After New Year’s Day, the atmosphere of hard work at school suddenly became much more intense. The study rooms and library were packed every day. Mu Yue didn’t bother fighting for a seat. She studied what she needed to study and reviewed what she needed to review, without falling behind in any of her classes.
With the boost provided by her attributes, Mu Yue wasn’t under much pressure. She continued at her usual pace. After class on Friday, Wen Yuanting came to pick her up, drove her home, and spent the evening keeping her warm in bed.
Wen Yuanting had no experience and needed Mu Yue’s guidance, but fortunately, he was obedient, patient, and had plenty of stamina. Once he got the hang of it, Mu Yue was the one who got to enjoy herself. She had initially been a little worried that a novice like him might be too rough, but whether it was because her constitution had improved or because Wen Yuanting truly had some talent, the experience turned out to be unexpectedly pleasant.
Mu Yue didn’t let him stay over on Saturday. She went back to the Yujing Garden residence and spent the day relaxing at home. On Sunday, she accepted an invitation to attend a winter fashion show.
This was actually the second show. She had already attended the first one, which featured the Autumn Forest theme that had caught her eye. That show had given Mu Yue a wonderful surprise, incorporating autumn plants and animals into the designs. Every piece had been highly distinctive, and Mu Yue had bought several dresses.
The winter collection was by the same designer. The style remained consistent, but compared with the autumn collection, this show was even more dreamlike and ethereally beautiful.
Mu Yue’s favorite piece was a snowflake evening gown that could be worn in two different ways. The dress was silver-white overall, with layers of chiffon and silk organza overlapping one another. Its skirt was covered in hand-embroidered snowflake patterns in graduated colors, while the outer layer was made of sheer fabric decorated with tiny crystal beads. As the wearer moved, the crystals sparkled like falling snow. Under bright lighting, the dress was dazzling; under dimmer light, it was even more breathtaking—the skirt swayed, and the snowflake patterns and crystals appeared and disappeared like streams of light breathing beneath the fabric.
The full skirt could be detached. With the train attached, the dress made its wearer look like an elegant, noble princess from a kingdom of snow. Without it, the shorter skirt was lively and playful, resembling a snow fairy. It was the kind of dress that was impossible not to fall in love with, and Mu Yue’s long-buried girlish heart was instantly captivated.
In truth, a dress like this was completely unsuitable for winter. It offered not the slightest bit of warmth. But it was simply too beautiful, and Mu Yue bought it without hesitation. The price was cheaper than she had expected—just over eight hundred thousand yuan. She also bought the matching jewelry, which was slightly more expensive than the dress, costing a little over one million.
She bought three other pieces suitable for everyday wear. The remaining designs were rather exaggerated. They were warmer than the dresses, but in reality, they could only be worn indoors with the heating on. If she didn’t have to attend classes, Mu Yue could easily wear them throughout the winter as though it were summer, since she didn’t need to expose herself to the cold wind. But because she still had to go to school, she needed to buy some warm down jackets as well. The show included down jackets, but they were nowhere near as interesting as the dresses. It would be better to simply have someone bring a selection to her home.
Once the show had nearly concluded, the brand representatives would come to her residence later to take her measurements and arrange custom tailoring. The jewelry was already in stock, so Mu Yue could take it with her when she left. The models had already made their final appearance onstage, and the people below were beginning to chat more freely.
Mu Yue was also leaning toward Qianqian, discussing two things: what to have for dinner and the harassing phone calls Fang Baiwei had been receiving. As they spoke, she noticed several gazes fall upon her.
She followed those gazes and saw a group of people not far away—roughly six women, arranged as mother-and-daughter pairs. They appeared to be three families who knew one another. When they noticed Mu Yue looking over, they all gave her polite smiles. Four of them looked perfectly natural, but one mother-and-daughter pair seemed somewhat awkward.
Mu Yue immediately received 288 points of comeback value.
The moment the points appeared, Mu Yue knew that these people were characters from a white-moonlight replacement novel. It really did pay to attend occasions like this. As long as she met them face-to-face, she didn’t even need to say anything before the points came rolling in. As for who they were, Mu Yue wasn’t particularly interested. They weren’t the male or female leads, nor were they the white moonlight—important characters from whom she could continuously harvest points.
Still, one shouldn’t strike someone who was smiling. Mu Yue returned their smiles politely.
At that moment, the designer came onto the stage with the models to express her thanks. She didn’t keep the audience waiting, and the closing remarks were much shorter than Mu Yue had expected. The people below gradually rose and began to leave. Mu Yue was preparing to depart as well when the group of six mothers and daughters stopped her.
