“Yes, Fourth Young Master. I’ll get to it right away.”


  After receiving the order, Shi Yan turned around and walked out of the master bedroom posthaste.

  Once Shi Yan left, the bedroom instantly became quiet again.

  Fu Tingyu walked to the desk and sat down. Qin Shu would sit at that very spot day after day. It was as if he could still smell her lingering scent and the heat of her body.

  He studied the furnishings on the desk silently. Noticing a note from the corner of his eye, he paused to take a closer look at it.

  His slender fingers grabbed hold of it, bringing it closer for him to inspect its contents. His gaze fell on a string of words scribbled in a tidy script.

  [ May I be like the star Lord and the Moon, bright and clear at night. ]

  It was that poem again.

  His hand clenched into a fist, crushing the note that dared to mock him in between his fingers.

  –


  Elsewhere, at a five-star hotel in North Lake…


  After dinner, Qin Shu took President Ba to the garden below the hotel for a stroll. They had eaten quite a sumptuous feast, and she thought a bit of exercise would do both of them good.

  Because she had arrived late, she planned to see the sights around the Scenic Area the following day.

  The street lights were all lit; the glimmering lights suffused the garden in a warm glow.

  Qin Shu was wearing a casual suit. She had bought it a size bigger than was necessary. It did not hug her frame too well, hanging loosely around her arms and waist. The pair of pants that went with it was just as loose. Though she felt bloated, the oversized clothes ensured she remained comfortable.

  The hotel also sported an outdoor swimming pool, but no one was swimming in it since it was still early spring and much too cold for the average person to enjoy a dip in its clear waters.

  Dozens of deck-chairs surrounded the pool. Illuminated by the lamps lining the garden path, the empty pool cut a lonely figure.

  Qin Shu walked to one of the recliners and sat down. Laying on her back, she cast her eyes up at the starry sky above and the lone moon that returned her gaze, a look of deep contemplation on her face.

  President Ba stared up at Qin Shu, who was lying on the recliner. He jumped onto the recliner, landing with its paws on the recliner’s armrest. He fixed his questioning eyes upon his mistress, unsure of their surroundings.

  Qin Shu offered President Ba a wan smile. “You’re not used to being outside, are you?”


  “Meow”, President Ba let out a low cry as if to reassure his beloved mistress.

  Qin Shu rubbed President Ba’s head affectionately. President Ba enjoyed these little acts of intimacy, leaning into her touch and purring in delight.

  Qin Shu did not stay outside for long before bringing President Ba back to their room.

  Qin Shu carried her cute black cat into the elevator and stood in one corner as they shot up from the ground floor.

  The lift stopped midway, allowing three women in. They were wearing branded clothes, carrying luxurious bags, and beautiful make-up. Their powdered faces were rosy, and their features were as sharp as a knife. They possessed well-proportioned figures worthy of daughters of Venus.

  One could tell from a glance that these three women were all members of the wealthy second-generation.

  As the three women approached, the pungent smell of perfume assaulted her – mixed with the odour of hard liquor, making it quite unbearable.

  Qin Shu frowned and tried her best to hold her breath. The noxious mix of smells was enough to choke even the heaviest of smokers.

  President Ba narrowed his eyes, revealing a disdainful expression more akin to one worn by a human than an animal.

  “Sister, did the man in the bar take the bait?” A woman in a sapphire dress slurred as she gave her companion in a red strapless dress a wicked smile.

  “I just flirted with him out of boredom. He was not a romantic at all!” The woman in red brushed her curly hair aside, indifferent.

  “Look, now there’s a handsome young man in the elevator.” The woman in the black short skirt stared straight at the young man, not forgetting to push her two good friends towards him.

  The woman in red looked over when she heard that. When she saw the young man standing there, she stopped brushing her hair; her nonchalance was replaced by surprise.

  The young man had short black-brown hair; his skin was as fair as snow. He looked like a piece of high-quality suet jade, full and smooth, without a single blemish.

  His features were well-defined, bearing an aristocratic air.

