---
The iron gates creaked open as Li Meihua, Lin Chengbi, and Lin Rui walked into the compound, their footsteps heavy with frustration.
The blazing afternoon sun cast long shadows across the ground, but none of them seemed to notice the heat.
On the stone bench by the small garden, Lin Xingyan was lounging with her legs crossed, phone in hand, swiping through social media.
The moment she caught sight of her family, she beamed and bounced to her feet. "Mom, Dad! How did it go?" she asked eagerly. "Am I going to be the brand ambassador of GlowVine Cosmetics? I knew it. You'll do amazing work. When can I start? Will I meet the CEO..."
Her eyes sparkled with hope.
Lin Rui scoffed and walked past her without even glancing in her direction.
His face was dark.
That wiped the smile off her face as she trailed her words.
"What's wrong with him?" she muttered and turned to her mother, who was glaring at her with an expression so cold, it made her step back instinctively. "Mom? Didn't you go get the money? How was it?"
Li Meihua's expression twisted.
Without a word, her hand flew up and landed a hard slap across Xingyan's face.
Slap!
"You still have the nerve to smile? To ask for money?" she screamed. "What money? Do you even know what you've done? You've ruined everything!"
Lin Xingyan staggered back, cupping her burning cheek. "Mom! What are you talking about?! What did I do?! Did Lin Yue say something to you? Why are you hitting me?!"
Her mother stared at her, expression twisted in rage. "You really don't know? So, it's true then? You've been sleeping around in the industry?!"
The blood drained from Lin Xingyan's face.
Her lips parted, but no sound came out.
"All those offers that just came pouring in... Was it really from your 'talent' or from spreading your legs?!"
Li Meihua's anger surged. "You—shameless thing! I told everyone you were pure, hardworking, a good girl! And what were you doing? Whoring yourself out?! And now, your nonsense has come back to bite us. Lin Yue got hold of the photos and videos. She threatened us with them!"
Lin Xingyan's mind went blank.
Photos? Videos? Her legs wobbled.
"And if you're going to sell yourself, at least be smart about it! Now you've got photos and videos?! You gave Lin Yue the ammunition to blackmail us!"
With that, Li Meihua stormed into the house, cussing and muttering under her breath.
"Slut. Shameless brat. Rotten bitch."
She didn't even know if she was angry at Lin Yue or her stupid daughter.
"You... you mean she showed them to you?" she whispered.
"Of course she did!" Li Meihua spat as she slammed the door.
Inside, Lin Chengbi was pacing.
He couldn't imagine the mess they were now in.
His debts were piling,interests doubling every day, Boss Li was threatening to cut off his hands, and now this?
His last hope had been that Lin Yue would somehow be swayed.
Would give them money.
But now, even that was gone.
---
After leaving the café, Mo Yuwei had received a call from her husband and left, leaving Lin Yue to walk back to the gallery alone.
The sun had started to soften, and a golden hue bathed the quiet street.
As she entered the gallery, she was surprised to see it bustling with people.
Several guests admired the new batch of paintings displayed elegantly across the whitewashed walls.
Among them was the woman who had inquired about a painting for her mother.
She noticed Lin Yue and signalled her.
"This one," the woman said, pointing at a painting of a serene bamboo forest under moonlight. "My mother loves the moon. This will be perfect."
Lin Yue walked over with a calm smile. "That painting has a quiet kind of strength. I hope it brings peace to your mother."
The woman smiled and nodded. "I'll take it."
After completing the transaction, Lin Yue turned to Uncle Song, who stood behind the counter. "Uncle Song, I think we should hire a couple more workers to help you out. It's getting busy, you need extra hands."
---
They put up a hiring notice near the door, and within half an hour, nearly twenty applicants appeared.
Some were clearly inexperienced, some overly confident. Lin Yue conducted short interviews, asking simple but insightful questions.
Eventually, she selected two—one was a soft-spoken young woman named Ning Xue, with a calm demeanor and delicate fingers perfect for handling artwork.
The other was a polite, energetic man named Luo Fei who had a background in art handling.
She introduced them to Uncle Song and left them to get familiar with the routines.
As she walked around the gallery, Lin Yue overheard a man's voice from one of the corners.
"She's insanely talented. Look at the detail in this waterfall scene. The flow, the light, the emotion... It's breathtaking."
His companion, a well-dressed lady with sunglasses, nodded. "It's a shame her face was mosaiced in the news. Otherwise, I'd like to meet her."
Lin Yue stopped in her tracks. Mosaiced? She quickly took out her phone and searched for the news under "Masters in Zhongwen."
Dozens of posts and articles popped up.
Multiple articles, videos, and news clips. All of them featured her paintings.
And every single image of her had her face mosaiced.
She didn't need to guess. It was Mo Yuwei. That woman had gone the extra mile to protect her identity.
Lin Yue felt a warmth grow in her chest.
That woman had truly been looking out for her.
The man continued speaking. "I'm thinking of poaching her. My boss has been looking for a designer for the project against Liang Conglomerate. Wants to blow them out of the water this year."
Lin Yue's eyes narrowed. Liang Conglomerate? She instinctively stopped to evesdrop.
"Let me speak to the manager," the man said. He strode over to Uncle Song with confidence.
"Hello. I'm from Tang Group. Our CEO was very impressed with the artist. We'd like her to join a six-month project. It's urgent."
Uncle Song looked at Lin Yue, who quickly shook her head.
The old man understood and turned back to the man.
"I'm sorry," he said. "She's out of town currently. But I'll let her know."
The man looked disappointed but handed over a sleek business card. "Please ask her to call me when she returns. It's a golden opportunity."
After he walked away, Lin Yue approached Uncle Song and whispered, "If anyone comes asking about me, say I'm not around. Please."
He nodded, eyes kind. "You can trust me."
She thanked him and then went to her new workers. "You're both doing great. Please work hard. Respect the art and each other."
"Yes, Miss Lin!" they chimed together.
Stepping outside, Lin Yue felt the warm sunlight touch her skin. The streets were calm, and for a moment, she simply stood there, breathing in the fresh air.
This… this is just the beginning, she thought.
She turned toward the street, shielding her eyes from the sun.
A thought crossed her mind.
She needed a car.
She had learned to drive when she was juggling three jobs, squeezing lessons in during stolen hours.
Though she hadn't driven in over a year and a half, the memory was still fresh in her muscle memory.
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