Back then, she was young and active, and the bracelet hung loosely on her. Fearing it would break, she put it away. Now the size is right, but such a subtle and understated ornament no longer suits her.
Perhaps they were mismatched from the very beginning.
Because she hadn't figured out how to tell her parents about Song Youcheng, Mu Xing forced a cheerful smile during breakfast to avoid them noticing. But once she returned to her room after breakfast, she felt a profound sense of desolation and heartbreak.
She was sitting there lost in thought when there was a sudden knock on the door: "Ah Xuan, am I coming in?"
Mu Yun walked in and saw her looking so gloomy and miserable. He felt a pang of heartache and said angrily, "I'll go beat up Song Youcheng right now and drag him back to apologize to you!"
He was about to leave when Mu Xing quickly pulled him back: "Forget it, I'm afraid you'll get beaten up first. Have you forgotten how I always saved you from fights at school?"
Mu Yun had no choice but to sit down: "So what do you plan to do now?"
"We must annul the engagement," Mu Xing said. "We definitely must annul the engagement."
Mu Yun nodded, indignantly saying, "Brother supports you! You must annul the engagement! How can a girl from the Mu family suffer such humiliation? That bastard Song Youcheng! I'll go talk to Auntie later..."
“But not now,” Mu Xing added.
Mu Yun almost bit his tongue: "...Why?"
Mu Xing shook his head: "You are truly a model of 'single-mindedly studying the classics.' Didn't you hear your mother telling my mother the other day that the old lady of the Song family is not in good health? It's too inappropriate to say this now."
Mu Yun frowned: "But the old lady's health is not good, so the wedding definitely needs to be arranged in a hurry. We need to go to the Song family to set the date in a few days. What are you going to do?"
After thinking about it, Mu Xing was also very worried.
Mu Yun continued, "Actually, as much as you're angry, I think you still need to talk to Song Youcheng and communicate with him. You see, he came up yesterday and immediately said he wanted to break off the engagement. Of course, I'm not speaking up for him, but if he was just going to have some fun, there's really no need for him to propose breaking off the engagement himself. I think he probably encountered something."
In fact, Mu Xing had thought about talking to Song Youcheng, but definitely not now—she was afraid that it would be too embarrassing for her to fight with Song Youcheng in public.
"Forget it, let's talk about it later," Mu Xing said. "You should go and study. I remember the entrance exam for Peking Union Medical College is in July. Although you're sure you'll get in, you'll need to be number one to get in."
"Of course," Mu Yun said. "We can't let the Mu family down. But... Ah Xuan, I was thinking it was a pity before. You're getting married this year, otherwise, with your abilities, you could definitely have gotten in."
Mu Xing was taken aback.
She and Mu Yun studied medicine in the United States and both obtained bachelor's degrees. Mu Yun came back to take the entrance exam for the doctoral program at Peking Union Medical College, while she returned to China to get married... She didn't seem to have considered this possibility yet.
She had thought her new life would begin with her hospital stay at Minkang Hospital and her marriage to Song Youcheng, but now that she doesn't have to get married...
"No, I need to think about this carefully," Mu Xing said.
Mu Yun had only said it casually, but seeing that she took it seriously, he quickly said, "I heard from my uncle that Peking Union Medical College is very tough, and in addition to the three years of preparatory courses, you have to study for another five years. I'm a man, so I can afford to endure it. I'm afraid your aunt won't agree to you going to study there."
"There's no need to consider that. What I'm going to do, I must do. The only thing I need to consider is whether I want to do it or not," Mu Xing said earnestly.
After watching Mu Yun leave, Mu Xing, who had just made some bold statements, fell into depression again.
This was her first time experiencing a relationship issue, and she couldn't figure out how to handle it or how she should feel.
She was angry, furious, and hurt... but she didn't seem to feel the devastation often depicted in novels, as if the world had collapsed because of a broken love. She wasn't like the characters in "The Romance of the Western Chamber" with their "thousands of sorrows and countless worries," nor was she as frantic and heartbroken as Romeo and Juliet.
She couldn't figure out what kind of feeling this was, and she couldn't tell who she was angrier at more.
After pondering for a long time without any results, and with the sun high in the sky, she simply changed into a double-breasted suit, used hair oil to neatly comb her hair, and then sneaked out the door.
Her first stop was the residence of the fake fortune teller, Mr. Green Water.
Mr. Green Water had a close relationship with the Mu family, so she could walk right in without an appointment and sit down directly in front of him.
Mr. Green Water, over sixty years old, exuded the air of a reclusive sage. He sat upright in a rosewood armchair and smiled, "Young friend Xuanji, how have you been lately?"
