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After Jiang Yining finished washing up and stepped out, she saw Aunt Wang cleaning in the living room.
As soon as Aunt Wang saw her, she stopped what she was doing and greeted politely, “Good morning, Mrs. He. My surname is Wang.”
“Mr. He arranged for housekeeping services. The company sent me over to help with lunch and house cleaning.”
Jiang Yining noted that Aunt Wang looked to be under fifty and had a pleasant, respectful demeanor, so she nodded politely. “Thank you for your hard work.”
The doorbell rang. Aunt Wang was about to answer it, but Jiang Yining walked over first. “Aunt Wang, go ahead with your work. I’ll get the door.”
It was a delivery courier, probably something He Chi had ordered online.
Jiang Yining brought the bag into the kitchen. Just as she set it down, she received a message from He Chi:
[I rushed out for work this morning and forgot to feed He Xiaohui. The cat food is in the cabinet by the entrance.]
[First drawer on the left.]
She replied: [Got it.]
Seeing her response, He Chi knew Jiang Yining was up. He arched an eyebrow and, while someone else was presenting a report, sent her another message.
[There are steamed buns in the pot. I arranged for housekeeping, so Aunt Wang will handle lunch. No need to cook yourself.]
Soon, her reply came in:
[Okay.]
He Chi clicked his tongue—so distant. Was she upset about the kiss last night?
He had been a bit impulsive, admittedly. Would Jiang Yining think he was being too forward?
But come on, they were legally married. Wasn’t a kiss well within reason? And he had asked her beforehand.
She hadn’t refused.
“President He?”
He Chi didn’t respond, making the employee who had just finished their presentation panic.
His assistant stepped in to call again, “President He?”
He Chi gave a perfunctory “Alright.”
He glanced down at his watch and frowned. “Next. Focus on the key points—keep it brief.”
Everyone agreed the last colleague had gone on far too long, wasting precious time. There was only an hour and a half left before the lunch break, and he’d used it all trying to impress, to everyone’s annoyance.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yining was busy feeding He Xiaohui and hadn’t thought much about anything else.
As she poured the food, He Xiaohui let out a series of disgruntled meows, clearly upset. Jiang Yining stroked its head and apologized, “Sorry, did I neglect you?”
“Not that I can understand you, but I’ll take your silence as denial.”
He Xiaohui lowered its head to eat but then paused, looking up at her with a few pitiful meows.
Its eyes were full of grievance and fury.
Jiang Yining chuckled. “Did He Chi bully you this morning?”
At the sound of He Chi’s name, He Xiaohui stopped eating and meowed loudly in protest.
The mere mention of him got the cat fired up. Jiang Yining didn’t dare bring it up again.
Aunt Wang had already gone to the kitchen to prepare lunch ingredients.
Jiang Yining ate a bun and, since she had nothing else to do, decided to lend a hand.
After exchanging a few polite words, Aunt Wang found Jiang Yining approachable and easy to talk to, so they began chatting.
Jiang Yining curiously asked, “Aunt Wang, how is your pay calculated?”
Aunt Wang replied, “It’s by the hour. Employers estimate how long they’ll need help. Like this time, Mr. He said around four hours. Once we’re on-site, we finish the tasks as efficiently as we can, and our pay is calculated based on the time from arrival to completion.”
“How much is your hourly wage?”
“One hundred.”
Aunt Wang’s calm answer left Jiang Yining speechless. She almost wanted to take over the chores herself.
At one hundred an hour, working eight hours a day would amount to two or three months’ salary.
Good grief. A top university graduate with five years of work experience, and she was doing worse than a housekeeper.
In a quiet voice, Jiang Yining asked, “Aunt Wang, are there any requirements for your job?”
Aunt Wang smiled. “As long as you can do the work. Of course, we go through professional training, and only those who pass get to stay. We can’t have clients filing complaints.”
“What happens if someone complains?”
“If there’s work available, the company might not prioritize assigning jobs to someone who’s been complained about.”
Jiang Yining looked at her seriously. “Aunt Wang, do you think I’d be suitable? Do you have anyone my age?”
Aunt Wang laughed. “We do have some younger folks around thirty working with us. But Mrs. He, you’re a blessed woman—you don’t need to do this kind of work.”
Jiang Yining let out a dry laugh.
After lunch, Jiang Yining gave Zhang Qiao a call.
“Qiao Qiao, guess how much the hourly rate is for the housekeeping auntie here?”
Zhang Qiao, lounging in her beanbag chair, replied lazily, “Thirty?”
“Nope. Guess again.”
From her tone, Zhang Qiao knew she’d guessed too low. “Fifty?”
“One hundred.”
Zhang Qiao sat up straight in shock. “One hundred?”
Jiang Yining confirmed, “Yep. He Chi arranged for housekeeping this morning, so I asked Aunt Wang about it. I was really surprised too.”
After the shock passed, Zhang Qiao thought for a moment and said, “Ning Ning, do you think you could find out if they’re hiring?”
“You’re switching careers? Are you sure?”
“Not for me,” Zhang Qiao explained. “My mom used to work as a maternity nurse, but it was too exhausting. My dad didn’t want her to keep doing it. But you know my mom—she can’t sit still and keeps nagging about finding another job.”
Aunt Fan had married early and gave birth to Zhang Qiao at twenty-two. That meant she’d only be fifty next year.
Jiang Yining said, “I don’t really know much about it, but once He Chi gets off work, I’ll go with him to find out.”
Now that she knew how expensive housekeeping services were, and since she had time on her hands, Jiang Yining asked He Chi to put a hold on the service for the next few days.
That afternoon, she stayed home preparing materials for training new teachers. It wasn’t until just before He Chi got off work that she came out of the study.
At that moment, Jiang Yining was in the kitchen when her aunt called. She answered with the speakerphone on and set her phone to the side.
“Auntie.”
“Ning Ning, are you busy?”
“I’m free,” Jiang Yining said as she slowly sliced a washed tomato. “I’ve got time now.”
She had actually been thinking of calling her uncle and aunt anyway. She hadn’t told them about getting their marriage certificate yet.
Ying Yun hesitated for a long while, unsure of how to bring it up.
After a moment of silence, Jiang Yining sensed something was difficult to say. “Auntie, are you still treating me like an outsider?”
“I’m really embarrassed to bring this up, Ning Ning.”
“Your cousin’s girlfriend is pregnant. They’re planning to register their marriage, and her family hopes your cousin can have a home of his own.”
“The wedding, the house—all of it needs money…”