Chapter 23 Regret?

Her answer made Pei Jue raise his eyebrows, apparently beyond his expectations.

He quietly scanned her from head to toe. “Why did you refuse?”

Tang Tian met his gaze with a puzzled look. “Why can’t I refuse?”

Pei Jue was momentarily stunned, then the coldness in his brow softened slightly. “Have you ever heard of the Wen Corporation?”

Tang Tian carefully searched her memories and documents but found nothing. It seemed that Wen Jinchu really didn’t have much importance.

“No.”

Receiving her answer, Pei Jue’s expression remained unchanged as he continued, “The Wen Corporation is valued at nearly two quadrillion US dollars, and he is the person in power there.”

Hearing such an astronomical figure, Tang Tian could not help but feel envious, yet there wasn’t a trace of any other thoughts beyond admiration in her mind.

“Mr. Wen is truly outstanding,” she complimented smoothly.

Pei Jue asked her slowly, “Do you have any regrets?”

Tang Tian shook her head. “Mr. Pei, rest assured, for some time now, I have no feelings for you or the other three gentlemen, nor for your friends.”

She didn’t want to suffer the tragic fate of the original character, so her tone was urgent, fearing Pei Jue might think she hadn’t let go.

Pei Jue stared at her quietly, as cold as ever. “You may leave.”

Tang Tian immediately turned and left his room. She wasn’t at all surprised by his question—after all, her looks were stunning, and she could easily use her beauty to climb into a wealthy family.

She believed Pei Jue was warning her not to harbor foolish hopes of reaching higher, at least not by clinging to his friends.

Tang Tian went down to the kitchen on the first floor, returned the cart to its place, and was nearly off duty. She headed to clock out just as her time came.

After punching out, she ran into Song Yu.

Song Yu quietly pulled Tang Tian aside. “Just now… Xiaozhi was scolded by the butler. She was so upset she cried.”

Tang Tian was surprised. The butler liked the female lead, Liu Xiaozhi, very much—how could he bear to scold her? It seemed tonight hadn’t caused any major mistakes after all.

Song Yu continued, “I heard the butler was warning Xiaozhi, saying that in front of some of the gentlemen’s friends, she behaved in ways she shouldn’t have, making them uncomfortable.”

Before Tang Tian could say anything, Song Yu whispered, “At the party tonight, I saw Xiaozhi’s eyes turn red right in front of Mr. Shen and Mr. Wen. She was tearful, as if unhappy that the two gentlemen invited so many girls to the villa gathering.”

Song Yu seemed to have held this in for a long time and told her all at once.

Tang Tian caught that little gossiping sparkle in her eyes and couldn’t help but smile. Then she straightened her expression. “Don’t gossip about things like this anymore. It’s not good.”

If Song Yu’s gossip about Liu Xiaozhi’s feelings got out later, she would definitely be dealt with.

Song Yu nodded vigorously. “I’m only telling you, Tang Tian, why would Xiaozhi act like that? I really don’t understand.”

Tang Tian just replied, “She has her reasons. Go get some rest early.”

There was no way to explain that Liu Xiaozhi’s feelings were those of the female lead in the story, and that the four important male leads were all involved. The female lead didn’t want to give up on any of them.

Tonight’s gathering was filled with so many of Liu Xiaozhi’s “rivals”—all rich, privileged young women. Xiaozhi wasn’t just jealous; she was overwhelmed by a deep sense of danger. After all, her background was far inferior to these wealthy girls at the party.

Liu Xiaozhi’s real “rivals” were never ordinary girls but the white-collar, wealthy beauties whose families matched the status of the four male leads.

Tang Tian understood this clearly. That was why, when several wealthy young men asked for her contact information tonight, she refused without hesitation—because she fully understood how crucial the concept of “matching social status” truly was.

She had nothing but beauty—no real talent or skills. Once she left the villa, she would be nothing more than a lowly employee or a small shop owner.

She belonged to a completely different world from these privileged rich heirs, and besides… being too beautiful made her a target for tigers, wolves, and jackals.

Without enough ability and luck to distinguish good from evil, without the willpower to resist temptation, and without the means to protect herself, a stunning appearance could easily become a trap, dragging her into an abyss.

Tang Tian’s luck was nothing special, and on top of that, she had stepped into the body of a vicious female supporting character with a tragic ending. The only thing she could do was stay far away from these powerful heirs.

Even if one of them could elevate her to the heights overnight, she would not waver for a moment.

She dared not trust anyone lightly.

