Genshin Impact: I, the Winter's Executor, am forced to work.

At this point, she sighed deeply: "When will I ever grow up?"

"You'll have more troubles as you grow up, little girl." A kind voice came from behind her, and Tatiana turned around to look.

The old man, with a white mustache and a tall black hat, pushed up his monocle, stood ramrod straight, and his eyes revealed a shrewd glint.

"Grandpa, who are you?"

Because of a habit she had developed since childhood, the girl did not ignore the strangely dressed old man, but stood up and greeted him politely.

"Oh? What a polite and lovely young lady." The old man took off his hat and held it to his chest, then respectfully introduced himself: "Nice to meet you, I am Yevgeny."

"Grandpa Yevgeny, are you here to see my father? He's not home right now, if..."

The old man opposite her waved his hand to interrupt her, stroking his mustache: "No, no, no, I just happened to be passing by and saw such a lovely child, so I couldn't help but come and say hello."

"So...so that's how it is." Tatiana's eyes became wary.

Yevgeny pulled a handful of candy from his pocket and pretended to put it in Tatiana's hand: "It's just a small token of my appreciation."

"This... I can't just accept your things." The little girl pulled her hand back abruptly as if she had been electrocuted, hiding it behind her back.

"That's really a problem... I don't even know when I brought these things with me. If you don't accept them, I'll just have to throw them away."

The old man's tone was somewhat conflicted, and he kept observing the other person's reaction.

"Tatiana, come back for lunch!" Maria's voice came from inside the house.

Hearing the desperate cry for help, the girl breathed a sigh of relief, picked up the teddy bear beside her, shook the snow off her handkerchief, quickly waved goodbye to Yevgeny, and ran into the house.

The doors were tightly shut.

A figure in black appeared instantly behind the old man, speaking in a low voice: "Lord Yevgeny, shall we...?"

"Hmm?" The kind look on the old man's face vanished instantly, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the man in black.

"I apologize... I have overstepped my bounds."

"Hmph, I thought that children in such remote towns would be starving and naked, but I didn't expect it to be so peaceful and tranquil. It was a real miscalculation."

He stroked his beard again, his tone gradually softening as he looked at his subordinate: "Hey, don't look so scared, okay? When you're with me, you need to maintain your elegance at all times."

He reached out and patted the other person on the shoulder as a sign of encouragement.

"As for worrying about me being in a bad mood... there's no need for that. I've finally found a child with the right qualities, which is truly an unexpected bonus. Apart from that little rascal Dennis... no, that little cutie, she's the first one."

"You mean..." the man in black asked, looking surprised.

Yevgeny nodded kindly: "Of course, but her physical condition is not yet fully up to standard, so I, being kind, have to make this a bad deal for her."

The two figures gradually walked away from the front of the wooden house.

"Lord Yevgeny, aren't you going to talk to that child a little longer?"

"You're still too young. Adding flowers to brocade is nothing compared to giving charcoal in the snow. For now, I just need to leave an impression on that child, and then... hehe."

"Your Excellency is wise."

"By the way, is the child's father the mayor of this town?"

"Yes."

"I'll give you three days to contact the town's second or third-in-command, or anyone who has a conflict of interest with the town mayor."

"What do you want?"

"It's nothing. In life, we often encounter many crossroads, and helping others make choices is also an elegant thing."

-

"That's enough, Maxim. Do you know how much of this money that's been approved from above can be skimmed off?"

The man, dressed in somewhat luxurious cotton-padded clothes, spoke hysterically.

"Have you complained enough, Yegor? When you're tired of yelling, come and help me."

Maxim was getting impatient.

His deputy was fairly capable, but he was too opportunistic, vain, and somewhat selfish.

But his small town was inconvenient, and finding a replacement for him was practically impossible.

"No, why can't you see that? If this money is divided among all the elderly, children, sick, and disabled people in the town, how much will it help? But if you and I split it equally, how much will it instantly improve our standard of living? Don't you understand?"

Maxim looked at the mountain of tasks piled up before him, from the allocation of town funds to minor details such as where the road was bumped or whose chickens and ducks had disappeared, all of which were recorded in detail.

He silently lowered his head and began dealing with the matter, without replying.

When Yegor realized that force wouldn't work, his tone instantly turned seductive: "My dear Maxim, although you are upright and honest, what about your wife and your daughter?"

He kept slapping his other hand with the back of his hand, his expression full of disappointment and frustration.

"Look at your wife. Although she's a native of our town, she's very beautiful. If she had the right opportunities, she would have risen to a high social status. But what about now?"

His angry fist slammed on the table with a terrifying thud, startling Yegor.

As an outsider in the big city, Maxim's family had some savings, and he was an outstanding student. His family hoped that he could marry a noblewoman and instantly upgrade his life to a better one.

But unexpectedly, this stubborn boy resolutely stayed in this remote town and even married a "country girl".

