The car that Ming You drove away was the twentieth birthday gift that Ming Tai had given her.
Ming Tai had footed the bill, and Yang Guishu had selected the car based on traces of their daughter’s daily preferences. It was neither too much nor too little—thirty thousand all told.
This prime parking spot had originally been Yang Guishu’s own space. After her daughter got a car, she cleared it out without a word and bought another one on the negative first floor from some other owner.
【Ms. Yang: Drive carefully on the road, go slow.】
【Ms. Yang: I take the car out for a spin every week, get it washed and maintained regularly. Drive it without worry.】
【Ms. Yang: I didn’t leave it to anyone else.】
【Ms. Yang: There’s an umbrella, drinking water, snacks—all still good—in the trunk, plus new spare casual shoes and a jacket in your size for emergencies.】
【Ms. Yang: Remember to message me back, no matter how late. Otherwise, Maternal Grandma and I won’t be able to sleep.】
Ming You had gotten her automatic transmission license right after high school graduation. She learned to drive smoothly, passing every test on the first try.
She had only driven the new car once, but during her solo travels in her freshman and sophomore years, she had either taken taxis or rented cars for self-driving trips, so her driving skills were definitely solid.
Fortunately, after returning to Huai’an, she had gone straight to the Xuelin Elegance Garden and hadn’t checked into the hotel yet. Her license, car keys, and ID were all in her shoulder bag, which fueled her reckless impulses.
It was pretty pathetic when she thought about it. She had gone to Xuelin Elegance Garden at the wrong time, and even going home had been at the wrong time. In this vast world, there was no place for her.
Nowhere to go, and she didn’t want to go back to the hotel. After circling around a few times, she passed a certain street that stirred memories from half a month ago. She punched the address into navigation and ended up at the bar where she had first met Yan Ningxi.
Who could have imagined that both times she came, it was for a woman—and not even the same one.
…
That morning, Qi Xuexin had messaged Yan Ningxi to ask if Ming You was back for the weekend and if they could have dinner that night. She had lost the five-in-a-row bet and was ready to pay up.
Yan Ningxi replied that she wasn’t back, she had plans, next time.
With the Friend Gathering Plan kaput, Qi Xuexin slept all afternoon at home. Feeling refreshed, she skipped dinner, got all dolled up, and came to the bar. She had something valuable in her bag—maybe her luck would hold and she could return it to its owner.
She had just gotten her first drink at the bar when a noisy commotion erupted behind her. Normally, she would watch the excitement but not get involved in other people’s business.
But today, she had no choice but to butt in.
“What are you doing? A bunch of people surrounding a little girl—bullying her because you outnumber her, or is this a gang fight? Where’s the management?” Qi Xuexin pushed through the crowd with her drink in hand, stepping on shards of glass. “Look at all this broken glass on the floor. If it cuts sister’s foot, who’s paying the bill?”
A stranger chimed in: “Whoever broke it pays.”
“So who broke it?” Qi Xuexin saw the answer in the eyes of several women. She blocked the girl with her body and changed her tune. “A few broken cups—how much can they be worth? It’s on me.”
The “culprit” who had broken the cups was already tipsy. Her once ramrod-straight posture slumped weakly onto a stool when she recognized the meddler. Tilting her head back, she pouted. “Sister Qi, they started it—they touched and groped me first.”
“Touched and groped?!” Qi Xuexin flipped in an instant. Without another word, she smashed her glass. Her sharp gaze swept over the faces of the women around her, pointing them out one by one. “You, you, you, and you! Who the hell touched and groped my Little Darling and then smashed cups? If you’re not afraid of trouble, step up and say it!”
Several servers rushed over and dispersed the crowd.
The short-cropped manager approached Qi Xuexin politely. “Beauty, calm down. Everyone’s here to have fun. The place is small and crowded—occasional bumps happen. You’re a regular here, so please forgive us. Harmony brings wealth. Tonight’s cups and drinks are on the house.”
Time to quit while ahead.
Qi Xuexin strode to the table in two quick steps and slapped the girl’s back. “Hey, you! You okay? Say something!”
