Overdo

After the swing was put away, the hazy moonlight filled the courtyard. In several places, carved railings stood, and the apricot blossoms, scattered by the night wind, lay withered.

In the Zhaoyang Palace, spring garments were ready, the golden threads just dried. Do not believe the morning chill, for tomorrow, before the flowers, we shall dance and behold.

Pfft—with one breath, she blew out the candle. Colleagues around her laughed and clamored, "Huayue, make a wish! Make a wish!" Huayue clasped her hands together and murmured, "Bless me to marry a rich man! Marry a rich man! Marry a rich man!"

Her best friend, Xiao Zhou, gave her a sharp knock on the head. "Huayue, have some ambition, will you? You're only twenty! You just turned twenty today! And all you want is to marry a rich man? How pathetic!" Her tone shifted to righteous seriousness. "At the very least, you should wish to marry someone rich and powerful—that’s a proper wish."

Huayue let out a pained cry. "That really hurt!"

Xiao Zhou knocked her again, harder. "Remember, if you’re going to marry, marry someone rich and powerful!"

Instant karma... Though Fang Huayue loved money as much as life itself, that was at most a minor vice—surely not enough to warrant divine retribution so soon?

Crack! A flash of purple lightning tore through the dark sky like a vicious wound. The wind drove the rain fiercely against the windows, rattling the glass. The heavens were unkind—at noon, when everyone had pooled money to celebrate her birthday, it had been sunny and bright with spring splendor. But as soon as she started her afternoon shift, a violent storm erupted, as if the sky were collapsing. The torrential rain continued unabated until her evening-shift colleagues arrived to take over, showing no sign of stopping. She glanced at the rain outside—it seemed she’d be drenched again on her way home.

Should she spend one yuan to take a pedicab back? Yes? No? Yes? No? An intense internal struggle... One yuan... One yuan could buy a steaming bowl of sour and spicy shredded pork noodles, half a box of biscuits, or a pound of mangoes... There were so many things one yuan could do. Better to just dash home in the rain—it wasn’t far anyway.

Grabbing a thick stack of newspapers from the nurse’s station, she held them over her head and charged into the downpour. It was a true deluge, as if people on all sides were dumping basins of water on her. Instantly, she was soaked from head to toe. Taking quick, hurried steps, she leaped over a puddle when suddenly she heard the sharp screech of brakes. A sleek black car came to a halt less than a meter behind her. Squinting, she noted that a car so silent she hadn’t heard its engine must be a luxury brand. Sure enough, it was this year’s new model Chevrolet. Ah... a rich person! Her eyes sparkled with intensity—a brand-new Chevrolet this year; it had to be someone wealthy.

The rear window rolled down, revealing a handsome face. "Miss, are you alright?" A mellow, resonant baritone voice. She felt as if she could hear the flutter of angel wings in the air, the blooming of roses in the flowerbed behind her, and the frantic, rapid thumping of her own heart. A Chevrolet prince! A prince riding in a gleaming black Chevrolet... The rain fell in gentle drifts, romantic as a movie scene. Pushing aside her wet, dripping hair, she smiled sweetly. "I’m fine..."Before she could fully display the two charming dimples on her cheeks, an arm suddenly reached out from behind and pulled her back. Immediately, a large black umbrella shielded her from the romantic drizzle. She turned around and glared coldly. "Three-Fifty, why is it you again?"

She had known today would be full of unexpected troubles. First, the weather had turned foul—a raging storm on her twentieth birthday had drenched her like a drowned rat. Just when this pitiful, drenched creature had encountered a graceful prince in a Chevrolet, this Three-Fifty had to show up and ruin everything. The sight of his handsome face filled her with anger. "You brat, what are you doing here?"

He replied casually, "This is a hospital. Of course, I'm here to visit a patient." She turned her head away, watching helplessly as the gleaming black Chevrolet drove out of the hospital gate. Her—prince! Wuwu...

Fuming, she glared at the brat in front of her. Pah! Every time she saw him, it brought nothing but annoyance. He was nothing but a jinx. Whenever he showed up, it always happened to be the busiest time in the entire hospital. Yet, the nurses in her department adored him, always finding excuses to chat with him. He, too, enjoyed the commotion. Seeing them swamped with work, he would treat them to ice cream, rice noodles, or melons right after their shifts ended... So, every time he appeared, everyone was overjoyed, eager to finish their duties as soon as possible.

Noticing her glare, as if she wanted to bore two transparent holes through him with her eyes, he couldn't help but chuckle. "Why do you seem to hold a grudge against me?" She gritted her teeth. Of course, she held a grudge against him. Ever since the day he borrowed three dollars and fifty cents from her, their feud had begun.

It was a sweltering afternoon. By the time she walked from home to the hospital, she was already drenched in sweat. The sun was scorching, as if evaporating the last drop of moisture from her body. Her throat was so parched that she couldn't resist splurging on a bottle of soda from the small shop next to the hospital. She gulped down half the bottle in one go, the coolness piercing straight to her heart. Savoring the remaining soda in small sips, she couldn't help but reflect—thirty cents was indeed thirty cents... A thirty-cent soda was far more refreshing and thirst-quenching than a five-cent herbal tea. Perhaps it was heaven punishing her for this sudden extravagance when a voice suddenly came from behind: "Excuse me, miss, could you lend me three dollars and fifty cents?"

To be honest, her first impression of Three-Fifty wasn't bad at all. How was that phrase described? Tall and graceful like a jade tree in the wind... He stood tall and poised, truly like a jade tree swaying in the breeze. Especially when he smiled, his dark, night-like eyes seemed to sparkle with starlight, and his row of fine, white teeth made his smile even more radiant. "I'm really sorry, I bought a pack of cigarettes but forgot to bring any money."

She nearly blacked out and collapsed on the spot. How could such a handsome and dashing man have no money on him? It was such a waste of his good looks. She must have been bewitched—absolutely bewitched—to have lent him three dollars and fifty cents like some kind of divine intervention. Every time she recalled that day, she would fume with regret, convinced that she had been out of her mind. She had always been cautious and frugal, or to put it bluntly, stingy. Yes, she prided herself on her stinginess.The consequence of her momentary lapse in judgment—lending him three dollars and fifty cents—was that very afternoon, while she was at work, the "three-fifty" suddenly appeared at the door of the nurses' station, naturally causing quite a stir. Just imagine, a whole pack of wolfish... ahem, a whole group of lovely young nurses suddenly laying eyes on a dashingly handsome man—though she loathed the brat, she always objectively admitted he wasn't bad-looking—those lovely young nurses were naturally all dazzled. In the end, Xiao Zhou asked, "Sir, how may I help you?"

He smiled slightly, his grin as radiant as the sun outside, "Is there a Miss Fang Huayue here?"

Xiao Zhou persisted, "What business do you have with Fang Huayue?"