Come on, Let's Have Some Fun-We've Got All the Time in the World / There's an Excuse Called Selective XXX

By then, she only had to let one of the Little Grass spirits possess a servant to find out how Zhang Mou was getting along with Shuxuan. That way, she wouldn't have to worry about it causing any problems with her plans to win over Muning.

Once she'd settled on this approach, Xiangyi suddenly thought of something terrifying.

She had no memories from before and hadn't returned to her old home. How was she supposed to find out where it was? Worse still, she couldn't tell Shaoyao or Hua Nu that she didn't know.

The biggest problem she'd faced since coming to this world had just surfaced. Xiangyi furrowed her brow, then heard people around her whistling. She looked over and saw several scruffy-looking young men who seemed very interested in her.

"Hey, gorgeous, wanna hang out?"

Xiangyi remembered that she wasn't wearing her glasses. She smiled at them and said, "Sure. But first, could you answer a question for me?"

The young men were thrilled and eagerly crowded around her.

"Does anyone know where the Qin family's Prince Qin lives? He's in a coma now, so I can't get in touch with him, but he owes me ten million. I've got no choice but to go to his house with the IOU." Xiangyi launched into a straight-faced, utterly fabricated sob story, casting herself as a pitiable victim.

Beautiful women always brought out people's protective instincts, especially someone as stunning as Xiangyi. As soon as they heard what she was after, the young men began calling their relatives and friends to ask around.

Shaoyao: Flower Master, are they reliable?

Xiangyi: I don't know, but they're all dressed like they're rich. There are only so many people in their circles. If we ask around, someone should know where he lives.

Xiangyi analyzed the situation rationally while continuing to play the victim. She promised the group that if they found him, she'd split the ten million with them, twenty-eighty. Even two million was a decent sum for a rich kid. Before long, one of the young men found the address.

"I found it!"

The young man was flushed, gripping his phone tightly. Xiangyi's lips curved into an even more alluring smile. He wasn't the only one staring; the boys beside him were transfixed, as if they'd never seen a woman before.

"Big Sis, you're like the fairies my grandma... used to tell me about." The young man swallowed hard. He felt himself growing hot, as if he could barely control his thoughts.

Xiangyi thought he was laying it on a little thick, but she still smiled and said, "Maybe I was sent by the heavens to save the galaxy."

The group gave her a strange look. Xiangyi realized she'd taken the joke too far, so she clapped her hands lightly to bring their attention back to the matter at hand. "All right, handsome. Can you show me the address?"

The young man nodded and cautiously handed her his phone. Xiangyi reached for it, trying to avoid any physical contact, but their hands still brushed for a moment. The young man was so excited that he stared at his hand as if it were a priceless treasure.

Xiangyi couldn't be bothered with him. She quickly memorized the address, then searched for it on her own phone. The place did look like somewhere rich people lived, but she still couldn't be sure the information was genuine.

"Thanks, handsome. How about giving me your number? Once I get my money, I'll make it worth your while." Xiangyi covered her mouth as she giggled. The young man turned even redder and waved his hands. "No, no. My family's pretty well-off. If you don't mind, you could treat me to dinner sometime."

Xiangyi readily agreed. The others wore odd expressions, as though they were planning something. But she'd already gotten what she wanted, and the number she'd given them was fake. They'd never see her again.

"All right, thanks, everyone. I'm off." Xiangyi thanked them again, then soon skated away.

The young men behind her hadn't recovered yet. Remembering the number Xiangyi had left, they demanded that the young man share it.

"F-fine. Fair competition... I'll read it out now. Write it down." The young man sounded smug as he recited, "148148148148."

"Don't you think that number's a little strange?"

"Maybe four's her favorite number."

"Yeah, there's no way that beauty would give us a fake number."

Their laughter abruptly died. The boys took off after her, but they couldn't find Xiangyi anywhere...

Chapter 76: Come on, let's raise hell—we've got plenty of time

Xiangyi hadn't gone far. After enjoying the scene, she put her glasses back on, pulled up her hood, and continued skating toward the address.

