Chapter 9: Sharing an Umbrella with Pei Jue

The weather in early May was unpredictable—one moment the sun shone brightly, the next the sky darkened with heavy rain.

Tang Tian stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, staring blankly outside at the pouring rain, lost in thought.

Suddenly, the sound of car horns pierced through the rain, followed by hurried footsteps echoing through the villa. She turned around to look.

Liu Xiaozhi and Liu Huihua each held an umbrella in hand. Liu Xiaozhi’s face showed urgency, as if worried the gentlemen might get soaked.

Tang Tian thought that just these few people would be enough and had no intention of moving, but Liu Huihua noticed her.

It wasn’t that Liu Huihua’s eyesight was particularly sharp—just a quick glance revealed Tang Tian standing by the window, gazing at the rain with a somewhat vacant expression. She looked like a beautiful, delicate sculpture, impossible to overlook.

Except for Liu Xiaozhi, who was fully focused on the four gentlemen, the others had noticed Tang Tian but their gazes didn’t linger on her much.

Liu Huihua, however, couldn’t stand Tang Tian’s leisurely attitude. Even though there were enough people holding umbrellas for the gentlemen—so what?

“Tang Tian, come quickly! There’s still an umbrella here,” Liu Huihua raised her voice, urging Tang Tian to help shield the gentlemen from the rain.

Tang Tian didn’t refuse. She spoke as she walked toward the villa’s main entrance.

“You all go ahead to greet them. I’ll follow right behind.”

Satisfied with her success, Liu Huihua stopped pestering Tang Tian and opened her umbrella, stepping into the pouring rain.

Tang Tian stepped out the door, took down two umbrellas hanging on the umbrella stand outside the villa, and opened one. The raindrops sliding off the umbrella blurred into the heavy rain outside.

A few servants hurried forward, their footsteps quick and tense. Tang Tian was not far behind—only a few steps away.

She tilted the umbrella slightly to the side and lifted her eyes to the gloomy sky. It looked like the rain wouldn’t be stopping anytime soon.

Several expensive luxury cars were parked not far away. The first to step out was Wen Shaohan. Liu Xiaozhi hesitated nearby, as if wishing she could be in several places at once, not wanting other servants to hold umbrellas for the gentlemen.

Zheng Liyu was about to hold the umbrella over when she saw the driver quickly step out of the car and shield Wen Shaohan’s head from the rain.

The driver cast a somewhat reproachful glance at them—how could they be so slow? He had already gotten out of the car, yet no one had come to cover Mr. Wen from the rain.

Wen Shaohan was mild-mannered; although his clothes were a bit soaked, he showed no anger or displeasure.

Liu Huihua and Zheng Liyu understood the driver’s scolding look and immediately felt wronged. It wasn’t that they were slow, but Liu Xiaozhi’s indecisiveness about whether to hold the umbrella had caused them to hesitate.

Wen Shaohan walked a few steps toward the villa and noticed Tang Tian trailing behind alone. The scene of her bumping into him a couple of nights ago flickered through his mind again as if replaying before his eyes.

Tang Tian saw him looking over. “Mr. Wen.”

Wen Shaohan nodded very lightly at her and brushed past.

“Tang Tian, come here.”

The luxury car ahead rolled down its window, and Sister Wu’s half face appeared in Tang Tian’s line of sight from the passenger seat.

Tang Tian hurried over. “Sister Wu.”

Sister Wu looked at the several servants squeezed outside Shen Yanli’s car and was nearly furious. What were they all crowding there for? It just so happened that the only umbrella inside the car was left behind by the driver at the company.

Tang Tian glanced toward the back seat—Pei Jue was inside.

“Sister Wu, I brought two umbrellas. I’ll share one with you. Mr. Pei will have to manage holding the umbrella alone.”

Hearing this, Sister Wu’s irritable mood softened. Tang Tian didn’t seem like someone with hidden agendas; she was genuinely beautiful. If not for her poor background, Sister Wu had seriously considered signing her.

