Chapter 15 Why Must You Take on This Unprofitable Job…

Bai Yuanzhi returned to the rental room, her stomach full.

Zhou Zhaodi was pacing restlessly inside.

But truth be told, the room wasn’t very big—only enough space to take two or three steps before having to sit down again.

Staying long-term in such a cramped, confined space was practically no different from being in prison.

So Zhou Zhaodi appeared irritable and restless.

Seeing Bai Yuanzhi return, Zhou Zhaodi rushed over excitedly. “Third Sister, you’re back?”

Bai Yuanzhi gave a noncommittal hum.

“Where did you go? Why were you gone all day?” Zhou Zhaodi asked again.

Bai Yuanzhi answered succinctly, “Working.”

Zhou Zhaodi’s eyes sparkled. “Did you go to Sister Wen’s place? I overheard your conversation yesterday! By the way, Third Sister, how much money did you earn?”

Bai Yuanzhi replied, “What does that have to do with you?”

The excitement hadn’t yet faded from Zhou Zhaodi’s face. “Great, then let’s go out to eat right away! I’m starving! Third Sister, I want braised pork…”

She paused, then widened her eyes at Bai Yuanzhi, stammering, “W-what did you say?”

Bai Yuanzhi asked word by word, “I said, what does it have to do with you how much money I earned?”

Zhou Zhaodi was stunned. “Bai Yuanzhi! I’m your sister! Don’t think that just because you changed your name—even your surname—you can abandon me! You…”

Bai Yuanzhi cut in, “I’ve already allowed you to stay here without paying a single cent. What more do you want?”

Zhou Zhaodi was furious. “Then what am I supposed to eat? I barely ate anything yesterday… and today, I haven’t eaten either! Bai Yuanzhi, are you trying to starve me to death?”

Bai Yuanzhi frowned deeply. “I’ve already made things very clear to you, and I don’t want to repeat myself. My stance remains the same: I’ll only let you stay here for three months. Everything else is not my concern.”

Zhou Zhaodi was beside herself with anger. “But I don’t have any identification, and I’m not even an adult! Where do you expect me to find food?”

Bai Yuanzhi sneered. “Did Aunt Jiang ask you for identification? Aunt Huang’s mahjong parlor is also hiring tea-serving girls. She already knows you and won’t ask for your identification either.”

“All your excuses are just laziness! You don’t want to do anything. You just want to lie here comfortably while I take care of your food and shelter.”

Zhou Zhaodi grew frantic. “So what if that’s true? You’re my sister, aren’t you?”

“Do you really see me as your sister?” Bai Yuanzhi retorted.

Zhou Zhaodi was left speechless.

Bai Yuanzhi continued calmly, “Back in our hometown, you were always lazy. You never treated me like a sister. In your eyes, you and Zhou Niandi were the young ladies, and I was the hired laborer. It was only natural for me to serve and provide for you!”

“You insisted on following me to Hong Kong City because you knew that once I left… even though Zhou Niandi was no longer at home, Dad and our brother were still there like two demanding gods. If you stayed home alone, you’d definitely have to serve them.”

“That’s why you followed me here.”

“I’ve already been merciful by not reporting you.”

“And don’t talk about how you’re not yet an adult… Think back to how old I was when I started doing farm work to support the family!” As she spoke, Bai Yuanzhi began heating water for her bath.

Zhou Zhaodi trembled with rage.

Bai Yuanzhi said coldly, “I’ll say this one last time!”

“If I hear you asking me for money, food, or trying to hold me accountable for why I’m not supporting you again—”

“Then we can go to the police station!”

“Let Hong Kong City’s police decide our case!”

Zhou Zhaodi’s face turned deathly pale.

—That would be equivalent to reporting to the police, telling them she was an illegal immigrant!

She bit her lower lip hard, shooting Bai Yuanzhi a resentful glance.

Bai Yuanzhi ignored her. Seeing the bathwater was almost ready, she began undressing to bathe, then taunted Zhou Zhaodi, “Besides, it’s not like you really have nothing to eat. Didn’t you have Ferrero Rocher chocolates last night? Tsk tsk, an imported brand—so fragrant and sweet.”

Zhou Zhaodi’s expression instantly changed, flushing with shame and anger. “H-how did you know? Did Aunt Huang tell you?”

Bai Yuanzhi just smiled.

Zhou Zhaodi reached into her pocket, feeling the last round chocolate ball. After hesitating for a long, long time, she reluctantly took it out. “Here, if you want it… then you can have it!”

Bai Yuanzhi replied, “I don’t want anything from you. Otherwise, I might end up having to support you for life just because I ate this one chocolate!”

Zhou Zhaodi was so angry tears welled up in her eyes.

After bathing, changing clothes, and having a full dinner, Bai Yuanzhi felt refreshed and energized.

She thought to herself that she shouldn’t waste such a good evening.

She’d take a few days to transition,

and tomorrow, after finding a night school, she’d figure out how to enroll and buy some books to study.

Just then, voices of Zhou Zhaodi and Sister Wen sounded outside the room.

One voice was soft, sounding guilty;

the other was loud, sounding surprised.

Zhou Zhaodi’s soft muttering was unclear to Bai Yuanzhi.

