Chapter 26

Editor: Henyee Translations

The secretary was taken aback, then understood.

They were going to completely abandon the Ying Family’s foster daughter.

Jiang Moyuan closed his eyes, “If there’s nothing else, you may leave.”

“Third Master, please rest well.” The secretary carefully closed the door.

After stepping out, he shook his head.

He had previously accompanied the Third Master on inspections to Qingshui County, back when that foster daughter of the Ying Family was still simple and unspoiled. Now?

Indeed, she was tempted by the glitz and glamour of the big city, restless and eager to climb up.

Luckily, the Third Master had seen through her.

After a moment of thought, the secretary went to the pantry, took out his phone, and made a call, “Miss Luwei…”

**

After several days of recuperation, Wen Fengmian’s health had improved significantly.

But due to chronic illness, his recovery would not happen overnight.

The initial batch of medicine had run out, and Ying Zijin had specially ordered a fresh batch of medicinal materials.

Shanghai City wasn’t near the mountains, and all the medicinal materials had to be transported from other places.

Because she required only the highest quality materials, several tens of pounds cost her hundreds of thousands.

While waiting, Ying Zijin entered a dessert shop next door and ordered a serving of mango glutinous rice balls.

She took out her newly purchased phone and lit up the screen, which displayed various apps she planned to try out.

The greatest advantage of new technology was that she wouldn’t be too bored.

Ying Zijin opened one of the apps, looked at herself with a pair of rabbit ears, and pondered.

It was said to be called taking a selfie. It seemed quite interesting.

She casually adjusted the settings, picked a filter and accessories, and pressed the shutter.

“Click—”

The crisp sound made the person sitting at the opposite table lift their head.

It was a young girl wearing a sunhat and sunglasses, very well concealed.

She frowned, displeased, “How did they even track me here? Tell her to delete the photo, I don’t want to end up on the hot search because of an unflattering picture.”

Her assistant understood and immediately approached, “Delete the photo you took. Sister Luo doesn’t like fans taking pictures of her, understand?”

“If you insist on taking photos, we can sue you.”

The voice wasn’t loud, but it caught the attention of everyone in the dessert shop.

They all looked over, curious.

“Is there a celebrity here? Look, could it be that one? Damn, what kind of immortal beauty is that?!”

“Are you talking about the miss in the black blouse? Impossible, with that face, no one would forget after seeing it once. There’s nobody like her in the entertainment industry.”

“No, not her, I mean the one over there. Have you heard of Luo Ziyue? Finished tenth in ‘Youth 101,’ a popular talent show.”

“Sounds vaguely familiar, but I don’t really remember…”

The surrounding area buzzed with conversation.

Seeing that the girl had no intention of deleting the photo, the assistant didn’t say another word and tried to snatch the phone from her hands.

Not only did she fail to grab it, but her hand landed directly in the mango glutinous rice balls.

It wasn’t until then that Ying Zijin looked up, her tone indifferent, “You’ve dirtied my dessert.”

“Who told you not to delete the photo?” The assistant was also furious, “Why follow Sister Luo here, don’t you know how to show some respect?”

Upon hearing this, the other customers had an epiphany.

So pretty, and she turns out to be a sasaeng?

Ying Zijin closed the app, “Who?”

“…”

An awkward silence ensued.

The assistant was frozen in place.

Luo Ziyue, who had been silent, stood up. She removed her sunglasses, revealing a beautiful and impatient face, “You don’t have to pretend you don’t know me. I’ve seen your kind before. You guys chased me until I lost one of my shoes yesterday, and you still won’t leave me alone today?”

She really disliked sasaengs because they left her with no personal space at all.

Ying Zijin looked up and glanced at her, rather gracefully, “I don’t chase after the ugly, thank you.”

Some people in the vicinity couldn’t help but laugh.

Infuriated, Luo Ziyue was about to retort when a female student from a nearby table stood up.

“I’m sitting right next to you and saw everything clearly. The lady was only taking a selfie; she didn’t take a picture of you at all.”

She muttered softly, “With looks like hers, why would she bother taking a photo of you instead of herself?”

If she had a face like that, she’d admire herself in the mirror every day rather than chase after stars.

As the girl put it that way, several of her friends agreed.

“Yeah, she really didn’t take a picture of you, Miss. She clearly doesn’t know you.”

“Honestly, with those sunglasses on, we didn’t even recognize you.”

Luo Ziyue’s face turned green with embarrassment.

“Youth 101” is so popular, yet there actually are people who don’t recognize her?

“Just pay for it,” Ying Zijin said, head bowed to her phone, sparing no more glances.

