Chapter 115: Styling
“Happy New Year, Xie Xian.”
Gu Wanrong returned the same holiday greeting to Xie Xian. Over the phone, he could clearly hear her hurried, unsteady breathing from running all the way from her bedroom to the attic in the West Courtyard against the cold wind.
Shoo—Shoo—Shoo
Bang—Bang—Bang
Overhead, fireworks bloomed in succession. It felt as if that affectionate, low “Happy New Year” was still echoing in her ear.
The phone vibrated in her hand a few times. It was a voice message from Yu Yingying: “Yuanyuan, look at the fireworks, quick!”
In this moment, the biting winter and lonely night were dispersed by the brilliant fireworks, their lingering warmth seemingly within reach.
The temperature in the attic gradually rose. Turning around, she saw Butler Liu and Tong Shenba standing behind her, unnoticed. On the attic of the Xie family’s old house opposite was Yu Yingying waving happily at her, and the tall, upright figure of Xie Xian.
Thousands of fireworks bloomed in the night sky. Under the night sky were travelers who had found their belonging, their hearts truly settling in this world at this moment.
The next morning, the stylist Pi Ling, hired by Butler Liu, arrived at the Gu Residence.
Gu Wanrong had all the jewelry and dresses; she just needed the stylist to coordinate and create a look.
She changed into the green velvet long dress selected yesterday. Behind her, Pi Ling was scrutinizing Gu Wanrong’s face in the mirror, contemplating how to apply makeup to this flawless face.
Pi Ling was a well-known hairstylist and makeup artist in the industry.
She had done red carpet styling for many film queens and TV queens, almost always receiving praise for maximizing their temperament and beauty. The image design studio she opened had stars, big and small, lining up for her touch.
After her fame rose, it wasn’t just industry stars seeking her styling designs; more often, it was wives, young ladies, CEOs, and directors from various families.
Pi Ling looked at Gu Wanrong in the mirror, catching glimpses of priceless jewelry in her peripheral vision, and she couldn’t help but be dazed.
During this three-day New Year holiday, she originally just wanted to rest and relax. But a middle-aged woman calling herself Tong, a Butler Liu, came to her door—very strange. This Butler Liu was full of sincerity and offered a substantial sum. Thinking it was just within Four Nine City, she agreed.
On January 2nd, which was today, at 9:30 AM, Pi Ling arrived at Qingnan Hutong with her three apprentices.
From the moment she entered Qingnan Hutong, Pi Ling’s heart lifted. Looking out the car window, she saw a plaque with the dignified characters “Gu Residence” hanging above the vermilion heavy door.
Getting out of the car, the vermilion door opened from the inside. A woman dressed appropriately as a servant welcomed the four of them into the Siheyuan politely and amiably. The car she drove was taken by another servant to be parked in the garage.
Following the maid along the way, seeing the carved beams and painted rafters, the seasonal landscaping, and the dustless cleanliness everywhere, a thought involuntarily rose in Pi Ling’s mind: “Does a family like this really lack a stylist like me?”
Entering the owner’s courtyard, the maid withdrew, and Butler Liu, who had contacted her earlier, led her into the East Wing.
Inside, a young girl changed into a dress sat on the sofa. Her loose hair covered the cheek facing the door, and her fingers swiped across her phone screen, seemingly reading a novel.
“Miss, this is Ms. Pi Ling and her three apprentices.” Butler Liu knocked on the door and only entered the cloakroom after hearing “Please come in.”
“I leave today’s styling to you.” Gu Wanrong put down her phone and looked up from the sofa at Pi Ling.
Pi Ling’s heart, which had been rising constantly along the way, suddenly skipped a beat the moment she saw Gu Wanrong clearly. In her many years in the industry, serving countless stars famous for their beauty and figures, she realized many couldn’t compare to the young girl before her.
Exquisite features and a superior figure converged on one person. Her beauty transcended age, a perfect visage capable of unifying everyone’s aesthetic standards.
Dazed, Pi Ling’s gaze returned to Gu Wanrong’s face.
Up close, she could see Gu Wanrong’s fair, flawless skin even better. With the winter sunlight shining through the window, even the tiny peach fuzz on her face was visible.
Pi Ling was in a dilemma; she really didn’t know where to start with this makeup. Every feature on Gu Wanrong’s face was just right—one bit more was too much, one bit less was too little.
Pi Ling took a deep breath to steady herself, opened her makeup case, and decided to apply a layer of foundation to Gu Wanrong first. She picked up a puff, lightly dipped it in some liquid foundation, and carefully applied it to Gu Wanrong’s face.
As the foundation covered her, Gu Wanrong’s skin looked even smoother and more delicate, like porcelain. Pi Ling sighed inwardly; such perfect skin truly didn’t need much modification.
The eyeshadow and blush were selected in nude pink tones, deepening slightly at the tail of the eyes, merely adding a flush of health from within to Gu Wanrong’s face.
Next, Pi Ling selected a cinnamon pink lipstick and applied it lightly to Gu Wanrong’s lips. The color was very natural, adding a hint of complexion without stealing away her original beauty.
After finishing the makeup, Pi Ling stepped back to admire her work. Under the enhancement of the makeup, Gu Wanrong appeared exceptionally beautiful, yet Pi Ling didn’t know how to evaluate her work this time. Even exerting her full effort, she had merely made the made-up Gu Wanrong equal to the bare-faced Gu Wanrong.
Next came the hairstyle. With her apprentices’ assistance, she combed the hair low behind the head into a secure low bun. The baby hairs on the forehead were sprayed with hairspray using a small comb, fixed into a casual, lazy look.
Finally, she picked out the necklace, earrings, and rings to be worn today from Gu Wanrong’s collection of magnificent jewelry.
Before the full-length mirror, Gu Wanrong had completed the entire look.
Clad in a dark green velvet long dress, it draped freely from the waist down to the ankles. From the waist, it folded inward and upward, finally gathering at the chest to form a square neckline. Long sleeves on both sides wrapped her arms.
The dress’s overall cut was slender but didn’t cling tightly to the body. As she moved, black high heels were faintly visible beneath, outlining her graceful figure.
The square-necked dress revealed a large expanse of fair, smooth skin on her neck and chest, adorned with a red jade necklace. A red gemstone hung long on her chest from a string of red jade and diamond beads.
Her ears and hands were similarly adorned with red jewelry, made into studs and rings worn on her ears and fingers.
Under this combination, the two strikingly bright colors of red and green merged and intersected, appearing exceptionally noble and imposing. Yet, all this merely added a touch of brightness to Gu Wanrong.
Gu Wanrong was like a city-toppling peony; though the surrounding flowers were beautiful, they were merely her foil, unable to steal a single trace of the peony’s color.
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