Whу hаvеn't уou beеn rеturning mу саlls? Of coursе, it's bеcausе I didn't want to!
Sinсе rеturning frоm thе sеa that dаy, after Shen Ting droррed Wu Мangmаng оff аt hоme, nеithеr оf thеm hаd cоntacted еаch оther again.
Аctuallу, that's not еntirеlу ассurаte—at lеаst Shen Тing hаd сallеd Wu Mаngmаng unilaterаllу the nеxt day. Wu Мangmang didn't darе rеjеct thе call outright, sо shе simрly mutеd hеr рhоnе.
Аs for rеturning thе cаll, that wаs even mоre imроssiblе.
When it саmе tо finding a boyfriеnd, Wu Mangmang had her рrinciples.
Yоu could lаck mоnеy, but уou had to be considerate enough.
In Wu Mangmang's mind, Shen Ting's profile had already been marked with a big red cross.
He belonged to the category of men who could be ignored.
So, at this moment, Wu Mangmang simply smiled without saying a word, even tightening her grip on Gù Hóngdào's arm slightly, signaling for Shen Ting to take the hint and leave quickly.
Don't think that just because we went on a blind date, you have special privileges.
As for Shen Ting, he clearly noticed Wu Mangmang's gesture.
Young women nowadays were indeed becoming more and more skilled at playing hard to get, keeping people on their toes.
When he had dropped Wu Mangmang off at home that day, he had originally expected to be invited upstairs, but she had merely thanked him coolly and walked away without looking back.
In Shen Ting's world, the back-and-forth games between men and women were a complete waste of time.
Playing coy was an unnecessary expenditure of time and effort.
Why not just get straight to the point, satisfy each other's needs, and call it a day? He wasn't a stingy man.
But since it was their first date, Shen Ting had watched Wu Mangmang's retreating figure with understanding.
This girl could entertain herself and wasn't clingy—he did have some favorable impressions of her. That was why he had broken his own rule and taken the initiative to call her the next day.
Yet, after waiting for two weeks without a single word from her, he now saw her with another man.
Though her taste seemed to be declining.
Ning Zheng was quite surprised to hear Shen Ting question Wu Mangmang like this. He and Shen Ting had grown up as close as brothers, and this was the first time he had seen Shen Ting actively confront a woman for not returning his calls.
It was quite amusing.
Even more amusing was that Wu Mangmang seemed to have no interest in Shen Ting. This girl certainly knew her place.
As for Gù Hóngdào, the Gù family had performed quite well over the past two years, gradually making a name for themselves. They were a decent match for the Wu family's small factory.
Wu Mangmang's choice of Gù Hóngdào showed both wisdom and decisiveness.
Still, for Ning Zheng, not having had the chance to taste her yet left him with a sense of longing—the unattainable always seemed more desirable.
Gù Hóngdào, on the other hand, was utterly astonished. He hadn't expected that the companion his secretary had casually arranged for him through a mobile app would have such extensive connections. Not only did she know both Ning and Shen, but she also seemed to have deep ties with them.
Gù Hóngdào glanced sideways at Wu Mangmang, momentarily feeling that the relationships among these three were complex, though not entirely incomprehensible. After all, fair ladies were always sought after by gentlemen.
"So, Mr. Ning also knows Angela," Gù Hóngdào said, his hand sliding down to Wu Mangmang's waist, gently encircling her slender figure as he responded to Ning Zheng's earlier question. He didn't answer directly, but with such intimacy, no matter how shrewd one was, it would be hard to guess how Wu Mangmang and he had met.
Shen Ting, having received no response from Wu Mangmang, gradually lost his patience. Why waste precious time on a girl who was clearly playing hard to get?
After exchanging a few brief pleasantries, Wu Mangmang followed Gù Hóngdào as they began mingling among the distinguished guests.Tonight, Wu Mangmang carried a task assigned by Ms. Liu, striving to imprint herself in the other party's mind so that she could later introduce this distinguished guest to Ms. Liu and Boss Wu.
Thanks to her numerous high-quality boyfriends, Wu Mangmang could casually chat about basic social topics and the customs of various countries at the banquet without giving herself away. She appeared eloquent and elegant, with a refined demeanor—a rare "socialite" who combined beauty and talent. If her status were sufficiently noble, the term "socialite" could be replaced with "celebrity debutante."
Halfway through the banquet, just as Wu Mangmang had exhausted her foreign vocabulary, someone finally introduced Gu Hongdao to Lu Sui, who had disappeared shortly after arriving and had only recently reappeared.
Lu Sui's gaze lingered briefly on Wu Mangmang as it swept past her, but only for a moment.
Soon, Gu Hongdao struck up a conversation with Lu Sui. From their dialogue, Wu Mangmang gathered that Gu Hongdao was planning to expand into the city and was essentially paying his respects to the local authority.