The girl’s voice was languid and indifferent, yet it added a huge pressure invisibly.

The assistant’s face couldn’t stop turning pale.

With everyone watching, Luo Ziyue couldn’t just walk away with a snub; it would affect her popularity.

She reluctantly extracted three hundred-dollar bills from her purse and slapped them onto the table, the words squeezed through clenched teeth, “Is that enough?”

“The cash register is over there.”

“…”

Luo Ziyue, flustered and fuming, face red with embarrassment, had to go to the counter herself to reorder.

After such an incident, she lost interest in staying any longer and left in a hurry with her assistant, in quite a disheveled state.

Ying Zijin twirled the long spoon in her hand, planning to take this order back for Wen Tinglan.

While waiting for her meal, a female student cautiously approached her, “Big sister, are you a trainee from some company?”

“Hmm?” Ying Zijin was fairly patient with the young girl, “No, I’m not.”

“Ah…” The student scratched her head, “If you enter the entertainment industry, I’ll definitely be your fan!”

Ying Zijin yawned, “I won’t enter, not now, not ever.”

She wasn’t interested in acting, and nobody could stop her from enjoying her retirement.

The female student didn’t get discouraged and ventured, “Then, big sister, can I take a photo with you? I promise I won’t spread it around and cause any damage to your reputation.”

Ying Zijin’s eyebrows lifted slightly, “It’s fine, I don’t mind.”

Well, might as well pick up some selfie skills.

After taking the picture with her phone, the student happily went back.

And then she posted a Weibo update.

[@RollingPeachLover: Location Shanghai City, met a super A and dashing big sister. Some backed contestant from “Youth 101” thought big sister was filming her, but it turns out she didn’t even know her at all. To protect big sister’s privacy, I’ve pixelated the photo.]

The student was a blogger with a hundred thousand followers in the fan community and, an hour later, the post had garnered several hundred reposts.

[It’s obviously Luo Ziyue, relying on her relationship with some wealthy family scion to snag the last debut spot, thinking she’s so famous.]

[It’s hilarious, hahaha, a stranger doesn’t even know her, and she thought they were filming her, talk about having a huge sense of self-importance.]

[Although I can’t see her face, just looking at this big sister’s figure makes me drool. Will she enter the entertainment industry in the future?]

[Did you see the brand of her phone? Vertu, a real luxury piece, even pricier than the iPhone. Probably one of those wealthy family’s young ladies; they wouldn’t enter the entertainment industry.]

The Weibo post didn’t trend too high, but its views broke a hundred thousand.

Coincidentally, Ying Luwei’s agent saw the Weibo post.

He felt the silhouette was very familiar and pushed the phone to Ying Luwei, “Luwei, look at this, isn’t this your fake niece?”

Ying Luwei, who was touching up her makeup, glanced at it casually, “It’s her.”

“She isn’t planning to enter the entertainment industry, is she?” The agent asked seriously, “If she is, it’s better to sign her under our control, that way it’s easier to manage.”

He had seen the Ying Family’s foster daughter before, and had to admit her looks couldn’t be slandered.

He had to admit, if it weren’t for her perennial anemia that left her lackluster, even Ying Luwei couldn’t compare.

She couldn’t let her affect Ying Luwei.

Hearing this, Ying Luwei paused her makeup application, “I’ll make a call and ask.”

However, her call didn’t go through.

Ying Luwei could never have imagined that she had been blocked.

An inexplicable sense of irritation welled up inside her, as if something had completely spiraled out of her control.

Noticing her change, the agent inquired, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing.” Ying Luwei forced a smile, “She might just be busy, I’ll go back to the old house in a bit.”

The agent, aware of her situation, nodded, “Just be careful yourself. It’s good that we pulled down the trending search in time that day.”

Ying Luwei didn’t reply, pressing her lips together.

**

After delivering the herbs to Wen Fengmian’s place, Ying Zijin received a call from Fu Yunshen.

She went downstairs, where the car was already waiting for her.

She had an appointment with him, as she promised to treat him to a meal today.

After buckling her seatbelt, the man turned his head to look at her, a questioning arch in his brow and a teasing lilt to his voice, “What are you planning to treat your brother to?”

Ying Zijin pondered for a moment, “How about hot pot skewers? I’ve never had them before.”

She had heard junk food was delicious, and she really wanted to try it.

“Hmm, your brother hasn’t had it either,” Fu Yunshen replied, taking out his phone to search, “Your health isn’t great, we’ll find a sanitary and reputable place.”

As soon as he started looking, his phone vibrated with a new message.

“Beep, beep, beep.”

Fu Yunshen looked down, his eyes subtly shifting.