Chapter 33

Sheng Mumu turned her head when she heard the sound.

The two of them were very close, close enough that she could smell the nice scent of Qi Mo's bath gel.

She took a light breath, and found that the fragrance was from the same brand of bath gel as hers.

The robe on the man in front of her was loose and casual, contrasting with his usual suited image.

Water droplets from his hair tips fell onto his collarbone and disappeared into his robe, arousing her imagination for no reason.

She had inadvertently seen his bare upper body a few times before, and knew that his robe hid a firm waistline underneath.

She didn't know why, but her earlobes suddenly felt a little hot, and her eyes quickly looked up.

She was also shy about looking straight into his eyes, so she responded while facing his chest:

"What's the matter?"

Qi Mo's voice was low and casual:

"The affair was just a rumor, not a lie made up to fool Qi Shao. Don't get the wrong idea."

Her absent-mindedness at dinner was probably because she had misunderstood this?

As a contractual couple, there was no need to explain too much.

But when he walked out of the bathroom and saw her sitting on the bed with her cheeks in her hands, deep in thought, he suddenly felt that explaining it one more time wouldn't hurt.

Sheng Mumu looked straight at the man in front of her.

Up close, his deep brows and eyes, and sharp, rugged facial features, made one dizzy and fascinated.

She collected her thoughts, and smiled charmingly: "Even if it was a real affair, it doesn't matter."

The wording was inaccurate. She paused and corrected herself:

"We are a contractual couple. If you really have a woman you like, it wouldn't even count as having an affair. Just be careful not to let others find out." The man's jawline gradually tensed, and a hint of coldness that was hard to detect flashed through his eyes.

After several seconds, the chill in his eyes finally dissipated a little, but his tone was still icy cold:

"I don't have a woman I like."

Sheng Mumu was stunned for a moment, her brows and eyes curved up as she blinked: "A man you like...is also okay..."

In fact, she had felt strange about this for a long time.

With Qi Mo's good looks and status, why would he rather have a fake marriage with her than truly marry someone?

If it was because he liked men,

everything might make sense.

She tilted her head in thought, unaware that the man's face was getting darker and darker, his pitch black eyes unfathomable.

Qi Mo's body emitted a cold air. He suddenly leaned in close, slowing down his tone:

"Do I look like someone who would like men?"

There was nothing particularly wrong with this sentence, but the suddenly shortened distance made Sheng Mumu lose her composure.

Her cheeks flushed red and she shrank her neck back.

Undeniably, she was captivated by the handsomeness of this man who had just gotten out of the bath and was still steaming.

The scent of the bath gel was clearer than before. She even felt like the surrounding air had become hotter.

Facing Qi Mo's piercing gaze, she held her breath and looked up at him.

He seemed angry, but also like he was laughing.

Qi Mo stared at the clueless girl in front of him for several seconds, his expression hard to discern.

Then his brow quirked, his tone mocking:

"You sure have a vivid imagination."

After saying this, he straightened up and walked away.

Leaving behind Sheng Mumu, whose earlobes were red. She blinked at his gradually distant, upright back, confused and not understanding.

*

The next day.

Sheng Mumu was woken up by Su Tingran's phone call. "Mumu, it was so lively in the wives' group chat last night. Why didn't you come out and say anything?"

Su Tingran felt that after knowing each other for so long, calling her Mrs. Qi seemed too formal, so she affectionately changed how she addressed her.

Sheng Mumu rubbed her sleepy eyes, her voice hoarse from just waking up.

"My phone ran out of battery last night, so I didn't see the group messages." Su Tingran said: "You don't know, Zhou, Wu, Zheng, oh no, those three Mrs. Zhou, Wu, and Zheng were constantly praising you in the group chat, don't even mention how hypocritical it was."

"I heard that Mrs. Wang moved out with large and small bags in the middle of the night, around 2 or 3 am. And she was wearing sunglasses when she left."

With her face and shoulder clamping the phone, Sheng Mumu brushed her teeth while listening to Su Tingran speak.

With foam in her mouth, she asked indistinctly:

"Why wear sunglasses so late at night? Was she abused?"

Su Tingran: "Probably not. Mr. Wang was accompanying the daughter of the steel tycoon. He wouldn't have time to come back. She must have worn the sunglasses because she was afraid of losing face if seen by others."

Sheng Mumu rinsed her mouth. "Ah, the pitiable will inevitably be hateful. This saying is so true."

She hadn't forgotten Wang Qinwei's overt and covert ridicule of her at the mahjong table yesterday.

Although she sympathized with her plight, she also didn't conceal her dislike of Wang's character because of that sympathy.

Su Tingran murmured in agreement, as if suddenly thinking of something.

"Oh, that's right. Mrs. Li said that the 20 million diamond flower necklace Mrs. Wang showed off before was fake. The real necklace was snapped up by your Mr. Qi at an auction last month."

Sheng Mumu was stunned. "Huh?"

She had felt like that necklace looked familiar at the time, but couldn't remember where she had seen it no matter how hard she tried. Hearing this, she suddenly recalled it.

Opening the three-tiered jewelry drawer, Sheng Mumu rummaged through the piles of necklaces and rings.

Sure enough, in an inconspicuous corner, she saw an unremarkable flower-shaped diamond necklace, with neither outstanding design nor outstanding carats.

She silently tsked. Wow, even such an ordinary piece in her jewelry drawer was worth 20 million?

She searched her memory, and suddenly recalled Zhang the butler mentioning in passing—

"Madam, the jewelry in these drawers are pieces that the master casually bought back from auctions. You can wear them daily if you like the styles. There are still many more valuable ones in the safe for you to choose from when attending important events."

million? Casually bought back? Wear daily?

Just how wealthy was this Qi Mo?

She awkwardly tugged at the corner of her mouth: ...

How could she have the audacity to let this man of unknown wealth use her bath gel freebie?