Lady

"You're back."

Ju Hui appeared from behind him and took his hand.

Sheng Qijing reflexively squeezed her hand; it was small and light, the only part of her body where he could feel the ruthlessness of time.

He quickly let go: "Why go back to China again?"

Ju Hui looked at the cake, then at him: "I'll spend your 31st birthday with you."

"My birthday was a few days after you came back last time."

Ju Hui rubbed his brow.

"I forgot last time."

They had never celebrated each other's birthdays, and he knew perfectly well what Ju Hui was really thinking.

The night view danced on their faces. Sheng Qijing turned his head away, walked away, and hung up his clothes.

"cell phone."

"Okay."

Ju Hui has no musical talent. She recorded the song to see if it would look silly for her to appear at the door holding a cake and singing. As it turned out, it wasn't silly, but it made the cake look poisonous.

She turned off the sound check.

The phone was snatched away instantly by a large hand that appeared from behind and tossed into the crevice of the sofa.

Before studying sculpture, Sheng Qijing was severely criticized by Sheng Zhen, who told him he should study finance or economics instead.

This subject only made him think of office workers who wore suits every day, holding a wine glass in one hand and their hair in the other.

Sheng Qijing is actually a great artist now—only when he's with Ju Hui. They are gentle yet dynamic, complementing each other perfectly; she takes on the superiority, and he takes on the decadence.

The living room lights were off, and Ju Hui was still blindfolded.

Ju Hui was forced to feel hot and bothered. Her eyelashes brushed against his palm instead of her mouth, flickering and eagerly awaiting his next move.

Is it because she didn't remove her makeup?

Ju Hui remembered that he wasn't such a particular person.

She bent her left leg, opened her mouth, and asked:

Are you very tired?

Sensing the probing, Sheng Qijing stopped, withdrew his hand, and the empty wind instantly filled Ju Hui's entire body.

"What's wrong."

Ju Hui sat up and put on her clothes.

"I've had enough fun."

Sheng Qijing stared at the loose tie and ripped it off: "I have work tonight, I can't keep you here, go back to Norway."

This is probably his new method of revenge. In Sheng Qijing's eyes, she flies to China twice in half a month!

He knows how long a flight takes and how uncomfortable it is to sleep, so why can't he let her stay in the second bedroom for one night to adjust to the time difference?

Ju Hui stood up straight, said nothing of lingering, and flew back to Ruobei that very night.

Jiang Yiying arrived home before midnight, still awake, her face beaming with joy despite wearing a face mask.

Jiang Yiying told Ju Hui that Jiaping had come by during the few hours she was gone and asked her if she had gone back to Norway.

"how do you say?"

I said, "Yes, that's right."

Jiang Yiying laughed; she also thought Ju Hui was going back to work, not on a date.

"I invited him to stay for dinner, but he didn't eat much. Jia Ping has a stomach ulcer, and I didn't know what to be careful about."

Jiang Yiying pointed to the barely touched takeout on the table, then peeled off her face mask, revealing her head to look like a boiled egg.

Ju Hui walked to the dining table and sat opposite Bian Jiaping's meal. Blanched bok choy, tomato beef brisket, and yam and pork rib soup were served in neat rows of bowls and chopsticks, which hadn't been cleared away yet, forming a semi-circle to protect her from the world.

Ju Hui looked at it for a while, then stood up and asked her, "Are you used to using the camera?"

"It works great. Red Book even promoted me to the photography community. Today, a female photographer from my school saw my profile and wanted to ask me to be a model."

"That's good. When will we film?"

"tomorrow."

Ju Hui smiled and nodded, then, leaning on the dining table, asked, "Could I borrow the camera tomorrow? I'd like to record a video."

Kan Yu landed in Ruobei the next day.

The tall man was taking off his hoodie as he walked along the covered bridge. Ju Hui easily spotted him in the crowd. He was wearing a white tank top and carrying a black shoulder bag. His two large tattooed arms, which Ju Hui thought were hot in Ruobei, were eye-catching and embarrassing.

Upon arrival, he first sent Ju Hui a receipt to settle accounts, demanding a huge sum for rent. He then took her to visit several studio locations, analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of each environment. That wasn't enough; their next destination had been changed—they were to drive south towards Langfang.

Ju Hui called a halt, but that doesn't mean he can give orders just because he's driving.

Before nightfall, Ju Hui drove towards her home, and Kan Yu was terrified: "You dare to rent such a big studio here? If you want to go bankrupt, don't drag me down with you."

Ju Hui pouted and took him and two large suitcases to a hotel near her home.

Ju Hui: "Once the studio is settled, I'll rent a place, and you can come and live with me."

