Chapter 23: Beauty, This Is a Beautiful Misunderstanding

By the time Xue Tian'ai finally left home and stepped outside, it was already noon. Though she had taken a call from her father and lost her composure for a moment—giving her old man, Xue Xiwen, quite a tongue-lashing over the phone—her mood now was surprisingly good.

She patted the pocket of her khaki work pants, relishing the fullness she could feel within. A satisfied grin curved her lips. Just as Qin Mengxue had said on the phone, Xue Tian'ai had indeed gone to Qin Mengxue's bedside to scrounge for some cash.

When she opened the drawer, her eyes lit up. Not only was there a thick bundle of red bills, but there was also a neatly stacked collection of underwear—of every style: lace, innocent prints, all kinds. They were mostly in black or white, exactly the colors Xue Tian'ai liked best.

It was truly hard for her to imagine just how alluring and seductive these would look on Qin Mengxue. The more she thought about it, the more heated her body became, and she felt on the verge of a nosebleed. If she lingered any longer, she feared she might do something regrettable with those undergarments. Hastily, she stuffed the cash into her pocket and left, afraid she wouldn’t be able to control herself.

In the early afternoon, the city of Beiyang basked in radiant sunlight. The warm rays on her body filled her with a pleasant, easy comfort. Suddenly free from the knife-edge existence of a killer, Xue Tian'ai felt her entire being relax.

Since childhood, she had been drilled in the arts of survival and every conceivable practical skill. Her childhood truly had been as dark as Xue Xiwen claimed. Yet, her time in Europe had brought a measure of happiness, at least in the freedom she enjoyed. Now, she not only possessed freedom, but a rare sense of inner peace. Perhaps returning home was a kind of happiness, after all.

She took a deep breath of the air—so rich with the peculiar flavor of socialism—narrowed her eyes against the sun, and smiled faintly. “All right, time to buy some clothes. After all, I’m being kept now! And my pocket’s stuffed with cash!”

At this moment, she fancied herself the very image of the nouveau riche, as people had been saying in recent years. Carefree, she strode toward the bus stop. Since it was already noon, most people were already at work or school, so there were few waiting at the stop. Still, compared to the morning when buses ran every few minutes, there were significantly fewer departures now.

Standing at the stop, Xue Tian'ai kept a sharp eye on every passing bus, afraid to miss her ride. After all, she’d only just returned to China, only just come back to Beiyang, and wasn’t quite used to it all yet. If she took the wrong bus and wound up somewhere strange, it’d be embarrassing.

She didn’t know how long she waited before a bus marked 327 pulled up. As soon as she spotted the number, she fixed her eyes on the approaching vehicle, gauging where it would stop and shifting her feet to secure the best spot for getting on.

When the bus arrived, she squeezed her way aboard. As the doors closed, the driver gestured for everyone to pay their fare.

But the moment Xue Tian'ai heard the driver’s words, she froze. Damn it, she’d been so intent on getting on, she had no small change at all—only that thick bundle of red bills!

There was no way she was going to be extravagant enough to pay a bus fare with a hundred-yuan note… Flustered, she stood there awkwardly, at a loss. The so-called “God of Killers”—the Phantom Butterfly, the celestial wolf among wolves—was being stymied by a single yuan coin.

“Put your fare in,” the driver snapped impatiently, seeing Xue Tian'ai’s embarrassed expression. “Don’t just stand there—other people need to get through!”

“Um, sir, do the buses here give change?” she asked, sheepishly.

“Change? Since when do buses give change?” the driver waved her off.

“But I don’t have any small change…” As she spoke, she pulled out her thick bundle of bills and waved them, hoping to prove she was telling the truth.

But in the eyes of the other passengers, this looked like nothing but a showy display—an outdated, tasteless way to flaunt wealth. Who flashes a roll of cash these days to show off?

Some even sneered: if you want to show off, go do it in a sports car, not on the bus.

If Xue Tian'ai knew what people were thinking, she’d have cried out her grievance: she really wasn’t trying to show off—she just couldn’t bear to spend a hundred times the fare for a single bus ride!

“If you don’t have change, just borrow it. It’s only a yuan,” the driver muttered, now averting his eyes from the sight of her red bills.

