Chapter 79: Damn This Ridiculous Drama

Mo Qi sat by the glass wall in the cafeteria, where the view was good and she could see the courtyard outside.

After setting her food down, she took out her phone, ready to send a message to Mo Xiaobao.

"You're Mo Qi, aren't you?" On the other side of the rectangular table sat a beautiful woman in the latest summer dress from Chanel, a matching handbag looped over her arm, sunglasses in her hand. She looked down at Mo Qi, her gaze condescending.

Mo Qi nodded. "Yes, I'm Mo Qi. May I ask what you need from me?" she replied, standing up politely to greet the woman.

The beautiful woman gave her an appraising look, her chin tilting up. "Name your price."

Mo Qi was puzzled, her smile faint. "I'm sorry, I don't quite understand what you mean?"

"I'm Wang Min's aunt," the woman declared bluntly. "Tell me, how much will it take for you to drop this matter?"

As she spoke, the woman pulled a pen and a checkbook from her small purse, preparing to write a check.

"I think you may be mistaken," Mo Qi's smile faded a little. "From beginning to end, this has been because Wang Min refuses to let me go, not the other way around. I think, before coming to see me, you should be talking to Wang Min first."

"Tch!" The woman sneered, her tone laced with derision. "You're just a little celebrity. Our Wang family is already giving you more face than you deserve by coming here to negotiate. Don't overestimate yourself. In fact, you don't even count as a little celebrity yet."

Her words dripped with disdain, as if she alone were pure and noble while everyone else was filth.

Mo Qi almost laughed out loud in anger; the smile on her lips deepened, as if she agreed. She nodded. "You're right, I'm just an insignificant newcomer. Not only people like you, but even some random nobody could probably stamp me into the mud. But so what?"

Her smile turned cold. "As long as I stay silent, Wang Min's disqualification from the competition is a foregone conclusion."

"Let me tell you," the woman sneered, "our Wang family already has a contract with the production team. Min was always destined to win. Do you really think the show will let her be eliminated? My advice is to be sensible. In this business, it's all too common for small-time newcomers to vanish without a trace."

"Then let's wait and see," Mo Qi replied, as if suddenly remembering something. "Oh, by the way! King Shen seems quite interested in this matter. Should I let him know you came to see me today?"

"Don't get cocky!" the woman snapped, glaring at her. If it weren't for Shen Yijue supporting Mo Qi, would she have bothered to come herself?

Mo Qi sneered inwardly. The woman's frustrated, teeth-gritted expression was exactly like Wang Min's.

"Axue, don't be rude to Miss Mo."

"Sister-in-law, let me handle this. You can wait outside," Wang Xue's tone softened, though there was still a trace of harshness.

"I'd better do it myself." An elegantly dressed woman, accompanied by a bodyguard, approached with a gentle smile and extended her hand warmly. "I'm Wang Min's mother. Miss Mo, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Looking at the woman's gentle, kind smile, Mo Qi couldn't help but sneer inwardly. What a melodramatic farce!

She would never have guessed that Wang Min's mother would be her.

Mo Qi had grown up in an orphanage, though she was only fostered and not technically an orphan. She knew who her parents were, but never considered acknowledging them. To the former Mo Qi, and now to Mo Qi herself, they were strangers.

She hadn't expected that, after living a second life, she would encounter people connected to her parents.

Wang Min's mother, Lady Wang, was her birth mother's twin sister.

Their features were so similar that Mo Qi couldn't possibly be mistaken.

Thinking back on Wang Min's appearance, she realized the resemblance to Lady Wang was there, just not obvious.

"Miss Mo?" Lady Wang called softly, smiling as she saw Mo Qi lost in thought. "Do you mind if I sit here?"

Mo Qi took a quiet breath. "Please, have a seat."

"Thank you." Lady Wang wore a tailored, elegant dress and sat down beside her without a hint of disdain for the cafeteria bench. "You're even more beautiful in person than you are on television."

Mo Qi smiled but said nothing. Even though she'd never met this aunt before, it was obvious from her demeanor that she was far more formidable than Wang Xue.

"Miss Mo, as a mother yourself, you must understand—parents can't help but dote on their children. Sometimes we fail to control ourselves and they develop bad habits." Lady Wang smiled gently. "When children make mistakes, it's only natural that we parents step in to resolve things."

Mo Qi's eyes narrowed dangerously. "You've investigated me."

"I wouldn't call it an investigation—just an attempt to understand each other. But if that has made you uncomfortable, I apologize." Lady Wang took a check from her exquisite purse and slid it across the table. "This is a small token of apology from us as parents. I hope you can forgive Min for her youthful mistakes."

"Excuse me, I need to use the restroom." Mo Qi stood abruptly and left the cafeteria, circling to the back to call Mo Xiaobao.

The phone rang three times before it was answered. Xiaobao's cautious voice came through, "Mom, I'm in class."

Hearing her son's voice, Mo Qi's heart finally settled.

"I'm just checking in, making sure you're paying attention in class," she said, her voice low and gentle.

"Only a fool wouldn't like studying, and I'm not," the boy replied.

"Of course, our Xiaobao is the smartest. All right, go back to class. Mommy needs to work. Remember, after school, wait for Aunt Xiaoling to pick you up before leaving, and don't go with strangers."

"Mommy is smart too."

Mo Qi felt a warm glow inside that dispelled all the darkness and chill from earlier.

After hanging up, she called Sister Xiaoling, making up a story about a recent spike in child abductions to make sure she'd pick Xiaobao up early.

Sister Xiaoling rolled her eyes over the phone. "Don't worry! I get to the school gate half an hour early every day. If anyone dares lay a hand on Xiaobao under my nose, they'll regret it!"

Mo Qi smiled, finally reassured, and hung up.

She had heard the veiled threat in Lady Wang's words earlier, using Xiaobao as leverage. But as long as her son was safe, nothing else mattered.

Back in the cafeteria, Wang Xue was growing restless.