Paranoid Zhao Mengyao

"Alright, thank you." Ye Shuang handed the guitar back to the sales assistant nearby, then turned to the girl beside him. "So, how was it?"

Bai Yuyou reached out and tugged at the hem of Ye Shuang's clothes, her eyes fixed on him. "Ye Shuang... you're sad."

Ye Shuang paused for a moment before smiling faintly and ruffling her hair. "Silly, it's just a song. I'm not sad."

"Oh."

Bai Yuyou thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "Want to learn... this."

"Not the piano anymore?" Ye Shuang asked. After all, the girl still had her studies to focus on—she couldn’t juggle both piano and guitar.

"This..." Bai Yuyou nodded.

"Want to sing... for Ye Shuang."

Ye Shuang couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought of this little airhead—stumbling over her words—singing for him. It sounded amusing, but he still asked again to confirm. Once she gave a firm answer, he said,

"Alright, then pick a guitar you like here."

After all, passion was what mattered most. If Bai Yuyou had truly taken an interest in the guitar, Ye Shuang wasn’t going to force her to stick with the piano.

The 10,000-yuan cat bed could wait.

"We have guitars at every price point here. Please take your time choosing," the sales assistant said with a smile.

Bai Yuyou scanned the dazzling array of guitars before her gaze settled on a natural wood-colored one in the middle. Sometimes, instruments seemed to possess a kind of magic—under the glow of the lights, they called out to the person they were meant for.

"That’s a limited-edition Gibson series guitar, made of spruce and mahogany. The price might be a bit steep," the sales assistant explained when she noticed Bai Yuyou’s interest.

"Expensive..." Bai Yuyou had no real concept of money. With assets totaling over ten million, she had never developed a clear sense of financial value.

When the sales assistant asked for confirmation, Bai Yuyou turned to Ye Shuang.

At that moment, Ye Shuang glanced at the price tag—

[39,999]

Hmm...

A guitar costing nearly 40,000 yuan was bound to warrant a second thought, especially since he’d just spotted some "firewood-grade" guitars selling for a few hundred in the same store. But for Ye Shuang, shelling out tens of thousands for a guitar wasn’t an issue.

After all, it was Bai Yuyou’s money.

"We’ll take this one. Please get it down for us," Ye Shuang said with a smile.

The sales assistant blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting such a quick decision. She gave Bai Yuyou an envious glance before nodding. "Of course."

"Do you need a case for it?"

"No need. Just pack it in the original guitar bag," Ye Shuang said. Soon, the sales assistant carefully took down the guitar and packed it up.

After paying, Ye Shuang handed the guitar bag to Bai Yuyou. "Here, put it on. Let me see."

Bai Yuyou didn’t quite understand but obediently slung the bag over her shoulders—

The guitar was heavier than she expected, making her wobble slightly as she adjusted to the weight. When she finally had it secured, the length of the guitar nearly dwarfed her small frame.

"Whoa, guitar girl. Nice." Ye Shuang couldn’t help but give a thumbs-up at the sight.

Meanwhile, Bai Yuyou gripped the strap with one hand, the guitar strapped to her back as she tilted her head slightly, expression blank. She didn’t quite get what Ye Shuang was so excited about.

After leaving the guitar store, Ye Shuang was considering whether to check out pianos next when he noticed a familiar figure standing at the entrance. The woman stood with her arms crossed, the faint glow of dusk casting shadows over her face, making her expression unreadable.

Seeing Zhao Mengyao waiting there, Ye Shuang paid her no mind and simply tightened his grip on Bai Yuyou’s hand, ready to walk past.

"Ye Shuang, stop!" Zhao Mengyao’s voice rang out, but Ye Shuang ignored it, continuing forward—though Bai Yuyou slowly turned her head, realizing the woman shouting at Ye Shuang matched the one from the photo at the aquarium.

Ye Shuang’s... ex-girlfriend.

"Ye Shuang..." Bai Yuyou murmured softly.

"Don’t mind her," Ye Shuang said calmly.

The sharp click of heels echoed as Zhao Mengyao hurriedly stepped in front of them, her expression a mix of frustration and hurt. "Why are you ignoring me?"

Ye Shuang looked at the woman blocking his path and smirked mockingly. "Seriously? What gives you, a traitor, the right to stand in my way like this? Your audacity?"

"I—I didn’t betray you!" Zhao Mengyao argued. "I told you, I’ve always liked him..."

Ye Shuang gave her a cold glance. "So you just took all my kindness for granted, then ditched me at our engagement party to run to that guy?"

"Just because I liked the way you treated me doesn’t mean I had to give you my heart!" Zhao Mengyao retorted, her voice growing more aggrieved. "And he was sick at the time—he needed someone to take care of him! I was the one who got hurt here. Why are you making things difficult for me?"

Ye Shuang scoffed and shook his head. "Whatever. You could claim the sun rises at midnight for all I care. Our story’s long over, Miss Zhao. Now, kindly move out of our way."

"And how dare you act like this? You—you moved on just fine too!" Zhao Mengyao shot back, pointing accusingly at Bai Yuyou. "Who is she?!"

Bai Yuyou blinked before answering matter-of-factly, "We’re married."

"Hah." Zhao Mengyao let out a derisive laugh.

Ye Shuang had no intention of engaging further. Giving Bai Yuyou’s hand a reassuring squeeze, he stepped around Zhao Mengyao to leave.

But then, as if possessed by some inexplicable impulse, Zhao Mengyao suddenly rushed forward again—this time blocking Bai Yuyou directly. "You probably don’t know this!"

Bai Yuyou: "?"

"Zhao Mengyao, don’t make me slap you," Ye Shuang’s voice turned icy.

Zhao Mengyao smirked. "Miss, your ‘husband’ has another woman! Chen Qin, the young lady of the Chen family—ever heard of her?"

"Who knows, maybe you’re just the side chick!"

"Giggle, giggle, giggle."

She laughed triumphantly, as if she’d just played some masterstroke, her expression bordering on manic.

But her laughter soon died when she realized Bai Yuyou’s face remained completely unchanged—not even a flicker of emotion.

A few seconds later, Bai Yuyou turned to Ye Shuang and asked, "What’s... a side chick?"

Zhao Mengyao: "..."

Is this girl an idiot?

Or just painfully naive?

"A side chick is someone who ruins the relationship between two people," Ye Shuang explained patiently.

Bai Yuyou nodded in understanding. "Oh."

She then turned back to Zhao Mengyao, her calm, fathomless eyes meeting the other woman’s as she spoke earnestly, "It’s okay. Me and Chen Qin-jie... sleep with Ye Shuang at night. We get along well... no ruining."

Zhao Mengyao: "?"

You people are wild.