Pei Yuzhou didn’t open his eyes. His lips parted slightly. “Still looking.”
Meng Shuyao hurriedly averted her gaze.
Did he grow a third eye or something? He was far too perceptive.
They soaked in uneventful silence for over ten minutes.
Meng Shuyao broke the quiet. “Mr. Pei, I’m finished soaking. I’ll be going now.”
He responded with a very flat “Mm.”
Meng Shuyao returned to her room and took another shower.
She couldn’t figure it out. Where exactly was the problem?
With the atmosphere just now, that nothing had happened—was that normal?
Could it be that Mr. Pei had no such thoughts about her?
She didn’t look bad, and her figure was decent too; she was almost a C-cup, at least. Was she really that unattractive? Could she not spark even the slightest interest in him?
Meng Shuyao sighed, unable to make sense of it.
—
On the adjacent terrace.
A tall, slender figure leaned against the railing, smoking. The night was thick and dark, the ember at his fingertips flickering bright and dim.
Smoke exhaled from between his lips was blown away by the wind.
His phone vibrated.
Pei Yuzhou stubbed out the cigarette and answered. “Grandfather.”
A deep voice came from the other end. “When are you coming back?”
“In a couple of days.”
“I heard the Arthur family has been restless lately.”
“I’ll handle it. You needn’t worry.”
“Mm.” The old man truly didn’t worry about business matters; this call had an ulterior motive. “You’ve been putting off your marriage all this time. Shouldn’t you consider it by now?”
“It’s still early. No rush.”
“You always fob me off with that line. There are plenty of girls of suitable age from other families. Can’t you find a suitable one?”
Pei Yuzhou had heard these words countless times before. He cut the conversation short. “It’s getting late. If there’s nothing else, I won’t disturb your rest. I’ll play chess with you when I return in a couple of days.”
The old man was helpless against him. “I can’t be bothered with you anymore.”
The call ended.
Pei Yuzhou sat on the terrace for a while.
Recalling not long ago, in the hot spring pool, the girl’s soft body had pressed against him, a faint jasmine fragrance filling his nostrils.
A certain place below his waistline tightened.
He had never been a man of heavy desires. For the first time, he felt a primal impulse toward a young girl.
At first, he had wanted to scare her, but unexpectedly, she hadn’t been afraid at all.
She seemed obedient and pure, but in reality, that wasn’t the case—she had quite the wild streak.
—
The next morning, Meng Shuyao had to return to school. She happened to learn that Mr. Pei was also returning to the city, so she pestered him relentlessly until he agreed to give her a ride.
Along the way, Mark had been reporting on work.
Securities investments, stock market indices, currency trading…
A bunch of technical terms, all sorts of numbers and percentages. Meng Shuyao might as well have been listening to a foreign language, quietly curling up in her seat and scrolling on her phone.
No wonder he made millions every minute; he didn’t even waste time while riding in a car.
After finishing company matters, Mark mentioned again, “Sir, the invitation from the Phillips auction house has been received. The twenty-fifth, seven in the evening.”
Meng Shuyao finally caught something she could understand. She turned to look at the man beside her and asked, “Mr. Pei, can you take me to the auction too?”
Pei Yuzhou glanced sideways. “What for?”
“I heard the Phillips auction house often auctions one-of-a-kind paintings. I want to broaden my horizons.” Meng Shuyao’s eyes were expectant. “Would it be convenient to bring me along? I’ll stay quietly by your side and absolutely won’t disturb you.”
Before Pei Yuzhou could answer, the driver slowly stepped on the brake. “Miss, we’ve arrived at the school.”
Meng Shuyao waited a moment but didn’t get a reply. Knowing she had been presumptuous, she said, “If it’s not convenient, forget—”
“That afternoon, someone will come pick you up,” his voice cut in.
Meng Shuyao’s eyes brightened. She gave him a brilliant smile. “Thank you, Mr. Pei!”
