After the White Lotus Drops the Act

Tang You had no idea that her entire performance had just been watched from beginning to end.

Even more so, she didn’t realize that just as she burst into laughter, the car door that had just been opened was slammed shut once more.

The car beside her slowly pulled away, but Tang You was used to seeing luxury cars and didn’t pay much attention. She was still excitedly sending voice messages to Miao Jiaxi.

Tang You: “Auntie suddenly called me to explain that Xiao Weijing didn’t do it on purpose. I had to fish for information for ages before I found out that he and Wen Ling were caught on camera.”

Tang You: “I’ve been waiting for this day for nearly five hundred years! I was so excited I almost cried hard enough to bring down every load-bearing wall and flatten the hotel to the ground.”

Miao Jiaxi replied with two “awesome” emojis.

Tang You straightened her back, feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.

But the moment she remembered that this man was still whispering sweet nothings to another woman just yesterday, she immediately found him a lot less attractive.

If he had someone he liked, why hadn’t he just canceled the engagement already? What was the point of keeping her hanging? Was she supposed to be his backup plan?

Tang You took a deep breath, convincing herself not to get angry.

A goddess like her shouldn’t waste emotions on such trivial matters.

Upon arriving at her apartment, Tang You sat on the carpet and eagerly unwrapped the beautifully packaged gift.

She had no idea what kind of gift Xiao Weijing, with his personality, would have sent.

After all, it was no secret that Xiao Weijing looked at her as if she were the plague.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone four whole years without returning to the country.

The wrapping paper had intricate patterns painted in the ukiyo-e style—Tang You’s absolute favorite. It was delicate and complex, forming a complete picture when unfolded, with not a single pattern repeated.

Finally, after peeling away the last layer of the box, Tang You wiped the sweat from her forehead and let out a soft sigh of relief.

With her delicate hands, she lifted the lid.

Thud.

The lid slipped straight from her fingers and landed on the carpet, flattening the soft, fluffy fibers beneath it.

Inside the perfectly square box, a neat stack of brand-new study guides sat in perfect order.

Five Years of College Entrance Exams, Three Years of Mock Tests, Wang Xiong’s Complete Textbook Guide, Spark English Vocabulary for the Gaokao…

Eh??????!!!!!!

Tang You seriously wondered if she had opened the box incorrectly.

Just as Miao Jiaxi shuffled past in her slippers, she bent down and peeked over. “What are you looking at?”

Tang You, who had completely short-circuited trying to figure out Xiao Weijing’s logic, replied blankly, “Looking at the gift Xiao Weijing sent me.”

Miao Jiaxi leaned in, rubbing her chin, equally puzzled. “What’s this supposed to mean?”

Tang You calmly analyzed, “He’s mocking me for being an educational system dropout, subtly suggesting I restart high school.”

Miao Jiaxi nodded. “I have to say, this level of humiliation is quite unique and perfectly executed.”

Three seconds of silence.

Screech, rustle.

Tang You leaned forward, gathered all the wrapping paper she had just torn apart, stuffed it back into the box with a blank expression, and picked it up, striding toward the door.

Miao Jiaxi saw her movement and immediately sensed danger. She lunged forward and hugged Tang You’s legs. “Where are you going?!”

Tang You clenched her fists, burning with rage. “To throw it in the trash!”

“Calm down, sister!” Miao Jiaxi quickly weighed the pros and cons, trying to reason with her. “The heavens can collapse, the earth can shake, but our goddess image must not fall! Think about it—what if Xiao Weijing asks you for the books in front of the elders, and you can’t produce them? All the effort you put into maintaining your innocent, delicate image will be ruined! Think twice!”

Faced with her best friend’s tearful plea, Tang You had no choice but to gather the wrapping paper and books, shove them back into the box, and viciously hide it in the deepest corner of her bookshelf.

Miao Jiaxi sighed. “I can’t believe your fiancé has leveled up so much in two years. He’s gone from a rabid attack dog to a full-blown scheming black dog.”

Tang You, nearly exploding with anger, slammed the cabinet door shut.

Miao Jiaxi consoled her, “Sis, let’s not get mad, okay? Getting mad can cause breast lumps. Is this kind of man worth becoming a tumor in your chest?”

