It was already broad daylight outside, with the warm sun hanging high in the sky.
Her frantic gaze swept over the sofa.
Empty.
The person who had been lying there had already left.
Brother!!
She shot up from the bed and dashed downstairs without even putting on her shoes.
“Sister Wu! Where’s my brother?”
Cui Wu jumped. “Miss, why aren’t you wearing shoes again?”
“I’m fine. Where’s my brother?”
“The young master left for the office early this morning. The company’s been very busy lately.”
Remembering the argument between the siblings the night before, Cui Wu tried to comfort her. “Miss, you’ll always be the most important person in the young master’s heart. Look… Even though he’s so busy, when he heard you wanted the pan-fried dumplings from Fu Ji, he insisted on driving there himself to buy them for you.”
Zhou Suisui’s nose stung.
Her brother was the best brother in the world!
“Sister Wu, you’re right. My brother works so hard. As his little sister, I should be considerate and thoughtful, too.”
“I’ll bring him lunch at the office today!”
That would accomplish two things at once.
At critical moments, she still had to keep an eye on him.
Cui Wu was pleased. “The young master will definitely be happy.”
At those words, a trace of guilt flashed through Zhou Suisui’s eyes.
In her previous life, she had grown up as a little princess cherished in the palm of her brother’s hand, naive and sheltered from the ways of the world.
After her brother fell in love with Su Wan and became completely devoted to her, all he could do was oppose her by trying to make her jealous.
Her brother had fallen for Su Wan because he had been starved of love, hadn’t he?
The year their parents died in a car accident, he had been only ten years old.
At ten, other children were still clinging to their parents, acting spoiled, and watching cartoons.
But he had been forced to take responsibility for the livelihood of the tens of thousands of employees at the Zhou Group, while also caring for her, a mere three-year-old.
He had suffered so much.
So when Su Wan appeared, it was no wonder her brother had fallen for her so quickly.
Tears welled in Zhou Suisui’s eyes.
Since Heaven had given her another chance to start over, she swore that she would take good care of her brother and never let him suffer the slightest bit of harm again.
Seeing that she truly meant it, Cui Wu quickly prepared an insulated lunch box and placed it in her hands.
“Miss, I’ll have Old Wang drive you.”
Old Wang was the family’s driver.
He had taken leave two days ago, claiming that something had come up at home.
At the mention of his name, a deep hatred flashed through Zhou Suisui’s eyes.
The driver, who normally appeared honest and unsophisticated, was actually Su Wan’s maternal uncle.
He had been reporting Zhou Sui’an’s information and whereabouts to Su Wan bit by bit.
Su Wan’s appearance on that deserted mountain, where she had conveniently rescued her brother, had been nothing more than a carefully calculated trap.
“He didn’t ask for three days off? If I remember correctly, today is only the second day.”
Cui Wu replied, “Old Wang said he was worried the young master might need the car, so he came back early and canceled his leave.”
Zhou Suisui gave a faint, cold laugh.
It was probably because Su Wan had grown anxious after failing to get a response to her confession the night before. She had ordered him to come back early so he could keep watch over her brother’s schedule and report his movements to her.
Zhou Suisui said meaningfully, “I never realized Uncle Wang was so dedicated.”
“Actually…”
Hearing her praise Uncle Wang, Cui Wu hesitated.
She tugged at her sleeve, looking conflicted. In the end, she said nothing and merely urged, “Miss, the food will get cold. Hurry and go to the office to deliver lunch to the young master.”
After all, she was only an employee.
There were matters she had no business interfering in. If things went badly, she might even be accused of sowing discord.
Zhou Suisui took in her expression and immediately understood.
Cui Wu had known for a long time what kind of person Old Wang was. She simply did not want to speak ill of anyone behind their back.
That was how the world worked.
Good people had such strong moral scruples that they ended up giving bad people room to take advantage of them.
Zhou Suisui picked up the lunch box and walked out.
A car was already waiting at the entrance.
Old Wang was holding a rag and carefully wiping dust from the body of the vehicle.
Zhou Suisui noticed two strips of red silk hanging from the rearview mirrors on either side of the car. Written on them in gold ink were words wishing “XX” a happy wedding.
The car had clearly been used as a wedding vehicle.
Disgust flashed through her eyes.
Her brother had always treated the servants generously. He often told her, “If people weren’t forced by their circumstances, who would be willing to work for others and endure being judged by them? Suisui, although we were born with silver spoons in our mouths, we must still have compassion.”
