Shen Qingqing finished recording a short video. Seeing that Lu Kai and Shen Baiyun were still busy pursuing their “romantic endeavor,” she curled her lips in disdain and turned to leave.
Following the path she had taken earlier, Shen Qingqing looked around as she walked back.
It was midsummer. The sky was a clear, bright blue, and cicadas chirped noisily all around.
“Hey! Qingqing, you’re here?”
“Have you seen… Lu Kai?”
Wang Lanhua was anxiously searching everywhere for Lu Kai. Deep down she was extremely worried. The old master would soon return from the front hall, and if Lu Kai wasn’t present, it would surely lower the old man’s opinion of him.
Hearing this, Shen Qingqing stepped forward, smiling as she supported Wang Lanhua and said, “Mother-in-law I just saw Brother Lu Kai and my younger sister. They were heading toward the lotus pond together…”
To reach the grape arbor, one had to pass by the lotus pond anyway, so what Shen Qingqing said wasn’t technically wrong.
Hearing this, Wang Lanhua felt a surge of anger, and her impression of Shen Baiyun dropped even further.
She didn’t even bother to look at Shen Qingqing before turning and heading straight toward the lotus pond.
Seeing this, how could Shen Qingqing let her go so easily?
Looking around, Shen Qingqing noticed a black cat lazily lying on the stone steps. An idea immediately came to her mind.
This was the old master’s beloved pet cat. If it were to…
Thinking this, Shen Qingqing reached out and grabbed the black cat by the back of its neck.
“Meow! Meow! Meow!”
The black cat struggled in her hand. Shen Qingqing watched it for a moment, then suddenly seemed to realize something. The corner of her lips curled slightly.
“Little System, stop pretending.”
“Meow, meow!”
A hint of human-like surprise flashed in the black cat’s eyes.
Yet it still refused to admit anything and struggled even harder.
Seeing this, Shen Qingqing smiled faintly and said, “Although I don’t know why you dragged me into this mission world again, you don’t want me to fail the mission either, right?”
The black cat stopped struggling.
Shen Qingqing parted her lips slightly and said, “Alright then. Go bump that Wang Lanhua into the lotus pond. I’m sure you can do it.”
But if I do that, I won’t be able to appear in this mission world to help you anymore.
The system’s voice suddenly sounded in Shen Qingqing’s mind.
“Who needs your help? All you ever do is eat sunflower seeds, watch the show, and drag me down!”
“Stop talking nonsense. Go already!”
At this moment, Shen Qingqing didn’t want to see System No. 06 even for a second, afraid she might lose control and skin it alive.
Okay.
The black cat finally lifted its eyes. They clearly seemed to say: I feel wronged, but I won’t say it.
Seeing that Shen Qingqing was unmoved, it lightly jumped down.
Meanwhile, Wang Lanhua was walking forward while clutching her handkerchief and cursing Shen Baiyun as a “little vixen.” After a few steps, she arrived by the lotus pond.
But she didn’t see Lu Kai or Shen Baiyun anywhere.
Just as she was about to look around again.
A black cat suddenly darted out from behind her. Before Wang Lanhua could react, her foot slipped and she fell into the lotus pond with a loud splash.
As for the black cat, its eyes suddenly became blank.
Why had it just run into that two-legged creature?
Never mind. Better hide quickly.
Hidden behind a cluster of flowers, Shen Qingqing chuckled softly.
Sure enough what a good show!
The water in the lotus pond wasn’t deep, and there were floating bamboo poles and other debris in it. Wang Lanhua, after all, was a wealthy lady who had learned various swimming techniques.
She quickly grabbed hold of a bamboo pole. But because her foot was injured and her palm was still aching from cactus thorns, she struggled for quite a while and still couldn’t climb out.
When she checked her phone, it had already been soaked with water.
Wang Lanhua immediately fell into despair and had no choice but to shout loudly for help, completely disregarding her dignity.
However, today was Old Master Lu’s birthday banquet. All the servants were busy cooking and receiving guests who had time to pay attention to this place?
Listening to the hoarse cries behind her, Shen Qingqing slowly walked back to the main hall.
The moment she pushed the door open, everyone inside turned to look at her.
Old Master Lu had just been helped into his grand chair by the butler. Seeing a strange woman push open the door and walk in, he felt a hint of displeasure.
He coldly asked, “Who are you?”
Beside him, the second branch’s daughter-in-law Zhou Liuer who had been extremely friendly with Wang Lanhua earlier, secretly rejoiced upon hearing this and spoke up.
