I Am Her Secret Beauty - Chapter 2

“I’m so terribly sorry!” Nan Nan kept bowing in apology. “It’s all my carelessness that made you come all this way. I’m really sorry, Butler Mu!”

He and Mu Xi stood by the roadside next to a freshly repaired luxury car.

Thanks to this broken-down vehicle, Mu Xi, who had just finished showering fifteen minutes ago was now covered in dust again.

Who would have thought a car worth millions could just break down like that?

But she harbored no resentment. Instead, she gratefully replied to Nan Nan:

“Second Young Master, please don’t say that. Actually, I’m the one who made a mistake. It’s really kind of you to give me a chance to make up for it. Serving you has always been my honor.”

Seeing her sincerity, Nan Nan couldn’t help but ask curiously, “What mistake did you make?”

“I… failed to pick up Little Miss.”

Fifteen minutes earlier.

Mu Xi had just stepped out of the shower when she was hit with a bolt from the blue.

Nan Zhiya had forwarded her a message from Nan Xi, the young miss, who had just landed, was planning to take a taxi back home, opting for a cheap ride from the airport to the Nan residence.

Though Nan Zhiya hadn’t said a word, Mu Xi immediately felt a surge of anxiety.

She knew her employers expected her to be an ever-busy, all-capable steward. If they found out she had come back home just to shower and laze around without a care…

Then Nan Nan’s call gave her a new sense of purpose.

“Butler Mu?” Nan Nan’s helpless voice came through the phone, and Mu Xi’s eyes lit up as if she’d been rescued from the gallows. “Are you busy? I’m on the road, uh… my car broke down, and I don’t know how to handle it…”

Nan Nan was the least noticeable member of the Nan family, a beta without the extraordinary talents of his siblings, and cursed with an almost impressive streak of bad luck.

Though Mu Xi knew he never meant any harm, dealing with his endless string of mishaps always gave her a headache.

Except this time.

“Second Young Master! Stay right where you are, I’m on my way!”

……

Hearing Mu Xi’s frustrated answer, Nan Nan chuckled good-naturedly.

“Oh! Well, it’s understandable that Butler Mu would worry. After all, my little sister is the only omega in our family, and Mother dotes on her endlessly.” Nan Nan said. “When Nan Xi wanted to study abroad, Mom strongly opposed it because of how frail she is.”

The car was fixed now, and the two stood by the roadside, waiting for the insurance company’s response while chatting.

Mu Xi sighed with professional remorse. “I deeply apologize. I’ll make sure to avoid causing Madam any worry in my future work.”

Though the real reason she hadn’t picked up Nan Xi was that she hadn’t even been told what time to fetch her.

But the employer was never wrong, Mu Xi had long understood this principle.

“Hahaha… If that’s what Butler Mu wants, you’d better get along well with my sister. It’ll save you a lot of trouble.” Nan Nan glanced at his phone, then quickly backtracked. “…Actually, never mind. She’s a bit of a handful. Maybe keeping your distance is the best way to avoid more trouble.”

Instinct told Mu Xi that Nan Nan’s words were absolutely correct.

But as the Nan family’s steward and the young miss who needed the most care, how on earth were the two of them supposed to keep their distance?

The insurance company called soon after. Mu Xi exchanged a few words with them and informed Nan Nan that the compensation would be processed quickly. The car brand had also promised that a vice president would personally call Nan Nan to apologize.

Satisfied, Nan Nan got into his car and bid farewell to Mu Xi, who stood smiling as she watched him leave.

Once Nan Nan’s car disappeared from view, Mu Xi’s smile immediately faded. Out of habit, she checked her phone to see if any new instructions had come in during her conversation with the insurance company.

Nothing. Nan Zhiya hadn’t messaged her, and neither had Nan Lian. Good.

But now she needed to schedule a full-body checkup for Miss Nan Xi immediately, after all, the second young master had just mentioned that the young lady’s health had always been poor.

…And then there was the research institute. The construction site Mu Xi had been working at this afternoon was actually the research institute Nan Zhiya was building for Nan Xi. She should compile a progress report and deliver it to Nan Xi, maybe it would cheer her up.

But the first thing Mu Xi needed to do now was rush back to the side of that delicate young lady and carry out her every command.

