Volume 1, Chapter 13: Her, a Mere Underling, Was Utterly Crucial in Lu Yanshu’s Eyes
Throughout the ride back to the Lu residence, Jiang Zhiwan kept thinking about this matter.
When she had left in the afternoon, Jiang Zhiwan hadn’t asked the butler to arrange a car to take her to the hospital.
So she had taken a taxi back, which could only drop her off at a spot far from the traditional Chinese estate.
The entire estate occupied a vast area, and walking from the main gate to the house took about ten minutes.
As she passed the old wintersweet tree that had stood for many years, Jiang Zhiwan unconsciously stopped in her tracks.
In the dim light, the wintersweet tree still stood tall in the courtyard. Jiang Zhiwan tilted her head slightly as she gazed up at it, lost in thought.
And so she remained for a long while.
Until—
“Oh, my little ancestor, why are you standing here letting the snow fall on you? Your illness has only just recovered.”
The butler hurried over as he spoke, his voice anxious: “Once you go inside, the snow on your hair will melt instantly when it hits the warm air.”
The scalp was the easiest place for cold to seep in.
The person before him was truly a precious treasure—afraid she might break if held in his hands, afraid she might melt if held in his mouth.
Jiang Zhiwan was coaxed and pulled into the house by the butler.
Before she could even stand still in the living room for a few seconds, the butler immediately called for a servant to take her to dry her hair.
A flurry of actions followed, leaving no room for Jiang Zhiwan to refuse.
When Jiang Zhiwan saw the butler again, he was coming down the stairs with a dejected look, carrying a covered bowl of something.
“Butler Xu, what’s wrong?” Jiang Zhiwan asked.
The butler was more worried than words could express. He sighed: “The young master won’t eat. The moment he got home, he locked himself in the study and refused to come out.”
“And it’s been the whole day—he only had breakfast with you, Miss Jiang, this morning.”
That wouldn’t do.
“Can’t you persuade him?” Jiang Zhiwan frowned slightly.
Persuade?
The butler’s heart ached bitterly. No one had ever been able to persuade Lu Yanshu!
Even the previous head of the Lu family, Lu Tingxiao, couldn’t talk Lu Yanshu around and had to resort to force.
Wait a moment…
The butler stared at Jiang Zhiwan, his eyes suddenly lighting up. He asked tentatively: “Perhaps… Miss Jiang, would you like to give it a try?”
Jiang Zhiwan was taken aback.
If even Butler Xu, who had watched Lu Yanshu grow up since childhood, couldn’t persuade him, then she—having only known Mr. Lu for a few days—would surely have even less luck, wouldn’t she?
“I probably wouldn’t be able to,” Jiang Zhiwan said, looking troubled.
The butler’s expression grew more certain: “Miss Jiang, you can definitely do it. If persuasion doesn’t work at first, you could try being a little coquettish, saying some sweet words.”
With that, the butler forcefully pressed the tray into Jiang Zhiwan’s hands.
Jiang Zhiwan could neither refuse nor go persuade him. She stood there, caught in a dilemma.
The butler dabbed at the corner of his eye where no tears existed, deliberately making the matter sound more serious to win Jiang Zhiwan’s sympathy: “Last year, the young master was hospitalized once for a severe gastric hemorrhage. The doctors warned him repeatedly that he must eat on time…”
“…If the young master ends up in the hospital again for this reason, I’ll have no face to show the late old master, who entrusted the young master to my care before he passed…”
Jiang Zhiwan made up her mind resolutely: “I’ll go!”
With such a high salary, she ought to help resolve her employer’s troubles.
The moment he heard Jiang Zhiwan agree, the butler’s face immediately broke into a delighted smile, with no trace of tears left in his eyes: “Then thank you, Miss Jiang. Oh, and if the young master asks later, please don’t mention that I asked you to help.”
Jiang Zhiwan walked upstairs carrying the tray, and it slowly dawned on her that she seemed to have been played by Butler Xu.