But Sister Wen’s loud voice was clear: “…What are you talking about, Zhaodi? How much money your cousin earned from working today—why are you asking me? Go ask Ah Zhi yourself. She’s your cousin, isn’t she?”

Zhou Zhaodi muttered a few more things.

Sister Wen grew even more surprised. “What? You haven’t eaten all day? Then why didn’t you go work? What? You’re not an adult yet? Ah Zhi isn’t an adult either! Her ID says she’s only seventeen! But given your sisters’ situation, there’s no other choice, right? Besides, those job opportunities we talked about yesterday—since we’re all acquaintances, casual work doesn’t require checking IDs. When your cousin worked at our mall today, no ID was needed either. I just had to say a word to the supervisor.”

Zhou Zhaodi said something else.

Sister Wen was already growing impatient. “Alright, alright, Zhaodi, who among us renting subdivided flats isn’t pitiful? We’re all poor—that’s why we live here! In Hong Kong City, as long as someone is physically able, no one starves to death unless they’re too lazy!”

“Alright, Zhaodi, I won’t chat anymore. I need to hurry and cook for my son!” With that, Sister Wen left angrily.

Bai Yuanzhi smiled.

Clearly, Zhou Zhaodi had gone to Sister Wen to find out exactly how much money Bai Yuanzhi had earned today…

But what Zhou Zhaodi didn’t know was,

Hong Kong City was different from the mainland.

Perhaps because everyone is an outsider, each with their own difficulties, the people of Hong Kong City have a strong sense of boundaries.

Zhou Zhaodi’s behavior—badmouthing her own family in front of outsiders and prying into how much money her relatives earn—is truly irritating.

Especially since Sister Wen had just earned a decent commission with Bai Yuanzhi’s help today!

Before long, Zhou Zhaodi returned with a flushed face.

As soon as she entered the room, she caught sight of the mocking smile on Bai Yuanzhi’s face. Furious, she stomped her foot and threw herself onto the bed to sulk.

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, Zhou Zhaodi got up, washed up, got dressed, and prepared herself.

She was determined to follow Bai Yuanzhi to work today!

She wanted to know exactly how much money Bai Yuanzhi earned and whether the work was tiring.

If the work wasn’t too hard, she could start working too in the future.

If it was exhausting and paid poorly, she could cry and make a scene when Bai Yuanzhi collected her wages. Surely the bosses paying Bai Yuanzhi would take pity on her and give her at least half of Bai Yuanzhi’s earnings.

Or, she could go to work with Bai Yuanzhi and then use excuses like being too young or feeling unwell to shove her share of the work onto Bai Yuanzhi. That way, she could get paid without doing any work!

But!

What Zhou Zhaodi hadn’t expected was that Bai Yuanzhi slept in until past nine o’clock?!

Zhou Zhaodi was so anxious she was pacing in circles.

—Bai Yuanzhi had left before dawn yesterday morning! Why hadn’t she left yet today?

Could it be that Bai Yuanzhi had anticipated she would try to follow and was deliberately making things difficult for her by not going?

Unable to hold back any longer, Zhou Zhaodi cautiously patted Bai Yuanzhi, who was sleeping on the upper bunk. “Third Sister—”

She was being so careful because she had already tried calling Bai Yuanzhi several times before.

But each time, she had been scolded and kicked by Bai Yuanzhi.

This time was no exception.

As soon as Zhou Zhaodi called out “Third Sister,” before she could even mention the time, Bai Yuanzhi gave her a hard kick and yelled, “Get lost!”

Zhou Zhaodi sat on the lower bunk, feeling wronged and on the verge of tears.

It wasn’t until half past ten that Bai Yuanzhi finally woke up, refreshed and energetic.

Zeng Lian from next door came knocking. “Ah Zhi, we leave in ten minutes!”

Bai Yuanzhi cheerfully replied, “Coming, coming!”

She quickly washed up, changed her clothes, and strode out the door with vigor.

Zhou Zhaodi, however, had gotten up too early and was now starving, feeling both exhausted and listless.

Still, she forced herself to follow Bai Yuanzhi out.

Bai Yuanzhi glanced back at Zhou Zhaodi.

Zhou Zhaodi hurriedly explained, “Third Sister, I’m going to work with you today.”

Bai Yuanzhi scoffed. “Don’t bother. Just admit you’re going to supervise me! I don’t believe you’ll actually work.”

Zhou Zhaodi’s face flushed red.

Seeing Zhou Zhaodi trailing behind Bai Yuanzhi, Zeng Lian looked surprised. “Ah Zhi, is your sister coming too? But I told the supervisor yesterday that I’d only bring one person today.”

Bai Yuanzhi waved it off. “Don’t worry about her.”

Zeng Lian widened her eyes.

Bai Yuanzhi said bluntly, “My cousin just wants to know how much money I earn.”

Zeng Lian looked at Zhou Zhaodi, a thoughtful expression on her face.

Zhou Zhaodi hadn’t expected Bai Yuanzhi to be so blunt, and her face flushed bright red instantly. She stammered, “N-no, that’s not it! I… I also want to work part-time, to earn… earn money.”

