The movers started unloading, and the housekeeping staff began putting things away, everyone wearing an expression that said they'd just had their fill of juicy gossip.
If their company didn't specialize in serving the wealthy and hadn't made them sign strict confidentiality agreements when they were hired, they would've loved to go online and spill the beans.
Sigh!
The love, hate, and drama of the rich always seemed to be a bit juicier.
While everyone was busy working in an orderly fashion, the people from the car dealership arrived.
Ni Bingyan opened the courtyard gate and took it for a spin. The model, the color, the features... everything was just what she liked.
She signed the contract and completed the handover on the spot. Just like that, she had a new car to her name.
Very decisive.
The car salesman was delighted:
"Miss Ni, you have excellent taste! The trunk on this car is huge, perfect for the household nanny to take out for grocery shopping. You just moved in, so adding a car like this is absolutely perfect!
"Once the rest of the paperwork is done, we can mail it to you or deliver it in person, whatever's most convenient for you. Here's my business card. If you need anything else in the future, please don't hesitate to call!"
Ni Bingyan lifted her gaze and gave him a complicated look, not responding to his spiel.
The salesman, unaware that his flattery had completely missed the mark, was still wondering why she was looking at him like that when he saw her reach out a delicate, slender hand and take the card.
Beautiful women were often aloof and cool; the salesman was quite used to it. Seeing that they were still unloading things in the yard, he quickly took his leave.
"You've just moved in and must have a lot to do, so I won't disturb you any longer. Miss Ni, goodbye!"
"Goodbye."
Watching him leave, Ni Bingyan was filled with embarrassment.
'If I say I bought this car for myself, what happens? Sooner or later, some tabloid will write that I was dumped by the rich CEO, had no one to support me, and became a washed-up actress.'
She had even come up with the headlines for them.
"NBY's Dreams of Marrying Rich Shattered, Gets Kicked to the Curb," "From BMW to Volkswagen: NBY's Tastes Are Anything But Common"...
'Some rival in the industry might even mock Jiang Sheng, calling him a cheapskate for not even being willing to give me a decent car!'
'I can't just go around telling everyone he already gave me an apartment just to save President Jiang's face, can I?'
'It's 200 square meters! You tell me, isn't that big?'
'People would laugh me out of the room.'
'But if I say the car is for the nanny... I don't even plan on hiring one.'
'And if I get famous one day and my haters dig this up— "LOL! Has a certain actress with the surname N gotten addicted to playing the part of a rich girl?" "She secretly drives a cheap car, and when she's caught, she claims it's the nanny's grocery-getter. Blech~" "Are all female celebrities this vain?"'
Just thinking about it made her skin crawl.
Although she wasn't famous right now, meeting people with a bare face, even if they knew her name, they'd only find her a little familiar. As for what movies or TV shows she'd been in or what her signature roles were, no one could really say.
Those who didn't pay attention to such things might just think she was pretty, not even realizing she was an actress.
'But I can't possibly stay unknown forever!'
'With looks like these, decent acting skills, my previous experience, and my work ethic, how could I not become famous?'
Hmph~
While the staff was busy, she wandered around, looking here and there. As she looked, she felt like the house was missing something, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
The furniture and appliances were all there, and anything inconvenient could be replaced later. Her usual daily necessities had been moved over, and there was no shortage of clothes or blankets. Once the bedroom was set up, she could move in...
After a whole night of commotion, it was almost dawn. There was plenty of time, so she didn't dwell on it.
She was a little hungry.
She plucked a fresh cucumber from the backyard, washed it, and leaned against the doorframe, crunching away. CRUNCH, CRUNCH.
She had been too excited before; only now that things had quieted down did she feel tired.
Her mind went blank as she ate mechanically. Half a cucumber later, she saw the empty kitchen—not a single pot, pan, bowl, or plate—and smacked her forehead before opening a shopping app.
Buy, buy, buy!
'Pots, pans, bowls, plates, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, things to eat, things to drink, things to use...'
'I won't be able to finish all the vegetables in the yard, so I'll need a pickling jar for pickled vegetables.'
'The peppers are already getting very red. I'll pick them and make pickled peppers! When I have time, I can make some pickled pepper chicken feet! A great snack that won't make me fat.'
'I can't finish all the cucumbers, so I'll make them into pickles. They'll definitely be an appetizing side for morning congee!'
'There are two rows of ginger in the corner. Now's the time to dig up the young ginger, I'll pickle a whole jar of it! It'll be amazing for cooking fish later!'
'What else?'
'Pickled eggplant and long beans would be great too. They're perfect for stir-frying with beef and go great with rice!'