But since she had already agreed, she could only steel herself and go through with it.
The study was normally very soundproof, but because the door was left slightly ajar, Jiang Zhiwan, pausing at the entrance, happened to catch Lu Yanshu’s voice from inside.
The content of his words seemed to concern confidential Lu Corporation business.
Jiang Zhiwan didn’t dare listen any further. She was about to turn and leave when the study door was suddenly pulled open.
It was Lu Yanshu.
With one hand holding his phone, he casually took the tray from Jiang Zhiwan’s hands with the other, a smile playing on his lips as he mouthed silently: “Come in.”
Obedient as she was, Jiang Zhiwan truly followed Lu Yanshu into the study step by step.
He led her over to the small tea table by the window again.
She had overheard commercial secrets—unintentionally, yes—but her heart was still unsettled, and she could only stand there blankly by the small tea table.
Lu Yanshu’s speaking pace noticeably quickened, and he soon ended the call.
The moment he hung up, Jiang Zhiwan’s anxious explanation tumbled out: “Mr. Lu, I just now…”
But before she could finish, Lu Yanshu gently interrupted her: “Don’t worry, what we were discussing just now wasn’t anything confidential.”
That was a relief.
Jiang Zhiwan tried her best to keep her expression normal, while secretly letting out a long sigh of relief deep down.
She thought she had hidden it well, unaware that in a place she couldn’t see, Lu Yanshu, who had taken in everything, narrowed his eyes slightly.
Lu Yanshu lifted the lid off what Jiang Zhiwan had brought—a bowl of chicken congee—and understood everything at once.
Only then did Jiang Zhiwan remember the task Butler Xu had given her. After a moment’s hesitation, she said softly, “This congee tastes quite good. When I didn’t see Mr. Lu come downstairs for dinner, I thought I’d bring him a bowl.”
Little liar.
Lu Yanshu silently chuckled to himself.
That afternoon when she’d gone out, Jiang Zhiwan had originally wanted to inform Lu Yanshu, but she didn’t have his contact information, so she’d asked Butler Xu instead.
When Jiang Zhiwan had told that lie just now, she’d bet on the fact that Lu Yanshu, burdened with the heavy responsibilities of the Lu Group, wouldn’t have time to keep tabs on someone as insignificant as her.
But she’d missed one thing.
—She, this insignificant little nobody, was of utmost importance in Lu Yanshu’s heart.
The Lu Group meant nothing compared to her.
To Lu Yanshu, the Lu Group was more of a responsibility he had no choice but to bear.
Lu Yanshu wouldn’t restrict Jiang Zhiwan’s freedom.
But he had to know her every move in her daily life.
Lowering his gaze, Lu Yanshu reached out and touched the rim of the bowl. After confirming the temperature was just right, he pushed the bowl in front of Jiang Zhiwan. “Since you like it, have a little more.”
Jiang Zhiwan was stunned. The words she’d been carefully weighing in her heart suddenly lodged in her throat.
In the white porcelain bowl, the savory chicken congee gave off a faint wisp of steam.
The smell of disinfectant at the hospital had kept Jiang Zhiwan from eating anything, so she’d simply skipped dinner.
Now, the rich aroma wafting to her nose stirred up a strong craving in Jiang Zhiwan’s heart.
Jiang Zhiwan grew flustered. Her mind went blank, and she stammered out a refusal: “This chicken congee… I… I don’t like it.”
The moment the words left her mouth, Jiang Zhiwan realized how contradictory she sounded.
She was done for.
She’d messed up.
Jiang Zhiwan hung her head in a daze, not daring to look up at Lu Yanshu again.
Would Mr. Lu think she was someone who lied habitually?
For a moment, Jiang Zhiwan imagined many possible reactions from Lu Yanshu.
But what she never expected was for Lu Yanshu to simply let out a soft chuckle by her ear and murmur, “Little liar.”
For some reason, Jiang Zhiwan’s heart pounded violently, and her cheeks, along with the tips of her ears, flushed pink and hot.