For several days in a row, I was in a daze, didn't want to eat, and couldn't sleep.

I took a leave from school and didn’t attend classes. I didn't step out of the villa at all.

That day, I had breakfast and was curled up on the sofa watching TV with the two new maids.

I heard a commotion downstairs: "Xiaoqing, Xiaoqing..."

"You can't go up, Boss Zhang instructed, no one can see Xiaoqing," Auntie Li, the maid, shouted.

I quickly ran to the balcony and leaned over to look down: my brother and sister-in-law were tugging at each other with Auntie Li and the others.

"Sister, your nephew is relying on you, did you talk to your parents... the phone is always unreachable," my sister-in-law said urgently with a sharp voice.

Tears immediately welled up in my eyes, and I hoarsely shouted, "Brother, brother, save me, take me home..."

The two new maids dragged me back into the inner room, each one holding me tight as I sat on the sofa, continuing to watch TV.

The TV kept rolling news about local high school students who skipped school and went missing while surfing the internet.

I sobbed, but had no way out.

The day passed being closely watched, even when going to the bathroom there was someone waiting outside the door.

It was almost past 11 PM by the time my husband returned home from work. He was exhausted, his eyes still a bit puffy.

He went to the bathroom and fetched a basin of hot water, placing it beside the bed.

He took off my slippers and washed my feet.

"You've had a hard time these past few days, with so much mental stress. Let me massage your feet, and you can sleep well tonight."

I'm not sure if it was because of soaking my feet or because I hadn't slept for several days, but after a while, I drowsily fell asleep.