After Miao Zhu fell asleep, Mu Shanyi left Moon Reflection Villa overnight.
The next day, as she tidied her appearance in front of the mirror, Miao Zhu finally understood Mu Shanyi’s warning—”Don’t let her touch you”—as a reminder. Several dark red hickeys were sprawled across her upper back.
She took off the one-shoulder top she had planned to wear out and changed into a small turtleneck, completely covering them.
Emma had arranged to meet her at the recording studio. Miao Zhu gave Emma the birthday gift, and Emma handed her the business contract for this project. The two exchanged a smile.
“Thank Angel for us too, Mia Auntie, for buying so much food and stuff for her.” Emma had received a call from Ms. Zhuang early that morning, saying she’d gotten a bunch of deliveries, all things Miao Zhu had bought for Angel.
“It was on the way.” Miao Zhu smiled as she signed, though the smile didn’t reach her eyes.
She had prepared three pet bags: one for Angel, and the other two for Grace and Princess.
Before ordering, she had specifically asked Mu Shanyi if her two little ones had any particular favorites or dislikes. In the two days right after returning from the Capital City, she had been incredibly clingy with Mu Shanyi, sending her tons of messages every day. But now that the packages had just arrived, her feelings toward Mu Shanyi had already shifted.
Miao Zhu suppressed her emotions and quickly got into work mode. She rehearsed a few times with the pianist Emma had invited, and by two or three in the afternoon, they wrapped up the day’s recording.
She drove Emma back to the crew’s hotel. To coordinate the music with the filming progress, Emma had been following the crew these days.
“I saw your group’s October schedule—mid-month exchange performance abroad?” Emma mentioned Miao Zhu’s work.
“Yeah, it’ll be over a week. Why?” Miao Zhu parked the car in the hotel lot.
“Won’t you be back right around the engagement date?” Emma unbuckled her seatbelt. “Lots to prepare, right? Will you make it in time?”
The nerves numbed briefly by work were easily stirred again by the word “engagement.” Miao Zhu ignored the feeling in her heart and feigned casualness. “It’s fine, nothing much to prepare. We have a planning team.”
The two got out of the car and walked into the hotel lobby. The elevator was descending, and Emma pressed the up button.
Their chat continued while waiting for the elevator.
“What about you? Will you still be in the country then? When does this project wrap?” Miao Zhu watched the elevator reach the basement level.
Emma leaned her arm on Miao Zhu’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, no matter if the project ends or not, I have to witness it. This is your first engagement!”
Miao Zhu: “…Your Chinese level is so unpredictable—sometimes spot-on, sometimes not.”
Emma burst out laughing. Miao Zhu pressed the up button again. The elevator rose from the basement and stopped at their first floor.
The doors slid open slowly. Inside stood a man wearing silver-rimmed glasses, impeccably dressed in the center of the car.
The man lifted his gaze, saw the people outside, and gave a friendly smile. “Emma.”
“President Mo.” Emma’s smile faded, and she dropped her arm from Miao Zhu’s shoulder.
President Mo’s gaze behind his lenses curved over Miao Zhu’s face, scanned downward over her figure, then returned to Emma with a smile. “Why are you just standing there? Come in. Heading back to your room?”
He pressed the floor button for her.
Miao Zhu felt uncomfortable under his scrutiny and took Emma’s hand.
Emma gripped hers back.
“Yeah, back to the room. We recorded some pure music demos today.” Emma led Miao Zhu into the elevator, positioning her in the corner and standing in front, her tall frame blocking President Mo’s wandering glances.
President Mo chuckled. “Emma, I trust your work.”
His floor arrived in a blink. Before stepping out, he patted Emma’s shoulder lightly as a reminder. “The company has a new project. If you’re interested, come chat with me.”
Emma’s lips curved into an arc. Once the doors closed again, she immediately shrugged off the touched jacket, dangling it from one finger.
“This guy…” Miao Zhu searched for words.
Emma’s expression turned disgusted. “Vice president of the production company.”
Back in the room, Emma tossed the jacket into the laundry hamper and bent down to open the mini-fridge, grabbing a drink for Miao Zhu.
Miao Zhu found a chair to sit in and took the mineral water from Emma, passing it from left to right hand without drinking.
The words were on the tip of her tongue as she weighed them, when the doorbell rang.
“Fresh delivery!”
Emma opened the door to a rider delivering a birthday cake.
“The crew ordered cake for me.” Emma’s tone brightened noticeably. She carefully set the square cake box on the table and untied the ribbon. “Mia, come cut the cake!”
Miao Zhu stood and went over. Emma lifted the top lid.
Both pairs of eyes landed on the cake.
Miao Zhu’s face went cold instantly.
For a few seconds, everything around them froze. Then, the silence shattered as Miao Zhu heard Emma’s rapid, heavy breathing.
Hand-drawn on the cake was a short-haired woman in a bikini—voluptuous figure, vulgar pose.
Emma’s chest heaved violently, her whole body trembling slightly. She held back her rage, pulled out her phone, swiped a few times to open the camera, and photographed the order slip, the cake, and even recorded a video.
Finished, she drew out the stainless steel cake knife included by the shop. “Sorry, Mia. I wanted to share cake with you, but we can’t eat this now.”
She scraped off the drawing, closed the box, tied the ribbon, carried it out, and dumped it in the hallway trash.
“That was from that guy earlier, right?” Miao Zhu followed her, grabbed her wrist to pull her back into the room, locked the door, and voiced what had been swirling inside. “Emma, this is workplace sexual harassment! He’s harassing you! That lecherous look, touching you, talking about a new project—it’s just to force himself on you. And this insulting cake… Let’s call the police?”
Emma had calmed by then. She pushed Miao Zhu into the chair, sat down herself, and faced her.
