chapter 2

chapter 2

I officially started work the next morning.

At breakfast, the adopted heiress, Pei Nian, drifted toward the table like a willow trembling in the breeze.

I had to admit, the product the Pei family had poured money into for twenty years was exquisitely finished.

She met every current beauty standard for the fragile, innocent darling.

The moment she saw me, her eyes reddened.

“Why are you glaring at me, Big Sister? Did Nian do something wrong?”

“I’m sorry. Please don’t be angry with me, Big Sister.”

Before I could answer, she looked timidly at the other three.

“Dad, Mom, Big Brother, should I not have come down for breakfast?”

“I know I’m only the adopted daughter. I have no right to eat at this table. I’ll leave.”

Pei Zhen and Zhao Wan melted instantly. They were just about to scold me when I beat them to it.

“Miss Pei Nian, your professional skills need work.”

Pei Nian stared at me, tears clinging to her lashes.

“W-what?”

I looked her up and down.

“As the Pei family’s signature socialite, your core competencies are beauty, fragility, and the ability to inspire pity.”

“But look at your facial control.”

I pointed at the corners of her mouth.

“You’re pulling them down too far when you cry. It looks stiff and theatrical.”

“And as the favored daughter, acting this meek in front of me—the so-called outsider—only makes you look petty. People might think Chairman Pei and President Zhao failed to raise you properly.”

“If anyone saw this, they’d assume there was a quality-control problem in the Pei household.”

Pei Zhen had been ready to berate me, but after hearing that, he seemed to find it oddly reasonable.

The Peis were an elite family. How could a daughter raised by them act so cringing and timid?

“Then what do you suggest?” he asked.

“I can serve as her competitive analyst and double as an image consultant.”

I adjusted my posture into something more professional.

“Starting today, I’ll simulate every hostile role she may encounter: a vicious sister, a fault-finding mother-in-law, even a scheming romantic rival.”

“My pressure will build her resilience.”

“My criticism will polish her image.”

“By the time she marries into another wealthy family, she’ll be able to hold her own without disgracing the Peis.”

Pei Nian was dumbfounded. Never in her life had she heard someone make bullying sound so wholesome.

“Don’t worry. This service is included in my salary. I only need the client’s cooperation.”

“For example…”

My gaze turned glacial, my voice imperious.

“Come here and clear the dishes I just used.”

Pei Nian instinctively looked at her parents.

I sneered.

“What are you looking at them for? If your future mother-in-law orders you to wait on her, will you cry for Mommy then too?”

“Did you think being a wealthy family’s daughter-in-law was easy?”

Pei Zhen considered this and actually nodded.

“Xiao Li is right. Nian, you could use some training.”

Pei Nian, her face a portrait of outraged disbelief, carried my dishes into the kitchen.

I gave Pei Zhen a pleasant smile.

“See, Boss? That’s the catfish effect.”

“Sardines only improve their chances of survival when a catfish chases them.”

“A flower raised in a greenhouse has no competitive edge and cannot survive on the open market.”

For the first time, Pei Zhen regarded me with something other than disdain.