"Wan Wan, leave…" Tang Yu was left shocked by the grip strength of the servant girl. She was rather petty, where was all the strength coming from?! As though one wasn't enough, the other girl joined her force in the battle as well! It fell heavy on Tang Yu. One versus two, not a good sitch; they stood toe to toe with her. Thus, she had to drop her feeble grasp.
"Have you gone crazy?" Zhu Wan yelled, hiding the scissors behind her back. "What really got into your head to have cut such beautiful hair?"
Tang Yu couldn't but roll her eyes to the left side. "I was not shaving my head clean to bald, okay? I was just grooming the hair a little bit; wasn't going bald." She wasn't a stranger to ancient people's over-the-top fascination with long hair. But, hair flowing below the calves? C'mon! She would rather style her hair in a comfy haircut. Although, she couldn't go over the top and do her previous haircut that didn't extend past chin-length, classic length would do just fine.
Zhu Wan's right hand briskly flew over her gaping mouth; she breathed out hot exhales.
"It's so long. I will have a hard time combing it. Also, you two won't be there to shampo—, I mean to wash them. Braiding such long lengths will be a chore. Your Miss doesn't have that much time in hands to spare; I have to be a woman of substance." Tang Yu justified her action coolly, looking at her right hand. The so-called strip of a handle had serrations in it, and they left red marks on the belly of her fingers.
Zhu Taotao's face flushed purple to an extent that she barely resisted fainting from anger. "It was not just hair but a great wealth of beauty that you just ruined! You are newly-wed, now, your top priority should be to capture your husband's, scholar Mu's heart!" All of a sudden, she paused, horrified at her own thoughts.
The suddenness of the silence had Tang Yu set her gaze at the girl. "What?"
Zhu Taotao grabbed her hands. "Young Miss, be honest, don't be false to us! Tell us what you are really plotting?"
"Don't run your thoughts wild." Tang Yu stretched her neck, trying to catch a glimpse of the scissors. It was practically written all over Zhu Wan's face that she held no lick of intention to relinquish it. Opening up her true agenda that she wished to put her own spin on the hair would involve her to cause heels with these two. Hence, she had to embrace some spits of lies. "I was trying to capture my husband's heart. He, actually, doesn't fancy calf-length long hair."
A fresh lie. It was her.
However, both sisters seemed to have eaten it up. There was a notion going around long hair, only the females from rich families could afford it. Hair oil and fragrance were very high-priced items.
Tang Yu disengaged her hands from Taotao's grip, and spun around to contemplate her back view in the mirror. The ends were now resting on her bootie. Much better. Asking them to taper the ends would be pointless; they couldn't and wouldn't do it. She better incorporate in Rapunzel vibes with a no-fuss straight cut. "At least, help me even out the edge. The ends look serrated and mouse-eaten."
Zhu Wan with a sorrowful face ran the comb in the lengths, then cut the ends evenly at a margin distance from the comb.
Just then a knock on the door had them swivel towards the door. "Young Miss, scholar Mu has been waiting." Imparting the polite reminder, butler Zhu turned around to leave.
"Wan Wan, not today. I will let you style my hair some other day." Tang Yu snatched the heavy comb from Zhu Wan, parted the hair in the middle, briskly combed them, before throwing it in a sleek low bun. She dashed outside — the thick carpet swallowing the sounds left by her footstep. Rounding a few corners, she appeared in the living room.
Mu Yunsheng's impatient gaze lingering around the door caught her sight immediately.
Tang Yu's slowed down her walk, locking her gaze with the pair of black eyes, the color of midnight darkness. They held an unquestionable authority, and it didn't allow her to escape them.
He rose to his feet, unfolding his enviable height.