'The tomatoes can be made into ketchup. Later, when the potatoes are grown, I can dig them up and make french fries.'
'Tallying it all up, one jar might not be enough. I have a storage room anyway, so I'll just buy a few more!'
'And all sorts of small appliances the house is missing...'
'Now that I'm on my own, I'll definitely need all this stuff sooner or later!'
She busied herself with it for two hours until the sky brightened, finally stopping, though she still wanted to add more.
Then she just sat on the sofa in a daze.
She herself wasn't good at these things, but the original owner of this body had been.
Because her father was a chef, with a family heritage of Sichuan cuisine passed down for several generations, the original owner had picked up some real skills from growing up around it, even though her ambitions lay elsewhere.
The original owner's memories were like they were sealed in a box. The right trigger would unlock them, and they would then merge into her mind, becoming a part of her.
She didn't know if, in the long run, she and the original owner would completely merge. She wasn't afraid of anything else, only of inheriting that love-addled brain and not being able to think clearly.
'Sigh, I'll deal with future problems when they come. But what should I do about her father?'
As an orphan, she had no experience with this.
The memories of the original owner's time with her father, every little moment, were truly enviable.
Her father ran a private kitchen back in their hometown. She wondered if he still did things the same way, only accepting one reservation per day.
The father and daughter had a falling out over Jiang Sheng. The original owner hadn't been home in two years, and the last time she spoke to her father on the phone was over a year ago.
Her father had urged her to leave Jiang Sheng, but she refused. They had a huge fight, and neither of them had backed down since.
Sigh!
'Should I apologize on the original owner's behalf?'
'But would that feel like I'm stealing her father?'
'Now that the original owner is who-knows-where, if I don't fulfill her filial duties, doesn't that mean I'm depriving her father of his child?'
'It's enough to make my hair fall out~'
'In her thirty-plus years of life, she never would have dreamed she'd suddenly gain a biological father!'
She was completely unprepared.
"Miss Ni, we've finished organizing everything. Please take a look and see if there's anything that isn't to your liking, so we can adjust it according to your preferences."
The lead organizer was a very gentle woman who gave off a friendly and approachable vibe.
Ni Bingyan quickly took the checklist and went through it item by item.
It was a small, two-story villa. Besides the garage, storage room, and bathrooms, it had four bedrooms and two living areas.
The master bedroom was on the second floor with a large walk-in closet that held all her things with plenty of room to spare.
She planned to turn the room next door into a study later.
Downstairs, she reserved the large, well-lit room for her dad and decided to turn the other one into a home gym.
She had a habit of working out, and having suffered from not going to college, she enjoyed reading and learning new things in her spare time. This layout suited her perfectly.
After seeing the staff off, paying the final balance, and setting an alarm, Ni Bingyan chugged half a bottle of mineral water and fell into bed without even bothering to change her clothes.
Owning a house outright with no mortgage felt incredibly secure.
Meanwhile, after attending a gathering with friends and then crashing at a hotel for half the night, President Jiang finally stumbled home once he had sobered up.
"Young Master, you're back? Have you had breakfast? I made your favorite fish fillet congee and some crystal soup dumplings."
He had drunk too much last night and had no appetite this morning. He wanted to refuse, but he couldn't bring himself to say it when faced with Aunt Li's worried expression.
He forced down half a bowl of congee but felt it didn't taste as good as usual. The fish fillets were a bit tough, and the bones hadn't been removed, making it unpleasant to eat.
The pleats on the crystal soup dumplings were also uneven, which ruined his appetite just looking at them.
He felt like the house was missing something, but he didn't have the energy to think about what it was.
Raising his wrist to check his watch, Jiang Sheng put down his bowl and said out of habit:
"I'm going to take a shower and head to the office. I have plans tonight, so you don't need to make dinner for me."
Jiang Sheng was very well-mannered and was close to Aunt Li, who had taken care of him since he was a child. He always let her know whether or not he would be home for dinner. If he was out, he would have his assistant call.
The original Ni Bingyan obviously didn't know this, and, at Aunt Li's urging, would always prepare a huge spread of food and drinks, waiting foolishly every day.
In Aunt Li's eyes, having a light left on for you, coming home after a long day to a beautiful woman's tender loving care, drinking a bowl of nourishing soup, and having a late-night snack would greatly enhance one's happiness. And if the mood was right, a little intimacy with the beautiful woman would make it even better.
Growing up, such things had always been arranged for him, so Jiang Sheng never paid any attention to these minor details.
Instead, it was Aunt Li's dark circles that caught his attention.