Chapter 3

At Qin Yan’s house, early in the morning, there were matchmakers again—another arranged marriage proposal. Were they there for him? No, they were there for the courtyard house his mother had promised.

Irritated, Qin Yan angrily shouted and threw things, chasing both the matchmaker and the suitor out.

Once the house quieted down, the courtyard below, with its vivid flowers, looked neat, cleared of all the dead leaves and branches by the young nanny from yesterday.

The thought of that silly young nanny from yesterday annoyed Qin Yan. What time was it now? Oh, just 8 o’clock, but that young nanny had arrived by 7 yesterday.

He had sent her away yesterday, forbidding her to come back. But would she give up on the chance to work in a courtyard house so easily?

Plus, when she left, she had confidently said she’d return.

Pretending? Qin Yan thought. Nowadays, what girl who cares about her appearance would wear patched-up clothes out in public? Only she did. Wasn’t she just pretending?

His mother had just left when his aunt brought over her niece, Ke Xiu, along with Ke Xiu’s child. Seeing the mother-daughter pair instantly frustrated Qin Yan.

His aunt, along with the pair, tried to persuade him: “I heard from your mom that you sent away the nanny again yesterday. You can’t be left without someone to care for you. Let your cousin, Xiu Xiu, take care of you for a day. She’ll definitely be better than those clumsy little girls. Try it, and you’ll see the benefits.”

The way she said it disgusted him—it was almost as if she was implying Ke Xiu could teach him how to be a real man. Enraged, Qin Yan felt like a wounded leopard, smashing the teacup in his hand.

His life felt worse than the shattered teacup. At least the teacup could be broken, but until he finished playing his part as a stepping stone for the female lead, he couldn’t even be broken.

Being disabled, Qin Yan couldn’t even go downstairs, let alone throw out the shameless Ke Xiu. He could only lock himself in his room.

Ke Xiu felt embarrassed and hurt, telling her aunt, “Aunt, I’m ten years older than him. I can’t just take the initiative; it’s really inappropriate. Maybe we should forget it.”

Pan Yan scolded, “Listen, he’s paralyzed. You can do whatever you want with him. Once you make him feel like a real man, he won’t be able to live without you. I know my sister-in-law—if you can give him a child, that courtyard house is yours, all yours. It’s a two-section courtyard! Big enough for your brother to get married and your parents to retire. All it takes is a little thick skin. But if you can’t bring yourself to do it, then forget it.”

Pretending to leave, Pan Yan moved to walk away, but Ke Xiu quickly responded, “Aunt, I’ll give it a try.”

Back home, Pan Yan’s husband, getting ready for work, couldn’t stand her behavior and commented, “You’ve made a spectacle of yourself for your family’s sake.”

“I’m only doing this for both families. Qin Yan doesn’t want to live anymore, and I’m sacrificing my niece’s happiness to bring about a solution that works for everyone.”

Their son, Qin Ao, overheard this while studying at home for the weekend. Scoffing, he said, “Mom, don’t drag our family into this mess when you’re scheming for your side. Dad and I see through all your little plans. There are even rumors going around school that you want to take over Uncle’s assets, and some are even suggesting you had something to do with Qin Yan’s accident.”

“How can you talk to your mother like that? I may be a little harsh, but I’d never harm my own family! Besides, do I even know a single bad person around here?”

Qin Ao didn’t want to argue and left for school with his backpack to continue his studies.

…

Qin Yan locked himself in his bedroom on the second floor.

That shameless cousin of his was busying herself in the courtyard and making noise in the kitchen. She even sent her child to knock on his door.

Knock, knock, knock— the constant knocking drove him mad.

He knew the door lock would eventually give way to the kid’s fiddling, not because the child was particularly clever, but because that’s how the story was supposed to go. His reputation had to be ruined by this mother and daughter duo. Even if he avoided it today, it would still happen on another day.

“Brother,” came a voice from the window—a pretty little face peered in, her hair still a mess.

It was the nanny from yesterday. Her large, beautiful eyes showed a hint of nervousness, as if she feared he would drive her away.

But this was the second floor. What was she standing on to reach the window? Qin Yan was worried she might fall and end up crippled like him.

He blurted out, “Get in!”

“Okay!” she replied happily.

Jiang Ruan was overjoyed, fearing he might change his mind. She quickly climbed in through the window and stood obediently by the side, full of unease. With a new nanny in the house, she wasn’t sure if she could win back the job.

If she couldn’t get the job back and earn money, her older sister would take her back to wash clothes and cook for those annoying twin brothers and the old lady she despised. Worse, her sister would take half of her wages again.

She didn’t want to go back.

Yesterday, Qin Yan thought this young nanny, Ruan Ruan, was acting, and he predicted she would return today. And here she was.

If he had to choose between keeping her or Ke Xiu, he’d pick the unpredictable Jiang Ruan.

He believed Jiang Ruan might be a glitch in the storyline, like a virus in the system. Let’s see what happens if he keeps her. Maybe it will derail the plot entirely.

