The lingering aroma of tomato beef had formed an amber-colored film of oil around the rim of the porcelain bowl.
Sitting across from me, Yan Dong had already eaten his fill and was now wiping the remnants of soup from the corner of his lips with a tissue.
“Should I start treating you like a girl from now on?”
That somewhat absurd question kept circling in my mind, making it hard for me not to laugh.
Honestly, I didn’t think it was a real question at all.
Whether I’m a boy or a girl doesn’t change the fact that I’m his housemaid, and it certainly doesn’t change the fact that I’ll be working here for the next twenty years to pay off my debt.
Given that, what was the point of him asking?
“Is that question really important?”
“Mm… I think so. If you’re a girl, shouldn’t I be a bit more polite?”
“No need, thanks.”
I answered in a flat tone, but when I stood up, the wooden chair scraped loudly across the floor, betraying my mood.
The noise startled the tabby cat Mao Mao, who had been dozing by the floor-to-ceiling window.
“I’m full.”
I don’t consider myself a harsh or mean-spirited person, and I always take others’ kindness seriously.
The only reason things are so tense between Yan Dong and me is probably just a clash of personalities.
I can’t stand how arrogant and condescending he is, while he always meets my stubbornness with a mocking sneer.
I can get along with just about anyone—with a smile even—except Yan Dong.
I scrubbed the greasy stains off the marble kitchen counter with a cloth, while Mao Mao sat on the microwave nearby, eyes half-closed, quietly keeping me company.
After lunch, Yan Dong took a nap for a bit, then shut himself in his room to study.
He didn’t want to be disturbed, and I was more than happy to have some peace.
After finishing my chores, I curled up in the maid’s room and pulled out my phone to go through the physics PPT our professor had uploaded yesterday.
But the brief peace didn’t even last two minutes before there was a loud knock at the door.
Dragging myself to open it, I wasn’t surprised to see the ever-annoying Yan Dong standing outside.
“Lin, come to the supermarket with me.”
“Young Master, there are still two heads of broccoli in the fridge, and the freezer—”
“I’m tired from studying. I need some air.”
I resisted the overwhelming urge to punch him in the face and reluctantly followed him downstairs to the mall next to this upscale apartment complex.
Just as we were nearing the supermarket entrance, Yan Dong got distracted by a motorcycle simulator game in the corner of the mall, complete with roaring engine sound effects.
He kept going on about how “riding a motorcycle at night would be insanely cool.”
“Young Master, if you’re bored, I suggest going to your cram school for evening classes.”
“You don’t get it. Gunning the throttle and going full speed is a man’s romance. Let me try this out first, then I’ll ride for real tonight.”
I honestly couldn’t understand it.
If you go that fast and crash, wouldn’t that be game over?
And with the engine that loud, doesn’t it bother you?
“I don’t see the romance—just seems like a public nuisance to me.”
“I’m not speeding in the middle of the night to bother anyone, am I? Besides, the Fourth Ring Road’s practically empty at night.”
Seeing that I was still looking at him like he was an idiot, Yan Dong couldn’t be bothered to keep explaining the so-called “benefits” of this dangerous hobby.
He just waved his hand impatiently.
“Get lost, go buy your groceries. And grab me some cherries while you’re at it.”
With that, he stepped into the simulator cockpit, leaving me even more speechless.
Still, not having to look at Yan Dong’s face was a bonus.
I didn’t mind at all—perfect chance to stock up on some ingredients.
I walked into the supermarket next door and started shopping with a cart.
This supermarket was huge and packed with people.
After picking out a pile of daily essentials and tossing them into the cart, I made my way toward the fresh produce section.
“Cherries, cherries… There they are.”
Just as I bent down to pick out some cherries, a middle-aged man suddenly stepped back for some reason and bumped right into my shopping cart.
There was a dull thud as something heavy hit the ground—he had landed right on his butt in front of me.
“Are you okay, Uncle?”
Instinctively, I rushed over to help the man up.
The moment he saw me, he grabbed my arm and started grumbling under his breath.
“Young lady, watch where you’re going, huh? If I bust something, don’t go crying that I’m trying to scam you.”
“I’m really sorry, Uncle. I wasn’t paying attention. Here, let me help you up.”
“Alright, alright.”
I smiled politely, lips curved into a perfect professional arc.
In situations like this, my rule of thumb has always been: better to avoid trouble than invite it.
And besides, if anything really did happen, this place was crawling with surveillance cameras.
But… while I was helping him up, whether it was intentional or not, his hand—originally gripping my arm—slid upward a little.
“Young lady, judging by your outfit, you’re probably a maid for one of the residents nearby, huh?”
The man dusted off his pants as he stood, and even though he let go of my arm, he still stood way too close for comfort, making me furrow my brow.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Oh, come on. Most people shopping here are from the surrounding complex. Anyone rich enough to live here wouldn’t come out in a two- or three-thousand-yuan cheap suit. Not to mention, you’re not wearing a single valuable accessory…”
“Fair enough, I am a maid. Do you need something?”
“Nothing big. Just that I’m looking for a full-time live-in maid. What do you say—how much would be fair?”
His face was plastered with a friendly smile and his tone sounded all polite, but the way he cut straight to the point, without even trying to hide his intentions, was honestly too much.
“Young lady, just from the scent of your shampoo, I can tell you must be having some financial troubles. This must be fate, right? How about this—Uncle gives you fifty thousand a month, how’s that sound?”
“Fifty thousand? That much?”