“I don’t believe you,” Bai Yuanzhi deliberately provoked her.

Zhou Zhaodi immediately bristled, “Why don’t you believe me? If I say I’ll work, then I’ll definitely work!”

As she spoke, Zhou Zhaodi linked arms with Zeng Lian, “Sister Lian, later, help me find a job too!”

Zeng Lian thought for a moment, “That could work.”

And so, the three of them went downstairs together.

There was a breakfast stall by the roadside.

Zeng Lian spent one yuan and fifty fen to buy two meat buns and a bag of soy milk.

Bai Yuanzhi also spent one yuan to buy two steaming hot meat buns.

Zhou Zhaodi stood to the side, staring at the buns in Bai Yuanzhi’s hands, her eyes gleaming with envy.

She had just licked her lips.

Bai Yuanzhi had already finished one meat bun…

Zhou Zhaodi grew anxious, “Third Sister!”

Bai Yuanzhi stuffed the last meat bun into her mouth, “What?”

Zhou Zhaodi was stunned.

Zeng Lian, standing nearby, asked Bai Yuanzhi, “Are you just going to eat the buns like that? Aren’t you afraid of choking? Buy a bag of soy milk to wash it down!”

Bai Yuanzhi shook her head firmly, “I need to save money.”

Zeng Lian sighed, “A bag of soy milk only costs fifty fen!”

Bai Yuanzhi said, “Sister Lian, let’s go!”

Zhou Zhaodi stood to the side, feeling utterly wronged.

But she also understood—Bai Yuanzhi was just that heartless, unwilling to spend money on breakfast for her.

She had no choice but to dig into her own pocket, buying two meat buns and a bag of soy milk. She stuffed them into her mouth in two or three bites, swallowing them down. Instantly, her mouth, esophagus, and stomach released a sigh of satisfaction, as if they couldn’t wait…

The Love Home chain hotel wasn’t far from the rental house.

It was just a twenty-minute walk.

Zeng Lian arranged for Bai Yuanzhi to work as a room cleaner.

—The hotel generally required guests to check out before 12 p.m., and new guests could check in around 2 p.m.

So, Bai Yuanzhi needed to clean the assigned rooms within the three hours from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

As for Zhou Zhaodi, she had only mentioned wanting to work at the last minute.

Zeng Lian went to speak with the supervisor for a while and finally arranged for Zhou Zhaodi to work in the laundry room.

Zhou Zhaodi was most concerned about the wages.

Zeng Lian explained, “Ah Zhi’s job pays four yuan per hour. She works three hours a day, so twelve yuan. Your job pays a bit more per hour, and the hours are longer—from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., five hours in total, at five yuan per hour…”

Zhou Zhaodi hesitated.

—Why did her job require two more hours of work than Bai Yuanzhi’s?

But then she thought, Bai Yuanzhi only earned four yuan per hour, while she earned five yuan per hour!

Zhou Zhaodi felt a bit smug again.

She asked Zeng Lian, “So, what exactly will I do in the laundry room? Wash clothes?”

Zeng Lian replied, “No, the laundry room is for washing bedsheets, duvet covers, and towels. You don’t have to wash them—the hotel has special washing machines. Your job is to take the washed bedsheets, duvet covers, pillowcases, and towels out of the washing machines and hang them on the racks to dry.”

Zhou Zhaodi thought to herself, that sounds pretty easy!

But she also had a bit of cunning and asked Zeng Lian, “Sister Lian, what will my third sister be doing?”

Zeng Lian said, “Sweeping, tidying up the rooms, stripping the bedsheets and duvet covers that guests have used, and replacing them with clean ones. Then washing cups, scrubbing toilets…”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhaodi thought, “Wow, that sounds so complicated!”

Then working in the laundry room would be much better!

Moreover, after a full day, Bai Yuanzhi only earned 12 dollars, while she could make 25 dollars!

That was twice as much as Bai Yuanzhi.

So, Zhou Zhaodi happily went to work in the laundry room.

Bai Yuanzhi sneered coldly on the side.

—Only someone like Zhou Zhaodi, who had never worked before, would think laundry room work was easy!

She didn’t even consider why the hourly wage for laundry work was higher than cleaning guest rooms if it was so easy.

But she couldn’t be bothered with Zhou Zhaodi.

Bai Yuanzhi followed Zeng Lian to start working.

In her previous life, after arriving in Hong Kong City, Bai Yuanzhi had mostly done sales and promotions.

As for cleaning hotel rooms, she had never done that kind of work before.

But she was young, smart, and physically strong.

After watching Zeng Lian swiftly clean a guest room,

Bai Yuanzhi got straight to work.

She was a bit clumsy and flustered while making the bed and putting on the sheets,

but after cleaning several rooms, she quickly got the hang of it.

So—

Zeng Lian watched as Bai Yuanzhi went from clumsy and flustered to swift and skilled…

all in just one hour.

Bai Yuanzhi and Zeng Lian were responsible for thirty rooms across four floors.

That meant each of them had to clean fifteen rooms.

Bai Yuanzhi finished her assigned rooms in just two hours;

After that, she even helped Zeng Lian clean two more rooms, then asked her, “Sister Lian, could you please collect my daily wages for me? You can give them to me tomorrow morning. I’d like to leave early—while I have some free time, I want to go to the hospital to check on my sister’s condition.”

