Chapter 11: The First Meeting of the Two Women.

"So, should I also apologize to you?"

Xu Musen met such a girl with a peculiar way of thinking for the first time.

Her words made sense, yet they poked right at one's heart.

"No need for that, thanks to your continuous failures at confessing, I was able to pick up so many flowers."

"..."

The girl shook her head, her sincerity and innocence causing Xu Musen a bit of heartache.

He Qiang couldn't hold back his laughter nearby. He always felt his brother was immune to Yao Mingyue's dark side but absolutely defenseless against her natural ditziness.

So you do have your days!

The girl lifted her gentle eyes and glanced at Xu Musen, who seemed a bit speechless. From the bunch of roses in her arms, she took out another and handed it to him.

"You're a good person, my grandma always said to repay kindness. Your flowers gave me the chance to earn some pocket money. If you ever face trouble, I... will have your back!"

As she said the last line, she seemed to think carefully before choosing those particularly assertive words.

But her somewhat shortsighted, dazed appearance lent a certain charm to her gangster-movie line.

Xu Musen looked at the wheelchair beneath her and, after a moment, gave a slight smile, accepting the flower from her hand.

"Then I'll thank you in advance."

The girl nodded and, pushing her wheelchair, turned to leave.

Xu Musen looked at the rose in his hand, surprised that, after all this roundabout, the flower had ended up back with him.

Moreover, he had received a token of appreciation which felt particularly gratifying.

However, receiving flowers right after his rebirth seemed like a good omen.

"I forgot to ask for her name..."

"You're not falling for her, are you?" He Qiang leaned in and teased, also glancing at the girl's departing silhouette. He suddenly exclaimed.

"I feel like I've seen her somewhere before, maybe around school..."

"You feel like you've seen every pretty girl before," Xu Musen joked.

"Nah, none of those beauties can compare to catching a big fish. But that girl does look good, it's just a shame..."

He Qiang watched her wheelchair disappear into the crowd, shaking his head in pity.

Xu Musen then took another look at the rose in his hand, noticing for the first time that each flower was wrapped in colored paper.

There was even a small cat's head drawn on it.

Xu Musen examined it closely and discovered it was actually hand-drawn. The colors were simple, but the lines were finely crafted.

With just a few strokes, even the whiskers and fluff on the cat's face were vivid, making it very stylish.

It was the kind of drawing that was immediately pleasing to the eye.

Suddenly Xu Musen remembered that in his line of work making match-three video games, two factors were of utmost importance.

Sound effects and icons.

A cute art style could spark the urge to play at first glance, like spotting an adorable cat on the street that one couldn't resist petting.

Moreover, most people are willing to pay just for the art style.

He recalled a certain open-world game from his past life.

A disposable cup with a printed pattern could sell for dozens of yuan.

One collaboration event could make countless players shout slogans without regard for social suicide.

No wonder there was the saying "money from the anime fandom is easy to earn."

A good art style is too important, but accordingly, a good artist is very expensive.

Sound effects could be synthesized, but for illustrations, one must have an artist.

Xu Musen's wallet certainly couldn't afford a famous one.

He looked at the hand-drawn illustration in his hand, and his eyes started to shine.

"Qiang Zi! Where's that girl from before? Bring her back to me!"

He Qiang jumped at his loud voice: "What's with the shock, do you seriously want that bouquet of roses back?"

"It's serious business, no time to explain, let's split up and look for her!"

Xu Musen said, and started searching through the crowd.

...

But at that moment,

the girl was still pushing her wheelchair around, peddling roses.

The next moment, a figure clad in a pale purple dress with a tall stature appeared before her.

Those phoenix eyes glittered with a complex and sharp gleam as they swept over her.

Finally, her gaze settled on the bunch of roses in her arms…

Her glance suddenly turned a bit colder.

"Do you want a flower?"

At this moment, the girl pulled a rose from her embrace, seemingly unaware of the emotions of the person in front of her, her voice still clear and pure.

She raised her head, holding a rose with a tiny puppy pattern. Behind her messy hair, her bright and clear eyes even made Yao Mingyue retract some of the coldness in hers.

"Where did you get these flowers?"

The girl, as if her secret had been discovered, suddenly spoke with a hint of guilt, "These flowers are all very fresh, picked just a day or two ago…"

Yao Mingyue looked at her, then asked again, "The boy who was talking to you just now, do you know him?"

The girl in the wheelchair thought of Xu Musen; she nodded her head, then shook it.

Seeing her demeanor and the wheelchair beneath her, Yao Mingyue's wariness relaxed considerably.

These past few days, she had also chatted occasionally with her best friend.

Her best friend had said, if a boy suddenly falls out of love, it's probably because he's met a new girl.

Yao Mingyue had not been without suspicions in that regard.

But she too had her own pride.

Not just anyone could compete with her for a man.

Yao Mingyue gazed into her clear eyes. She fell silent for a moment, then directly took out a red banknote from her wallet.

"I'll take the rest of the flowers."

These flowers, meant to be sent to her by Xu Musen, she could dispose of as she wished, but she wouldn't let them fall into another girl's hands.

One hundred yuan, surely enough to buy a larger bunch.

But the girl in the wheelchair shook her head instead.

"Too little?" Yao Mingyue slightly furrowed her brows.

"No, it's too much."

The girl looked at the remaining roses and said, "Just fifty yuan is fine."

"I don't have change, just take it like this."

Yao Mingyue directly stuffed the money into her hand, took the roses, and turned to leave.

"Wait a moment…"

The girl in the wheelchair grabbed her.

She fumbled in her bosom for an exquisitely sewn small purse, from which she pulled out some coins.

Some new, some old, a scattering of change. She found two twenties, a five, plus five coins…

"The exact amount only, Grandma always said not to take advantage of others."

The girl spoke earnestly as she handed the money to Yao Mingyue.

"Thank you for helping with my business, you are a good person too."

The girl in the wheelchair handed out another good person card, tucked her wallet back into her pocket, and then pushed her wheelchair away.

Yao Mingyue watched her leaving, looked at the change in her hand, and spaced out for a while.

You are a good person too...

Yao Mingyue silently withdrew her gaze. She never cared about how others judged her since she only cared about the final outcome.

What was hers, no one else could take away!

She turned and left.

Xu Musen and He Qiang were also desperately searching without success.

At one side of the square's exit, the girl gently maneuvered the wheelchair, humming a song, seemingly quite pleased with her day's earnings.

At that moment, a black car stopped by the exit of the square, and a woman got out, smiling and waving at her.

"Nuannuan..."