Tang Tian knew she was just an ordinary person, without a protagonist’s halo. Therefore, she would never make any choice lightly.

Song Yu’s room was right next to hers. Watching Song Yu’s door open and close, Tang Tian finally returned to her own room.

After taking a shower and lying down on her bed, drowsy, Tang Tian’s mind replayed the moment when Pei Jue had asked her to make some sobering soup…

It seemed Pei Jue was guarding her closely—calling her specifically to prepare the soup was just an excuse to get her into his room, to warn her not to harbor any desires for his friends.

Yawning, she soon fell asleep, as if none of the events from today had stirred any inner turmoil within her.

July was still a rainy season, with morning mist mixed with fine drizzle hanging in the air.

Early in the villa, the servants were already busy at work.

In the dining room, Tang Tian stood behind Wen Shaohan just like a few days ago.

Liu Huahua, standing behind Fu Xi, was distracted and began to regret having refused that gentleman the night before—a rare opportunity indeed…

Fu Xi looked somewhat displeased as he glanced at Tang Tian standing behind Wen Shaohan. Clearly, he had arrived earlier than Wen Shaohan—so why did she insist on standing beside Wen Shaohan?

Watching her clean and straightforward movements and posture, without any of the flirtatious gestures she used to make, it didn’t seem like she was infatuated with Wen Shaohan…

At breakfast, Shen Yanli, who was listening to Fu Xi, heard about how Wen Jinchu had asked Tang Tian for his contact information at last night’s gathering—and how she had refused.

Knowing Tang Tian had rejected Wen Jinchu surprised him quite a bit. Wen Jinchu’s family background and appearance were exceptional, and he had no scandals; very few women would turn down his approach.

Yet Tang Tian refused.

Shen Yanli recalled how Tang Tian used to tease them subtly, and even after the butler reprimanded her, she still shamelessly flirted in front of them.

Frowning, Shen Yanli looked up at Tang Tian across the table. She was lowering her eyes, secretly yawning, showing none of the previous signals she had sent him.

Just as Tang Tian was about to yawn again, her gaze met the man’s opposite her, noticing Shen Yanli was watching her with a complicated expression.

She was puzzled—why was he staring at her like that? They hadn’t communicated or interacted much these past couple of days, nor had she made any seductive moves toward him.

Shen Yanli averted his gaze, and only then did Tang Tian feel a weight lift off her shoulders—she had worried she’d somehow upset the Eldest Young Master Shen again.

The day flew by in a blur of busyness. By the time Tang Tian finally had a moment to herself, it was nearly time to finish work.

She hurried toward the back courtyard, lifting a basin to pour water into it when she heard Liu Xiaozhi’s voice nearby. She paused, searching for where the sound came from.

The cool night breeze after the rain brushed against her skin as Tang Tian looked out toward the dark, unlit lawn.

Liu Xiaozhi stood with her back to Tang Tian, and before her stood a tall, imposing figure.

Tang Tian strained to see through the night to make out who it was.

“…Sister Wu wants to dismiss me, Mr. Shen… please help me. I don’t want to leave the villa,” Liu Xiaozhi pleaded. “I especially don’t want to leave the masters here.”

Of course, Liu Xiaozhi dared not say the last sentence aloud. Last night the butler only mentioned her situation in passing, but by noon, Sister Wu had already called her in and talked about possibly dismissing her, telling her to prepare herself mentally.

Liu Xiaozhi hadn’t expected things to escalate this far. Panicked, she sought out Mr. Shen and tearfully begged him to help her keep her position.

Shen Yanli frowned but did not make any promises.

“Is this about last night’s gathering?”

Liu Xiaozhi nodded. “I… I just had some concerns. It’s not what the butler thinks—that I have designs on you.”

She didn’t even dare to raise her head as she said this.

Shen Yanli knew very well if she had other intentions—he didn’t expose her. To him, it made no difference who served as a servant.

It was just… that night after getting drunk, he vaguely remembered pinning someone beneath him, and after sobering up, he promised to make it up to her.

Shen Yanli was not one to go back on his word. He said, “Do you still remember the compensation I promised that day?”

Liu Xiaozhi had nearly forgotten the whole matter. When he mentioned “compensation,” she pinched her fingers and recalled that time she had pretended to be Tang Tian.

“I remember.”

He said, “Consider this your compensation.”

Liu Xiaozhi nodded slowly.

Tang Tian didn’t hear clearly. Seeing it was Liu Xiaozhi and Shen Yanli, she kept her head down, busily moving the basin back and forth without looking toward where the two were standing.