Chapter 145: The Toyed-With Goddaughter (20)
September.
The scent of osmanthus blossoms filled the air, heralding autumn. Su Mingxiu entered her apartment, ignoring the sixteen flashing stock tickers in the living room, and went to her bedroom. She opened her laptop and searched for B University’s opening ceremony live stream.
She opened a can of iced tea, the bitter taste familiar, and watched as the camera scanned the stadium, trying to find a familiar face—
Then, she realized she didn’t know which department Yu Nian had chosen.
But she didn’t leave, listening to the speeches, even releasing the system from its confinement to share the experience.
The system, having “died” countless times in the mental maze, if not for its advanced processing power, would have needed time to recover.
It initially didn’t understand Su Mingxiu’s sudden act of mercy, then, checking the storyline, it realized she was simply bored, wanting to mess with it.
[You…] it started to say, but Su Mingxiu interrupted.
“Shh, be quiet.”
[If you stay quiet, I can pretend you don’t exist. If you insist on making your presence known, I’ll put you back in the maze.]
The system: “…”
It realized that Su Mingxiu was in a bad mood, randomly releasing it to provoke a reaction.
If it misbehaved, it would be back in that virtual hell.
After a moment, it resigned itself to its fate.
Su Mingxiu also listened to the speeches, then suddenly asked: “You seem happy about my predicament. Isn’t your mission to have me seduce and then abandon the protagonist?”
The system paused, then replied: “You guess.”
Tsk.
Su Mingxiu said seriously: “You’re too old for these games, it’s disgusting.”
The system: [? It wanted to curse again.]
As they bickered, the opening ceremony ended. The students stood up, the camera panning across the crowd, making it difficult for Su Mingxiu to find Yu Nian.
She sighed softly and closed her laptop, taking her unfinished iced tea and leaving the apartment.
Although her cultivation techniques allowed her to suppress hunger and fatigue, the original owner’s body was weak, so she still needed food and water.
And this so-called energy drink… disgusting.
She glanced at her bank balance and sighed, realizing that her earlier laziness had caught up to her.
Autumn deepened, winter approaching.
Just before the Lunar New Year, Su Mingxiu had accumulated some capital and, using Sheng Qian’s connections, attended several entertainment industry galas.
Unfortunately, most of the people there were all talk and no substance, offering few business opportunities.
On New Year’s Eve, she bought tickets for every movie in the holiday season.
From the beginning to the end, she sat alone in the spacious couple’s seats, her soda untouched.
Leaving the cinema at dawn, she heard the fireworks by the river, took out her phone, and saw a simple message: “Happy New Year.”
It seemed impersonal, a mass text perhaps.
Su Mingxiu stared at the message, then replied: “Happy New Year, wishing you academic success and may all your wishes come true. And may I get rich.”
There was no reply.
Su Mingxiu put away her phone and, walking home, noticed a light snowfall, the tiny snowflakes landing on the shop windows with soft, crackling sounds.
She paused, then continued walking, not bothering to send another message, to say, It’s snowing.
The first snow of the year.
In a hotel suite in the capital…
Yu Nian was woken up early. The family’s maids had all gone home for the holidays, refusing even a generous bonus.
And since she insisted on interning at the branch office here, Yu Wanru had booked a hotel suite for the holidays. Other relatives were also present.
Breakfast was a lavish spread, but she had no appetite, only sitting there, smiling at her phone, her fingertip tracing the screen, then her smile fading, a loneliness in her eyes.
A few months ago…
Yu Wanru had made her swear never to see Su Mingxiu again, and she had obeyed.
Now…
She really wanted to know how Su Mingxiu was doing.
Was she alone for the holidays? What was she cooking? Was she still taking those long baths?
“Auntie—”
A sweet voice interrupted her thoughts. Yu Nian looked down and saw her cousin’s daughter, dressed in a cute outfit, a small bag slung across her shoulder.
“What is it?”
The little girl had been competing with the other children for the biggest crab. Each child had one.
Although there were more on the table, they were on the other side of the lazy susan. She looked at Yu Nian, sighed like a little adult, and placed her crab in Yu Nian’s bowl.
“Here, so you won’t cry.”
“I…”
Yu Nian blinked, then saw the tear stains on her phone screen. She took the crab, smiling at the little girl. “Thank you.”
But as she was eating the crab, she remembered a bowl of seafood noodles.
She had angered Su Mingxiu once, and Su Mingxiu had prepared a table full of raw dishes, making her unsure what to eat. Only after seeing her predicament had Su Mingxiu finally revealed the hidden bowl of noodles.
At a five-star hotel restaurant by the Xiangjiang River…
Su Mingxiu, having successfully secured a meeting with an important investor, had completed her annual goal. In the current investment climate, connections and proven ability were essential.
She lacked a platform to showcase her skills. Even her small studio needed a powerful backer.
To avoid her beauty influencing the investor’s judgment, she had put on subtle makeup. After the banquet, as she was walking towards the parking garage,
A red rose appeared before her—
A young man, also at the banquet, leaned against her car, his eyes full of invitation.
Su Mingxiu glanced at the rose, then at him, not even bothering to remember his face. “I don’t like roses,” she said indifferently.
The young man, thinking he had a chance, asked eagerly: “Then what do you like?”
“Carnations.”
“Uh…” This playboy, usually smooth and charming, was confused. He had chosen a rose to avoid any mistakes. But hearing “carnations,” he felt a strange unease.
After all, carnations were usually given to mothers.
What did this woman mean?
Did she want to be his mother?
Was “mommy girlfriend” a new trend?
He felt insulted.
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