"You old charlatan, what exactly did the fortune you told me last time mean?" Mu Xing said fiercely, "I've only been back in the country for six days, I scraped my forehead, almost got hit by a car, and now I've been jilted at the altar! Tell me, did you do something to me?"
A master is indeed a master. Despite Mu Xing's rudeness, Master Green Water remained calm and said, "Doesn't this just verify the divination I gave you, young friend?"
Mu Xing rolled his eyes, a rare occurrence for him, and said, "Stop pretending. Ever since you took a silver dollar from me and helped me lie to my mother, saying that if I didn't go out to play, it would be hard to support her, I haven't believed a single word you've said!"
Mr. Green Water maintained his smile: "I have absolutely no recollection of this matter."
Mu Xing gritted his teeth: "Then explain yourself clearly, what's going on this time? My mother doesn't dare let me go out now!"
"Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed." After a pause, Mr. Green Water continued, "Cause and effect are a cycle. The result has already been sown by young friend Xuanji. Only by following the cause can the cause and effect be fulfilled. And you already know the reason for this, so I need not elaborate further."
"I already know?" Mu Xing sneered. "What do I know? The only thing I know is that you're a liar!"
She angrily picked up the tea that the servant had served her a while ago and drank it all in one go.
"Of all the teas I see here, only this Lu'an tea is genuine!" She put down her cup and elegantly wiped her mouth with a handkerchief. "Where did you buy it?"
Mr. Green Water took out a tin box from the drawer: "It was collected before Grain Rain last year. It's in very good condition. I only collected one jar a few days ago. The others were sent to your father yesterday. This box is for you. I'll have someone deliver it to your residence later."
"Thank you." Mu Xing's face lit up with joy. He gave a perfunctory bow and strode away.
Mr. Green Water watched her leave, then shook his head with a smile: "Still so silly."
Having just received a box of Lu'an Melon Seed tea, Mu Xing's previously gloomy mood improved a bit. She then planned to have Fu Guang send a painting she had acquired in the United States to the old charlatan. As she was thinking this, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a familiar red in the corner of her eye.
…Um?
Is it the beautiful woman I met yesterday?
Before she could even process what was happening, she had already taken a step and followed.
Why should I follow her? Mu Xing didn't understand, nor did she intend to.
Perhaps it was because she was too idle, perhaps it was because her fake Suzhou accent was too amusing, or perhaps it was because that splash of red was so striking that it compelled her to move forward.
Amidst the bustling crowds, the red figure flickered faintly, threatening to vanish in the blink of an eye. She kept her eyes fixed on the red silhouette, unaware that others were also watching her.
The red figure disappeared into the flower shop at the intersection. She hurried over and was about to turn when she suddenly realized that a group of female students had been following her.
As soon as Mu Xing turned his head, the female students burst into laughter, huddled together, and whispered among themselves for a while. One of the female students walked straight up to Mu Xing and got straight to the point: "Hello, classmate. I am a student from Allen Girls' School. Our school is going to hold a ballroom dance. May I ask which school you attend? Would you be honored to join us for a dance?"
The female students behind them laughed even louder.
So they mistook her for a man?
Mu Xing had always enjoyed playing around with her older brothers since she was a child. To make it easier for them to move around, she also dressed in men's clothing. She was already used to being mistaken for someone else because of her gender.
She smiled slightly at the girl and said, "Thank you for your kind offer, classmate. I dare not refuse. But I was wondering if your school's gala allows two women to dance together?"
“…Huh?” The female student froze, and the classmates behind her were also stunned, staring at Mu Xing with wide eyes.
Before the girls could react, Mu Xing said goodbye, turned around and took a few steps to hide in the flower shop next door, avoiding the commotion behind him, and then hurriedly looked around for people.
This flower shop is quite large and stylishly decorated. To keep the flowers fresh, they have many ice chests to keep them cool, so the temperature inside is a bit low. The fragrance of the flowers is intoxicating, refreshing, and very pleasant.
After dismissing the shop assistant, she hurriedly turned around and finally spotted that splash of red in a gap in a flower stand. Amidst the lush greenery, the red stood out brightly.
Overjoyed, Mu Xing strode over in a few steps.
"Miss—"
However, upon seeing the face behind the red cheongsam, Mu Xing gasped, her words abruptly changing direction, almost causing her to faint: "...Excuse me, how do I get to Huai'an Road?"
She regretted it as soon as the words left her mouth.
Isn't the street you're standing on Huai'an Road?
The stranger, who was looking at the flowers, glanced at Mu Xing, probably thinking she was a scoundrel trying to pick her up with some boring excuse, and turned away in disgust.
"...Um, cough." Mu Xing wiped her hair, pretending nothing had happened, and was about to walk back when she suddenly noticed a man next to her.
