My older sister is a villainous rich girl

"Do you need anything else, like dessert?"

Hearing his understanding question, Chris's eyes lit up, and she immediately sat up: "Yes, yes, yes!"

"Wait a minute, I'll bring it to you right away." Wayne pushed the door open again and walked out.

Chris's cheers could be heard throughout the entire corridor until the door was sewn shut.

"Waaah~ Wayne~ I knew you were the best to me—"

Her voice was cut off in the room.

After thinking for a moment, Wayne turned and walked toward the baking kitchen.

Although the Duke's mansion has ample supplies, most of the food is not always ready. Occasionally, there are situations where you want something to eat and it needs to be made on the spot. Asking the people in the kitchen is undoubtedly the easiest way.

To Wayne's slight surprise, when he entered the kitchen, he saw a group of maids huddled together, browsing a newspaper.

These people were completely oblivious to Wayne's presence, still lost in their own world.

"My God, this story is so intriguing! It's like that man really existed..."

A young maid with freckles on her face was captivated by the story.

“Indeed,” another maid chimed in.

“All the details are depicted very vividly and realistically—through these words, I seem to be able to imagine the real face of the masked man.”

Chapter 513 On a Starry Night

The maids, who were just lost in their reverie, suddenly saw Wayne standing behind them. Their expressions immediately hardened, and they quickly concealed their panic.

"Young Master Wayne, is there anything you need?"

They stood in a very reserved row, their hands hanging down in front of their aprons.

Wayne noticed one of them subtly hiding the newspaper behind his back.

"What good stuff is it? Let me see it too." He said, walking over and spreading his hand out to them.

The maids looked embarrassed.

Although it wasn't a big deal, the girls, who had received etiquette training, understood that it was absolutely forbidden to use the host's belongings without permission, even if it was just a cheap newspaper.

If it weren't for the fact that Mrs. Ashville usually discards this portion of the food after reviewing it, they wouldn't have been so curious and taken a chance.

“I’ve already seen it.” Seeing their reluctance, Wayne continued to apply pressure.

Finally, the young maid with freckles couldn't withstand Wayne's "coercion" and dejectedly handed over the newspaper.

Wayne glanced down at it and casually stuffed it into his pocket.

"This will not be repeated."

While instructing the already anxious maids to prepare food, Wayne, as if nothing had happened, simply carried the tray back to his room.

Sitting on the sofa, Chris kept kicking her legs back and forth, looking quite bored.

Upon seeing Wayne appear, she immediately perked up.

"Hmph, why did you take so long? I've been waiting for you for ages!" She crossed her arms over her chest, looking like she was about to confront him.

Although it was a complaint, it sounded more like a playful complaint than a blaming.

“Miss…don’t desserts take time to make fresh?” Wayne asked in return.

The designs prepared were all very simple, and Wayne was willing to guarantee with his own integrity that the total time spent was definitely not long.

However, Chris remained noncommittal.

Anyway, I feel like I've been waiting for you for a very long time, and that's how long it is.

Wayne couldn't help but laugh when he heard that.

His laughter made Chris a little embarrassed, and she said loudly, "Hey, what's so funny!"

Having finally managed to suppress his true reaction, Wayne sighed, "Foolish couples in the throes of new love really do start missing each other as soon as they're apart..."

It sounded like a somewhat irrelevant answer, but Chris immediately understood what Wayne meant.

"Are you calling me an idiot?" Her expression turned unhappy.

Don't most couples say a lot of sweet things to each other when they're alone, and then get all lovey-dovey and cheesy?

How come when it comes to myself and Wayne, it becomes like I'm constantly agonizing over the word "idiot"?!

"No, no." Despite his firm denial, Wayne still had a smile on his lips.

Chris was sulking, but obviously she couldn't really do anything to him.

With Wayne's careful reassurance, Chris's emotions finally stabilized, and she finally noticed what Wayne was holding.

“This is…” Chris asked suspiciously.

“The Capital Morning Post,” Wayne replied. “We’ve been focusing on comic book magazines lately and have been a bit neglecting the newspaper business.”

"Has the quality declined?"

"No, not at all. It's just... while trust is important, it's sometimes necessary to understand the actual situation in order to make the right judgment."

Actually, he just didn't have time to watch it and was planning to catch up when he had some free time.

After saying that, he squeezed through and sat on the same side as Chris.

Chris, who had food to eat, was naturally indifferent and joined him in browsing.

"This author's name sounds familiar," Chris remarked, slightly puzzled.

"It seems to be one of the candidates Modric mentioned for the development program," Wayne said.

Following the plan agreed upon by Chris, Modric selected several promising candidates and had them all voluntarily sign long-term cooperation agreements.

And this Ms. Lina is one of the top contenders.

—If you don't volunteer, you won't get resources. Smart people know what to choose in the end.

These people are like the costly bones of horses; they are a tangible flagpole that all those who come after them can see and touch.

