In the kitchen, the atmosphere was somewhat oppressive.
Wang Ma closed the door and turned to look at the new girl, Fang Yuanyuan, her tone stern.
"What's wrong with you? You've been here for a while now, and you can still mess up something this simple."
At the interview, she had seemed like such a clever girl. How could she make such a careless mistake?
No matter how good someone seemed before, making such a basic error showed she wasn't very sharp. She'd just keep her doing odd jobs in the kitchen for now, and find an excuse to dismiss her later.
"Because of you, the whole kitchen is losing its bonus this month."
At those words, the faces of the others, who had been treating this as none of their business, changed.
Working for the Ji family, the monthly bonus was no small amount.
It was rarely ever docked, yet their entire kitchen had lost this month's bonus just because of one slip-up.
Zhou Jiewei was the first to speak, his tone clearly disgruntled:
"Housekeeper Wang, this was Fang Yuanyuan's mistake. Why should the whole kitchen lose its bonus? If anyone gets docked, it should be her alone."
Though the others said nothing, the looks they gave Fang Yuanyuan were already like knives.
Wang Ma waved her hand.
"That's not my decision. The young master said it himself, outside."
She swept her gaze over everyone present.
"Even if it was Fang Yuanyuan's fault, are the rest of you in the kitchen blameless?
You knew the young lady's things hadn't been carried out. Why didn't anyone remind Fang Yuanyuan? Or carry them out yourselves?
Did it really have to wait until the young lady spoke up?"
With that, she looked at Fang Yuanyuan, her gaze cold.
"Fang Yuanyuan, there won't be a second time. If another slip-up happens, don't bother coming back."
As soon as the words fell, Wang Ma turned and pushed the door open, leaving.
Everyone returned to their stations. No one spoke to Fang Yuanyuan, and no one looked at her.
Fang Yuanyuan lowered her eyes and shot a vicious glare in the direction Wang Ma had left.
If it weren't for the fact that someone had asked her to do this, she wouldn't have come here to suffer like this.
Seeing that none of the kitchen staff wanted anything to do with her, she didn't care. She quietly slipped into a corner, turned her back to the others, and pulled out her phone.
In WeChat, a chat window with a profile picture of a bright full moon sat quietly there.
She opened it, typed a line, and hit send.
The little episode in the kitchen didn't affect the Ji siblings' mood in the slightest.
In front of the garage, a white Porsche and a black Rolls-Royce Cullinan were parked side by side.
Ji Mingyu opened the car door and got into the Porsche's driver's seat. Ji Mingxuan, one hand in his pocket, waved at her, then turned and got into the Cullinan.
The two cars drove out of the Ji family's gates, one left and one right, speeding off in different directions.
Nan University campus.
Ji Mingyu had barely stepped out of her Porsche when she ran into Lin Tongxin, a fellow lecturer.
The two nodded in greeting.
Ji Mingyu, arms full of documents, didn't stop walking, gesturing to Lin Tongxin: "I have to run—haven't turned in the task Professor Zhou gave me yet."
Lin Tongxin waved: "Alright, let's chat later."
Watching Ji Mingyu hurry off, a trace of envy appeared in her eyes.
Plenty of people at the school envied Ji Mingyu.
Great family background—her father was the head of a publicly listed corporation; her mother was an associate professor at this very university; and she herself was studying under the renowned scholar Professor Zhou Chongli, while also serving as a lecturer at the school.
Lin Tongxin sighed inwardly.
If she were a man, she wouldn't have thought twice—she'd have gone after her without hesitation. But alas, she was a woman, and a straight one at that!
Ji Mingyu, holding her paper, hurried down the corridor and stopped in front of Zhou Chongli's office door, raising her hand to knock.
"Come in."
She pushed the door open and, upon seeing Zhou Chongli seated behind his desk, immediately composed her expression and spoke with a smile.
"Teacher, you're back? Did your trip go smoothly these past few days?"
Zhou Chongli glanced at her sideways, a half-smile on his face.
"Oh my, how touching that this student of mine still remembers me." He picked up his teacup and took a sip.
"If I hadn't reminded your mother yesterday, you'd have nearly forgotten I even existed, wouldn't you?"
Ji Mingyu quickly waved her hands. "No, no, Teacher, look—I haven't forgotten. And I certainly haven't forgotten the task you assigned me."
With that, she respectfully placed the paper on Zhou Chongli's desk, then quietly stepped aside, hands clasped in front of her, the very picture of an obedient student.
Zhou Chongli flipped through a few pages of the paper, then looked up at Ji Mingyu, who stood to the side watching him carefully.
There was a smile in his eyes.
But his mouth was anything but kind.
"Ji Mingyu, this paper of yours—"
He flipped the paper over and slapped the page. "It's obviously slapdash work. What have you been doing these past few days? You've completely forgotten the task I gave you."
Ji Mingyu didn't treat Zhou Chongli as an outsider at all.
Before she started university, she used to call him Grandpa Zhou.
She leaned forward a step, her tone carrying a hint of righteous grievance. "Teacher, you don't know—these past few days my mom took me to blind dates."
"Blind dates?"
Zhou Chongli frowned and set the paper down on the desk, his tone tinged with displeasure.
"Ridiculous. How old are you? What blind dates?"
Ji Mingyu put on a suitably aggrieved look, softening her voice. "Teacher, honestly, blind dates aren't so bad. At least everyone's well-matched in family standing."
Zhou Chongli gave her a look but didn't take the bait.
After a moment, he spoke.
"Tomorrow, dress yourself up nicely and come with me to meet some people.
Those people around your father—I don't think much of a single one of them."
Their intentions weren't pure at all, and they were tangled up in all sorts of messy affairs. A well-behaved girl like Ji Mingyu would only end up being bullied.
She was still so young, and they were already sending her out on blind dates—what exactly they were scheming, an old-timer like him could see through easily.
Hearing Zhou Chongli's words, Ji Mingyu nodded obediently.
But her mind was racing.
The people she'd meet through Zhou Chongli were no ordinary crowd. Given Zhou Chongli's standing in the country's academic circles, those he associated with were either political heavyweights or genuine old-money aristocrats.
If she happened to meet someone even more powerful than Shengshi, well—she wouldn't necessarily say no.
Her father would surely be delighted, she believed.
"All right, Teacher, I'll be there on time tomorrow." Her voice was crisp, obedient to the utmost.
Zhou Chongli gave an "mm," picked up the paper again, flipped through it, and glanced up at her once more.
"Rewrite the paper. Hand it in within three days."
The smile on Ji Mingyu's face froze for an instant, but she immediately nodded in agreement.
"Yes, Teacher."
In a five-star hotel suite, two figures could faintly be seen tangled together on the bed.