Seeing Xu Nianchu staring expressionlessly at the ingredients, Tang Jinhua added,
“Don’t be shy. You don’t have to stand on ceremony with me.”
The moment those words left her mouth, she unknowingly kicked a hornet’s nest.
“Aunt Tang, I’d like Yan Du Xian and braised beef brisket with potatoes.”
Tang Jinhua hadn’t expected her to actually take her at her word.
Not only had Xu Nianchu requested two dishes that took a long time to prepare, but the family didn’t even have all the ingredients.
The smile on her face faded a little.
“We’re out of bamboo shoots and beef brisket. How about we have them for dinner instead?”
Xu Nianchu replied coldly,
“I want them for lunch today.”
“My waist hurts so much it feels like it’s about to break.”
Being tossed around by Lu Beichen the previous night had really left her body aching.
Tang Jinhua clenched her teeth.
If Xu Shanchuan hadn’t specifically instructed her before leaving to comfort Xu Nianchu after she came home, she wouldn’t have bothered with this at all.
Thinking about how the nearly forty-year-old pig of a man had supposedly had his way with Xu Nianchu last night made her feel a little better.
It was only a meal.
Let the girl enjoy herself while she still could.
How many more days would she even get to stay here?
“Fine.”
“If that’s what you want, then let’s go buy the ingredients.”
She spoke generously enough that anyone listening would think Tang Jinhua was a wonderfully kind person.
Xu Nianchu smiled in return.
“Then I’ll trouble you, Aunt Tang.”
For some reason, Tang Jinhua felt a chill run down her spine when she saw that smile.
Something felt… off.
How had Xu Nianchu changed so much after going out for just one night?
Still, she didn’t think much of it.
The girl had probably just been traumatized.
It was only natural for her personality to change after such an experience.
Her gaze drifted toward Xu Nianchu’s waist and hips.
She couldn’t help wondering how that tiny waist had managed to withstand someone as enormous as Wu Chi.
But that wasn’t any of her concern.
Picking up her shopping basket, she hurried toward the market.
The moment she stepped out the door, Xu Nianchu immediately headed downstairs.
According to the novel, Xu Shanchuan had only discovered the hidden underground treasure room by accident much later.
When he found it, he’d secretly cursed Ye Huixin.
They had shared the same bed for years…
Yet she had still treated him like an outsider.
Xu Nianchu quickly made her way to a corner of the communal restroom on the first floor.
She rotated the mirror.
Knocked twice on the wall.
Then found the hidden switch.
The moment she pressed it…
The entrance to another world slowly opened.
A long, dim corridor appeared before her.
The floor was paved entirely with softly glowing luminous pearls.
Even Xu Nianchu, who had grown up wealthy in the modern world, had never seen anything like this.
She swallowed hard.
The thought that all these luminous pearls would eventually end up in the hands of that scumbag and his scheming daughter made her chest tighten.
She stepped onto them.
The pearls dug painfully into the soles of her feet.
But what was a little pain?
How could anyone complain when they were literally walking on money?
If this was suffering…
She hoped she’d suffer like this every day.
After walking for quite some time, she finally arrived before a heavy door.
She entered the combination.
The door slowly swung open.
She froze once again.
What…
Was all this?
Dear heavens.
It felt as though piles of money were flying straight into her eyes.
Staring at everything before her, she had to admit that although she’d attended plenty of high-end charity auctions in her previous life and considered herself well-traveled…
Compared to this…
Everything she’d seen before had been child’s play.
Without wasting another second, she began stuffing every treasure chest in the room into her space.
As for what was inside…
She could inspect them later.
If she opened every chest now, her already aching back would probably give out entirely.
After finally clearing away all the treasure chests, she looked around the room again.
The walls were covered with jade stones of every imaginable shape.
Each piece had already been cut and polished into neat forms.
Only the final carving and design work remained.
Yet they were simply hung there in plain sight.
The rich really did whatever they pleased.
Taking a deep breath, she stored every piece of jade into her space as well.
Only after making absolutely certain that not a single valuable item remained inside the secret chamber did she finally leave.
On her way back through the corridor, she bent over again and again, collecting every glowing pearl from the floor without leaving a single one behind.
Unfortunately…
There were simply too many.
Her precious little waist began protesting again.