  His pale eyes looked like a pair of moons with stars twinkling within them. He was handsome – extraordinarily so.

  “Yo, are you alone?” The haughty woman in red took the initiative without giving her companions a chance to butt in.

  Qin Shu deftly side-stepped the woman’s outstretched hand.

  President Ba’s gaze turned to the woman in front of him, his claws on standby. If the woman so much as touched his mistress without permission, he would show her what it meant to be pin-cushion. It had been quite some time since he last used them, and he was itching to sharpen them.

  When the woman in the sapphire dress saw the youth in the elevator, her eyes lit up. “This strapping young man is in no way inferior to the one I met at the bar. He… He looked even better!”


  “Little brother, it’s so boring being alone. How about joining us sisters for a drink?”


  The woman in red leaned towards Qin Shu expectantly.

  Qin Shu raised a manicured brow, her eyes regarding the lascivious women dispassionately.

  “Stay away from me.” She spoke in a cold, uncompromising voice.

  The three women thought they had met a shy puppy. They did not expect this puppy to have teeth.

  “Oh, it’s just for a short while. Us sisters are very good at taking care of people. There’s no need to worry about money; we can give you whatever you want – just name it, and it’ll be yours. Not even a sports car is out of our reach.” The woman in the black short skirt whispered seductively. As she did so, she reached out, hoping to touch the handsome face of the youth.

  “It’s not just a sports car. I’d even buy you a villa. So long as you do whatever we ask, we’ll give you the world.” The woman in red smirked confidently. No one could resist the allure of money. What more a young man in plain clothes?

  One look and you could tell that he was a typical university student.

  Qin Shu raised her eyes to look at the woman in the black short skirt, avoiding her wandering hands. “Big Sister’s voice is sweeter than theirs, and her looks eclipse either one of you. I’m sure she’ll be a good Big Sister.”


  The woman in the black short skirt, whether it was her looks, figure, or voice, all of which were inferior to the other two women.

  When the woman in the black short skirt heard the young man praise her for being better than the other two women, her heart instantly bloomed with joy. Draining the glass of wine in her hand dry, she smiled. “Young man, you’ve made the right choice. You’d be my first. It probably is for you too, isn’t it?”


  Although she spoke softly, the other two women still heard it.

  Instantly, the expressions on her companions’ faces turned black. How could the woman in black compare with them? In no way was she better than them! The little boat of camaraderie shared by three women swiftly capsized just like that.

  “You need to get your eyes checked! Have you seen yourself in a mirror? How much make-up have you applied to your face? Your voice is like a duck’s, and you have the courage to compete with me?” The woman in the red dress roared angrily.

  “Hah! Not only is your voice awful, but also your figure too! Look at those thick tree trunks she has for legs. If I had legs like those, I would do anything to hide them – not show them off with a mini skirt. Ugly doesn’t do her justice at all. She’s hideous!” The woman in the sapphire dress cruelly mocked her.

  “Is that a dog barking, I hear? Have you no eyes? I’m sorry. They must have been removed when you went under the knife. What happened to your nose? It looks like a baboon’s! They say beauty is only skin deep. Well, in your case, they got that right. You’d give Barbie a run for her money!”


  “You think you’ve got a killer figure, don’t you? How many liposuctions, breast augmentations, and body sculpting treatments have you undergone? What, thirteen? I’ve lost count. Your legs were as shapely as mine. At least I’m all natural – you, on the other hand, are covered from head to toe in plastic! Are you not embarrassed at all? I would be.” The woman in the black short skirt retorted.

  Not one of their trio wanted to be outdone in front of a handsome young man. The first to give way and accept defeat would be the first to lose face. It was an unacceptable outcome to any one of the three women.

  “You ugly monster! If you’re so envious of my looks, go and get yourself a competent plastic surgeon!” The woman in red slapped the woman in the black miniskirt, forcing her two steps back.

  Qin Shu watched the drama unfold with complete indifference. Raising her index finger, she pointed at the woman in red’s arm – the arm which had just experienced a sharp, unforgiving pain.