The Sycophants Make Their Entrance

"Bullshit! You're the one who did something wrong. Why drag my sister-in-law into it? Did she tell you to date two men at once, or to use your sister as a stepping stone?" Bo Zhe was furious at Wu Yuan's words and jumped in.

Wu Yuan, scolded right to her face, protested, "Second Young Master Bo, I didn't say I meant your Young Madam."

"Bullshit! You didn't name her, but try keeping your eyes off her. Then you might sound convincing." Seeing her second brother get there first, Bo Miao refused to be outdone.

The guests watched Fang Yao and Bo Hanmo come down the stairs. Some of the nosier ones sneaked glances at Wu Yuan's eyes.

Unfortunately, Wu Yuan had already reined in her malicious gaze when she heard Bo Miao's words.

[Well said. Keep going, you two. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law know what they're doing.]

Bo Zhe and Bo Miao were delighted to hear Fang Yao's thoughts. Their friends couldn't stand by either.

"That's right, Miss Wu. Isn't this the first time you've met our sister-in-law?"

"You're not going to claim she had a freakishly high IQ as a child and started plotting against your family back then, are you? Hahaha—sorry, I couldn't help it."

The friends played off each other so well that Wu Yuan wished she could blow them up. What business of theirs was it if she talked about Fang Yao?

(╯‵□′)╯ Bomb! •••*~●

One guest failed to keep a thought to themselves and blurted, "Isn't she a textbook white lotus?"

Well said... Applause.

"You're right. And so no one can accuse me of making things up, I've brought the person involved. Gong Yong, come see if she's your girlfriend. Yang Qi, you come see if she's your fiancée." Yang Qi's father had acted before anyone could stop him, catching the three members of the Wu Household off guard yet again.

What were the household Bodyguards doing? They couldn't even stop this. Wu Yuan could only watch as "Wu Chan" was brought in.

Gong Yong's father saw through Wu Yuan's attempt to speak first and beat her to it. "Wu Chan, repeat what you told us earlier."

Wu Chan was terrified. This was just a part-time job she did now and then. How had she gotten mixed up in this?

Wu Chan said, "It's got nothing to do with me. I just went to the Wu Household like I usually do and pretended to be Miss Wu. I haven't broken any laws!"

"Then why does your face look exactly like the eldest Miss Wu's?"

"Oh, that? Makeup. If you don't believe me, does anyone have makeup remover? I'll take it off and show you."

[And now, witness a miracle: the birth of Hua Nation's greatest dark art. Boys, keep your eyes open when you look for a girlfriend. Otherwise, you won't know whether the woman sleeping beside you is a beauty or a monster. Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to find a monster next to you. You'd be scared to death.]

Everyone present who could hear Fang Yao's thoughts struggled to keep their mouths from twitching.

While Fang Yao was distracted by the drama, Bo Hanmo brushed a fingertip across her cheek. Good. Smooth skin, no makeup. Completely bare-faced.

Makeup artist: I did a good job, right?

Fang Yao: I took it off.

The makeup artist fell to her knees. o(╥﹏╥)o

The guests had learned something new. They stared at Wu Chan after she removed her makeup. She looked like a completely different person. Good heavens, those makeup skills were incredible.

The female guests were tempted. They had to learn how to do that.

Wu Chan said, "This is what I really look like. I didn't lie to you. Oh, right, here's my student ID. You can check."

Scared, Wu Chan took the student ID she always kept in her pocket and turned it around for everyone to see. Then she looked at Yang Qi's father, who had brought her here.

"Don't worry," Yang Qi's father said. "You're not in trouble, and we won't make things difficult for you. Sorry for the trouble, but could you tell us why you took this unusual part-time job?"

"Huh? Why? For the money."

"..."

"Sorry. My father means, did you seek out the job yourself, or did someone approach you?"

Realization dawned on Wu Chan. "The eldest Miss Wu approached me. She said my makeup skills were good. She told me Miss Wu was in poor health but wanted to go out and have fun. She was afraid Madam Wu and the others would worry, so she wanted me to stay at home and play Miss Wu on certain days every month."

[Well, well. Should I warn them that Wu Yuan is about to pretend to faint?]

Bo Zhe immediately whipped his head toward Wu Yuan. The moment she showed any sign of fainting, they would rush over to save her.

Bo Miao had somehow gotten hold of an embroidery needle. Fang Yao's eye twitched at the sight.

[Does Bo Miao want to copy Rong Momo from that TV drama and stab someone with an embroidery needle? That's a bit vicious. But I like it. I've decided: I'm keeping this little lackey.]

Bo Miao's eyes lit up. Bo Zhe and the others exchanged glances.

Wu Yuan swayed, then fell straight backward. Fang Yao stepped forward and caught her firmly.

Fang Yao and Wu Yuan stared at each other.

Everyone looked at the two women gazing into each other's eyes. For a moment, the room fell silent.

"Is Young Madam Bo really that strong? Wu Yuan looks heavier than her, but she caught her so easily."

Wu Yuan didn't know whether she should keep pretending to be unconscious. Fang Yao wanted to chop off her own hands. Of all the times for her reflexes to kick in...

"Should I let go of you now?" Fang Yao asked cautiously, starting to release her.

"Thank you, Young Madam Bo..."

They spoke at the same time. Awkward.

Seeing that she was no longer needed, Wu Chan took a tentative step. When the Bodyguards didn't stop her, she broke into a run.

"Oh my god! I'm never taking a part-time job like this again. It nearly killed me." But no sooner had Wu Chan sworn off such work than someone came knocking.

Wu Chan stared, trembling, at the wealthy ladies and their friends before her. Had she lost her memory? Had she taken on some other job she'd forgotten about? She later learned that the ladies wanted to study her makeup techniques.

Wu Chan—just a student—made a fortune doing what she did best.

Mr. Wu wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Chairman Yang, I knew nothing about this. My daughter was being mischievous. I'll find her right away and make her apologize to you both."

"Don't. Unless you can bring Wu Chan back from the Underworld?" Yang Qi's father looked at the Wu family with contempt. They were still fighting a losing battle.

If it were him, he would have admitted everything by now instead of humiliating himself further.

Gong Yong raised his hand. "Uncle Yang, what did you just say?"

Yang Qi's father took one look at Gong Yong's pale face and knew the boy had gotten the wrong idea. He was about to explain when Gong Yong's father stopped him.

A chill ran through the crowd. Even the air seemed to have turned cold.

Gong Yong's father rewarded him with a smack to the forehead. "If you're not clever enough to figure things out, stop making things up in your head. Just listen."

[Exactly. I already said she was one woman with two men. The real Wu Chan has long since gone off to be reborn. Why would she ever be interested in you? Honestly, that brain of his.]

Gong Yong (.;ﾟ;:益:;ﾟ;.) Now I'm angry. I'm good-looking and rich. Why wouldn't she be interested in me?

Bo Zhe and the others had grown numb to it. In this short time alone, they had heard Fang Yao disparage people more times than they could count.