Wen Lan could not help taking a step backward. Her eyes drifted involuntarily toward the pale blue children’s room.
Before she went to sleep, she had only been twenty years old.
After waking up, she suddenly had a child?
Then how old was she now?
And… who had given birth to the child?
“Master, what’s wrong?” Seeing how terrible Wen Lan looked, Uncle Xiao immediately became alarmed.
Could her delusions be acting up again?
Without another thought, he hurried off to find Leng Feng, the person responsible for taking care of her.
Wen Lan had no time to pay attention to the departing middle-aged man.
Unable to resist, she walked back into the small room.
A faint scent of milk still lingered in the air. Judging by that, her child was still very young.
She slowly looked around the room but found no photographs or albums of any kind.
The little white bed had been neatly made, with the small pillow placed precisely in the center. The pale blue ceiling was painted with stars and flowers.
On the small desk sat a glass bottle filled with colorful folded paper stars. A wooden cork sealed the bottle tightly, and a small triangular tag hung from its neck.
After hesitating for a moment, Wen Lan picked up the adorable little bottle.
Only two characters were written on the tag.
The handwriting looked extremely familiar.
The strokes were elegant and forceful, flowing with confidence and sharpness.
It was her own handwriting.
The small slip of paper simply read:
Wen Wu.
Beneath the name was a tiny, childish heart.
It was clearly not drawn by Wen Lan.
There was only one possibility.
That clumsy little heart had been drawn by her child.
Wen Lan stood frozen.
At a loss, she carefully placed the glass bottle back where it belonged.
It seemed that her little one liked her.
But then…
Why wasn’t there even a single photograph?
Wen Lan looked around the room once more.
The dull ache in her chest returned, growing heavier until it felt as though she could barely breathe.
She gripped the front of her shirt tightly before slowly making her way back to her bedroom.
Pouring herself a cup of warm tea, she drank several mouthfuls before the suffocating sensation finally eased.
She sat down in the armchair, supporting her forehead with one hand, a headache beginning to throb.
Damn it.
Could it be that the original owner of this body really did suffer from some kind of illness?
The repeated waves of oppressive heaviness in her chest had left Wen Lan increasingly irritable.
She raised her hand and stared at it in the sunlight.
It was pale and slender, with veins faintly visible beneath the skin. An unhealthy, sickly whiteness clung to it. Even her fingernails lacked the healthy pink hue she remembered.
Wen Lan gazed silently at her hand, doing her utmost to empty her mind and stop herself from thinking about anything at all.
Leng Feng arrived quickly, still wearing the apron tied around her waist. The gray apron was dotted with a few damp patches. Looking at the tall, powerfully built woman whose imposing presence contrasted so strangely with the apron, Wen Lan felt her headache worsen.
Before long, the familiar medicine and a glass of water from that morning were placed on the table in front of Wen Lan. Sitting opposite her, Leng Feng fixed her with an expressionless yet intimidating stare, making it abundantly clear that she would not leave until Wen Lan took her medicine.
The woman’s silently reproachful gaze made Wen Lan’s scalp tingle. Left with no choice, she reached out, accepted the medicine, and swallowed it.
Just as she thought the woman would leave, the tall woman reached into her jacket pocket and took out a piece of candy.
Wen Lan froze, looking at the tiny pink candy resting in the woman’s broad palm.
Leng Feng lowered her eyes to look at her mistress, inexplicably feeling nervous. She secretly stole another glance at Wen Lan’s face, once again marveling at how there could be a woman in this world more beautiful than any man. Her mistress’s skin was as white as porcelain, and her long hair cascaded like a waterfall. Sitting quietly on the sofa, she was more stunning than any male celebrity.
What a pity she was ill.
Leng Feng sighed inwardly. Seeing that her mistress had finally finished taking the medicine, she quickly took out the candy Master Lu had given her. Her voice unconsciously softened. Although it still sounded somewhat rough, it was gentler than before. Squatting down, she spoke to the mistress who was likely suffering another delusional episode.
“You’ve taken your medicine, so here’s a candy as a reward.”
After a brief pause, she forced herself to add a drawn-out, “Okay?”
The word came out awkwardly in her naturally gruff voice, making her blush from embarrassment. Leng Feng cursed herself inwardly. She was a dignified, full-grown woman, yet here she was imitating the delicate mannerisms of a little man. It was downright humiliating.
But every time her mistress finished taking her medicine, either Master Lu or Little Miss would coax her in exactly the same way. Before leaving, they had repeatedly reminded Leng Feng to say those exact words and never, ever forget the candy.
Watching a pale hand reach out and take the candy from her palm, Leng Feng quietly let out a sigh of relief. Then her fierce-looking face reddened once again.
Under the sunlight, her mistress’s hand looked almost as though it were glowing. Holding the tiny pink candy, it looked exceptionally beautiful.
