All Chapters of They Paid Me Less and Lost It All: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1 You Get What You Pay For

A stack of financial statements slammed onto the coffee table with a dull thud."Sophia, I looked through the Shaw family's old financial records. You're a housekeeper making $50,000 a month. Do you honestly think that makes any sense in today's economy?"I looked up.The woman standing over me with her arms crossed was Bianca Vance, the fiancée of the Shaw family's heir, Arthur Shaw.I had heard she had a master's degree from overseas and was a senior finance executive.Regardless, I never expected the first thing she would do after joining the Shaw family was come after me."Ms. Vance, my salary was set personally by Old Mr. Shaw 10 years ago. That $50,000 covered all the work I performed as the family's all-around housekeeper," I said calmly."An all-around housekeeper? That's hilarious." Bianca laughed."You're just a glorified maid who serves coffee, cleans, and cooks. I could hire any middle-aged woman from an employment agency for $3,000 a month. Why should we pay you $5

Chapter 2 Not in My Job Description

Bianca let out a cold laugh. "So what if you're a simultaneous interpreter? Do you really think the world would stop turning without you?"I bought Arthur the newest AI interpreting earbuds. The underlying technology is a hundred times better than a human interpreter like you. What's more, they don't come with your attitude."I nodded, untied my apron, folded it neatly, and set it on the table. "Then, I wish you every success with your AI-powered solution."I turned and walked toward the door.Audrey stood there holding a mug of herbal tonic that had long since gone cold."Sophia, you're really clocking out just like that? You've worked for this family for 10 years, and we've never mistreated you. Swallow your pride, and I'll have Bianca raise your salary to $4,000."I stopped and looked back. "Mrs. Shaw, $4,000 isn't enough to pay for your bedtime aromatherapy."Audrey's expression darkened. "What an ungrateful brat."Bianca called out sarcastically from behind me, "Let her le

Chapter 3 Everything Has a Price

Arthur came downstairs with dark circles under his eyes. He looked completely drained, and his tie hung crooked around his neck."Enough," he grumbled, rubbing his temples."Arthur, how did the international meeting go last night?" Bianca hurried over. "Did your AI earbuds steal the show?"Arthur had a complicated look on his face as he looked at her. "That stupid thing translated core technology as the core of an apple. The clients thought we were joking and ended the video call on the spot."Bianca's smile froze. "How could that happen? I paid $20,000 for the newest model."She refused to admit she was wrong."The AI is probably still learning. You need to feed it more training data. Besides, those clients probably had heavy accents. That threw off the algorithm."Arthur waved her off impatiently. "Forget it. If the project's dead, it's dead. This loss doesn't matter as long as we still hold the exclusive license for Astraea Tech's core algorithm."Audrey walked out with her

Chapter 4 Nothing Left to Owe

The statements scattered across the coffee table and onto the floor.Bianca tapped one of them with the toe of her shoe. "Sophia, your monthly reimbursement budget for groceries is $20,000. However, I checked the market prices for the premium sea cucumbers and wild abalone you've been buying."Her eyes were full of malice. "$20,000 wouldn't even cover a fraction of those ingredients. So, did you buy cheap knockoffs, pass them off as the real thing, and pocket the difference?"The living room fell silent.Audrey pressed a hand to her chest, her face draining of color. "No wonder my skin hasn't looked as good lately. So, you've been feeding me fake ingredients all this time?"Frederick frowned as well. "Sophia, tell us the truth. Where did those medicinal ingredients really come from?"I looked at the stack of statements and found the whole thing absurd.$20,000? The premium ingredients the Shaws ate every day cost far more than $100,000.I had covered every shortfall out of my o

Chapter 5 Cutting the Lifeline

I glanced back at the lights glowing inside Shaw Estate."The 10 years are up. Spread the word. Cut off every resource line to the Shaw family. That includes their priority medical access and premium ingredient suppliers. And…"I paused as my eyes turned cold. "Terminate Astraea Tech's core technology licensing agreement with Shaw Group. Effective immediately."On the other end of the line, I could hear Chester Sterling suck in a sharp breath. "Ms. Quinn, you've finally made up your mind! I've been telling you that it wasn't worth spending 10 years just to repay a favor."Should I send someone to reclaim Shaw Estate? It was your property to begin with.""There's no rush." I looked at my shadow stretching beneath the streetlight. "Let them stay a few more days. I want them to savor every moment of their fall from disgrace."…The next day, Bianca posted a photo of my former housekeeper's room on social media.The caption read, "Clearing out low-vibration energy and embracing a h