Tang You snapped, “Not worth it!”

Since childhood, Tang You had always been frail. On top of that, she was a picky eater—if she didn’t like something, she wouldn’t touch it, not even a bite. The recent hot weather had also killed her appetite. When she stood up to put the box away, her waist looked so slim it seemed almost fragile.

Miao Jiaxi stared enviously at her friend’s waist and secretly measured it with her hands.

A few years ago, when the A4 waist and the “reach-around-the-waist” challenge were trending, Miao Jiaxi had once pinned Tang You down to measure her waist.

53 cm.

Damn.

Miao Jiaxi hadn’t been able to sleep that night, tossing and turning, wondering how Tang You managed to have such a perfect figure without ever dieting.

Seeing Tang You gathering her hair in front of the mirror, Miao Jiaxi knew that her friend was about to start working again.

From the very beginning, Tang Xiao had raised her daughter as a prime asset for an arranged marriage—endless dance and posture classes until she was nauseous. But when it came to anything related to business? Not a single lesson.

After Old Master Xiao personally arranged the engagement between Xiao Weijing and Tang You, Tang Xiao immediately shifted his focus to grooming his second daughter, Tang Nan. Even Tang You’s stepmother poured her heart and soul into educating her daughter, hoping Tang Nan could marry someone with a higher status than Xiao Weijing.

Tang You’s monthly allowance was limited, and neither the luxury apartment nor the car under her name had a single cent contributed by Tang Xiao.

She had earned it all herself.

Tang You owned Weibo and Instagram accounts with over ten million followers. Every few days, she would share her outfit inspirations and glimpses of her daily life.

However, she never showed her face in any of the posted photos. Aside from her roommate, Miao Jiaxi, and her regular photographer, no one around her knew that she was the wildly popular and equally lucrative Yuko.

Miao Jiaxi watched as Tang You walked in barefoot, holding a camera. She asked, “Ah Mai isn’t coming today?”

“No,” Tang You replied. “His social anxiety is acting up again. He said he needs to stay home for a few days to recover.”

Miao Jiaxi let out an “oh” and, before she could look away, her gaze swept over Tang You’s slender legs—long, straight, and smooth, with a faint pinkish hue against the pale skin.

So beautiful it sent a shiver through her heart.

Beautiful people were common, but flawless beauty was rare. They say beauty lies in the bone, not the skin, but Tang You was breathtaking from both bone structure to complexion.

Tang You’s shoot today was not going smoothly. With Ah Mai absent, she had to do everything herself. She had barely taken a couple of photos when Miao Jiaxi knocked on the door and handed her the phone. “Call from your dad.”

Tang Xiao’s voice was harsh and unpleasant, demanding that she return home immediately.

Tang You sighed helplessly and had no choice but to put down her camera.

The Tang family still lived in the house that her grandmother had purchased long ago. After her grandparents divorced, her grandmother did not take the house with her but instead left it to Tang Xiao.

Tang Xiao was not cut out for business. Though Tang You knew little about commerce, she had noticed a shift—her stepmother, Jiang Tao, used to buy out every new HERMÈS handbag collection. But now, she had scaled back to one bag per season, one per year. That alone told Tang You how utterly incompetent her father was in business.

Fortunately, Jiang Tao’s son from a previous marriage, Jiang Chenting, was capable enough to take charge. Under his management, Jiang Tao was once again able to afford her luxury-loving lifestyle—buying out every new season’s collection.

By the time Tang You arrived home, the moon was already high in the sky.

As soon as she stepped through the door, before she could react, an orange came flying straight at her—hitting her squarely on the forehead.

With a yelp of pain, Tang You crouched down, clutching her forehead.

The orange bounced on the floor and rolled under the sofa.

The orange had struck just beside her eyebrow—just a little closer, and it would have hit her eye. Tang You’s skin was delicate, and the impact made her eyes sting as if tears were about to spill out. She reached up to cover the spot, but before the pain could subside, someone grabbed her hair and yanked her upright.

Her scalp ached from the force, and a sharp scratch from a fingernail marked her chin. Through the pain, Tang You looked up and saw Jiang Tao’s furious face.

“How useless can you be? Huh? With that seductive little face of yours, you still can’t manage to seduce Xiao Weijing?”