Chapter 39 Part 2

This bid attempt was actually something Yu Decai had undertaken at Yu Mo’s urging.

Over these days, Yu Mo had studied many books, aiming to develop the family hotel.

Confident that her years by Shen Shuyu’s side must have taught her a great deal, and further emboldened by her recent success handling the Sun Qi matter, she had set high hopes on this venture. Her anticipated victory had suddenly crumbled.

Disappointment and dejection intertwined in her heart.

“Tap, tap…”

Dark brown leather shoes struck the tiled floor. Shen Shuyu paused before the yellow “Cleaning in Progress” sign, blinking unnaturally.

Then she lifted her foot and walked straight in.

Sure enough, Yu Mo was inside.

Her head was lowered, her whole being radiating defeat.

“Yu Mo.” Shen Shuyu knocked on the restroom door and called softly.

Yu Mo immediately composed her expression, turned off the faucet, and looked at Shen Shuyu as if nothing was wrong. “Why are you here?”

“Uncle Yu said your favorite Sweet Corn with Pine Nuts was served and asked you to come eat.”

This answer was merely Shen Shuyu’s excuse to seek out Yu Mo.

Shen Shuyu knew she lacked emotional empathy, but when she’d seen Yu Mo leave the table earlier, something had inexplicably twisted in her heart.

Later, during her chat with Yu Decai, she learned of the importance Yu Mo had placed on this bid. A mix of desolation and worry then churned within her.

A force pushed Shen Shuyu to find Yu Mo.

In the once barren wilderness of her heart, vines sprouted, tiny buds emerging.

She wanted to be by Yu Mo’s side in her moment of disappointment and loss.

“Go ahead. You didn’t eat well just now. Go back and have something while it’s hot. I’ll be there in a bit.” Yu Mo had no mood to discuss food, evading Shen Shuyu’s invitation.

But Shen Shuyu showed no intention of leaving.

She would not leave Yu Mo alone in a corner again.

Shen Shuyu: “I’ll stay with you a while.”

Yu Mo looked at Shen Shuyu, who now stood beside her in the same reflection. “My dad told you?”

“A general idea,” Shen Shuyu answered.

Yu Mo gave a hollow laugh. “Sounds pretty ridiculous, doesn’t it? Struggling so hard, only to nearly get scammed.”

Seeing Yu Mo’s expression, more bitter than a grimace, Shen Shuyu felt a sudden pang in her heart.

The people around her had always proceeded steadily along the smooth roads paved by their parents’ generation.

Their lives were, one could say, effortlessly graceful and elegant.

Yu Mo was different from them.

She was born in the Lower City, lacking a perfect family background.

She’d experienced humility, tried to integrate into a circle that wasn’t hers, faced exclusion and disapproval.

Endured countless cold stares.

Reborn, she sought once more to enter that dazzling, foreign realm called the Upper City.

She struggled in the mire, striving to catch up to the starting line where Upper City residents had already begun.

But her first venture had hit a snag. The plan she’d eagerly formulated had committed the gravest error:

—failing to gauge the reality of the situation before acting rashly.

Thus, this battle for a turnaround had been doomed to futility from the very start.

Shen Shuyu sighed softly, but couldn’t bear to be too harsh. “You’re too impatient. Take it slowly.”

Yu Mo turned her head slightly to look at Shen Shuyu, her eyes a pool of confusion. “But I can’t afford to be slow. I’m already lagging far behind you all. If I don’t chase now, when will I ever catch up?”

Shen Shuyu furrowed her brows slightly, strongly disagreeing with Yu Mo’s statement. “Yu Mo, do you really think that simply starting early guarantees overtaking others?”

Shen Shuyu’s counter-question struck Yu Mo like a hammer. In a boom, her restless heart fell quiet.

She realized she might indeed have been a bit too stubborn.

“I took a quick look at the bid proposal you made earlier. It has several commendable points,” Shen Shuyu offered praise first, then added seriously, “However, you didn’t even investigate the other party’s true situation before rashly having Uncle Yu participate in the bid. If a team like yours were under my supervision, I would dismiss all of you. This is the most fundamental aspect.”

