Chapter 80: Mu Mu’s Inferiority Complex
Yu Li, with his golden buzz cut, parked the car and got out with Lu Yu, who was in the passenger seat.
The two quickly walked to the rear passenger door on the left, exchanged a glance, and then looked down together, their hands moving quickly, playing a game of rock-paper-scissors to determine the winner in a second.
Yu Li, the loser, subtly rolled his eyes, took a step forward, opened the car door, leaned slightly, and raised his hand to shield the door to prevent Mi Ya from hitting her head when she got out.
After Mi Ya and Anna got out of the car, Yu Li and Lu Yu followed as usual. They had just lifted their feet when Mi Ya stopped them.
“You don’t need to follow. Just wait outside.”
Without waiting for Yu Li and Lu Yu to respond, Mi Ya walked into the courtyard in her high heels, with Anna following.
Yu Li and Lu Yu had been following Mi Ya for several days and were already terrified of being ordered around by the young lady. Now that the young lady didn’t need their services, they were happy to have some free time and turned back to the car without saying a word.
Lu Yu directly reclined the passenger seat, put his hands behind his head, and lay down comfortably.
Yu Li, in the driver’s seat, didn’t fully recline his seat; he adjusted it to one hundred degrees, rested his hands on his stomach, closed his eyes peacefully, and let out a long sigh.
The midday sun shone through the windshield, feeling a little warm, but neither Yu Li nor Lu Yu moved or opened their eyes. They both sighed contentedly.
Lu Yu sighed, “Stealing half a day of leisure.”
Yu Li said, “I don’t understand. But it’s nice not having to accompany the young lady~”
Lu Yu lazily hummed in agreement, his brow suddenly tightening. He turned towards Yu Li’s side, squinting, looking through the privacy film-covered window at the courtyard and villa where Mi Ya had just entered.
“Hey, Yu Li, don’t you think this place looks familiar?”
Yu Li didn’t open his eyes. He hummed, “Familiar? I don’t have that feeling.”
People are like that; the more you try to remember something, the less likely you are to remember it. Lu Yu thought for a long time but couldn’t remember when he had been here, so he gave up.
“Maybe I’m wrong. The villas in this area of Silver District 2 all look similar.”
Yu Li reached out, groping in the air, trying to pat Lu Yu on the shoulder. But because his hand lacked eyes, he ended up patting Lu Yu’s chest.
“Okay, if it was really an important place, you wouldn’t have forgotten. It’s rare to have some free time. If you don’t hurry up and rest, who knows what the young lady will do next.”
After patting him twice, he felt that the pectoral muscles under his palm were quite elastic, and he playfully squeezed them twice more.
Lu Yu slapped Yu Li’s hand away, laughing and scolding, “Don’t touch me inappropriately, or I’ll chop your hands off, believe me.”
The two chatted in the car for a while, shifting the topic to other things. They didn’t see Mu Mu running out of the courtyard.
Now, let’s go back to the time when Mi Ya and Anna just entered the gallery. When Mu Mu heard the noise, he quickly went downstairs.
Before he reached the bottom of the stairs, he saw Mi Ya standing before the painting of a white peacock.
She wore a light purple velvet fishtail gown. The light purple was elegant and luxurious, and the fishtail gown outlined her slender and graceful figure.
The purple velvet gown had a high collar, with a teardrop-shaped diamond sewn at the base of the neck where it met her collarbones.
Mi Ya wasn’t wearing any other jewelry; her long, wavy hair was still styled in a simple bun at the back of her head.
Standing before the painting, her elegant demeanor gave Mu Mu the illusion that the girl before him was the peacock in the painting behind her.
Over the past period, Mu Mu had met many people he had never met before and experienced many things he had never experienced, thanks to Yan Gui Xing.
Even with Mu Mu’s slow reactions, he gradually realized the gap between himself and Yan Gui Xing. Even though he knew Yan Gui Xing liked him, he occasionally felt a little inferior.
Mu Mu was an optimist; even if he felt inferior, he quickly dismissed it. But that deeply hidden inferiority complex unexpectedly surfaced when he saw this unfamiliar girl.
Mu Mu instinctively retracted his foot as he descended the stairs. He lowered his head, looking at the light brown wooden steps, thinking, Wow! There’s actually someone as dazzling as Gui Gui!
Mu Mu was looking at Mi Ya, and Mi Ya, without a trace of obvious observation, was looking Mu Mu up and down.
Mu Mu was still wearing clothes chosen by Yan Gui Xing. For Mu Mu’s convenience, he had chosen a loose-fitting white hoodie with a blue cartoon whale on the chest, paired with knee-length light blue washed jeans and white canvas shoes – youthful and vibrant.
This was clearly not Mi Ya’s preferred style. She looked at the strawberry hair clip in Mu Mu’s bangs and made a judgment that it was childish.
However, recalling the information about Mu Mu’s head injury and subsequent problems, Mi Ya thought that being childish was normal, after all, he was a simpleton.
