Chapter 1
I transmigrated into a book, landing in the body of the housekeeper in a true/false heiress story.
The wealthy parents said, "You actually went to work as a waitress at a hotel? Didn't we give you money? Or are you just trying to embarrass us on purpose?"
I rolled my eyes beside them. "Sure, sure. You transfer 150,000 bucks a month to Sophie's account, but in eight years, you gave Charlotte a grand total of 1,500. Of course you gave her money. She could totally buy a car, a house, and live it up with that."
The younger brother said, "Even though I only see Sophie as my sister, I'll try to accept you since we share blood."
As I passed by, I added, "Yeah, yeah. What you don't know is, you're actually your dad's illegitimate child from an affair. Mrs. Evans still doesn't know about this."
Charlotte's fiancé said, "My heart belongs to Sophie. Don't even think about it."
I said, "And you shouldn't even think about it. Charlotte already has a boyfriend, none other than William Cannon, a young and wealthy man. Who do you think you are?"
*****
While slacking off at work during a bathroom break, I stumbled upon a true/false heiress web novel online. It made me so angry that I cursed every character, including the female lead, and saved my harshest words for the author.
Then, as I stood up, everything went black, and I found myself inside the book.
A stupid system let out a creepy laugh. "Since you think the author must be brain-dead to write this trash, let's see how you handle being in it."
I ended up inside, but not as the female lead. I became the female lead's housekeeper.
"The female lead is about to get scolded again. What would you do, oh wise reader?" the system taunted.
The real heiress, Charlotte Evans, was getting lectured again. The reason? Today was Sophie Evans's birthday. Her parents, along with her brother, had taken Sophie to a five-star hotel for a party, inviting many classmates and friends.
Halfway through the party, Charlotte, carrying a trendy dish, walked in and performed a dramatic flaming rose presentation in front of everyone.
Many people present recognized Charlotte as the Evans family's real daughter.
That was it. The Evans family was utterly humiliated and immediately forced Charlotte to quit her job and come home.
"Why did you have to show up there? Were you trying to ruin your sister's birthday on purpose?" Mary Evans, Charlotte's mother, was furious. She cared about her reputation more than anything, and Charlotte had just dragged it through the mud.
Charlotte's father, Richard Evans, sat with a dark, ominous expression, saying nothing but emanating intense pressure.
Charlotte's brother, Eric Evans, rushed forward and shoved Charlotte. "I bet you're just jealous we're celebrating Sophie's birthday and not yours! You wanted to ruin the whole night, didn't you?"
Eric was a pudgy kid with no sense of his own strength. Charlotte stumbled and fell to the floor.
The beautiful girl shed tears but still didn't open her mouth to defend herself.
My heart ached for her, mixed with immense frustration. The reason I'd cursed the female lead while reading was precisely because she seemed to have a mouth only for eating, not for speaking.
Sophie shot a smug look at Charlotte before sidling up to Mary with her sweet, manipulative tone. "Mom, don't be angry. I'm sure Charlotte didn't mean it.
"Maybe she just regretted turning down your offer to celebrate her birthday earlier, so she came by to see.
"And she was wearing a mask. It's not her fault Lily has such sharp eyes and recognized her."
I knew the truth. Charlotte had refused the birthday celebration offer simply because it fell on a weekend, her regular work day. Since her colleagues already had plans, she couldn't take time off or swap shifts, so she reluctantly declined.
Who could have predicted that out of all the five-star hotels in Riverdale, they'd coincidentally choose the very one where Charlotte was working her part-time job?
"Don't defend her. She ruined your birthday, with all your classmates watching." Mary slammed the table in rage.
Sophie was the apple of her eye, the child she'd poured all her efforts into, praised by everyone in their circle since childhood.
She was nothing like her timid, shrinking real daughter, Charlotte.
Damn, this family was going to be the death of me.
The stupid system kept yapping in my head, "Put your money where your mouth is. I'll front you the cash. Do a good job, and I'll even give you all the author's earnings."
"The author's earnings? How much could they possibly make writing this garbage?" I retorted with an eye roll.
"According to statistics, including tips and royalties, this book has currently grossed over 1 million."
"What? Over 1 million?" For a moment, I didn't know whether to be jealous of the author's income or thrilled at the prospect of getting my hands on that 1 million.