Everything else slowly faded into the background, Tang Yu drew nearer, as if getting vacuumed by the giant black hole itself. Obviously, she didn't return the trace of anger racing unbridled within the dark orbs, embedded in Mu Yunsheng's phoenix eyes. Instead, she unleashed her undying curiosity on him, and absorbed his beauty, impressing it on her memory. A pair of long, dark, low eyebrows added another edge to his chiseled manly face. A high-bridged nose, bearing his pride, stood upright. The thick, pink, pillow-y lips were more than capable of weaving desires in anyone's heart.
A heart-throb indeed.
Being in the fashion industry for a decade, Tang Yu had good eyes for handsome men. He had game, and she badly wanted him to walk in the all 'Big Four' Fashion shows, in her vision!
However, realization was a bitch. It dawned on her, dousing her in freezing cold water. She bid goodbye to the modern world in a car accident.
Tang Yu wondered, after she founded her clothing line here, if this handsome demigod would be game to walk on her fashion shows.
Suddenly, she caught her foot against a raised corner of the carpet and lurched forward. The bubble she had been floating inside burst out — sending her crashing down into the ground on face.
Here goes her first impression! Dung it.
However, the pain she anticipated never came. A pair of muscly forearms draped around her slim waist, and wrenched her into his athletic arms. An enchanting musculine smell wafted into Tang Yu's nostrils, and she couldn't help pulling it into her lungs with deep drag of inhales.
Damn! When did she become a cougar?
Mu Yunsheng's dark orbs, reminiscent of an angry stormy night, barely concealed their wildness. "Let's go." The words were yet to fall into the floor, when he dragged her outside, through the main door.
"Yunsheng, you didn't touch anything. At least, put some water in your mouth before leaving." Tang Yangran's words followed them very closely behind.
Mu Yunsheng looked over his shoulders, as he said, "Some other day, father."
Tang Yu couldn't help but be reminded of the Disney movies -- a prince-charming would always whisk the most beautiful maiden off to his golden chariot pulled by eight unicorns, caparisoned with ornamental chains and colorful ribbons. And a grand entourage of a hundred mice or dwarfs would follow them to his majestic palace.
Neigh!
Tang Yu colorful fantasy faded shortly after and the reality stood naked before her eyes. The sight of a mediocre horse-drawn carriage, utterly barebone inside, shook her wandering thoughts off. The brown steeds hitched to the carriage were well fed, despite them yawning sluggishly.
Tang Yu smiled sheepishly inside.
Husband came from a humble background, and he didn't have deep pockets yet. Not a problem, she would amass her own wealth soon.
She turned around, wrapping her long hands around Tang Yangran. "Father,"
Tang Yangran fought back the tears, welling inside his eyes. "Take care of yourself. Eat properly."
"You too." She couldn't help melting into his warm, fatherly embrace.
The coachman, a middle-aged man about fifty with a bloated belly, large open forehead, bald patch in the center of the head, surrounded by a thin ring of sparse hair, heaved his girthy frame out of the coach box. He loosely knew the magistrate. Therefore, came down to bow and display his respect. "We should get going, before the darkness rolls in."
Tang Yangran reluctantly released Tang Yu from his embrace. He lowered his voice into a whisper, as he said, "After a month, father will cook an excuse and bring you back here for some more days." He assured in a voice only meant for his daughter's ears.
Tang Yu laughed, letting a melodious sound flow out of her mouth. It was alluring with a hint of undeniable innocence; somehow, it managed to ease Mu Yunsheng's hard features, hooking him in a trance.
Zhu Wan and Zhu Taotao stuffed the wooden chests into the carriage. Their eyes were red, slugs of tears rolling down their cheeks.
Tang Yu swept her gaze over the tiny crowd of servants, and stationed it at her half-brothers. "You will visit me in my in-laws with father after a month, won't you?" She asked with a smile.
Tang Song nodded his head vigorously, while Tang Bai grimaced.
"Wan Wan, and Taotao, you two should come as well." Tang Yu gathered both girls in an embrace.
This gesture sent a wave of shock across everyone's heart, rippling their previous assumptions of her, and putting the suicide rumours to rest.
Who would go back to their in-laws in such a happy mood after a suicide attempt?