My Scheming CEO Hubby/C21 I Am Now a Member of the Mu Family
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My Scheming CEO Hubby/C21 I Am Now a Member of the Mu Family
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C21 I Am Now a Member of the Mu Family

Mu Tingxiao stared at her flushed face, but his expression remained indifferent. "Are you in trouble?" His voice was faint, and if one would listen hard enough, they'd fear a tinge of concern wrapped around his words. It could've softened any woman's heart, and perhaps, it could even lower any man's pride. But Moo Nuannuan wasn't just any woman.

Gripping her blanket tightly around her shoulders, she regarded him coldly. "It's none of your business."

However, no matter how intimidating she tried to be, it didn't hold any power in Mu Tingxiao's eyes. Although his posture remained casual, a flicker of anger flashed across his features and she could see his muscles clenching under his long-sleeved shirt. Even then, she continued holding on to her pride.

"It may not be any of my business," he admitted, moving closer. "But if you'll beg me hard enough, I may consider helping you."

His suggestion was only met with a scowl. If looks could kill, he would've already been buried ten feet under.

With one last look, Mu Tingxiao finally turned around to leave.

He had only taken a few steps out of her bedroom when he saw Shi Ye rushing towards him. He was holding a tablet close to his chest, and Mu Tingxiao could see all the articles that had uploaded unflattering pictures of his wife. His lips curled at the sight. "What do you want?"

"Boss, how do we deal with the news about Young Madame? Do we set up a conference? Or do you want me to contact a media company to clear it all–"

"What does the news have to do with me?" Moo Nuannuan's words were still fresh in his mind. His lips curled, revealing a cold smile. "If you want to help her so badly, then why don't you wait and see if she even wants your help. Her problems aren't any of my business."

Without another word, he walked back to his study.

Shi Ye could only stare at his boss's retreating figure. For so long, the young man had always seemed indifferent to the matters of the heart, yet now it seemed that he had finally grown affected by it all. Despite his boss's anger, he allowed himself to smile. There were going to be interesting days ahead.

Moo Nuannuan didn't pay attention to the news on the Internet anymore. Instead, her thoughts switched to her own family members, remembering the chat she just had with her sister.

Why would Moo Wanqi suddenly do that? Hadn't she already made herself clear that she didn't want to be associated with a cripple like Mu Tingxiao? Or did she have other ideas in mind the moment she had those articles published? What were her motives? Moo Nuannuan groaned. She wasn't in the mood to play guessing games anymore.

Since Shen Liang already found out that she had married into the Mu family, her life was already over and done with! Her friend was going to tear her apart!

"And it's sooner than I thought," she murmured to herself as soon as she received a text from Shen Liang who had offered to arrange a meet-up.

The two of them planned to meet up in a relatively remote coffee shop. There weren't many people lounging around aside from the few customers it had coming in, so it was the perfect place to dine in without getting caught or even recognized.

After all, ever since Shen Liang had taken up this gig, she had grown into a small actor with around eight hundred Weibo fans. It would be difficult to talk privately if others were to recognize either of them, and it probably wasn't the best time to add fuel to even more gossip.

When Moo Nuannuan finally arrived at the coffee shop, she saw that her friend was already seated.

Shen Liang wore a mask up to her nose, and her long dark hair was tied into a ponytail. She wore a rundown jacket and a pair of baggy jeans. Even with such a casual look and a covered face, it was obvious that the woman was beautiful. Even the few occasional customers couldn't help but glance at her from time to time.

She had always been like this since school. Wherever she went, she'd become the center of attention almost effortlessly; and some people couldn't help but wonder why the beautiful school belle would stick so close to her. Even then, that didn't stop the two from becoming close friends.

"You must've waited for a long time," she said apologetically, sitting in front of her.

"Aren't you Young Madame Mu?" Shen Liang cocked up an eyebrow, leaning against the back of her seat. "It's only fair that a nobody like me should wait for you."

"I...about that..."

"You don't have to explain anything."

Upon seeing Moo Nuannuan's meek appearance, she couldn't help herself any longer. She pulled her mask down and wrenched it to the side. Her face was flushed, and her eyes were practically flashing with unrestrained fury. "That mother of yours got some nerve to throw you under the bus like that!" She slammed her hand onto the table. "She dotes on another woman's children like they were sent from the heavens, and she treats you like shit! I told you time and time again to be careful, to outsmart them when you can, and look where you are now! Married into the Mu family like some type of mule!"

She drank all the water in her glass in one go, breathing heavily.

She placed a hand on Shen Liang's glass. "You'll choke if you drink that quickly."

"You're the one to talk!" She shot Moo Nuannuan a glare. "Tell me, are the Mu family making things difficult for you."

"They're surprisingly good." Other than Mu Jiachen, the others were pretty decent.

"Well, at least there's that. It lessens the people I'd have to take down." Shen Liang shook her head with a sigh. Her face became even more serious as she motioned her friend to come closer before whispering, "Do you know why Moo Wanqi paid those news outlets to push that news up the front page?"

"How did you know she paid them?" She froze.

