The Mad Beauty and the Sick Young Lady [Transmigration Novel] - Chapter 37

Three months later.

In a sparsely located bookstore, a joint exhibition of several painters was being held. However, because none of the painters were well-known and there were few passersby, only a handful of people were present at the exhibition venue.

A tall woman, wearing a mask and sunglasses, stood in front of one painting and remained there for a very long time.

One of the staff members responsible for selling tickets at the entrance nudged his colleague’s arm, stating confidently:

“That person must be a celebrity!”

His colleague was dismissive:

“How can that be? Why would a celebrity come here? No one cares about this event; we’re only hosting it to attract a few artistic youths. If she’s a celebrity, why would she need to come to a store to see a painting?”

“Let me take a picture first… Why do you think this celebrity has been standing in front of this particular painting for so long?”

“Maybe it’s because the portrait in this painting resembles Jiang Zhuoye…”

After a long time, the entire room emptied. The staff went over to clear the area, gently reminding the woman wearing the mask and sunglasses:

“Hello, our exhibition is only open for half a day. We need to close now. If you’d like, you can come back tomorrow.”

The tall woman in the trench coat turned her head and glanced at the staff member. Her exceptionally beautiful, phoenix-like eyes nearly made the staff member forget to breathe.

When he recovered, the woman pointed to the painting in front of her:

“Is this painting for sale?”

The staff member checked the internal information on his phone and regretted having to shake his head:

“According to the painter’s request, her works are not for sale.”

The woman nodded, the brilliant light in her phoenix eyes instantly dimming. Even her departing figure was filled with melancholy.

The staff member felt a pang of sympathy watching her, sensing she was a woman with a story.

Just then, two young girls walked in through the door.

One appeared lively and talked constantly, while the other was pale and frail, listening with her head tilted, occasionally nodding and smiling.

The staff member watched as the woman in the trench coat, who was just reaching the door, paused, suddenly turned halfway, and positioned herself against a painting near the entrance, completely hiding herself.

The two young girls chatted and laughed as they walked around the exhibition.

The staff member clearly saw the trench coat woman simultaneously trying to minimize her presence while secretly watching the two girls… specifically, one of them, with her beautiful eyes.

The collar of her trench coat was pulled up, covering most of her face, but the exposed eyes held an undying, brilliant light.

The woman’s actions betrayed her thoughts: her toes unconsciously pointed towards the frail girl. After lingering for a long time, she finally walked resolutely towards the door.

To exit, she had to turn a corner. At the corner, the trench coat woman looked back for a final glance.

The staff member, who had watched the entire interaction, suddenly realized that the pale girl had also looked back.

The two women’s eyes met across the room. Although the staff member knew nothing, he could sense the crackling tension between them.

Unexpectedly, the trench coat woman merely glanced, then hurriedly left, her high heels almost twisting as she walked away without any elegance.

Looking back at the pale girl, she had already turned her head and was listening to her companion, though she seemed somewhat preoccupied.

The staff member bit his lip, feeling nervous, his mind involuntarily guessing the history between the two women.

Undercurrents surged.

After leaving the exhibition, Guan Jingxian suggested they go to a light meal restaurant, which Su Li readily agreed to.

Sitting down in the restaurant, Guan Jingxian asked:

“Your exhibition went well this time! Are you aiming for a solo exhibition next?”

Su Li pursed her lips and smiled:

“I can’t paint that much. Besides, I’m just doing this for fun.”

Guan Jingxian teased her:

“To reach this level just by ‘doing it for fun’ you truly are a great artist!”

Su Li lowered her head and laughed. Guan Jingxian then asked:

“But I didn’t expect you to include a painting of… well, that Film Empress…”

Su Li sighed softly:

“That’s a painting I did a long time ago… I figured there was no need to avoid it.”

Guan Jingxian nodded and didn’t press the topic. She had already learned the full story from Su Li and understood that Jiang Zhuoye had approached Su Li with an ulterior motive. She herself had a low opinion of Jiang Zhuoye and basically never mentioned her again.

Su Li certainly wouldn’t bring it up actively, but the moment their eyes met earlier kept replaying in her mind.

This was the first time they had seen each other since the cruise ship incident.

Jiang Zhuoye’s eyes were still so beautiful, her gaze still so captivating, yet it contained a lot of complex emotions.

When Su Li first saw her, she hadn’t recognized her. It was only after the other woman retracted her gaze and hurriedly fled that Su Li suddenly realized it had been Jiang Zhuoye.

The city was vast, yet they had met at her own exhibition. Su Li was somewhat surprised.

She had thought Jiang Zhuoye would have moved on by now, yet she came to her exhibition. She wondered if it was a coincidence or if she had come specifically.

Jiang Zhuoye probably still felt a sense of guilt, but of course, that was irrelevant to Su Li.

Su Li took a sip of her Peach Oolong tea. The fresh peach flavor filled her mouth. She mentally organized the things she needed to do next, but she felt a sense of unease.

Guan Jingxian’s driver drove Su Li home. Arriving outside the villa, Su Li got out, said goodbye, and walked toward her house.

She hadn’t walked far when she noticed a cluster of white begonias in full bloom in the small garden by her front door.

She stopped to admire them. As she was looking, she suddenly felt a chill on her foot, as if something had crawled onto her instep.

She looked down and saw a cabbage worm crawling on her foot!