This young man was also impeccably dressed in a suit, his hair perfectly styled and gleaming. His thick eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and he looked troubled. Upon meeting Mu Xing's gaze, he immediately smiled, took a few steps forward, and politely asked, "Sir, do you know how to get to Huai'an Road?"
Mu Xing: "...Huh?"
Chapter Seven
After concisely explaining to the lost man that the street he was on was called Huai'an Road, and seeing his sudden realization, Mu Xing's heart, which had been flushed with embarrassment by the woman in red, calmed down a bit.
She always enjoyed making friends, and seeing that the man was well-dressed and handsome, she said, "Judging from your accent, sir, you don't seem to be from Wenjiang?"
The lost man nodded and said, "I was originally from Nanjing, but I moved to Wenjiang with my father a few days ago. Today, seeing that the weather was sunny, I thought I would take a walk around by myself, but I didn't expect Wenjiang to be so big. I wandered around and got lost."
"I see." Mu Xing then exchanged names with the man and learned that his surname was Tang and his given name was Yu. However, she was careful not to mention that she came from the Mu family.
She added, “Mr. Tang is new here and unfamiliar with the place, so it is really inconvenient. I am not very talented, but I have lived in Wenjiang for more than ten years and am quite familiar with the interesting places. If Mr. Tang needs anything in the future, please feel free to ask me.”
Tang Yu politely declined, and the two exchanged a lot of pleasantries. Tang Yu then said, "Actually, I wanted to go to Yuejiangli today. I heard from a friend that Yuejiangli is south of Huai'an Road, but I couldn't find it anywhere."
Moon River?
What kind of place is this?!
Mu Xing had been hanging out with his brothers since childhood, visiting all sorts of entertainment venues in Wenjiang City, from mansions to racetracks in the suburbs. He was quite familiar with all the entertainment venues in Wenjiang City. But now, after racking his brains, he still had no idea where Yuejiangli was located.
Normally, she could easily say she didn't know, but having just boasted, she was too ashamed to admit it now in front of Tang Gongzi's smiling face.
Seeing that the atmosphere was about to slide into an awkward abyss, she suddenly had a flash of inspiration and said with a smile, "After studying in the United States for a few years, I've forgotten the map in my head. I've been thinking for a long time. I'm familiar with this place, but although it's nearby, it still requires some walking. How about we call two rickshaws and I'll take Mr. Tang there?"
Mr. Tang's gaze swept across her face, and he smiled, "Yes, thank you, Young Master Mu."
Mu Xing breathed a sigh of relief and walked with Mr. Tang to the street corner, where they hailed two rickshaws: "To Yuejiangli."
Two rickshaw pullers, who were resting by the wall, were startled by the sound. They did not respond, but instead exchanged a knowing glance and revealed a strange smile.
When Mu Xing saw this, she suddenly had a bad feeling. She turned to look at Tang Yu, who looked perfectly normal. In order not to show her fear, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and get into the car.
Mu Xing walked along, chatting with Tang Yu while secretly memorizing the route along the river this month.
Gradually, she suddenly noticed that, without her noticing, there were suddenly more women on both sides of the street.
Rows of buildings stretched out densely, one after another, with bright red silk hanging on the gray cement, presumably for celebration. However, to the eye, it looked like a dying woman applying blood-red lipstick, which was rather horrifying.
After passing a row of buildings clearly in the northern style, the buildings then transitioned to pavilions in the southern style. The women standing in front of the buildings also gradually changed, from uniform northern rouge to southern gold powder.
The sound of the pipa filled the air, and the warbling of orioles and swallows filled the room. A cheap, powdery scent permeated the air, as if even the daytime had been tinged with ambiguity.
Mu Xing was looking at the women posing seductively on the front desk, feeling bewildered, when suddenly he heard the rickshaw driver ask loudly from the front, "Young master, are you going to Changsan or Ersan?"
Like a sudden awakening, Mu Xing realized that they had actually arrived at a fireworks display area!
No wonder the two rickshaw pullers looked so ambiguous just now; they must have thought she and Young Master Tang were lustful scoundrels who were indulging in debauchery in broad daylight!
Mu Xing was so embarrassed that she almost jumped out of the car. Tang Yu, who was diagonally in front of her, turned his head and looked at her suddenly red face. He found it amusing and said, "This is my first time here. I don't know what's good. Since Young Master Mu is being so modest, then I, as the guest, will take the liberty of deciding. Let's go to the most expensive and best place."
"Okay, okay..." Mu Xing had no idea about the difference between "Changsan" and "Ersan," so she just agreed casually. Even when Tang Yu said he wanted to turn back, she had no objection.
Tang Yu added, "Young Master Mu is truly an easy person to talk to."
Mu Xing gave a perfunctory smile.