Wu Маngmаng wаs so astоnishеd shе соuld hardly be mоrе astonishеd.
And the ехрrеssiоn оf stunned surprisе on her face, her slightlу рartеd pink liрs, аnd еуes widеnеd lаrgеr thаn bronzе bells, all struck Shеn Тing as rаther adorаble. Amоng women nоwаdауs, thоsе hе found adоrаble соuld аlreаdy bе сonsiderеd еighty рoints.
As for Wu Мangmang, at this mоmеnt shе deеply felt аs if shе hаd uneхресtеdlу won thе Вest Аctrеss award аt the Gоldеn Stаtue Аwаrds with а silеnt performаnce.
So Wu Mangmаng directly рicked uр the tеаspоon from the coffee saucer in front of her, held it to her mouth, and said, "Thank you, Ms. Liu, for giving me this blind date opportunity. Thank you, Mr. Shen, for providing me with the bridge to soar tomorrow. Thank you..."
Unable to continue, Wu Mangmang had to switch gears: "And books here, I would like to sincerely ask Mr. Shen one more thing: actually, I talk quite a lot." It's just that you were on the phone earlier, so are you really sure you want to give it a try with me? Even if I grow old, fall ill, or die..."
While Wu Mangmang was still babbling, Shen Ting had already raised his hand to signal the waiter for the bill.
In the parking lot, Shen Ting's car was as serious as he was. Wu Mangmang had already talked herself hoarse and now had to take a break. She was impressed that the usually taciturn Shen Ting could still invite her to lunch without changing his expression.
Lunch was very brief. When the car headed toward the seaside, Wu Mangmang's heart skipped a beat as she asked, "Where are we going?"
"Taking the boat out to sea," Shen Ting said.
Wu Mangmang couldn't help but recall her encounter with Ning Zheng that morning. Fortunately, it had only been a verbal invitation, and the other party hadn't agreed yet.
At the private yacht marina, there was a place to purchase outfits for going out to sea. Shen Ting thoughtfully dropped Wu Mangmang off at the entrance.
But he himself clearly had no intention of going inside to browse ladies' bikinis.
The prices here were thirty percent higher than elsewhere, but the brands and styles were impeccable. As Wu Mangmang took out the credit card she had applied for with her own ID, she secretly thought that it seemed she would have to start looking for a part-time job tomorrow; otherwise, next month's credit card debt would be worrisome.
The cashier glanced at Wu Mangmang a couple more times. The credit cards used for shopping here were all black cards; it was rare to see a customer with a cartoon-themed card.
By the time Wu Mangmang walked back to Shen Ting, she was dressed in a red bikini with a white knitted lace cover-up and red flip-flops.
The latest summer sunglasses hung on the bridge of her nose, covering half her face.
For a moment, Shen Ting was taken aback.
Wu Mangmang waved at him, saying "Hi," jumped in front of him, took off her sunglasses, and smiled. "What, don't recognize me?"
Shen Ting was truly dazzled by Wu Mangmang's porcelain-white skin.
Wu Mangmang truly lived up to her name.
A stretch of white.
The whiteness of Westerners and Easterners is different. Westerners' skin turns red as soon as it's exposed to the sun, with large pores—like a snowdrift from afar but a honeycomb up close.
But Wu Mangmang's whiteness was like that of a crystal-clear boiled egg—white, bouncy, and elastic. Moreover, she had enviable assets.
So the moment Wu Mangmang jumped over, Shen Ting felt as if his eyes bounced along with her.
And besides her natural beauty, there was a reason why Wu Mangmang's figure had been so well-maintained recently.
The windowless workspace meant no sun exposure.Taking the subway, warding off perverts—in the heat of summer, she wore long-sleeved T-shirts, jeans, and canvas shoes every day, not an inch of skin exposed.
As a result, her complexion was nurtured to a tender, porcelain-like fairness.
For a fleeting moment, Shen Ting hesitated about taking Wu Mangmang out to sea, but then he laughed at his own old-fashioned thinking. Despite her youth, this girl’s experience likely surpassed his own.
If she wanted to show off her skin, there was no need for him to hold back.
Just as Wu Mangmang turned to retrieve the wide-brimmed sun hat she’d forgotten, Shen Ting was once again engrossed in his phone.
When he finally covered the phone apologetically and looked back at Wu Mangmang, the young woman was already happily engrossed in taking selfies.
At that moment, she was lying sideways on the hood of his car, propping her chin with her hand as a store salesperson helped her take photos.
She looked every bit like a supermodel posing for a professional shoot.
As Shen Ting turned back to continue his call, Wu Mangmang hopped down from the hood with a start, exclaiming, “Hot, hot!” Her hand, however, reached for the phone in the salesperson’s grasp. Taking a look, she was thrilled with the results—it was worth frying an egg on the hood, after all.
Shen Ting’s work call lasted over half an hour. When he turned around and couldn’t find Wu Mangmang anywhere, he approached the car window and saw her applying sunscreen to her toes.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Shen Ting said as he got into the car.
