His Beloved Treasure

”It really is her!”

Wen Runuan muttered to herself, her voice tinged with disbelief, her eyes filled with skepticism.

Qin Mu stood silently, her gaze fixed on the two figures upstairs, both of whom had their backs to her, heads lowered as if whispering about something.

Qin Mu couldn’t decipher it but felt as though there was a compelling story behind it.

”But if that’s not the second young master of the Shen Family, then who is it?”

Wen Runuan looked upstairs, noting the broad shoulders of the man. He didn’t resemble the Shen Family’s second young master she knew.

However, if Wen Runuan didn’t recognize him, then Qin Mu had even less of an idea who he might be.

When the people upstairs turned around and inadvertently noticed someone watching them from downstairs, they couldn’t help but freeze for a moment in surprise.

Soon after, the woman exchanged a quick word with the gentleman and began descending the stairs.

Wen Runuan was sipping juice through a straw. As she caught sight of the woman approaching, her brows arched in astonishment.

”Miss Wen! Oh, wait! I should call you Mrs. Zhang now!”

The second young lady from the Shen Family hadn’t expected that the person seated with Qin Mu was Wen Runuan and greeted her politely first.

”I’d be happier if you just called me Miss Wen!”

Wen Runuan set down her straw, stood up, and said, ”Long time no see! Madam Shen, you look splendid today.”

”It’s all thanks to the lady beside you!”

The woman whom Wen Runuan addressed as Madam Shen plainly didn’t like the title but still maintained her smile.

Wen Runuan glanced at Qin Mu and introduced her, ”She’s no mere lady. She’s the hottest fashion designer in the past two years and also the beloved of Master Chen!”

Qin Mu, standing awkwardly to the side, lightly moistened her dry lips and smiled, ”I’m Qin Mu.”

So many titles weren’t necessary. If introductions were a must, knowing each other’s names and professions was quite enough for the three women.

”I’m Hu Xiaoyan!”

Hu Xiaoyan extended her hand toward Qin Mu. In that moment, she wasn’t the elegant young wife or someone’s former lover but merely a self-assured woman.

She was slightly surprised upon learning Qin Mu’s identity but shared the same independent nature as both Qin Mu and Wen Runuan.

After a few more exchanges, Hu Xiaoyan was about to order a glass of red wine when she noticed her husband walking up the stairs. She promptly set her wine glass down. ”My husband’s here; I’ll be off!”

Only then did Wen Runuan and Qin Mu realize that her husband had shown up so late.

Qin Mu recalled how, back at the shop, Hu Xiaoyan had anxiously mentioned an eleven-thirty dinner meeting. Yet now, it was already half-past midnight.

And just now, Hu Xiaoyan had been upstairs conversing with that male friend for quite some time. What could have caused the Shen Family’s second master to be so late?

Qin Mu thought that perhaps she’d been too idle recently, growing overly curious about other people’s affairs.

When the second young master of the Shen Family saw his wife in an elegant pale blue cheongsam walking up to him, his expression subtly shifted. Clearly, he hadn’t expected her to be dressed like that.

”New outfit?”

As Hu Xiaoyan took his arm and walked upstairs with him, the second young master asked in a low voice, his gaze carrying a hint of defiance.

”Of course! I wouldn’t want to embarrass you!”

Hu Xiaoyan boldly met his stare, as if to say that even if his eyes harbored blades, and those blades pierced her heart during their exchange, she wouldn’t flinch.

The second young master said nothing further, allowing her to hold his arm as they went upstairs together.

The gentleman had already been waiting in the private room.

This dinner gathering consisted of only three people.

The second young master had told Hu Xiaoyan it was for a group of ten or more people, yet...

Whether the second young master had deliberately orchestrated this situation, the two people reunited in that private room both understood in their hearts.

Hu Xiaoyan now felt fortunate that she and the man had left the private room to chat and even more fortunate to have run into Qin Mu and Wen Runuan, sparing her from an extended awkward encounter with that man.

After dinner, Wen Runuan received a call from Mr. Zhang and had to return to the office to handle a dispute among her performers. Before leaving, she slung her bag over her shoulder and said to Qin Mu, ”It seems like I hold a title, but I’m worse off than a nanny. A nanny just has to clean up, but I have to deal with these bickering female artists—and I can’t just sit by and watch the drama.”

Qin Mu couldn’t help but laugh. ”Go on! Maybe next time we meet, you’ll have some juicy scoop about some famous artist’s scandalously indulgent private life.”

”Hmph! I won’t let you down! Bye-bye!”

In a rush to resolve the conflict, Wen Runuan didn’t linger and quickly left.

Qin Mu then headed to Mr. Mu’s office on her own.

Hmm!

Mr. Mu wasn’t there, which suited her just fine.

Standing by his grand desk made of premium wood, Qin Mu gently ran her fingers over its surface. Unconsciously, she walked a full circle around it.