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Had she opened it to look?

Right in front of this painting, all she had to do was lightly turn a page, and she would see that picture she herself had no idea why she'd painted...

Had she seen it?

She probably hadn't. How could a housekeeper snoop on her employer's secrets?

Even if that secret was only an artbook she'd forgotten to put away, left on the bay window.

Yu Qing flipped through the book. The previous page looked just as it had when she'd put down her brush. There didn't seem to be any difference.

Of course. If someone had only looked, what traces could they leave behind?

Even the tablet she remembered not leaving on the bedside table had been placed back on top of the cabinet.

She never locked her electronic devices. All Xiang Changge had to do was swipe the screen, and the dog-raising guide she'd been reading last night would appear right before her eyes.

Then Xiang Changge would know that Yu Qing didn't mean what she said: she claimed she didn't want a pet, but in secret, she'd already started studying up and getting ready.

Thinking about it made Yu Qing's back burn.

Xiang Changge was standing right behind her.

If she'd seen all that last night, what would she say?

Was that why she'd come here now—to talk to Yu Qing about it?

All sorts of thoughts surged through Yu Qing's mind. She could only calm herself by playing the piano all morning; she didn't even have time to sink into the melancholy she usually dwelled in.

After all those thoughts had raced through Yu Qing's mind in a brief moment, she heard Xiang Changge say in her usual voice, "It's eight o'clock, Miss. You should have breakfast."

Yu Qing: "..."

That was it?

"Oh."

Unusually, Yu Qing didn't say much this time. She simply got up from the piano bench, folded her arms, and walked past Xiang Changge by the door without looking at her.

This time, it was Xiang Changge's turn to freeze.

She glanced at the weather outside the piano room's floor-to-ceiling window.

The sun hadn't risen from anywhere else today, had it? How come Yu Qing was being so obedient? She hadn't said she had no appetite or didn't want to eat. Xiang Changge had reminded her once, and off she went.

"That's a little strange," Xiang Changge said to the system.

After thinking it over carefully, the system replied, "Strangely cute?"

Xiang Changge: "..."

She really wanted to send it off for a virus scan.

-

Yu Qing's "strangeness" lasted for quite a while.

They came out of the elevator one after the other. The housekeeper was laying out breakfast on the long dining table, and beside Yu Qing's seat was another place setting.

It was Xiang Changge's.

It wasn't that she wanted to mooch off Yu Qing's breakfast. Mainly, she was worried Yu Qing would go through the motions, eat a little, then stop before reaching the amount required by the system's task.

She was just there to supervise more effectively.

Yu Qing said nothing when she saw the extra place setting. She sat down and immediately lowered her head to drink the millet porridge in front of her.

Xiang Changge sat down too.

She usually ate with great focus, but Yu Qing seemed a little off, and it was distracting her from her food.

She asked the system to confirm, "Is Yu Qing feeling down right now?"

The system took two seconds to reply. "She's fine. Her mood index is within the normal range."

After thinking for a couple of seconds, Xiang Changge came to a conclusion—

Maybe she'd slept too well last night. This was what Yu Qing looked like when she had plenty of energy.

Reassured, Xiang Changge started eating.

She really made food look delicious.

In every sense of the word.

She enjoyed eating so much that even a boiled green vegetable seemed like a delicacy in her mouth.

And when other people watched her eat, her movements were somehow appetizing too, unconsciously making them hungry along with her.

There was still some of the braising liquid Ge Bufan had made last night. A few peeled, halved braised eggs on the table had been cooked in it, and they tasted wonderful with porridge or on their own.

Xiang Changge ate half an egg in one bite. The savory braising aroma wafted up, and the egg white was springy and delicious.

The food on the plate disappeared quickly.

When only two halves of a braised egg were left, Xiang Changge suddenly remembered something and glanced at Yu Qing.

The person who'd been eating millet porridge was still eating millet porridge.

How could she have eaten so much and still look as if she hadn't touched it?

What if she ate a little longer, but the system still judged her as falling short?

"Is there no bottom to your bowl?" Xiang Changge asked sincerely.

