The long-awaited Mr. Prayut from Thailand had finally arrived.
Duan Aoxiang quickly pulled someone in front of himself as a shield, then scrambled up from the floor, swiftly straightened his appearance, and went out to greet the guest.
Ji Feng didn't persist in leaving anymore. With Prayut's arrival, he turned back and returned.
But he didn't glance at Xu Miyu again, as if her unauthorized touch earlier had filled him with deep revulsion. Only by treating her like invisible dust could he alleviate the irritation in his heart.
The hall was too noisy, so Duan Aoxiang led Ji Feng and Prayut to the meeting room in the suite. Each of the three brought an assistant.
The hotel's suite butler had already cleaned the restroom by then. Seeing new guests arrive—especially foreign dignitaries—she immediately followed Duan Aoxiang and stood outside the meeting room door, asking if tea or refreshments were needed.
Duan Aoxiang blocked her at the doorway, pointing toward the main living room and instructing, "Go attend to things out there." He added, "Call that woman from earlier over. Have her come quickly and serve us here."
The suite butler's smile was so well-trained it had become muscle memory, but upon hearing Duan Aoxiang's arrangement, even that molded standard smile stiffened slightly.
She had called servers from lower floors to follow her orders and assist her. Now, ironically, the roles were reversed—she had become the assistant to that older woman.
Who could understand the tastes of wealthy playboys? With too much money, their preferences turned peculiar.
The suite butler walked away with a slightly stiff smile. Soon, Xu Miyu arrived carrying tea and hot towels.
She knocked and entered the room, seeing Ji Feng and the Thai guest seated opposite each other on sofas, with Duan Aoxiang between them. Their assistants sat in chairs slightly behind them, each back straighter than the last, poised and ready for commands.
Duan Aoxiang was busily playing translator, switching between translating Ji Feng's words into Thai for the guest and interpreting the guest's gabbled speech back to Ji Feng.
Xu Miyu was surprised that Duan Aoxiang wasn't entirely frivolous—he actually knew a less common foreign language.
She handed out hot towels to each person, then served hot tea one by one. Once her service was complete, she prepared to retreat to the room's entrance.
But Duan Aoxiang stopped her.
"Hey, you there—did I say you could leave?" He glanced sideways and noticed Ji Feng frowning slightly upon hearing him call the server back. That faint frown held hidden disdain and patience.
This only energized Duan Aoxiang more. Originally, he had intended to hassle this woman a bit before letting her go. But since she made Ji Feng so uncomfortable, he changed his mind immediately:
"You there, come here! Stand beside me. Keep your eyes sharp—be ready to serve tea, water, and change towels anytime, got it?" Seeing how she unsettled Ji Feng, he decided not to let her leave after all. He made her stand in the sofa gap between him and Ji Feng.
After all, the important parts of their discussion would be in Thai, which she wouldn't understand, so it wasn't a big issue.
Xu Miyu looked at the spot Duan Aoxiang designated for her to stand.
Right next to Ji Feng.
She glanced up quickly.
The man named Ji Feng was expressionless, coldly lowering his gaze.
His demeanor suggested that looking at her for even a second longer would dirty his eyes.She hadn't done anything particularly inappropriate—just momentarily lost in thought, she had accidentally tugged at his sleeve.
How could it make him seem to already despise her to the very marrow of his bones?
Lately, she had been living in a state of numbness, almost indifferent to whether others disliked her.
But Ji Feng's attitude of disgust shattered her protective shell of numbness. Once again, she was forced to wake back into her old people-pleasing self—that Xu Miyu who was afraid of angering others, afraid of being disliked.
Duan Aoxiang urged her impatiently: "Hey, you! What are you standing there for? If your hotel held a contest for the most foolish and useless employee, you'd definitely win first place! Hurry up and come over!"
Xu Miyu walked over and stood in the gap between the sofas where Duan Aoxiang and Ji Feng were seated.
Duan Aoxiang immediately switched back to his smooth-talking self, transforming into Translator Duan.
He first asked Ji Feng: "Old Ji, how was my Thai just now? Fluent, right? I told you, you didn't need to bring a translator tonight—I'm more than enough to handle it for you!"