Kan Yu: "No, I don't want to live with you. I still need to find a partner."

Ju Hui couldn't help but slap him on the back. Kan Yu clutched his right back with his left hand, wincing in pain. She ignored him, shoved the camera out of her bag into his hand, and patted the wooden wall of his room.

"Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and record the voiceover for me."

Ju Hui smiled naturally at Kan Yu's pouting lips, recorded the third take, and finished with satisfaction. Kan Yu sat up straight and, under Ju Hui's supervision, quickly exported the video and sent it to Jing Kuan.

The email stated that Ju Hui was the only well-known alumnus he had invited, and that the competition was just around the corner, requiring a prompt reply.

Ju Hui hoped she hadn't wasted his time.

-

Jing Kuan's second email arrived on the day Ju Hui returned the car to the rental company. The company was very happy that Ju Hui had responded to him and invited her to watch the game live.

The attachment includes his a cappella recording and a WeChat QR code.

The singing is good; the profile picture on the green QR code is a simple line drawing of a puppy.

Yun Aonan took a sip of tea: "This kid is really pushing his luck. If you didn't know better, you'd think he was a street performer selling his talents."

Ju Hui sat in Yun Aonan's office, looking out the long window at the traffic flowing across the overpass. This place was very close to her room at the Yunque Hotel.

Ju Hui: "I'm thinking of going."

Yun Aonan put down her cup: "Mom, don't go. I'm afraid you'll get beaten up at school. Everyone's blaming you for Mo Chun's pay cuts and reduced profits. Even though I said before that they're still willing to choose Mo Chun, guess who they'll blame when the profits aren't good?"

The year Ju Hui was at the height of her popularity in Europe coincided with Ruomei's 110th anniversary celebration. Yun Aonan sent her the invitation to the anniversary event, a handwritten letter in black and gold, understated yet luxurious.

Ju Hui did not receive a single email about Ruo Mei, and Sheng Qijing probably did as well.

After graduating, Sheng Qijing took over the Mo Cun brand. In his first interview, he told everyone that he was dating his junior, Ju Hui.

In the second interview, the interviewer explained the changes made by Mochen, including reducing the proportion of Ruomei graduates among its signed artists, decreasing signing bonuses, and tying in a ten-year revenue-sharing agreement.

"Some people suspect that I will give my girlfriend preferential treatment in the future through a dual contract. This adjustment can make Mo Chen's attitude clear to everyone: everyone is equal."

After the two interviews, Sheng Qijing disappeared without a trace, fading into silence amidst the insults, only returning to the public eye in recent years.

Yun Aonan wanted to shake her head to help her clear the paste out of her ears.

Ju Hui: "I can bring Kan Yu. He's tall and strong. Will you come?"

Yun Aonan hissed: "I only managed to graduate by hiding my childhood friend Sheng Qijing's identity. You go ahead."

Before Ju Hui went back, Yun Aonan lent her a Land Rover to make a good impression, so she could drive it before buying a car.

The car wasn't lent for nothing; Ju Hui promised Yun Aonan that she would design a few more rings, which would then be sold under Ju Hui's name, June.

Yun Aonan read it in a very greasy way, but Ju Hui smiled and said it wasn't necessary.

After taking Jiang Yiying out for dinner, Ju Hui added Jing Kuan on WeChat. To avoid him accidentally deleting her, she also enabled privacy settings on her Moments, and since she hadn't posted much, she set it to be visible to everyone.

The Moments feed can be scrolled to the bottom in one go; the content consists of a small portion of photos taken at the exhibition, but mostly of landscape photos.

Jing Kuan directly forwarded one of the photos from her WeChat Moments, showing Ju Hui holding flowers, standing next to her sculpture, and smiling gently.

Jing Kuan: [Professor Ju Hui, will this sculpture be exhibited in China?]

Jing Kuan: [Our teacher used it as a case study in class >.

Ju Hui touched her earlobe. This piece was not yet finished and had been stored in the warehouse for several years without being sold.

She removed the abrupt "I won't be able to": "[I really hope it can be exhibited, but the transportation costs are too high, so it's probably not possible in China.]"

This photo shows Ju Hui's first exhibition; at that time, she was just herself, with one flower and one artwork.

The recently posted photos of the exhibition show several people, several flowers, and several works, with Ju Hui surrounded by the museum owner and investors.

It was during that time that Ju Hui learned how to interact with people.

One of the key points is that when faced with a request that is difficult for the other party to accept, do not refuse directly, but proceed gradually.

Especially when faced with Sheng Qijing, the client who demanded that Ju Hui not go abroad and stay in Mo Cun.

