My Dear Mistress

Anchaya is a Good Child, Part 1

"Where are you rushing off to?" a deep voice asked when he saw his close subordinate walking down from the office building within the vineyard, which also housed a wine production factory exporting both domestically and internationally.

"Going to Anchaya's school."

"Why? It's not even time for school to end, is it?" It was just one o'clock. In fact, that child could go to school by herself, but she had to walk quite a distance to catch the bus, so he had Phon, the driver, pick her up.

"There's a bit of an issue," Phon replied with a troubled expression.

"What's the issue?"

"Anchaya had a fight with a friend at school."

"Why call the guardian for something like this? If a child does something wrong, the teacher should teach or punish them."

"The friend got a head injury and was taken to the hospital. The child's parents are going to press charges."

"Oh, dear! Why did it have to be so violent?"

"I don't know either, but usually Anchaya is a good kid, well-behaved, and never starts trouble," Phon feared that his boss might think his niece was a troublemaker and might not want her around anymore.

"So your niece is a good kid, huh?"

"Well, Anchaya has never had any issues with anyone before. I think that kid must have started it with Anchaya first."

"Then hurry and check on your good niece!" Chinaphop said sarcastically before waving him off and heading into his office.

Phon scratched his head, worried that his boss might become fed up with his niece. She had just caused trouble the other day, and now there was another headache.

Phon rushed to the school and arrived in a few minutes. He went straight to the disciplinary office and saw Anchaya sitting with a sullen face outside.

"Uncle Phon, Phil teased me first," Anchaya quickly rushed to tell her uncle before the disciplinary teacher could report her.

"Teased about what?"

"He teased that I'm the boss's little mistress."

"And just for that, you hit him and caused his head injury?"

"I didn't hit him. I just pushed him, and his head hit a rock by itself. I didn't mean for him to get a head injury. I pushed him because he was shouting in my ear, and it annoyed me."

"Oh, what a thoughtless act!"

"He was clumsy himself. I didn't even push him that hard."

"So what now? The teacher said Phil's parents are going to press charges for assault."

"Will I go to jail?" Anchaya immediately burst into tears.

"I don't know. Let me talk to the teacher first." Seeing her cry, Phon softened his tone and didn't dare to scold her further.

Phon went into the disciplinary teacher's room while Anchaya sat crying outside. She waited for nearly half an hour before Phon came out with a worried expression.

"Uncle Phon, what did the teacher say?"

"They didn't say much, just told me to make sure you behave and reminded me that Phil's parents are considering pressing charges for assault. The teacher is trying to mediate the situation. They suggested you bring a gift basket to apologize to him and his parents. But whether they'll drop the charges after you apologize is still up in the air."

"He should apologize to me too. Why did he tease me out of nowhere?"

"You really think he's going to apologize to you first? Stop thinking about that. Isn't it better to worry about whether his parents will press charges against you?"

Feeling stressed, Phon scolded her and then took Anchaya home. As they walked to the car, other students gathered and whispered that his niece was rumored to be the boss's mistress.

Who spread the rumor that Anchaya's father sold his daughter to his boss?

"Phil spread rumors about me too," Anchaya complained rapidly.

"How did he know?"

"His father works at Mr. To's gambling house and overheard Mr. To talking to another subordinate."

"Mr. To must really regret not having you, to the point of discussing it with his subordinates. And your father disappeared after getting the money, only showing up when it ran out," Phon said with resignation, feeling sorry for his niece.

Because after the money runs out, Anchaya's father will probably bother his daughter. The position of a mistress has a significant salary. Even though Anchaya hasn't fulfilled her duties yet, she believes that if she grows older, she will eventually take on the role. Unless the boss kicked her out first, tired of her causing trouble or annoyed by Athit, who would eventually come back to bother his daughter.

After dropping Anchaya off, Phon returned to the vineyard.

"How did it go?" Chinaphop asked when he saw Phon's stressed face.

Phon recounted everything that happened to his boss, including the fact that Phil's parents were going to press charges for assault.

"Are they crazy? Just kids fighting, and they're pressing assault charges? At most, it's just a brawl. They shouldn't press charges because that kid started it."

"What should we do, sir?"

"Tomorrow, send flowers and a check to them. No need to waste time taking your niece there. What if your good niece ends up throwing the basket at them?"

"Oh, sir, Anchaya isn't that bad," Phon tried to maintain a good image of his niece.

"Really..."

When his boss said that, Phon began to doubt what trouble his niece might cause next. It seemed like her luck was down lately, only causing things that displeased his boss.

But the next day, Phon followed his boss's orders, delivering a flower basket and a check. Phil's parents' eyes widened when they saw it, and they immediately forgave Anchaya.

"It's okay. Kids fight and have conflicts; it's normal."

Phon chuckled, not in the mood to listen to their insincere words, so he quickly excused himself, but before leaving, he said

"Next time, don't tease Ann, Phil, because you might end up with more than just a head injury. And it might not be Ann's doing; it could be someone else," Phon said with a wink and a throat-slitting gesture, pulling a creepy face.

Upon seeing the pale face of the patient, he smiled and then floated out of the recovery room.

When he got home and told Anchaya about everything, she wanted to thank their boss, but Phon stopped her.

"Didn't the boss say not to show your face? Just follow that and don't stir up any more trouble. I'm exhausted."

"I just want to thank him."

