Lady

Bian Jiaping came out of the gym and ran into Aunt Zhang, who had just delivered groceries, downstairs. Compared to the last time he saw her, her hair roots seemed to have more gray. He looked away, rubbed his inexplicably itchy short hair, and greeted her with a "Good morning."

"Aunt Zhang, you should dye your hair."

Aunt Zhang exclaimed "Ah!" and quickly put the dishes on the table. She turned around but couldn't find anything reflective, so she laughed awkwardly, "Oh dear, I just dyed my hair a couple of days ago. It must be the hair dye I bought online that's not good. I'll dye it again. Sorry for the mess."

Bian Jiaping nodded and went to the study next door, where Aunt Zhang was busy washing her hands and cooking.

Half a minute later, a deep voice came from the deepest part of the study, "The treadmill upstairs is broken too, order one for same-day delivery."

"...Okay, do we need to buy a new one?"

The aunt was unsure whether he meant to replace it with something new. Mr. Bian's furnishings were not allowed to be altered; if something was broken, it would usually only be repaired.

“Yes, let’s change the brand again.” He came out and handed over the New Year’s red envelope that his elders had given to the unmarried child last year. The unopened velvet cover was bulging and quite an eyesore. “Thank you, Aunt Zhang. Please go to the hair salon to get your hair dyed later.”

-

Ju Hui wanted to sleep in, but her biological clock woke her up early, leaving her feeling more tired than usual. Yesterday, after delivering the electronic screen to Sheng Qijing's house, she went back to school to study for her final exams next to her second and third anatomical models.

Ju Hui didn't return to Songzhuang. She woke up this morning next to Yun Aonan, who was sleeping soundly.

She missed her terribly and insisted on sleeping together, hoping she could soothe her lonely heart.

Yun Aonan hummed in disbelief, then smiled and said she didn't believe him.

"You're clearly missing Sheng Qijing, okay?"

Ju Hui denied it all night, which led to her dreaming of Sheng Qijing again last night, a vivid and detailed dream. When she woke up, her back was covered in sweat, and she attributed the dream to the excessively strong heating at home.

When Yun Aonan woke up, Ju Hui was setting out breakfast and coffee on the dining table, urging her, "Hurry up and finish your makeup and eat. We need to avoid the morning rush hour."

"Good heavens." Yun Aonan leaned against the wall, his cerebellum, which controls his balance, was still not awake. "That's why I don't like sculptures. Swinging a sledgehammer and inhaling dust, this stuff has already given you a nervous breakdown."

"Is there?"

Ju Hui's expression was serious, as if she had just woken up from a dream. She looked at the half-finished cup of black coffee, her heart sank, and she decided to pour it out.

As they were leaving, Ju Hui, who was in a hurry to hail a taxi, walked ahead quickly, only to be pulled back by Yun Aonan. She was wearing smoky eye makeup today, which made her look just like Ju Hui with her bare face and panda eyes.

"Don't worry, a driver will pick you up."

Ever since Yun Aonan was harassed by the taxi driver chanting scriptures when she took a taxi last time, she has refused to take a taxi again, and her father has arranged for a driver to pick her up.

The car was just as warm and comfortable. Ju Hui could see Ruomei students who had been working late into the night escaping their workstations to buy breakfast on the street with just a glance out the window. She had never felt that her neighborhood was so close to the school.

"Can you relax?"

Yun Aonan leaned on her shoulder and dozed off: "Sitting so upright and wearing such thick clothes is uncomfortable. Are you excited because you haven't worked 8 a.m. in so long?"

Ju Hui smiled wryly and lowered her posture: "It's been a long time since I've been there, but I still can't go today. I need to move the mannequin to the factory later, and then buy a few surveillance cameras and find someone to install them. After that, I'll see if I have time. I was also thinking of going to 798 to find Pu Yin..."

"What?!"

Yun Aonan woke up with a start.

"No way—" Yun Aonan pouted and reached out to hug her. "Why are you still looking for Pu Yin? If she hadn't mentioned Sheng Qijing in public, would you two have been the subject of gossip?"

"Well, she didn't do it on purpose..."

"No, that won't do either! What did she do for you?!" Yun Aonan was like a concubine who had suddenly fallen out of favor, or a wealthy man willing to spend a fortune just to please a beauty. She had to help her complete the experiment.

"Don't force yourself."

"What do you mean 'forced'? This is voluntary!"