Zeng Lian, whose workload had lightened considerably, was naturally very pleased. “Got it, got it. You go ahead, I’ll collect your wages for you.”

Bai Yuanzhi thanked Zeng Lian and went to the hospital.

Zhou Sier still looked the same as before.

However, because Bai Yuanzhi had said some provoking words to Zhou Sier during her visit yesterday, which had affected Zhou Sier’s vital signs,

when Bai Yuanzhi visited again today, the hospital sent a nurse to keep a close watch on her the entire time.

Bai Yuanzhi: …

It was both amusing and frustrating.

But overall, Bai Yuanzhi was still very grateful for the medical staff’s care of Zhou Sier.

This time, she didn’t say anything to provoke her elder sister, only talking about her work.

Zhou Sier remained quiet the whole time.

After the visit, Bai Yuanzhi went to Dr. Huang as usual to ask about her sister’s condition.

But Dr. Huang was meeting with guests.

Bai Yuanzhi waited outside Dr. Huang’s office for a long time before two middle-aged men finally came out.

They were dressed in suits, with slicked-back hair and briefcases in hand, polite yet distant.

Just as Dr. Huang saw them out, he noticed Bai Yuanzhi and was taken aback.

“Dr. Huang, we’ll rely on you to continue overseeing Zhou Sier’s treatment,” one of them said.

The other added, “Please proceed as we discussed earlier!”

Upon hearing this, Bai Yuanzhi widened her eyes.

Dr. Huang nodded. “Alright.”

After the two men left, Dr. Huang glanced back at Bai Yuanzhi and motioned for her to follow him into his office.

Bai Yuanzhi lowered her head and walked in.

Dr. Huang closed the door behind him before speaking, “Miss Bai, those two just now… one is a shareholder of Bilanting, and the other is the manager of Bilanting. They came today because of Zhou Sier as well.”

Bai Yuanzhi asked directly, “What kind of agreement did you reach?”

Dr. Huang took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes wearily, and then put them back on. “After learning about Zhou Sier’s condition, they suggested to me that she should undergo conservative treatment.”

Bai Yuanzhi asked again, “Just a suggestion?”

Dr. Huang nodded, “Just a suggestion.”

“But my sister’s condition was still critical yesterday. When I came to visit her yesterday, her heart monitor was alarming.” Bai Yuanzhi shamelessly brought up yesterday’s incident and made no mention that Zhou Sier’s abnormal state yesterday was because of her.

Dr. Huang said, “I understand. As Zhou Sier’s attending physician, I certainly know that her current condition absolutely cannot be moved out of the ICU.”

Seeing Dr. Huang’s deeply worried expression, Bai Yuanzhi hesitated for a moment before saying, “Dr. Huang, actually, I’ve already reported it to the police. I suspect my sister was deliberately murdered, which is why she fell from Bilanting Hotel…”

In truth, she had always known that Dr. Huang was quite upright.

But there was no guarantee that Bilanting wouldn’t use its influence to bully others.

So Bai Yuanzhi could only continue to pressure Dr. Huang.

Upon hearing this, Dr. Huang was startled and quickly asked, “What did the police say?”

Bai Yuanzhi immediately made up her mind, thinking that she must go find Aunt Jiang to pass a message to Officer Jiang later. Even if she had to lie, she needed Officer Jiang to come to the hospital to see Zhou Sier.

“The police said they would come again to learn more about my sister’s condition,” Bai Yuanzhi said.

Dr. Huang let out a long sigh of relief, “When they come, I will also tell them about this.”

“Thank you, Dr. Huang.”

“You’re too polite, Miss Bai.”

After leaving the hospital, Bai Yuanzhi hurriedly rushed to her second job—working at the mall.

But before that, Bai Yuanzhi still went to Jiang’s Roast Meat Shop, spending eight dollars to ask Aunt Jiang to pack a serving of braised sauce over rice. She then casually said to Aunt Jiang:

“Aunt Jiang, earlier at the hospital, I heard from the doctor that my sister seems to have woken up…”

“What?” Aunt Jiang looked pleasantly surprised, “Really? Sier is awake?”

Bai Yuanzhi hesitated again, “But… but I don’t know how to say it.”

“What exactly is going on?” Aunt Jiang asked again.

Bai Yuanzhi appropriately showed an embarrassed expression, “It’s like this: when I went to visit my sister, she was still showing no improvement, just like the past few days. But her attending physician, Dr. Huang, said he wants to transfer her from the ICU to a regular ward…”

“I asked Dr. Huang why—”

Aunt Jiang anxiously asked, “Yes, why? If there’s still no improvement, why move her out of the ICU?”

Bai Yuanzhi awkwardly replied, “Dr. Huang told me, but he said it in English. I didn’t understand.”

Aunt Jiang was stunned.

Bai Yuanzhi continued, “But my sister really can hear people talking now! When I speak to her, she responds. Aunt Jiang… could you please pass a message to Officer Jiang and ask them to send someone to the hospital to check on my sister? What if they ask my sister whether my aunt tried to kill her, and she actually nods?”

