Head Maid's Affection +999+999+999……

Noon.

In the suburbs of Dahai City, Dahai City 101 Welfare Home.

Autumn had already arrived. Many leaves fell from the trees, landing on the ground, yellowing and scattered in disorder. A few people were scattered around the yard, sweeping.

The Head Maid rode a small electric scooter, carrying Ye Cheng along the road from not far ahead.

The Head Maid looked up and frowned, her expression strange. "This is the place?"

Ye Cheng nodded, hopping off the back of the scooter. "Yeah, this is it. The place where I used to score some spicy strips."

The Head Maid: "..."

It felt... not too bad, at least. Better than the slums where she used to live, at least it had some basic decency—looked fairly clean.

But all those thoughts shattered the moment the person sweeping outside the yard looked up. A natural cleft lip, eyes that seemed dull and vacant.

The Head Maid instinctively wrinkled her brow and stepped back half a pace.

A... girl?

But her face was hard to compliment, unsettling people without her even doing anything wrong.

A pang of guilt stirred in the Head Maid's heart.

"Brother Cheng, you're back!" When the Cleft-Lip Girl looked at the Head Maid, her eyes were murky and vacant, like someone half-witted. But the moment she spotted Ye Cheng, her eyes lit up, and she seemed to come alive.

What had looked like a puppet on strings suddenly turned into a lively person. She clutched her broom and hurried over.

Ye Cheng nodded, stretched out a foot, and drew an imaginary line on the ground. "Alright, stop right there. One more step and I'll kick you."

The Head Maid: "???"

Was that something a person should say?

While the Head Maid was still marveling at Ye Cheng's coldness, the Cleft-Lip Girl stopped obediently, nodding. She followed exactly what Ye Cheng had said, as if she didn't find anything wrong with it—as if this had happened many times before.

Ye Cheng pulled a big piece of bubble gum from his pocket and tossed it to the girl. "You on duty today?"

"Yeah. Director Chen said some people are coming in a couple of days, so we need to clean the place up so they'll be happy." The Cleft-Lip Girl tore off the wrapper and started chewing it, mimicking Ye Cheng's style.

"That Old Devil really has a knack for polishing up appearances," Ye Cheng said.

"Brother Cheng, you shouldn't say that about Director Chen. He won't be happy." The Cleft-Lip Girl's voice was a little weak.

"Dummy. Go play somewhere else. Where's that Old Devil now?" Ye Cheng pressed down on the Cleft-Lip Girl's head, asking about Director Chen's whereabouts.

The Cleft-Lip Girl thought for a moment. "I think... he went out this morning?"

As Ye Cheng chatted casually with the Cleft-Lip Girl, the sound of chopsticks clinking against bowls and pots drifted from inside the welfare home. Seemed like it was mealtime.

The Head Maid stood by, silent, listening to their exchange.

She quickly drew some conclusions.

For example... Ye Cheng had a high status in this welfare home. Otherwise, anyone could show up at any random time and find someone who knew him, calling him "Brother Cheng."

She could feel it—the respect and admiration were genuine.

And... they seemed about the same age?

The girl looked a little younger than Ye Cheng—maybe less than a year younger—about the age for schooling. But instead, she stayed in the welfare home doing odd jobs.

Maybe it was because of her face: shyness, being ostracized, or her natural slowness that gave up on school to stay put in the welfare home...

These thoughts flitted through the Head Maid's mind before settling on the moment Ye Cheng called her name.

"Let's go, Xiaxia. Time to eat."

Ye Cheng stuffed his hands in his pockets and headed toward the welfare home. The Head Maid frowned slightly and followed behind him.

The Cleft-Lip Girl who had been talking with Ye Cheng stayed outside to keep sweeping. But once inside, the Head Maid realized that the Cleft-Lip Girl was actually one of the more normal ones.

She was... passable.

The people inside were truly... strange, already teetering on the edge of unsettling. "Crooked mouths and squinty eyes" was a generous description.

Among them, even being "dull-witted" might count as the best of the bunch. Some kids were missing arms or legs... It was like a glimpse into a living hell.

The Head Maid's brow knit deeper.

This place was far worse than the slums she had lived in. No wonder she sometimes heard Ye Cheng mutter things like "Pokémon" for no reason—these people really were something like Pokémon!

"Brother Cheng, you're back!"

"Brother Cheng..."

"Brother Cheng..."

Walking along, nearly everyone who was old enough—old or young, big or small—knew Ye Cheng and greeted him warmly. Ye Cheng nodded. Then he casually picked up a tray.

Silently, he chose a few of the best dishes, piling them high. The Head Maid followed his example, taking a tray, but she held back, picking mostly vegetables.

The food... wasn't great, but it was passable. The problem was the people inside who spoiled the appetite.

If her mistress were here, she'd probably be scared into having nightmares... Had Ye Cheng grown up in this environment?

In that case, it made sense why his way of thinking was so different from others, why he seemed out of step with the world.

"Is there something sketchy about this welfare home?" The Head Maid's sharp instincts flared.