Seeing the driver turn away, Xue Tian'ai felt even more awkward. Just as she was about to grit her teeth and pay the hundredfold fare, a voice as clear as silver bells rang out: “I’ll pay for you!”

The sound made her heart leap. She turned quickly and saw a young woman standing behind her.

The woman’s long black hair fell loosely over her shoulders, with a neat slanting fringe that just brushed her eyelids. Her lashes fluttered, eyes sparkling as if they could speak. Her nose was delicately proportioned, her small face tinged with a rosy glow, and her moist lips looked irresistibly inviting.

She wore a simple white dress, unadorned, but on her it looked anything but ordinary.

The woman was beautiful and pure. Xue Tian'ai looked her up and down with a quiet admiration.

Noticing Xue Tian'ai’s appreciative gaze, the woman frowned slightly. She was used to such looks, but hadn’t expected that, after offering help, all she’d receive in return was this kind of attention instead of a simple “thank you.”

“Excuse me, you don’t have change, right? I can pay for you,” she said, now somewhat regretting her meddlesome kindness. Her look was now tinged with a hint of displeasure.

But as her gaze fell upon Xue Tian'ai’s face, she was momentarily struck—he was undeniably handsome. But her eyes quickly dropped to the white shirt he wore, which was covered in lipstick marks. Whatever goodwill his looks had sparked instantly evaporated.

To her, he was just another scoundrel, using his face to deceive women—a playboy, perhaps even surgically enhanced.

Having sized up the woman in the white dress and mentally rated her looks, Xue Tian'ai flashed a brilliant smile. “Thank you, miss. Honestly, I just got back to the country and I’m a bit out of sorts, haha.”

But that smile, in the woman’s eyes, only confirmed her suspicions: a false image of a globetrotter, his sunny smile just a mask to dupe naïve girls.

Without another word, the woman bypassed her and dropped two yuan into the fare box, then walked straight to the back of the bus.

Seeing that she’d paid for her as well, Xue Tian'ai’s smile grew wider, and she, too, headed toward the back.

Even though it was already noon, the reduced number of buses meant there were no seats left, though it wasn’t so crowded that people were packed together. Still, the bus was quite full.

Xue Tian'ai kept moving toward the rear. She didn’t want to stand at the front, knowing more people would get on later. If it were a pretty girl pressing against her, fine—but if it was a middle-aged man, she’d be far less happy.

The midday bus, warmed by the sun and the time of day, was a perfect setting for drowsiness. Many seated passengers had their eyes closed, trying to snatch a midday nap. After all, they took this route every day and were unlikely to miss their stop.

Those standing gripped the overhead handles, some with eyes half-closed, swaying gently with the motion of the bus; others stared out the window, lost in thought.

As Xue Tian'ai moved to the back, a few people frowned at her. In their minds, she was just a show-off, flaunting wealth in the least impressive place—the bus. Not just envy, but a hint of disdain colored their feelings.

But no one said anything—after all, it was just a bus ride, not worth making trouble over. That, after all, was the shrewd way to live.

Xue Tian'ai had no time to ponder what others thought. Squeezing left and right, she worked her way to the area near the rear door, which was not too crowded and relatively comfortable, even without a seat.

Once she’d settled in, she let out a small sigh and prepared to rest like everyone else, gripping the handle above. After last night’s heroics and the subsequent unexpected turn of events, and then meeting her fiancée this morning, she still hadn’t had a moment’s rest.

She’d trained to go seventy-two hours without sleep, sure, but with no danger now, a little rest seemed perfectly reasonable.

But then a faint, delicate fragrance drifted to her nose—not the cloying scent of cheap perfume, but a subtle blend of youthful purity and something rare and expensive. Her eyes, which had just closed, fluttered open again.

Her gaze darted around, and she was surprised to find that the same girl in the white dress who’d helped her earlier was standing near the door, holding the railing.

Xue Tian'ai was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t noticed the scent at the front of the bus, perhaps due to the air circulation, but now, still and quiet, the aroma was intoxicating.

This woman—no, it seemed better to call her a girl—was not only pure in appearance but carried a delightfully pleasant scent. The perfume must have been a luxury brand; why would a girl who could afford such a fragrance be riding the crowded bus?

