Flesh Torn from Xing Yue's Face

As if she had carved the flesh from Xing Yue's face while she was still alive.

Madam Bu came from a formidable family. Her elder brother had helped build the country's aircraft carriers, while her mother had made a major breakthrough in epidemic control in the north. A distinguished figure in medicine, she had saved countless lives. Statues of her could still be seen in hospitals across Northern District Three.

Madam Bu's other mother had been a writer from a scholarly family. A member of the Misty Poetry movement, her work carried weight at home and abroad. Sadly, she had been in poor health and died young.

Ji Wenyan bore traces of both her mothers: refined yet strong. She ran the Bu Family with decisive efficiency, even as its distant relatives eyed it hungrily. In recent years, she had reclaimed nearly all its power.

Perhaps heredity had played a part, for her health was poor too. She had suffered two miscarriages before she finally had little Bu Yao, whom she adored.

"Yao, have you had breakfast?" she asked, smiling as she turned to her daughter. Her gaze was gentle.

Time had scarcely left a mark on her.

Madam Bu was breathtaking.

"Not yet," Bu Yao mumbled, slipping into her usual childish tone.

Ji Wenyan looked at Xing Yue and asked warmly, "Would you like to join us, Xiao Yue? A new teahouse nearby is quite good."

She sounded so affectionate that anyone who didn't know better would think they were close. Xing Yue had suffered enough at Madam Bu's hands. Unlike her, Xing Yue was not so good at keeping her composure.

"No. I have work." Xing Yue's refusal was flat, almost cold.

"You need breakfast all the more when you're busy," the woman said with concern. "Take better care of yourself, Xiao Yue. Tomorrow I'll make some pastries you like and have someone bring them to your office."

She did not press Xing Yue to stay for breakfast. Instead, she thoughtfully promised to send her something tasty tomorrow. She knew exactly when to advance and when to retreat.

Xing Yue disliked talking to Madam Bu. The woman was a smiling tiger. Everyone except Bu Yao knew how sharp her claws were.

Xing Yue gave a noncommittal hum and parted ways with Bu Yao.

Bu Yao got into the car and yawned, looking sleepy.

"How did you sleep last night?" Ji Wenyan dabbed the tears from the corners of Bu Yao's eyes with a handkerchief. Then she noticed the little notebook and picked it up. "May Mom look inside?"

Bu Yao nodded, hugged a cushion from the car, and looked ready to go back to sleep.

With her daughter's permission, Ji Wenyan opened the notebook. Its pages were packed with lists of things to do: wash clothes, cook meals, learn this, do that. Reasons were written beside them.

[When my wife has her period, help her wash her clothes.]

[My wife likes fish-fragrant shredded pork, sweet-and-sour pork...]

The woman lowered her eyes, a cold shadow darkening her gaze. She closed the notebook. By the time she looked up, her expression was gentle again. "Are these all new skills you're going to learn, Yao? How impressive!"

Bu Yao leaned against her mother's shoulder without opening her eyes, on the verge of sleep. "Mom, you're not angry, are you?" she asked drowsily.

As far as Bu Yao could remember, her mother had never been angry. She had such a good temper. But Xing Yue had said that if her mother found out what she had written in the notebook, she would go mad with rage. She might even want to kill someone.

The mother Xing Yue described felt like a stranger.

Ji Wenyan smiled. "Hmm. Learning these things means going from not knowing how to cook to knowing how, and from not knowing how to drive to knowing how. You'll gain knowledge and have fewer things you can't do. Isn't that wonderful? Why would I be angry?"

Ji Wenyan had never demanded that Bu Yao learn anything. Bu Yao could do whatever she wanted. Ji Wenyan had even fully supported her decision to leave school and apply to law school, bearing the pressure from the entire family herself.

To Ji Wenyan, it did not matter whether Bu Yao was sensible or whether she could run a business. All that mattered was that she was happy.

Just as ten years ago, when Bu Yao had brought her Xing Yue's photograph and said she wanted to marry her. Ji Wenyan had supported her wholeheartedly. She had turned away every wealthy young suitor and heir to a prominent family who came to propose, overcoming every obstacle so Bu Yao could be with the person she loved—even if that person was a commoner.

Whatever Bu Yao wanted, she would give her. Whatever she asked, Ji Wenyan would agree.

Bu Yao had known her mother would not be angry. Reassured, she drifted back to sleep and murmured, "Mom... you're so good to me..."

There were no songs to record today, but Xing Yue had a few short scripts to voice. She regularly uploaded the videos as a treat for her fans.

The other voice actor she was supposed to work with had made something of a name for herself in the industry. She had voiced dramas broadcast on major television networks and many hit period romances.

Qiao Rui paced back and forth with a script in hand, furious. "It's eleven. She's a whole hour late."

