Jiang Wenwen's face paled and she hastily stood up. She smiled and explained, "Auntie, you misunderstood. We were only joking."
"Yes, yes, yes. It was only a joke." Mu Yu laughed unnaturally.
Hu Meiling eyed her closely and asked, "Was it Xiao Qi? If he kissed and touched you, he must bear the responsibility!"
Mu Yu was shocked. She shook her head vigorously and denied, "No, no, mum. We were really just joking! Don't take it seriously!"
If her mother hunted down Xiao Qi to demand that he bear responsibility, her reputation would be gone.
Moreover, she had every reason to believe that her mother would do exactly that, since she was eager for Mu Yu to get married as soon as possible.
"Was it really just a joke?"
"Yes, of course it was a joke!" Mu Yu and Jiang Wenwen replied in unison.
Hu Meiling was furious. "How can you joke about something like this? You are girls! This is ridiculous!"
Jiang Wenwen wiped her sweat and apologized, "Auntie, I'm sorry. It's my fault."
Hu Meiling glared at them and showed Jiang Wenwen the door. "It's getting late. You should make a move. It's not safe for a girl to walk alone at night."
"Okay. Thank you auntie for your concern." Jiang Wenwen hopped off the bed and put on her shoes.
"Hey, Wenwen!"
As Jiang Wenwen put on her shoes and hit the road, Mu Yu chided her mother in a low voice, "Mum, Wenwen was only joking. Why are you taking it so seriously?"
Hu Meiling glared at her fiercely. "Stop interacting with these kinds of people. You have no idea what dirty thoughts they have!"
"Mum, don't talk about Wenwen like that. She was just..."
"Enough nonsense. I'm warning you, if you want to date, find a decent man to date. Don't go running off with some lousy stranger that will ruin the reputation of the Mu family. I'll break your legs if you do that! Hmph!"
Hu Meiling stomped out angrily, slamming the door with a loud bang.
Mu Yu looked helplessly at her innocent room door. Quickly, she sent her best friend a message to apologize.
Not long after, she received a reply. "It's okay, I was planning to leave anyway. However, I reiterate my advice. Xin Yihan is getting married. Stop thinking of him and use all twenty-four of your summon cards wisely. You're such a pretty girl. Who knows? Young Master Qin might fall for you."
Mu Yu could not muster the energy to reply so she threw the phone onto the bed. She stood in front of Mu and stared intensely at him, as if she were staring at Xin Yihan, whom she had always held in her heart. She felt a pang of sadness and tears began to flow.
How should she honor the loss of her secret love?
How would she smile while giving Brother Yihan her blessing?
The sound insulation in her house was bad. Therefore, to keep her parents from worrying, she hid under her blanket to cry.
She tossed and turned throughout the night, unable to sleep.
Early the next morning, Mu Yu turned up for work with dark circles under her eyes.
She had a feeling that some of her colleagues were talking about her behind her back and knew that they were rumors linked to that wily old fox. However, she understood that 'a fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool'. Besides, her mood was horrible and she couldn't be bothered. Throughout the day, she did not step out of the Forensic Lab other than for a quick lunch. She poured her heart into helping Feng Ruibing organize her documents.
Time would fly when one was busy. By the time Feng Rubing bid her goodbye, it was already the end of the work day. Stretching out lazily, Mu Yu packed her things and readied herself to leave. Just then, her phone rang. According to the caller ID, it was the wily old fox. Her good mood instantly plunged into despair, as she answered the call reluctantly.
"Come to Gloria Hotel Room 8088 and meet me before half past six."
Qin Jinhuan's words left Mu Yu puzzled. She quickly asked, "Is it because of your grandfather."
Seriously, he hung up? She hadn't even finished her sentence!
Before half past six?
She looked at her watch and saw that it was already five minutes past six. She jumped and called her mother, lying that she had to put in overtime hours at the Forensic Lab. Then, she grabbed her bag and ran out of the door.
The journey from her workplace to Gloria Hotel took 20 minutes on her scooter, if there was no traffic jam. Unfortunately, it was rush hour now.
She raced her scooter all the way to the hotel. It was already 6:33 pm by the time she arrived at Room 8088 of Gloria Hotel. Her heart beat anxiously as she knocked on the door.
The door opened to Qin Jinhuan in a bathrobe with his hair dripping wet. He obviously just got out of the shower. She was a little confused. But before she could say anything, Qin Jinhuan had already ordered her into the room.
Mu Yu's gut told her something was wrong. She was hesitant about entering the room. Staying by the door, she smiled and said, "Your grandfather, is he..."
But before she could finish, Qin Jinhua dragged her into the room.