A series of personal information about her flashed through his mind, and Wayne followed her pen, gradually learning about the world she created.

The officially published text was much more detailed than the original version that I and Chris had reviewed.

Wayne was at least 90 percent certain that this person was the stranger he had met once before.

The time, place, people, and background are all exactly the same.

But the biggest problem isn't even these things; it's her restless, ever-present girlish heart.

The male protagonist, known as "Mr. Mask," is a cold, aloof, and arrogant person who never stoops to conform to the blind masses.

But all of this changed on the night the male and female protagonists first met.

Indeed, Ms. Lina immersed herself in the story's heroine throughout, managing to write a scene where both parties fell in love at first sight and vowed to marry no one but him.

The aloof male lead, who always wore a mask, saved the female lead on that starry night—

A brilliant light suddenly flashed in his eyes, and he slowly reached out to remove the ornate mask that had been with him since childhood...

...Is this about Ultraman?

Although I hate to admit it, it's inevitable that my face will get bigger as I get older.

A rich, magnetic voice sounded in her ear: "Beautiful lady, please remember my face... and my name."

"..."

The wording is even more exaggerated than before the revision.

Knowing full well that this was a fantasy about himself, Wayne felt incredibly ashamed.

The first installment ends here, but Wayne knows that another male lead will try to get close to the female lead, winning her heart by solving a series of difficulties for her, and then "accidentally" revealing his identity...

In short, it has all sorts of melodramatic family dramas and storylines that the masses love to watch.

—To some extent, one has to admit that this young lady does indeed have some unique talents.

Wayne slammed the newspaper shut in his hand.

Chris tugged at his sleeve in annoyance: "Wait a minute, I haven't finished reading yet!"

"Didn't you already read the full text that Modric brought?" Wayne remained unmoved. "This story is better left unread."

“That’s just an outline! Many details are missing. The only advantage is that it allows us to read it faster…” Chris protested.

Chapter 514 Happiness is Like a Dream

To Wayne's slight surprise, Chris was surprisingly receptive to this type of article.

He had originally thought that Chris, who had been poisoned by all sorts of formulaic modern scripts, would be more demanding in terms of these creative contents.

"Ha, why would you have such a strange thought?"

Chris herself didn't seem to care at all about Wayne's surprise.

"There are troublesome stories, and of course there are simple stories. Sometimes people just want to read lighthearted stories... There is no superiority or inferiority between different styles. It is always human prejudice that distinguishes between them."

Taking advantage of Wayne's momentary lapse in attention, Chris snatched the newspaper from his hand, turned around, and began to read it with great interest.

While watching, he would occasionally let out a laugh that sounded like that of a fool.

If she lived in modern times, she would probably be an ordinary girl who enjoys watching melodramatic romance dramas and excitedly discusses the plots with her best friends.

Then, as time goes by, they gradually grow old together.

Wayne pursed his lips.

"Chris."

"Hmm?" she replied absentmindedly.

"If—I mean if—a story that seems lighthearted but is actually not so lighthearted behind the scenes, would you dislike such a plot?" he asked softly.

In her mind, this time travel story should have been a very lighthearted one.

Once you travel through time, you can make up for all your past regrets; once you travel through time, you can live the life you once dreamed of.

She was indeed aware of her status as a time traveler; the word "time travel" seemed to possess a special magic—as long as she used it, she could obtain happiness.

Yes, on the surface, who can say that Chris isn't happy now?

With a privileged family background and doting relatives and friends, she can get whatever she wants quickly... She doesn't need to worry about anyone's opinions and can just focus on doing what she wants to do.

Everyone would want to live that kind of life, right?

However, all of this is based on ignorance.

She couldn't know what kind of person she really was.

Otherwise, this so-called "happiness," which is as beautiful as a dream, will shatter like a fragile bubble.

Chris pondered for a moment upon hearing his question.

"Well, that depends on what your expectations were at the very beginning."

She said slowly, "If you start out with the intention of relaxing, you're bound to feel like you've been 'deceived'."

"However, if I don't feel the need to see a certain sequel, and the plot itself is interesting enough, I can probably accept it fairly calmly—right?"

...Miss, you don't need to add the hesitant interjection at the end.

Wayne nodded in understanding.

"Wait a minute." Chris suddenly realized something and began to have some doubts about the question.

"Wayne, you haven't been doing something behind my back, have you?"

Barely managing to maintain a calm expression, Wayne looked bewildered and asked, "Huh? What did I do now? Why are you asking that?"

"Because don't people usually use jokes or hypothetical scenarios to intentionally or unintentionally reveal their true feelings?" At this point, she no longer cared about the newspaper in her hand, immediately tossing it aside and leaning closer to stare into Wayne's eyes.

"It's like when someone says 'I have a friend,' they often actually mean themselves."

Wayne also quietly looked back at her.

"So what do you think I did behind your back?"