She slammed the script onto the table. "Notify Jiang Li's assistant right now. Fifteen minutes. We'll wait fifteen more minutes at most. If she isn't here by then, we're not recording! Fuck this!"

Who did Jiang Li think she was? A superstar? Xing Yue had ten million followers and didn't put on airs like that. What gave Jiang Li the right to keep them waiting?

Qiao Rui gulped down her tea in a huff. Fine, they wouldn't record. They wouldn't work together. Jiang Li had achieved a little success in the industry and now thought she was above everyone else. What a piece of work.

Hearing Qiao Rui's outburst from inside, Little Green Stone Snake added fuel to the fire. "A Yue, your manager's too soft. Fifteen minutes? Just call off the recording. She's already been given more respect than she deserves."

People like Jiang Li were called "teacher" a few times and let it go to their heads. They had not even started recording, and her attitude was already this bad. Working with her would be nothing but trouble.

Xing Yue, however, seemed distracted rather than angry. Out of nowhere, she said, "I saw Madam Bu today."

Little Green Stone Snake, still fuming a moment ago, froze at the mention of her. Then her expression turned even more dramatic. "Fuck. What kind of day is this? All the bad luck at once. She didn't intimidate you, did she?"

As Xing Yue's self-appointed adviser in love and her comfort in family matters, Little Green Stone Snake liked whoever Xing Yue liked and was bound to hate whoever Xing Yue hated.

Look at that. Xing Yue had met Madam Bu only once, and she was already drained. This would not do!

Bo Wuxue gave Xing Yue a pep talk. "Listen, you can't let Madam Bu bully you like she did ten years ago. Back then you were Bu Yao's wife, and that limited what you could do. You're not anymore. Stand up for yourself!"

The whole world knew what Madam Bu was like. Only Bu Yao did not. Of course, to Bu Yao, she truly was a mother who loved her dearly.

To Xing Yue, though, she was a cutting, condescending mother-in-law.

Xing Yue was troubled. She had told Bu Yao that morning she would consider getting married again, and now she regretted it. Clearly, some decisions should not be made before bed or just after waking.

The door suddenly opened. Xing Yue thought Jiang Li had arrived, but the person who walked in was the very woman she and Bo Wuxue had just been discussing.

Qiao Rui, who had been pacing and shouting moments ago, had changed her tune completely in front of Madam Bu. An ingratiating smile covered her face. "Here, this is where Xing Yue rests. If you'd told me you were coming, I would have picked you up myself. The guards downstairs didn't know any better and kept you waiting. What fools."

She looked like a completely different person from the one who had been swearing a moment ago.

Xing Yue had never seen her manager grovel like this. Qiao Rui had always been hot-tempered.

"Sorry for the trouble." The woman dipped her head with warm composure, her manners impeccable. "I didn't wait long. Thank you, Miss Qiao."

Qiao Rui beamed. She kept gesturing for Ji Wenyan to come in, pulled out a chair for her, then hurried to the break room to make tea. The Longjing in the lounge would not do; only the fine tea from the chairman's office was good enough.

Little Green Stone Snake silently rolled her eyes, transformed into a python, and slipped behind a sofa cushion to hide. She clearly had no desire to greet Madam Bu.

Xing Yue looked at the insulated food container in Madam Bu's hand, then at her manager's astonishing change in attitude. Her face went cold. "Madam Bu, I'm working."

In other words, she had no time to chat about Madam Bu's precious daughter.

Ji Wenyan opened the container and set out the steaming breakfast inside. "Oh? I came to discuss work with you, Xiao Yue. Didn't your manager tell you? The Bu Family's entertainment company intends to fund your career as a singer. The contract has already been drafted."

Xing Yue's pupils contracted. She shot up from the sofa. "When did this happen?"

The woman answered easily, "Just now."

She could decide the direction of Xing Yue's career on a whim. Every word was steeped in contempt.

Of course, she had not done this to make Xing Yue famous. She only wanted Xing Yue to know that the principles she had upheld through ten years of fighting her company were nothing before Ji Wenyan.

Ji Wenyan's voice stayed soft, but her words cut straight into Xing Yue's heart. "Xiao Yue, you're over thirty-five. How many more years will you even have periods? Who are you expecting to wash your clothes?"

The words struck as hard as carving the flesh from Xing Yue's face while she was still alive.

Xing Yue trembled all over. She had bitten down so hard that blood filled her mouth with the taste of rust.

Behind her, Little Green Stone Snake was nearly beside herself with rage. Fuck, one sentence and she's crushed Xing Yue like this? Xing Yue's no match for her!

"A Yue, curse her out! Tell her to keep her daughter in line and stop her from pestering you! Who even wants her? Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"