Ji Feng looked at him, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly as he smiled and said, "Since you put it that way, if I still insisted on bringing a translator, wouldn't that be slapping you in the face?Duan Aoxiang replied: "Exactly!" Old Ji, let me tell you—these years my old man sent me to Thailand for 'rehabilitation' weren't wasted. I've mastered the local language quite fluently. And you, well, you've studied in the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan—everywhere except Thailand. So I just happen to complement you!"
His cheeks, still flushed from the lingering effects of alcohol, grew even redder after he finished speaking, whether from excitement or not.
Ji Feng lifted his half-drooping eyelids, looked at Duan Aoxiang, and smiled again: "What a coincidence, isn't it?"
That slight smile at the corner of his lips, though cool and detached, carried an indescribable sexiness.
Standing beside him, Xu Miyu could somewhat understand why Duan Aoxiang, who was usually so arrogant with everyone else, actively fawned over Ji Feng. Ji Feng seemed to possess a strange kind of magnetism—you knew full well that the signals he emitted were cold and distant, yet you couldn't help but be drawn to that very aloofness, wanting to break through it, shatter it, and stand by his side no matter what.
"It's getting late. Let's get down to business," Ji Feng instructed.
Duan Aoxiang gave an OK gesture, then glanced sideways and looked up at Xu Miyu: "My tea has gone cold.""
Xu Miyu quickly bent down to replace it with hot tea.
Duan Aoxiang didn't tease her further and turned to jabber away with Prayut.
After replacing Duan Aoxiang's tea, Xu Miyu also got up to replace Prayut's.
Once she finished with Prayut's, she hesitated over whether to replace Ji Feng's tea as well. After all, he seemed to despise her so much—she wasn't even sure how to approach him to perform basic services now, afraid of coming across as annoying.
But the assistant behind Ji Feng gave her a clear signal, gesturing to her: Come over, please replace President Ji's cold tea as well.
Like someone rescued from confusion, she immediately went over to replace the tea.
Perhaps she was too nervous—nervous about whether she would mess up and make people dislike her even more. And so, she indeed messed up. Just after finally pouring the tea, her wrist slipped and knocked the cup askew. Tea and tea leaves streamed neatly from the small side table next to the sofa onto the floor, soaking a patch of the carpet.Xu Miyu quickly whispered an apology, half-kneeling to clean up the mess.
Even without looking up, she could almost feel the disgust in Ji Feng's eyes if he were to glance her way.
Duan Aoxiang and Prayut's chatter paused. Turning to relay Prayut's words to Ji Feng, Duan Aoxiang caught sight of Xu Miyu kneeling on the floor, wiping the damp tea stains and cleaning up the scattered tea leaves. He clicked his tongue disapprovingly. "How clumsy!"
Xu Miyu swiftly tidied up the aftermath and obediently returned to her original position.
Duan Aoxiang said to Ji Feng, "Old Ji, I've just confirmed with this Thai friend—he's genuinely eager to sell his properties in Thailand for cash. If you're sincerely interested in acquiring them, he won't reach out to other buyers."
Ji Feng raised an eyebrow and requested to see Prayut's property list and valuation.
Duan Aoxiang began chattering back and forth, translating between Ji Feng and Prayut.
After the three conversed for a while, Ji Feng told Duan Aoxiang, "Inform Mr. Prayut that I've decided to acquire his properties."
Duan Aoxiang immediately translated this for Prayut.
Then he turned back to Ji Feng and said, "Old Ji, Brother Prayut says it's settled. He'll send over the written property documents later. Once you've reviewed them, we can arrange another meeting like today to finalize the transaction price. What do you think?"
Ji Feng nodded in agreement.
Duan Aoxiang turned to Prayut and conveyed Ji Feng's stance in a long stream of words. When he finished, he and Prayut exchanged a smile. Xu Miyu glanced up at them.
Soon after, Prayut stood up and bowed to Ji Feng in a traditional Thai gesture, expressing his joy at reaching a preliminary cooperation agreement.
She then shifted her gaze to Duan Aoxiang, who was looking back at Ji Feng, eagerly awaiting praise.
She glanced at Ji Feng again. His thin lips curved slightly at the corners, his eyes tilting upward with a blend of aloofness and sensuality. He casually reined in his sharp elegance and smiled at Duan Aoxiang. "Thank you for your hard work."
As he finished speaking, his gaze inadvertently met hers.
