A Deliberate Slight

As good as carving the flesh from Xing Yue's face while she was still alive.

Madam Bu came from an extraordinary family. Her brother had helped build the nation's aircraft carriers, while one of her mothers had made a major breakthrough in epidemic control in the north. Her contributions were immense, and she was an outstanding figure in medicine. To this day, statues of her stood in hospitals throughout the cities and provinces of Northern District Three.

Madam Bu's other mother had come from a scholarly family and belonged to the Misty Poetry movement. Her work carried weight both at home and abroad. Sadly, she had been in poor health and died young.

Ji Wenyan bore traces of both her mothers: refined, yet formidable. She ran the Bu Family with decisive efficiency, despite its covetous distant relatives. Over the past few years, she had reclaimed nearly all its power.

Perhaps because of her family history, her own health was poor too. She had miscarried twice before having little Bu Yao, whom she cherished dearly.

"Yao, have you had breakfast?" she asked, turning her head with a gentle smile.

Time had left almost no mark on her.

Madam Bu was a beauty without equal.

"Not yet," Bu Yao mumbled, slipping into her usual wheedling 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 might have thought they were close. Xing Yue had suffered plenty of slights from Madam Bu that she could never speak of. Compared with her, Xing Yue was far less able to keep her composure.

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

The woman sounded concerned. "All the more reason to eat breakfast when you're busy. You should take better care of yourself, Xiao Yue. Tomorrow I'll make some pastries you like and have someone bring them to your company."

She didn't press Xing Yue to stay for breakfast. Instead, she thoughtfully promised to send her something tasty tomorrow, knowing just how far to push.

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

She gave a casual hum of acknowledgment, then parted ways with Bu Yao.

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

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

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

With her child's permission, Ji Wenyan opened the notebook. Its pages were packed with listed requirements: washing clothes, cooking, learning this and doing that. Each came with a reason.

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

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

The woman lowered her eyes, a dark chill filling them. She closed the notebook. By the time she looked up, her gaze was soft again. "Are these all new skills you're going to learn, Yao? How impressive!"

Bu Yao leaned against the woman's shoulder without even opening her eyes. On the verge of sleep, she asked lazily, "Mom, you're not angry, are you?"

As far as she remembered, her mother had never gotten angry. She was so good-tempered. But Xing Yue had said that if her mom found out what was written in the notebook, she would go mad with rage. She might even want to kill someone.

The mother Xing Yue spoke of felt like a stranger.

Ji Wenyan smiled. "Hmm. If you learn these things, you'll go from not knowing how to cook to knowing how, and from not knowing how to drive to knowing how. You'll gain a few skills and have fewer things you don't know. Isn't that wonderful? Why would I be angry?"

Ji Wenyan had never demanded that Bu Yao study anything. Bu Yao could do whatever she wanted. Ji Wenyan had even fully supported her decision to drop out and apply to law school. Though the entire family had pressured her, she had held firm.

To Ji Wenyan, it didn't matter whether Bu Yao was sensible or capable of running a business. All that mattered was that Bu Yao was happy.

It was like 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 turned away wealthy young men and heirs of prominent families who came seeking her hand, overcame every obstacle, and let Bu Yao be with the person she loved, even if that person was a commoner.

Whatever Bu Yao wanted, she gave her. Whatever she asked, Ji Wenyan agreed.

Bu Yao had known her mother wouldn't be angry. Reassured, she drifted back to sleep, murmuring, "Mom... you're so nice..."

There were no songs to record today, but Xing Yue did have some lines for a short skit to voice. She regularly uploaded these short videos as treats for her fans.

The other voice actor she was collaborating with had made a name for herself in the industry. She had voiced dramas broadcast on major television networks and many hugely popular historical romance dramas. She was fairly well known in the field.

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

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

Who did Jiang Li think she was, some huge star? Xing Yue had ten million followers and didn't put on airs like that. Why should they have to wait for her?

Qiao Rui angrily gulped down her tea. Fine, then they wouldn't record or collaborate. Jiang Li had found a little success in the industry and now thought she was untouchable. What a piece of work.

From inside the room, Little Green Stone Snake heard the shouting outside and added fuel to the fire. "A-Yue, your manager's still too soft. What's this fifteen-minute nonsense? Just cancel the recording now. She's getting more courtesy than she deserves."

People like Jiang Li got called "teacher" a few times and forgot who they were. They hadn't even started recording, and her attitude toward work was already this bad. Actually working with her would be nothing but trouble.

Xing Yue showed little reaction. Distracted, she suddenly said, "I saw Madam Bu today."

Little Green Stone Snake, who had been seething a moment ago, froze at the mention of her. Then her expression grew even more exaggerated. "Fuck. What kind of day is this? All the bad luck came at once. She didn't intimidate you, did she?"

As Xing Yue's hopeless adviser in love and her source of comfort in family matters, Little Green Stone Snake liked whoever Xing Yue liked and inevitably hated whoever she hated.

Look at her! Xing Yue had seen Madam Bu only once, and she was already drained. This couldn't go on!

Bo Wuxue gave Xing Yue a pep talk. "Listen to me. You can't let Madam Bu bully you like she did ten years ago. Back then you were Bu Yao's wife, so your hands were tied. You're not anymore. Stand up for yourself!"

Everyone in the world knew what Madam Bu was like except Bu Yao. Of course, as far as Bu Yao was concerned, she truly was a mother who loved her very, very much.

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

Xing Yue was deeply troubled. That very morning, she had told Bu Yao she would consider remarrying her. Now she regretted it. Some decisions really shouldn't be made before bed or just after waking.

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

Qiao Rui, who had been pacing and ranting moments earlier, put on a completely different face before Madam Bu. Smiling ingratiatingly, she said, "Here, this is where Xing Yue rests. If you'd told me you were coming, I would've picked you up myself. The security guard downstairs had no sense at all, keeping you waiting so long. What a fool."

Her fawning manner was worlds apart from the woman who had been cursing a moment ago.

Xing Yue had never seen her manager grovel like that. Qiao Rui had always had a fiery temper.

"Sorry for the trouble," the woman said with a gracious nod, her manners impeccable. "I didn't wait long. Thank you, Miss Qiao."

Qiao Rui practically glowed with delight. 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 wouldn't do. Only the fine tea kept in the chairwoman's office was good enough.

Little Green Stone Snake silently rolled her eyes, turned into a python, and hid behind a sofa cushion. She clearly had no intention of greeting Madam Bu.

Xing Yue glanced at the insulated food container in Madam Bu's hand, then at her manager's startling change in attitude. Her face turned 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. It was filled with steaming breakfast dishes, which she set on the table. "Oh? I came to talk business with you, Xiao Yue. Didn't your manager tell you? The entertainment arm of the Bu Family is prepared to fund your career as a singer. The contract's already been drafted."

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

The woman answered with effortless ease. "Just now."

With a word, she could decide the course of Xing Yue's career. Every syllable dripped with disdain.

She wasn't doing it to make Xing Yue famous. She wanted Xing Yue to know that the principles she had upheld for ten years while fighting her company were nothing before her.

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

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

Her whole body trembled. She bit down until her mouth filled with the rusty taste of blood.

Behind her, Little Green Stone Snake was beside herself with fury. Holy shit. One sentence and Xing Yue was crushed. She really can't fight back at all!

"A Yue, tell her off! Tell her to keep her daughter in check and stop her from pestering you! Who even wants her? Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"