The girl, sensing a predatory gaze, turned to look. When she saw that it was the same lipstick-stained man she’d helped earlier, her brows drew together again. She found Xue Tian'ai’s eyes fixed on her, almost as if she were prey, and it made her distinctly uncomfortable.

She arched her brows and shot Xue Tian'ai an icy glare.

Seeing her less-than-friendly look, Xue Tian'ai offered a wry smile and looked away, wondering to herself what had happened—why her resistance to beautiful women had become so weak. Back in Europe, she’d been immune to flirtatious glances, taking lovers as she pleased, never caring much at all.

Why did she now freeze at the mere sight of a woman’s face? Was this the unique allure of women in China?

The bus arrived at another stop. No one got off, but more people squeezed in, making the already crowded bus even more stifling.

Xue Tian'ai’s spot, once somewhat comfortable, was now pressed further back by the influx. Soon, she found herself nearly shoulder to shoulder with the girl in the white dress.

The girl’s fragrance grew even stronger, constantly teasing Xue Tian'ai’s nerves. But, remembering the earlier misunderstanding, she refrained from looking at the girl, instead simply enjoying the sunlight and the drifting scent.

After a while, she noticed something odd—the fragrance suddenly became muddled. Curious, she glanced over and saw the girl’s brow furrowed again.

Xue Tian'ai was startled—she hadn’t been staring, had she? Why was the girl frowning?

Then she noticed: during the last wave of passengers, a man had sidled up to the girl. Clearly, he’d noticed her beauty too.

He was a lean, shifty-looking young man, clutching a beverage bottle, which he was now using to prod the girl’s slender waist. He seemed to be testing her reaction; if she turned and scolded him, he could blame it on the crowded bus. If she stayed silent, he’d move to the next step.

He was a seasoned bus predator.

Though Xue Tian'ai had lived in Europe for years, she knew full well such men existed there, too. Watching the young man, whose eyes darted elsewhere but glimmered with unmistakable lust, she instantly understood his intentions.

Normally, she despised such behavior but wouldn’t have intervened. But this time was different—the girl had just helped her out. She owed her a debt, however small, and couldn’t simply ignore it.

Xue Tian'ai shifted, placing herself squarely between the girl and the sleazy young man, saying nothing.

The man glared at her, irritated that she’d ruined his opportunity. But he dared do nothing more. Xue Tian'ai’s height and physique were intimidating; a beating for a failed advance was not worth it.

Reluctantly, the predator slunk away, casting one last longing look at the girl’s back.

But Xue Tian'ai’s intervention brought about a new problem. With the bus rocking along, the girl’s back now brushed against Xue Tian'ai’s chest from time to time. Feeling the difference from the bottle’s earlier contact, the girl glanced back, puzzled.

The skinny predator was gone—in his place was the same man she’d helped before.

Now, her suspicion only deepened: this man behind her was definitely a pervert! She was sure he’d only driven the other guy away to claim the “prey” for himself, not out of any sense of justice.

Still, compared to the previous sleaze, this one was at least easy on the eyes. In today’s world, looks counted for a lot.

Seeing that Xue Tian'ai made no further moves, the girl relaxed a little. She said nothing more—after all, he had chased away the other predator, and she only had to bear this for two more stops.

So the two maintained their positions, neither speaking. At last, the girl’s stop arrived. She let go of the handle and prepared to alight.

But suddenly, the bus made a sharp turn. Passengers swayed, and the girl, no longer holding on, lost her balance and toppled backward.

Thanks to years of martial training, Xue Tian'ai stood as steady as a mountain. Seeing the girl falling, she quickly reached out to steady her.

At such close range, the girl’s scent was even more intoxicating, and Xue Tian'ai’s spirits lifted as she felt the softness in her arms.

But in the next instant, she realized her right hand had landed on something soft—remarkably pleasant to the touch. Reflexively, she gave it a light squeeze… and suddenly felt something terribly wrong.

The girl, having just fallen into his arms, turned to thank her rescuer—only to find that her left breast was firmly in the grip of a man’s hand, which seemed to have squeezed it!

Her face flamed crimson. She immediately understood what had happened. She had thought he’d caught her to save her—but in truth, he was taking advantage!

With cheeks burning and eyes blazing, she glared over her shoulder—sure enough, it was the same man, now wearing a rueful smile.

“Miss, I swear—it was just a beautiful misunderstanding. Do you believe me?”