Since it was daytime, Xiangyi didn't dare make a conspicuous entrance. She skated through the air for about an hour before reaching the address.

The address clearly marked the villa, but the place was heavily guarded. There didn't seem to be a single opening where Xiangyi could get inside.

The Flower People's maximum range of movement, measured from the Flower God Ring, was only fifty meters. If Xiangyi wanted to get in, she'd have to sneak inside at night or walk in openly.

Xiangyi considered it again and decided to wait nearby until dark. Even if her identity let her enter directly, doing so would make her movements suspicious.

But if she got home late, Shuxuan would get suspicious. On the other hand, once night fell, Xiangyi could use Sword Flight and wouldn't lose much time.

Having made up her mind, Xiangyi wandered around the area and memorized the terrain, just in case anything went wrong.

Gradually, night fell. Xiangyi climbed over the wall and followed Hua Nu's directions to a blind spot between the security cameras. There were cameras everywhere, and the layout was confusing. Every villa looked identical, as if the tiny house numbers had been made that way on purpose to prevent people from telling them apart. Even more absurdly, it seemed the residents didn't trust their own homes. Nearly every house had several cameras, and some even had bodyguards.

Every courtyard had its own amenities, including the ever-present swimming pools. Now and then, a maid or butler came out. They were all beautiful, seemingly hired to look good as well as to do other, less respectable things.

Not long after night fell, Xiangyi began hearing strange noises from some of the houses. Shaoyao even asked why the people inside were moaning so miserably, leaving Xiangyi utterly mortified.

Hua Nu seemed to find it all amusing, and sometimes passed straight through the walls to take a look. Shaoyao had gotten a little smarter, but she still couldn't recognize security cameras as well as Hua Nu could, so they kept stopping and starting along the way.

The only bit of luck was that Shuxuan seemed to have something keeping her out late. She'd sent Xiangyi a hundred-yuan red envelope and told her to fend for herself that evening, leaving Xiangyi with much more time.

All this trouble made Xiangyi even more determined to find a way to get herself a place in Heaven City as soon as she arrived. She'd live alone, no matter what. She absolutely wasn't going to share a home or rent with anyone and invite even more trouble.

Hua Nu: Flower Master, I see Zhang Mou.

After wandering around for ages, Hua Nu finally said the words that made Xiangyi ecstatic. She nearly burst into tears with joy, but soon noticed something was off.

Xiangyi: There are way too many cameras.

Xiangyi quickly realized that Zhang Mou's house had a terrifying number of cameras, which left her feeling even more helpless. It was like playing a brainless game where you leveled up by beating monsters, only for it to suddenly turn into Assassin's Creed.

Xiangyi hadn't leveled up her other skills yet. She really couldn't handle a place with so many cameras.

Hua Nu: Don't worry. I've worked out the layout. Just follow my route, Flower Master, and you'll avoid them all.

Hua Nu was brimming with confidence and immediately took the lead. Her calculations were incredibly precise. If Hua Nu's personality didn't give the impression that she was both good and evil, Xiangyi thought she would have liked her even more.

A short while later, Xiangyi followed Hua Nu's directions to a building. Shaoyao eagerly went ahead, opened a third-floor window, and checked inside.

Shaoyao: Flower Master, there's no one on the third floor. Come on up.

Xiangyi acknowledged her and slowed her breathing. Without needing to push off the wall, she leaped lightly to the third floor. Once inside, she wiped away her footprints. The whole thing went perfectly.

She'd brought out several Little Grass spirits, too. If she were really unlucky enough to run into someone, a Little Grass spirit could possess them at once and save her a lot of trouble.

Xiangyi had taken every precaution. Remembering that Shuxuan would be home late tonight, she decided to familiarize herself with the Qin family's house first.

There was a storage room, an equipment room, and even a huge dance studio. They all gave Xiangyi a new understanding of how the rich lived. Oddly enough, at the far end of the third floor was Prince Qin's room.

