Early in the morning, Ning Xiaoyu was awakened by a call from Ning Xuchen. She checked the time. Good grief, it was only five o’clock.

Thinking something urgent had happened, she picked up the phone, only to hear Ning Xuchen calmly tell her to wake up and slowly start getting ready, because the styling team would be arriving soon.

Five o’clock? A styling team at her door?

That was the kind of thing brides did on their wedding day. If she weren’t the person involved, she would’ve thought she was getting married today.

She immediately protested, “That’s really unnecessary, I can do my own makeup and hair.”

As for the styling team, they could just go back to wherever they came from.

She had only just fallen asleep a few hours ago after finishing a recording late at night. She was still tired and just wanted to sleep a bit more.

Ning Xuchen clearly didn’t trust Ning Xiaoyu’s idea of ‘doing her own makeup.’ In fact, he was sure that if she didn’t have professionals helping her, she would show up at her own birthday party looking exactly the same as she always did.

But for such an important occasion, he naturally wanted Ning Xiaoyu to appear dazzling and radiant in front of everyone. It was the Ning family’s young lady’s first formal appearance. She had to make it impressive, even breathtaking.

Ideally, she could deal a heavy blow to that ungrateful mother and daughter.

Ning Xuchen was well aware of the things Ning Yuwei had said on the variety show.

Things like ‘Your father is awake?’ and ‘My dad likes this or that……’

The ‘dad’ in Ning Yuwei’s mouth wasn’t her biological father— it was CEO Shen.

To the Ning family, this was undoubtedly a slap in the face.

She completely ignored her own father, clinging instead to a stepfather.

What kind of behavior was that?

Ning Xuchen even felt sorry for Ning Zhen.

He said mildly, “It’s fine. You can keep sleeping while they do your styling. Just leave it to the professionals.”

“I really don’t need— Hello? Hello?”

Ning Xuchen must have expected her refusal because he hung up right after saying his piece.

Ning Xiaoyu threw her phone aside and buried her face in the pillow.

She hadn’t expected that just as she got rid of the love system, her cousin would take its place.

Even though the love system and her cousin had different motivations, their goals were the same.

That was— to make her steal the show.

Just like Ning Xuchen said, twenty minutes later, the styling team appeared in front of Friendship House.

Ning Xiaoyu informed the director and let them in.

Soon enough, she was surrounded by a whole crew of stylists.

The director, stunned by the scene, scratched the back of his head and asked, “Is it really your birthday party today?”

Ning Xiaoyu yawned and replied, “What else could it be?”

The director chuckled, “At this rate, you could be walking the red carpet later.”

Because Ning Xiaoyu took leave every week to visit Ning Zhen, the director had a rough idea of her family situation.

He knew she had a father who had been bedridden for years. There was no one else in the family to help. She alone bore the medical costs for her comatose father.

To anyone looking in, Ning Xiaoyu’s family seemed modest— if not outright pitiable.

Recently, her father had woken up, and the director had silently felt happy for her.

He had assumed this birthday party would be a small, warm gathering. A reunion with her father, with a few guests celebrating quietly.

But seeing this spectacle made him question that assumption.

What kind of birthday party would warrant such a large and professional styling crew?

If she were dressed to the nines and ended up dining at some hole-in-the-wall eatery, it would be quite the mismatch. Not that he looked down on small restaurants— it just didn’t seem to match the effort being put in.

It all felt a bit excessive.

After watching the chaos for a while, the director went back to sleep. It was still only five-thirty in the morning.

Ning Xiaoyu let the stylists do their thing. She rubbed her empty stomach and asked, “Do you have anything for me to eat?”

One of the stylists took out a steaming hot pork bun from a bag and smiled, “Don’t worry, CEO Ning told us to bring breakfast for you.”

After handing her the bun, the stylist also gave her warm soy milk and a small portion of century egg porridge. The level of care was truly thoughtful.

While Ning Xiaoyu ate, three hairstylists worked on her hair. Once she was done, two makeup artists took turns applying her makeup. The team had already finalized the makeup and hair plans before arriving.

They had tailored everything according to Ning Xiaoyu’s features, and both the hairstyle and the makeup were designed especially for her.

With the whole team working in sync, they quickly finished her styling. All that remained was the dress.

Naturally, Ning Xuchen had also prepared for that. He had thought of every last detail.

Although he hadn’t asked a designer to take Ning Xiaoyu’s measurements, he had already obtained them.

