Chapter 59

Chapter 59

Not him?

Thank god! Has he even looked in the mirror? With *that* face, is he worthy of her mom?

Wait, wait, wait—what did Yue Yue just say? Who’s chasing her mom?

His girlfriend?

Girlfriend… as in, a *girl*?

It finally clicked for Fan Qing. Sure, her mom was gorgeous and badass—and to her, this devoted daughter, it made perfect sense that the whole world might adore her mother.

But that didn’t mean freaky stuff could creep in!

Why would someone pose as a boyfriend to chase after her mom? What kind of masochistic nonsense is this?

Fan Qing, this ridiculous novel addict, immediately started imagining scenarios: forbidden love, catfishing to win hearts—the kind of crap that’d get her swooning in fiction but felt totally bizarre in real life!

“Wait, no—ex-girlfriend, not current.”

Fan Qing leaned in, ears burning.

“She’s doing this to get back at *him*…”

Ugh, fine, go ahead and get your revenge on *him*, but what does her mom have to do with it?

This is batshit crazy, unreasonable, and completely out of nowhere!

"After breaking up with her ex, she couldn't accept how much she'd sacrificed while he walked away scot-free. So she posed as *him* to pursue Aunt Feng, hoping Aunt Feng would be so outraged she’d go full scorched-earth on him."

What is this mess? Fan Qing dragged a hand down her face. Was her mom just some pawn in their toxic game?

"What kind of brain works like that? And isn't Aunt Feng super busy?"

Gross. Just… *gross*.

Both of them are gross.

But just as Fan Qing and Xin Shuwan were about to leave the café, a dramatic make-up scene erupted right in front of them.

"Ugh, my *eyes*! Weren't you supposed to crush him? What the hell are you doing?!"

"Hold up—this ex-girlfriend wanted her ex to taste defeat, realize her worth, and crawl back to her."

"Seriously? *She's* the one making the move now?"

"What the—?? The ex suddenly had an oh-no-she-didn’t moment—like she couldn't live without him."

"Honestly, since when do fish *need* bicycles?"

Fan Qing swore she'd get her mom a charm to scare off these lunatics. This was a random dumpster fire if there ever was one.

Blinking back to reality, Fan Qing noticed Lin Tingyue staring at her, eyes doing frantic semaphore.

Fan Qing understood and immediately took out her phone, snapping away like crazy. "Yue Yue, I'll tell my mom about this."

Lin Tingyue nodded in satisfaction.

"You're a quick learner!"

Fan Qing smiled and linked arms with Lin Tingyue. "Yue Yue, let's shop some more."

"Okay."

Fan Qing had invited Lin Tingyue over mainly to buy clothes.

"Qing Qing, are you going out to have fun?"

Lin Tingyue looked at Fan Qing, who was looking through the racks. Fan Qing replied, "Yeah, Mom said it's been a while since we went out together, so we're planning some fun time out."

"That's wonderful."

Lin Tingyue's eyes lit up. Fan Qing had a sudden thought and asked, "Yue Yue, do you want to come?"

"Me?"

"Yeah."

"But this is Qing Qing and Aunt Feng's rare mommy-and-me time. What would I be doing crashing that?"

"I won't go. Qing Qing, you and Aunt Feng have fun. We'll meet up after you get back."

Fan Qing leaned against Lin Tingyue's shoulder affectionately. "Yue Yue, you're so sweet."

"That's all it takes to be sweet?"

Fan Qing nodded like crazy.

"No, Qing Qing is too gullible. I need to keep tabs on you to make sure you don't get tricked."

Fan Qing: "...?"

Was it possible she only acted this way around Lin Tingyue?

Try to fool her? Fat chance.

But seeing Lin Tingyue's genuinely concerned expression, Fan Qing still felt it warmed her heart.

Fan Qing took a white sundress into the changing room. After coming out, she stood in front of the mirror, twisting and turning, feeling like something was missing.

"Qing Qing, you could add a belt... and maybe a brown hat and bag. That might complete the look."

Fan Qing tried to picture it and realized it would look great. She teased, "Yue Yue, you're so good at styling. Why not become a style influencer?"

Lin Tingyue blinked and said seriously, "I don’t want to steal everyone's thunder."

"She burst out laughing, doubling over."

Lin Tingyue: "?"

Lin Tingyue clenched her fists and demanded through clenched teeth, "Fan Qing, what are you laughing at?"

Fan Qing claimed she’d stop laughing—but clearly still dared to.

Lin Tingyue grabbed Fan Qing when suddenly a voice cut in:

"Stop laughing. When you laugh, you don’t look like her anymore."

Fan Qing’s smile vanished instantly.

"Holy crap, is this some doppelgänger trope?"

Lin Tingyue and Fan Qing slinked closer, catlike.

Another voice followed: "Yes, Mr. Xie."

But Mr. Xie wasn’t satisfied yet—he kept nitpicking.

"Why are you always so timid? A-Ran’s a high-society princess—she'd never act like you... Forget it."

Xie Jin pinched Yu Huan’s chin with one hand, forcing her head up. He stared at her face. "Looking even halfway like A-Ran is already a blessing you’ve earned over lifetimes."

