Chapter 134
Afternoon tea time ended, and before dismissing everyone, Director Niu announced the evening’s schedule.
“Tonight at seven, the resort villa will hold a lively garden party. Everyone, remember to attend on time.”
“There will be many attractions at the garden party, so you can explore for a long time. I recommend dressing up nicely and fully enjoying tonight’s activities.”
At the words “dress up nicely”, Xie Mi’s fashion radar immediately went off.
Ignoring Shen Yiqing’s earlier remarks, she impatiently sped toward the villa in her green turtle wheelchair.
Shen Yiqing watched Xie Mi’s rushing back thoughtfully, murmuring under his breath, seemingly lost in thought.
Lai Bingxuan and Qiu Chengye continued packing up sleeping bags and searching for suitable places to stay.
Qiu Chengye, who had just accepted Xu Shuangrong’s invitation earlier, didn’t mention the campsite at all this time, completely ignoring Xu Shuangrong’s presence.
Yu Jinzhe, in the same group as Xu Shuangrong, didn’t wait for her either and headed straight to the campsite.
Xiao Jingxi glanced at Xu Shuangrong as if wanting to speak but shook his head and left.
After quietly cleaning up the trash at the scene, Xu Shuangrong stood up alone to leave, only to notice Liu Woxing lingering at the garden gate.
Her expression shifted slightly, followed by a wry smile.
“Woxing, are you waiting for me?”
“Are you okay?” Liu Woxing asked, looking at her.
Xu Shuangrong quickly glanced at the distant camera, then stepped back two paces and whispered,
“I’m fine, but Woxing, it’s better if you don’t get too close for now. I might… it’s better for you if I keep my distance for the moment.”
She put on an appearance of concern for Liu Woxing, prioritizing his well-being even while she herself was in danger—a gesture likely to earn sympathy.
Liu Woxing merely looked at her with a complicated expression, nodding after a long moment.
“Alright.”
She turned and left without looking back.
Xu Shuangrong’s eyelid twitched imperceptibly.
[Xu Shuangrong: Something’s off about her.]
[System: What’s off? You messed up earlier. Isn’t it normal for her attitude toward you to change? Aren’t the others like that too?]
[Xu Shuangrong: No, she’s been off since the start of afternoon tea.]
[Xu Shuangrong: I can feel her eyes constantly watching me. It seems she’s starting to suspect me.]
[System: You mean…?]
[Xu Shuangrong: Don’t you get three chances to read minds? You used one with Xie Mi, so there should be two left, right?]
[System: Right. You want to read Liu Woxing’s mind?]
[Xu Shuangrong: Yes.]
[Xu Shuangrong: I wasn’t in a hurry to focus on her, but if she’s starting to suspect me, I’ll have to change my strategy order.]
…
During the afternoon break, Liu Woxing was leisurely watering flowers in the courtyard.
Suddenly, she saw Xu Shuangrong stumble in the distance. After a brief hesitation, she stepped forward to help her up.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine…”
Xu Shuangrong gratefully held Liu Woxing’s hand. As she leveraged it to stand, she sent a command to the system in her mind.
[Xu Shuangrong: Read mind.]
[System: Starting.]
At the same time, both she and the system heard Liu Woxing’s thoughts.
[Liu Woxing: Xu Shuangrong, I feel like I understand you less and less.]
[Liu Woxing: Just now in the garden, did you deliberately use Qiu Chengye to provoke Lai Bingxuan?]
[Liu Woxing: Earlier at the temple, I didn’t realize it at the time, but after watching the replay, I suddenly understood why Teacher Xie did what she did.]
[Liu Woxing: She also noticed that you deliberately provoked Lai Bingxuan, which is why she defended her, right?]
[Liu Woxing: Including the time you accidentally spilled the flower tea, you seemed ready to pin the blame on Lai Bingxuan, but she luckily avoided it.]
[Liu Woxing: All these coincidences—am I overthinking, or are you really that kind of person?]
[Liu Woxing: Even now, you tell me to stay away, yet somehow appear in my line of sight and fall, drawing my attention.]
[Liu Woxing: I’m curious what exactly you’re trying to do.]
Xu Shuangrong: “……”
Every word Liu Woxing spoke sank heavily in her heart. Though her outward expression remained calm and clear, her mind was in turmoil.
[System: You guessed right. She’s starting to suspect you.]
[System: Although Liu Woxing isn’t dumb, in the original text she never saw through your tricks. What’s going on this time?]
[System: Why is she suddenly observing you?]
[Xu Shuangrong: It’s because of Xie Mi.]
Xu Shuangrong already had her answer in mind.
At the temple, Liu Woxing’s attitude toward Xie Mi had already seemed strange.
Though she didn’t know where Liu Woxing’s favor for Xie Mi came from, she was certain that Liu Woxing now felt an inexplicable respect for Xie Mi.
So when Xie Mi helped Lai Bingxuan against her, Liu Woxing would want to figure out her reasons by reviewing the footage.
Given Liu Woxing’s intelligence, watching the footage a few times made it easy to uncover her little schemes.
[System: So what will you do? She already knows your true face. How will you “conquer” her?]
[Xu Shuangrong: Know yourself and know your enemy, and you’ll never be defeated.]
[Xu Shuangrong: Since I already know her personality weakness, I just need to strike accordingly.]
“Woxing, thank you. I’m fine. I’ll go now.”
Xu Shuangrong thanked her briefly, then turned and left. Her actions left Liu Woxing even more perplexed, but she chose to quietly continue observing Xu Shuangrong.
…
Back at the villa, Xie Mi rushed straight to her room, opened her wardrobe, and gazed at the dazzling array of clothes with satisfaction.
“It’s time for the master stylist to shine again.”
Just as she was about to start choosing, she noticed the room’s camera. A sudden idea struck her.
She took out her phone, opened the live stream, and looking at the comments, said to the camera, “Family, since you’re free, why not help me decide?”
She began pulling clothes from her wardrobe, holding each up to herself.
“This one, this one, and this one— which looks better?”
[Throw away the first two, toss the third further]
[Sister Xie, honestly, where did you find these ugly clothes?]
[I won’t let you insult Sister Xie like that! She’s just doing charity, buying unsold clothes and helping merchants. Don’t you know how many people she’s saved?]
[I still can’t forget Sister Xie’s Millennium Spicy Girl look at the Nanhai City Music Festival. Can the production team please arrange for makeup again? Don’t make Sister Xie do it herself, please!]
As the audience cried and begged Xie Mi to throw the wardrobe out, a loud sound in the sky announced the stylist’s dramatic arrival.
‘Screech—’
A message from Director Zhang of the company.
[“My surname is Zhang, don’t be arrogant”]: The company spent a huge sum hiring a makeup and styling team for you. They’ve arrived at your program site—go greet them at the entrance!
