I Don’t Want to Be the Heroine Anymore - Chapter 9

Autumn, beyond the riot of reds, oranges, yellows, and greens blanketing the ground, brought forth the city’s lively yet delicate women.

Mang Ke was not one for crowds—a better way to put it would be with two simple words: homebody.

Or perhaps—socially anxious.

In any case, Mang Ke rarely enjoyed going out. She found comfort only in the familiar confines of her small room at home. After all, no golden nest or silver nest could compare to her own humble little burrow.

But Mang Ke had neither a job nor friends, so when Yue Yin invited her to a wealthy ladies’ tea party, she hesitated for a long time before finally agreeing.

It was the perfect opportunity to take Xun Fangyun’s supplementary credit card out for a spin, shopping for clothes. The money in the book wasn’t real anyway, and besides…

Mang Ke scratched her head, her cheeks flushing.

Besides, wasn’t she broke? Spending Xun Fangyun’s money was just doing her a favor—otherwise, with so much money lying around, how would it ever get used up?

Thinking this way, Mang Ke concluded that she was truly a beautiful, kind, warm-hearted, gentle, and considerate heroine!

Xun Fangyun wasn’t home today, so Aunt Liu helped Mang Ke prepare a few things, fetching a decent-looking bag from the walk-in closet.

“Last time, Miss Xun told me this bag cost over twenty thousand,” Aunt Liu said to Mang Ke. “I don’t understand why anyone would buy such an expensive bag, but since you ladies care about appearances when you go out, these little accessories can’t be overlooked.”

Mang Ke nodded, eyeing the unremarkable little square bag before lifting it to test how it felt in her hand.

It actually matched quite well with her outfit for the day.

After that, Aunt Liu handed her some tissues and other essentials before finally sending her off.

Leaving the house, Mang Ke hailed a cab and soon arrived at the shopping center where she had agreed to meet Yue Yin.

Standing by the roadside with her bag in hand, Mang Ke waited as sunlight spilled over her, stretching her shadow long behind her.

On this crisp autumn day, the entire street was fragrant with osmanthus blossoms.

The sweet scent in the air made Mang Ke tilt her head back slightly, the breeze brushing past her cheeks, leaving behind delicate traces of fragrance.

When Yue Yin rolled down the car window, what she saw was a girl in a pale yellow dress standing bathed in sunlight, the wind tousling her chestnut-brown hair. Above her, osmanthus branches swayed, scattering golden petals across the ground.

The scene was so lovely that Yue Yin couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy.

It was a charm she herself lacked—a sweetness that, in every sense, suited Mang Ke perfectly. This adorable little rabbit was, in this world, a character meant to be doted upon.

Resting her chin in her hand, Yue Yin was reluctant to interrupt such a beautiful sight.

But the tea party had already started long ago, and if they didn’t hurry, they might as well head straight home.

Beep beep—

Mang Ke heard the crisp honk of a black sports car across the street. Turning, she spotted the woman in the driver’s seat waving at her.

Since Yue Yin couldn’t step out, she gestured for Mang Ke to come over quickly.

Mang Ke nodded, carefully weaving through the traffic before stopping by the car with a soft smile. “You’re here~”

Yue Yin looked at Mang Ke’s sweet smile with satisfaction and nodded, saying, “You’ve been waiting a long time, haven’t you? My status makes it inconvenient for me to appear, so I’m always a bit late. I forgot to mention that to you.”

“Not too long. Your job isn’t easy, so it’s understandable that you’d need to lay low.”

“It’s alright, it’s alright. Being Xun Fangyun’s secretary can’t be easy for you either.”

“…Ah, yeah, it’s not easy at all.”

Yue Yin tapped on the car door and said, “Let’s not chat on the street. Get in, and let’s go.”

“Go?” Mang Ke was puzzled. “Aren’t we staying here?”

“We need to go a bit further in. Come on, I’ll take you there.”

“Oh.”

Opening the car door and getting in, Mang Ke completely failed to notice the group of people walking straight out of the mall behind her.

Xun Fangyun, spotting the familiar car in the distance and the equally familiar figure getting into it, immediately darkened in expression.

The assistant beside her naturally saw it too and instinctively remarked, “Isn’t that Miss Yue Yin’s car? Who was that just now?”

A manager who knew how to read the boss’s expression pinched her and quickly interjected, “You must be mistaken. Miss Yue Yin is so busy—why would she come out shopping?”

“Ah? Was I mistaken?”

“Of course. (Through gritted teeth)”

“Oh, oh, I must have been mistaken. I’ve been seeing things wrong a lot lately—maybe my prescription needs updating…”

Before she could finish, the boss cut her off.

“Enough, stop talking.” Xun Fangyun turned to the group and said, “Go check with Yue Yin’s assistant. Ask what her schedule is today and why she came here.”

Instantly, no one dared to make a sound.

The boss personally catching her first love getting into a car with another woman—what was this?

Round it off, and wasn’t this basically catching someone in the act?!

This was… way too intense!

———

Meanwhile, Yue Yin parked the car in an underground lot, then got out with Mang Ke and took an elevator straight up to the top floor.

At the highest point of this commercial district was a luxurious greenhouse restaurant, where today’s tea party was being held.

Though called a tea party, it was really just a gathering of wealthy women chatting about life’s trivialities and showing off their husbands and kids, while networking with other socialites and dignitaries to expand their connections.

The top-tier social circle was actually quite small, with everyone’s lives overlapping significantly. Whether celebrities or dignitaries, beneath their glamorous exteriors, they were all just ordinary people. Taking a break to chat in an expensive restaurant now and then was perfectly reasonable.

When Yue Yin arrived with Mang Ke, some of her acquaintances came over to greet them. At first glance, they were all slightly taken aback by Mang Ke.

“So this is your friend, Yue Yin?”

A woman with long black curls looked at Mang Ke and said with a light laugh, “I heard about her from Mrs. Hu. She’s really beautiful—no wonder you’re so protective of her.”

Yue Yin replied, “It’s nothing like that. Mang Ke and I are just ordinary friends. Mrs. Hu exaggerated.”

“Oh, she just talks too much, but she means no harm. Don’t hold it against her.”

“Not at all. Mrs. Hu and I get along well—we even had dinner together last time.”

After exchanging a few more words, they ushered Yue Yin and Mang Ke to their seats.

In the eyes of these wealthy women, being an entertainer wasn’t exactly a prestigious profession, so Yue Yin couldn’t claim the seat of honor among them. Instead, she sat toward the edge, just like Mang Ke.

Mang Ke sat down cautiously, eyeing the delicate pastries arranged on the white porcelain plates in front of her. She wasn’t sure if they were meant to be eaten, but given her status as a newcomer, she refrained from touching them.

“We seem to have a new face today,” the woman sitting across from Mang Ke remarked with a light laugh, studying her. “May I ask which family you’re from?”

Mang Ke shifted uncomfortably. “I came with Yue Yin…”

“Oh, a friend,” the woman said, smiling at Yue Yin. “I’d heard you’ve made a new close friend recently—even took her out to dinner. I didn’t expect you to bring her to our gathering today.”

Yue Yin chuckled in response. “That’s right. Mang Ke is both lovely and well-mannered. I’d love to take her everywhere with me.”

Mang Ke glanced at the woman beside her in confusion but didn’t dare speak up.

She had only shared one meal with Yue Yin—how did everyone already know about it?

The socialite circle really was too small.