Chapter 5

I froze.

Before I could explain, my dad started a video call.

As soon as it connected, he yelled:

“SONG RUOXI!”

I jumped.

“Yes!”

“How many times have I told you?”

I answered weakly:

“To be careful when I go out…”

“NO!”

“Not to trust strangers…”

“ALSO NO!”

I thought for a moment.

Then ventured:

“Not to kidnap children with a sausage?”

My dad clutched his chest.

My mom hurried to support him.

Through the screen, I heard my father grit his teeth.

“I TOLD YOU TO TALK LESS!”

I felt wronged.

“But I didn’t do anything wrong…”

My dad laughed coldly.

“You didn’t do anything wrong?”

“Then why did the police send a tactical team?”

“Because they misunderstood…”

“Who made them misunderstand?”

I fell silent.

My dad continued:

“Wasn’t it your mouth?”

I lowered my head.

“…Yes.”

He sighed.

“Do you remember when you were twelve and nearly made your Third Uncle get divorced?”

I immediately protested.

“That wasn’t my fault!”

My dad laughed in anger.

“It wasn’t your fault?”

“Then let me remind you!”

Chapter 5: At Twelve, I Nearly Made the Whole Family Split Its Assets

That year, my grandfather held a banquet for his seventieth birthday.

The whole family gathered.

My Third Uncle had recently done well in business and bought a large villa.

His wife, my Third Aunt, was famous for showing off.

Throughout the banquet, she kept talking about how happy her marriage was.

“For a woman, the most important thing is choosing the right husband.”

“Take me, for example. I’ve been married for ten years and never had to work a single day.”

“If I want a handbag, I get a handbag. If I want jewelry, I get jewelry.”

After saying this, she deliberately glanced at my mother.

“Unlike some people, who still have to work hard to earn money even after getting married.”

My mother only gave a faint smile and said nothing.

I was twelve at the time.

I didn’t understand the adults’ sarcasm.

I only remembered overhearing my parents talking a few days earlier.

It turned out Third Uncle was having financial difficulties.

The villa he had just bought had been mortgaged.

He had even borrowed money from my father to pay the bank interest.

But he had told my dad not to tell Third Aunt, for fear she would worry.

Of course, I didn’t know this was a secret.

When I heard Third Aunt brag about her rich husband, I enthusiastically said:

“Third Aunt is so lucky!”

She smiled smugly.

“Of course!”

I continued:

“Third Uncle really loves you! He was afraid you’d worry, so he didn’t even dare tell you the bank was about to take the house!”

The whole dinner table fell silent.

Third Aunt’s smile froze.

My dad dropped his chopsticks.

Third Uncle spat out the wine he was drinking.

I kept chattering innocently:

“Dad said Third Uncle’s been borrowing money everywhere, but don’t worry, Auntie! Uncle said that even if he has to sell everything, he won’t let you go without a handbag!”

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

Third Aunt suddenly jumped to her feet.

“SELL EVERYTHING?”

I was startled.

“Yes?”

“THE BANK’S ABOUT TO TAKE THE HOUSE?”

I nodded.

“Yes.”

Third Aunt whipped around to face her husband.

“EXPLAIN YOURSELF!”

Third Uncle went pale.

“Listen to me…”

“HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN LYING TO ME?”

“That’s not…”

“THE VILLA’S MORTGAGED, SO WHERE DID YOU GET THE MONEY TO BUY ME JEWELRY?”

I immediately raised my hand.

“I know!”

My dad shouted:

“RUOXI! SHUT UP!”

But it was too late.

I answered cheerfully:

“Third Uncle said it was all on installments! He said you could wear it as much as you wanted, and if he couldn’t pay later, he’d deal with it then!”

Third Aunt collapsed into her chair.

Third Uncle held his head.

My dad stared at the ceiling.

My mom covered her face with her hand.

And I was confused.

Huh?

Wasn’t I complimenting Third Uncle for loving his wife?

Why was everyone angry?

After that day, Third Aunt made a huge scene and demanded a divorce.

It took Third Uncle three months to explain and make peace with her.

From then on, an unwritten rule appeared in our family:

Anyone with a secret must never let Song Ruoxi hear it.

Whenever I entered a room, the adults would immediately change the subject.

Once, I asked my father:

“Why does everyone go quiet whenever they see me?”

He patted my head and replied gently:

“Because you’re the treasure of the whole family.”

I was deeply moved.

Only when I was eighteen did I learn the full version of Dad’s sentence:

“Because you’re the family treasure who can destroy the whole family with a single sentence.”

I’d once been furious.

But today, after making an entire tactical team deploy, I suddenly felt…

Maybe Dad had a point.

Chapter 6: On My First Day at Work, I Discovered My Boss Had a Secret

10:20 a.m.

At last, I arrived at Tiansheng Group.

The HR manager looked at me with an extremely complicated expression.

“Ms. Song…”

I immediately bowed my head.

“I’m sorry! Something unexpected happened this morning!”

She was silent for a few seconds.

“We know.”

I looked up.

“You do?”

She turned her computer screen toward me.

It showed the video of me surrounded by police.

It had more than a million views.

Me: “…”

I wanted to quit.

Immediately.

But the HR manager smiled.

“President Gu called to let us know that today will still count as an on-time arrival.”

I breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank you!”

“However…”

I immediately tensed up.

“What is it?”

She looked at me.

“President Gu wants you to meet him on the thirty-sixth floor after you finish the paperwork.”

I froze.

Meet the president?

On my first day?

I had been at the company for less than ten minutes!

Was he going to demand the eighteen yuan back for the sausage?

Or make me sign a nondisclosure agreement?

Uneasily, I went up to the thirty-sixth floor.

The secretary led me into the office.

Gu Mingzhe stood by the window, speaking on the phone.

When he saw me enter, he gestured for me to sit.

A moment later, he hung up.

“Ms. Song.”

“Yes!”

“There’s something I’d like to ask you to help with.”

I immediately sat up straight.

“Of course, President Gu!”

He was silent for a few seconds.

“My son wants to see you.”

Me: “?”

“Xiaoyu hasn’t eaten or drunk anything since he got home. He keeps asking when he can see the big sister who bought him a sausage.”

I was stunned.

I hadn’t expected one sausage to have such an impact.

Gu Mingzhe continued:

“I’d like to invite you to my home for dinner, as a way of thanking you for helping him.”