Volume One, Chapter Three: The Daughter Is the Second Female Lead in a CEO Romance 3

The first thing he needed to do was to rid the house of all these malignancies.

“In consideration of the fact that you’ve taken care of Ruoxue for so long, I won’t be too harsh. Otherwise, you’d all be sitting in the police station right now alongside Housekeeper Li.”

Shiyan felt there was no need to explain further. Anyone with a bit of sense should realize that dealing with them was a simple matter for him.

Hearing his words, the former employees dared not utter another word.

“Assistant Tang, settle their wages for this month,” Shiyan said, striking a balance between strictness and kindness, giving them a sweet fruit after a slap.

These people had been with the Jiang family for quite some time, familiar with the layout of the house and Ruoxue’s habits. If he pushed them too hard, there was no telling what desperate actions they might take.

Thus, Shiyan wanted them to know that he was letting them off for Ruoxue’s sake.

Once their wages were settled, the old employees left.

“I’ll say this upfront: if you work honestly and fulfill your duties, you’ll receive your rewards and salaries without fail. But if anyone dares to harbor any improper thoughts, don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

After clearing out the poisonous elements in the household, Shiyan didn’t forget to warn the newly hired staff. He dismissed the old employees right in front of them, clearly intending to keep them in line.

“Rest assured, Mr. Jiang. We will do our jobs well and never entertain any improper thoughts.”

“Assistant Tang, explain their duties and arrange their accommodations,” Shiyan instructed.

“Yes, Mr. Jiang,” Assistant Tang replied respectfully.

The new housekeepers and gardeners certainly lived up to their reputation—five-star professionals found by Assistant Tang through the agency, highly skilled in their fields.

After all was arranged, Shiyan went upstairs to Ruoxue’s room. He opened the door and saw Ruoxue, beaming joyfully as she played a game of pretend with Grandma Chen.

Shiyan began to recall the plot he had received. This small world was based on a CEO romance novel—a classic tale of an overbearing tycoon falling for an innocent, naive girl. The CEO and the naive heroine endured countless trials before finally achieving happiness.

Ruoxue was the story’s antagonist—the vicious second female lead, who tried every means to torment the heroine and seduce the male lead.

Ruoxue was the clown of the tale.

In the original text, depictions of Ruoxue were mostly of her misdeeds, her ugly side. Her unhappy experiences were brushed over—only mentioning that her family’s business was mainly abroad, her father was rarely home, and her mother had passed away.

Ruoxue had long lacked love, so when the male lead showed her kindness, she became infatuated, willing to hurt the heroine for him.

What the story didn’t mention was that Ruoxue had been abused by the family’s housekeeper, Li—the very same Li who was the heroine’s grandmother.

This explained why Ruoxue disliked the heroine so much upon meeting her in high school—she recognized her.

Her bullying of the heroine was partly due to the male lead, but even more so because of Housekeeper Li.

This time, Shiyan had entered the small world at a fairly good point. Ruoxue’s mother had only passed away a year ago, and Housekeeper Li had only been caring for Ruoxue for that year.

Li’s courage hadn’t yet grown to the point of reckless abuse—she only dared to secretly swap Ruoxue’s branded clothing for fakes and occasionally slap her hands when no one was around.

In the original plot, Housekeeper Li realized the original parent was utterly absorbed in work, paying little attention to Ruoxue. The old Mrs. Jiang, living in the ancestral home, was unwell and unable to watch Ruoxue all the time. Li’s little tricks went unnoticed, and her ambition grew unchecked.

She abused Ruoxue for years, until Ruoxue was ten. The original parent, wanting to surprise Ruoxue, returned home early and discovered Housekeeper Li’s deeds.

Li was dismissed, but the damage was already done. Ruoxue resisted all affection, only letting her guard down and smiling in front of the male lead.

For this, the original parent gave the male lead several projects, making him Ruoxue’s exclusive playmate.

The male lead felt humiliated, but his abilities couldn’t match the Jiang family. No matter how much he disliked it, he still treated Ruoxue kindly.

Only after he took over his company and surpassed the Jiang family did their positions reverse.

What followed was the typical CEO romance formula—the Jiang family declined, the original parent died, and Ruoxue met a tragic end.

“Daddy!” Spotting Shiyan at the door, Ruoxue rushed over. Shiyan crouched and gathered her into his arms.

“What’s the hurry?” Shiyan smoothed her hair, clipping her bangs neatly.

“Because I want to hug Daddy as soon as possible,” Ruoxue replied in her sweet, childish voice, smiling up at him.

“What are you playing, Ruoxue?” he asked.

“I’m playing house with Grandma Chen. It’s really fun! Daddy, do you want to play with us?”

“Of course!”

Ruoxue pulled Shiyan’s hand, leading him to her room’s play area. Shiyan took off his shoes and sat on the rug, joining Ruoxue in her game of pretend.

“Mr. Jiang,” Grandma Chen called.

“Ruoxue has me here. You may go,” Shiyan said.

“Yes,” Grandma Chen replied, leaving the room.

After a while, Ruoxue’s eyelids began to droop; she was sleepy, her head bobbing, yet she stubbornly refused to sleep, struggling to keep her eyes open, wanting to play with Shiyan.

“Ruoxue, how about a nap first?” Shiyan hugged her, preparing to put her on the bed.

“No, I want to keep playing with Daddy… If I fall asleep, Daddy will leave. I don’t want that.” The little girl resisted napping, trying hard to keep her eyes open.

“Daddy won’t leave. I promise that when Ruoxue wakes up, she’ll still see me,” Shiyan assured her, laying her down.

“Really?”

“Really. Daddy promises,” Shiyan nodded.

“Pinky swear!” The little girl extended her pinky, and Shiyan hooked his own with hers, sealing the promise. Only then did she close her eyes and drift into her midday nap.