Aunt Jiang’s mouth fell open in shock.

Yes, Bai Yuanzhi had said it deliberately.

She had to stir up Aunt Jiang’s curiosity so that she would push for “Officer Jiang to go to the hospital and ask Dr. Huang.”

Even if it meant offending Zhou Xiangmei…

That didn’t matter.

Sure enough, Aunt Jiang’s eyes immediately lit up with the blazing fire of gossip, and she said resolutely, “Alright! I’ll call Ah Ming in a bit!” Her son was still young, having just joined the police department’s criminal investigation team this year. If he could solve the case, his future promotion path would be smooth and unobstructed.

Bai Yuanzhi breathed a sigh of relief, thanked Aunt Jiang, picked up the food Aunt Jiang had packed for her, and hurried off to the mall.

Due to the long delay at the hospital, Bai Yuanzhi was actually late by the time she arrived at the mall.

Fortunately, she had informed Sister Wen in advance,

so Sister Wen had already registered and signed her in ahead of time, and even set up the stall for her.

Today, Bai Yuanzhi was still selling Xia Mei sauce.

Sister Wen was a single mother and never worked the night shift.

But she gave Bai Yuanzhi some instructions, then called over a few sales promoters who were usually on good terms with her, introducing them to everyone before leaving.

Bai Yuanzhi understood perfectly well.

—This was Sister Wen helping her build connections!

These were all valuable connections, indeed!

So, Bai Yuanzhi spent some time observing and integrating, then came up with a joint promotion strategy on the spot. After getting everyone’s agreement, she immediately started hawking.

It must be said,

just as Sister Wen had mentioned before, foot traffic was low during the day but high at night.

There were plenty of customers strolling around the mall, but most of them didn’t spend much.

They came with their children, mostly to take a walk after dinner, digest their food, and enjoy the air conditioning.

Even if they did spend, they were only willing to buy cheap ice pops or snacks for the kids.

However, the Xia Mei sauce Bai Yuanzhi was promoting was quite expensive, which also made it a point of interest for the housewives.

Among them, some middle-class housewives tried buying a few.

Of course, the most important reason was Bai Yuanzhi’s sweet talk—she wasn’t afraid to say anything flattering, and with her pretty face, sweet voice, quick wit, and generous nature…

she was quite popular with the housewives.

Plus, Bai Yuanzhi’s joint discount campaign with the other promoters was something new and refreshing for the housewives!

So—

some bought four sets of Xia Mei sauce to get a discounted mini desktop fan;

some bought three sets of Xia Mei sauce to get a discounted thin blanket;

and some bought two sets of Xia Mei sauce to get a discounted insulated lunchbox…

In short, by the time they closed up at ten in the evening, Bai Yuanzhi had once again made a hefty profit!

Of course, this time, Bai Yuanzhi had mostly benefited from the other promoters, as the products they were promoting were more expensive. This made customers feel that “buying four sets of Xia Mei sauce to get an 80% discount on a mini fan” was an especially good deal…

Regardless, quite a bit of Xia Mei sauce was sold.

After paying the others their agreed-upon commissions, Bai Yuanzhi netted over seventy yuan!

Though exhausted, Bai Yuanzhi was quite happy.

After work, she didn’t rush back but instead took a detour to the night school she had attended in her previous life.

However, Miss Tian, who had been familiar with her in her previous life, might not have started teaching there yet.

Bai Yuanzhi randomly found a teacher and asked about the enrollment process.

The teacher told her that it wasn’t a good time to enroll now, as the course was already halfway through. If she joined mid-term, she wouldn’t be able to catch up on the earlier lessons, and the later ones would be difficult to follow.

However, the teacher still enthusiastically introduced the situation of the night school, including class times, fees, exam pass rates, and so on.

In fact, Bai Yuanzhi had already attended night school in her previous life.

But at that time, limited by her narrow perspective and lacking any plans for the future, she chose the accounting major—the easiest to pass—on the recommendation of Song Junshu and the night school teacher.

It wasn’t that the major was bad,

but it wasn’t until Bai Yuanzhi obtained her diploma, started working, and had been on the job for several years

that she finally figured out her true passion was actually in finance.

So in this life, she wanted to study finance.

After finishing her conversation with the teacher, Bai Yuanzhi hurried excitedly back to her rented room.

Along the way, she kept calculating the cost of attending night school, the time for part-time jobs, and her future rent and living expenses…

Soon, she arrived back at the rented room.

As soon as she opened the door, Bai Yuanzhi heard Zhou Zhaodi’s aggrieved and furious low roar, “You finally decided to come back?!”

Bai Yuanzhi: ???

“This is a room I’m paying to rent. I can come back whenever I want!” With that, Bai Yuanzhi set down her cloth bag and started boiling water to prepare for a bath.

Zhou Zhaodi was taken aback for a moment, then angrily shut her mouth.

Unable to hold back, she finally burst out at Bai Yuanzhi, “We agreed to go to work together, but you didn’t wait for me—you just left me behind! Do you even know…”

Zhou Zhaodi choked back a sob before shouting, “Do you even know how exhausted I am?”