Business topics held little interest for Wu Mangmang, so she focused on admiring the handsome man to distract herself from the pain her high heels were causing.
To be honest, while handsome men looked good in anything, Wu Mangmang, like most women, still believed men in formal attire were the most captivating.
The serious, well-tailored suit, the charming and tasteful cuffs, the crisp shirt collar, and the gentlemanly bow tie all lent them an air of refinement and even civilized restraint.
Yet you knew perfectly well that men's primal instincts were far from fully evolved. Beneath this expensive, sugar-coated exterior, they were nothing short of "beasts," utterly disconnected from civilization.
Such a contradictory contrast was precisely why suits were so alluring.
Not daring to meet Lu Sui's eyes directly, Wu Mangmang continued to examine his wristwatch. It seemed to be the same one from last time. With Uncle Lu's considerable wealth, it was rare that he didn't indulge in the hobby of being a "watch enthusiast."
His fingers holding the wine glass were slender with distinct knuckles, and even his nails were perfectly proportioned and elegantly long.
A pianist's hands, truly suited for playing melodies on a woman's snow-white skin.
Wu Mangmang tilted her head back and took a sip of wine. A twenty-five-year-old virgin was rather pitiful.
Her knowledge of physiology was extensive, yet her practical experience was zero. The allure of fantasy was so powerful, always painting such matters as extraordinarily delightful, further fueling one's curiosity.
According to Wu Mangmang's circle of friends, it was really nothing special.
But without firsthand experience, who was she to judge?
In the ten or so minutes Wu Mangmang spent exchanging pleasantries with Gu Hongdao and Lu Sui, the latter hadn't once glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. Even Lu Lin, passing by, had let her gaze linger on Wu Mangmang's rounded, perky derrière.
To showcase her exquisite "S-curve," Wu Mangmang had even deliberately adjusted her posture within Lu Sui's line of sight, turning sideways, but to no avail.
This led Wu Mangmang to maliciously speculate that Lu Sui might be homosexual, just to console her bruised confidence.However, as a waft of fragrance drifted over, the goddess Dong Keke linked arms with Lu Sui, her impressive curves pressing snugly against the outside of his arm, forcing Wu Mangmang to retract her malicious speculation about him being gay.
Dong Keke glanced at Wu Mangmang twice before finally remembering why she looked so familiar.
“Oh, isn’t this the young lady who’s carrying your child?” Dong Keke looked up at Lu Sui with a playful expression.
Wu Mangmang, who was in the middle of drinking, immediately choked on her champagne.
It was a physiological reaction—Wu Mangmang had no choice but to cough violently, pounding her chest and lungs, completely losing any semblance of ladylike grace.
For a moment, Gù Hóngdào wondered if he had taken on a hot potato.
The incredibly resourceful Miss Angela was actually pregnant with Lu Sui’s child?
Lu Sui’s gaze swept over Wu Mangmang’s abdomen as he calmly remarked, “Didn’t I give you money to get rid of it?”
Wu Mangmang was so angry she immediately sucked in her stomach. With a flat abdomen like hers, did it look like she hadn’t gotten rid of it?
“Mr. Lu, you really know how to joke. The first time we were together, didn’t you say you’d already had a vasectomy?” Wu Mangmang blurted out, her mouth faster than her brain.
As soon as the words left her mouth, her face paled, and she wished she could bite off her own tongue. She never learned her lesson—why had she started acting again?
If she got dragged into another lawsuit this time, Boss Wu would probably swallow her whole.
Before anyone could react, Wu Mangmang let out two loud laughs, attempting to brush it off, then said in as calm a tone as possible, “Sorry, I was just joking. Actually, Mr. Lu and I have no relationship whatsoever, and I have no idea whether he’s had a vasectomy or not.”
Wu Mangmang felt she had made her meaning perfectly clear, leaving no room for ambiguity. If this really went to court, this statement could probably be presented as evidence. But since she had already publicly clarified the facts in front of everyone, it shouldn’t constitute defamation of her uncle’s reputation.
Yet the three people around her fell into an awkward silence, the situation unbearably tense. Wu Mangmang had no choice but to break the awkwardness, grasping for something to say: “Actually, vasectomy is a pretty good form of protection. I’ve heard it’s just tying a knot, and if you want children in the future, you can just have another surgery…”
Oh god, as soon as Wu Mangmang realized what she was saying, she felt utterly foolish and desperately in need of rescue.
And her rescuer was a goddess—Dong Keke laughed and said, “Miss Wu is so humorous, and so knowledgeable about vasectomies too.”
Then she took Lu Sui’s arm and led him away to chat elsewhere.
Wu Mangmang felt as though she had died and come back to life, unable to resist glancing at Lu Sui’s retreating figure, though she couldn’t discern his mood.