Of course, a welfare home should take in people in need. But this was way too extreme. Whole courtyard, and she hadn't seen two normal people.

Even the staff serving food and washing dishes were "Pokémon." Who runs a place like that?

Ye Cheng took two bites of his food. "Yeah. That Old Devil in this place can't be bothered to hire outside workers—it costs money. So he makes the people here support themselves, gives them food in exchange, and swindles subsidies on the side."

Ye Cheng's tone was utterly indifferent. The Head Maid's face twisted.

"When did you find out about all this?"

"Can't really remember. About 4,799 days ago, I think, when I heard a few old devils talking about disassembling a couple of simpletons here and selling them off like Gundam models... chew, chew, chew..."

The Head Maid: "???"

"Wait, you're not talking about human trafficking, are you?" The Head Maid’s face darkened, her lip twitching.

"Don't know. Probably not. More like just sending them somewhere else, putting them to work in some black labor place, where they get two square meals in exchange for their pay..."

The Head Maid: "???"

What kind of dark fairy tale is this? People with weak mental fortitude would automatically develop a fever for three days after hearing Ye Cheng’s description, while those with weaker fates would simply collapse with a high fever and never get up again. It’s too hellish.

The most absurd part is that Ye Cheng seems completely unfazed by such things, showing no extra emotional reaction.

“Why didn’t you call the police?” the Head Maid frowned.

“Xiaxia, it’s not that easy. Besides, back then I was just a kid, no power at all. I had to rely on that Old Devil to eat. If he fell, how would all my brothers under me survive?”

“It’s already not bad. If someone worse came along—skinning, flaying, extracting marrow—you’d learn to be docile. It’s already not bad…”

Ye Cheng wolfed down the food from his plate with loud clatter, while the Head Maid felt like she had a fishbone stuck in her throat, unable to swallow a single bite. Hearing these words was simply too painful.

Even as an outsider, she couldn’t remain so composed, yet Ye Cheng had managed to endure under such high pressure and hellish conditions for so many years.

The problem Ye Cheng raised was a very realistic one.

The existing balance at least guaranteed some stability; blindly overturning it would lead to an uncertain outcome. Many people foolishly advocate that merely eliminating those who oppressed them would make life better, but that’s not the case. The next oppressor might be even worse, leaving you unable to even maintain your previous standard of living.

The “Old Devil” Ye Cheng referred to might be black-hearted, but at least he still provides food. It’s better than bringing in someone more ruthless after his downfall.

As for other matters…

“A gentleman’s revenge is never too late,” they say. Ten years isn’t too long. I don’t remember how much time has passed—my grudges are from hundreds or thousands of days ago.

His few poor brothers were probably sold off to work as slave labor somewhere, maybe even reincarnated as elementary school students by now. Starting from scratch, not bad, not bad…

The meal ended half an hour later. Ye Cheng ate quickly and wasn’t much affected, but the Head Maid felt like she was chewing wax.

She forced the food down her throat.

The two left the cafeteria, and the heavy atmosphere eased a bit, but a stone still weighed on the Head Maid’s heart. They walked two laps around the courtyard.

The Head Maid stopped: “Have you already figured out what to do?”

Ye Cheng rubbed his belly, blinked, and sat down on a rusty, creaky swing in the yard: “Probably figured it out, but I still need a little time. I haven’t decided whether to hit that Old Devil running over him directly or send him to jail…”

The Head Maid: “???”

Her instinct told her that Ye Cheng wasn’t joking with what he said just now—he was serious. He actually wanted to kill the man!

The Head Maid frowned: “Don’t act rashly. We live in a society governed by law. It’s not worth throwing yourself away.”

As if remembering something, the Head Maid said, “What about your young lady…”

“Ah, Xiaxia, you know, relying on others is never as good as relying on yourself.” Ye Cheng cut off whatever the Head Maid was about to say next.

The Head Maid’s pupils shrank sharply, her delicate frame trembling, but she understood what Ye Cheng meant… People like them were like that—only trusting themselves. If she hadn’t happened to meet her lady and Madam by chance, maybe she’d be in the same spot now…

The difference between Ye Cheng and her was that, even with the special advantages he now had, he still treated himself as having nothing and handled things accordingly.

In the truest sense, he’d rather seek help from himself than from others.

In comparison, the difference in thinking between the Head Maid and Ye Cheng was clear—she fell far short.

She… had been somewhat naive. Everything that seems free in life comes with a hidden price tag. What’s free is actually the most expensive. Clearly, Ye Cheng chose to trust himself.

“One last question: why do you trust me?” The Head Maid’s eyes showed confusion.

Ye Cheng blinked: “Because, Xiaxia, we’re both lowly people.”

The Head Maid was stunned for a moment, then all her frustration and gloom vanished. She rolled her eyes at Ye Cheng: “Pfft, you’re the lowly one…”

The fiery red glow of sunset fell on the Head Maid’s face, bringing out a blush that didn’t belong to her age—a shy, youthful pink. She… was very happy.

Head Maid’s Favorability +999 +999 +999…