He immediately averted his eyes, as if she were the most despicable existence in the world, as if looking at her for even a second would be fatal.
Xu Miyu pursed her lips and lowered her gaze.
The unspoken disgust and aversion in Ji Feng's eyes left her speechless.
By the time everything was wrapped up and she could retreat from the penthouse, it was already very late.
Duan Aoxiang, pleased with his translation work, didn't bother to trouble Xu Miyu further. Seizing the opportunity, she hurried downstairs.
As she was about to leave, the butler of Duan Aoxiang's suite gave her a cold look, not even bothering to offer the practiced, muscle-memory smile.
She said to Xu Miyu, "So you're Sister Xu, huh? You're something else—managing to replace me on your first time up here. You're quite the talent."
Xu Miyu stepped into the elevator amid her sarcasm.
Leaning against the elevator wall, she covered her face, feeling utterly drained.
She hadn't done anything wrong, so why did it seem like everyone in the penthouse world despised and blamed her?
When the elevator reached her floor, she lowered her hands and stepped out. Taking a deep breath, she headed to the locker room to change out of her uniform and end her shift.Just as she finished changing clothes, the phone lying in the locker began to vibrate.
Xu Miyu picked up the phone and saw that Xu Mibao was calling her in the middle of the night.
She sighed. The locker room was silent, the walls echoing her sigh back and forth.
Taking advantage of being alone, she answered the phone.
Xu Mibao skipped any pleasantries and got straight to the point.
He asked Xu Miyu for money, saying it was their mother's idea, and that their two older sisters had already contributed. Since all three sisters were responsible for paying his mortgage, and the two older sisters had already given their share, it was now her turn.
Xu Miyu was utterly exhausted that night.
She was so tired she barely had the energy to be angry.
Clutching the phone, she let out a cold laugh and asked Xu Mibao, "What did I do to deserve being tied to a man like you in this lifetime? How do you even have the nerve to ask me? A grown man like you—is this how a man should behave? You still rely on me to support you just to get by—do you have no self-respect?"
After saying this, she hung up and firmly pressed the power button to turn off the phone.
Leaning against the locker, she lowered her head and breathed heavily for a long time, suppressing all her anger and exhaustion that threatened to burst out in a scream.
Her hands trembled slightly as she reached into her pocket and pulled them out. She unwrapped a chocolate candy from her pocket and stuffed it into her mouth.
The bittersweet taste spread in her mouth, gradually calming her emotions.
She took a deep breath, straightened up, locked the locker, and walked out of the changing room.
As the sound of her footsteps faded into the distance, rustling noises emerged from behind the row of lockers where she had changed.
Ke Wenxue and Yin Xiang, who had been lying lazily on the bench at the back of the changing room, sat up straight. They exchanged a glance.
Ke Wenxue spoke first: "That Sister Xu really has it tough, no wonder she looks so worn out. At her age, she still has to work as a hotel attendant—all because she has to support that worthless man at home!"
Her tone was sympathetic, but that sympathy was tinged with excitement, fueled by the thrill of gossip.
Yin Xiang was much more rational and detached: "What's so tough about it? Everyone walks their own path. If she hasn't dumped such a lousy man and is still living with him, it's her own choice."
Ke Wenxue rolled her eyes at her: "Yeah, yeah. If it were you, Miss Yin, you'd have kicked a useless man like that to the curb long ago!"
Yin Xiang didn't hold back either, retorting, "And how are you any better? If Li Kunlun from the Food and Beverage Department were the supervisor instead of just a delivery guy, you'd have started dating him ages ago!"
Ke Wenxue immediately corrected her: "Don't talk nonsense! Li Kunlun and I are purely gossip buddies—there's nothing messy between us like you're implying."
Yin Xiang continued to tease her: "I really admire you and Li Kunlun—oh, and let's not forget Lu Xiaoyan from the Front Office. You guys are practically the gossip department of the Sway Hotel. Each of you is a gossip minister, and your department handles all the hotel's rumors!"
Ke Wenxue laughed and playfully hit her. The two chatted and joked as they changed and clocked out.
By the next morning, thanks to the efforts of the gossip department members, the story of Xu Miyu—a woman in her thirties forced to do dirty, exhausting work to support her good-for-nothing man—had spread throughout the entire hotel.Even the top floor received this gossip.
OpenNovel