Xu Zhaomu rubbed her eyes and picked up the mirror she kept beside her bed. She had cried again last night. Is that why her eyes were so red?
She hugged her pillow, reluctant to get out of bed. As she lay, dawdling in bed, she suddenly smelled the scent of wine on her pillow.
Where did this wine scent come from?
Even after thinking about it 100 times, Xu Zhaomu was still bewildered.
Her head was still aching slightly. She really loathed Shen Chi. How was she going to attend school in her current state?
That petty man had even refused to stay by her side for one night. He’d treated her as if she was a pervert who had designs on him. Although she had to admit that she did have bad intentions.
“Good morning, Miss Xu.”
When Xu Zhaomu went downstairs, breakfast had already been arranged on the table. There was no one else in sight. So she sat at the table alone.
“Where is Fourth Brother?” Xu Zhaomu spread some salad on her bread.
“Fourth Young Master has departed for the Group already,” the maid replied.
“When did he leave? Did he say anything about me before he left?” Xu Zhaomu asked.
“He didn’t. The Fourth Young Master left a long time ago.”
Xu Zhaomu felt as if she had been drenched by a bucket of cold water. She instantly felt rather upset.
“Oh, Zhaomu, are you having breakfast alone? Your Fourth Brother left at daybreak. Are you starting to miss him?” Liu Rumei walked into the living room, a smile plastered on her face.
She stroked her hair, which she had just done up. Then she adjusted the dark red shawl on her shoulders.
As she walked over, her high-heeled shoes clinked on the floor. Xu Zhaomu didn’t even raise her head. She continued to enjoy her breakfast.
Liu Rumei sat down beside Xu Zhaomu and passed her a slice of cheese affectionately. “Eat up, you’re at the age where you should be having a growth spurt. As long as you have adequate nutrition, you won’t need to use essential oils to enlarge your chest.”
After she said this, she chuckled.
Xu Zhaomu could smell the corrosive scent of her perfume on her body. She frowned and lost the desire to finish her breakfast.
She intentionally moved away from Liu Rumei. This woman was worlds apart from Auntie Zhou.
She would describe Auntie Zhou as a graceful and delicate magnolia, whereas Liu Rumei could be compared to a gaudy, flirtatious red rose. She couldn’t understand why Shen Cexian had had such a change in his tastes. He should’ve been content after marrying someone like Auntie Zhou.
She did some calculations and realized that she hadn’t seen Auntie Zhou in eight years.
Her mind went back to Shen Chi. She wondered if Shen Chi took after his father and favored gaudy girls as well.
Looking back, this was probably it. He probably liked girls with big chests. Pftt! How intolerably vulgar.
“What happened, Zhaomu, you look quite unhappy today? If you are missing your Fourth Brother, I can drive you over. I heard that the Shen Group is holding a dance today. It’s going to be very lively, and it’ll be a pity if you don’t go.”
“I still have to attend class,” Xu Zhaomu replied nonchalantly.
“Isn’t it a Saturday tomorrow? That’s a holiday. The dance is happening at night, so it won’t affect your studies. Both your Second Sister and Third Brother will be going. Didn’t your Fourth Brother tell you about it?”
“He didn’t.” Xu Zhaomu paid little attention to Liu Rumei.
However, complicated emotions filled her heart. Second Sister and Third Brother were both going to the dance. Why hadn’t anyone told her about it?
Shen Chi probably didn’t feel she was real family…
“Do you want to go? All of us will be heading over tonight. Otherwise, you’ll be alone at home. You’ll be very bored.” Liu Rumei continued, “Your Fourth Brother is too much. Why didn’t he tell you? He’s not even going to take you to our Shen Family Group’s dance.”
“I don’t even know how to dance. I’ll embarrass him if I go to the dance.” Xu Zhaomu sounded a bit upset.
She merely wanted to finish her breakfast. This woman was so long-winded.
“It’s fine if you’re unwilling to go. I was just worried that you might be bored. Have some more food. Don’t starve yourself.” Liu Rumei passed another slice of cake to Xu Zhaomu.
