Chapter 248: Chapter-248

“Don’t be stupid. Ghosts don’t leave bruises like that. It was a person—someone strong enough to overpower her.”

“But who? Everyone’s too afraid of her!”

“Well, whoever it was, they did the whole household a favor. Maybe now we’ll have some peace.”

Even inside the main house, Heena heard the Master and Mistress discussing it:

The Mistress’s voice, worried: “Husband, what if it happens again? What if someone attacks one of us?”

The Master’s voice, unconcerned: “Don’t worry yourself. It was clearly someone with a grudge against that old servant. Nothing to do with the family.”

“But what if—”

“Enough. You worry too much. That’s why you’re so thin and pale. Come, let me order the kitchen to make you something nourishing.”

And then sounds of the Mistress giggling—actually ’giggling’—at something the old man said.

Heena, passing by with a tray, had to physically stop herself from gagging..

.

.

Later that evening, after all the cooking and cleaning was done, Heena was finally given her own meal.

She sat in front of the cooking stove, squatting down on her heels in the traditional servant position, eating simple rice and vegetables with chopsticks.

She looked at the System, who was floating nearby, and pointed at him with her chopsticks.

“Hey, if I’m not wrong, doesn’t this old man have sons?”

Hearing that, the System paused—he’d been examining her injuries to see if any needed more treatment.

“Yeah, he has two sons.”

Hearing that confirmation, a slow smile spread across Heena’s face.

“Find out where these sons are. Get me all the information you can.”

The System raised one small paw and said cautiously, “But Host, I should warn you—the older son is actually the villain in this story’s original plot.”

Hearing that, Heena paused mid-bite and said, “Excuse me?”

The System nodded seriously. “The eldest son is portrayed as the ultimate villain of this narrative.”

Heena set down her chopsticks and looked at him incredulously.

“You’re telling me—me, the Black Lotus who’s successfully conquered multiple worlds and destroyed countless enemies—that some random NPC’s son is supposed to be the ’villain’ here?”

She laughed.

“How many times has this ’villain’ killed his father?”

The System looked confused. “What? He hasn’t killed him yet in the current timeline—”

“Exactly,” Heena interrupted. “So he’s not a villain yet. He’s just a son with potential.”

The System explained further: “Well, there are two sons. The younger one is exactly like his father—an utter fool, an idiot playboy type who wastes money chasing women and gambling. Completely useless.

“But the older son is different. He’s scholarly, intelligent, well-read. He’s currently studying and building connections. In the original story, he eventually attempts to kill his father to take over the family business and wealth. He’s portrayed as cold, calculating, and ruthless—the ultimate antagonist who dies in the end when the hero and heroine defeat him.”

Hearing all this, Heena’s smile became predatory.

“Perfect. Go and get me this man’s complete profile. I want to see what he looks like, what his personality is like, everything.”

She paused, then added seriously: “But if he resembles his father even one tiny bit in appearance, I cannot work with him. If he’s ugly like that old man, the plan won’t work.”

The System looked at her suspiciously. “Host… what exactly are you planning? Are you going to marry this son?”

Heena looked at him like he was an idiot.

“Are you crazy? Of course not literally marry him!”

She rolled her eyes.

“It’s a figure of speech, you know. There’s a saying: ’If I cannot become your mother, I’ll become your wife; if I cannot become your wife, I’ll become your stepmother; if I cannot become your stepmother, I’ll become your daughter-in-law.’”

She gestured with her chopsticks.

“In this situation, since I obviously cannot become this old man’s mother, and I refuse to become his wife or concubine because he’s disgusting, my best option is to become his daughter-in-law. Marry the son, gain access to the family wealth and power, and escape this servant hell.”

The System stared at her in disbelief.

“Host… you can literally make a plan out of anything, can’t you?”

Heena reached into her pocket and pulled out a small item she’d kept from her previous world as the Empress—a reminder of her strategic capabilities.

“The skills I learned in my last life are still very much intact. And I earned them through years of political warfare, not luck.”

She looked at the System pointedly.

“Now go get me that information. I need to know everything about this eldest son—appearance, personality, current location, relationship with his father, everything. The more I know, the better I can plan.”

The System nodded quickly, suddenly enthusiastic.

“Of course, Host! You’re the best! Absolutely the best in the world!”

“I know,” Heena said, returning to her meal. “Now go. We have work to do.”

As the System disappeared to gather information, Heena continued eating her simple meal, her mind already working through multiple scenarios and strategies.

’If this eldest son is intelligent and ambitious, that means he’s already unhappy with his father. Good—I can work with that.’

’If he’s scholarly and well-read, that means he values intelligence and conversation. Also good—I can provide that.’

’If he’s portrayed as ’cold and calculating,’ that just means he’s strategic and thinks ahead. Perfect—we’ll understand each other.’

She smiled to herself.

’Sorry, original plot. Sorry, female lead and male lead. But I’m about to completely derail your story.’

’This servant life? It ends now. One way or another, I’m getting out of this situation.’

’And if I have to seduce the ’villain’ to do it? Well, that’s just another Tuesday for the Black Lotus.’

She finished her meal, washed her bowl, and headed to her sleeping quarters.

Tomorrow would be another long day of backbreaking work.

But soon—very soon—things were going to change.

She could feel it.

Because until that moment, Heena didn’t know—and when she found out, it was one of the biggest shocks she’d ever experienced. Even the Black Lotus, who’d conquered multiple worlds, felt like she’d been completely blindsided.

Just the next morning, everything had been going relatively normally.

She’d discovered through the System’s information that the “villain” was coming home today. That was a surprise, of course, but not a huge one—apparently he always came home on Tuesdays for the family meal, and today happened to be that day.

She’d cooked the feast as everyone had demanded—multiple dishes, all prepared to exacting standards despite her limited kitchen resources and the continuing pain from her injuries.

She was just about to enter the dining room to serve everyone. She’d already placed half of the food on the table, and now only the warm rice bowls needed to be distributed.

Taking a deep breath, she lifted the tray of steaming rice bowls and entered the dining room quietly, keeping her eyes lowered in the proper servant manner.

She moved around the table slowly, carefully placing one bowl in front of the old Master first—as was proper protocol.

Then she placed a bowl in front of his so-called wife, the beautiful Maya, who didn’t even acknowledge Heena’s presence.

And then she turned to place a bowl in front of the eldest son—the so-called villain she’d been so curious about—

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep