Chapter 12 Mrs. Zhao was shrewd; her reason for enjoying mahjong with wealthy ladies was to forge friendships conducive to business. Around the topic of diamond rings, the conversation at the mahjong table became so heated that no one could focus on the game.

Moments later, Lu Mingzhu won over twenty yuan in a single round. She had never lost a game of mahjong. Blessed with luck at the cards since childhood, everyone said she was destined for a good life. Though born the daughter of a village woman in a remote small town—destined to struggle through mud and hardship—her fate changed when her mother, working as a maid in Shanghai, won the favor of her employers. Consequently, she too rose with them, receiving an elite education, gaining admission to a prestigious university, transforming from a humble sparrow into a golden phoenix, and living a life smooth and prosperous ever since. All this was thanks to her two benefactors in succession: Grandma Lin and Grandma Zhang. Lu Mingzhu's mother was beautiful. After graduating from high school, she failed to get into university and, through a matchmaker's arrangement, married before turning twenty. Her husband was a young man from the neighboring village who had attended university and worked in the city.

She moved to the city with him and spent nearly a decade diligently caring for her bedridden mother-in-law, attending to all her bodily needs with utmost devotion. Yet her good fortune was short-lived; no sooner had her mother-in-law passed away than she was divorced. Lu Mingzhu's biological father was utterly despicable. He left Lu Mingzhu's mother with nothing upon their divorce, claiming that since she had never held a job or earned a single penny for the household, she had merely lived off his food and drink. At that time, Lu Mingzhu was only two years old. The reason behind this was that the scoundrel had claimed caring for the elderly day and night was too exhausting for Lu's mother, suggesting it would be better to postpone having children. Believing his deceit, she consistently used contraception. However, when she accidentally became pregnant, she insisted on giving birth to Lu Mingzhu, whose household registration (hukou) was subsequently tied to her mother's.

The scumbag's excuse was that it was difficult to register a household in the city, whereas a rural hukou was far more desirable. And the result? Not even a hundred days after his own mother's death, he immediately divorced and remarried, ensuring that the daughter born from his new union received an urban household registration. In contrast, Lu's mother was pitiable; after being cast out, she became the subject of neighbors' gossip, found no refuge in her natal home, and was resented by her parents and brothers for bringing shame upon them, blamed for failing to keep her husband's heart. In the 1990s, divorce was almost unheard of in the village. Fortunately, having lived in the city for many years, she had managed to make a few close friends. When she found herself with nowhere else to turn, these friends, impressed by her honesty, diligence, simplicity, and patience, recommended her to work as a nanny for wealthy families.

Lu's mother agreed to accept half the usual salary, on the condition that her employer allow her to bring her daughter along. Luckily, the person she needed to care for was an elderly man whose children lived far away and could not return. Feeling lonely without family around, he agreed to let Lu's mother bring her daughter to live with them, treating Lu Mingzhu as if she were his own granddaughter. The name Lu Mingzhu was given by her first employer, Grandma Lin, who had her take the Lu family surname. Grandpa and Grandma Lin were retired university professors who provided Lu Mingzhu's early education. When she turned seven, the Lins were taken abroad by their daughter who had married overseas. Before leaving, they introduced Lu's mother to an old friend in Shanghai, Grandma Zhang, who had mobility issues and a difficult temper. Consequently, Lu's mother moved into Grandma Zhang's historic Western-style house.

Grandma Zhang had been divorced during a turbulent political era and endured great hardships; her leg problems resulted from injuries sustained when she was beaten during that time. After her rehabilitation, she recovered little beyond her property and some antique collectibles. She was extremely particular about daily life and possessed a bad temper that even her own daughter could not tolerate. As a result, several nannies accepted high salaries only to leave filled with resentment after being scolded, secretly sabotaging things in retaliation. Lu's mother had experience caring for the elderly, possessed a gentle temperament, and was diligent. Most importantly, she was kind-hearted and never mistreated the elderly. Serving a paralyzed mother-in-law for ten years is no small feat, something few could manage. To enable Lu's mother to focus on caring for the elderly matriarch, Grandma Zhang's daughter generously purchased an apartment in Shanghai in Lu Mingzhu's name, secured a blue-stamp household registration under the policies of the time, and arranged for Lu Mingzhu to attend school in Shanghai.

Although it was not a particularly prime location, it ultimately gave Lu Mingzhu and her mother their own little home. Within a few years, the temporary "blue-stamp"

household registration was converted into permanent status. Mother Lu cared for Grandma Zhang with utmost devotion, treating her as if she were a living Buddha; this reverence lasted twenty years, until Grandma Zhang passed away at the ripe age of one hundred and one. Grandma Zhang came from a prestigious family and was exceptionally talented; before her death, she imparted all her skills to Lu Mingzhu, including how to play mahjong. According to her, playing mahjong can prevent dementia. Lu Mingzhu always beat her. The old lady's luck was exceptionally terrible; even though Lu Mingzhu let her win every time, she still lost endlessly. The memories left with Lu Mingzhu were all beautiful; recalling them now, she couldn't help but smile at the corners of her mouth as she pushed her mahjong tiles forward, declaring, "Win!"

She had won again.

At that moment, the conversation still revolved around diamond rings. Mrs. Liu had entrusted Mrs. Zhao to convey a request to Zhao Sinan, asking him to find a 6-carat oil-clear diamond, insisting it must surpass Mrs. Chen the Second's 3-carat diamond ring, and adding that price was no object. Although she lost at mahjong, she wasn't unhappy. Noticing that Lu Mingzhu wore no diamond ring, her slender fingers resembling spring scallions and even more beautiful than any gemstone, Mrs. Liu shifted the conversation to her.

"Miss Lu's diamond watch is exquisite. Where did you buy it? Hong Kong also has watch shops producing local timepieces adorned with tiny diamonds no bigger than sesame seeds, yet priced at tens or even hundreds of thousands—each an astronomical sum. Moreover, they're not durable; one constantly needs to seek a master for repairs."

She looked rather troubled. Drawing upon her predecessor's memories, Lu Mingzhu replied, "It was a birthday gift from my godfather, who had someone bring it back from abroad."

Mrs. Wang, aware of the matter, added, "It was custom-made; there is only one such watch in the entire world. No one else could ever purchase it, because the artisan who crafted this watch passed away shortly after completing it."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Liu fell silent. Due to Mrs. Wang's explanation, she assumed that the godfather mentioned by Lu Mingzhu referred to Wang Xingcai. Lu Mingzhu neither boasted nor deliberately clarified otherwise. Her predecessor's godfather had once been a high-ranking official who fled overseas more than two years ago. Her predecessor came from a wealthy family and possessed striking beauty; every godparent she had taken was either rich or noble, her social circle consisted almost entirely of affluent individuals, and even among her classmates, few hailed from impoverished backgrounds. All this left Lu Mingzhu, who had transmigrated into this body, with comfortable living conditions. The only uncertainty was where the original soul had gone; if it had been a simple soul exchange, at least her mother would still have someone to keep her company. Although Lu Mingzhu came from humble origins, she encountered countless benefactors throughout her life and achieved modest success, amassing a considerable fortune; thus, even after inheriting this body, she would not suffer hardship.

After dinner that evening, she returned to her room and took out all the jewelry belonging to the original owner. Wang Xingcai had previously instructed Butler Li not to take away certain gold ornaments; now, she selected only about ten exquisite and rare pieces worthy of being regarded as works of art to keep as mementos, planning to sell the rest for cash. We must have our own house; we cannot keep living in the Wang family home forever. Spending every day playing mahjong or discussing jewelry and lavish clothes is truly a disrespect to life itself. After selling one large gold bar that afternoon, Lu Mingzhu still had 129 bars remaining, including ten retrieved from the Fourth Mistress's room. These ten were discovered later; after being stored away in her spatial pocket along with the jadeite bracelets, she had forgotten to take them out and include them among the gold and silver given to Wang Xingcai.

Most of the original owner's diamond ornaments held no collectible value, so Lu Mingzhu gathered them all together. After taking stock, the original owner had a total of four diamond necklaces, three diamond bracelets, eight pairs of diamond earrings and studs, seven diamond brooches, and eleven diamond rings for women, not including the two diamond rings found on Lu's father and the Third Mistress. Lu Mingzhu carefully sifted through them. She kept only the diamond jewelry that clearly formed complete sets, along with one pink diamond ring and one sky-blue diamond ring. The pink diamond was round and weighed six carats. The sky-blue diamond is emerald-cut and weighs 10 carats. Vibrant in color and sparkling brilliantly. The pink diamond was purchased by her former self for over a dozen gold bars, while the sky-blue diamond was a gift from a late godmother; it was said to have cost only $10,000 at the time of purchase and was designed and set by the renowned jeweler Harry Winston.

Colored diamonds hold immense potential for appreciation in value, so Lu Mingzhu had no intention of selling them. After finishing the organization, Lu Mingzhu took a bath. Before going to bed, she kept busy by unfolding a sheet of paper and taking up her pen to draft a simple business plan centered on tiered sales, though its format lacked the rigor that would become standard seven or eight decades later. After days of diligent study and practice, she had basically mastered reading and writing traditional Chinese characters. She still did not recognize overly obscure characters. What she couldn't finish that night, she continued the next day. It was around eleven o'clock when she set down her pen for the last time. As Lu Mingzhu was tidying her desk, Liao Wanru came over and called to her, "Mingzhu, Junyao is here to pick you up. He said you two have plans for lunch?"

"Yes, Sister-in-law, we have important business,"

Lu Mingzhu replied hastily, tucking the completed proposal into her handbag.

Liao Wanru teased, "I never said you didn't have serious matters to attend to."

Lu Mingzhu simply smiled without responding. Did she deign to show her face just because Xie Junyao is easy on the eyes? Nothing to do with romance. We're all adults now, mature in our thinking; how could there be any such thing as love at first sight? What is called love at first sight is merely attraction based on appearance. Of course, there is certainly some fondness; after all, beautiful people have always been favored. The main reason Lu Mingzhu felt drawn to Xie Junyao was his exceptional looks and demeanor; she believed Xie Junyao felt the same about her, otherwise he would not have taken the initiative to invite her to dinner. Inviting someone to dinner is, in itself, a gesture of interest. Arm in arm with Liao Wanru, she descended the stairs and spotted Xie Junyao seated on the sofa, conversing with Mrs. Wang. In his arms was a bouquet of crimson roses, so vivid they seemed ready to drip with dew, their fragrance perceptible even from afar.

Lu Mingzhu's certainty deepened. Hearing the click of leather-soled shoes against the floor, he looked up. Upon seeing her, shallow dimples instantly appeared on Xie Junyao's face, his eyes alight with brilliance. Within that play of light and shadow, there was only Lu Mingzhu. Lu Mingzhu wore no makeup, applying only the simplest skincare products and a layer of lipstick. She swept her bangs upward, securing them with a diamond hairpin that had belonged to her original self, revealing her full, oval-shaped face. She was breathtakingly beautiful. Her eyebrows and eyes were as finely drawn as a painting, her lips red and teeth white, her skin as fair as snow and smooth as jade, glowing with a luminous radiance. Years of wearing braids had left her hair, now loose and cascading over her shoulders front and back, softly curled and voluminous, further accentuating the delicate refinement of her small face.

Her attire was equally thoughtful—neither opulent nor flashy. She paired a crisp white shirt with a high-waisted, emerald-green corset dress, adorned with no jewelry save for a dazzling diamond watch on her left wrist. Her waist was slender and graceful, her wrists delicate and fair, her figure elegantly poised. As she approached with gentle steps, she resembled an immortal maiden stepped right out of a painting. Xie Junyao presented a bouquet of red roses, exclaiming in admiration, "I once believed red roses to be the epitome of beauty, yet now I find them utterly overshadowed in Miss Lu's presence."

She took it in her hands, lowered her head to gently inhale its fragrance, then looked up with eyes curved into smiling crescents.

"Thank you, I like it very much."

"It's getting late; you two should go early and return early."

Mrs. Wang, advanced in years and fond of playing matchmaker in her spare time, had watched both these young people grow up. Knowing them thoroughly inside and out, she naturally rejoiced at the prospect of their union. Let them get acquainted first; whether it ultimately works out or not depends on fate. The elder possessed an open mind.