The Vanishing Beauty - Chapter 5 - 7

Chapter 5 - 7

Out of the blue, Di Lirin sought out Yu Meng and invited her to a private tea room. Upon arrival, Yu Meng discovered that only Lirin was there—Yu Jia was nowhere to be seen. She glanced around left and right, looking as though she were searching for someone.

Lirin chuckled and said, "Stop looking, I didn't invite her."

Yu Meng was puzzled. What sort of business required keeping Yu Jia in the dark? She sat down, and Lirin served her tea. Her instincts told her this spelled trouble.

Luan Chengyun had a good relationship with Old Di; hopefully this wasn't tied to some backdoor political maneuver on that front.

"Spit it out," Yu Meng said, sitting with her spine straight.

"Have some water, drink some water," Lirin said amiably.

"You aren't sent here on behalf of Luan Chengyun, are you?" Yu Meng went straight to the point.

Lirin laughed. "As if he could boss me around! Don't overthink it."

"Then what is this about?"

"Can't I invite you out for a chat without a reason?"

"Oh, my dear high-ranking leader, cut the act."

Lirin still held back, dragging it out.

"Did you have a fight with Yu Jia?" Yu Meng asked. "You want me to play peacemaker?"

"No."

"If you're not going to talk, I'm leaving. I have a facial appointment and can't afford to be late." Yu Meng lowered her gaze to inspect her fingernails.

When it came to skincare and beauty, nothing else mattered.

Fidgeting in his seat, Lirin finally had no choice but to briefly lay out his current predicament and the difficulties he was facing. Yu Meng understood. It essentially boiled down to his patron leaving office; he wanted to jump ship as well, but feared the incoming leadership wouldn't take him along. Still, what was the point of telling her? She neither understood nor cared about such official matters.

So she bluntly replied, "I sympathize. But my reach isn't that long; I can't meddle in government affairs."

Lirin poured a fresh round of tea, replaced Yu Meng's cup, and then, wearing a thick-skinned smile, wheedled, "Could you possibly do me a small favor and put in a good word with Bureau Chief Zu?" Then, shifting to an intensely earnest tone, he added, "Rest assured! I won't let you help for nothing! Teacher Yu, I'm truly out of options here. Just look at my position—stuck midway between heaven and earth..." He called her "Teacher Yu." That was a rare occurrence.

Yu Meng's mind went blank for a split second, feeling as though her brains had been instantly scrambled into paste. How did he know? Had the news of her relationship with Liangcai really reached Di Lirin's ears? Did Yu Jia tell him? No, if Sister Jia had leaked the wind, Lirin wouldn't have come alone; husband and wife coming together to ask for a favor would always carry more weight than a single person. Leaving Yu Jia behind meant Lirin was sparing Yu Meng's face. Word travels fast when walls have ears, and discretion was paramount—he was a bureaucrat through and through, after all.

Yet what was she supposed to make of this? He wanted her to lobby Liangcai—how was she supposed to pull that off? Whisper sweet nothings in his ear? Wouldn't that cement her status as a kept mistress? Dammit! Who the hell was a mistress? She was a girlfriend! Mistress was a derogatory term, a man's contemptuous label for a woman; she wouldn't accept it, she stood in the bright, open light...

As a fierce internal battle raged within her, Yu Meng looked at Di Lirin's hopeful face and suddenly felt a surge of pride. In the past, this "brother-in-law" had been the target of everyone's flattery and fawning; now, he had come to suck up to her simply because she had boarded Liangcai's massive ship. The wheel of fortune turns, and today it landed at her door. The sensation was inexpressible, but undeniably wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. Furthermore, she gained a profound understanding of why Yu Jia had clung so fiercely to Lirin all these years; back in the imperial dynasties, Yu Jia would have been yearning for an official imperial title and formal bestowal. Even so, Yu Meng didn't plan to agree right away, because she didn't yet know Liangcai's stance; she couldn't fight a battle without preparation.

"You've got the wrong person," Yu Meng steadied her mind, holding her teacup to her lips. "Teacher Zu and I are just ordinary acquaintances—" She paused and corrected herself. "Oh, no, ordinary acquaintance isn't even right. Let's call us regular associates." She took a tiny sip and corrected herself again. "No, associates is a stretch. We just know each other."

She called him Teacher Zu. She addressed him that way in private too, deeply admiring Liangcai's profound erudition.

Lirin was stunned. Yu Meng was no pushover. She had framed her own position impeccably. What could he say to that? He couldn't very well blurt out, You two are intimate, you're his mistress! Pillow talk is the most effective weapon. A local official is no match for the person currently in charge.

Lirin pressed on, "Don't you carry plenty of weight when you speak?"

Stretching logic to its absolute limits.

Yu Meng feigned bafflement. "How funny. Why would I carry any weight? Who told you that?"

He had his channels of information, and Yu Jia had dropped hints as well. At Yu Meng's birthday party, someone had sung a song, and their absolute favorite line had been: A woman like you, bringing both joy and sorrow. Yu Jia had hummed that tune for five whole days.

Utterly obsessed.

"When you speak, people love to listen," Lirin was forced to press forward stubbornly.

"Leader, I genuinely can't help you," Yu Meng said with a cheerful smile. "Look at who you are—Sister Jia's husband, a friend of many years. If I could possibly lend a hand, would I hold back?" Seeing that the conversation had hit a dead end, Lirin pulled out his final trick. He sighed heavily, "I thought I was walking the sunny road to prosperity, only to find myself forced down Huarong Trail. Whatever, fate wills it so—if I'm going to die, I'll die." Then, with tear-rimmed eyes, he choked out, "I just feel... I've let down my child, let down Jiajia..."