It was full of self-indulgent pictures of Prince Qin and all sorts of luxury goods, but it was clear he hadn't lived there in a long time. At the moment, he was still in the hospital, receiving all the care that came with being in a vegetative state.

There was plenty of clutter, but nothing worth investigating.

Xiangyi went downstairs to look for her own room, but first came across a large bedroom. Its decor was somewhat feminine. When she saw the photos, she immediately recognized the background from the video call Zhang Mou had made earlier.

The wall was covered with photos of Zhang Mou and her late father, Qin Tianzhu. They were both smiling brightly, and it was clear they'd had a good relationship back then. Xiangyi continued searching the room, taking in the arrangement of everything. Then she spotted a pink object in the bedside table.

The moment she saw it, her mind registered what it was. Xiangyi slammed the drawer shut, feeling awkward.

Shaoyao: Flower Master, what did you see? Why are you acting so suspicious?

Shaoyao had noticed something was up and gave her a look of disdain. She crouched down beside Xiangyi, waiting for her to open the drawer again. Xiangyi was even more embarrassed. She couldn't very well tell Shaoyao she'd stumbled across Zhang Mou's private belongings. Given Shaoyao's innocent, naive nature, she'd probably ask enough questions to make Xiangyi lose her mind.

Xiangyi: It's nothing. I just realized I was only trying to scare her. I don't need to inspect everything this closely.

As she spoke, Xiangyi stood up and explained what she'd been thinking.

Xiangyi: See that bedside lamp? It's a little old, but it hasn't been replaced. That means Zhang Mou really likes it and probably uses it all the time.

As she spoke, she pressed the switch. The bedside lamp turned on, but the light was brighter than expected. There were also sleeping pills beside it, suggesting Zhang Mou suffered from severe insomnia.

Zhang Mou had been sleeping terribly for a long time, judging by how many pills she'd taken. It wasn't hard to guess why: with Prince Qin no longer there to rely on, Zhang Mou was under far more pressure.

Chapter 77: There's an excuse called selective XXX

All it would take to rattle Zhang Mou, already sleepless and on edge, was a little scare. Xiangyi was sure she could get the result she wanted without even needing the Flower People to do anything. A Little Grass spirit could just possess someone, and that would solve everything.

Xiangyi felt much more relaxed. She put the things back where they belonged and made sure she hadn't left any fingerprints before stepping out of the room.

A voice suddenly came from outside, startling Xiangyi. It sounded like a butler.

"Little Grass, go!"

In an instant, a Little Grass spirit sprang forward, clung to the butler's leg, and bit him. It possessed him in no time. The butler had been on the phone. He paused for a few seconds, then calmly continued talking before ending the call shortly afterward.

"Do you know where Xiangyi's room is?" Xiangyi asked the butler, now possessed by Little Grass. She wanted to finish exploring ahead of time.

The butler nodded, then said, "I do. But she lives in that little house next door, not inside the main house."

As he spoke, the butler pointed to a little house outside, standing all by itself. It looked like a storage shed that had later been turned into a place to live.

Xiangyi was dumbfounded. But the Flower People were even more bewildered than she was.

Hua Nu: Flower Master, aren't you Xiangyi? How can you not know where you live?

Shaoyao: Exactly. You acted strange earlier, too. You didn't even know your own address.

No one could understand how Xiangyi could be unaware of her own home. She'd already thought of an excuse, so she said, "I lost some of my memories after I was knocked unconscious. Whenever I try to think about them, my head hurts. I guess I hated this family so much that I didn't want to remember any of it."

Xiangyi played the victim and trotted out the excuse of selective amnesia.

The Flower People were skeptical, but they couldn't crack open Xiangyi's head to check, so they had to take her word for it. Xiangyi saw that they'd fallen for it and was about to ask the butler to get her the key to her room when she suddenly heard something at the entrance.

The butler, with Little Grass inside him, jumped and hurriedly warned her, "Madam's home. Flower Master, hide quickly. She really, really doesn't want to see you."