This approach earned him the incomprehension of his family, since he had invested all his savings into this remote town.

He was not an only child, so the family's savings could not be entirely handed over to such a rebellious son to squander.

This is what he always felt guilty about towards Maria, but every time he carefully inquired about it at home, he was always met with his wife's gentle smile and comfort.

“Who says you haven’t given me the life I wanted? A simple meal, a loving husband—that’s the most fulfilling life I could have. And wealth? Tatiana, that’s the most precious treasure you’ve given to this family and to me.”

He already felt guilty for not being able to provide Mary with the luxurious life that other beautiful women enjoyed.

Therefore, he absolutely could not allow others to make malicious assumptions about his wife, the girl who had given everything for the family and sacrificed her youth for him.

"Haha... I'm... I'm sorry, I got too excited."

Yegor shrank back and gave a fawning smile.

But seeing that Maxim was ignoring him, he was still reluctant to part with the funds, so he tried again, this time being careful with his words.

“I don’t mean to insult you, but think about it, you have a daughter. What will happen to her? When she grows up and reaches the prime of her youth, she will go to school and attend dances in a big city with other children, but she won’t even have a decent piece of jewelry or a dress. What do you think your child will think of you?”

Maxim closed his eyes, sighed deeply, suppressed his anger, and reached out to stop him.

“You don’t need to persuade me anymore. What we are doing now is to give all the children in the town such a future, so that they will no longer suffer from hunger and poverty.”

"The problem is, how long will that take?! Ten years, or twenty? If it's any later, I'll be in my grave before I can enjoy it!"

Yegor clearly did not understand the reason for the other party's insistence.

But the man's tone remained unwavering.

"If this generation can't do it, then the next generation will. My daughter will take over my job. If she can't do it either, then the next generation will, and the generation after that, my grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Sooner or later, they will bring fairness and hope to this land."

"I... I'm stubborn! You're such an idiot!"

Maxim uttered his last words in a fit of anger: "If you don't want to live this kind of life, don't force yourself. Find someone better."

(Author's note: The following plot... won't be too exciting. I think everyone is afraid of knives, but as an original character, Tatiana needs a relatively full past to be portrayed well.)

I don't want to write that she immediately bows down to the protagonist and is loyal to him. These things must have a reason, so that the character will seem real.

I apologize to the readers who were hurt by the knife, but the author genuinely wanted to develop this character well.

Chapter 108

In the office, Yegor's busy figure was welcomed by Maxim.

"What's wrong with you today? You're acting so strangely, it's really not like you."

Maxim's tone was full of mockery, after all, this person would leave early if he could, and if he couldn't leave early, he would leave on time, and even if he had to work overtime, he would make up all sorts of excuses.

Yegor carefully rubbed the dust off the ground together and gently put it into the trash can.

He smiled, his eyes narrowed, his face full of repentance: "After returning yesterday, I carefully considered your words, and they were truly enlightening! I now want to make amends for my past mistakes and foolishness."

Maxim nodded in satisfaction: "Yes, it's good that you admit your mistakes and correct them. I will need your help in the future, as I cannot easily accomplish many things on my own."

“Of course!” Yegor put one hand on his chest and extended the other: “I’ve decided to do my best to complete my duties. You should go back and rest today, and spend time with your wife and children.”

The man paused, pen in hand, and shook his head with a wry smile: "You're right, I've been a bit too busy lately. How about... we get things sorted out together these next few days, and then take a couple of good days off?"

"As expected of you, you always think so thoroughly."

The man completely dropped his fawning smile and turned back to his work.

But no one noticed that his face was full of the look of a smug satisfaction.

-

咚咚

The door to the wooden house was being knocked on repeatedly.

"Coming, coming! Who is it... Granny Anna!"

Maria's tone was somewhat surprised: "It's been so long! Your legs aren't good, why did you have to come all the way here? If you need anything, just call Maxim when he gets back."

The woman took her mother-in-law's arm and slowly led her to sit down on the sofa.

"Hmph, every time I sit on this sofa, I'm reminded that the only wedding gift our beautiful little Maria received after marrying Maxim was a sofa and a bed."

The mother-in-law was furious.

"Haha... Look at what you're saying, this is already considered quite a luxury in our town."

“You’re right… but I’ve watched you grow up, and you’re really like my own daughter. Well, at least Maxim has been good to you and Tatiana.”

"Grandma Anna!" Tatiana rushed out of the bedroom and threw herself into the old woman's arms, staring at her face with her big, watery eyes.

Have you seen your father these past two days?

"I'm sorry, little Tatiana, the last time Grandma saw him was on your birthday night, when she happened to run into him passing by."

Ha, I don't even know why he's so anxious, calling me "old man" over and over again.

"Is that so..." The little girl's eyes revealed an undisguised sense of disappointment, but she quickly realized something and cheered up.

She clenched her fists and placed them in front of her chest: "I'm actually very happy that Grandma Anna came to my house!"