"Маngmаng." Аnother реrsоn ехclaimed in dеlight.
Wu Мangmang turnеd her heаd slightlу аnd sаw Lu Lin, whо must hаve just finished dinnеr with Lu Sui.
"Sister Lu Lin." Wu Mangmang greetеd with а smile.
Lu Lin оpеnеd hеr аrms and huggеd Wu Маngmаng, thеn steрped baсk tо loоk her over.
Нer hair hаd grown longеr, shining blасk аnd nоw rеаching her shоuldеrs, slightly сurlеd inwаrd, making hеr faсе apреar еven smaller. Нer eyеs wеrе largе and bright, her cоmрlеxiоn ехсеllеnt—fair with а rоsy glоw—so bеautiful it madе onе wаnt tо pinсh hеr сhеeks.
"It's been а while, and you've grоwn even morе beautiful," Lu Lin sаid.
"Sister Lu Lin, уоu toо," Wu Mangmang replied.
The car was already waiting by the roadside. Lu Lin glanced toward it and saw Lu Sui already seated inside. She gave Wu Mangmang an apologetic smile. "I have to go. Will you still be in the city tomorrow? I'll call you."
Wu Mangmang waved goodbye to Lu Lin.
As Lu Lin got into the car, she glanced at Lu Sui. He remained silent, so she said nothing as well.
However, the corners of Lu Lin's lips were still slightly upturned. Lu Sui was never one to lack grace, yet today he had completely ignored Wu Mangmang—truly a rare sight.
As for the details of his breakup with Wu Mangmang, Lu Lin had gone to great lengths to pry the truth out of Annie.
Lu Lin stole another glance at Lu Sui. Who would have thought that Lu Sui would ever be the one to get dumped?
Wu Mangmang didn't have to wait until the next day. Later that evening, she received a call from Lu Lin inviting her out.
"I'm sorry, Sister Lu Lin. I have to return to City A early tomorrow, and it's already too late tonight. You all go ahead and have fun," Wu Mangmang declined. She had no desire to get involved with the Lu family again.
"Mangmang, just because you broke up with Lu Sui, does that mean you're breaking up with me too? I'm a bit hurt. We were already friends before you and Lu Sui started dating, weren't we?" Lu Lin said.
With Lu Lin putting it that way, if Wu Mangmang refused again, it would truly seem ungrateful.
The gathering was held at a members-only club. Lu Lin introduced Wu Mangmang to two new friends—one a painter, the other a writer, both outsiders to their usual circle. They chatted about shared interests, and the conversation was quite pleasant.
Lu Lin made no further overtures, which greatly relieved Wu Mangmang.
Seeing Wu Mangmang's expression, as if afraid of being devoured, Lu Lin couldn't help but feel amused.
In truth, Wu Mangmang and Lu Lin had gradually drifted apart after Wu Mangmang started dating Lu Sui, and Lu Lin had long lost interest in her.
But after Wu Mangmang and Lu Sui broke up, and Lu Lin learned the inside story, seeing Wu Mangmang again today rekindled that spark of curiosity.
If Lu Sui had been the one to dump Wu Mangmang, Lu Lin would have had absolutely no interest in a woman her brother had cast aside. But Wu Mangmang was different. Lu Lin had clearly misjudged her—who would have thought Wu Mangmang had such capabilities? How could Lu Lin not be intrigued?
"Let's go dance," Lu Lin suggested, as just chatting wasn't exciting enough.
Dancing was a great way to let off steam. The nightclub Lu Lin took Wu Mangmang to was relatively remote, but business was so booming that the line outside stretched for at least fifty people.
Of course, privileged individuals like Lu Lin didn't have to wait in line.
Walking through the narrow corridor, they entered a hall packed with people, bustling and noisy, with barely any room to stand.The music inside made it impossible not to sway wildly along with it.
The enclosed space and the boisterous crowd inexplicably gave people a sense of security. Here, no one had time to pay attention to others; everyone was twisting and turning with abandon.
Wu Mangmang fell in love with the atmosphere the moment she stepped in, and the DJ on stage was excellent at hyping up the crowd.
At first, Wu Mangmang was a bit reserved, but Lu Lin and her two artsy friends were already shaking their hair like maniacs, so Wu Mangmang quickly shed all her inhibitions.
