Yеt bringing luсk tо оthers is utterlу usеlеss fоr оneself.
Wu Mаngmаng lay sрrawled likе а bоnеlеss wоrm on the еrgonomically designеd sоfa in Wu Yоng's offiсе, саsting a wеаrу glаnсe аt him.
"How havе уou bеen latelу?" Wu Yong askеd, holding a nоtераd аs hе sаt opроsite Wu Маngmаng. "You sеem ехhausted."
Juggling multiрlе jobs, оf course shе was exhаustеd.
"Yоu havеn't come fоr twо wеeks. Аrе уоu fееling bettеr rеcеntly?" Wu Yоng inquired curiоusly.
Wu Маngmаng had аlwауs bеen a regulаr, never missing a week, sо her absenсe was unusuаl.
Hоw сould shе possibly feel better?
After resting for a moment, Wu Mangmang finally spoke. "Dr. Wu, why are there so many perverts in our modern society? What causes this?"
The reasons were far too complex, enough to fill ten books and still not be fully analyzed.
"Why do you ask?" Wu Yong replied.
"Dr. Wu, do you know how many perverts I've encountered on the subway?" Wu Mangmang answered her own question. "On average, one every other day!"
She looked at Wu Yong with an expression that said, "I'm shocked, and you should be too."
Wu Yong simply nodded, encouraging her to continue.
Once she started talking, there was no stopping her.
"On the first day, I ran into a bag-slasher at the subway station. No matter what kind of bag it was, he’d slash it with a razor blade. At first, everyone thought it was a thief, but later we found out he just liked cutting people’s bags. Poor my bag." To prove her point, Wu Mangmang pushed her studded backpack toward Wu Yong.
Now, a famous camellia flower was pinned over the slash on the bag. "See, right here. It got slashed, and I couldn’t afford a new one, so I took the camellia from an old bag’s packaging and stuck it here. DIY, right? Not bad, huh?"
Wu Yong had no appreciation for women’s various bags.
"On the third day, I ran into an exhibitionist on the subway. Ugh." Just thinking about it made her sick.
"That guy actually looked proud when people stared at him in disgust. Luckily, I happened to have work gloves in my bag that day, so I zipped up his jeans for him."
Wu Mangmang suddenly burst into laughter as if remembering something hilarious. "The pained expression on that exhibitionist’s face was so funny."
"On the fifth day, I ran into a pervert who almost stained my skirt." This incident directly led to Wu Mangmang never wearing headphones to play games on the subway again, nor daring to wear skirts.
"On the seventh day, I ran into a kleptomaniac. She was quite pretty, and I only found out at the police station while giving a statement that she was Lu Qingqing’s cousin. Her family was wealthy, but she just loved stealing."
...
After talking for a long time, Wu Mangmang finally said, "Thinking about it this way, I feel like my little problem is actually the least harmful, right?"
She suddenly felt a sense of superiority.
Wu Yong could only sympathize with Wu Mangmang’s experience of visiting the police station countless times in just two weeks to give statements.
According to her account, she was catching a thief every other day, interspersed with encounters with perverts.
It was sheer luck that her face hadn’t been slashed in retaliation yet.
"A very rich entertainment life. Has anything new happened recently with your performance hobby?" Wu Yong asked.
At the mention of this, Wu Mangmang immediately seemed bored, slumping back onto the sofa lazily. "Lately, to pay off my credit card debt, I took on a side job."
"Dr. Wu, do you know about that universal app called 'Shenzhou Rent-a-Person' that recently launched on phones?" Wu Mangmang began to educate Wu Yong.
"You should download it. Then, when you go home for the New Year, you won’t have to be single." Wu Mangmang pulled out her phone and showed it to Wu Yong.
"Look, Dr. Wu, I’ve already gotten twenty thousand likes."
A heavily edited photo that looked nothing like her real self, stage name: Angela.
Proficient in multiple musical instruments and languages, offering services such as banquets, dates, movie-watching, and photo-taking. Hourly rate: 800 yuan.