Though he apologized, his tone wasn’t particularly sincere—clearly, he was accustomed to making women wait for his work calls.
Given Wu Mangmang’s remarkable talent for entertaining herself, she hadn’t even noticed how long Shen Ting had been on the phone. She shook her head indifferently. “It wasn’t long at all,” she said, then lowered her head to continue applying sunscreen to her toes.
As Shen Ting glanced sideways at Wu Mangmang, his gaze swept over her fair, delicate toes, and he couldn’t help but swallow.
When his peripheral vision lingered on the slender, pale stretch of her neck as she lowered her head, his eyes involuntarily drifted forward to the delicate collarbone accentuated by her slim frame.
Shen Ting averted his gaze, looking straight ahead, and swallowed again.
At this moment, Shen Ting had to admit that Ning Zheng was right about some things.
Girls like Wu Mangmang—young, beautiful, carefree, and unburdened—could end things cleanly without drama. The only cost was a bit of money from one’s wallet.
And money, for men like Shen Ting, was the one thing they had in abundance.
It didn’t matter.
Just as, for girls like Wu Mangmang, youth and beauty were their most abundant assets, and they didn’t care either.
Might as well exchange what they had to offer for mutual enjoyment.
Normally, Shen Ting disliked playing games with what Ning Zheng called “easy girls,” but today, he suddenly felt intrigued.
No matter how many excuses he usually had, when he encountered a pleasing sight, desire naturally arose.
As for men like Shen Ting and Ning Zheng, Wu Mangmang had a special term for them too: “sugar-coated bullets.”
Money was their sugar coating.
They enjoyed seeing others fawn over their sugar coating—money—while their own investment was limited to money alone. Beneath the wealth lay deadly bullets.
Unless your stomach was forged from space-grade alloy, it was best not to try swallowing them.As for Wu Mangmang, she wasn't after their money; she simply liked the aura that their wealth had cultivated.
It somewhat resembled the scent that emanated from her family's Boss Wu.
Although Wu Mangmang had long ago resolved to avoid dealing with Shen Ting and his circle, the reason she now found herself in Shen Ting's car was entirely due to the recurring weekend boredom that had struck again.
It was as if Shen Ting were a meat bun she couldn't afford, yet she yearned to leave five grubby fingerprints on it with her little beggar-like blackened hands, using the ensuing trouble to pass the time.
After all, this trouble had been stirred up by Ms. Liu on her behalf, so she shouldn't complain while resolving it.
After the car stopped, Wu Mangmang followed Shen Ting to the private dock where the yacht was moored.
The yacht before her was unexpectedly luxurious.
Although Wu Mangmang was well-versed in various designer handbags and even high-end jewelry, a yacht worth hundreds of millions was far beyond her financial reach, so she had little knowledge of such things.
All she knew was that it was quite large.
Large enough to host a lavish sea-and-sky feast.
Faced with such a yacht, Wu Mangmang's first instinct was naturally to take out her phone, turn on the beauty filter, and take a selfie.
She needed to capture every angle—360 degrees without a blind spot. Her Weibo feed hadn't seen any new glamorous posts in a while, and her follower growth had significantly slowed, with only a dozen or so new followers added in recent days.
Wu Mangmang was counting on this luxurious yacht to add luster to her fairy-tale life as a wealthy, beautiful socialite and attract a chorus of "wows" from her followers.
Amid Wu Mangmang's self-indulgent fun, Shen Ting effortlessly took out his phone and conducted another round of business calls before hanging up. After all, once they set sail, they'd have to rely on satellite phones, which were less convenient.
After Shen Ting ended his call, he didn't expect Wu Mangmang to ask him to take photos for her.
Shen Ting remained silent, hoping Wu Mangmang would realize on her own that her request was inappropriate and would only provoke his displeasure.
How could Wu Mangmang not know? But under the blazing sun, with no one else around, and with the yacht about to depart—making it impossible to capture the full view later—she decided to play dumb. "It's very simple. I've already set up the app. Just press this button, okay? And try to frame the photo so the bottom edge aligns with my feet—it makes my legs look longer."
It was too late to change companions now. After frowning, Shen Ting reluctantly took the phone.
"Why do women love taking selfies so much?" Shen Ting asked, puzzled.
"For the same reason men pleasure themselves—because no one else will do it for you," Wu Mangmang replied, laughing at her own joke.
If Shen Ting had asked, "Why do women love taking photos so much?" Wu Mangmang would have answered, "For the same reason men love flaunting their wealth."
Once aboard the yacht, someone called out, "Young Master Shen, you've finally arrived. Waiting for you to set sail is no easy task—the sun's about to set."
As soon as Ning Zheng finished speaking, he spotted Wu Mangmang beside Shen Ting.
At first glance, he was struck by her stunning beauty and her figure, which was so enticing it made him want to whistle. But upon realizing she looked somewhat familiar, he recognized her as the same Wu Mangmang who had teased him about "trying it out" that morning.
It wasn't unheard of for two brothers to share the same woman, but being played by a woman who was involved with both brothers without their knowledge left a rather unpleasant taste.
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