A gentle breeze swept through, sending the ants hauling their loads scurrying even faster into their burrows, as if terrified of accidentally eavesdropping on the delightful secrets shared between the two girls.
When the wind died down, Lin Zihan’s smile lingered on her face.
She seemed to be toying with her audience, deliberately holding back instead of spilling the beans right away. With deliberate slowness, she reached into the pocket of her maid outfit’s skirt and pulled out her phone, encased in its pink rabbit shell, tapping away at the screen.
Lin Zihan’s phone was several generations behind the latest models, but even after years of use, it gleamed as brightly as the day she’d gotten it, not a hint of wear.
She’d teased a secret but refused to share it. You’re practically begging me to snoop it out myself!
Curiosity wasn’t just a trait of Ye Zhibai’s—it was the fundamental building block of her very being.
And so, Little Zhibai straightened up with subtle determination, craning her neck just enough that her silver hair draped onto Lin Zihan’s shoulder. From this perfect angle, she finally caught a glimpse of what Lin Zihan was tapping at.
—Her WeChat Pay balance.
“Ya…! Little Bai’er, no peeking! That’s so mean—you’ve seen everything now!”
“Don’t phrase it like that… It’s creepy.”
“Hee~ Then my plan worked perfectly.”
On purpose, wasn’t it?
Well… fair enough. Ye Zhibai hadn’t expected her to pull up her WeChat balance either; it really was a sneak peek out of nowhere.
Something like a thousand yuan…?
As everyone knew, one’s wallet balance was intensely private territory.
In ancient times, folks guarded their plot of land like a fortress; these days, it was their balance down to the last penny and cent.
Nobody wanted that kind of personal vulnerability exposed.
After her little joke, Lin Zihan dropped the pretense of hiding it.
She not only stopped shielding the screen but actively shoved her phone toward Ye Zhibai, letting the balance—”1807.2 yuan”—shine in crystal clarity.
Ye Zhibai wasn’t sure what to say. Forget her current life; even back in her previous one, this was a small fortune.
And to the currently strapped Lin Eldest Miss? Absolutely a windfall.
“See, Little Bai’er? The Maid Corps does daily payouts. I’ve only been working a few days, and I’ve already saved up nearly two thousand!”
“Rich beyond nations.”
“…”
No, what I meant was—that’s a ton!
Lin Zihan casually nuzzled her cheek against the silver strands of Little Bai’er’s hair resting on her shoulder.
Then, as if nothing had happened, she barreled onward with the conversation.
“Two thousand isn’t a fortune or peanuts… But I’ve done the math. If I stick to the contract and work a full month before school starts, I’ll rack up a pretty impressive sum. It’ll cover buying cosmetics for Mom with room to spare, plus some for my university living expenses! If I’m careful, there’ll even be money left over afterward!”
“Eh… That’s genuinely awesome.”
“All thanks to Little Bai’er pulling strings for this job~”
There was a clear note of relief in Zihan’s voice as she spoke—a hard-earned lightness after years crushed under financial strain.
Ye Zhibai couldn’t exactly call it empathy.
It was more like total, bone-deep understanding!
She could still vividly recall the heavenly taste of that first beef burger bought with her own hard-earned cash from her very first job.
Hang on… Hadn’t the conversation veered straight into Guang Yu’s grandma’s house territory? (Guang Yu didn’t have a grandma; it was just an idiom for wildly off-topic.)
Earlier…
Zihan had promised a little secret, right?
But this sounded exactly like bragging about her recent victories!
The cat-shaped Guang Yu, sensing no threats, had emerged from the bushes during this exchange and strutted boldly back toward the house.
If Ye Zhibai’s curiosity hadn’t been fully piqued, waiting on that “secret,” she definitely would’ve grabbed a stick and chased the little troublemaker around the yard a couple of laps.
By the time Ye Zhibai turned her attention back, Zihan finally cut to the chase.
“As for that little secret I mentioned… Little Bai’er, take a guess?”
“The sky’s blue. I don’t know when raindrops form because I’m not the weather report.”
“Hahaha, so poetic! Okay, okay, no more guessing. Here, Little Bai’er—check this out!”
“Which one?”
Lin Zihan swiped away from WeChat and opened Meituan, tapping straight from her search history to a glaringly obvious page.
It jumped out immediately: icons of a Ferris wheel and carousel floating prominently, surrounded by cartoon characters.
