Under Gu Jinzhi's intense gaze, Li Wei felt entirely uncomfortable, her face growing somewhat warm.
Yet the moment she thought of their rigid interaction at the Civil Affairs Bureau earlier, which felt as though they were rushing to the Execution Ground, she forcefully suppressed that discomfort.
No, she had to act!
The deeply devoted persona of Jiang Xue could not collapse. Their awkwardness during the marriage registration could still be explained by the young girl being nervous, but right now during the wedding dress fitting, for any normal woman about to marry the man she adored, she would naturally be bubbling with happiness.
If she did not put on a show, Gu Jinzhi might start to suspect something.
Besides, in the fitting room earlier, she had even tried that style that was practically nothing, so this relatively covered-up one now seemed... not so awkward anymore, either?
A dead pig is not afraid of boiling water, anyway! Since she was already here!
She steadied herself, desperately imitating the poise Lin Shuying had just taught her, turned slightly to the side, held up her skirt to spin a small circle on the spot, and squeezed out a smile she deemed sweet at Gu Jinzhi.
"Does it look good?"
Her voice was soft and coquettish; even she almost got goosebumps hearing it.
However, Gu Jinzhi's imagined response of being stunned or gentle did not appear.
The fleeting daze on his face quickly faded, replaced by a nearly deliberate indifference.
His expression sank, and his tone was rigid, "I have matters to attend to. I'm leaving first."
With that, he didn't even look at Li Wei again, standing up directly and striding outward.
This sudden plot twist left all three people present dumbfounded.
The smile on Li Wei's face froze completely, somewhat bewildered.
Lin Shuying also froze in place, at a loss and bewildered.
Liang Qiushi reacted the fastest, her expression sinking slightly as she took a few steps to the door and reached out to grab Gu Jinzhi's arm.
She had just wanted to say something when she inadvertently met her son's eyes, which were chillingly desolate and seemed to brew a storm. The words at the tip of her tongue instantly choked back in.
"Mom?" Gu Jinzhi stopped, looking at his mother. The emotions in the depths of his eyes vanished cleanly in an instant.
Liang Qiushi gazed at her son, her chest aching as if pinched by something, feeling both a little hurt and somewhat helpless.
She had originally wanted to say that his sudden change of face and walking away would make Jiang Xue look awkward and was far too discourteous.
Yet on second thought, hadn't her son been like this for the past four years?
The more others tried to get close, the further he retreated, as if emotions had become some sort of ferocious beast.
Liang Qiushi knew what he shouldered; that heaviness made her heart ache, and her hand involuntarily loosened its grip.
Gu Jinzhi was silent for a few seconds, his lips moving, but in the end he said nothing.
Before leaving, his gaze uncontrollably drifted toward Li Wei's side once more. Just that hurried glance, as if burned by that dazzling pure white, caused his footsteps to vanish out the door even faster.
Liang Qiushi looked in the direction of her son's departure with a complex gaze, which finally dissolved into a scarcely audible sigh.
She turned back, a gentle yet slightly apologetic smile hanging on her face once more as she said to the other two, "Shuying, A Xue, I'm truly sorry."
Li Wei couldn't care less and instead breathed a sigh of relief.
Leaving is great, leaving is great, saving me from putting on an awkward act here where my skin was about to cramp up!
Lin Shuying was even more perceptive, instantly recovering her flawless professional smile with clear eyes, as if the small interlude had never happened at all.
"It's fine, it's fine, Aunt Liang. Then... Miss Jiang, shall we continue?"
If you can't find it by searching the title, you can try searching the author! Maybe it just changed its name!
The subsequent process began to grow formulaic.
Lin Shuying demonstrated an extremely high level of professional competence, carefully measuring and recording various data for Li Wei, recommending suitable makeup styles and jewelry pairings, and explaining things thoughtfully and meticulously without a single flaw.
Only, an aura of low pressure seemed to persistently linger in the air throughout.
Li Wei was glad for the peace, letting her mind go blank the entire time and mechanically cooperating with Lin Shuying's instructions while her thoughts had long since flown off to the Martial Arts Alliance Assessment in the afternoon.
Once the makeup plan and a set of simple yet luxurious pearl jewelry were finally finalized, the task was finally accomplished.
Liang Qiushi took Li Wei and exchanged polite farewells with Lin Shuying before leaving the studio.
It was already approaching one o'clock in the afternoon.
The two of them found an upscale restaurant nearby inside the mall that looked aesthetically pleasing.
Once the waiter finished serving the dishes and left, leaving only the two of them inside the private room, Li Wei finally couldn't hold back anymore, leaning in closer and lowering her voice, "Aunt Liang, I'm sorry. Was my acting not quite...?"
Before she could finish, Liang Qiushi suddenly raised an index finger, gently pressing it against her own lips to signal her to stay quiet.
Liang Wei instantly clamped her mouth shut, her eyes wide round and full of question marks.
Liang Qiushi pointed at the dishes on the table, "Eat."
Immediately afterward, she took out her phone, typed a few words rapidly, and then turned the screen toward Li Wei.
A line of small text was displayed upon it—there might be wiretapping.
Li Wei froze instantly, her gaze subconsciously sweeping rapidly around the private room. She even couldn't help bending down, lifting a corner of the tablecloth, and peering underneath the table.
As a result, apart from Liang Qiushi's long, gracefully curved legs wrapped in exquisite black silk, she didn't spot a single suspicious thing...
Good grief! What is this? A spy thriller scene? Is all this necessary?
However... Aunt Liang's legs are truly top-tier... Uncle Gu... um, are your kidneys holding up?
Liang Qiushi completely ignored her dramatics, nonchalantly picking up her chopsticks and beginning to eat.
Li Wei hurriedly shook those colorful, inappropriate wastes of thought out of her mind, gave an awkward chuckle, and buried her head in eating as well.
This meal was finished amid a bizarre and silent atmosphere.
Returning to the car, Liang Qiushi spoke warmly:
"A Xue, this afternoon I need to go supervise matters regarding the wedding and the hotel, so I won't accompany you. The Martial Arts Alliance Imperial Capital Branch is right around here, so I'll drop you off first."
As she spoke, she pushed a contact card to Li Wei's Lingxun, and only after watching Li Wei successfully add it did she continue:
"This is Xiaoyan's Lingxun Number. From now on, she will be your dedicated driver."
"I've already had her drive to the parking lot of the Imperial Capital Branch to wait for you. If you can't find anyone after your assessment ends, just contact her directly via Lingxun."
"Okay."
Hearing Liang Qiushi still address her as "A Xue", Li Wei knew that this driver probably couldn't be completely trusted either.
She instantly switched back to the obedient daughter-in-law mode, nodding obediently in agreement.
Before long, the car pulled up by the majestic front plaza of the branch building.
She took a deep breath, stepped forward, got out of the car, exchanged a simple farewell with Liang Qiushi, and then walked across the wide plaza toward that giant structure that looked particularly imposing and prestigious.
At this moment, she felt the sky was even bluer by several shades, and the air was exceptionally crisp.
She suddenly felt a sense of refreshing satisfaction and fulfillment of having escaped from the set of a cheesy urban romance drama and returned to a track she was familiar with.
A life where acting cool is like the wind, daddy is coming!!!
Before you continue