Xiangyi nodded at once and hid in the room the butler had pointed out. The butler went to greet Zhang Mou. But there was someone else with her tonight.

Xiangyi wondered if it was one of Zhang Mou's friends. Curious, she cracked open the door and peered down the stairs. She saw a woman's back, but Shaoyao had already gotten a good look at her face.

Shaoyao: Master, it's Shuxuan.

Xiangyi's question was answered. She finally understood why Shuxuan, who was such a homebody, had gone out instead of coming home tonight: Zhang Mou had called her over.

That only proved that Zhang Mou was the one person who could get Shuxuan to come out. Now that they were both there, Xiangyi decided to listen in and see if their conversation gave her any clues for winning Shuxuan over.

"Last night scared me to death. That bastard Qin!" Zhang Mou ground her teeth as she remembered what the older man had done to her the previous night.

Shuxuan's heart leaped. "Are you okay?"

Zhang Mou smiled. "I'm fine. The twins from the Qin family, Qin An and Qin Ren, saved me." Zhang Mou sighed, more convinced than ever that she couldn't go anywhere alone in the future. She'd finally managed to hold out until Prince Qin grew up. Even though they were both women and there was no man to support them, at least there was a young man in the family who could offer them some security.

But after Xiangyi turned Prince Qin into a vegetable, Zhang Mou's position became even more precarious. The men around her all eyed her hungrily, wanting to make her their mistress.

Part of it was because Zhang Mou was beautiful and alluring. But she was also a social butterfly who knew a lot of people and was capable in her own right. If they could get their hands on Zhang Mou, they'd have a stunning woman who could run a company by day and share their bed at night. That made her highly sought after in the Qin family.

More than anything, Zhang Mou was the easiest person in the Qin family to bully.

Her position made everyone watch her like a hawk.

Listening to the two of them talk, Xiangyi learned what Zhang Mou was going through. Zhang Mou seemed to be wiping away tears, while Shuxuan fell silent with her.

Shuxuan's parents had been old friends of Zhang Mou's, and Zhang Mou had taken Shuxuan under her wing after they died. She'd raised her, too. Xiangyi now realized Zhang Mou was practically Shuxuan's teacher, instructing her in how to deal with men.

"Xiao-Xuan, I know it's not appropriate for me, your future mother-in-law, to say this, but women must never depend too much on anyone, especially a man. You never know when he might change. You have to be independent and have your own opinions and financial means. And don't believe all that sweet talk. It's fake. In real life, sweet talk isn't worth a penny."

Zhang Mou warned her again. Xiangyi could tell there was more to it than that, and Shuxuan understood it even better.

"Did you hear some strange rumor, Auntie?"

"I just heard that Young Master Chen had dinner with you." Zhang Mou didn't hide that she knew about it. But she didn't mention Prince Qin, which showed that she understood what her son was like—and that he took after Qin Tianzhu.

"We did have dinner, but it was for work."

"That's good. I heard he had his eye on one of your coworkers. He brought it up when he ran into me last night." Zhang Mou explained how she'd found out. Young Master Chen had left early, so she hadn't seen Xiangyi come out and had completely missed the show.

Xiangyi listened even more intently, worried that their conversation might reveal she'd gone to Shuxuan's office the previous day.

"Yeah, but that girl doesn't seem interested in Young Master Chen. If you're here to put in a good word for him, I'm afraid I can't help."

Shuxuan refused outright, but Zhang Mou wasn't upset. She even took her hand and gave it a gentle pat.

"That's my future daughter-in-law. But it's fine to talk to me like that; in front of other people, you have to be tactful."

"I understand, Auntie."

"I've been grooming you to be my successor because I know Prince Qin can't be relied on. And Xiangyi might have the Qin surname, but she isn't related to the Qin family by blood." Zhang Mou went on, leaving Xiangyi thoroughly baffled.

If she wasn't part of the Qin family, why had she been taken in by them?

Could this world have made up another mysterious identity for me? Xiangyi wondered. Shuxuan seemed just as curious and asked Zhang Mou to explain.