In an instant, Yu Meng's heart softened. She had been meaning to repair her relationship with Yu Jia; Sister Jia had helped her immensely during that birthday party, and later offered her words of "wisdom." Yu Meng had taken those teachings to heart, ensuring she always had a bed to land on no matter what...

"Alright, fine!" Yu Meng set down her teacup. "Give me the details. I can't make any guarantees, though—you'll need to brace yourself."

Lirin immediately folded forward at the waist. "Please accept this humble scholar's bow!"

Seizing a free moment, the four of them organized a small get-together. Yu Rui arranged it: hotpot at Shuang's place. Both Yu Meng and Yu Jia brought ingredients along. Yu Meng specifically instructed, "Sister Jia, you just buy the vegetables; leave the meats to me." Yu Meng took charge of the protein dishes.

While washing vegetables by the kitchen sink, Yu Meng stood right beside Yu Jia. She didn't mention Lirin approaching her, and Yu Jia didn't bring it up either. Yu Meng assumed Yu Jia still didn't know, yet she felt a lingering sense of unease—she had already whispered in Liangcai's ear and established this connection, which was crucial and rock-solid—and she still hoped Yu Jia would acknowledge this favor from her.

Meeting this time, Yu Jia maintained her usual composed and gentle demeanor. The incident from the birthday party was well in the past, sinking into the ocean like a sunken treasure; Yu Meng wasn't going to fish it up, and Yu Jia certainly wouldn't dredge it up either.

Let bygones be bygones.

Sitting around the table, Yu Meng picked up a slice of rolled mutton and placed it in Yu Jia's bowl.

Yu Jia let out a soft sigh. Yu Rui had just announced her breakup; while Rui seemed unfazed, Jia was worried sick.

"Out with the old, in with the new," Yu Meng encouraged.

Yu Jia said, "I just worry about us—when will any of us ever truly settle down?"

Yu Shuang analyzed the situation through a philosophical lens: "Stagnation is relative, while change is absolute."

Yu Meng reached out and patted Sister Jia's hand consolingly. "You have to make your own fun."

Yu Jia looked at Yu Meng, then at Yu Shuang, and finally turned her gaze to Yu Rui. "Find someone like the guy Yu Shuang found—a university professor, living a quiet, ordinary life." Yu Shuang hastily intervened, "Oh, please no. I never planned on living an ordinary life, and nobody can predict what the future holds."

Yu Rui nodded slightly. Every time Yu Jia spoke like that, it always felt to her like she was trying to play matchmaker for Yu Yi. Yu Yi was destined to be a university professor, much like Kang Long. Yet she simply couldn't stand the thought of it. Even though she knew Yu Yi was innocent, reliable, and a decent marriage prospect, the ordeal with Shi Tongguang had given Yu Rui a much clearer understanding of herself: she adored mature men, successful, mature men.

On this particular issue, she and Yu Meng saw eye to eye.

She was still young and still had opportunities; she wasn't about to enter the mountain of treasures and return empty-handed. Yu Rui felt that despite the heavy losses incurred through Shi Tongguang, it hadn't been a complete waste—her mental resilience had grown tougher, her goals sharper, and her resolve firmer. She was no longer that panicked, naive little girl; she would never settle for second best again.

Yu Rui drifted off into her thoughts.

Yu Jia asked, "What's your plan moving forward?"

Yu Shuang chimed in to answer for her: "Act."

Yu Rui gave a faint smile. "Go audition for casting crews, look for some gigs."

Yu Meng chimed in, "Come to my shop." The other three hurriedly asked what she meant, prompting Yu Meng to reveal that she had partnered with a friend to open a beauty salon. "That person surnamed Weng?" Yu Jia asked. Yu Meng replied that it wasn't her. The others didn't press for details. Yu Shuang continued eating and drinking as if nothing had happened.

Ever since the birthday party, Yu Jia had figured out that Meng's social circles were complicated, so opening a shop came as no surprise. Yu Rui, however, was quite startled. What shocked her wasn't the salon itself, but the fact that Yu Meng had beaten her to the punch. She had schemed and exhausted herself to the bone without managing to launch her shop, yet when it came to Sister Meng, she had effortlessly turned a heavy burden into a feather, pulling off a full-scale beauty salon—and clearly, it was an upscale establishment, not just a tiny boutique.

It had sprung up out of nowhere. Truly staggering.

Yu Meng pressed on, "We're just starting out and desperately short-staffed. Rui, if you're not acting, you simply must come help your Sister Meng out. I've saved the salon manager's position for you."

Yu Rui let out an ambiguous sound. She couldn't very well accept on the spot. Who knew if the woman was just offering polite pleasantries? Being friends was one thing, but stepping into a superior-subordinate dynamic would be deeply uncomfortable. Besides, the role Yu Rui envisioned for herself was that of the boss's wife, not a hired manager.

Yu Meng added, "Though I have to warn you, there won't be any men at my place—beauty treatments are exclusively for female clients." Yu Rui couldn't even muster a smile. Yu Jia felt something was off with the vibe and quickly changed the subject. Ever since her relationship with Lirin had plunged into the deep freeze, she despised hearing anything about men and women; in her eyes, they were all cut from the same corrupt cloth!

As they chatted about other topics, Kang Long was brought up, and Bai Yuankai's name was also tossed into the mix. Yu Shuang shared that Bai Yuankai had achieved yet another milestone: he had cracked some top-one-hundred ranking list, delivered another major speech, and received widespread acclaim, with his lecture reportedly titled "Supreme virtue is like water; tolerance encompasses all." Hearing Bai Yuankai's name brought thoughts of Kunqu opera to Yu Jia's mind, while a faint wave of melancholy washed over Yu Rui. She quickly shoveled food into the spicy broth, as if the heavy, numbing flavors could drown out that sorrow.