Shen Liang stared at her as if she had grown two heads. "With you as Young Madame Mu, don't you think she'd have to go through lots effort not to have these types of news buried? She has a clear goal in mind."

"And what's that goal?" Even then, Moo Nuannuan still didn't understand why her sister would go through all these lengths to sabotage her.

"Before I got on the plane, I had a few of my friends to dig deeper into the article." She sneered. "Turns out, Moo Wanqi did this to make her relationship with Shen Chuhan official–remove the stigma of her being Mu Tingxiao's future wife. And it just so happens that she could use you as her own stepping stone."

Ah, so that's why.

Everyone in Huyang City knew that Moo Wanqi was spoken for by the Mu family. Even if Mu Tingxiao had already married Moo Nuannuan, these types of rumors were almost impossible to remove. It was because of this that no one dared to associate himself with Wanqi, in fear of angering the Mu's.

Not only did she need to get rid of that identity, but she also needed to make sure that this news brought her up on a good light.

That was why she paid those social media apps to put these articles on the top trending pages and made sure that all of them painted her as an angel, while her sister–a gold-digging bitch! Moo Nuannuan clenched her fists. It was all making sense now. No wonder.

"She's smart, I'll give her that."

"So, what do you plan on doing now?" Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. "Wait, you married Mu Tingxiao, right? Are you two..."

"He thinks I'm ugly, but we respect our boundaries." Knowing what she was implying, Moo Nuannuan directly said it.

"Ugh, as if he looks any better! If you don't pretend to be ugly with all that foundation of yours, he'd surely drool all over you." A sneaky smile slipped into her lips. Shen Liang was the type of woman who'd like to play the long game as well, having shot various scenes of redemption and retribution in her movie projects. "Then it's your turn to slap him with a 'You're Ugly' comment. God, men these days are impossible!"

Moo Nuannuan couldn't help but burst into laughter. "We're actually pretty good now."

They respected each other's space, and they also didn't interfere with each other's business. It was the best arrangement she could ever ask for.

The two chatted about their lives in the past three months until Shen Liang accepted a call from her manager. "I'll be seeing you soon," she warned. "And if I hear another news from Weibo, you're dead to me, got it?"

"Yes, yes." She smiled in response. However, before her friend could go, she had already rushed to pay the bill.

No matter how high Moo Nuannuan tried to jump, she still wasn't as tall as Shen Liang. She couldn't snatch the bill from her hands no matter how hard she tried. "You can treat me next time we meet," she responded casually, waving her protests off as if they were nothing.

Although Shen Liang was usually carefree, she always paid attention to the little details. She knew for a fact that Moo Nuannuan wasn't wealthy, even if she held close ties with the Moo family. It was that reason why she always found ways to pay first whenever they met up.

Moo Nuannuan couldn't help but feel a little guilty.

She was the only one who knew about their family matters.

And Shen Liang had always forced her to stop pretending. "These things aren't going to change," she instructed over and over again. "The more you put yourself down, the more they think that they could get the better of you. You shouldn't allow yourself to be bullied like that!"

However, Moo Nuannuan wouldn't believe her. She held close to the idea that if she tried hard enough–if she had followed them more, they'd finally accept her under their wing. That was...until she was forced to marry into the Mu family.

Even then, it seemed that they still wanted to use her.

Did they really think that low of her?

Moo Nuannuan was about to take a taxi back to Mu Tingxiao's villa when she received a call from none other than her mother. As soon as she saw the name flashing on her screen, her face darkened immensely. Why was she calling her now? Her fingers twitched towards the answer button. "Hello?"

"Nuannuan, you should come home for dinner tonight. What do you say?" Xiao Chuhee's voice was warm and gentle, different from the patronizing tone that she had always used on her.

It was obvious that she wanted something.

"I don't have the time," she refused lightly. "I've been pretty busy lately."

"You don't have a job now, do you? How can you be busy?" Xiao Chuhee scoffed. This was the first time her daughter had rejected her so bluntly. The niceties were gone, and her voice became a bit more forceful. "Just come back for a meal already! The whole family's here and–"

"I don't know if you've forgotten, but I'm now a member of the Mu family," she interrupted.

"Is that any way to speak to your mother? Huh?" Moo Nuannuan could hear her hand slamming against the table and the sound of clattering tableware. Despite her ferocity, she remained indifferent–like a fly watching the drama unravel from a windowpane. She couldn't care any less anymore.

This was the first time she had ever snapped back at her mother this way, but she already had enough! Xiao Chuhee had never cared for her. All her patience and kindness–they were all poured towards her stepchildren. She had never gotten annoyed with them, no matter what they do! But just one mistake from Moo Nuannuan was enough to set her off!

At the end of the day, Xiao Chuhee never cared for her.

She simply treated her as she pleased.

And at this point, Moo Nuannuan was over this charade.

"Then why don't you speak to Moo Wanqi instead? I'm sure she's more filial than me–gentler than me. The two of you would certainly hit it off." She didn't even wait for her mother to snap back when she hung up the phone.

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