no time to waste on a clown.  Zoey stood frozen, her heart racing with disbelief. The scene was not unfolding the way she had expected.  With Lucille gone, how was she going to keep the show going?  "Let it go, Charles," Zoey breathed out, her voice barely above a whisper. "Can you please take me to school? I'm going to be late."  Only then, Samuel withdrew his angry glare and took her hand. "Let's go. I'll take you," he said firmly. ......