Sang Miao was still immersed in the joy of receiving an unexpected windfall, enjoying the thrill of earning money without effort.
Suddenly, she heard what sounded like visitors arriving downstairs.
When she went down, she saw a teenage boy and girl, both dressed like students, entering through the door.
Shao Ying led them inside.
Seeing her, she took the initiative to inform Sang Miao, “Madam, the young master’s classmates have arrived.”
Ji Zhuoran and Xu Songyue both came from wealthy families.
Their homes weren’t far away, all within the same upscale district, so visiting frequently was a common occurrence.
Especially Ji Zhuoran he couldn’t stand being at home for long and hated being nagged.
So, whenever he had the chance, he would come over.
With few adults around, it was a much more relaxed atmosphere for them.
Just before entering, Ji Zhuoran had seen Meng Xici’s Border Collie chasing an unfamiliar cat outside.
Sinba didn’t even acknowledge him, which gave him a bad feeling.
Sure enough, the moment he stepped inside, he saw Uncle Meng’s rumored wife.
Neither of them had known that Sang Miao had already moved in.
Meng Xici hadn’t mentioned it to them either.
Especially Xu Songyue, who was momentarily stunned.
Ji Zhuoran reacted first.
Without hesitation, he greeted politely, “Hello, Auntie.”
Xu Songyue quickly followed suit.
Sang Miao gave them a warm smile.
“Hello.”
“He’s probably upstairs.
Would you like me to call him down?”
Ji Zhuoran quickly said, “No need, Auntie.
We’ll go up and find him ourselves.”
After spending a semester as classmates, he was already familiar with the place.
The housekeeper and staff were used to his visits.
At that moment, there was a slight sound from the staircase.
Meng Xici saw them and didn’t bother coming downstairs.
He simply motioned for them to head up.
Sang Miao glanced in their direction before returning to her room.
The boy was likely one of Meng Xici’s close friends.
As for the girl she didn’t know her name, but she was probably not the rumored female lead.
The female lead was supposedly a special admission student, academically outstanding but from a modest background.
This girl, however, clearly had the demeanor of a wealthy heiress.
On the third floor, the three of them entered Meng Xici’s study.
Ji Zhuoran flopped onto the sofa, exclaiming, “That gave me a scare.”
Meng Xici found it amusing but remained expressionless.
“Who scared you?”
“Why didn’t you tell me your stepmother was here?”
Ji Zhuoran paused, then confirmed, “That was your stepmother, right?”
Meng Xici found the term a little odd.
But since there wasn’t a better alternative, he just nodded.
Ji Zhuoran had only taken a brief glance earlier, not daring to look too closely.
But from his first impression, this stepmother seemed friendly and was definitely beautiful.
As for her personality he wasn’t one to judge so quickly.
Even at his young age, he had heard enough about the messy affairs of the wealthy.
He preferred to stay cautious.
Compared to him, Xu Songyue was much quieter.
She was a self-proclaimed someone who highly valued appearances.
And she had high standards.
Yet even she had to admit
Uncle Meng’s wife was unreasonably beautiful.
In her young, romantic imagination, Uncle Meng was the epitome of a devoted man.
Even better than the male leads in novels.
In all the years she had known Meng Xici, Uncle Meng had never remarried.
Not even a girlfriend.
At least, she had never heard of any scandals.
She had assumed Meng Xici would grow up to be just like him loyal, responsible, and unwavering.
She had known Meng Xici since childhood.
Back when they were both in Hong Kong.
Later, when he moved to Beicheng with Uncle Meng, she had insisted on transferring schools to follow.
Since Yuli High School had a prestigious reputation, her family had no objections.
She now temporarily lived with her aunt.
Her aunt, Xu Qingyun
From what she had heard from the adults, their family had once intended for her aunt to marry into the Meng family.
They moved in the same social circles, attended the same schools, and shared the same connections.
Her aunt and Uncle Meng had known each other for years.
It was a perfect match ideal in every way.
But then, Uncle Meng had a child and openly declared he had no intention of marrying.
