Chapter 28: A Patch of Snow Part 1

Sometimes Miao Zhu felt disappointed in herself for always avoiding conflict.

In the face of her mother’s dominance, she chose compliance; whenever problems arose with Sheng Xingran, she habitually shelved them, pretending nothing had happened.

She did the same now with Mu Shanyi. Though her mind raced with thoughts, in the end, she only sought comfort from the other woman and sealed away all the improper emotions that had surfaced that day.

Miao Zhu stayed at Tower Shadow Sunny River until the afternoon of the third day. She packed her luggage and prepared to return to Moon Reflection Villa.

“You’re not leaving any clothes here?” Mu Shanyi walked over to Miao Zhu’s side, holding a tube of concealer in her hand.

Miao Zhu thought it might be inconvenient, since she wasn’t the only one who came here.

She closed her suitcase. “Sister A-Heng, next time. I’ve packed everything up.”

Mu Shanyi seemed to ask only casually. She paid no attention to Miao Zhu’s excuse and made no comment, merely unscrewing the cap of the concealer with deliberate slowness.

Miao Zhu’s V-neck top gaped a bit wide. Mu Shanyi dabbed some concealer onto her fingertip and dotted it onto the skin at Miao Zhu’s chest.

An hour earlier, they had been in the dim room with the curtains drawn. Over these past two days, things had gotten wildly out of control, and the marks she left on Miao Zhu went far beyond this one—though they were all hidden in very private places.

Mu Shanyi blended and smoothed the concealer until it merged seamlessly with Miao Zhu’s snow-white skin, completely covering that ambiguous mark.

“All good?”

“All good.”

“We didn’t even take Grace for a walk.” Miao Zhu wrapped her arms around Mu Shanyi’s neck, regret spreading through her voice.

Since returning from Jinyuan, they had been tAngeld up together day and night. They hadn’t gone out, not even to visit Ye Yi.

Mu Shanyi steadied Miao Zhu’s waist. “Next time you come.”

“The group has a business trip in early September.” Miao Zhu mentioned the schedule.

Mu Shanyi nodded. “The Future Energy Summit.”

Miao Zhu asked her, “Your company is among the participating members. Will you go in person?”

Mu Shanyi said, “Yes.”

“Good.” Miao Zhu tiptoed up and kissed Mu Shanyi with a smile. “Then I’m heading back, Sister A-Heng. No need to see me off. If my mom sees you, it’ll be trouble for you.”

Mu Shanyi recalled how Miao Zhu had gone blank with tension when they ran into Sheng Xingran outside Moon Reflection Villa before.

Her throat bobbed slightly. She held Miao Zhu. “Text me when you get home safe.”

Miao Zhu took a taxi back to Moon Reflection Villa.

Aunt Huang came out to help with her luggage and quietly gave her a meaningful look, lowering her voice to warn, “Madam just took a call and she’s in a bad mood.”

“From Xingran?”

Aunt Huang confirmed her guess.

“Got it. Thanks, Aunt Huang.”

The noise of moving the luggage shattered the silence in the living room. Miao Ling, who had been sitting on the sofa with her arms crossed, let out a cold laugh as Miao Zhu walked in.

“Mom, I’m back.” Miao Zhu carried her cello on her back and bowed meekly as she moved. “I’ll go upstairs and unpack first. I brought you a gift.”

“Do you remember what I said to you before you left?”

“I remember.”

“Come here!” Miao Ling suddenly raised her voice sharply. “Have you no manners? Who taught you to talk to your mother like that!?”

Miao Ling’s sudden outburst startled Aunt Huang. She gave Miao Zhu a sympathetic look, then hurriedly carried Miao Zhu’s suitcase upstairs to avoid what was coming next.

Miao Zhu set down her cello and walked to the sofa, apologizing to Miao Ling. “Mom, I’m sorry.”

“Who are you sorry to—just me?” Miao Ling shot to her feet with a “huh.” “Xingran put so much thought into it. She took you on vacation for your future together! And what have you done for your future? Do you deserve her?”

Miao Ling was furious. “She went to Paris for lessons and wanted you to keep her company, but no—you had to go with Emma. Fine, Emma left, so you could go with Xingran, right? But instead, you ran back home! She’s been calling you since this morning, but your phone was off, so she skipped class and came back to town looking for you, only to find out you weren’t even there! Do you know how worried she was? You’re going to give her a heart attack!”

“I had it off on the plane, so I’ll tell her now.” Miao Zhu went to get her phone.

“Tell her now? What were you doing earlier! Did you leave your brain in the ocean for the fish?” Verbal scolding wasn’t enough to vent her anger; with each sentence, Miao Ling jabbed a finger at Miao Zhu’s forehead. “Xingran doesn’t have Emma’s number. If she hadn’t been smart enough to go to the young miss, and the young miss told her you and your bodyguard were on a plane, who could’ve guessed you’d up and leave the country without a word?”

Miao Zhu’s pupils dilated. Mu Shanyi had covered for her.

“Before you left, I told you a thousand times to keep Xingran happy—she likes you so much! Instead of holding on tight, you throw a tantrum. Good job, Miao Zhu! Are you awake at all? Do you even know what you’re doing?”

Miao Zhu let her rant.

“Speak!” Miao Ling raised her voice again. “Why didn’t you go with Xingran? Why come back early!”

Miao Zhu’s muffled voice reached Miao Ling’s ears. “Xingran knows why.”

“What do you mean?”

“Xingran knows everything. She still owes me an explanation.” Miao Zhu took hold of Miao Ling’s hand and softly pleaded, “Mom, can we not talk about this anymore?”

When it came to things like this, Miao Ling’s instincts were sharp and piercing. “Did Xingran do something to wrong you?”