After Xu Zhaomu had finished drinking her milk, she grabbed her schoolbag and left the Shen residence. She was still young and wasn’t yet adept at concealing her emotions. Liu Rumei could already tell that she was upset.
That day, Xu Zhaomu’s mind was preoccupied during her entire day at school, although she rarely paid much attention on a normal basis anyway. However, she was exceptionally absentminded that day.
“Zhaomu, what’s up? Why is there a bandage on your head?” Yu Weiwei looked at her head in distress.
Although the gauze was hidden at the back of her head by her ponytail, it was still quite obvious to the eye.
Xu Zhaomu replied moodily, “Big White bit me.”
“That can’t be? That Tibetan mastiff? You’re still alive after being bitten by it? Does that mean you’re more impressive than it? There is a saying, what is it…? Oh… You’re even more of a beast than an animal.”
“……” Xu Zhaomu rolled her eyes.
“You’ve been jabbing at that wooden figurine for the entire day. Why are you poking it? It hasn’t provoked you in any way.” Yu Weiwei glanced at the pitiful-looking wooden figurine in Xu Zhaomu’s hand and felt very sympathetic toward it.
Everything was fine before she mentioned it. After she’d brought it up, Xu Zhaomu jabbed the wooden figurine with even more force.
That’s right. That wooden figurine was the exact one that Shen Chi had given her when she was ten years old. She had kept it all these years.
However, eight years had passed, and Shen Chi no longer gave her anything else.
“Don’t you think it looks quite despicable?” Xu Zhaomu flung the wooden figurine onto the table.
Yu Weiwei rushed over. “No? It’s quite cute, and it resembles you. If you find it despicable, then why would you keep it by your side every day and treat it like a treasure.”
“Who treats it like a treasure? It’s so hideous, I’ve wanted to throw it out for a long time now.”
Yu Weiwei took joy in the calamity. “Throw it out then! Can’t bear to? Then I’ll help you toss it.”
Yu Weiwei grabbed the little wooden figurine and pretended to toss it out of the window.
“You’re not allowed to throw it out. If it needs to be thrown out, I should be the one who does it.” Xu Zhaomu hurriedly went to snatch it back.
Yu Weiwei knew that she could not bear to throw it out. She didn’t know who had given it to her, but it was obvious that she treasured it. Yet she had pretended not to care about it.
Xu Zhaomu held the little wooden figurine in her hands. She stared at it silently and fixedly.
Yu Weiwei also had no idea if Xu Zhaomu had truly been bitten by Big White. Her temperament had undergone a huge change, and, from the looks of it, she appeared quite unhappy.
“Zhaomu, ahem. Let me show you something. I guarantee it will cheer you up,” Yu Weiwei said mysteriously as she cleared her throat.
“What is it?’ Xu Zhaomu didn’t raise her head. She didn’t seem to have much interest in anything.
“Ta-da, look!” Yu Weiwei retrieved an envelope from her language textbook. “Guess who wrote to you? This person especially instructed me to pass this to you personally. He was too embarrassed to pass it directly.”
Xu Zhaomu’s eyes got wide, and then she went back to her sulky look. “Not interested.”
To be honest, she was still feeling troubled by Liu Rumei’s words.
Apart from her, every single other Shen family member was going to the Shen Group dance. And she hadn’t even known about it…
“Not interested? If you’re not interested then I’ll tear it open. Let me see what he wrote…” Yu Weiwei grabbed a penknife solemnly and prepared to open the letter.
Xu Zhaomu stretched out her hand and snatched the letter away.
“An invasion of privacy! I’m going to report you if you’re not careful,” Xu Zhaomu grumbled.
“I won’t look, I won’t look. I don’t want to be charged in court.” Yu Weiwei covered her eyes.
Xu Zhaomu glanced at the letter. The envelope was light green, with a few small pink flowers stuck on its surface. It was creative and elegant, just like a spring breeze spreading vernal sentiments throughout the land.
She opened the envelope to see a plain white paper inside. Neat, elegant lines of calligraphy greeted her eyes.