Lin Tingyue rolled her eyes.

"You wanna trade places with her?"

Fan Qing nodded furiously: *So true.*

Xie Jin shoved his hands into his pockets, his brow twitching in irritation. "Change. Now."

"Yes, Mr. Xie."

As Yu Huan grabbed the clothes, she suddenly locked eyes with Fan Qing and Lin Tingyue lurking nearby.

Yu Huan: ?

She gave a timid wave. "Uh… hi?"

"...Hi."

Xie Jin’s expression darkened further. "Why are there other people here?"

"Uh, because it’s a *public* mall?"

The clerk, improvising, plastered on a smile. "Mr. Xie, this is a shopping mall."

Mr. Xie oozed 30% frost and 40% couldn’t-care-less. "This mall *belongs* to the Xies. I can have them removed. I *hate* interruptions."

"Me?"

"Jesus take the wheel, I’m just here for pants—*mimes knocking a wooden fish*—Spare me!"

Fan Qing lost it, snort-laughing.

Xie Jin asked coldly, "What are you laughing at?"

Fan Qing raised her hand. "Sir, yes sir—my dog ate my homework! HA!"

Xie Jin blinked. *???*

Are they *mocking* him?

At this moment, the salesperson poured gasoline on the fire: "Mr. Xie, you can't kick them out. One is the Lin family's second daughter, and the other is the Feng family's eldest daughter."

The salesperson, seemingly afraid Mr. Xie wasn't embarrassed enough, whispered further, "This land actually belongs to the Lin family."

Lin Tingyue: "!"

"Money money money money money."

Fan Qing: "."

Lin Tingyue really was total gold-digger, no matter the situation.

Whether it was the Lin family or the Feng family, the Xie family couldn't afford to offend either. Seething but powerless, Xie Jin finally sat down on the sofa with his legs crossed.

Yu Huan, now changed into new clothes, walked out and did a spin in front of Xie Jin, asking sweetly, "Mr. Xie, how do you like this one?"

Xie Jin was about to explode. "A'Ran doesn't like white."

"If White Moonlight doesn't like white, what does she like?"

Yu Huan pressed her lips together and asked, "Then what color does your A'Ran like?"

"It's all written in the materials I gave you. Why didn't you read them properly?"

"Sorry, Mr. Xie, I'll definitely go over them again when I get back. But I noticed there's a lot to learn, and the expenses might [...]."

"Wait, can you even switch topics like that?"

Xie Jin abruptly pulled out a card and threw it on the ground. "Take it."

Yu Huan picked up the card, not seeming bothered at all, still obediently saying, "Thank you, Mr. Xie."

Unable to have the place to himself and with everyone watching, Yu Huan's performance still unsatisfactory, Xie Jin was extremely irritated. He brushed her off with a wave. "Don’t show up in front of me for a while."

"Understood."

After watching the whole show and enjoying the drama, Lin Tingyue and Fan Qing also left. Outside the mall, they happened to see Yu Huan getting into a taxi.

Fan Qing was baffled. "After being humiliated like that, why does she still seem... happy?"

Lin Tingyue looked genuinely confused. "That was humiliation?"

"Wait, wasn’t it?"

"I thought it was a reward."

Fan Qing: "..."

She's hopeless.

"Plus, she's using the tycoon's money to support a boy toy."

Fan Qing got excited again.

As luck would have it, Xie Jin came out of the mall, and the three came face-to-face. Fan Qing shot him a knowing look.

So that makes Mr. Xie...

"A total chump!" she said pointedly.

"But hey, Mr. Xie could see the silver lining—he not only has a girlfriend but also a boyfriend now."

Fan Qing said nothing.

As far as she knew, this Mr. Xie probably wasn’t that optimistic.

Indeed, Mr. Xie wasn’t that optimistic.

A few days later, the Xie family entered into a business marriage with the Shen family. Sitting high on his horse, Xie Jin coldly broke things off with his rebound fling.

He even had the nerve to say his heart belonged to his white moonlight, his body to his marriage partner, and all Yu Huan got was some bog-standard black card.

Yu Huan: [speechless]

Wow, how *basic*!

Yu Huan took the card, thanked Mr. Xie, swore she’d never show up in front of him again, then bolted.

Xie Jin stared at Yu Huan’s retreating figure, his eyes bloodshot. Had Yu Huan ever liked him at all?

Never.

Later, at his own wedding banquet, Xie Jin even saw Yu Huan holding hands with another man, strolling by outside, smiling and chatting happily through the glass.

"From that day on, Mr. Xie went off the deep end. He groveled, begging her to come back—even if it meant being the side piece. Such *dedication*."

Lin Tingyue caught something odd: "Hold on, hold on—wasn’t the news story different?"

Fan Qing replied calmly, "I spiced it up a bit."

"With CEO-novel clichés layered over dog-blood drama?"

But was that really so wrong?

Changing topics, Fan Qing added, "By the way, I’m going to the An family’s wedding tomorrow. They must’ve invited your family too, Yue Yue—will you go?"

"The An family? The one where both the groom and bride fell for the bride’s brother?"

Holy crap, she knew there’d be gossip—but not *this* kind of mess!