Part Two: The First Choice
“For the first time, no one chose for her.
The choice belonged to her alone.”
Half an hour later…
Yu Mingyue walked downstairs.
Everyone looked up instinctively.
Then…
The entire living room fell silent.
Yu Mingyue blinked.
“…Did I wear something strange?”
She looked down at herself.
A simple white dress.
White sneakers.
Her long black hair was tied into a loose ponytail.
Nothing expensive.
Nothing flashy.
Just clean.
Fresh.
Like an ordinary university student.
Yet…
It was the first time they had seen her dressed like this.
Not in loose clothing prepared for hospital visits.
Not in soft sweaters chosen because they were easy to remove during examinations.
Just…
An eighteen-year-old girl.
Gu Mengmeng was the first to react.
She rushed over dramatically.
“Xiao Yue’er!”
“You look so pretty!”
Yu Mingyue laughed shyly.
“…Really?”
“Really!”
Gu Mengmeng circled around her once.
Then frowned.
“…Wait.”
“What?”
“…This isn’t good enough.”
Yu Mingyue looked down again.
“…It isn’t?”
Gu Mengmeng grabbed her wrist.
“We’re going shopping immediately!”
“This wardrobe is officially retired!”
Yu Mingyue looked helplessly toward the three men.
“…Help?”
Lu Yanxi calmly stood up.
“…Let’s go.”
…
Twenty minutes later.
The black luxury SUV slowly came to a stop outside the largest shopping mall in X City.
As soon as Yu Mingyue stepped out…
She froze.
“…”
“…It’s so big.”
Gu Mengmeng proudly nodded.
“Of course!”
“This is the biggest shopping mall in X City.”
Yu Mingyue slowly looked around.
Huge glass walls.
Bright advertisements.
People laughing.
Children running.
Couples holding hands.
The lively atmosphere felt…
Foreign.
Not because she had never visited before.
But because…
The last time she came here…
She had spent most of the trip sitting in a wheelchair.
Her body had been too weak to walk very far.
Back then…
She hadn’t noticed the music.
Or the laughter.
Or the smell of freshly baked bread drifting from the cafés.
She had only noticed how tired she was.
Today…
Everything looked different.
Everything looked…
Alive.
Xiao Bai floated beside her, turning his little head left and right so quickly that he nearly made himself dizzy.
“Host.”
“…Hm?”
“I have detected…”
He paused dramatically.
“…Four hundred and twelve retail stores.”
Yu Mingyue blinked.
“…You counted?”
“I am still counting.”
“…Why?”
“I wish to understand human civilization.”
Yu Mingyue smiled.
“You’ll regret it.”
“…Impossible.”
Five minutes later…
Xiao Bai stopped in front of a cosmetics shop.
“…Host.”
“What?”
“…Why are there seventeen stores selling nearly identical lipsticks?”
Yu Mingyue looked inside.
Then at Xiao Bai.
She smiled mysteriously.
“…That’s one of humanity’s greatest mysteries.”
“…”
“…Even the Main God Space cannot explain it?”
“I’m afraid not.”
Xiao Bai silently wrote something in his tiny notebook.
Earth Mystery No.
1
Human females require seventeen thousand shades of the same color.
Yu Mingyue nearly burst into laughter.
…
Meanwhile…
The three men quietly followed behind.
Each carrying absolutely nothing.
Yet.
Gu Mengmeng suddenly stopped.
She slowly turned around.
Looked at the three of them.
Then looked at Yu Mingyue.
“…”
“…Can I ask a question?”
Yu Mingyue nodded.
“What is it?”
“…Why are they following us?”
The three men answered almost simultaneously.
“Shopping.”
Gu Mengmeng stared.
“…Together?”
“Yes.”
“You’ve never liked shopping.”
Silence.
Lu Yanxi calmly answered.
“…People change.”
Xie Chengyi nodded once.
“…Apparently.”
Gu Mingzhe adjusted his glasses.
“…Fresh air is beneficial.”
Gu Mengmeng looked completely unconvinced.
She leaned close to Yu Mingyue and whispered,
“…They’re lying.”
Yu Mingyue whispered back,
“…I know.”
The two girls immediately covered their mouths, trying not to laugh.
…
Their first stop…
A clothing boutique.
The moment they stepped inside…
Several shop assistants immediately smiled politely.
“Welcome.”
Gu Mengmeng’s eyes sparkled.
“Xiao Yue’er!”
“Today…”
“We’re changing your entire wardrobe!”
Yu Mingyue laughed nervously.
“…Isn’t that a little excessive?”
“No.”
“You’ve missed eight years of shopping.”
“…That’s impossible to catch up in one day.”
“Then we’ll start today.”
Before Yu Mingyue could protest…
She was gently pushed toward the racks.
Rows upon rows of beautiful dresses stretched before her.
Soft pastel colors.
Elegant long dresses.
Casual outfits.
Everything.
She looked around quietly.
Then…
Stopped in front of a simple light-blue dress.
Not because it was the most beautiful.
Not because it was expensive.
Because…
It reminded her of the clear sky she had admired from her hospital window.
Gu Mengmeng noticed.
“You like this one?”
Yu Mingyue gently touched the fabric.
“…I think so.”
“You think?”
Yu Mingyue smiled sheepishly.
“…I’m still learning what I like.”
Gu Mengmeng’s expression softened.
She wrapped one arm around Yu Mingyue’s shoulders.
“Then don’t worry.”
“We have plenty of time.”
Yu Mingyue looked at her best friend.
Then smiled.
“…Yeah.”
“…We have plenty of time.”
Several meters away…
The three men quietly watched.
No one interrupted.
No one suggested another dress.
Because they all understood…
This wasn’t about buying clothes.
It was about something much more important.
For the first time…
Yu Mingyue was choosing her future with her own hands.
Outside the boutique…
A young woman walking past suddenly stopped.
She stared through the glass window.
Her shopping bags slipped slightly in her hands.
“…”
“…That girl…”
She took one hesitant step closer.
“…No…”
“…It can’t be…”
Her hands trembled as she slowly reached for her phone.