Chapter 23: Self-Consistency Part 1

In the final workweek before the holiday, Miao Zhu was somewhat busy.

Besides preparing for the season’s closing night, she attended a charity community event on Tuesday evening, and over the weekend, she was scheduled to perform as a guest at Xie Dasu’s solo piano recital.

Early Wednesday morning, as soon as she opened her eyes, she received a message from Lu Zheng asking if the afternoon was convenient for picking up the gown that had been sent for cleaning last time.

Miao Zhu said it was, and told Lu Zheng she would be in the orchestra’s music hall all afternoon. But later that afternoon, Miao Zhu got a call from Lu Zheng, who apologized over the phone, saying it might not arrive until around nine that evening.

Miao Zhu said it was fine and gave Lu Zheng a new address—she would be at Xie Dasu’s Music Studio that night.

Before hanging up, Miao Zhu wanted to ask Lu Zheng if Mu Shanyi was busy that week, but she decided against it.

Xie Dasu’s Music Studio was rented in the riverside Creative Park, surrounded mostly by arts and entertainment companies. Miao Zhu went there with Jiang Jingjing. They had already finalized the duet repertoire and rehearsed it twice. Xie Dasu called for a mid-session break and volunteered to make osmanthus lattes with the new coffee machine.

The three of them sat around the round table, sipping coffee and chatting about the upcoming long holiday.

Jiang Jingjing had arranged a couple’s trip with Xie Dasu. She pulled up a shopping site and excitedly asked Miao Zhu to help pick out the various couple’s outfits and shoes she had specially added to the cart: “Xie Dasu says he doesn’t like them, but I don’t care if he likes them or not—he just has to go along with it. It’s so memorable!”

Then she nudged Miao Zhu’s arm: “What about you? Any plans?”

Xie Dasu shook his head helplessly, while Miao Zhu told her she was going to Southern France with Sheng Xingran.

Jiang Jingjing thought for a moment: “With the young miss, huh…”

The term “young miss” made Miao Zhu think of Mu Shanyi again. She still hadn’t told Mu Shanyi that she would be going to Southern France in a few days.

Before their relationship began, Miao Zhu hadn’t imagined that Mu Shanyi would set a frequency for meetings, let alone that she would need to report her itinerary to Mu Shanyi.

They chatted about this and that, and Lu Zheng arrived right on time.

“I’ll step out for a bit and be right back.”

Miao Zhu left the music studio, turned the corner, and walked along the main path in the park.

Streetlights illuminated the night, and wind blew from the river at the end of the road. Flowers bloomed vibrantly along the way, filling the evening breeze with a subtle fragrance.

A nanny van was parked on the roadside. Lu Zheng stood beside it, and when she saw Miao Zhu, she walked around to open the rear door for her.

Miao Zhu paused slightly. Was Mu Shanyi in the car? She quickened her steps to the door.

The car was in conference mode, with curtains drawn and the partition between the passenger compartment and driver’s seat raised. The central screen showed a video call in progress.

Mu Shanyi sat with her legs crossed, high heels encasing her feet, and a light smoke-gray cashmere blanket casually draped over her lap for shade. She wore earphones and spoke in a foreign language, her composed voice filling the compartment.

Perhaps catching a shadow in her peripheral vision, she glanced sideways.

Mu Shanyi was still in work mode, so her gaze seemed distant. But when Miao Zhu suddenly met her eyes, she couldn’t suppress the tremor in her heart.

She had always known Mu Shanyi was beautiful and poised—that was an objective fact. But how exactly she was beautiful, and the poise she exuded in every gesture, only became specific knowledge to Miao Zhu after their relationship shifted from vague concept to reality.

The image of Mu Shanyi in Miao Zhu’s mind had never been so clear. She stood at the car door, scorched by that single glance, her face heating up.

A river breeze passed, and pink-white petals drifted down from the flowering tree above, fluttering over Miao Zhu’s shoulders and hair tips. The silky dress clung to her skin in the wind, outlining a supple waistline.

It was as if a sweet fragrance rode the wind into the car, lingering at the tip of the nose and corners of the lips inside.

Mu Shanyi withdrew her gaze and addressed the central screen. After a few seconds, she turned off the camera, muted the audio, removed the right earphone, and placed it on the table in front of her.

Miao Zhu slipped into the car, and Lu Zheng closed the door behind her.

“Sister A-Heng.” The warm yellow light inside the car danced in Miao Zhu’s eyes, flickering like stars hidden within.

Mu Shanyi softly acknowledged with a “Mm,” leaned closer, and Miao Zhu met her warm breath, tilting her chin up expertly.

Mu Shanyi plucked a tiny flower from Miao Zhu’s hair.

Miao Zhu waited a moment, confirming Mu Shanyi had no intention of kissing her, and her earlobes flushed bright red.

“What are you doing here?”

“…Xie Dasu—you’ve met him, Jiang Jingjing’s boyfriend. He’s having a piano recital, and I’m his performance guest. His studio is right inside; we’re rehearsing with him.” Miao Zhu felt a bit awkward but didn’t show it. “I thought only Lu Zheng was coming.”

“I came to see you,” Mu Shanyi said.

“See me? Does this count as our ‘at least once a week’?” Miao Zhu quickly thought of the question.

“If you want it to, it can,” Mu Shanyi replied, her gaze shifting back to the central screen, focusing intently on the video while listening through her earphones.