She grabbed her bag and foldable drawing board and got out of the car, waving. “Then I’m heading back to school. See you next time.”
Pei Yuzhou watched her run through the school gates, her skirt fluttering, her figure light and graceful.
Girls of this age were brimming with youth.
Meng Shuyao returned to her dormitory, put away her things, and went to the studio.
Winnie saw her and asked, “How was your weekend?”
Meng Shuyao tugged her lips into a smile. “Not bad.”
Seeing her in a good mood, Winnie took a wild guess. “Any new progress?”
Meng Shuyao thought back. “I don’t think so.”
“You don’t think so. So is there or isn’t there?”
“Got his contact info. Does that count as progress?”
Winnie was surprised. “You’ve been pursuing him for so long and only just got his contact info?”
Meng Shuyao shrugged.
Actually, it had gone more smoothly than she expected.
—
The Meng family had been busy preparing for Meng Yan’s wedding recently. The wedding date was reportedly set for September.
Every few days, Meng Shuyao would come across Meng Yan’s lovey-dovey social media posts.
That clique of plastic sisters sounded nice on the surface but trashed her extensively in the group chat behind her back.
“It’s just a wedding. Showing off every day—isn’t it boring?”
“Haven’t you heard the saying? The more you lack something, the more you flaunt it. She’s just trying to prove she’s better than Second Young Master Zhao’s white moonlight.”
“Meng Yan seems to be going to America to attend this year’s Phillips auction.”
“Where did she get an invitation? Phillips auctions aren’t something just anyone can attend. The Meng family doesn’t have the status to reach that threshold.”
“The Zhao family gave it to her, duh. Her husband is taking her. They say they’re preparing to bid on a gemstone as a wedding ring.”
“No wonder she’s been so smug lately.”
“Items at auctions aren’t cheap. If they fail to win the bid, they’ll lose face.”
“Then it’ll be a good show.”
Only then did Meng Shuyao learn that Meng Yan was also coming to America for the Phillips auction.
If Meng Yan saw her together with Mr. Pei, it would probably cause trouble.
It seemed she would have to avoid her when the time came.
Unexpectedly, two days before the auction, Meng Yan contacted her on her own initiative.
Meng Yan: “I’m in America. Let’s have afternoon tea together.”
Meng Yan: “Also, give me the club membership card. Dad said so.”
Meng Shuyao didn’t want to spend even a moment longer with her. “I have class; no time. Come directly to my school to get it.”
Meng Yan: “The time it takes to drink a cup of coffee won’t delay you long. I’ve sent you the address.”
They scheduled it for three in the afternoon.
Meng Yan had dressed up specially—exquisite makeup, a Dior blue vine checkered suit, a recent fashion week runway piece, and an exotic leather bag in her hand.
As a result, she waited forty minutes in the coffee shop before Meng Shuyao arrived.
She suppressed her temper, not wanting to lose it in public. “Do you have any sense of time? You didn’t even answer your calls. What do you mean by this?”
Meng Shuyao sat down across from her unhurriedly, fished the card out from her bag, and handed it over. “I told you I have class and no time. If you didn’t want to wait, you didn’t have to.”
Meng Yan suppressed her anger and smiled instead. “I’m attending the auction the day after tomorrow. There are several paintings by famous masters among the lots. I thought you might be interested, but unfortunately, there are no extra invitations.”
She lifted her coffee and took a sip. “If you had gotten together with that Young Master Xu earlier, perhaps you could have accompanied Mr. Xu to attend.”
Meng Shuyao ignored her entirely, her expression remaining calm as always. “I still have to hurry back to class. Enjoy your drink.”
She left after saying that.
Meng Yan’s brows furrowed tightly. It was like punching cotton—her opponent didn’t react at all. It was thoroughly unsatisfying.
She hated Meng Shuyao’s non-competitive, holier-than-thou attitude. An illegitimate daughter should stay beneath her feet forever.