Chapter 3 The True Adventurer
With $45 saved on the meal and a 20% tip, Yuan Ning should be happy no matter what.
The remaining three girls were very excited. Having such a well-mannered man pay the bill was enough to satisfy their vanity.
But she was very hungry.
She wouldn't have left hungry if that generous gentleman had offered to pay their bill beforehand.
Yuan Ning didn't know what to say, but his act of paying the bill for her almost pushed her embarrassment to its peak, which could be described as a humiliation.
A man whose face she could never see clearly humiliated her in his condescending manner.
The chicory salad that had just been paid for felt heavy in her stomach, like a lead weight.
"Let's go, let's go, it's time to go back to the academy, we have classes this afternoon." Emily was the first to stand up, putting on her coat over her pretty dress.
Yuan Ning wore a mink coat over her velvet dress; this mink coat was now her most valuable possession.
Fortunately, those people were after hard luxury goods with significant investment and value preservation properties, such as her handbags and jewelry; other things that were worthless on the secondary market were ignored.
After all her major assets were frozen, she was only given her irrecoverable personal belongings and cash. However, Yuan Ning only had one suitcase when she left, so she could only take the most essential items with her. Fortunately, she could still wear her mink coat.
In addition, she still has a black lambskin Chanel bag with a gold chain, a pair of Manolo high heels, several silk scarves, and some jewelry with a strong sense of style but made of alloy and artificial pearls.
She packed a few high-quality basic items of clothing, such as cashmere sweaters and silk shirts, which were just enough for her to make a good impression, as well as two formal dresses.
Formal attire is something you can't be careless about; once you wear it out, others can immediately tell your worth.
The black velvet slip dress she's wearing right now is, besides another Dior suit, her most presentable little dress.
In addition, she still has a Motorola phone and an Apple iBook computer that she needs to complete her studies.
She needs to learn some new ways of dressing to hide the fact that she only has a few decent old clothes that she wears repeatedly.
That day, as she dragged her suitcase out of the penthouse on Park Avenue, having already spoken with her father on the phone and fully understanding her situation, she had to spend a fortune again that evening to make a transoceanic call to her mother.
Qiao Yiya's voice was soft, and her Mandarin had a slight southern accent. The sobs and pain in her voice were no less than Yuan Ning's.
Yuan Ning had no intention of blaming her mother for maintaining an extramarital affair with her father for so many years without her knowing.
Yuan Ning couldn't believe that her mother didn't know the truth. Even if her parents' home seemed like a complete family, where was their marriage certificate?
A woman and her husband had been married for over twenty years without ever having a marriage certificate. Yuan Ning was certain her mother was not innocent.
“Nini, come back. Mom can still take care of you when you come back. The house your father gave us is small, but it's enough for us. You haven't graduated from university yet. No matter what, Mom will ask him for some more child support.”
Yuan Ning didn't give her mother an answer right away. She thought about it for two days. At the same time, she was looking for a place to live while trying to figure out how to use the remaining "assets" to cover up her bankruptcy and continue her studies, and even her career and life.
Returning to China would be safe and relaxing for her, and she would also need to talk to her father in person; she didn't believe he really had abandoned her.
The moment Yuan Ning heard her mother's voice, tears streamed down her face, and the thought of returning home began to flash endlessly through her mind.
Back home, I no longer have to go hungry. I can eat hot meals cooked by my mother. I don't have to worry about how much money I have for a meal. My mother is a very good cook. Every time she cooked for my father before, he would praise her cooking skills.
Back in China, she no longer needs to pretend; she can live a simple and safe life in peace.
However, this thought of retreating lasted only a moment.
She recalled the gentleman who had so easily paid for their meal. All the girls took it as a compliment, but Yuan Ning felt humiliated. This shouldn't have happened.
Only women who cannot afford to pay for their own meals feel humiliated when a man pays.
In the past, many men were willing to pay for Yuan Ning's services, and she always accepted them without hesitation.
This aroused her almost obsessive pride and resentment. She could not accept the emergence of that mindset, nor could she accept that she was about to be "cleaned out" of this world in such a wretched state.
She was sent to a prestigious private high school in New York City after completing half of her secondary education in China. Later, her parents sent her to Parsons School of Management to study fashion management.
However, she was never a student who relied on her family's wealth to get by. She consistently achieved straight A's and was favored by professors, who said she possessed genuine talent and a keen sense of opportunity.
She has been cultivated with taste and desire by high society. Her appreciation and yearning for beauty, refinement, and the finest things, nurtured over the past twenty years, have become ingrained in her very being.
She could no longer return to an "ordinary" world. That kind of spiritual habit terrified her more than material poverty.
From the time she acquired her first Chanel bag at the age of five, this desire grew like mold. Those things practically shaped her entire understanding of the world.
