Chapter 5: The Wicked Best Friend

Mu Kui didn’t understand how Mu Ruo had suddenly changed. She bit her lip and said, “If you won’t give it, then don’t. Do you think I care?”

Mu Kui quickly ran to Mu Ruo’s stepmother, Yao Wanzhen, to complain.

Yao Wanzhen had never liked Mu Ruo since she married into the family.

But since she admired Mu’s father, she was willing to be his mistress before he even divorced.

Mu Ruo had always been beautiful. Even if Yao Wanzhen dressed her in drab clothes and dressed Mu Kui in the most expensive outfits from the mall, Mu Ruo still looked like a porcelain doll, evoking pity.

When Yao Wanzhen first heard that the Fu family wanted to marry into the Mu family, she and Mu’s father were ecstatic.

The Mu family was wealthy, but in recent years, due to economic downturns and Mu’s father’s business problems, they were far from their former glory.

The Fu family, a top-tier wealthy family, was beyond the reach of even the Mu family at its peak!

Such a family wanted to marry into theirs!

Yao Wanzhen hurriedly dressed her own daughter, Mu Kui, beautifully to present her.

Who would have guessed that the Fu family had no interest in Mu Kui.

Butler Li saw it clearly.

His employer wanted a beautiful vase that wouldn’t cling to him.

Mu Kui wasn’t pretty enough, and given her infatuated demeanor, she would definitely be a bother.

After Mu Ruo married into the Fu family, Yao Wanzhen and Mu Kui hated her with a vengeance.

They were constantly trying to extract money from Mu Ruo while encouraging her to pursue “true love.”

Yes, everyone knew the original owner had someone she cared about.

…Including the original owner’s husband.

Mu Ruo, having had almost nothing to eat while on an IV drip for her gastroenteritis, cooked herself a bowl of noodles when she returned home. She sat on the sofa, eating slowly and watching TV.

Yao Wanzhen, watching Mu Ruo’s posture, felt that something about this stepdaughter had changed, that something was different from before.

Yao Wanzhen approached: “Ruo Ruo, how are things going with Beichen lately?”

Mu Ruo: “Lu Beichen?”

Yao Wanzhen nodded: “Mom knows it’s not easy for you to marry into the Fu family. You must have suffered a lot in the Fu family. Beichen is a good boy; Mom still likes him!”

Though Yao Wanzhen was the original owner’s stepmother, she had lived with her since childhood and was still called “Mom.”

Mu Ruo ignored her and continued eating her noodles slowly.

She was currently unemployed. After returning from studying abroad, she joined the Mu family’s company, but after marrying Fu Jianzhi, she received a large allowance every month and stopped working. She spent her days focusing on the drama between the male and female leads, scheming against the heroine Xia Wanwan, and fighting with Xia Wanwan.

Mu Ruo still wanted to have something of her own to do.

Yao Wanzhen, seeing she was being ignored, said: “Oh, after being a wealthy wife for a few days, you don’t even care about your own mother anymore?”

“You’re blocking my view of the TV,” Mu Ruo said coldly, lifting her eyes. “If you think Lu Beichen is good, then go after him yourself. I’m a married woman and need to keep my distance from men with girlfriends.”

Yao Wanzhen was stunned.

This was shocking coming from Mu Ruo.

Because of studying abroad, Mu Ruo had always felt guilty toward Lu Beichen, thinking she had betrayed true love for the sake of her studies.

Even now, despite being married, she still thought about Lu Beichen.

That evening, when Mu’s father came home for dinner, Yao Wanzhen and Mu Kui sat next to him. They seemed like a real family, enjoying their meal. Yao Wanzhen served dishes to Mu Kui and Mu’s father, saying affectionate things.

Mu Ruo sat alone in the corner, ignored, as if she didn’t belong to this family.

Mu Ruo tugged at the corners of her lips.

In her view, some of the schemes and traps the original owner had set were wrong, but the original owner herself was also a pitiable character.

She had sacrificed everything for a bit of warmth in her youth, only to end up with a ruined reputation and a tragic end.

Mu Kui, somewhat aggrieved, said to Mu’s father: “Dad, I want a dress. I asked sister to buy it for me, but she refuses.”

Mu’s father furrowed his brows: “Ruo Ruo, Kui Kui is your sister. What’s wrong with buying her a dress?”

“Let me buy it, fine,” Mu Ruo said lazily, taking a sip of water. “But you have to give me the money.”

“We’re a family, and you’re talking about money?” Mu’s father was even more displeased. “Your mother raised you with such difficulty. She’s not your biological mother, yet she’s so good to you, and you don’t know how to be grateful…”

Yao Wanzhen quickly stepped in to mediate: “Everyone’s eating right now; don’t scold the child. Kui Kui, you’re being too unreasonable. Even though your sister has a lot of money, you shouldn’t waste it. If you want a dress, let Dad buy it for you.”

Mu Ruo’s lips curled into a cold smile.

She stood up. “I’m full. I’ll be going now.”

Watching Mu Ruo’s departing figure, Mu’s father frowned. “Did she take the wrong medicine today?”

Yao Wanzhen also felt something was off.

In the past, Mu Ruo had always appeared to be cheerful and accommodating with them, seemingly indifferent but actually yearning for their approval. She never refused their requests and always agreed to whatever they wanted.

What’s going on today?

Mu’s father asked again, “How much is that dress you want?”

Mu Kui: “500,000…”

“500,000 for a dress?” Mu’s father was unhappy. “Do you think money grows on trees? Do you know how hard it is to do business now?”

If it had been two or three years ago, when the Mu family was thriving, Mu’s father wouldn’t have minded.

But things were different now.

Though he scolded Mu Kui, he couldn’t bear to deny his daughter. He transferred some pocket money to her. “Try to get your sister to give you money next time.”

Mu Ruo stood at the Mu family’s door.

Now living in a villa area, it was difficult to get a cab.

Moreover, Mu Ruo didn’t know where the original owner’s apartment was and needed to ask someone for directions.

Zhou Jian, that unreliable person, wouldn’t do.

She scrolled through her WeChat contacts and soon saw the name “Du Haili.”

In the original text, Du Haili was Mu Ruo’s friend.

…And was involved in all the scheming and villainy with Mu Ruo.

Du Haili was one of those brainless sidekicks to the scheming female second lead. She did whatever the boss told her to do, and even after being arranged to be hit by a car by the male lead, Lu Beichen, she still thought she and Mu Ruo were doing the right thing.

Mu Ruo sighed and called Du Haili.

Within thirty minutes, a girl in a pink dress appeared in front of Mu Ruo, driving a convertible.

Contrary to Mu Ruo’s expectation of a wicked sidekick, Du Haili had a round doll-like face, curly long hair, large eyes, and bunny teeth, looking quite cute.