The team leader was startled. “What is it now, my dear miss?”
He pulled a piece of candy from his pocket and handed it to her, telling Wen Zhiyu to stop crying.
Wen Zhiyu’s nose twitched. Her eyes were red, her nose was red, as if she had suffered some tremendous grievance.
“Ah, I really am a fool.”
The team leader was full of regret.
“I’m fine.”
A soft voice tinged with sobs, Wen Zhiyu put on her mask.
She was no longer the eldest miss of the Wen family, so it was better not to stir up any trouble.
The part-time job paid four hundred yuan a day.
If they happened upon a happy occasion, the Wen family would be in a good mood and might even give out red envelopes.
After confirming that Wen Zhiyu was all right, the team leader led the twenty people into the villa.
They stood in place for at least twenty minutes before the butler finally arrived, unhurriedly. His shrewd gaze swept over the group, lingering a moment longer on Wen Zhiyu.
The original owner used to sneak out to play often, and the butler had suffered more than a few times because of it.
What was worse, she thought the butler had tattled on her, which was why she couldn’t go out to play.
So she deliberately targeted the butler.
When he was sick, she demanded he come to work despite his illness.
Now that she had fallen into the butler’s hands, she was in trouble.
A gust of wind blew past, and Wen Zhiyu’s heart felt cold and desolate.
She lowered her eyes, her lashes casting a small shadow beneath her eyelids, trembling continuously.
“Butler, everyone is here.”
The team leader spoke up, saving Wen Zhiyu. The butler withdrew his gaze and began to explain the rules.
Before they came, the team leader had already told them about this.
“Go to work now, and be quick about it.”
The butler called over the supervisor and had her assign the tasks.
Wen Zhiyu stood in the corner, staying until the very end.
Just as the supervisor was assigning her work, the butler suddenly interrupted.
“You, come here.”
Wen Zhiyu shuffled over hesitantly, biting her innocent-looking lip, not daring to raise her head at all, afraid the butler would recognize her.
“Take the washed cups into the living room.”
Hearing the butler’s order, Wen Zhiyu breathed a sigh of relief. As long as he didn’t recognize her, it was fine.
She rejoiced too early—there were far too many cups.
The Wen family’s true daughter had returned, and the banquet being held was quite grand.
The supervisor drew in a sharp breath, looking at the cups, then at Wen Zhiyu’s small frame.
“Can she handle it? Maybe we should switch someone else in.”
“If she can’t, she can leave.”
“I can do it.”
What more was there to say? Wen Zhiyu straightened her back and puffed out her little chest.
“These cups are expensive. If you break one, you’ll pay full price for it.” The butler added a warning.
Wen Zhiyu lifted her eyes slightly, wondering if the butler had recognized her and was taking the opportunity to get back at her.
The butler raised his chin.
Wen Zhiyu resigned herself to her fate and picked up the tray, which held six cups.
Since birth, she had been pampered and delicate, never having done any heavy work.
Her arms sagged weakly under the weight, nearly dropping the cups.
The supervisor held her breath along with her and helped support the tray.
“It’s fine.”
Wen Zhiyu’s brows curved into a smile. She still had some talent for this kind of work.
“Add six more.” The butler’s merciless voice sounded from beside her.
He showed no consideration at all for Wen Zhiyu’s small stature or her weak arms.
“Butler?”
“Hurry up.”
The supervisor had no choice but to remind Wen Zhiyu to hold the tray steady as she slowly added more cups.
Her thin arms trembled, and beads of sweat formed on Wen Zhiyu’s forehead.
She pressed her lips together, certain now that the butler had recognized her.
Why else would he single her out like this?
The supervisor added the cups while watching the butler’s expression.
The butler showed no sign of softening, so she had no choice but to place six more cups on the tray.
“Hurry back. You must finish all of this before the banquet begins.”
The butler urged.
Wen Zhiyu’s voice cracked from exhaustion as she responded, carrying the cups and staggering forward.
She had only taken a few steps when her arms trembled like butterfly wings.
Turning back to see no one behind her, she quickly unloaded a few cups.
With some of the weight gone, it was much easier.
Arriving at the living room, she set the cups in place and heard a burst of exclamations nearby.
Looking up, she saw Qiao Nianxi wearing a custom-made white princess dress, a crown on her head, her jet-black hair cascading down her back, shimmering with a soft luster under the warm lighting.
She descended the stairs gracefully, her floor-length gown sweeping across the steps with each movement, making her appear cool and noble.
In just a few days, everything had changed completely, their fortunes reversed. Wen Zhiyu bit her lower lip, glanced at the servant’s uniform she was wearing, then looked away and continued working.
Gu Lin snapped a photo of Qiao Nianxi and sent it to Li Moyuan, asking him what he thought.
Li Moyuan seemed to be busy with something and didn’t reply.
Wen Zhiyu didn’t know that although she stood in the corner, she was impossible to ignore, radiating a sweet aura like a lovely little cake.
She went back to retrieve the cups she had hidden away.
Passing by the lake, she heard the sound of two people talking.
The man’s voice sounded somewhat familiar.
“Qiao Nianxi, what kind of spell did you put on Uncle and Auntie to make them drive Zhizhi away? Zhizhi looks like Uncle and Auntie—you’re not the Wen family’s real daughter at all.”
Wen Zhiyu recognized Lin Haoze. He was Wen Jingming’s friend and often came to the Wen residence.
That was how Wen Zhiyu had become familiar with him.
The Wen couple had even joked about arranging a marriage between Lin Haoze and Wen Zhiyu.
Wen Zhiyu disagreed, because Lin Haoze was nothing like a big brother—he often bullied her instead, tugging at her little braids and pinching her cheeks.
She hadn’t expected Lin Haoze to speak up for her and confront the female lead.
If she remembered correctly, in the original book, when Lin Haoze learned of the original owner’s dire situation, he frequently helped her out and was willing to take her home.
But the original owner was so infatuated with Li Moyuan that she wouldn’t listen to anything.
After her death, it was Lin Haoze who went to the mental hospital to retrieve her body.
Wen Zhiyu’s feet shifted slightly. She wanted to warn Lin Haoze not to go against Qiao Nianxi—nothing good would come of it.
In the end, she didn’t step forward, deciding to find another opportunity instead.
She tiptoed away.
Carrying the cups back and forth had worn her out.
Her fair arms were marked with red streaks from the tray, sweat rolled down her forehead in beads, and her eyes were rimmed with red.
The housekeeper had left for elsewhere, and the shift supervisor secretly slipped her some water, telling her to rest for a bit.
Seeing Wen Zhiyu’s pitiful state, she couldn’t understand why the housekeeper was so heartless.
After resting for a while, her fatigue eased.
Wen Zhiyu went back to work.
When she passed by the lake again, she saw Qiao Nianxi alone.
She pretended not to see her and kept walking forward.
A big fat cat appeared at her feet, flopping down wherever it pleased, exposing its soft belly and letting out a rumbling purr.
It was her orange tabby.
Wen Zhiyu desperately wanted to crouch down and pet it, but reality wouldn’t allow it.
So she continued walking forward with cold indifference.
The tabby wouldn’t give up and followed her for quite a stretch.
The commotion successfully caught Qiao Nianxi’s attention.
She turned around, looking at the cat, then at the woman in the maid’s uniform.
“Wen Zhiyu?”
“I’m not, I didn’t, don’t make things up.”
Wen Zhiyu denied it with a triple one-tap.
“It really is you.”
Her fear of Wen Zhiyu was bone-deep, and Qiao Nianxi instinctively stepped back.
With a “splash,” a huge spray of water erupted—she had fallen into the lake.