Yi Jie tossed her a moon-white cheongsam.
Lin Muci was a connoisseur.
With just one glance, she could tell the cheongsam was not cheap. It was hand-stitched, needle by needle, by a master craftsman, and likely made to her exact measurements.
Actors were extremely strict about managing their figures. The information provided to the costume department had to be precise.
Yi Jie was clearly no ordinary businesswoman.
She looked like someone with an incredibly extensive social network, so it wasn't surprising that she could procure such a well-fitting outfit.
Holding the garment, Lin Muci confirmed again.
"I only need to pour tea?"
Yi Jie smiled.
She raised her eyes to look at Lin Muci.
"You don't trust me?"
"If I say it's just pouring tea, then it will be just that. I won't lie to you."
...
Lin Muci picked up the cheongsam and went to Huan Xiao.
Huan Xiao was indeed renowned, a three-story building in an antique style, with luxury cars filling the parking lot outside.
Yi Jie personally drove her, ensuring smooth passage. Yi Jie parked the car in the garage and then escorted her to the dressing room to change.
When she emerged wearing the cheongsam, Yi Jie looked extremely pleased and nodded.
"It suits you very well."
"This kind of attire suits you best, you have such grace."
Lin Muci looked at herself in the mirror.
The cheongsam accentuated her graceful figure. Her abdomen was still perfectly flat, the early pregnancy subtle, her waist as slender as a willow – a blade that could kill without drawing blood.
Yi Jie asked her.
"I heard you studied traditional opera when you were young?"
Lin Muci deliberated for a moment.
She replied softly.
"I learned a little when I was young."
Yi Jie nodded, looking very satisfied.
"A fine prospect like you—ah, if you could endure it, you might have reached greater heights... it's a bit of a shame."
She nodded towards Lin Muci, her meaning clear. Lin Muci knew Yi Jie was referring to the pity that she was pregnant so early.
From then on, she would be no longer a top-tier actress in the entertainment industry.
After all, pregnancy meant a year without work, coupled with her unmarried status, her reputation would be in ruins—
She remained silent for a moment.
Then she said.
"Have the guests for tonight arrived?"
...
Huan Xiao was a multi-story building.
The lower floors were bustling with noise, but as one ascended, it was as if stepping into another world, a sudden quiet falling over the intense clamor.
The surroundings became utterly tranquil.
In this extreme stillness, Lin Muci spotted the person she wanted to see from afar.
He sat there.
The young man possessed an incredibly handsome face. He sat there, his expression a mixture of indifference and carelessness.
He raised his teacup, conversing with the middle-aged man opposite him, without any intention of casting a glance at Lin Muci.
Lin Muci clenched her fingers, and then Yi Jie said.
"I'm leaving this place to you."
"Although Master Jin San has a bad temper, he has guests today, so he won't be too much."
"Wait until they're finished talking, then you can leave. I'll drive you back myself, don't worry about safety."
Lin Muci nodded, then walked over quietly.
She picked up the teapot, preparing to pour tea. The peerlessly handsome young man opposite her suddenly let out a scoff and looked up.
"A washed-up star looking for re-employment?"
"When did Huan Xiao start taking in such a notorious female celebrity?"
The middle-aged man opposite him chuckled.
"I asked Yi Huan to call her. I have a taste for this sort of thing, and this young lady is quite pleasing to the eye—but I don't do things by force."
"Everyone knows she's down on her luck now, carrying a child by some unknown man. From a popular actress, she's become a common woman trampled by all. I'm giving her a meal in exchange for her serving me a few times."
"It can be considered fulfilling a wish of mine."
"After all, when she was popular, I offered millions, and she still refused to have a drink with me."
"It's only because I'm with you, and insisting on tea, that we've asked her to pour tea for us today!"
His tone carried a hint of disdain.
The implication in his words was clear: he viewed Lin Muci as nothing more than an object.
Lin Muci poured tea silently, but she heard another voice chuckle.
"She truly doesn't fit her aloof goddess image from the screen."
"It's more interesting to degrade women like her."
Lin Muci tightened her grip on the teapot.
She could feel the young man's intense gaze on her.
"Isn't it?"
Lin Muci: "..."
Ling Qianhe, are you crazy?
I'm your wife!
Wake up!
Listen to what you're saying, is that even human language?
However, she also knew that Ling Qianhe was currently suffering from amnesia, not yet awakened—and he did have an extremely unpleasant personality, so it wasn't surprising for him to say such things.
So Lin Muci took a deep breath.
She suppressed her anger.
Ling Qianhe, perhaps thinking of something, curved his lips into a subtle smile. He said.
"I heard she studied Kunqu opera and was known as the Goddess of Luo River in the circles. Why don't we have her perform a dance for us, carrying her unborn child?"
Lin Muci fought the urge to pour the hot tea over his head.
With a cold expression, she said softly.
"I've forgotten how to dance."
The girl who once captivated Jiangnan with a single performance, breaking through from the dance academy into the entertainment industry, now met his gaze with a cold brow and told him she had forgotten.
Ling Qianhe glanced at her.
He said.
"Forgotten?"
"It seems your memory truly isn't very good. After all, you can even forget the man you slept with, so forgetting a mere dance of the Goddess of Luo is a small matter."
Lin Muci bit her lip.
Her lips had a faint metallic taste. She calmed herself and then said.
"That is my private matter, and I have already paid the price."
"No matter whose child is in my belly, it's not yours. Why are you getting so emotional?"
She challenged the man before her. He snorted and did not retort, simply lowering his head to drink his tea.
An hour passed in a flash.
Lin Muci went to refill the teapot—
When she returned, Master Jin San was nowhere to be seen.
The young man stood by the table, waiting for her.
"Jin Ye left early."
"You belong to me tonight."
Lin Muci frowned.
"I'm not staying."
"Sister Yi said... she would pick me up and take me home..."
Before she could finish speaking, the man's hand directly gripped her slender waist. She was pulled entirely into his grasp, his palm slowly caressing her delicate waist with such force that it felt like he was trying to embed her into his embrace.
He held her firmly, then he kissed her fiercely.
His lips.
They crushed against hers, and then he said.
"You still believe her words?"
"You're still so naive, Sister Muci."
"Have you forgotten, the child you're carrying is mine?"