“Pip…”
“Pfft! Alright, alright, so you’re fine then.” Qi Xuexin burst out laughing and dropped it. She pulled the girl away to a corner booth.
Smashing the glass wasn’t just for show to scare people off—if someone had called her bluff, she wouldn’t have backed down. After all, La Bar was full of women. They might look tough, but most were bullies who picked on the weak and feared the strong. Whoever flinched lost out.
The girl she flung onto the sofa raised a hand to her forehead, then pressed her temples, and obediently took the water cup she handed over.
It was warm.
Gulp gulp.
“You drank the water, now spill—why’d you come here again?”
Qi Xuexin snatched back the mostly empty cup, thinking of the red envelope she had just given out. She wasn’t that old and blind yet—was she really going to lose both the person and the money to her good sister?
“Bad mood.”
“Bad mood? Lame excuse. You think I’ll buy that?”
“Why not?” Playing pitiful was the girl’s specialty. “Sister Qi, I really am in a bad mood. Really bad.”
Qi Xuexin rubbed her forehead. “Fine, say it’s a bad mood. But is a place like this—full of fish and dragons mixed together—somewhere a weak, helpless little girl like you can just waltz into? There are plenty of perverts here. Aren’t you afraid of falling into the tiger’s mouth? Besides, you’ve already got that flower on a high ridge of mine wrapped around your finger—how are you still in a bad mood?”
Better not to bring her up. Mentioning that person made Ming You’s breathing hitch. “Red roses. Who sends you red roses?”
“???” Qi Xuexin was baffled. “You—you hold on, let me process.”
Red roses were everywhere, and there was no rule saying only lovers could send them. She had gotten a ton for Teachers’ Day—from students, friends, even an ex. But Little Darling probably didn’t mean that kind of sending.
“Someone sent Yan Huahua red roses? You saw it?” She had thought Yan Ningxi’s “plans” meant work.
Ming You stood up, but Qi Xuexin grabbed her quick. “Where to? Gonna pick a fight to vent? With that little body of yours, you’d be outnumbered… Hey, you weren’t actually groped, were you?”
“I’m going to the bathroom.”
“Oh, go ahead.” After all that booze, she needed to let it out—that stuff could kill you if held in. “Wait, no—not that. I’m going too. Come on.”
Only Ming You went into the restroom. When she came out, she splashed cold water on her face several times at the sink.
Same old drowning sorrows, same old people hitting on her and buying drinks, trying to take advantage. Last time, she had been polite. This time, she couldn’t.
When someone touched her face, the rage ignited. The cup—she had smashed it.
Qi Xuexin leaned against the wall, cigarette in her left hand, puffing away like a pro.
Ming You frowned imperceptibly.
“Tsk tsk tsk. Lucky your face is naturally gorgeous, or you’d be crazy to splash water on it in broad daylight.” Qi Xuexin grabbed some tissues and handed them over. “Wipe off. Your clothes are wet—who’re you trying to seduce this late at night?”
“…Seduce you. Would you bite?”
As Ming You spoke, Qi Xuexin’s phone rang. She glanced and hung up. “Damn spam calls, won’t quit even at midnight. What’d you just say?”
Seeing Ming You wasn’t repeating, Qi Xuexin stubbed out her half-smoked cigarette and slung an arm around her shoulder. “Come on, keep sis company a bit longer, chat about nothing. You’ve had plenty to drink, but I haven’t even had one. Can’t come all this way for nothing.”
They hadn’t gone two steps when Ming You’s phone rang with a voice call.
Ms. Yang.
She swiped the red button to decline.
Qi Xuexin patted her shoulder twice. “If the person calling isn’t some mortal enemy you despise or a random stranger, at least reply out of courtesy. Sigh, who told you your Sister Qi is a teacher with a duty to educate? I’ll play the part and nag a bit—you play along and do a little something, huh?”
“…”
Under the “tyranny,” Ming You unlocked her phone with her fingerprint, went to the chat, and typed quickly: 【I’m fine.】
After sending, she felt much better.
She had seen Yang Guishu’s messages after parking.
So thoughtful.
She wasn’t blind to it.