“Zeng Lian made it sound so easy, saying the laundry room doesn’t require manual washing—it’s all done by machines. All we had to do was take the washed sheets and duvet covers out of the machines and hang them up to dry…”

“Ha! As if it were that simple!”

“But those sheets and duvet covers… they were as heavy as anything!”

“And even though they said it was only a five-hour shift, there was actually a quota. If you didn’t finish hanging everything up, they wouldn’t let you leave!”

Zhou Zhaodi grew angrier as she spoke. “First, I’ve never done this kind of work before, and second, I’m not strong. So what if I was a bit slow? They ended up scolding me! They said I was too slow, that hanging the duvet covers too slowly would keep them from drying properly… They even accused me of slacking off and threatened to dock my pay if I didn’t speed up!”

Bai Yuanzhi grew impatient. “So? What does that have to do with me?”

Zhou Zhaodi was stunned. “It has nothing to do with you? You’re the one who took me to work! You… shouldn’t you have helped me with the work I couldn’t finish? But you… you just left without a word! Do you even know that what was supposed to be a five-hour shift ended up taking me eleven hours to finish?”

“They even docked five yuan from my pay, saying my slow hanging speed affected the drying!”

Zhou Zhaodi was furious. “We agreed that five hours of work would earn twenty-five yuan! But after working eleven hours, I only made twenty yuan!”

What made Zhou Zhaodi even angrier was something else.

She had planned to stick with Bai Yuanzhi all day today to figure out exactly how many part-time jobs Bai Yuanzhi worked and how much money she made in total.

But Bai Yuanzhi left before the shift was even over,

and Zhou Zhaodi had no idea where she went afterward, what job she took, or how much she earned!

The more Zhou Zhaodi thought about it, the angrier she became. “I don’t care—you have to make up those five yuan to me today!”

“And also—”

“Why did you come back empty-handed again? Didn’t you buy food for me?”

“Then what am I supposed to eat? I’ve been exhausted all day, my arms are so sore I can barely lift them…”

Bai Yuanzhi hadn’t bought any food in the evening.

Because she had gone to Aunt Jiang’s place around three or four in the afternoon to get takeout braised sauce rice. The portion was so generous that she was already full after eating just half. She ate the remaining half around eight o’clock…

Now she was completely full.

Her coworker, seeing her generous portion of braised sauce rice, was envious and even asked her where she bought it.

So Bai Yuanzhi gave Aunt Jiang a little advertisement.

However, facing Zhou Zhaodi’s accusations, Bai Yuanzhi was extremely impatient. “If you think it’s unfair, go out and find someone to judge. Tell them you insisted on following me to work but didn’t get to take advantage of me, so you’re making a scene here… If even one person takes your side, I’ll give you that five yuan back!”

“And then, if you want to keep living in this house, start paying me rent!”

Zhou Zhaodi bit her lower lip. “But I really worked hard!”

Bai Yuanzhi retorted, “Who doesn’t work hard?”

Zhou Zhaodi protested, “I’m only fifteen!”

Bai Yuanzhi shot back, “So what if you’re fifteen? You only started working at fifteen, don’t you think you’re lucky? I’ve been working in the fields since I was ten!”

As they argued, the bathwater finally heated up.

Bai Yuanzhi ignored Zhou Zhaodi and started undressing to bathe.

Zhou Zhaodi trembled with anger.

Originally, she felt terribly wronged,

But she couldn’t out-argue Bai Yuanzhi,

And even during the scolding, she began to feel like she might actually be acting unreasonably…

Which only made her angrier.

When it was time to sleep that night, Zhou Zhaodi couldn’t help but ask, “Hey, where are you going to work tomorrow?”

Bai Yuanzhi ignored her.

Zhou Zhaodi called out again.

“Falling asleep so fast?” Zhou Zhaodi muttered. “That can’t be right? It’s only been three seconds since the lights went out…”

“Third Sister?” Zhou Zhaodi tentatively called Bai Yuanzhi’s name.

Only then did Bai Yuanzhi speak. “I’ve already made arrangements with Sister Lian. Tomorrow at noon, I’m going to work at Aijia with her.”

Zhou Zhaodi was furious. “Why didn’t you answer me the first time I asked?”

Bai Yuanzhi replied, “Because my name isn’t ‘Hey.'”

Zhou Zhaodi: …

Zhou Zhaodi was seething.

But she still didn’t understand. “Third Sister, you spend three hours at noon working at Aijia and only earn about ten yuan… Is a job like that even necessary? It doesn’t pay well!”

Bai Yuanzhi said, “Of course it’s necessary.”

Zhou Zhaodi was stunned. “Why is it necessary?”

Bai Yuanzhi replied, “To watch you make a fool of yourself.”

Zhou Zhaodi was so angry she started panting heavily.

“Do you really hate seeing me do well that much?” Zhou Zhaodi choked up. “Even though you changed your name to something completely unrelated, we’re still sisters… Third Sister, can’t you look out for me a little?”

Bai Yuanzhi sneered, “You don’t want to be looked after—you want to lie around doing nothing and suck my blood.”

“How many years have I already taken care of you? Tell me yourself!”

“Back home, I worked in the fields while you refused to even pick vegetables in the garden, feed the chickens, or tidy up the house… Zhou Zhaodi, you’re not disabled. Those were all things you could have done! But did you ever do them?”