Mu Xi quickly sorted through these tasks in her mind. Just as she took two steps after making her decision, her phone rang again.

Nan Nan’s apologetic voice came through the line: “Butler Mu! I’m so embarrassed, this is so rude but could you come over here? My car’s run into another issue…”

……

Mu Xi got into her car with an expressionless face and drove to the location Nan Nan had sent her.

Unbelievable.

The car that had just been repaired five minutes ago, which Nan Nan had driven less than a kilometer, had now collided with a pedestrian at an intersection.

By the time Mu Xi arrived, a small crowd had already gathered around Nan Nan’s car, all looking at him as if he were an idiot. Her kind-hearted, foolish second young master was squatting in front of an elderly man, the two of them locked in a standoff right in front of the car.

The old man who had been hit lay on the ground, shouting at the top of his lungs, “He hit me! He hit me!”

Even as he yelled, his eyes kept darting to the emblem on Nan Nan’s car, barely concealing his excitement.

Nan Nan had never encountered anything like this before. Concerned, he tried to help the man up and ask how he was doing, but the old man roughly pushed his hand away.

Nan Nan crouched there in confusion, guilt and helplessness written all over his face. It looked like he was ready to hand over money at the slightest prompting, straight into the old fox’s pocket.

Mu Xi pushed through the crowd and stepped forward. “Second Young Master.”

“You’re here!” Nan Nan grabbed Mu Xi’s arm as if she were his savior, looking like he was about to cry. “Please, can you check on this gentleman? I didn’t see him in front of me, and by the time I reacted, it was too late…”

The old man stopped shouting and sized up Mu Xi from below, who responded with a cold smirk.

Realizing Mu Xi might not be an easy target, the old man quickly changed tactics, abandoning his earlier act. He immediately turned to Nan Nan and shouted, “I’m in really bad shape! You need to take me to the hospital right now. If I’m hurt anywhere, you’ll have to pay!”

Nan Nan nodded eagerly, about to follow through and help the man to the hospital, ready to play the fool and hand over the money.

Mu Xi calmly reached out to stop him. “Second Young Master, I’ve studied some medical knowledge. Let me assess this gentleman’s condition first.”

She was quite strong, and with this block, Nan Nan couldn’t continue to help the old man. The old man tried to resist and prevent Mu Xi from inspecting the abdomen he was clutching, but it was all in vain. Mu Xi effortlessly lifted the old man’s upper body with one hand like a chick and pulled open his clothes with the other.

As Mu Xi had expected, the sly old man’s stomach was perfectly fine, not even a scratch.

It was only by sheer luck that he had run into the naive and wealthy Nan Nan. If it had been anyone else, they would have cursed him out until he had no family left…

“Second Young Master, he has no external injuries. I believe he wasn’t actually hurt, he was just trying to scam you,” Mu Xi straightened up and honestly shared her assessment with Nan Nan.

Nan Nan looked even more shocked than the scammer: “What? Could he have internal injuries?”

“I’m sorry, Second Young Master, but if he had indeed been hit by your car and suffered internal injuries, I’m afraid there would at least be some visible external trauma.”

As Mu Xi spoke, she subtly tightened her grip on the old man’s arm, making him grimace in pain but unable to voice his suffering.

“How could this be…” Nan Nan processed the information Mu Xi had given him. Meanwhile, Mu Xi kept pinching the old man relentlessly but said nothing further.

Finally, after enduring Mu Xi’s grip for a full five minutes, the scammer couldn’t take it anymore.

He scrambled up from the ground, shook off Mu Xi’s hand in one swift motion, and cursed, “Are you insane?! What kind of young master and butler nonsense is this? You think you’re part of the Nan family or something?!” Then, shoving through the crowd that had been mocking him, he stormed off angrily.

At this point, even Nan Nan, who had never encountered such a situation before, realized he had been scammed.

The old man quickly disappeared into the distance. Feeling even more guilty, Nan Nan turned to Mu Xi and apologized, “I’m sorry, Butler Mu. I didn’t know it was like this… I made you come all the way here for nothing…”

“It’s alright, Second Young Master,” Mu Xi smiled. “I’m used to it.”