Wen Lan deftly unwrapped the candy. A faint sweet fragrance immediately drifted into the air. The candy was her favorite pale pink, and it was strawberry-flavored too.
She placed it in her mouth and slowly savored it.
To her surprise, the heaviness weighing on her heart eased considerably.
Then another thought suddenly occurred to her.
In this world where gender roles were completely reversed, she was probably considered the odd one for liking something that, in everyone else’s eyes, only little men enjoyed eating.
She glanced at the woman across from her, whose face had suddenly turned bright red, and spoke for the first time.
“What’s your name?”
Leng Feng was startled. It was only after hearing the cool, spring-like voice repeat the question that she came to her senses.
“My name is Leng Feng, Master,” she answered in her naturally rough voice.
Her mistress’s delusions had definitely flared up again.
She didn’t even recognize her anymore.
Wen Lan nodded indifferently.
The sweetness of the candy seemed to spread all the way from her mouth to her heart. Narrowing her eyes slightly, she suddenly asked,
“Where’s my principal husband?”
“Master Lu has gone abroad to inspect one of the company’s branch offices. Little Miss went with him,” Leng Feng replied instinctively, not finding anything unusual about the question. After all, her mistress would forget everything again soon enough.
Wen Lan’s fingertips trembled ever so slightly, though her expression remained calm.
So she really did have a family.
And a child.
Seeing that her mistress had fallen silent, quietly sitting on the sofa, Leng Feng gently collected the empty glass and slipped out without making a sound. She still had to prepare lunch for her mistress. Master Lu had specifically instructed that Wen Lan’s midday meal had to be cooked by her personally.
Once the sound of footsteps had completely faded away, Wen Lan opened the wardrobe and found a black cloak-like garment, which she hid beneath her pillow.
Night fell quickly.
After pretending to be asleep and successfully fooling Leng Feng, Wen Lan put on the black cloak hidden under her pillow. She did not put on any shoes. Her pale bare feet stepped directly onto the freezing cold floor.
She walked slowly through the silent villa.
But Wen Lan knew there was one place that would definitely still be brightly lit, the servants’ kitchen.
She had spent several days observing before finally confirming its location.
Her tall, slender figure moved silently through the darkness.
Since she knew exactly where she was going, she soon arrived outside the kitchen.
Thinking about this world’s reversed gender norms, she hesitated briefly before quietly pressing herself against the window, listening to the men’s chatter inside.
Leng Feng was a woman of very few words. These younger men, however, were lively and talkative. Perhaps she could learn something useful from them.
At first, all she heard were trivial conversations about everyday family matters.
The night’s chill seeped into her body, making her shiver. Listening to the men gossip endlessly about clothes and makeup, Wen Lan couldn’t help yawning.
Time slowly passed.
Just as she was about to give up, she finally heard something worthwhile.
“Hey, don’t you all think our mistress is incredibly beautiful? Every time I see her, my heart starts pounding. I think she’s much prettier than all those male celebrities on TV!”
Wen Lan’s temples throbbed as she listened to the chorus of enthusiastic agreement.
“Yeah, absolutely.”
“She really is gorgeous, just like someone stepped out of a painting.”
“Someone that beautiful is actually a fool. It’s such a shame when you think about it.”
“Shh! Don’t ever say that again. If Master Lu hears about it, you’ll be in serious trouble. The pay here is so good, and the work is so easy. I don’t want to get fired.”
“I know, I know. But Master Lu is so ugly. He’s probably the only one willing to look after a fool. At least his wife is beautiful.”
“That’s true. I’ve never even heard our mistress speak before. Maybe she’s mute too. Such a waste of such a beautiful face.”
“That’s enough. Stop talking.”
The conversation was abruptly cut off by the voice of an older man.
Wen Lan shifted her stiff legs, her brows tightly furrowed.
Judging from what those men had said, her principal husband was ugly?
Could that be the reason there wasn’t a single photograph of anyone in the house?
Wen Lan couldn’t shake the feeling that things were not as simple as they seemed.
After standing there for a while, she retraced her steps. Having spent so long in the cold outside, she returned indoors and took another bath. Staring at the reflection of herself soaking in the tub, Wen Lan lowered her gaze expressionlessly.
She had to admit that when she heard those men call Master Lu ugly, a wave of discomfort had suddenly surged through her.
She still didn’t know who Master Lu was or what he looked like. But he was the father of her child and her lawful principal husband. Wen Lan had always been fiercely protective of her family. Looking down at the water, her already cool eyes turned even colder amid the swirling steam. A moment later, a pale hand broke the shimmering surface completely.
Wen Lan rose from the bath, wrapped herself in a bathrobe, and stepped out of the bathroom. Standing in the shadows, she watched as the lights in the servants’ kitchen gradually went out. Only then did the corners of her lips slowly curl upward.
Since they hated their employers so much, there was no reason for them to continue staying here, was there?