Towards the end, Shen Shuyu forcibly reined in her impulse to hold Yu Mo accountable.

Yu Mo was different from the subordinates she’d managed in her past life.

Although she was still nearly clueless about such matters now, Shen Shuyu was willing to take the time to guide her.

Then, step by step, lead her to the summit.

She didn’t want her to be a caged bird in her own keeping. She wanted her to be a falcon soaring freely in the heavens.

Shen Shuyu glanced at the downcast Yu Mo, gauged her tone, and softened her voice slightly. “It’s like a math problem. If the first step is wrong, even if the rest is flawless, does it hold any meaning?”

Yu Mo took Shen Shuyu’s every word to heart. She shook her head, her voice low and dejected. “You’re right. If the beginning is wrong, it’s completely meaningless.”

“I truly didn’t think it through. I was reckless and rushed ahead.”

Shen Shuyu offered a comforting reminder. “You’re only fifteen. You’re just starting out. You can’t just chase speed blindly. Nothing can be achieved in a single bound.”

Yu Mo lifted her hand to smooth her hair. “Let me go back and think it over carefully.”

Her eyes held a trace of bewilderment.

This opportunity had been hard-won. Every subsequent step she took couldn’t be as rash as this one.

Shen Shuyu looked at Yu Mo’s profile. From the corner of her eye, she saw Yu Mo’s left hand hanging by her side, just a little distance from her own right hand.

So close that a mere hook of a finger could touch it.

Shen Shuyu wanted to take Yu Mo’s hand, to offer her a bit of the “strength” she once found so laughable.

Feeling the tantalizing proximity to Yu Mo, she bit her lip lightly and, gathering her courage, reached out and grasped that hand she’d been eyeing.

Perhaps because she liked her, she was now willing to try believing in things she’d once dismissed.

“If you trust me, I can recommend a few books for you to study on your own. If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can come ask me, and we can discuss it together.” Shen Shuyu could barely hear her own words. Holding Yu Mo’s hand, her ears were filled only with the thunderous pounding of her heart.

Small, bright white circles of light fell upon their tightly clasped hands.

Yu Mo’s heart trembled slightly.

Shen Shuyu’s fingertips were slightly cool, her voice clear and cold.

Yet, settling in Yu Mo’s heart, they stirred a trace of warmth.

Yu Mo nodded, accepting Shen Shuyu’s goodwill. “Alright. Then I’ll be troubling the Academic Rep from now on.”

“It’s nothing.” Shen Shuyu answered coolly.

But it was only surface composure.

Looking at their joined hands in the mirror, Yu Mo’s gaze lingered. Even interpreting it as Shen Shuyu simply giving her encouragement, she still sensed a hint of ambiguous flavor.

Yu Mo coughed lightly and reminded her, “So… can the Academic Rep let go of me now?”

Before Shen Shuyu could even react, Yu Mo withdrew her hand from her grasp.

Shen Shuyu’s hand curled around empty air again.

This was the second time today Yu Mo had reminded her to let go.

A small pang of disappointment struck Shen Shuyu. Then she thought: she had held Yu Mo’s hand twice today.

A restrained smile flickered across her usually impassive face.

She wasn’t greedy. Just a tiny gift was enough to make her rejoice all through the night.

.

Speaking of Yu Decai, he was excessively hospitable. Even after chatting over the meal until the clock hands pointed to four, he showed no signs of stopping.

Had the fiery, setting sun not crept into the private room, Shen Shuyu felt he could have continued his spirited conversation for another hour or more.

Leaving the Elmshade Hotel, Shen Shuyu and Yu Mo walked along the dusky sidewalk.

It wasn’t yet rush hour. Few pedestrians were on the road.

They walked side-by-side under the interlacing shade of trees.

Carrying her school jacket, Yu Mo looked at the bus stop not far ahead. “How will you get back? Should I call you a taxi?”