Chapter 6 The Name She Never Expected

The Shaw family had fallen into complete chaos.Arthur was frantically scrambling to everyone and anyone, begging those who'd spare him a few minutes to save the company.He even tried to sneak into Astraea Tech's headquarters. However, the security guards promptly threw him out before he could even get past the front doors.So, Bianca played her last trump card in order to salvage her rock-bottom reputation in the Shaw family."Arthur, don't worry." She poured him a glass of water as she spoke, her voice full of confidence."I know Quintana, the top investor in Kingsport. As long as Quintana is willing to step in, Astraea Tech will have to show us some respect."Arthur grabbed her hand. "Do you really know Quintana? That mysterious investor?""Of course." Bianca lifted her chin proudly, looking utterly confident."We met at an exclusive executive networking event. She was very impressed by my business ecosystem theory. I'll email her right now. I'm sure she'll help us."She p

Chapter 7 Back to Clean House

When Frederick came home from the hospital, he returned in a wheelchair. He had lost so much weight that he was almost unrecognizable.The atmosphere in Shaw Estate was unbearably tense.Arthur stared at his inbox every single day, desperately waiting for a reply from the Quintana Bianca kept talking about."Bianca, why hasn't Quintana replied yet?" Arthur's eyes were bloodshot. His voice was hoarse.Bianca avoided his gaze, looking a little guilty."People like her are always busy with other projects. Don't worry. I've already asked my father to look into it. My parents are coming over tonight to discuss the wedding arrangements, so we'll settle this matter then."Frederick sat in his wheelchair as he looked at Bianca coldly. "If we can't secure the investment tonight, then you can forget about the wedding."The Shaws had spared no expense for that night's dinner.Audrey fought through a debilitating migraine to book an outrageously expensive banquet at an upscale restaurant.

Chapter 8 The Wrong Person to Celebrate

The butler and the servants had all been replaced with new faces. As a result, no one recognized me, which meant no one stopped me when I flounced past.I walked straight into the dining room. The long dining table was covered with expensive dishes. The aroma filled the room.Frederick sat in his wheelchair as Audrey squeezed a smile through her migraine.Arthur and Bianca's family raised their glasses in celebration."Mr. and Mrs. Vance, this is all thanks to Bianca."Bianca's father, Dominic Vance, beamed with pride. He kept bragging, spittle flying with every enthusiastic word."Quintana has already agreed to help us. Their executive assistant will come tomorrow to sign the contract."Arthur was so excited that his hands started shaking, causing a few drops of red wine to slosh out of his glass."That's wonderful! Astraea Tech won't amount to anything now that we have Quintana's money and connections! Shaw Group will be back on its feet in no time!"Bianca shot Audrey a smu

Chapter 9 The Truth Revealed

The heavy solid-wood doors slammed into the wall with a crash that echoed through the hall. Then, a middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses walked in.Arthur's raised hand froze midair as soon as he saw who it was. After all, the uninvited guest was none other than Simon York, the global CEO of Astraea Tech.Arthur had exhausted every connection he had for the past three days to salvage the situation, but he had not even managed to get through to Simon's secretary.Nevertheless, Arthur was the first to recover. He scurried over to Simon with a fawning smile spread across his face, bowing so low that his face was nearly parallel to the floor. "Oh, Mr. York! What brings you here? Are you here on Quintana's behalf to sign the investment agreement? Please, have a seat."Bianca hastily tried to fix her hair, her high heels clicking forward as she smiled brightly."Hello, Mr. York. I'm Bianca. I was the one who emailed Quintana. I'm truly honored that Quintana recognized the value

Chapter 10 The Final Reckoning

Audrey lunged at me, trying to grab the hem of my clothes. "Sophia, I was wrong. I really was. Please save me. My head feels like it's splitting open."I took a step back, avoiding her hand. "Don't touch me."I looked at the Shaws' horrified and pale faces, feeling absolutely nothing. "By the way, the night I left happened to be the end of that 10-year agreement."Then, I turned to Bianca. She had already collapsed into a chair, her entire body shaking in fright."Still, it has to be said that Ms. Vance smashed my grandmother's diamond pendant. And with it, she destroyed the Shaw family's last and only protection from my ire."Arthur dropped to his knees as he finally understood what he had lost. "Sophia. No—Quintana! Ms. Quinn!"He repeatedly slammed his forehead against the hardwood floor. "I was wrong. Bianca manipulated me. It's all her fault."He suddenly jumped to his feet. Then, he swung around and slapped Bianca hard across the face.The sharp crack echoed through the d

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