“Exactly, exactly. A pretty girl like you—five hundred thousand is really not that much. It’s just… I have a bit of an awkward request. My wife can’t have children, and I’m not getting any younger. But we both really want a kid. I was hoping you could help us out when the time comes.”
As he spoke, his eyes roamed all over my body.
Worried I might refuse, he held up five fingers again.
“Don’t worry, during the pregnancy I’ll pay you an extra fifty thousand a month. After the baby’s born, we’ll give you a one-time bonus of five hundred thousand. How’s that? If it’s not enough, we can still negotiate.”
“So you’re saying… one year of pregnancy… one-point-five million?”
“That’s right, that’s right! What do you say—think it over? If you want, we can add each other on WeChat and talk more?”
He pulled out his phone and skillfully opened a QR code, holding it out toward me.
But before he could extend his hand all the way, someone gripped his wrist tightly.
“And who are you?”
“I’m her employer. You sure are generous, huh? Trying to poach her with that much money?”
The one who interrupted was none other than Yan Dong, appearing out of nowhere.
The middle-aged man frowned, clearly unhappy with Yan Dong’s sudden intrusion and hostile tone.
“What, it’s a mutual agreement—how is that poaching?”
“Spit! You think I don’t know exactly what kind of sick shit’s going on in that filthy head of yours?”
Yan Dong’s face darkened.
Without hesitation, he flung the man’s wrist aside.
“One-point-five million, my ass. In the end, you were just trying to fuck her for free.”
“You—how dare you slander me like that?”
“Old perv, you know how many years you can get for sexual harassment? You better get lost right now. Keep pestering her and I swear I won’t go easy on you!”
The man, clearly rattled by Yan Dong’s outburst, turned red in the face, glared at him, and walked off grumbling.
Only when the man’s figure disappeared from view did Yan Dong turn to me, still wearing a furious expression as he scolded me harshly.
“Lin, what the hell is wrong with you? You were really about to sell yourself for just one-point-five million? If I hadn’t shown up, would you have said yes?”
Standing in the shadow of the shelf, Yan Dong’s sharp gaze was full of confusion, frustration, and unmistakable disdain.
Of course someone like him—so far removed from people like me—could never understand what it’s like to live at the bottom.
I tilted my head slightly to look into his eyes, my voice calm and emotionless: “What else could I do? In your eyes, is there really a difference between selling twenty years and selling one?”
Yan Dong looked furious.
His face darkened even more, and his voice rose several decibels: “No, Lin—how the fuck is that the same thing?!”
“It is.”
“So by that logic, if I offered you one-point-five million like that old bastard, you’d be happy to sell yourself for a year?”
He’d never understand.
That ‘light’ one-point-five million he tossed out so casually—do you know how long it would take me to earn that?
Delivering takeout for three hours every night only earns me seventy yuan. I’d have to deliver for fifty-eight straight years.
My fists clenched tightly, nails digging painfully into my palms. But I never once looked away from his face.
“Fine, but after a year, we’re done. No more ties between us.”
“What the hell, Lin? Why are you suddenly acting crazy? One-point-five million—is that really so much? Can’t we just earn that money with dignity? Do you really have to sell yourself? What you’re doing is no different from standing on the—on the—”
His pupils slowly shrank, and the scolding in his voice faded, little by little, until it disappeared entirely, leaving only a confused and uncertain whisper.
“You… you’re crying?”
It was only when he said that that I realized cold tears had somehow begun streaming down my cheeks.
To people like them, the money I owe probably doesn’t even count as money.
But only I know how suffocating this nightmare really is, how unbearably heavy it’s been sitting on my chest.
“I have no one but myself to rely on. I just want to go back to the normal life I had before… is that so wrong?”
I grabbed his collar tightly. In that moment, I truly wanted to scream, to let out every bit of anger and pain.
But all that came out were glittering tears soaking into his shirt collar, and trembling hands that wouldn’t stop shaking.
“Do I even have a choice?”
He didn’t answer.
He just stood there, staring at me in a daze, watching as I bit down hard on my lip, sobbing without a sound…
Tears, of course, wouldn’t help.
They wouldn’t pay off my debt—I knew that perfectly well.
Maybe it was because I’d suddenly become a girl, that my emotions had gotten so unstable.
In any case, after curling up alone in a corner to quietly process everything, I eventually lifted my head again and stared blankly at the bustling world not far away.
“Feeling any better?”
“I’m fine. I lost control a little just now.”
I nodded faintly, stood up, and brushed the dust off my pants.
That’s when I noticed the ice pop in front of me, cold mist still curling off of it.
Yan Dong had one in his mouth, and the other hand—reaching out to me—held a peeled one.
“Here. Take one.”
“It’s freezing out…”
“That’s exactly why it’s the perfect time for ice pops. My treat. Look… I admit I might’ve gone a little too far just now.”
His voice sounded a bit awkward.
He really did seem to regret what he’d said.
Maybe… this was his way of apologizing?
Fine. I’ll treat it as an apology.
I don’t have the energy to argue anymore.
“Aren’t you always like this, Young Master?”
“Bullshit. A genius, rich, handsome guy like me only shows up once in a century. You’re lucky as hell just to have met me.”
“Yeah, sure. Meeting someone like you must mean my ancestors’ graves are smoking—with secondhand smoke.”
I took the ice pop from his hand and bit into it.
The sharp corners crunched between my teeth, and the sugary chill melting on my tongue felt oddly sweet.
“So cold.”
…