As for how? Well, he had gotten them from Qingxin’s stylist.

When Ning Xiaoyu had posed in formal wear for Qingxin’s promotional shoot, that stylist had learned her approximate measurements.

And of course, experienced designers had sharp eyes.

Even without exact numbers, they could make pretty accurate estimates.

With that data in hand, the designer confidently created a custom-made dress for Ning Xiaoyu.

Ning Xiaoyu herself had no idea any of this was happening. But Ning Xuchen had actually started planning everything long ago.

Ever since he found out Ning Xiaoyu was his cousin, he had begun arranging everything he deemed necessary.

And as it turned out, all the preparations he had made were finally proving useful. Just look— the dress was already being put to use.

Because the designer was currently studying abroad, the dress had only been finished recently. It arrived via international express delivery just yesterday.

After changing into the dress, Ning Xiaoyu didn’t even have time to check her reflection in the mirror before she was ushered into a black Maybach.

The luxury car was the same brand as the one that had picked up Ning Yuwei and Zhang Xue all those years ago.

But this one looked roomier, sleeker— and deeper in its shade of black.

Back then, Ning Xiaoyu had watched helplessly as Zhang Xue and Ning Yuwei drove away in that car. Now, she was sitting in one herself.

But her heart felt calm. She didn’t really feel much of anything.

“Miss Ning, your styling is complete. We’ll now take you to Ning Silang Manor. There are a few people Chairman Ning would like you to meet in advance.”

Ning Silang Manor?

She immediately spoke up. “Wait, I invited a few guests to come with me.”

The lead stylist smiled and said, “I know. CEO Ning had already instructed us about some matters. Miss Ning, please rest assured, your friends and guests will be escorted by another driver. They will arrive at your birthday party safely and on time.”

Since someone would be taking the guests to the banquet venue, Ning Xiaoyu had nothing more to say.

The lead stylist then asked, “Miss Ning, if you don’t have any other questions, shall we depart now?”

Ning Xiaoyu nodded. “Alright, then I’ll get some rest.”

Hearing that, the stylist considerately took out a sleeping mask for her.

“Sweet dreams.”

Ning Xiaoyu: “……”

This level of service felt a little too thoughtful.

────ρя


Not long after Ning Xiaoyu left, the guests began to wake up one by one.

Because the variety show recording had gone late into the night, the guests all got up later than usual.

It was already eight o’clock when Shi Chao, the first guest to wake up, came downstairs.

As he was about to eat breakfast, the other guests trickled into the living room one after another, exchanging greetings.

“Morning.”

“Morning.”

While Ling Zige was eating a bun, he suddenly asked, “Aren’t we supposed to attend Xiaoyu’s birthday party today?”

The other guests immediately chimed in, “Yeah! Where’s the birthday girl? Haven’t seen her.”

“Don’t tell me Xiaoyu’s still sleeping?”

“Hahaha, who’s going to wake her up?”

At that moment, the director spoke up just in time. “Xiaoyu already left for the banquet venue earlier.”

Ning Yuwei put down the glass of milk she was drinking, pursed her lips, and asked with a look of feigned curiosity, “Then what about us? The digital invitation didn’t include the address, did it?”

Right as she finished speaking, a refined-looking man seated on the sofa stood up and smiled warmly. “No need to worry, everyone. I’m your exclusive driver for today. I’ll be responsible for taking you safely to the banquet venue. My surname is Xiang, but you can just call me Xiao Xiang.”

The guests had been too focused on eating breakfast to notice the unfamiliar man sitting on the sofa.

Once he spoke, they instinctively turned to look at him, and upon seeing his face clearly, quite a few of them became visibly intrigued.

He looked elegant and scholarly, dressed in a neatly tailored suit, with an extraordinary air about him. They had assumed he was a newly arrived staff member, but it turned out he was the driver invited by Ning Xiaoyu?

“Xiao Xiang, what do you usually do for a living?”

“Did Xiaoyu invite you specifically to drive for us?”

“What’s your relationship with Xiaoyu?”

Xiao Xiang merely smiled in response to their questions and gave no direct answers, “You’ll find out soon enough.”

Xi Rui said with a teasing tone, “Oh? Keeping us in suspense?”

Xiao Xiang kept smiling gently and harmlessly.

Xi Rui grew increasingly curious about him. He really didn’t look like any ordinary driver. In fact, he resembled…… a high-earning elite who sat in an office all day, raking in millions a year.

