Chapter 1 Even if you're spoiled and arrogant, you still have such an authoritative face.
"Pampering Your Pride"
By Qi Yuwu
Official first release
August 29, 2025, Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine's Day)
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In August, Jingzhao was hit by sudden and fierce rainstorms. A downpour caught everyone off guard and fell in the afternoon.
The water washes away the daytime dust, which settles down, bringing with it an earthy smell mixed with the scent of grass and trees.
The exhibition hall windows were not closed tightly, leaving a small gap. Rainwater pelted the windowsill, creating a spray of mist.
A few raindrops splashed in through the gaps, cooled by the air conditioning, and landed on the skin, feeling incredibly cool.
Xie Qingci was painting the plaster statue in front of her when a slightly larger water droplet suddenly deviated from its intended trajectory and landed on the bridge of the statue's nose.
The paint in the area that had just been applied was not yet dry, so it blurred out in a small patch.
The two regions with completely opposite color schemes blend together, blurring the originally distinct midline.
Her hand holding the paintbrush paused for a moment, looking at the area where the paint had spread, and unexpectedly, a natural gradient color slowly blended out.
It's not abrupt at all; in fact, it has a unique and thoughtful design.
She smiled, deciding not to make any corrections, and lowered her pen again to continue coloring the remaining blank spaces.
Duan Siyu was sitting under the air conditioner vent, already feeling cold from the air conditioning, when suddenly a chill ran down her arm.
She tilted her head and whispered, "Who didn't close the window properly? The rain is pouring in, it's so cold!"
Upon hearing this, Ke Meng, who was also sitting behind the easel, peeked out and jokingly said, "Of course it's our dear Teacher Jiang! She said the exhibition hall was just set up and there are still some harmful gases left, so we should remember to open the windows for ventilation."
The exhibition hall was just completed last month and will open its first exhibition next month. The main purpose of this exhibition is to raise funds for charity sales, and all proceeds will be donated to the welfare home.
Duan Siyu threw down her palette and decided to go on strike. "I still have to be a conscript during summer vacation. Being a conscript is bad enough, but even the air conditioner is working against me!"
The infrastructure inside the exhibition hall has just been completed and there are many imperfections. The temperature was unusually high a while ago, and the air conditioning was running 24 hours a day.
Whether it's due to overload or poor quality from the factory, the air vents have started acting abnormally these past two days, with frequent alternations between hot and cold.
Duan Siyu changed places several times, but it was always the same, as if she was determined to oppose her.
Ke Meng looked at her, "Then you'll have to hold back for now, Aci hasn't said anything yet!"
Xie Qingci was right in the center of the air vent, where a cold wind was blowing straight in, making her skirt flutter in the wind.
The window was half-open, and the raindrops that rushed in were no longer very distinct thanks to the rain shelter.
Outside, the sun was blazing, yet a torrential downpour was pouring down, the raindrops reflecting the golden sunlight and casting a soft glow on her.
The shawl on her shoulders billowed in the wind, and her half-tied hair, loose around her waist, also fluttered, faintly revealing a section of her slender white neck.
Her slender figure was bathed in light, her profile gentle and striking.
It's really—
"What a beautiful fairy bathed in light."
The two couldn't help but click their tongues in amazement, muttering to themselves.
Their art academy, as a top institution in the art world, is already full of beautiful women, yet Xie Qingci managed to carve out a bloody path among them.
With her gentle and kind nature, and her unforgettable, ethereal beauty, she undoubtedly became the most recognized beauty in the art academy.
Unlike striking beauty that immediately catches the eye, Hsieh Ching-Tzu's beauty is gentle and warm. Her eyebrows and eyes are beautiful, but her features are soft, giving her a kind of magical charm that makes people want to get close to her.
Ke Meng shook his head blankly and said sadly, "Aci, I want to say it again, I've fallen in love with you."
From the first time they met in their freshman year, this phrase became Ke Meng's daily mantra.
as well as--
"Promise me you won't get lucky with that jerk, okay?"
During her two years at the Academy of Fine Arts, male students from various departments pursued Xie Qingci, with campus heartthrobs, college heartthrobs, and department heartthrobs taking turns, but none of them succeeded.
The entire dormitory was torn between the thoughts of "feeling very safe and secure" and "who on earth could possibly catch the eye of a fairy godmother?"
More importantly, given Xie Qingci's family background alone, they couldn't imagine what kind of man could be worthy of her.
The Xie family of Jingzhao is a household name.
She's also a great beauty.
A decisive blow!
Xie Qingci finished filling in the last patch of color, turned around and smiled, her bright eyes crinkling, two small dimples appearing and disappearing at the corners of her mouth, "I'm done, do you want to go somewhere else?"
The repairman won't be here until the afternoon. It's peak season for air conditioner use, so the repair business is also very busy.
