Chapter 18: A Thief Broke In  

When Lin Zhizhi arrived home, she intended to change into her pajamas, enjoy her luxurious bed, and drift into a beautiful dream.  

However, as soon as she opened the door, she saw a middle-aged woman standing in the entryway. At the moment the door opened, Lin Zhizhi noticed that the woman seemed somewhat flustered.  

This middle-aged woman was the housekeeper that the Original Owner had hired before, surnamed Yang. She was usually addressed as Auntie Yang.  

Auntie Yang was mainly responsible for preparing three meals a day and doing routine cleaning. Since the Original Owner often traveled or dined out, Auntie Yang’s job was actually quite easy, yet her monthly salary was still generous.  

When Lin Zhizhi first arrived in this world, she used the excuse of going on a trip for a while and gave Auntie Yang a temporary leave. She told her that she would notify her when she returned and needed her to resume work.  

Lin Zhizhi was not accustomed to living under the same roof with strangers. However, since Auntie Yang had done nothing wrong, she could not simply dismiss her.

The only solution was to contact the housekeeping company, explain her requirements, and have them provide Auntie Yang with accommodation. That way, Auntie Yang would only need to come regularly to clean the house.

Of course, the salary remained the same as before.  

“You… Miss, why did you come back so suddenly? Weren’t you on a trip?” Auntie Yang’s tone carried a hint of panic, and her hands unconsciously clenched the hem of her clothes.  

Lin Zhizhi frowned slightly upon hearing this. “Am I not supposed to come back?”  

“No, no, that’s not what I meant. I just meant… if you were coming back, you could’ve given me a call so I could prepare some good food for you.” Auntie Yang hurriedly shook her head, denying any ill intentions.

After changing her shoes, Lin Zhizhi walked toward the living room while asking: “Auntie Yang, why are you here? Didn’t I give you a vacation?”  

Following closely behind her, Auntie Yang explained: “Oh, it’s like this — I was thinking I’ve been on vacation for quite a while now, and since you never called me back to work, I felt uneasy just staying at home. So, I decided to come back.”  

Lin Zhizhi sat down on the sofa, casually placing her bag to the side. Upon hearing this, she felt a twinge of guilt.  

Auntie Yang had been doing her job perfectly fine before, but as soon as Lin Zhizhi arrived, she was sent home on vacation. After staying at home for too long, it was only natural for her to overthink and worry about whether she had been dismissed.  

Just as Lin Zhizhi was about to say something comforting, Auntie Yang suddenly offered to go to the kitchen to pour her a glass of water. Before Lin Zhizhi could stop her, she had already hurried off to the kitchen.  

With a helpless sigh, Lin Zhizhi leaned back against the sofa. Her gaze casually fell on the coffee table in front of her, where she suddenly noticed that the assortment of snacks on the table had significantly diminished.  

These snacks were ones Lin Zhizhi had personally driven to the supermarket to buy last night, especially various brands of preserved plums. Before going to bed last night, she distinctly remembered buying three packs of Liangji preserved plums. She had eaten two packs, and although the last pack had been opened, it was still there.  

But now, that final pack was missing. Moreover, several other snacks had clearly been reduced as well.  

With only two people in the house — and since she hadn’t eaten them herself — the only other possibility was Auntie Yang.  

As Lin Zhizhi recalled the flustered look on Auntie Yang’s face when she first entered the house, she initially thought she might have been overthinking it.  

She had not yet decided how to handle the situation. Wanting to change into her pajamas first, she picked up her bag — only to find some potato chip crumbs underneath it, with a few even stuck to the bag.  

At that moment, Lin Zhizhi was utterly exasperated.  

It was one thing to eat the owner’s food without permission, but leaving a mess everywhere was completely unacceptable. Lin Zhizhi could hardly tolerate it.  

She reasoned that Auntie Yang must have been sitting or even lying on the sofa while eating. That meant the spot where she had just been sitting might also be covered in crumbs.  

A shiver ran down her spine. Without wasting another second, she quickly headed upstairs to her bedroom to take a shower and change her clothes.  

However…  

The moment Lin Zhizhi entered her bedroom and walked over to the dressing table, she noticed that the various bottles and jars of skincare and makeup products on the table had clearly been moved.  

Lin Zhizhi had a mild case of obsessive-compulsive disorder. She arranged each bottle and jar in a specific order and area — for instance, her lipsticks were always placed in order of their newest shades at the front. Now, although the lipsticks were neatly arranged, the order was obviously off by several spots.