Despite the cold winter, dancing eventually left her stripped down to just a little tank top.
At some point, Lu Lin had left the crowd and gone up to the second floor, looking down at Wu Mangmang in the dance floor from above.
Full of vitality and radiating charm.
Among so many people in the dance floor, she was the first one you’d notice when you looked up.
Just as Lu Lin was mesmerized, someone tapped her shoulder. "That girl’s not bad, really hot."
Lu Lin turned to look at Gary, the nightclub owner. "More than just not bad." She even dumped Lu Sui—now that’s something.
Moreover, Lu Lin had carefully noticed that Wu Mangmang was truly carefree.
During their chats, Lu Lin had mentioned Lu Sui a few times and observed Wu Mangmang’s expression closely. She appeared completely natural, as if hearing the name didn’t bother her at all.
In contrast, her younger brother Lu Sui was far less composed, truly acting like a man who’d been dumped.
He no longer lived at the Lu residence, and all traces of Wu Mangmang’s belongings had been completely cleared from the house.
Even now, hearing Wu Mangmang’s name still made him visibly unhappy. Others might not notice, but who was Lu Lin? She’d been studying Lu Sui for over thirty years.
After seeing Wu Mangmang tonight, he had maintained an icy expression the entire time, too impatient to even speak.
Thinking of this, Lu Lin felt inexplicably happy and went back downstairs to dance, swaying her hips and pressing close to Wu Mangmang.
The aftermath of the wild night was that Wu Mangmang missed her train and had to rush to the high-speed rail station to buy a new ticket.
Fortunately, there were many high-speed trains between this city and City A, so Wu Mangmang managed to get a second-class seat.
"Mangmang."
While waiting to board, Wu Mangmang heard someone call her name. Turning around, she was surprised to see it was Ning Zheng.
Wu Mangmang couldn’t help but marvel at how small the world was—yesterday she ran into an old acquaintance, and today she ran into another. Clearly, she should come back less often in the future.
"What are you doing here?" Wu Mangmang was genuinely surprised to see Ning Zheng.
"I’m going to City A on a business trip," Ning Zheng said with a smile. "I really didn’t expect to run into you like this. You don’t come back often these days, do you?"
Wu Mangmang nodded, making small talk with Ning Zheng until the train arrived, relieved that they would soon part ways.
Ning Zheng had a first-class ticket, which was definitely not in the same carriage as second class. Wu Mangmang waved at him. "I’m in carriage fourteen. See you later."
But Wu Mangmang had been too naive. Ning Zheng actually swapped seats with the person next to her and sat down beside her with a grin.
"Actually, there’s not much difference between second class and first class. Next time, I’ll have my secretary book me a second-class seat," Ning Zheng said.
Wu Mangmang couldn’t be bothered to entertain Ning Zheng’s forced conversation."Now that I'm starting my own business, every penny has to be stretched, and I finally understand how hard it is to earn money," Ning Zheng continued.
Wu Mangmang knew this man was actually trying to comfort her in a roundabout way. Compared to Miss Wu's past life, being reduced to second-class seating now did seem a bit pitiful.
But Wu Mangmang didn’t have that kind of awareness. Being forced to rely on herself didn’t seem all that difficult, and besides, she had been earning quite a bit from side jobs lately.
China has a long history, and archaeological excavations have never stopped. Over thousands of years, there have been countless damaged artifacts. Wu Mangmang had helped Professor Cheng with quite a few projects.
Additionally, auction houses also had connections, often needing antique restoration, as well as work like mounting calligraphy and paintings.
In this industry, as long as someone guides you, getting by is quite comfortable.
But earning your own living does make you more frugal, something Wu Mangmang had to admit.
"I’ve set up an office in City A and plan to establish a branch there. I’ll be spending a lot of time in City A in the future. How about I treat you to a meal sometime?" Ning Zheng seemed completely unfazed by Wu Mangmang’s indifference.
Wu Mangmang understood Ning Zheng’s intentions perfectly. In truth, she never minded trying out a relationship, but if the other person was Ning Zheng, it would be a bit awkward.
However, dating a playboy could be quite enjoyable. Among the boyfriends Wu Mangmang had dated, there had been this type.