That day, Ju Hui was pulled away by Yun Aonan and could not escape the 8 a.m. roll call. However, she happened to be there and was marked as a perfect student by the teacher, who added 10 points to her participation score.

Ju Hui was stunned by the stroke of luck.

"See? Follow me and good luck will follow!"

Yun Aonan was very proud. "I have a feeling that you can't rush in the last few days. Listen to me and wait a few days before going back to the factory."

Yun Aonan raised an eyebrow and continued to review the key points with the teacher. Ju Hui didn't believe in ghosts or gods, but with the New Year's results about to be finalized, she really wanted to find a temple to pray for protection.

Yun Aonan's words were neither too harsh nor too mild, but it was better to believe them than not. Ju Hui listened to this lucky girl with exceptional reincarnation skills and gave up on moving the human body ahead of time.

Ju Hui: [I won't be sending it today.]

She sent another message to the deliveryman, Shanqin, but he didn't reply. He hadn't responded since she told him that she would be delivering some goods that morning.

Ju Hui waited a while, then asked again, "How has Master Shan been lately?"

Ju Hui had no classes in the afternoon, but she still went to 798. The past few days had been mild and breezy, with no rain or snow, and the lead-gray cement boxes shone with a warm yellow hue in the sunlight. Pu Yin was waiting for her in the shop, but not for Yun Aonan who had come along.

"Why are you here too?"

"Just browsing around."

The atmosphere was somewhat tense.

Pu Yin's cultural and creative store is not much different from before, but the style is more colorful and diverse. She said that she has hired two more employees and a store manager. The small shop that she just played around with has accidentally grown bigger.

"Hehe, it was an accident."

Yun Aonan accidentally revealed her true feelings.

She quickly covered her mouth in surprise and changed the subject, "Sister Pu Yin, is the quality of your handmade products so poor now? Small bowls and teacups... If you didn't know better, you'd think it was wholesale."

Yun Aonan picked up one of them and held it up. It was a flat plate with blurry underglaze colors, making it impossible to tell whether it depicted a rabbit or a deer.

"If you're not going to buy it, then leave it."

Pu Yin didn't bother to lift her eyelids. "That was my customer's first ceramic piece. I remember it was much better than someone's debut work."

Ju Hui stood between the two as a shield, smiling innocently.

At least the atmosphere has warmed up.

When Yun Aonan learned that Pu Yin had helped her by lending her the New Year's Eve market stall that was allocated to the cultural and creative store for her experiment, she rolled her eyes in boredom.

If we ask her to handle the venue issue, she can actually get it done, but it won't be quick.

This is all Ju Hui's fault; she didn't tell her about the difficulties beforehand.

Pu Yin took off her work clothes and told the shop assistant that a couple who had made an appointment to learn pottery would be coming to the studio later. She was going to take Ju Hui to see the stall and to call her immediately if there were any problems.

The girls, who were about the same age as Ju Hui and the others, nodded emphatically, showing great trust in the mature female boss, which made Yun Aonan stomp her feet in anger and have a headache.

With similar status and age, her eyes reminded Yun Aonan of her and Dream Boss Sheng Jiashu, with whom Yun Aonan had accompanied her to events in Shanghai as her assistant.

No way, I'm a strong woman, so I'll start my own business!

It wasn't until later that Ju Hui learned that Yun Aonan and Pu Yin's parents had known each other for many years and had been sabotaging each other for just as long.

At this moment, Ju Hui did not hear Yun Aonan's inner call, nor did she care about those things. Her eyes were fixed on the busy crowd in front of her.

Crane operators fly through the Christmas carols. The large billboard that once displayed Sheng Qijing's advertisements is now covered by hundreds of pieces of dyed cotton and linen and old yarn. The wind gently blows the rainbow bridge, and sunlight seeps in through the gaps and falls on Ju Hui's hands.

She clenched her fist, somewhat incredulous.

They are walking through a colorful forest.

“This is Ruobei 798, so creativity has to be on point. Don’t look up at me, Ju Hui.” Pu Yin smiled and patted her lower back, stretching out her arm and using her fingertips to draw her gaze downwards.

She pointed to a corner of the forest, "That's where you do your experiments."

-

Guided by the lucky goddess Yun Aonan, Ju Hui arrived at the Songzhuang installation site the day before New Year's Eve.

The sun was high in the sky but lacked warmth. The cement road leading to the suburbs was riddled with black craters from the heavy trucks. Ju Hui and Yun Aonan sat in the delivery driver's truck, one on each side, carrying the No. 2 and No. 3 human bodies to the factory, like their external hearts.