She dispersed the onlookers, who were murmuring about the relationship between Mu Xi and Nan Nan, some even suggesting she was the fool’s nanny. Afterward, Mu Xi put her psychology training to good use, comforting the dejected Nan Nan while educating him:

“This kind of situation is usually called a ‘crash scam.’ The scammer exploits the victim’s guilt to commit fraud. If you encounter something like this next time, Second Young Master, for example…”

Since she was already on the topic, Mu Xi also took the opportunity to teach Nan Nan about summer drowning prevention. But she had a feeling that, sooner or later, Nan Nan would still accidentally fall into water and call her for help.

What a headache. The main plot of the novel she had transmigrated into was about the power struggles within the Nan family. How was someone like Nan Nan supposed to compete with his siblings?

Patiently, Mu Xi escorted Nan Nan back into the car.

Now that his awareness of vehicle safety and scams had improved, he probably wouldn’t run into any more trouble today.

She hoped Nan Nan could put in a good word for her in front of Nan Zhiya. Even though she hadn’t managed to pick up Nan Xi today, she had been working diligently for the Nan family all day without a moment’s rest.

Even though she wasn’t at home now, she had already arranged everything with the assistants and servants. Whether it was household matters or the just-returned Nan Xi, there wasn’t a single detail that required Nan Zhiya’s attention.

She began scheduling a full-body checkup for Nan Xi tomorrow, the kind where the family doctor would bring equipment and assistants to provide in-home service for her.

In such scorching weather, she couldn’t let the young lady exhaust herself by going out.

The family doctor responded quickly. Considering that Nan Xi might need time to adjust to the time difference and rest, Mu Xi carefully chose an afternoon appointment and informed the doctor in advance that they might have to wait for the young lady to wake up.

So professional. Absolutely perfect.

Though she had only graduated from the Domestic Service University three years ago, Mu Xi felt she had already set the industry standard.

With a housekeeper like her, how could anyone possibly find fault?

…If only she ignored the fact that she had failed to pick up the young lady.

A faint unease settled in Mu Xi’s heart, causing her grip on the steering wheel to tighten slightly, leaving shallow indentations from her fingers.

That was just how alphas were, if they weren’t extremely careful, they could easily cause unnecessary harm.

Before entering, Mu Xi brushed off the dust on her suit again, accumulated while helping Nan Nan repair the stalled car. Perhaps some had also rubbed off during her confrontation with the scammer old man, but it didn’t matter.

She meticulously checked every detail: her collar, cuffs, and the hem of her clothes.

Once she confirmed her appearance was impeccable, Mu Xi lifted her chin, wearing a flawless, affable smile. With that, she stepped into her workplace, ready for her first meeting with her final client.

After just a few steps inside, Mu Xi spotted Nan Xi sitting blankly on the sofa.

She was beautiful, elegant, and delicate. Yes, this was undoubtedly the young lady of the Nan family.

Her features bore a slight resemblance to her mother, Nan Zhiya, and a faint likeness to her father, Guan Yan, but the remaining charm was uniquely her own. That charm made her, in Mu Xi’s eyes, the most attractive person in the Nan family.

She studied chemistry, a field Mu Xi had little knowledge of but perhaps she could bring up some researchers who had connections with the Nan family to bridge the gap between them…

As Mu Xi approached Nan Xi, the other woman suddenly trembled, her eyes widening and pupils shrinking. This reaction puzzled Mu Xi, but since she had already come this far, she spoke in her gentlest voice:

“Hello, young lady, I-”

She didn’t get to finish her introduction.

Before she could even introduce herself, Nan Xi who had seemed so fragile and unthreatening suddenly lashed out, slapping Mu Xi across the face with all her strength.

Honestly, in Mu Xi’s opinion, the slap was weak, barely registering as pain.

Instead, she noticed how soft Nan Xi’s hand was, pleasantly warm against her cheek, with no trace of sweat on her palm. It seemed her health wasn’t as poor as she’d feared.

…Wait, something felt off.

Mu Xi looked at Nan Xi in surprise. The other woman appeared utterly furious, her originally pale face now flushed red, her damp eyes wide and fixed on Mu Xi, her rosy lips slightly parted but trembling uncontrollably.

Why?

…Why?

Would her career end today, ruined because the first impression she made on Nan Xi was one of hatred?