Chapter 2

I stopped paying attention to Henry, grabbed Dad's hand, and told him what I'd decided.

"There are ten people here. Except for the one who'd rather starve than take a handout, I want to help all the other nine," I said to Dad.

All at once, the other students' eyes lit up with excitement, and they kept thanking me over and over.

The principal was so moved that his voice trembled as he grabbed my hand, tears welling up in his eyes.

"These kids are barely hanging on. With your support, they'll be able to rise above it all and one day work for the Evans family!" he said.

Several of them, eyes brimming with tears, bowed deeply to me and Dad, swearing that once they succeed, they'll dedicate themselves to Evans Group.

Henry rolled his eyes hard.

"Here we go again, same old routine.

"Charlotte, you're really something. Throwing a few crumbs and thinking you can buy someone's whole life!" he sneered.

The other students were furious, instantly accusing Henry of projecting his own selfish motives onto everyone else.

Henry kept arguing, but mid-sentence, his eyes suddenly locked onto something.

I followed his gaze and saw a girl who looked vaguely familiar.

As she walked over, it suddenly hit me.

Grace was actually part of my life.

But she wasn't here to sponsor any poor students.

She was the nanny's daughter.

After the nanny got injured, my parents felt bad for the two of them, so they let them stay in our guest house and even allowed Grace to come over to take care of her mom.

It seemed she was here to drop off my lunch.

Sure enough, Grace came over, calling my name as she took out some soup.

"My mom was thinking about you since you left so early this morning, so she made this at home. Give it a try," Grace said.

I was still caught up in my memories, barely reacting, when Henry suddenly rushed over and slapped the lunchbox away.

"Charlotte, you're always ordering people around, making them serve you.

"Grace isn't your maid, she's got her own life. Aren't you embarrassed?" Henry sneered.

I was stunned for a moment, but before I could say anything, Grace jumped in, sounding shocked.

"Are you crazy? Ms. Evans is your benefactor! Who do you think you are, talking to her like that?" Grace shot back.

Henry let out a cold snort.

"Grace, this time I'm not picking Charlotte. Why don't you sponsor me instead? I'm one of the top students here. If you help me out, I'll make it big, and I'll pay you back, I promise," Henry said.

Grace looked at Henry as if he were an idiot and took a step back.

"Are you nuts?" Grace said.

Henry was completely lost in the thrill of getting Grace back, totally oblivious to how weird he was acting. He just kept talking himself up, pitching himself to her nonstop.

"I'm not just smart, I've got real experience. I know where the business world is headed for decades to come. Trust me, investing in me is the right move!

"With me around, you'll be rolling in money, Grace. Please, just give me a chance!" Henry pleaded.

Even though Grace was the nanny's daughter, my family was always generous to the people who worked for us. The nanny made several times more than a regular worker.

Grace liked to dress like me. Just by appearance, there was no way to tell who was the real deal and who was just playing dress-up."

Sponsoring a student would still be a bit of a stretch for her.

But since my family was so generous, the nanny could make in a month what a regular worker made in six months.

If Grace pinched pennies and lived frugally, she could totally pull it off.

After weighing it over and over, Grace finally agreed, unable to resist Henry's constant urging.

"Fine, but we need to lay down some rules," Grace said.