If the other party asks for your body image as a deposit in advance, a blunt refusal can cause stress.

After a brief chat with Jing Kuan, Ju Hui got back to the main topic: she wanted three seats for the competition and would be bringing two friends.

Jing Kuan readily agreed, but added that the seating arrangement might be different from what Ju Hui had imagined.

-

It's different, very different.

Ju Hui regretted coming to watch the game.

Kan Yu also regretted acknowledging her as his boss, but Jiang Yiying was quite happy, holding her phone high to film a vlog of watching a performance at another school.

The finals were held at the school's track and field stadium. Freshmen who had just finished military training watched as judges sitting on iron benches on the lawn, while drone cameras operated and the event was broadcast live online.

They were sitting almost in the very center of the front row. Their carefully chosen dark clothes still couldn't be hidden under their camouflage uniforms. Kan Yu hunched over the whole time, playing on his phone under the colorful spotlights.

The performance on stage was already halfway through. Ju Hui pulled her mask up and put it on properly, planning to leave as soon as Jing Kuan finished his performance.

Jiang Yiying, who was standing next to her, turned the camera around for two seconds, but Ju Hui noticed and grabbed her phone, pushing it back.

"...Sister Ju Hui."

"I don't need to include it in the clip. Aren't you a freshman too? Don't you have military training?"

“We started school early and our military training was short, and,” Jiang Yiying leaned closer to her and whispered, “don’t tell me I’m a freshman, I’m like an upperclassman now!”

Ju Hui chuckled and sat up straight again. A moment later, someone poked her right shoulder blade from behind.

Ju Hui turned around.

"Excuse me, are you Senior Sister Ju Hui?"

Two girls wearing military training caps behind her bit their lips and asked her a question.

Because she was turning her head back, it was harder for Ju Hui to breathe through her nose. She thought for a second and nodded, but that didn't mean she could turn back immediately. She was stunned by the two girls' quiet screams.

Is he going to scold her?

Should we still grab it by hand?

Should she fight back?

Ju Hui exhaled a breath mixed with drowning bubbles through her mask.

The two girls raised their palms and clenched them: "Senior, we're also from the sculpture department. Have you gotten back together with Senior Sheng Qijing?"

Ju Hui: "..."

Jiang Yiying: "Who is that?"

Ju Hui thought that the popularity of Tieba was not as high as before, and the gossip wall filled with rumors and gossip would disappear, with no one building threads or discussing anything on it anymore...

When the two female students were choosing their majors, they had researched the employment prospects of sculpture. If they chose sculpture in the US and Canada, they could quickly find old gossip posts about Ju Hui and Sheng Qijing by searching for keywords.

According to recollections, the building had already reached 8,000 floors.

With a couple of clicks of the mouse, in forward chronological order, there's a chorus of complaints; in reverse chronological order, there's a chorus of praise!

Sheng Qijing's actions were later rumored to be malicious revenge against his juniors after being dumped.

Of course, you have to curse; a third of the post is full of profanity. But you also have to enjoy the sweetness; the rest can be summed up in two words: So sweet!

After all, Sheng Qijing's insistence on taking a pay cut for eight years was essentially a way of saying he welcomed Ju Hui to join Mo Cun.

persist in?

To express one's aspirations?

Is it possible that capitalists feel this salary is just right for exploitation?

Ju Hui did not believe that Sheng Qijing was as described in the post, even though he did extend a cooperation invitation.

Ju Hui noticed that the younger female students were glancing at Kan Yu, who was bent over and crouching. After exchanging a few pleasantries, she straightened up.

Just then, after the host on stage finished announcing the next performer, Jing Kuan, the campaign speech began to play.

"Hello fellow students, I am Ju Hui, a student from the Sculpture Department, Class of 2014..."

"Aaaaaah—!!"

Ju Hui shrank back in fright. She didn't know if the other students were reacting, but the screams of the two younger female students behind her had already pierced her eardrums.

"Ju Hui, look up."

The screams behind her stopped, and Ju Hui looked up to hear the hushed calls from the entire audience.

"Look at the small screen."

Ju Hui's pearl earrings suddenly shifted to the right in the LED screens on both sides, revealing them completely.

I don't know which main stage camera was filming her.

Ju Hui's delicate eyebrows were raised high.

"...Please support contestant number 5, Jing Kuan, thank you."

Just as the broadcast ended, Ju Hui's head was suddenly pressed down by a hat, and the camera cut away at the right moment, leaving only a short gasp in her ears.

The man next to Ju Hui put the hat on her head.

Sheng Qijing stared at the phone screen; that frame was extremely fast, but he caught it.

It was a dark green hat.