The coloring of the plaster statue is finished, so her plan for today is complete. She still has two oil paintings to be exhibited, which she plans to start painting tomorrow.
Duan Siyu wrapped her coat tighter, jumped off the chair, poured herself a cup of hot water, held it in her hands, and glanced at the painting behind her that was already half-finished.
"I first basked in the sun to recover, but it felt like I'd worked a day in the underworld!" After saying that, she paused for two seconds and then added vividly, "It was so cold, like I'd never seen the light of day."
Xie Qingci laughed, picked up her paintbrush and palette, and prepared to clean them.
Ke Meng spent two days painting this picture, and it was finally finished. After laughing and joking, he was able to relax and picked up his phone to play some games.
A quick scroll through the school's general group chat reveals it's buzzing with activity, easily reaching 99+ comments. Today, the Business Management group is the most active, jumping around in and out.
[Wow, amazing! A logical genius!]
I've never seen such a unique perspective before.
Besides that, I have to say, he's also incredibly good-looking.
...
Ke Meng was completely confused, not knowing who they were talking about. New messages kept popping up. She scrolled to the top of the chat page and finally saw the source of this heated discussion—
A notice was sent out this afternoon regarding a business management lecture.
"Oh? There's a lecture at the Business Management department today."
Peking University is one of the top universities in China, and it is not uncommon for renowned scholars and elites from all walks of life to give lectures there.
Duan Siyu didn't even bother to lift her eyelids. "So what? There are lectures every few days. What's so amazing about that?"
Ke Meng held up his phone, and the discussion in the group chat was in full swing. "The lecture itself isn't anything special, but I'm quite curious about the level of discussion surrounding it."
The school group chat is usually dominated by exchanging all sorts of nice things and chatting and bragging. It's rare to see people talking about serious matters.
Duan Siyu's attention was successfully drawn, and she leaned over to investigate.
[+1 to the comment above, indeed, what a prestigious face.]
[On a side note, are you married?]
...
[Anyway, the official announcement says she's unmarried, but given her family background and appearance, it's highly likely none of you here have a chance; she's probably already taken.]
Duan Siyu clicked her tongue. "Who is this?"
Ke Meng shook his head. "I don't know. Let me find out."
As he spoke, he swiped out of the group chat, intending to check the lecture schedule for today on the school's official website.
Xie Qingci had finished washing her art supplies and came out of the bathroom. She put her things back in their place, picked up her bag, and prepared to leave.
Duan Siyu and Ke Meng looked up at the same time, glanced at the bag in her hand, and asked blankly, "Aci, where are you going?"
Xie Qingci slung her bag over her shoulder, smiled, and explained, "I have some personal business to attend to. If I'm late, you don't need to wait for me; just go back first."
Since it's a private matter, it's not appropriate to inquire further.
The two men said "Oh," nodded, and reminded her to be careful on the road, as it was still raining and it might be difficult to get a taxi, so they told her to place an order in advance.
Xie Qingci agreed, took the umbrella, and walked out of the exhibition hall.
The electric sliding door closed slowly behind me, shutting out the cool air conditioning along with the sweltering summer heat. The blazing afternoon sun hung high in the sky, and the rain was still falling.
She stood under the eaves and opened the real-time location table for the campus bus.
Kyoto University's campus is quite large, and it's a bit far from the exhibition hall to the school gate. When the weather is nice, she usually rides a bicycle on campus.
The weather wasn't cooperating today, so she decided to take the campus bus.
The next train will arrive at the nearby station in five minutes; if you walk there now, you can catch it.
I put away my phone, opened my umbrella, and stepped out onto the veranda. The rain was no longer as heavy as before.
When I went out today, the weather was sunny and bright. I never expected that such a hot sun shower would suddenly fall.
Xie Qingci went out wearing a pair of white canvas shoes. As a result of misjudging the weather, she had to walk extra carefully the whole way, being careful not to accidentally step into a puddle.
The campus was quiet in the afternoon, except for the chirping of cicadas and the sound of rain, and the sound of her own footsteps.
The air was slightly damp from the rain, and the plane trees that blocked out the sky lined the road, with sunlight occasionally filtering through their shade. Accompanied by the light drizzle, it wasn't too hot.
As I walked along the brick-paved path, I suddenly heard the sound of a car engine approaching slowly from behind.
She turned her head slightly, and a black Rolls-Royce drove up from the boulevard.
She moved aside.
As the car passed by her, the driver politely slowed down, the wheels gently rolling over the puddles on the roadside, creating ripples on the surface.
The campus bus stop was just ahead; she glanced at the passing bus.
The silver wheels accelerated after driving away from her, and through the dark windows, a blurry, sharply defined profile flashed past her eyes.