The three families introduced themselves one after another and handed over their business cards, clearly hoping to establish a connection. They invited her to afternoon tea, birthday parties, and similar events. Out of courtesy, Mu Yue had Qianqian accept all the cards. Whether she would actually attend was something she could decide later.
When she received the card from the final mother-and-daughter pair, Mu Yue didn’t look at what was written on it. Instead, the woman took the initiative to speak. Mentioning Hengyuan, she wore an embarrassed expression and said, “I’m truly sorry, Miss Mu. My son is really hopeless…”
Mu Yue had nearly forgotten that the domineering CEO had a childhood friend who was secretly in love with him. She hadn’t expected to run into the young man’s mother here.
The mother was much more adept at speaking than her son. After offering a brief apology, she invited Mu Yue to attend a banquet or ball at their home. She didn’t show the slightest hint of displeasure toward Mu Yue.
Mu Yue exchanged a few polite words with her before excusing herself, saying that she had somewhere to be. The six women had no choice but to let her go. However, Mu Yue still couldn’t leave smoothly. After walking only a short distance, she was stopped once again.
“Excuse me, are you Miss Mu Yue?” This time, the person stopping her was a very elegant woman. She introduced herself, saying, “My surname is Shi—Shi Yu. You may not have heard of me, but you might know my younger brother. His name is Shi Le. He’s a little overweight and went to D City before.”
“Oh…” Mu Yue was genuinely surprised this time. She had run into the first wife of the womanizer.
She smiled and said, “So he’s the one—the unlucky fellow who was bold enough to travel with a complete stranger. So, Miss Shi, you are…?”
Mu Yue looked at Shi Yu. Her phoenix-shaped eyes were cool and clear, and her features possessed a classical beauty. Yet she didn’t appear delicate or frail. She was like bamboo—tough and not easily broken. Her overall outfit was sharp and capable, and her calm, confident bearing made it clear at a glance that she was the one in charge of her family.
Mu Yue thought of Wang Jian as well. With his utterly ordinary appearance and nothing but his special cheat ability to recommend him, he truly was a lump of mud beneath a beautiful flower compared with Shi Yu.
“I was surprised too,” Shi Yu said with a laugh when she heard Mu Yue mention Shi Le. When she smiled, she possessed a gentle warmth like snow melting beneath the spring breeze, making her seem much more approachable. “I originally wanted to formally thank Miss Mu. Unfortunately, my brother was too foolish and didn’t get your contact information. I had heard about a Miss Mu for quite some time, but I wasn’t certain whether you were the same person, so I hope you won’t mind my approaching you so abruptly.”
“It was nothing—I just happened to lend a hand,” Mu Yue said teasingly. “I wonder if he still accepts invitations from strangers now?”
Shi Yu shook her head, both exasperated and helpless. “He doesn’t dare anymore, but it’s not as if he’s been doing anything productive either.”
Then she turned to Mu Yue with a serious expression and continued, “Of course I have to thank you. I couldn’t get in touch with you before, but now that you’re right here in front of me, I have to properly show my gratitude. If it weren’t for you, my younger brother probably wouldn’t have made it back so easily.”
Seeing the look on Shi Yu’s face, Mu Yue guessed that she had thought of something unpleasant. Her interest was instantly piqued, though she deliberately asked, “Hmm? It couldn’t have been that serious, could it? All I did was let them hitch a ride. As I recall, it was actually two other men who rescued your brother in the wilderness.”
At the mention of this, two traces of disgust appeared on Shi Yu’s face. She sighed and looked at the young woman before her. “Ah, to be honest, things weren’t that simple. The people who rescued him had ulterior motives. If my brother had actually trusted them, things would have become very troublesome.”
Mu Yue pretended to be very interested. Shi Yu smiled again and invited her once more. “It’s not very convenient to talk here. If Miss Mu is interested, you’re welcome to visit my home. Here’s my contact information. Please, you must give me a chance to repay you.”
Mu Yue accepted the card. The moment she received Shi Yu’s business card, she heard the delightful sound of points being credited in her mind.
What an unexpected bonus.
Back then in City D, Mu Yue had disrupted the womanizer’s scheme involving the younger brother. She had turned the male lead’s rescue into an attempted kidnapping by a pervert, successfully cutting off the younger brother’s chance to repay his sister for saving him—and had also destroyed the male lead’s opportunity to meet his first wife.
She never expected that, after so much time had passed, Shi Yu would take the initiative to approach her and even directly attribute her younger brother’s rescue to Mu Yue.
Oh my, she had unintentionally snatched away the male lead’s opportunity.
As for the Shi family—she was definitely going.