Even without reading the Chinese characters, anyone could tell what it was from the visuals alone.
“Amusement park?”
“Yep! Amusement park!”
Lin Zihan scooted even closer to Ye Zhibai. Unlike with Yun’er or Sister Liang, a fresh wave of her green apple scent washed over them—youthful and tangy.
Ye Zhibai’s instinct was to pull away a bit. But dodging would be ruder still.
Hmm…
Guess she’d just have to reluctantly hold still!
With Lin Zihan’s chest now pressed snugly against Ye Zhibai’s arm, she could easily swipe through the screen to show everything off.
“Let me find it… Oh, right here! The amusement park’s theme event in five days. I already scoped out the reviews—the park itself is a blast, and this event’s an annual blowout, super grand and insanely fun. I went once as a kid and don’t remember much, but I do recall it being a total hoot!”
“Eh… That’s new and cool. Everyone gets to party again. Uh… Wait, what are you saying, Zihan?”
“Obviously, I’m inviting Little Bai’er to come play with me! What do you think? Sound fun? If you’re in, I’ll book tickets right now—they’re selling out fast! Tomorrow, it’ll be scalpers only. We can still get them at face value; no time like the present! If you’re game, my treat!”
“…”
Old habits died hard.
Outings like this? Ye Zhibai’s knee-jerk reaction was that they were normie territory—nothing to do with her.
But once she realized she could actually join in… a tiny spark of excitement flickered to life!
An amusement park…
She’d never been to one before!
Wah, what kind of deprived life had she led? She’d barely experienced anything!
With nothing much on the horizon for the next few days anyway, Ye Zhibai started to nod in agreement.
But halfway through the motion, her eyes flicked back to the screen.
She froze.
Couple’s ticket… 1,075 yuan?!!
Why not just rob a bank!
Hot tickets or not, the official site wasn’t supposed to price-gouge like scalpers!
Everything deserved fair judgment, but after all Zihan’s days buzzing around like a hardworking gardener bee, scraping together just over a thousand… this would wipe her out in one go.
Refusing felt wrong, though.
What to do?
Ah—
Right!
Didn’t her bank card have two million, plus ten Q Coins in QQ?
She was loaded these days!
Weighing it all, Ye Zhibai opted for a diplomatic middle ground.
“I’d love to go, but… let me cover the tickets. No offense—I just mean you’re a bit short on cash right now. Once things stabilize, you can treat me later. No rush.”
Perfect! Super tactful!
No outright rejection, no bruising her pride.
I’ll front it now; you pay me back later!
High emotional intelligence. Bulletproof!
But high-EQ Little Zhibai…
Got smacked right upside the head.
Lin Zihan acted like she hadn’t heard a word of the counteroffer, zipping through the order and smashing the pay button!
Ye Zhibai’s jaw hit the floor.
Hey!
That pretty four-digit balance in your wallet just turned into an ugly three-digit one!!
Tickets secured, Lin Zihan snapped her phone shut with flair, tossed her hair, and flashed Ye Zhibai a triumphant grin.
Ye Zhibai had dodged just in time, or that dramatic golden mane would’ve slapped her across the face.
No matter what, her arm felt the press even tighter now.
“I knew you’d say something like that~” Lin Zihan crowed, smug as if she’d foreseen it all. “That’s why I mentioned it upfront—I did the math. Cosmetics covered, school living expenses set aside, and still surplus left! So what’s the most meaningful way to spend that surplus? Isn’t it obvious?”
What was “most meaningful” remained debatable.
But it sure as hell shouldn’t be dropping over a thousand on tickets and instant regret!
Or… should it?
Beside Lin Zihan’s golden bangs fluttered a single crimson eye, blinking playfully.
The rhythm matched the shimmering sunlight dancing on flower petals she’d planted herself, swaying in the breeze.
Yet those eyes held a softness no mere sunlight could capture.
“Spending a thousand yuan to buy Little Bai’er’s smile… Wouldn’t that be the deal of a lifetime?”
“Eh?”
“It’s just… I’ve never seen Little Bai’er smile. You’re so upbeat, such an angel! Keeping that cold face just won’t do. I thought, if I could take you to the amusement park and make you have a blast… maybe I’d finally get to ‘buy’ that smile? The mere chance of it? Definitely a surefire win—no way I’d lose out!”