It had been years since she had thrown a tantrum for no reason like this. She couldn’t control her emotions or suppress the irritability. The root cause? She had lost her “miracle cure.”
How ironic.
Just He Huan’s arrival and departure had turned her mental world upside down twice.
Lost in dejection, the girl heard praise. “Good kid.”
She shot back: “Childish.”
Qi Xuexin’s arm had withdrawn while she replied but now draped over her shoulder again. “If you’re not childish, don’t do childish things.”
“…”
At such close range, Ming You was uncomfortable at first, but once she endured it and took a deep breath, she caught a unique blend of cigarette and perfume.
A wondrous scent—not off-putting at all, even a little intoxicating if you inhaled more.
She turned her head slightly to look at Qi Xuexin. Her facial lines weren’t as soft and fluid as Yan Ningxi’s, but with full brow ridges, a high nose bridge, she had a more Western look.
Bold pink-purple eye makeup, bold fiery red lips, bold chocolate-colored big wavy long curls, bold purple off-shoulder oversized lapel slouchy sweater, bold dark coffee wool mini skirt, black long boots. Under the bar’s dim, psychedelic colored lights, she was uniquely sexy.
If—if the one who had taken her to the hotel that night had been Qi Xuexin instead of Yan Ningxi, what would have happened?
“You’re staring at me so intently—did you discover my unique beauty again?”
Qi Xuexin turned and met Ming You’s gaze.
Ming You shook off the absurd what-if and dodged those direct fox eyes, only to be pursued. “Simple question, no brainpower needed: Am I prettier, or is Yan Huahua?”
“…”
“Too hard? Simpler then: Why do you like her and not me?”
“…”
“She’s too hard to deal with. Wanna switch it up? You and me tonight?”
Ming You was speechless and stepped back. “Teacher Qi, you’re very beautiful. You’re even more beautiful when you don’t talk than when you do.”
So this “insatiable” wild side ruined the vibe so fast—and was so “disgusting.” Not long ago, she had said something similar to Yan Ningxi.
Qi Xuexin chuckled and ordered two Vodka Martinis.
They sat on opposite sides. Qi Xuexin leaned back on the sofa, crossed her legs, gazed at the writhing crowd on the dance floor, and sipped her drink leisurely.
“Does Yan Ningxi come to bars like you?”
“Like me how?”
“Like you, treating this place like a hunting ground.” Thinking of how she herself had once been their prey made Ming You’s chest tighten.
Qi Xuexin paused before saying, “What are you thinking? She’s someone who doesn’t touch alcohol. It took a lot of wheedling from me to get her here just that once.” She set down her glass, pulled a cigarette from her bag, glanced at the person across, and didn’t light it.
“Come once and go straight to a hotel with a stranger—what’s that if not hunting?”
Qi Xuexin was genuinely amused by Ming You’s words. She defended Yan Ningxi. “Did you lose your memory? That night—who was it who wanted to go to the hotel?”
She had asked Yan Ningxi about that night.
Details from Yan Ningxi were scarce, but key info like how they ended up at the hotel, whether anything happened, and how they started keeping in touch—she had gleaned some.
Ming You hadn’t lost her memory.
The one clamoring to go to the bar to sleep… seemed to be her, not Yan Ningxi.
“You say I’m the hunter? Gladly. But where does she look like one from head to toe? You’re more like it than her.” Qi Xuexin leaned forward and beckoned. “Know why I call her Yan Huahua?”
“Why?” Ming You asked out of rare curiosity. She really wanted to know the origin of Yan Huahua.
“Why else? To attract peaches of immortality for her.” Qi Xuexin rolled her eyes at Ming You. “Kid, you’ve got my Yan Huahua’s favor—she took you to her apartment, let you stay over, cooked for you. What more do you want?”
Ming You retorted mockingly, “Why should I be satisfied? Don’t people come here just to fool around for a thrill? Who looks for true love in a bar?”
Sounds like there’s a story there.
The girl’s words sparked Qi Xuexin’s intense curiosity to uncover the mystery. She set the cigarette on the table, said, “Wait for me a moment,” and got up to head to the bar.