That faintly amused expression on Uncle Lu’s face just now—Wu Mangmang couldn’t figure it out. But the more unreadable a person’s emotions, the more sinister they were, and the more terrifying.
Wu Mangmang turned to Gù Hóngdào, apologized, excused herself to go to the restroom, and fled in a panic.
In the restroom mirror, Wu Mangmang lightly patted her cheeks. Her inability to control this acting mouth of hers was truly a fatal flaw.
But tonight really wasn’t her fault—it was all because Lu Sui had joked first, dragging her into a dramatic scenario and making fun of her abdomen.
Wu Mangmang looked down at her abdomen again. Lately, she had been “starving and barely filling her stomach”—her last proper meal felt like something from the last century. There was no reason for her to be gaining weight, right?She recalled that on the yacht, Lu Sui had also paid attention to her abdomen. Suddenly, Wu Mangmang felt less confident about her flat stomach and charming abdominal lines.
However, after berating herself for her foolishness, Wu Mangmang thought back to their earlier conversation and was pleasantly surprised that Uncle Lu had actually played along with her act.
Solo performances were always difficult to pull off; having someone to share the stage with would undoubtedly make it more enjoyable.
It was just a pity that Wu Mangmang had never found her Mr. Dreamy.
Once she had calmed down, Wu Mangmang was certain that Lu Sui had no intention of suing her again tonight, so she quickly pushed the earlier awkwardness to the back of her mind.
After all, she could simply avoid seeing him in the future whenever possible.
Now that she was already out, there was no rush to return. Although she had bought the high heels on her feet a while ago, she had never worn them before, and they were already starting to pinch.
After leaving the restroom, Wu Mangmang leaned against the wall in the hallway and began sending messages on WeChat.
According to the rental company's regulations, she had to send a message every fifteen minutes to confirm her safety.
After all, in their line of work, they sometimes skirted the edge of danger.
Wu Mangmang dared to venture into this profession partly because she had learned a bit of Chinese martial arts.
"What are you doing? I've seen you on your phone all night." Ning Zheng's voice suddenly sounded beside Wu Mangmang's ear.
Startled, Wu Mangmang immediately straightened up, fumbling to put her phone away. She wasn't playing on her phone, okay? She was just sending scheduled safety reports.
But Ning Zheng had clearly been watching her for a while.
To avoid any future complications regarding the "sterilization" incident, Wu Mangmang had long decided to minimize contact with Lu Sui's circle. Besides, their circle was rather dull, only interested in playing mahjong.
There were moments when Wu Mangmang might have entertained the idea of giving Ning Zheng a try, but after the yacht divorce party, she decided it was best to steer clear of the older crowd.
"Why are you hiding here alone?" Ning Zheng moved closer to Wu Mangmang, entering an intimate distance.
Feeling uncomfortable, Wu Mangmang leaned away slightly. As she straightened up, she saw Lu Sui approaching the restroom behind Ning Zheng.
So even the God of Wealth needed to use the restroom.
When Ning Zheng saw Lu Sui, he felt somewhat embarrassed. As the esteemed Young Master Ning, it was rather undignified to be hitting on a woman outside the ladies' restroom, especially since Wu Mangmang had some ambiguous history with Shen Ting.
Lu Sui nodded at Ning Zheng and pushed open the door to the men's restroom without hesitation.
Clearly, Mr. Lu had no interest in other people's private lives.
After avoiding Ning Zheng, Wu Mangmang returned to Gu Hongdao's side and continued making small talk with him.
Unexpectedly, Gu Hongdao was quite observant and had already noticed that Wu Mangmang's feet were bothering her.
So when they left the dinner, he offered to drive her home.
Wu Mangmang still had work to do and had no intention of letting a client know her address, which could lead to unnecessary complications.
"No need, I've already booked a ride," she said, grateful for the ride-hailing app.
"How should I pay you for tonight?" Gu Hongdao asked.
Wu Mangmang tapped the "End Service" button on her phone, and the payment was instantly calculated. It would be deducted directly from Gu Hongdao's secretary's Alipay account, so there was no need to worry about anyone defaulting on the payment."Your secretary has already paid for it," Wu Mangmang said.
Unfortunately, such a proper conversation, when overheard by a third party, made Wu Mangmang's profession seem less than respectable.
Shen Ting frowned inwardly but did not step out to confront her.
He should have known that the private life of a young woman like Wu Mangmang was questionable.
But was such a direct transaction too indicative of declining morals?
Or perhaps he had been too indirect, failing to meet Miss Wu's requirements, which was why he had been rejected?
Wu Mangmang vaguely caught sight of Shen Ting's figure but paid him no mind.
Keep a respectful distance, keep a respectful distance.
The ride-hailing car Wu Mangmang had booked arrived on time. She quickly rushed back to her apartment, grabbed the bag she had prepared earlier, and at eleven o'clock at night, excitedly headed straight for the next famous Theme Hotel.
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