“I made allowances for you because you were young, but did you ever make allowances for how hard I worked?”

“You don’t! You only ever see what grievances you’ve suffered or what advantages you’ve gained.”

“I’m telling you, right now I’m just counting down the days until these three months are over… That way, I’ll never have to take care of you again!” Bai Yuanzhi said, word by word.

These words left Zhou Zhaodi pale-faced and struggling to breathe.

For the first time, she deeply realized that Bai Yuanzhi wasn’t joking.

After three months, Bai Yuanzhi truly wouldn’t look after her anymore…

Zhou Zhaodi began to cry, “Then what am I supposed to do after that, wuwu?”

Bai Yuanzhi ignored Zhou Zhaodi. Tomorrow was another day of work.

Instead of wasting time crying, it was better to sleep early and recover her strength!

Early the next morning, Zeng Lian, still drowsy, came knocking and handed Bai Yuanzhi yesterday’s wages. She added, “Ah Zhi, you can go to Love Home by yourself today. I’ve already put in a word for you—just find Sister Qiu from yesterday.”

Bai Yuanzhi asked, “What’s wrong, Sister Lian?”

Zeng Lian sighed, “The nightclub got trashed yesterday. I need to go clean up there. The pay at the nightclub is higher.”

Bai Yuanzhi asked again, “Sister Lian, are you okay?”

Zeng Lian yawned, “Why wouldn’t I be? I happened to be in the back kitchen fetching something! I only found out after they finished smashing things…”

Bai Yuanzhi nodded, “Then get some rest.”

With that, she put away the wages Zeng Lian had handed her.

Zhou Zhaodi, who had overheard their conversation, had an idea and asked Zeng Lian, “Sister Lian, does the nightclub… pay well?”

Bai Yuanzhi shot Zhou Zhaodi a glare.

Zhou Zhaodi was a bit confused.

Zeng Lian replied frankly, “I have a base salary there, since the nightclub job is my regular one! Love Home is just my side gig.”

Zhou Zhaodi pressed further, “So how much do temporary workers get paid at your nightclub?”

Zeng Lian thought for a moment, “It varies… The nightclub pays a lot more because you work late. But today’s temporary work is during the day. If you want to go, well, the hourly rate should be at least six yuan!”

Zhou Zhaodi thought to herself, yesterday at the laundry room you said five yuan, and it was so exhausting…

Just as she silently complained,

Zhou Zhaodi heard Zeng Lian explain, “But it’s not as tiring as yesterday at the Love Home laundry room. It’s mainly sweeping up broken glass and stuff… How long it takes is hard to say. Anyway, you work until it’s done!”

Zhou Zhaodi was overjoyed, thinking sweeping up broken glass sounded much easier than working in the laundry room!

“Sister Lian, take me with you!” Zhou Zhaodi quickly said.

Then—

Zhou Zhaodi noticed Bai Yuanzhi giving her a fleeting glance.

After all, they had been sisters for many years,

Zhou Zhaodi knew that was actually Bai Yuanzhi’s silent warning to her.

What right did Bai Yuanzhi have to warn her?

Did she not want her to work at the nightclub?

But Bai Yuanzhi had already said she wouldn’t take care of her anymore…

After a moment of hesitation, Zhou Zhaodi decided to ignore Bai Yuanzhi.

“Sister Lian, what time are we leaving?” Zhou Zhaodi asked eagerly.

Bai Yuanzhi glanced at Zhou Zhaodi once more before turning and going inside.

That day, Bai Yuanzhi first went to the hospital early in the morning to visit Zhou Sier, then repeated yesterday’s work routine:

First, cleaning at Love Home, then selling Xia Mei sauce at the mall.

In between, she found time to go to the bank. First, she deposited the five hundred dollars she had saved over the past few days, then went to open the safe-deposit box to flip through Zhou Sier’s notes.

Unfortunately, she didn’t understand Zhou Sier’s field well enough to know which one was the very document Song Junshu had desperately sought but failed to obtain in her previous life.

In the end, she had no choice but to put everything back into the safe.

But by the time Bai Yuanzhi finished her shift and returned to the rental room that day, it was already eleven o’clock at night.

Zhou Zhaodi wasn’t there.

Judging by the state of the room, it seemed Zhou Zhaodi hadn’t returned since leaving home.

Bai Yuanzhi felt an inexplicable worry.

It wasn’t true that she didn’t care about Zhou Zhaodi—after all, they were blood-related sisters.

But Bai Yuanzhi also knew that the path a person takes depends on where their heart is set.

For example, Bai Yuanzhi wanted a stable and prosperous life, so she kept her feet on the ground, steadily building herself up step by step.

In her previous life, Zhou Zhaodi had ended up spending all her time with Zhou Niandi, Wu Jiayin, and Li Yongzhen, constantly striving to land a wealthy husband, marry into a rich family, and become a young mistress who did nothing…

Because she was the youngest, Zhou Zhaodi suffered a lot at the hands of Zhou Niandi, even becoming the kept mistress of an old, wealthy man at a young age!

In this life, Bai Yuanzhi didn’t know what Zhou Zhaodi’s fate would become.

