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Outside the floor-to-ceiling window, the city was brightly lit.
In the reflection of the glass, a girl dressed in a high school uniform was straddling the man, her slender fingers weakly and with difficulty tugging at the dark-colored tie.
Most of her delicate, fragile face was tightly covered, with only her intoxicated, flushed eyes exposed. A single tear glistened as it trailed down her long, elegant fingers.
Her navy-blue short skirt was in disarray, crumpled into a mess, hiding the distinctly veined hand resting on her thigh.
“Ming Zhao, get down.”
The cold, stern voice jolted Ming Zhao awake from her slumber on the sofa. Her eyes snapped open as her consciousness pulled away from the haze of sleep.
The room was dim, with only the faint, shifting glow from the projector screen in front of her illuminating the space.
The image of that person’s indifferent expression lingered in her mind, refusing to fade.
Rubbing her groggy, sleep-addled head, she struggled to pull her phone out from the crack in the sofa and unlocked it.
[19:00]
The weak light reflected on her face as she frowned at the notification bar.
She swiped open the WeChat group chat, which was filled to the brim with four years’ worth of congratulatory messages.
[Whoa, incredible! The eldest miss can practically walk sideways in the capital now. Please take care of us 🙏]
[Even my dad was shocked when he saw the news. @Ming Zhao, your family really knows how to keep secrets!]
[With doting parents above and a loving brother below, the eldest miss truly is living the dream. You’ve definitely won first place in the reincarnation lottery! Don’t forget to treat us to dinner when you come back!]
The messages were all variations of the same flattery.
She scrolled through them with little emotion.
Until she came across a message that appeared out of nowhere:
[But… if I remember correctly, doesn’t Young Master Zhou already have a biological younger sister?]
After that message, the group chat fell into an eerie silence.
Ming Zhao held her phone tightly, a cold sneer forming in her heart.
She knew full well that their flattery was just on the surface.
Behind her back, they all thought that now that the Privileged Young Master of the Zhou family had officially returned to his roots, there was no longer any place for her, this non-blood-related “sister.”
However, her private messages, which had piled up to 99+, were filled with the same pointless chatter. Some wanted her to introduce them to Young Master Zhou, while others hoped she could ask the Zhou family to pull some strings for certain projects, begging for her help.
In short, it was all Zhou, Zhou, Zhou, Zhou, Zhou…
The screen was flooded with “Zhou.”
An inexplicable irritation surged within her. Ming Zhao tossed the phone aside, sat cross-legged on the sofa, and took a swig of cold cola.
The movie was still playing.
The howling, damp wind swept across the desolate field, brushing against the female lead’s messy, curly hair, and a mist lingered in the air.
This movie, which she had randomly selected, failed to capture her attention. She simply didn’t like the silence and always felt the need to have something playing to feel comfortable.
Suddenly, a sharp sound came from the door, and the main light in the living room flickered on.
“Hello.”
In the hallway stood a woman with delicate makeup, speaking irritably.
“How long are you planning to stay here?”
Lin Zhiwei had just opened the door and was met with this scene.
The noble young miss, who was pampered and treated like royalty, was wearing an expensive 8,000-yuan facial mask, sprawled out on the sofa in a carefree manner, acting as if she owned the place. She looked utterly relaxed.
No one knew what had happened to her—she had quietly gone abroad to study without a word, and now she hadn’t returned home, instead occupying the place for almost a week.
The “pigeon” who had been called out sat up, looking at her in dissatisfaction, her tone spoiled. “Where have you been? Leaving me alone at home for dinner?”
Lin Zhiwei shot her an exasperated glance, hung up her bag and coat, and lazily responded.
“I went on a blind date with your brother.”
The room fell silent for a moment.
“Pfft.” Ming Zhao’s round eyes squinted into a smile, “You actually went so far as to… get to the point of a blind date with him already…”
Wait.
“What did you say?!”
The person who had just been laughing uncontrollably suddenly stood up, eyes wide. “My brother?”
Her expression was casual. “Yeah.”
“You’re crazy!”
“What’s wrong?” Lin Zhiwei said slowly as she gathered her long hair into a bun, raising an eyebrow. “Are you that upset that I might become your sister-in-law?”
Ming Zhao’s eyes widened in disbelief.
On the surface, Lin Zhiwei appeared gentle, graceful, cultured, and well-mannered. But in reality, her heart was just as dark as could be.
What a sinister move, actually planning to step on her in terms of seniority.
Ming Zhao, flustered, snapped, “Don’t you already have a boyfriend?”
Lin Zhiwei shrugged. “So what? I can break up with him.”
“He’s eight years older than you!”
“So what? Older men are more caring.”
“…”
Lin Zhiwei took out a box of lemon-flavored chicken feet from the fridge, leisurely tearing open the packaging.
“It doesn’t have to be me; it could be someone else. Or do you prefer the second miss of Hengtai Bank?”
Her words immediately left Ming Zhao speechless.
So frustrating.
After a long silence without hearing her snap back, Lin Zhiwei was surprised. Was she actually this quiet?
Looking up, she was momentarily stunned.
Even when the troublemaker was frustrated, she was still so unbelievably beautiful. The kind of delicate grace that only wealth and care could cultivate, even the strands of hair exuded the scent of money.
Even with the facial mask on, Lin Zhiwei could imagine how her exquisite face must have been scrunched up, looking all wrinkled.
Tsk, this was really satisfying.
Lin Zhiwei deliberately dragged out her tone, taking the opportunity to push further. “Sister-in-law… let me hear you say it.”
It was an absolute humiliation!
“Lin Zhiwei! Stop taking advantage of me!”
The moment her flustered emotions were stirred, Ming Zhao, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, fluffed up all her fur and was about to pounce on her to strangle her.
“Hey, hey, hey! My chicken feet—”
As the two of them were caught up in their scuffle, an abrupt ringtone suddenly rang out in the room.
It was a usual scam call. Ming Zhao had no intention of answering, and instead, she reached out with her hand to grab Lin Zhiwei’s face.
What she didn’t expect was that the caller on the other end seemed unusually patient, repeating the message several times without hanging up, making it unbearably annoying.
Whose small-time company was this, making such a racket!
Irritated, she gave up on dealing with Lin Zhiwei and stomped over to the sofa in her slippers.
As she walked around the coffee table, she accidentally bumped her leg hard against the corner, the delicate skin on her calf immediately turning red.
“Hiss…”
Biting her lip to hold back the cry of pain that almost escaped, Ming Zhao bent down to rub the spot, gritting her teeth and swearing that she would definitely yell at the caller later.
The ringtone still hadn’t stopped.
The phone screen reflected the chandelier on the ceiling, casting a blinding arc of light that made the text blurry.
But she suddenly froze in place, able to see it clearly.
One stroke, one dot—it was the name written on the draft paper, the name carved into the corner of the wall, the name signed on the failed exam papers.
And finally… the name signed on the contract, sharp and unyielding.
The sound of the mallet striking the marimba by her ear seemed to grow slower and heavier, resonating more deeply.
It made her heart tingle with a faint numbness.
The caller ID—
Zhou Tingyun.