Yun Aonan was very excited, saying it was the first time she had been treated like cargo and hauled away.

Ju Hui wanted to cry. It was dark in the car, and she had never felt so miserable before.

Sheng Qijing, who brought the first human body, was also there. Yun Aonan waved to him and called him "Senior".

Sheng Qijing nodded, ignoring her meaningful look, and asked Ju Hui, "You've caught a cold again?"

"Again?" Yun Aonan asked, noticing that Ju Hui's nose was slightly red.

Ju Hui shook her head and pointed behind her, "Go help the master move it."

Sheng Qijing was easy to manage, so Ju Hui walked into the factory with peace of mind. She touched something in her pocket and saw the welder sitting calmly by the steel chair waiting for her.

Ju Hui handed over the red envelope: "This is a New Year's red envelope that the master made for you. Tomorrow is the last day, so please take good care of it."

"Hey! Little boss, no problem, no problem." The foreman openly squeezed the red envelope. This job, apart from being cold, is perfect!

"Xiao Hui... Xiao Hui..."

Before the pleasantries could even finish, Yun Aonan suddenly approached from behind and grabbed Ju Hui's sleeve.

Ju Hui turned around, and the raging flames of the burly man behind her rushed towards her, while a few students hid behind her and gave her awkward smiles.

They are all the creators of this assignment.

Yun Aonan: "The man in the middle said he needs to talk to you... Have you offended them?"

Ju Hui: "...No, I don't think so."

The burly man watched as the girl and her friend kept muttering to themselves, and finally she loudly declared that everything was alright before walking over with the air of a lone hero.

What did they take him for...?

"Excuse me, is there anything I can help you with?"

Ju Hui shrank back, and a hand wearing a white cotton glove suddenly wrapped around her.

The burly man and Ju Hui both turned their gazes toward him, while Sheng Qijing appeared completely at ease.

"Dude, don't be so impulsive. We're not here to cause trouble for your girlfriend."

The burly man looked at her eye level, then pursed his lips and lowered his eyes, asking Ju Hui, "Where did Shanqin go?"

"Shanqin?"

Ju Hui, who had a heavy load on her shoulder and an arm, recalled that Shan Qin replied to her that day, saying that Master Shan was in good health and always wanted to smoke and sing in the hospital.

After that, Ju Hui stopped talking to her. She paused, then shook her head at the burly man, "I don't know."

The burly man gave her a look that said, "What are you pretending to be ignorant about?" He took a step closer, startling Ju Hui. Luckily, Sheng Qijing managed to push him away in time.

"Take your time and talk it out. My girlfriend is timid."

"No, do you guys know she ran off with the money? She can't even weld, yet she made us help her with deliveries. It's like she paid for a princess!" he sneered. "You're close to her, so she definitely hasn't deleted you."

After saying that, the man reached out to snatch Ju Hui's phone. Ju Hui was pulled back a few steps by Sheng Qijing, and the burly man was also pulled away by the others behind him. They didn't want to fight.

Are you scared?

"Who's scared?"

Ju Hui frowned, her heart racing. Sheng Qijing pulled her even closer, and the burly man shook off his companion. A boy who looked like a student stepped forward helplessly.

"That guy didn't mean any harm. He didn't care about the two or three thousand yuan. He was just worried because he saw that we were all students who had been scammed."

The boy smiled, his tone less apologetic than his expression, "She just left, and you disappeared too, and we heard you're about to finish the project and move out... We just want to know where she is."

After speaking, the boy's gaze swept past them and fell on the human body wrapped in a thin membrane. Yun Aonan froze behind him and quietly took a small step.

"It looks like they've been preparing for a long time."

What do you want?

A draft blew through Ju Hui's body, and the boy smiled and said, "Shanqin's number is not in service right now. Send her a WeChat message and we'll see if she's deleted you."

"good."

Ju Hui lowered her head. She didn't think she would run away. If she did, why would they keep her here?

[Shanqin, where are you?]

Click send.

…

"She really did delete it."

Sheng Qijing bent down to look at the screen, frowning and shaking his head.

"Deleted it?" the burly man said. "Let us see!"

"No," Sheng Qijing replied lazily.

"Why are you acting guilty now!"

Their eyes met again, and Ju Hui covered her chest with her phone.

"It's not that I feel guilty."

Sheng Qijing took off his gloves and pinched Ju Hui's cheek. "It's because my girlfriend is too naughty. She just sent it to me. It was a sign of trouble."

"You...you really want to see this?"