“Old Master, you may not know this, but this is Lu Qianshan’s new wife!”
“Shen Qingqing, why don’t you hurry up and greet the old master?”
Old Master Lu waved his hand. “No need.”
But he had already figured it out in his mind it was the Shen family’s real daughter who had come from the countryside.
Seeing this, Shen Qingqing didn’t even bother to bow. In the original storyline, Old Master Lu had always turned a blind eye to the original host’s suffering. Later, when she sought his help, he even drove her out of the Lu residence.
Such a person wasn’t worthy of her respect.
So she simply sat down directly at the banquet table.
Old Master Lu frowned but didn’t say anything. Then he looked around and realized that Wang Lanhua and Lu Kai were nowhere to be seen.
His brows knitted together as he asked, “Where are the eldest daughter-in-law and Kai’er?”
Zhou Liuer secretly rejoiced. Her chance had come.
She immediately poked Shen Qingqing and said, “Qingqing, your mother-in-law said she went out to find you. Now that you’re back, why hasn’t she returned?”
Shen Qingqing raised her head in response. “Accidentally,” she knocked the glass chopsticks to the ground.
Hearing the noise, Old Master Lu turned his head and suppressed the anger in his heart.
“What happened?”
Meeting his gaze, Shen Qingqing hid the smile in her eyes, lowered her head, and stood up.
“I’m from the countryside and not very good at speaking. Please understand.”
When she finished speaking, Zhou Liuer covered her mouth and laughed.
“Just tell us what happened!”
Only then did Shen Qingqing say, “When I went out, I saw Lu Kai and my younger sister Shen Baiyun passing by the lotus pond.”
“Then I watched the fish for a while, and I heard someone near the grape arbor watching that kind of… video. The sound was really loud!”
“So I came back. Then I ran into Mother-in-law. She was looking for Lu Kai, so I pointed her the way and returned.”
As soon as Shen Qingqing finished speaking, the entire hall fell silent.
Everyone had lived in the Lu family for years anyone could tell there was something suspicious about it.
Zhou Liuer was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed.
“What kind of sound was it?”
Shen Qingqing pretended to hesitate for a moment before imitating it in a very convincing manner.
“Like this…”
“Mm~ ah~ ah~ brother, so fast~ ah~ ah~”
“I don’t know what it means.”
After finishing, Shen Qingqing suppressed a laugh and glanced at Old Master Lu.
Indeed his face had turned pale one moment and green the next, his brows twisted like a rope.
Suddenly, in the silence of the hall, Old Master Lu slammed the table.
“Lu Qingshan!”
Lu Qingshan, whose name had been called, quickly stood up respectfully.
“Father.”
Seeing his timid demeanor, Old Master Lu felt both anger and disappointment. He grabbed the teacup from the table and threw it, smashing it at Lu Qingshan’s feet.
Then he said coldly, “All of you, come with me and see exactly what kind of situation could cause the eldest daughter-in-law and the eldest grandson of the Lu family to miss the birthday banquet for so long!”
Everyone responded in unison.
A large group followed Old Master Lu out.
Shen Qingqing walked at the very back of the crowd, unhurriedly following along while munching on a piece of Hami melon she had taken from the table.
Watching a show without snacks? Impossible.
Although Old Master Lu was advanced in age, his wealthy lifestyle had kept him vigorous. With anger burning in his heart, he walked especially fast.
Before long, the group had arrived at the lotus pond.
There they saw Wang Lanhua soaking in the water. Because of the intense summer heat and everything that had happened today, she was already feeling dizzy and faint.
Old Master Lu only glanced at her once. A faint smell drifted through the air, causing his expression to change slightly. Then he continued walking toward the grape arbor.
At that moment, Lu Kai had just climbed off Shen Baiyun. His body was drenched in sweat, with red scratch marks across his back.
Shen Baiyun’s clothes were in disarray. Her princess dress had been torn, her hair messy, and her neck covered in kiss marks and bite marks. She gazed at the man’s profile with hazy eyes, secretly delighted.
She had never expected that Lu Kai who hadn’t touched her since their one-night encounter would do so again now… and in such a setting.
Under the small grape arbor, the ambiguous atmosphere began to build again. Breathing in the fragrance of flowers in the air, Lu Kai felt his desire surge as he looked at Shen Baiyun in such a state.
Just as he was about to make another move and reached out to pull Shen Baiyun.
A furious shout suddenly rang out.
“Enough!”