Instead of answering, Shen Shuyu asked with a premonition, “Are you going back to school?”

Although it was nearly time for school to end, Yu Mo indeed needed to go back.

She sighed helplessly. “Yeah. I have to get my backpack from school, don’t I? If I don’t do the math homework, Zhang Wenmin will tear me apart tomorrow.”

“Then I’ll come with you,” Shen Shuyu said smoothly.

Yu Mo was slightly taken aback. She reminded her, “I don’t have money for a taxi, you know. We’ll be taking the bus.”

“It’s fine.” Shen Shuyu answered crisply.

Just then, the bus heading to the school pulled up slowly at the stop. Yu Mo didn’t try to dissuade Shen Shuyu further and led her onto the bus.

“Beep.”

Yu Mo skillfully scanned her student card.

Just as she was about to head towards her favorite seat at the back, Shen Shuyu pulled her back.

“Yu Mo.” Shen Shuyu called softly, a hint of embarrassment in her voice.

“What is it?” Yu Mo paused.

Then, even before Shen Shuyu could explain, seeing the rare awkwardness on her face, Yu Mo’s confusion completely cleared.

She, Shen Shuyu, a little princess of the Upper City, was always chauffeured by a driver to and from school, or at worst, took a taxi.

This was likely the first time in her life she’d ridden a public bus.

“Beep.”

Yu Mo promptly scanned her card again, telling the driver, “That was two, driver.”

“Got it.” The driver released the handbrake and stepped on the accelerator as Yu Mo and Shen Shuyu found their seats.

The bus lurched into motion. Shen Shuyu had never experienced such jolting and noise before.

She sat by the window. The window, not fully shut, left a two-finger-wide gap.

The afternoon draft blew cold air onto her neck.

Unable to bear it, Shen Shuyu lifted her hand to close the window.

Somehow, no matter how hard she tried, it wouldn’t budge.

Her brow furrowed. Her whole little face strained with effort, looking rather puff-cheeked and adorable.

“Let me.” Yu Mo, watching from beside her, couldn’t stand it anymore and, holding back laughter, offered a helping hand.

Screech—thud! The window was slammed shut by Yu Mo with force.

“You were unlucky today, ended up on this broken-down bus.” Yu Mo dusted off her hands and shoved her slightly protruding bus card back into her pocket.

Shen Shuyu murmured an “Mhm” and said nothing more.

Her mind was still replaying the incident.

Had she been a bit embarrassing just now, unable to close that window?

Did she look a bit foolish in Yu Mo’s eyes?

The bus’s onboard TV played various boring commercial shorts.

Shen Shuyu watched the street scenes slowly receding outside. It was like watching a slow, old film.

The sunset burned ever redder. The billowy clouds were stained a deep orange.

The sky was brilliantly crimson, like an oil painting where someone had carelessly knocked over the pigments.

Perhaps due to the extra ballet practice today, Shen Shuyu’s eyes gently closed as she watched the slow-moving scenes.

Half-dreaming, a jolt made her relaxed body lean against Yu Mo’s side.

Her head rested on Yu Mo’s shoulder.

Shen Shuyu instantly came fully awake, yet her eyes remained tightly shut, feigning sleep.

She was indulging in the hope that Yu Mo might take some pity and let her rest against her shoulder.

Time stretched infinitely. The rustle of leaves and scenery flashed past outside the window.

Shen Shuyu almost believed Yu Mo had tacitly accepted her leaning on her shoulder.

Suddenly, she felt something like a U-shaped pillow placed near her neck. Then she sensed her head being carefully, gently lifted by Yu Mo, and equally gently set back down.

Finally resting on that U-shaped pillow.

Unwilling to have such intimate contact with Shen Shuyu, Yu Mo had fashioned a makeshift travel pillow for her from her own jacket.

Light and shadow, filtered through the dense roadside leaves, flickered over the bus window, alternating bright and dark.

A hope cherished by Shen Shuyu had, in the end, come to nothing.