By the time she emerged from the secret chamber…
Tang Jinhua had already returned from the market.
Seeing Xu Nianchu walking out of the communal restroom, Tang Jinhua asked curiously,
“Why are you using the communal bathroom?”
“That one’s usually for the servants.”
Xu Nianchu answered calmly,
“So now you’re going to manage which toilet I use?”
Tang Jinhua choked on her words.
“That’s not what I meant.”
“You always take things the wrong way.”
Xu Nianchu had no interest in exchanging polite pretenses.
“Aunt Tang, my father loves Yan Du Xian the most.”
“You’d better make it well.”
Gripping the vegetables in her hands, Tang Jinhua nearly ground her teeth to dust.
Wasn’t that a blatant reminder that she’d once been nothing more than the Xu family’s maid?
That little wretch really was vicious.
Good thing Xu Shanchuan had arranged to give her away.
She’d like to see how much longer Xu Nianchu could keep smiling.
Xu Nianchu couldn’t help admiring her stepmother a little.
Even after such pointed remarks, Tang Jinhua had merely smiled without losing her temper.
Her patience truly surpassed ordinary people.
No wonder she’d managed to become the Xu family’s maid all those years ago.
Ye Huixin had been a proud, aloof young lady.
Tang Jinhua had been an attentive, considerate servant.
One had stood high above in the relationship.
The other had remained below, patiently waiting.
When people were poor, they desired resources.
Once they became wealthy, they craved admiration.
The more Xu Nianchu thought about it…
The more she began to wonder whether her mother’s death had anything to do with Tang Jinhua.
After all…
She was the one who had benefited the most.
Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
Then she turned and headed upstairs.
No sooner had she reached the second floor than she ran into Xu Xinglin.
The frail little boy rubbed his sleepy eyes before crying out happily,
“Big Sis! You’re back!”
Then he rushed over and clung to her.
“I waited all night for you yesterday.”
“I asked Dad to go look for you.”
“But he said you’re all grown up now and have your own life.”
“…Big Sis, are you abandoning me?”
Because he’d been poorly nourished after birth, Xu Xinglin had always been weak.
The doctor had said his condition was congenital.
His digestive system had been damaged from infancy, and he’d relied on medicine ever since.
Even though the Xu family ate far better than most households, his complexion remained yellow and sickly.
In the original story, one of the reasons the original Xu Nianchu hadn’t fought back at all costs was because their scumbag father had used her younger brother to threaten her.
After discovering that Xu Nianchu had been sent away to become another man’s mistress, Xu Xinglin had fought violently with their father.
Not long afterward…
He died.
How had Xu Shanchuan described it?
“Ungrateful brat!”
“I raised him for over ten years, only to end up with a white-eyed wolf!”
An overwhelming ache welled up inside Xu Nianchu’s chest.
It was sour and painful, as though her heart had been soaked in lemon juice.
Unable to stop herself, she pulled Xu Xinglin into a tight hug.
Xu Xinglin blushed in embarrassment.
He was already a big boy now.
Boys and girls were supposed to keep some distance.
But…
If Big Sis wanted a hug…
Then he’d reluctantly let her hug him for a little while.
His cheeks turned bright red.
His trembling eyelashes betrayed exactly how happy he was.
Taking a deep breath, Xu Nianchu led him back into her room.
“I’ll never abandon you.”
“Did you just wake up?”
Xu Xinglin nodded.
“Mm.”
“But I’m not lazy.”
“I only slept so late because I stayed up waiting for you.”
Even as he defended himself, his face grew even redder.
He hoped his sister wouldn’t think he was lazy.
Xu Nianchu gently rubbed his head.
Watching him become short of breath after saying only a few sentences, she suddenly had an idea.
Maybe…
The Spirit Spring Water could help him.
Even if it couldn’t completely cure him, it should at least make him feel much better.
“Linlin, let’s play a game.”
“Close your eyes.”
“Big Sis has a present for you.”
Xu Xinglin smiled so widely that the gap where his front tooth had fallen out was plainly visible.
Without hesitation, he obediently closed his eyes.
Xu Nianchu walked over to the thermos on the table and poured some hot water into a cup.
At the same time, she secretly mixed in some Spirit Spring Water from her space.
She prepared one cup for her younger brother…
And another for herself.
After spending the entire morning collecting treasures, she was genuinely parched.