"You know, some people suddenly become wealthy and find it hard to find a suitable companion for high-end events. I play that role."
"And some people are pitiful, watching movies alone, which is really sad. I can temporarily act as a girlfriend or even a lesbian companion, watch the movie with them, and even discuss it afterward."
"Then there’s photo-taking. Some people are vain but can’t find a beautiful girlfriend. I can take intimate photos with them, like kissing fish-style photos, for them to show off on social media."
There really couldn’t be a more suitable side job for Wu Mangmang.
It was practically letting her talents shine.
Work was entertainment, and entertainment was work.
At least, that’s what Wu Yong thought.
"But I should be excited, right? Dr. Wu?" Wu Mangmang looked blankly at the ceiling. "So why do I feel so tired? This kind of performance feels so contrived and lacks dramatic tension. I have no energy for it."
Clearly, this superstar was no longer satisfied with box office success. She was chasing higher awards, like the Oscar for Best Actress, and such roles usually required more challenging characters.
"I think a role like Cinderella’s stepmother suits me better," Wu Mangmang defined herself.
But life was realistic, and credit card debt was deadly.
So even though she wanted to play the stepmother, that evening Wu Mangmang still took on a very normal, very elite job.
The client valued her multilingual skills, and the evening involved a business banquet.
After negotiations, an additional 5,000 yuan was paid for attire.
It was definitely a big deal. Wu Mangmang bent for the money and gladly accepted.
Wu Mangmang rented the most high-end evening gown she could get for 5,000 yuan. Although she was short on money, she wasn’t petty enough to embezzle the attire fee. Besides, judging by the venue of tonight’s banquet, the business event was likely high-profile.
Although Wu Mangmang hadn’t attended many banquets, she had some understanding of the rules through osmosis.
She hoped her gown wouldn’t embarrass her client. After all, in her line of work, five-star ratings were crucial, affecting her monthly bonus.
In front of the mirror, Wu Mangmang turned around, confident in her looks but anxious about her "multilingual" skills.
Wu Mangmang did know multiple languages: English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, and even Italian.
But aside from English and French, she only knew simple phrases in the others. Especially Japanese—the phrase she was most fluent in was "yamete" (stop).
She remembered once when she traveled to Lijiang, the soundproofing in the small inn was terrible. The couple next door kept her up half the night, so in the middle of the night, Wu Mangmang loudly performed "yamete" (stop), "itai" (it hurts), "motto, tsuyoku" (harder)...
If they weren’t going to let her sleep, she’d match their noise.
Well, come to think of it, Wu Mangmang’s Japanese vocabulary was actually quite rich.
As for other languages, she owed it to her dozens of ex-boyfriends from top universities around the world. Being around them, she naturally picked up a few phrases.
With this linguistic foundation, when applying for the app verification, she heard that the more pretentious the resume, the higher the approval rate and the better the business, especially in the "special skills" section, which could earn her featured placement on the app.
Wu Mangmang, driven by her need for money, shamelessly wrote "proficient in multiple languages" to boost her image and hourly rate. But she never expected to land this kind of job.
Who would look for a multilingual companion through "Shenzhou Rent-a-Person"? That app was usually for single, low-income guys, right?
Tonight’s situation was pure coincidence.
According to the client’s secretary on the phone, the boss was on a last-minute business trip to the city, had accepted a partner’s invitation at the last minute, and decided to attend, but couldn’t find a suitable companion and translator on such short notice.
The resourceful but desperate secretary happened to "stumble upon" Angela Wu on "Shenzhou Rent-a-Person," and they hit it off.
The secretary had no time to verify Wu Mangmang’s language skills. At this point, there was no better option than her anyway.
When Gu Hongdao saw Wu Mangmang arrive at his hotel room, he doubted whether his secretary had tricked him.
Wu Mangmang wore a nude-colored, crystal-studded mermaid gown, her hair elegantly pinned up with a single strand left to sway seductively by her ear.
She carried a crystal clutch covered in diamonds.
This outfit made her look stunning but also older, fitting perfectly for tonight’s business banquet.