But she only dared to think that in her heart. If she really signed Tang Tian, the entangled benefits and complications would be too complex. Just the fact that Tang Tian had worked as a servant in this villa made it absolutely impossible for her to enter the entertainment industry.

“Alright.”

Sister Wu got out of the car and took the umbrella Tang Tian handed her. She opened it, then suddenly seemed to remember something and said to her, “You escort President Pei back to the villa. Don’t let him get wet.”

Tang Tian was puzzled. President Pei was tall and strong; he could easily hold an umbrella by himself back to the villa. Why did she have to hold the umbrella for him? Wouldn’t that mean she’d get soaked?

Before she could voice her doubts, Sister Wu had already walked alone through the rain toward the villa.

Tang Tian sighed quietly—if she was going to get wet, so be it. She could just change into her work uniform when they got back.

She moved to the left rear seat and lightly knocked on the window.

“Mr. Pei, Sister Wu asked me to come get you and take you back to the villa.” She made sure to emphasize “Sister Wu” to avoid him thinking she had ulterior motives, trying to get close or seduce him.

The rear door opened, and President Pei’s cold, stern face appeared under her gaze. His well-tailored, expensive suit made him look elegant and aloof, even more intimidating.

He was very tall, and standing in front of her, the sense of pressure he gave off was overwhelming.

Tang Tian raised the umbrella in her hand, barely able to cover the top of his head. But the slanting rain poured directly onto her body.

Pei Jue glanced down at her, then reached out and took the umbrella from her hand, planting it between them and tilting it toward her side.

Tang Tian was surprised, looking around herself—the pouring rain had only dampened the edge of her clothes. But Pei Jue’s black dress pants were soaked halfway up, as if they had been washed with water.

“Mr. Pei, Sister Wu said you must not get wet.” She wondered if Sister Wu would deduct her wages because of this.

He held the umbrella silently, walking back toward the villa with her.

Since the umbrella’s coverage was limited, she couldn’t get too close nor stay too far away—otherwise, they’d both be drenched. It was a delicate balance to maintain.

He was very close to her, and besides the smell of rain, Tang Tian could also detect a cool fragrance from him.

Nearby, Liu Xiaozhi was shyly leaning close under Shen Yanli’s umbrella. She looked up and saw the tall, handsome man protecting Tang Tian under his umbrella, barely letting her get wet.

Liu Xiaozhi’s face was full of surprise—Mr. Pei was actually holding the umbrella for Tang Tian?!

Shen Yanli also saw it but showed no expression of surprise; it seemed completely normal for Pei Jue to do such a thing.

When Fu Xi got out of the car, the rain had become even heavier. He cursed under his breath, “This damned weather,” then followed Liu Huihua back to the villa.

At the villa’s main gate, Fu Xi complained, “Blue skies and white clouds just a moment ago, and now it’s raining. I hate rainy days the most.” Luckily, he hadn’t gotten too wet.

Liu Huihua, who had been holding the umbrella for him, was soaked through and felt too miserable. She told Sister Wu and went back to her room to change clothes.

Among all the servants, only Tang Tian had the least amount of rain on her.

Tang Tian watched Pei Jue, who was changing shoes. He was almost half drenched, and Sister Wu called Tang Tian aside.

Tang Tian thought Sister Wu was going to deduct her wages because Pei Jue was half soaked.

“Sister Wu, could you please deduct less?” She spoke as if trying to bargain—though her salary was generous, she still couldn’t afford too many deductions.

Sister Wu was momentarily stunned by the question, then realized what Tang Tian meant and couldn’t help but smile at her. “What are you thinking? Do you think I’m that unreasonable?”

“Mr. Pei getting drenched isn’t your fault. I won’t deduct your wages, so don’t worry.”

Tang Tian visibly relaxed. “Thank you, Sister Wu.”

“I called you over because I want to say, in the past I let things slide and didn’t test you, but… you really can’t have that kind of thought anymore.” Sister Wu spoke with both kindness and firmness.

Tang Tian nodded quickly, not even knowing when Sister Wu had been testing her, but this was good—no one wanted to work in an environment where they were constantly suspected.

“I won’t.” She promised firmly.