She had met plenty of people and considered herself quite good at judging character.

She figured her guess couldn’t be too far off from his real occupation.

Which made things all the more puzzling.

Where had Ning Xiaoyu met someone like this? And he’d even come all this way just to drive guests for her?

Of course, Xiao Xiang wasn’t someone Ning Xiaoyu had known personally. He was a capable secretary working under Old Master Ning. Highly competent, he had graduated from a top university in M Country, fluent in multiple languages, and currently earning an eight-figure salary annually.

Today, Old Master Ning had specifically assigned him to act as the driver for this group of guests.

It was, frankly, a bit beneath him.

The guests, naturally, had no idea about this. But they would soon learn that this was the personal secretary of Chairman Ning of the Ning Group— not some ordinary passerby, much less a full-time chauffeur.

After breakfast, Xiao Xiang led the guests to a long, luxurious Lincoln limousine.

He said courteously, “Please, get in.”

At the sight of the car, the guests couldn’t hide their surprise.

A refined, well-spoken driver, paired with such a high-end vehicle— this birthday party clearly wasn’t going to be simple.

Which brought up a new question— wasn’t Ning Xiaoyu from an ordinary background?

Where did she get the resources for all this?

The guests instinctively looked at Lu Jingdu.

The movie king’s expression remained as calm as ever, no different from usual. No one could read anything from his face.

With all their doubts unanswered, the guests boarded the car one by one.

After getting into the limousine, Ning Yuwei suddenly felt a bit uneasy for some reason. The car, the driver— everything had gone against her expectations. It felt like something had happened without her knowing.

She lowered her head and sent a message to Zhang Xue, asking if she had met with Ning Zhen yet.

Zhang Xue replied with a simple, 【Don’t worry, I’m almost at the hospital room. Ning Xiaoyu won’t be able to stand in your way.】

Upon reading the message, Ning Yuwei exhaled a long breath of relief.

【Thank you, Mom.】

────ρя


On the other side, Zhang Xue had finally arrived at the hospital room door.

She didn’t bother knocking and opened the door casually.

To her, it wasn’t difficult to find out which room Ning Zhen was in. Just sending someone to ask around had been enough.

It had been seven years since they last saw each other. Zhang Xue had long cast Ning Zhen out of her life.

But in her eyes, Ning Zhen’s feelings toward her probably hadn’t changed much over the years. After all, while she had truly lived life during these seven years, to Ning Zhen, it had been as if he had merely taken a nap.

As soon as she opened the door, she smiled calmly and said, “Ah Zhen, we meet again.”

Upon hearing that all-too-familiar voice, Ning Zhen instinctively raised his head.

The air in the room seemed to freeze.

He lay weakly on the hospital bed, old and weary, while the woman standing not far away looked glamorous and even more beautiful than before. During his coma, Ning Xiaoyu had been right— Zhang Xue had been doing just fine.

She had lived well— so well, in fact— while Ning Xiaoyu had suffered so bitterly.

Ning Zhen couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

Zhang Xue didn’t sit down. She was busy and didn’t have much time to waste on Ning Zhen. Once she finished saying what she had come to say, she planned to leave immediately. So, she had no intention of exchanging pleasantries.

She got straight to the point, “Xiaoyu said some things on the variety show that weren’t good for Weiwei. They’ve caused considerable damage to her reputation. I hope you, as Xiaoyu’s father, can rein her in. Tell her to take back what she said and issue a public apology to Weiwei.”

In Zhang Xue’s mind, Ning Zhen didn’t even need to think before agreeing. After all, the man from seven years ago had been so humble and so deeply in love with her— like a groveling dog. Whatever she asked, he wouldn’t dare say no.

She believed he would act exactly the same now. Zhang Xue had that confidence.

When she finished speaking, she looked down at Ning Zhen from above. “If you’ve got time now, you can give her a call. I’m very busy, so you’d better move quickly.”

Hearing that, Ning Zhen couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

Zhang Xue frowned slightly, displeased. “What are you laughing at?”

With effort, Ning Zhen spoke, “At the man I used to be.” After days of treatment, he could finally speak a little, though it was still difficult. Recovery was a slow and painful process.

“Huh?”

Ning Zhen stopped laughing and, word by word, said with effort, “I used to be blind and foolish. But not anymore. After all these years that Xiao Yu has taken care of me, what right do I have, as a father, to tell her what to do? Besides, she wasn’t wrong, was she?”