The engine noise faded into the distance, and the car quickly became a small black dot under the tree-lined avenue.
...
Driver Uncle Zhong stepped on the gas, his gaze swept over the shrunken figure in the rearview mirror, then looked up at the front rearview mirror and asked with a smile, "Dean Lin invited you to dinner tonight, why aren't you going?"
In the back seat, Liang Jingzhuo leaned back, closed his eyes, and pressed his temples wearily. He said succinctly, "I don't want to go."
Recently, the old lady of the Zhuang family has been unwell, and he came to Beijing to visit her, without any business plans.
I'm only giving this lecture today because of the old dean's influence; he doesn't have the patience for further pretense at the drinking party.
At this point, he slowly opened his eyes and continued calmly, "Besides, you came to the capital with me on a mission, didn't you?"
Besides visiting Grandma Zhuang, Liang Jingzhuo had another matter to attend to during his trip to Beijing—
I went on a blind date as arranged by my family.
Uncle Chung, who was the Liang family's old butler, was usually only responsible for taking care of Liang Junshi and Zhuang Shuying's daily life. This time, however, he dismissed Liang Jingzhuo's assistant and personally accompanied him from Hong Kong Island to Jingzhao.
Without needing to think too much, it's clear that Ms. Zhuang had assigned him an even more demanding task.
Ostensibly, it was to make it easier to take care of his daily life, but in reality, it was to keep an eye on him and ensure he met with the girls properly.
Upon hearing this, Uncle Zhong smiled knowing that his plan had been exposed, and he no longer tried to cover it up.
"I'm just worried about you, Madam. You haven't taken the initiative to date anyone all these years. You've managed the company very well in recent years, and your business is stable. Wouldn't it be perfect to find a girlfriend? It saves you from—"
Uncle Zhong suddenly paused, silently glanced at the rearview mirror in front of him, and left the rest of his words unfinished.
Liang Jingzhuo raised his eyes indifferently, his cold and stern face revealing no emotion. "What am I supposed to avoid? Saying I have homosexual tendencies?"
Uncle Zhong hadn't expected him to pick up where he left off, and coughed lightly twice: "Of course, I know it's just a rumor, but Madam socializes with other ladies every day, so it's inevitable that she'll be affected by these gossips."
Since marrying into Hong Kong Island from Beijing at the age of twenty, Chong Shu-ying has been the envy of all Hong Kong wives for nearly thirty years.
The Leung family is a prominent old-money family in Hong Kong, with an extraordinary status. Her husband dotes on her, and their son is also outstanding and excellent in every way.
They should have continued to live happily ever after, but an unexpected incident occurred with her son, who was outstanding in every way.
He's great in every way, except he doesn't date. He has absolutely no interest in blind dates arranged for him. All he does all day is work. As a result, rumors started circulating in his social circle.
Even heroes have had their weaknesses when it comes to beautiful women; what man can resist the allure of beauty?
If yes, then he probably doesn't like women.
After several attempts, Zhuang Shuying could no longer sit still and urged Liang Junshi to arrange a marriage for him.
Not interested in dating?
Let's just get married then.
Liang Jingzhuo didn't care about the unfounded rumors circulating outside; he simply wasn't interested in matters of the heart.
Compared to the clear-cut rules and regulations at work, these kinds of things that require dealing with emotions and the details of getting along with others are troublesome and unnecessary for him.
"So, she meticulously planned all of this?"
From the very first day I arrived in Beijing, I saw Grandma Zhuang practicing the Five Animal Frolics in the garden with great energy. But when she saw me, she immediately clutched her chest, looking sickly, and said that her blood pressure had recently risen again.
When asked why, she said she missed him and wanted him to stay in Jingzhao a few more days before leaving.
These past few days, whenever he receives a work call from Hong Kong Island, he says he has severe chest pain.
They were afraid he would fly back to Hong Kong Island again.
He wasn't stupid; he knew it was all a trap from day one.
But since we're here, we might as well arrange a meeting.
After all, in Ms. Zhuang's plan, he was to register his marriage with this fiancée he had never met before next month.
Thinking of this, he paused for a moment, "When was the meeting time we agreed on that day?"
The time was arranged by the old lady, who had mentioned it once, but he was busy taking a work call from Hong Kong Island at the time and didn't hear it clearly.
Uncle Zhong chuckled and said, "Today."
Upon hearing this, he turned to look out of the car.
Bright sunlight streamed through the gaps in the trees, along with the incessant patter of rain.
It wasn't exactly good weather for traveling.
He turned his gaze away from the car window and said casually, "Why don't you call the old lady and ask if she needs to reschedule?"
Uncle Zhong glanced at the rain outside the car and nodded knowingly.
A note from the author:
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Open! (Text is incomplete)
Happy Qixi Festival to all the wives reading this! [heart eyes]
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