Based on Gu Hongdao’s experience, a girl of Wu Mangmang’s caliber, if working as an escort, would charge at least a thousand dollars per hour.
Eight hundred yuan was far too cheap.
"Mr. Gu," Wu Mangmang said professionally, smiling as she took his arm.
In her line of work, she had to ensure the client was satisfied. This was crucial for her potential promotion from "fast rent" to "exclusive rent," which would significantly increase her hourly rate.
As they took the elevator to the banquet hall, Gu Hongdao couldn’t help but ask, "Miss Angela, why do you do this line of work?"
Although he had given an extra 5,000 yuan for attire, it couldn’t possibly cover the platinum diamond-studded bracelet on her wrist or the camellia gemstone ring on her left index finger.
Wu Mangmang had gone all out tonight. The gown was rented, but the jewelry were birthday gifts from Boss Wu and Ms. Liu over the years.
But Gu Hongdao’s tone was unpleasant.
This line of work?
What line of work was he referring to?
She was engaged in a legitimate business.
"Short on money," Wu Mangmang replied gently, adhering to the principle of customer first.
"You’re very candid," Gu Hongdao smiled, the sophisticated and cool fragrance lingering around him, refreshing and pleasant. "Someone like Miss Angela shouldn’t be short on money."
Wu Mangmang’s eyes reddened. She sniffled slightly and lowered her gaze. "Everyone has times when they’re short on money. If I could, I wouldn’t do this line of work either."
Absolutely the epitome of gentle shyness, like a lotus flower trembling in the cool breeze.
Wu Mangmang felt she was going all out for that five-star rating.
She hoped Gu Hongdao wouldn’t press further, forcing her to fabricate a clichéd story about selling herself to pay for medical treatment to gain sympathy.
Readers here might have noticed: for those in the know, Wu Mangmang’s condition was just entertainment, something beyond her control.
But for those unaware, they might later think she was just a pathological liar. No wonder her countless ex-boyfriends had abandoned her despite her looks.
When choosing a wife, men were often more critical of character than they realized.
Not so when picking a mistress.
Fortunately, Gu Hongdao was tactful and didn’t pry further into Wu Mangmang’s "sad story."
When the elevator reached the banquet hall, Wu Mangmang was astonished to see almost all the city’s notable figures, the ones frequently featured on magazine covers as top ten wealthiest individuals, in attendance.
Famous socialites were also there, vying for attention.
Lu Sui, the wealthy uncle; Ning Zheng, the playboy; Shen Ting, the stoic heartthrob; Lin Jinnan, Lu Sui’s former brother-in-law; Lu Lin, Shen Yuanzi, and other socialites were all present.
Even the triple-threat superstar Dong Keke was there.
A gathering this complete was undeniably luxurious.
Later, Wu Mangmang learned this was a business banquet hosted by the city’s political leaders, attended by a delegation of multinational entrepreneurs exploring the city’s commercial and financial opportunities.
Wu Mangmang wanted to send her father a WeChat message. Something her family’s Boss Wu couldn’t achieve, his daughter had managed to do first.
Thinking of this, Wu Mangmang decisively sent Ms. Liu a WeChat message with a selfie.
Ms. Liu’s business acumen was unmatched; otherwise, the Wu family wouldn’t have flourished under her and her husband’s management, earning a spot on the nouveau riche rankings.
Soon, Wu Mangmang received a bank transfer from Ms. Liu.
Her credit card debt for this month, next month, and even the month after was no longer a worry.
Thanks to the all-powerful Ms. Liu, Wu Mangmang wouldn’t have to torture herself with three-inch heels in the coming days.
"Mr. Gu," Ning Zheng, who had been scanning the room for beauties, was the first to spot Wu Mangmang. He greeted Gu Hongdao.
Gu Hongdao had been invited by Ning Zheng to attend the banquet.
What a coincidence.
"So Mr. Gu knows Mangmang too?" Ning Zheng smiled, looking at the pair.
Shen Ting walked over as well. "Why haven’t you been returning my calls?"
OpenNovel