They really understood women’s hearts.
"Are you trying to pursue me?" Wu Mangmang turned her head and leaned close to Ning Zheng’s face.
The scent of peaches drifted to his nose, so sweet it was almost criminal. Ning Zheng’s eyes darkened as he lowered his eyelids, leaning forward slightly, wanting to kiss the pink lips tinged with cherry red right before him.
Wu Mangmang quickly leaned back, avoiding Ning Zheng’s advance.
Ning Zheng was neither embarrassed nor angry, still smiling as he said, "I do want to pursue you. Didn’t you agree to give it a try back then?"
Unfortunately, he was interrupted midway, and thinking about it still annoyed him.
Over the past year or so, although Ning Zheng had never been without women around him, the one you couldn’t have was always the best.
Wu Mangmang seemed to have scratched his itch, and he wouldn’t be able to stop until he had her.
He thought it was already hopeless, but who knew things would take a turn? She and Lu Sui had broken up half a year ago, and everything that needed to pass had passed.
"Expired offers won’t be honored," Wu Mangmang sneered coldly, but because her voice was naturally sweet, even carrying a hint of a childlike tone, the coldness inexplicably took on the sweetness of ice cream, making one want to stick out their tongue for a taste.
To be honest, if it weren’t for Wu Mangmang, Ning Zheng might not have had the courage to break off his engagement with Shen Yuanzi. But life is strange like that—just at that time, Wu Mangmang appeared, igniting Ning Zheng’s unwillingness to settle.
He really wanted to try what it felt like to spend a lifetime with a woman he loved. Even if that person wasn’t Wu Mangmang, it didn’t matter, as long as it was someone he truly liked.
"No problem, I can earn another chance for myself," Ning Zheng said.
He really knew how to charm people.
Unfortunately, they had just happened to meet, and then Ning Zheng happened to start flirting. If they hadn’t met today, who knew which flower Young Master Ning would be fluttering around?
The journey was boring, and Wu Mangmang didn’t mind teasing Ning Zheng a little. "Aren’t you bothered that I dated Lu Sui?"Ning Zheng didn't think Lu Sui could be that petty—did he really expect that women he had dated couldn't marry someone else?
Take Wang Yuan, for example. She was currently dating Jiang Baoliang, and no one saw Jiang Baoliang feeling awkward about it.
They even often played mahjong together.
"I don't mind," Ning Zheng said.
Wu Mangmang raised an eyebrow.
Ning Zheng added, "Lu Sui won't mind either. Our social circle isn't that big to begin with. Are you saying that after breaking up, you shouldn't marry anyone?"
In Ning Zheng's mind, he had never considered the possibility that Wu Mangmang might look for someone outside their circle.
And he had clearly forgotten that Wu Mangmang had never actually been part of their circle in the first place.
"Alright then, I'll give you a chance to get in line," Wu Mangmang joked.
To be honest, Wu Mangmang had never taken romantic relationships too seriously since reaching adulthood.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have dated so many boyfriends, teased Ning Zheng into giving it a try back then, or gone on a blind date with Shen Ting.
If she had been even slightly more serious, she wouldn't have settled into a relationship with Lu Sui right after their first blind date.
For her, finding a boyfriend was simply about finding someone to keep her company. If things worked out, they stayed together; if not, they parted ways. She lived her life with a carefree attitude.
However, this attitude of Wu Mangmang's was something many other girls couldn't accept.
They saw her as a green tea b*tch, stringing along multiple men, practically promiscuous.
But this kind of thing really just came down to different perspectives.
In Wu Mangmang's eyes, evaluating several suitors at once was no different from comparing products when shopping. Besides, it was a case of one being willing to hit and the other willing to be hit—if the parties involved didn't mind, what right did others have to judge?
Yet other girls, especially those who secretly had feelings for Guo Xuefeng, judged from their own perspectives and naturally resented Wu Mangmang for stringing Guo Xuefeng along, branding her as a shameless woman.
So when Ning Zheng showed up outside Wu Mangmang's dorm on Christmas night, the next day many people gossiped behind her back, solidifying her reputation as a green tea b*tch.
But if they were in her shoes, faced with the same situation, they might very well have done the same as Wu Mangmang—evaluating multiple options at once.
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