Her aunt had been heartbroken for a long time.
Over the years, she had buried herself in work, showing no interest in romance or marriage.
Her family had long given up trying to persuade her.
Though Xu Songyue was naturally inclined to support her aunt,
She had never thought it was wrong for Uncle Meng not to marry her.
After all, he didn’t marry anyone.
And yet
Suddenly, he had announced his marriage.
To someone this stunning.
If it were a business marriage, it wouldn’t make sense.
She understood how these things worked.
The Sang family’s current situation made them an unlikely candidate for a strategic union.
Which meant the only logical explanation was
Uncle Meng had married for love.
It was human nature.
Yet in her heart, the flawless image she had of him now had a tiny, almost imperceptible crack.
So feelings could change after all.
It was only a matter of time.
Then what about Meng Xici?
If he ever had conflicts with his stepmother
Who would Uncle Meng side with?
Uncle Meng didn’t seem like the type to favor a new wife over his son.
But people were naturally biased.
The future was long.
It was hard to say what would happen.
Ji Zhuoran didn’t understand why Xu Songyue was suddenly so quiet.
She had asked to come along, yet now she looked disinterested.
So he asked, “What’s up with you?”
Xu Songyue, lost in her own thoughts, now found men utterly unreliable.
She didn’t feel like responding to him.
Boys were simple-minded.
They wouldn’t understand the delicate emotions of a young girl.
Ji Zhuoran didn’t care much either way.
He shrugged and turned back to Meng Xici.
“Anyway let me copy your homework.”
Meng Xici: “Get lost.”
Meng Xici usually spent the entire school week on campus.
Although Meng Peisheng had been working at the Beicheng headquarters recently, he usually only returned home late at night.
As a result, Sang Miao living here felt no different from living alone.
If not for the fact that she stayed up late,
She wouldn’t even have known Meng Peisheng had been home at all.
After several days, she finally logged back into her account.
Only to find a flood of new likes and comments.
Casually, Sang Miao scrolled through them.
Such an intense atmosphere!
It really gives off that end-of-the-world vibe!!!
The art style is a bit rough, but this imagination
Is this what they call talent?
Help!
My sanity is dropping fast just looking at this…
Sang Miao thought to herself
She had no particular imagination.
Nor was it talent.
She simply depicted things realistically.
Some even asked if she accepted commissions, which made her chuckle helplessly.
Commercial work?
She wasn’t interested.
Right now, she was feeling inflated
She didn’t want to engage in any physically demanding work in exchange for money.
She just wanted to make easy money while lying down.
Looking at the enthusiastic comments section, Sang Miao inexplicably felt a surge of motivation.
She updated a few more drawings.
Though still a bit rough, this time, they carried a storyline
Almost like a short comic.
On the weekend when Meng Peisheng was away on a business trip,
Meng Xici returned home.
What was surprising was that this time, he wasn’t alone.
A girl of the same age as him had come back with him!
Sang Miao had been playing with the Border Collie on the lawn.
Recently, Sinba’s attitude toward her had improved a lot.
He no longer played tricks on her or bared his teeth.
Nor did he constantly chase after Youyou anymore.
The car that picked up Meng Xici stopped at the main entrance.
Sang Miao saw with her own eyes as an unfamiliar girl stepped out.
Well, to be fair, she had only ever seen one other girl among his friends.
Could this be the female lead ?
But something seemed wrong
The girl’s hair and clothes were soaked.
A large portion of them were dripping wet.
Was it an accident?
Or intentional?
Even though Sang Miao never truly considered herself the lady of this house,
She couldn’t just ignore a situation like this.
She casually tossed the dog’s toy aside, letting him fetch it on his own,
And quickly followed them inside.
Meng Xici glanced at her, hesitating as if he wanted to say something but didn’t.
The girl looked even more reserved upon seeing her.
She seemed unsure of how to greet her.
After all, Sang Miao looked so young
She clearly wasn’t an elder of the household.
After a few seconds of hesitation, the girl cautiously greeted her.