Thinking this, Mi Ya’s gaze towards Mu Mu held a condescending sympathy and pity.
Mu Mu, descending the stairs with his head down, didn’t see Mi Ya’s expression. He was somewhat uncomfortable with Mi Ya’s dazzling presence, and after slowly going downstairs, he stood a meter away from Mi Ya, tugging at his clothes and timidly asking, “Hello, are you here to buy a painting?”
Anna, appearing from somewhere, looked Mu Mu up and down without reservation, letting out a slight, sneering laugh.
The first floor was spacious, and Mu Mu’s hearing had just recovered; he was very sensitive to sound. Upon hearing Anna’s laughter, he subconsciously looked up.
His almond-shaped eyes were clear and bright, as if they could see through the ugliness in people’s hearts. Anna’s face flushed red, from her neck to her cheeks.
Mi Ya also felt that Anna’s laugh had embarrassed her. Her expression darkened slightly, she glanced at Anna and softly called her name.
Anna lowered her head, softly saying, “I’m sorry, Miss.”
Mi Ya didn’t say anything more, her gaze returning to Mu Mu. Her lips curled into a polite but cold smile. “I’d like to see the paintings. Could you introduce them to me?”
Mu Mu said “Ah” and quickly replied, “Certainly. This way, please.” He gestured to the left, leading Mi Ya to begin browsing from the left side.
Because of his nervousness, Mu Mu’s steps were a little unsteady, but nothing particularly noticeable.
In front of each painting, he stumbled through an introduction of the painting’s basic information to Mi Ya and Anna.
Clearly, Mi Ya wasn’t impressed. After Mu Mu finished speaking, she would ask several questions. For example:
“What is this painting trying to express?”
“Do you know the background of this painting?”
“The colors are very different from other paintings. What paints were used? What are the components? What is the effect?”
Mu Mu had no idea what the old painter was trying to express. He stared blankly at Mi Ya, pursed his lips, and couldn’t utter a word for a long time.
His forehead broke into a sweat before he finally managed to squeak out, “Let’s look at the next painting.”
Mi Ya didn’t press Mu Mu further, readily following him to the next painting, politely waiting for Mu Mu’s introduction before asking more questions.
After several paintings, Mu Mu was flustered and agitated. His steps were even more disordered; anyone could see that there was something wrong with his legs.
Just as Mi Ya was about to ask another question, an old voice suddenly rang out behind them, “Hey, so many questions. He didn’t paint them; how would he know? Why not ask me directly?”
Mu Mu, Mi Ya, and Anna were all startled. They turned around to see the old painter standing behind them with a serious expression.
Seeing the old painter was like seeing a savior for Mu Mu. His eyes lit up, and he excitedly called out, “Boss.”
The old painter didn’t even look at Mi Ya and Anna. He said to Mu Mu, “Alright, there’s nothing else to do today. Go home and eat dinner early, come back tomorrow.”
Mu Mu didn’t expect to finish work so early. He glanced at his wrist datapad, “Ah,” he said, “But it’s only 12:30.”
The old painter deliberately put on a stern face. “Finishing early without deducting your pay, isn’t that good?”
Mu Mu chuckled, “That’s what you said, Boss, no pay deduction for Mu Mu.”
The old painter pretended to be impatient, waving his hand. “Hurry, hurry. You have half a day off; go wherever you want to play.”
Mu Mu breathed a sigh of relief and escaped to the old painter’s side. Just as he was about to say goodbye, he remembered Mi Ya and Anna and hesitantly said, “But there are still guests, shouldn’t I…”
The old painter interrupted Mu Mu. “I’m here, aren’t I? At such a young age, why are you more long-winded than me, an old man?”
Mu Mu was also a little hesitant to continue interacting with Mi Ya. Since the old painter had let him off work, he didn’t stay any longer and quickly left the gallery.
Only the old painter, Mi Ya, and Anna remained in the gallery. The old painter didn’t continue to receive Mi Ya as he had said, but turned and walked towards the other side.
Mi Ya, however, abandoning her previously proud and somewhat arrogant attitude, quickly caught up, her tone laced with respect and flattery.
“Mr. Zhang, my father and I greatly admire your paintings; we have several of your works in our collection. We couldn’t find you in the capital star; so you’ve come to Liu Li Star.”
“Enough,” the old painter coldly interrupted, standing in the shadows, his world-weary eyes falling on Mi Ya’s face. “If you really wanted to find an old man like me, you could have. You’re not here for me, are you? You’re here for the child who just left.”
Mi Ya’s secret being revealed, she looked embarrassed, the smile fading from her lips.
The old painter glanced at Mi Ya, sighing. “I can guess why you’re here to cause trouble for him.”
“Mu Mu is pure and innocent. He doesn’t understand your aristocratic games and can’t be involved in them.”
“Solve your own problems. Don’t make things difficult for him.”
[Author’s Note]: Mu Mu doesn’t know the relationship between Mi Ya and Yan someone yet～