When she was eight years old, she resolved that she would never tarnish her beautiful, fair hands, not even to the point of developing calluses.
In this era, the industry Yuan Ning works in is strictly hierarchical, with the bourgeoisie always hindering commoners from crossing over. But who says that this strict class system hasn't left a narrow gap for true adventurers?
Yuan Ning was an adventurer. She looked out at Fifth Avenue, lined with boutiques, a dazzling river of desire, and she was determined to walk in with the only four hundred dollars she had left.
“I have nothing, but no one knows the rules of the game in Manhattan better than me.”
Parsons School of Design is just a stone's throw from Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue, lined with luxury boutiques.
During breaks, students would flock to the sidewalk outside the building, lean against the red brick wall to smoke, drink coffee, fiddle with their flip phones, or simply sit on the curb to look at the design drafts they had just printed out.
Upon returning to the college, Yuan Ning went straight to the professor's office.
Professor Miller's office is on a high floor of the red brick teaching building, in a corner.
A nameplate is nailed to the door, and next to it is a yellowed, handwritten office schedule.
She took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
"Please come in."
Yuan Ning pushed open the heavy wooden door, and to her surprise, Emily walked out from inside, her face filled with undisguised excitement.
She stopped in her tracks when she saw Yuan Ning: "Wynne, what brings you here?"
Yuan Ning, puzzled, looked at the professor.
Professor Miller said, "Wynne, you haven't given me an answer about the Givenchy internship yet. Emily just said she wanted the internship, and I've already agreed to it."
Yuan Ning's heart sank, but she clutched her chest and pretended to breathe a sigh of relief: "That's great, Emily. I was just wondering how to answer Professor Miller about this. Luckily, you didn't disappoint him."
Yuan Ning didn't expose her on the spot. Just now at lunch, Emily had scoffed at the internship.
Looking at Emily's meticulously made-up face, she suddenly realized that this internship, though seemingly ordinary, was actually highly coveted.
In the fashion world, opportunities wait for no one, and some battles are already brewing beneath the glitz and glamour.
Yuan Ning's voice was soft and pleasant, carrying a hint of genuine relief, as if she had truly unloaded a burden.
Emily paused for a moment, unsure how to excuse her behavior, and could only respond somewhat awkwardly, "Yes...yes, I just suddenly realized that this is a great opportunity, and it would be a shame to waste it."
“Of course.” Yuan Ning’s smile deepened as she turned to Professor Miller, her tone carrying just the right amount of apology. “Professor, I came here today to decline this offer from Givenchy. I’ve been seriously considering my future direction recently, and I’m very interested in the topic you mentioned last time, about elite image consultants and the revitalization of family heritage. I wonder if it’s possible to participate in some related research?”
Yuan Ning spoke calmly, taking the opportunity to showcase her broader perspective to the professor, but she didn't know what kind of response she would receive.
A flicker of surprise crossed Professor Miller's eyes behind his glasses, quickly turning to admiration. He leaned forward slightly: "Oh? You're interested in that area? It's a very niche field with extremely high requirements."
“It’s precisely because the requirements are high that the challenge is more valuable, isn’t it?” Yuan Ning tilted her head slightly, her smile carrying a spark of excitement ignited by the challenge.
She has long, thick, jet-black hair, cool-toned, warm porcelain-white skin, and a pair of round eyes with a distinctly oriental charm, slightly upturned at the corners, giving her a docile yet aggressive look.
“Very good.” Professor Miller nodded. “In fact, I recently received a private commission from an old European family. They want to help their descendants gradually transform their clothing style into a more modern aesthetic so that their heirs can better enter emerging industries. This project isn't at the university, but the compensation is substantial. If you're interested…”
“I’m very interested, Professor!”
A genuine light ignited in her eyes. In fact, if she couldn't find a well-paid and respectable internship soon, her image would be in jeopardy.
"Then send me your resume and a brief summary of your thoughts on this direction. The other party has very high requirements for candidates, you know, those old money people want to keep up with the trend, but they absolutely cannot lower their standards, their requirements for taste are extremely demanding! In any case, I will recommend you to the client, but I can't guarantee it."
“Thank you, Professor! I will get ready as soon as possible.” Yuan Ning nodded solemnly, then turned gracefully and gave Emily, who was standing to the side, a flawless smile.
"Congratulations, Emily, and best of luck at Givenchy."
After saying that, she didn't linger. She straightened her back and calmly left the professor's office.
The corridor was deserted. Yuan Ning leaned against the cold wall and realized that her back was soaked with a thin layer of cold sweat, and her velvet dress clung to her skin.
If those people knew she was "bankrupt" and no longer a rich heiress, they would never choose her for a private commission like this!
This is her disguise, the first challenge she faces.
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