“Aah! Aah! Aah! Aah!”

Su Li screamed loudly, stumbling and running outwards, nearly falling into the flower bed, frantically shaking her foot.

But the cabbage worm must have had suckers; it wouldn’t shake off. Su Li didn’t dare to use her hand to pinch it off. She felt utterly distraught!

A bug crawled on me! It’s dirty! I’ll chop off this foot when I get home, aah! Aah! Aah! Aah!

“Help me…”

Su Li shrieked. She was wearing low-heeled leather shoes, which got caught in the stone pavement cracks, forcing her to sit down abruptly on the ground.

The cabbage worm lifted its head and had an airborne standoff with Su Li, who was sitting on the ground.

“Aah! Aah! Aah! Aah!….Please get off! Please! God, Jesus, Guanyin, whoever please save me!”

Su Li was incoherent, tears streaming down her face as she sat on the ground.

She was about to collapse. She had hated insects since childhood, and these soft bodied worms were her greatest fear. Now, this thing was on her foot and wouldn’t leave. She genuinely felt the whole leg was beyond saving.

She didn’t know what the villa’s servants were doing; they hadn’t come out after a long time. Su Li’s voice was getting hoarse from shouting, and her eyes were completely blurred with tears. She didn’t dare to wipe her eyes, afraid her hand might be dirty from touching the begonia bush.

Even more, she didn’t dare to feel the… sensation on her foot. Her whole body was trembling.

Just when she was about to give up completely, a figure appeared in her blurry vision. The person squatted down, reached out, and picked something off her foot. The slight pulling sensation was utterly disgusting.

The person gently placed the cabbage worm back onto a low tree leaf, then squatted again and used a tissue to wipe Su Li’s instep.

Su Li felt a little tickle and opened her mouth:

“Thank you, but you don’t need to, I’ll do it myself…”

The person then stood up and turned to leave without saying a word.

At this moment, Su Li finally found a tissue in her pocket, wiped away her tears, and looked over with red eyes, only to be stunned again.

The back of this person’s head was one she had seen earlier today at the bookstore.

Isn’t that Jiang Zhuoye?

Why was Jiang Zhuoye at her villa door?

Su Li looked down at her foot. Her instep was smooth and white, without a single mark.

So, Jiang Zhuoye had just pinched off the cabbage worm and even wiped her foot?

Jiang Zhuoye… her fingers were so beautiful. To use them to pick up a bug… that was a little gross.

Su Li sat on the ground, unsure whether to call out to Jiang Zhuoye to offer a word of thanks.

But Jiang Zhuoye had already walked away in a few steps, heading towards the fork in the road ahead, deeper into the villa area which was likely the house Jiang Zhuoye had bought previously.

Su Li watched her leave, feeling strange. She stood up, brushed off her clothes and hips, and turned to go home.

Jiang Zhuoye… already owned property in this community, so staying there for a few days wasn’t unusual, and passing by her house was perfectly normal.

Surely she didn’t hire a private investigator again!

Su Li thought sarcastically. She hadn’t been back for long and hadn’t gone out many times, yet she had bumped into Jiang Zhuoye again. The city was just that small.

In the evening, Su Li scrolled through Weibo and saw that Jiang Zhuoye had posted an image.

It was a photograph of the painting Su Li had exhibited.

Jiang Zhuoye, wearing a red velvet dress, stood in front of a golden wallpapered corridor, her face radiant, her smile sweet.

It was a romantic and textured portrait, with the person in the painting bearing a 70 to 80 percent resemblance to Jiang Zhuoye herself.

Jiang Zhuoye only posted the picture and said nothing.

Fans complimented it enthusiastically, and some sharp witted fans quickly found the author’s information and exhibition details for the painting.

Su Li saw her name appear in the comments section and couldn’t help but take a sharp breath.

It looked like… tomorrow’s exhibition would be extremely crowded.

She didn’t know why Jiang Zhuoye did this, she only knew she might become popular.

Holding a traveling art exhibition was indeed on her bucket list. Now, by riding Jiang Zhuoye’s popularity, the exhibition might have a chance.

Su Li sighed. She didn’t really want to reconnect with Jiang Zhuoye in this way.

The next day, the exhibition Su Li was participating in indeed exploded. The staff excitedly called her, saying the commission afterward would be substantial.

Su Li hung up the phone, her mood complicated.

She had tried very hard to stay away from Jiang Zhuoye, but why did the other person still… frequently appear before her?

And even if she appeared, why wouldn’t she say anything?

Su Li looked out the window and happened to see a very familiar silver-white sports car driving past on the road.

It was the global limited edition sports car she had given Jiang Zhuoye back then, the one she had sat in with Jiang Zhuoye to watch the sunrise and go to the film set.

Has Jiang Zhuoye moved here to live?

Su Li frowned. She suppressed her curiosity, got out of bed, and went about her business.

It was the other person’s freedom to buy a house and move in, and it was normal for her to pass by Su Li’s house. Su Li could only try her best to avoid bumping into her.

However, for some unknown reason, Su Li found that her opportunities to go out suddenly increased after that day.

During the day, Aunt Zhang would take her out for exercise, look at flowers, and take some photos. After dinner, Li Zhenzhen would pull her to stroll in the garden, saying it was for digestion.

As a result, one day, Su Li ran into Jiang Zhuoye again.