Yu Qing, who'd been sneaking glances at Xiang Changge while taking sips of porridge: "..." What did that mean?

At that, Yu Qing looked at the half bowl of porridge she had left, then at Xiang Changge, who had finished her second bowl. "Do you have a fast-forward button?"

She wasn't even eating that slowly. Didn't people just eat one bite at a time?

Xiang Changge said nothing. Instead, she reluctantly pushed the two pieces of braised egg toward Yu Qing. "You can't fill up on porridge alone. It's bland. Have some side dishes."

There were shrimp dumplings, garlic lettuce, steamed egg, tofu, and all sorts of other things around the table. Yet Yu Qing was just holding her bowl and eating porridge. Rich people had the strangest tastes.

Yu Qing: "..."

She didn't eat much to begin with, and it wasn't because the food was bland. She just didn't want to eat, okay?

Yu Qing suddenly felt that her earlier worries had been pointless. If Xiang Changge really had seen her artbook and noticed she'd accidentally drawn her, she would have asked outright why Yu Qing had painted her—or commented on whether the picture was ugly or just not very good.

The tablet was the same.

Yu Qing could already picture it. Xiang Changge would probably say in a polite but sarcastic tone, "Since you've made all the preparations, Miss, I'll go bring you a dog right away."

Yu Qing bit into the braised egg and chewed without tasting a thing.

She finally finished a bowl of porridge. Then she saw Xiang Changge pull a tablet from who knew where and start asking about her plans for the day.

"We haven't gotten around to choosing accessories yet. Would you like me to invite the brand representatives over today?"

"Or would you like to go see the golf course behind the house with me? I sincerely suggest you consider turning it into a pasture."

"How did you feel about the three temporary workers from yesterday? Should we call them all over to keep you company today?"

"Or would you like to take the helicopter out for a spin? It's cloudy today, but there's no sign of thunder or strong winds. The weather should be comfortable enough for going out."

"..."

Yu Qing felt as though a thousand ducks were quacking beside her ears. Her head was about to split.

She closed her eyes and covered her ears. "Xiang Changge, you're so annoying."

She didn't want to do any of that. She just wanted to be alone and sit quietly.

Xiang Changge put away the tablet and shrugged. "Then, Miss, is there anything you'd like to do?" As long as Yu Qing didn't lie around doing nothing and brood by herself, she could do whatever she wanted.

Yu Qing lowered her hands. Her expressionless face was filled with despair, like a college student who'd just found out they had eight papers due tomorrow—at midnight.

"Do I have to do something?"

There wasn't a trace of life in Yu Qing's eyes. Her voice was weak.

"Yes," Xiang Changge said seriously. "People have to do something. It doesn't have to be meaningful, but you do have to do something."

Because people weren't made of stone or wood. If they stopped doing anything, they might as well turn into stone or wood.

"Read a book, play the piano, go out for coffee—actually, cross that one off, you can't drink coffee—or go to the library and borrow a book. Find a game to play... In short, do anything."

She had to feel that she was alive, that she was still a living, breathing person.

"If you can't think of anything, we can call over the three temporary workers from yesterday."

Xiang Changge offered some suggestions. "Yao Ningran can paint or play piano with you. You can also learn to make pastries from Ge Bufan, or take photos with her. And, of course, you can talk business with her."

"I think Ge Bufan's braised food really tastes good. She has a lot of potential. You could talk about working together and start a braising business."

"You don't need to overcomplicate it. You can think about chain stores later. Even opening a small shop together would be good. Or, if you think that's too much trouble, you could invest in her."

Yu Qing pressed her lips together.

Although she looked silent and uninterested, she was listening to everything Xiang Changge said.

"I don't need money. Why would I make so much? Don't you know I couldn't spend all my money in several lifetimes? Money is the most useless thing in the world to me."

"..."

Xiang Changge took several deep breaths, tamping down the inexplicable anger rising inside her.

When she spoke again, Yu Qing thought she sounded like she was gritting her teeth. "I know you don't need money, but Ge Bufan does. If you work with her, she can earn money, and you'll have something to do. Isn't that a win-win?"