“Hello, sister.”
She had heard about Meng Xici’s father getting married.
But in her nervousness, she hadn’t connected the dots.
Right now, no one was concerned about formalities.
Sang Miao responded amicably before turning to Meng Xici.
Her expression was both questioning and skeptical.
What is going on here??
Did you accidentally drench this poor girl or something?
Meng Xici had never been one to actively engage in conversation with her.
But at this moment, he had no choice.
“Would it be convenient for her to take a shower at your place?
Maybe change into some dry clothes?”
Sang Miao had no objections.
She immediately led the girl to her own room.
The girl suddenly remembered she hadn’t introduced herself yet.
“Sorry to trouble you.
I’m Shen Yu.
I’m in the same class as Meng Xici.”
Sang Miao took her to the bathroom and reassured her.
“Don’t worry.
Take a hot shower first.
I’ll get you some clothes.”
Fortunately, Sang Miao had some new clothes.
Although they were a bit large, they would do.
Even though the car and house were warm,
It was still the middle of winter.
After grabbing the clothes, she instructed the staff to prepare some ginger soup for warmth.
Then, she went to ask Meng Xici what had happened.
This was the first time he had encountered such a situation.
Still, he explained it clearly.
After school, he had just left campus when he saw something.
As the car passed a narrow alley,
He noticed a girl walking along the street.
Then
A bucket of water was dumped over her head.
From his angle, he couldn’t see who had thrown it.
But he did see an exposed arm
Wearing their school uniform.
At the same time, he recognized the girl standing there.
She was one of his classmates.
A girl, drenched from head to toe, standing in the freezing cold.
He couldn’t just ignore it.
So he invited her into the car to take her home.
However, when they arrived at the address she provided
She hesitated.
She didn’t go inside.
She just stood there.
Seeing this, he got out of the car and asked her what was wrong.
Shen Yu hesitated before admitting
She couldn’t go home like this.
It was too humiliating.
Her family would start asking questions.
After weighing his options, Meng Xici decided not to take her to Xu Songyue’s house.
Instead, he brought her here.
If Sang Miao hadn’t been living here now,
Even though Shen Yu and Xu Songyue weren’t in the same class and didn’t know each other,
He would have asked Xu Songyue for help instead.
To avoid misunderstandings,
He made sure to emphasize that he and Shen Yu weren’t close.
In fact, since the semester started, they hadn’t even spoken before today.
Shen Yu was quiet and beautiful
Easily at the school beauty level.
But Sang Miao wasn’t surprised.
She had seen similar situations before.
In elite schools with such stark social divides, bullying wasn’t uncommon.
A girl as well-mannered and pretty as Shen Yu should have been well-liked wherever she went.
So if she was being bullied,
It was probably intentional targeting.
Meng Xici wasn’t good at dealing with girls.
And Shen Yu clearly didn’t want to say much.
So he didn’t press further.
Shen Yu took a quick shower and dried her hair.
Outside, Sang Miao waited.
When she came out, she handed her a cup of warm ginger soup.
“Drink this.”
After Shen Yu finished, Sang Miao asked,
“Why don’t you stay for dinner before heading home?”
Shen Yu shook her head politely.
“No need, sister.
I’ll eat at home.
Thank you both you and Meng Xici.”
Sang Miao didn’t insist.
She arranged for the driver to take Shen Yu home.
Before leaving, Shen Yu said,
“I’ll wash the clothes and return them to you.”
Sang Miao wasn’t concerned about the clothes.
But she could tell that someone like Shen Yu would feel obligated to return them.
So she simply smiled.
“Alright.”
After she left,
Meng Xici also came over to thank her.
Sang Miao had heard enough “thank yous” today to last a lifetime.
She waved him off with a teasing tone.
“Don’t just say it.”
Show it with action, young man!
Meng Xici: “…”
Sang Miao thought the matter would end there.
After all, Shen Yu didn’t seem like the type to seek revenge.
But to her surprise
A few days later
She was summoned to the school.