Qin Yan laid out his conditions: “I hate that shameless mother and daughter outside. If you can keep them out and stop them from bothering me, I’ll keep you on.”

“Absolutely,” Jiang Ruan nodded eagerly.

The nannywent out, and Qin Yan heard her arguing with the little girl outside.

“Who are you? Why won’t you let me in to see Uncle?”

“Brother doesn’t like you, and he doesn’t need your mom to work for him. He already hired me.”

“Why are you talking to a child like that? Are you stupid?”

“Then why are you speaking to an adult like that? You’re the one with no manners. You and your mom are shameless.”

Then he heard the little girl scream, “Don’t touch me!”

Qin Yan couldn’t help but shudder. In his past life, when the little girl accused him, she had screamed the same way in front of the police. Almost everyone believed he was a pervert, and that one accusation ruined him.

But now, it was the nanny who touched her, not him. He hadn’t let the mother and daughter duo into the house at all. The nanny’s presence seemed to be delaying the inevitable plot from unfolding.

From his window, Qin Yan saw the nanny forcefully drive Ke Xiu and her daughter out of the courtyard. Despite Ke Xiu’s protests, the nanny, strong and relentless, carried the child under one arm and practically shoved Ke Xiu out of the courtyard, all the way to the nearby grocery store where there were plenty of onlookers.

…

Ke Xiu was shocked. The brainless pretty nanny that her aunt had mentioned yesterday had just thrown her out, and on top of that, carried her all the way to the grocery store. How humiliating! With so many neighbors watching, Ke Xiu wanted to call the police.

The nanny may have been shameless, but Ke Xiu had her pride. Blushing with anger, she confronted the nanny first, “What’s wrong with you, you idiot? I’m the new nanny hired by the Qin family! Do you think throwing me out will get you the job?”

“Yes, it will. Brother Qin Yan told me that if I kicked you out, he’d hire me. He said he has money and can pay me.”

One shouldn’t argue with a fool. The shameless and the brazen can never win against a fool. The owner of the grocery store and the onlookers burst into laughter.

Everyone in the neighborhood knew that Qin Yan’s grandmother favored her eldest son’s family. Although Qin Yan was paralyzed, his mother was an only child and had brought a large dowry with her. His grandmother, along with her eldest daughter-in-law, wanted Ke Xiu to give Qin Yan a child.

Ke Xiu was ten years older than Qin Yan. If they wanted to secure his inheritance, couldn’t they have found someone prettier? This plan by the eldest daughter-in-law’s family was truly revolting.

Meanwhile, the second daughter-in-law was so weak and timid that even the neighbors couldn’t bear to watch her situation. Yet, she seemed unaware of how terrible things were.

Furious and humiliated, Ke Xiu shouted, “Which family did you come from, you fool? Let’s go find your mother!”

Jiang Ruan simply pushed her to the ground. “Whether I’m a fool or not, I can work, and I won’t break into Brother Qin Yan’s room against his will.”

…

Qin Yan and the little nanny agreed to try it for a month. He told her to leave early today and to come back promptly at seven tomorrow morning—no being late.

The next day, at 6:50, Qin Yan was already sitting by the window. By 6:55, the little nanny hadn’t arrived, but Ke Xiu showed up instead, with her daughter in tow.

Qin Yan’s thoughts flashed back to his previous life, when that same child had accused him of putting his hand inside her clothes. His family had to give up a courtyard house as compensation, and he was labeled a pervert and a scumbag. Who would believe a reckless, paralyzed man over an innocent child not even ten years old? Almost no one doubted Ke Xiu’s daughter was telling the truth.

To this day, just seeing that spiteful child made Qin Yan’s rage boil over.

How shameless could they be? He couldn’t even drive them away. He asked his mom to go to the little nanny’s house to find out why she hadn’t shown up.

Qin Yan locked himself in his room. At 8:30, his mom returned and knocked on his door. “I found Ruan Ruan’s home,” she said. “Her mom told me she went to work as a nanny for her older sister’s boss, and she won’t be coming here anymore. I thought it was strange—who could offer a higher wage than we can? Then Mrs. Huang from their courtyard came after me, saying Ruan Ruan’s mom was biased and wanted to send her to be someone’s stepmother. She begged me to save her. I figured, though, it’s someone else’s family matter, and it’s hard for us to intervene. Son, how about we just give Ke Xiu a try? She really seems diligent.”

A sense of helplessness spread over Qin Yan.

Yesterday, his mom had praised the little nanny, but now, after seeing Ke Xiu, she had changed her mind again. The plot’s intent was too strong, unconsciously pulling his mom towards its main storyline.

The little nanny who had suddenly appeared had stirred up some ripples, only to be pushed to the margins again by the overarching plot.

Qin Yan listened to that little girl outside pounding on the door, calling for “Uncle” to open up. He clenched his fists, then picked up the landline phone on his desk and urgently called his childhood friend to come over.