She had been raised under her brother’s guidance. Although she had been willful and difficult, she had never harbored any ill intentions toward anyone.
Yet in the end, she and her brother had suffered such tragic fates.
“Uncle Wang, cleaning the car?”
Old Wang had noticed her long ago. He had simply deliberately ignored his young employer, who was barely eighteen or nineteen.
Unfortunately, she had not understood that before.
“Miss, you know how I am. I can’t stand seeing even a speck of dust on the car. I was so focused on cleaning that I didn’t notice you.”
His tone made him sound as though he were exceptionally hardworking.
Zhou Suisui watched him perform with a calm gaze and said nothing.
Under her stare, Old Wang felt a chill run down his spine.
“Miss, why are you looking at me like that?”
Zhou Suisui said lightly, “Uncle Wang, does another one of your relatives have a wedding this month? Why do I remember that you also took wedding leave last month?”
Old Wang sneered inwardly.
She was just a child. Why should he let her question him about everything?
“That’s just how things are back home. There are a lot of happy occasions.”
“It’s only April, and you’ve already taken four days of personal leave. Every single time, you said a relative was getting married.”
Old Wang’s expression turned unpleasant. “Miss, you’re still young. You don’t understand the customs and obligations back home. Over there…”
“Uncle Wang, I’m not from your hometown. What do the customs of your hometown have to do with me?”
Old Wang froze, staring blankly at the girl standing before him as if he were seeing her for the first time.
The authority of someone accustomed to being in charge was vividly apparent on the face of this eighteen- or nineteen-year-old girl.
A sudden panic seized him.
Zhou Suisui continued, “It’s fine if I don’t understand. But at your age, shouldn’t you understand? You work as a driver for the Zhou family, drive the Zhou family’s car, and use the Zhou family’s fuel to take outside jobs as a wedding car.”
Having been exposed, Old Wang’s face turned green, then white.
“That’s not true. I didn’t do that. Miss, you can’t slander me.”
“Whether I’m slandering you or not will be clear once we retrieve the car’s driving records and check them.”
At that, cold sweat broke out across Old Wang’s body.
“Miss, I was only helping a relative. There’s no need to make such a big deal out of it, is there?”
“Just helping a relative? You used the Zhou family’s car and the Zhou family’s fuel to do it?!”
Zhou Suisui’s gaze suddenly turned sharp. “Well, well.”
Under the overwhelming pressure she exerted, Old Wang immediately became flustered and was rendered speechless.
Zhou Suisui found it laughable.
In her previous life, the two of them had actually been manipulated by someone like this?
Put simply, people like Old Wang were selfish, devious, and thoroughly petty. They had no real ability or talent at all.
A few words from a young girl had been enough to intimidate him.
“Miss, what happened?”
Seeing that Zhou Suisui still had not left, Cui Wu came over to ask what was going on.
Old Wang looked at Cui Wu as if he had finally found an excuse. He pointed at her.
“Miss, Housekeeper Cui handles everything in the villa. She knew I was taking leave.”
Cui Wu’s expression turned unpleasant. “Old Wang, when did you ask me for leave? The young master is generous and makes allowances for you because you’re getting old. Don’t push every problem onto me.”
Old Wang had been treating her with less and less respect lately.
He thought she was a pushover—easy to bully.
But he hadn’t expected her to speak up without giving him an inch.
Old Wang’s expression darkened. “Housekeeper Cui, I’ve been driving for the Zhou family for two years. You know perfectly well how I do my job. Don’t make things up in front of Miss Zhou.”
“What am I making up? You’re trying to pin the blame on me, and now you won’t even let me tell the truth?”
Cui Wu was straightforward and hot-tempered by nature.
As long as she knew she was in the right, she was never afraid of a confrontation.
Old Wang’s face flushed crimson, humiliated at being exposed.
“Fine, fine. What exactly do you want now? Are you even planning to dock my pay?”
He was completely unafraid.
Given how much the young master doted on his niece, all it would take was a little pillow talk. When the time came, the ones who ended up embarrassed would be them instead.
Cui Wu looked at Zhou Suisui.
Old Wang had taken the master’s car out to earn money on the side. Whether that was a serious offense or a minor one depended entirely on the master’s attitude.
Zhou Suisui’s gaze turned cold. Her brother probably didn’t know about this yet, did he?
She looked at Cui Wu. “Sister Wu, you’re the housekeeper. There should be rules for dealing with a driver who misuses the family’s car for personal gain, shouldn’t there?”
Cui Wu bowed and replied, “There are, Miss. He should be fired.”