Would it get better?

Or would it follow the same course as in her previous life?

Bai Yuanzhi was asleep when, in the middle of the night, she faintly heard the sound of Zhou Zhaodi opening the door and entering, humming a little tune, “Evening Primrose… I sing for you! Evening Primrose…”

Bai Yuanzhi caught a faint whiff of alcohol and grew furious.

She sat up abruptly, staring wide-eyed at Zhou Zhaodi.

Zhou Zhaodi was startled. “What are you doing?”

“Where have you been?” Bai Yuanzhi asked with a stern expression.

Zhou Zhaodi replied, “Working!”

“Where?”

Zhou Zhaodi bit her lower lip. “None of your business!”

Bai Yuanzhi stared at Zhou Zhaodi for a long time.

—Zhou Zhaodi looked no different from usual, but her hair was disheveled, her cheeks flushed with an inexplicable redness, and her eyes were unnervingly bright.

Bai Yuanzhi said coldly, “Have you been drinking?”

“No!” Zhou Zhaodi replied while boiling water. “The smell of alcohol on me… right? That’s from a customer accidentally spilling it on me!”

Then, Zhou Zhaodi suddenly laughed happily. “And that customer gave me a hundred-dollar bill as compensation and apologized! Third Sister, money is so easy to earn!”

“Third Sister, do you know what a nightclub is?”

“It’s a place specifically for rich people to drink and listen to music! There’s a small stage where women wear slightly revealing, beautiful dresses and sing… They play really intense disco music, and there are very pretty women with great figures dancing!”

“There are also private rooms, one after another…”

“Third Sister, the nightclub during the day is completely different from at night!”

“During the day, the smell inside the nightclub isn’t pleasant at all—stuffy… and dark. But at night, the lights flash, the music is deafening…”

“I worked there for five hours during the day, just slowly tidying up, dragging my feet. The supervisor didn’t say anything and happily gave me thirty dollars!”

“Then I told Sister Lian that I wanted to try working the night shift too. Sister Lian went and talked to the supervisor for me, so I worked another night…”

“Third Sister, come with me tomorrow!”

“The work is really easy. You just have to put on the waiter uniform, stand at the door of the private room, and follow instructions.”

“Every private room has lots of hostesses. If the guests need anything, those girls will tell us…”

“It’s really easy, and the pay is high! I worked from eight to one in the morning—five hours—and got fifty dollars!”

Finally, Zhou Zhaodi let out a satisfied sigh, “Ah! No wonder everyone wants to come to Hong Kong City! This place is practically a capitalist paradise!”

Bai Yuanzhi spoke word by word, “Zhou Zhaodi, if you still consider me your sister, listen to my advice—”

Zhou Zhaodi froze.

“Don’t go work at that kind of place anymore!” Bai Yuanzhi said slowly.

Zhou Zhaodi was taken aback. “Why?”

“Because you become what you’re near—red from vermilion, black from ink,” Bai Yuanzhi explained earnestly, a rare occurrence. “We’re new here, unfamiliar with the people and the place. It’s bound to be tough at first.”

“But that’s okay. Make a plan, take things step by step, and everything will slowly get better.”

“Nightclubs are places where all sorts of people mix. If you stay there working, the chances of being tainted are high. You’d better not go… Tomorrow, I’ll talk to Aunt Jiang. You can work for her instead…”

Zhou Zhaodi grew impatient. “Why are you so long-winded! I worked all night, and it’s already past two in the morning. I’m exhausted…”

“Besides, haven’t you always been annoyed that I’m lazy, don’t earn money, and you always want to ditch me?”

“Now that I can earn money, what, are you jealous?”

Zhou Zhaodi said irritably, “I’m telling you, Bai Yuanzhi, I’m not going to work for Aunt Jiang. Three hours for just eight dollars? I’d have to be an idiot to do that!”

Bai Yuanzhi said, “Then I’ll try to find a suitable job for you through connections…”

“Don’t pretend to be nice! Don’t meddle in my affairs from now on!” Zhou Zhaodi also spoke word by word. “I know you think nightclubs aren’t good places, afraid I’ll run into those ‘big brothers’! But what about you, Bai Yuanzhi? Didn’t you go work at Love Home too? If we’re being honest, nightclubs are just places for people to have fun, while hotels are where those people actually book rooms, right!”

“What, you working three hours at Love Home Hotel is necessary, but me working five hours at a nightclub is unnecessary?”

“Bai Yuanzhi, are you nobler than me, or do you think hotels are nobler than nightclubs?”

Bai Yuanzhi took a deep breath.

It’s hard to persuade someone determined to walk into danger.

She ignored Zhou Zhaodi, closed her eyes, and went to sleep.

Over the next few days, Bai Yuanzhi stuck to her routine of “working at Love Home at noon” and “selling sauces at the mall from afternoon until evening.”

Meanwhile, Zhou Zhaodi’s life became: waking up at noon, wandering around shopping, and heading straight to the nightclub at eight in the evening…

Half a month later,

Bai Yuanzhi finally saw in the newspaper that Bilanting, one of Hong Kong City’s largest luxury hotels, was hiring part-time room cleaners.

She smiled confidently.