"Yeah, I get it, but just stay put and don't cause any more trouble. That's enough to keep the boss satisfied."

"Does he really hate me that much?"

"If he hated you, he would have kicked you out by now. Just focus on your studies and mind your own business. Forget about the boss."

"Sister Noom won't let me do housework at the main building, just watering plants far from it."

"That's good. Do you want to show your face to the boss again? Noom will get in trouble again. Luckily, the boss forgave you and only deducted one month's salary."

"I'll pay Sister Noom back myself."

"That's good. She got into trouble because you wanted to be bold."

"I thought the boss would like it," the girl said, pouting at Phon.

"Whether you're bold or not, he won't make you his wife right now."

"Am I not pretty?"

"You're still a kid. The boss doesn't like kids!" Phon finished, tired of the conversation, and walked back to the main building, leaving Anchaya mumbling to herself.

"Everyone grows up eventually!"

After the incident with the guy who got his head split open, the situation at school returned to normal. However, the already few friends she had became even fewer. Almost no one wanted to talk to Ann, except for her best friend since elementary school, Cucumber. But Ann held the belief that having just one good friend was worth it.

"Kwa, let's grab some ice cream after school. My treat," Anchaya said while they were having lunch together in the cafeteria.

"Sure, free stuff? I'm all in."

"Then let's go stroll around the market. I don't have any new clothes. Come with me, okay?"

"Sure."

"I'll buy you an outfit too."

"Wow, rich."

"Not rich, but I can afford to get you something."

"Being Mr. Phop's girl sounds appealing. I want to be one too. Can you ask him if he'll take me?"

"The boss doesn't like kids. He won't take me either. He bought me because he felt sorry, afraid my dad would sell me to that sleazy To." Anchaya told her friend directly.

"So, you and him haven't gotten together yet, huh?"

"Yeah, the boss doesn't like kids."

"Weird guy. Everyone likes kids, especially older men like him."

"Well, he's not like other old people."

"But in reality, Khun Chinaphop looks much younger, more like someone in their early thirties rather than forty-two."

"That's true. He's even older than my dad, come to think of it," Ann said, because her father is forty but looks older than his age, typical of ordinary people who don't take care of themselves.

As for Chinaphop, he originally came from Bangkok. He bought the vineyard from another family and established a wine production factory over ten years ago.

After school, the two girls went to their favorite ice cream shop, then strolled around the market, shopping until evening before parting ways.

Ann had already called Phon after school to say she'd be coming back on her own. As she was about to walk to the spot where the shared taxis pass, a car suddenly swerved and stopped beside her.

"It's the beautiful Ann. Where are you headed? Let me give you a ride," Siato, who was sitting next to his subordinate who was driving, popped his head out to greet her with a sleazy grin as he scanned her body still clad in her high school uniform.

"I can get home by myself!" she said curtly, then quickly walked to reach the shared taxi stop as fast as possible.

But the person who offered didn't give up, opening the car door and grabbing her arm. Startled, Ann jerked her arm away forcefully, causing Siato's plump body to stumble into a bicycle that was riding along the sidewalk.

"Ouch!" he exclaimed in pain, as not only was he hit by the bicycle, but he also fell face-first onto the ground, bleeding from his nose and mouth.

"You little brat, look what you did to me!" Siato shouted, turning to yell at her, while his subordinate quickly got out of the car to help him up from the ground.

"It wasn't me, it was the bicycle that hit you!" Ann turned to the cyclist, who had just lost balance and fallen along with the bike, but now the person had quickly pedaled away, leaving her to face Siato's and his subordinate's anger.

"Still denying it, huh? Phong, grab this girl and get her in the car!"

"Yes, boss," he said, nodding in acknowledgment. But when he turned to the girl, she had already taken off running. Siato's henchman chased after her, but Ann kept running and shouting,

"Help! This creep is trying to attack me! Help!" This caused several good Samaritans to block Phong, preventing him from chasing the girl. But Ann didn't stop running until she looked back and saw that Siato's henchman wasn't following her anymore. She then stopped running but almost took off again when someone's car screeched to a halt beside her, the tires screeching loudly as if the driver was furious.

Moreover, the car door opened, revealing the tall and handsome figure of a man with a fierce expression, his eyes burning with a fire that made her feel scorched by his gaze.

"Will there ever be a day when you don't cause trouble?" The scolding voice made Ann flinch.

"It wasn't me. Siato grabbed my hand first. I was startled and pulled away, then the bicycle hit him on its own, and he got angry and ordered his subordinate to grab me," the girl explained quickly, afraid he would misunderstand that she had caused the trouble first, which wasn't the case at all.

"It's late, and you don't know how to come home!"

"I just came to buy something," she replied meekly.

"From now on, don't go anywhere by yourself. Get in the car!"

Anchaya quickly obeyed his command but sat in the back, assuming he wouldn't want her sitting next to him in the front seat.

Why didn't Uncle Phon come along? she wondered.

"Come sit in the front. Do you think I'm your chauffeur?"

"Okay," she finally said, squeezing herself into the front seat.

Anchaya glanced at the person beside her, noticing his jaw clenched so tightly she could hear it grinding, which made her feel uneasy. She never expected to encounter him like this, especially since she had avoided showing herself to him at home ever since he kicked her out of the study.

From now on, besides not having to show her face to him, she must not go out alone anymore, even for a short trip.

Hopefully, there won't be anything more than this.

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