The Master’s Mask Unveiled Again
Chapter 882 - 881: Am I Still Your Sweetheart?

Chapter 882: Chapter 881: Am I Still Your Sweetheart?

Mo Fan didn’t notice Mo Si’s expression. Before Lu Mian could continue asking, he took the initiative to speak, practically more enthusiastic than he would be towards his own master.

"This time, I investigated the leaked Nourishing Elixir case and discovered that the previous intern, Pu Zongyang, was the one selling the drugs. Xin Bo has already dealt with him according to regulations, so there shouldn’t be any more instances of drug leaks in the future."

Lu Mian responded with a faint "Hmm."

Pu Zongyang was already trouble back at the farm; he had been disciplined back then, but it seems he still found a loophole.

Aside from the issue with internal personnel, Lu Mian still had confidence in the security system of the base laboratory.

"You’ve worked hard. Are you planning to stay here for a few extra days this time?"

"Yes, I’ll be staying in Jinjing for a while. Mainly because of the Chixia Sect and the Mercenary Alliance. Since I’m from Chixia Sect, I can’t just turn a blind eye..."

Mo Fan didn’t hold anything back and spilled everything to Lu Mian in one breath.

Mo Si suddenly felt that the Mo Fan in front of him was no longer the invincible deity Mo Ying held in his heart.

Lu Mian wasn’t interested in the matters of the Chixia Sect and Mercenary Alliance; the reasons for their rivalry boiled down to competing for status, resources, and clients.

Lu Mian sniffed slightly, her nostrils flaring, "You’re injured?"

Mo Fan awkwardly covered his arm. He was indeed hurt, with some superficial wounds and bleeding. Mo Si had just helped him bandage up.

"On the way back, I got into a fight with a few mercenaries." He confessed voluntarily.

Lu Mian raised her hand and slender fingers massaged her temple lightly.

"Once you’re better, I’ll teach you a couple more moves."

The girl’s tone was distinctly resigned yet tinged with a hint of caring concern.

Encountering mercenaries was unavoidable—it was part of their missions. The only way to avoid injuries was to become stronger.

Mo Fan sank into a small wave of melancholy.

Miss Lu had already taught him several moves, yet he still got hurt. She must think he’s useless.

Would she be disappointed in him?

It felt awful. He wanted to cry...

Mo Si didn’t quite understand Mo Fan’s fragile ego, but he could sense Lu Mian’s concern for Mo Fan, even teaching him skills.

Regardless of how skilled Miss Lu was, just her attitude alone made him envious.

He pitifully looked over at Lu Mian.

Miss Lu, am I no longer your one and only "little cutie"?

Whimper...

The two dramatic subordinates had rich inner dialogues, of which Lu Mian was completely oblivious.

The sound of a hearty elderly voice echoed from the courtyard, and Lu Mian greeted it with a small smile and walked to the door.

"Grandpa Xiao, you’re here."

"Mianmian!"

The old man beamed upon seeing Lu Mian, his smile almost splitting his face.

"I went to Qing University today and brought back your acceptance letter." Xiao Jianli said as he handed over an exquisitely crafted acceptance letter to Lu Mian.

Lu Mian didn’t seem to care much. She glanced at it, confirmed her name, and casually placed it on the back of the sofa. It wasn’t placed properly and teetered as if it were about to fall.

Mo Si looked on in horror. Miss Lu was too careless, treating something like this so casually.

He promptly picked up the letter and carefully stored it in a drawer.

Mo Fan curiously sneaked a peek, wanting to see what a Qing University acceptance letter looked like, but Mo Si refused to let him.

Mo Fan felt a bit disheartened. Xiaosi hadn’t treated him this coldly before...

Lu Mian invited Xiao Jianli to sit on the sofa and prepared tea for him, including the specific type and quantity of tea leaves tailored exactly to the elder’s preference.

"Why did you bother coming here in person? You could’ve just mailed it."

"I was worried they might lose it in the mail." Xiao Jianli cared deeply about these matters. He’d heard stories of acceptance letters going missing every summer break and felt anxious.

Besides, his trip to Qing University allowed him to take care of some connections for Lu Mian, so it wasn’t a wasted effort.

"Speaking of which, Mianmian, don’t you enjoy playing Go? I know a master who just returned to Jinjing. Would you like Grandpa to introduce you?"

Xiao Jianli paid close attention to Lu Mian’s interests, and he often leveraged his own connections and those of the Xiao Family for her benefit.

As she poured the elder his tea, Lu Mian replied, "No need, I just play casually."

Xiao Jianli: ... Casual?

"Alright then. Whenever you feel like meeting him, Grandpa will make the arrangements." Xiao Jianli sipped the tea brewed by his granddaughter-in-law and muttered to himself, "It’s strange how lively Jinjing has been recently. So many people I haven’t seen in years are suddenly returning."

Like the old Lu family and Master Jing.

Mo Si overheard this and chuckled quietly.

"Old Sir, weren’t you also a mystery to everyone, rarely seen? Yet now you’ve been staying in Jinjing lately."

Xiao Jianli put down his tea cup, "I’m not the same as them. I’m staying here for Qimo and Mianmian!"

Admittedly, it was mostly for Lu Mian.

However, he couldn’t say that outright, as it might pressure the child.

"Grandpa Xiao, we love chatting with you." Lu Mian said sincerely.

From anyone else, that line would’ve sounded like flattery or hollow praise. From Lu Mian, it exuded pure authenticity.

"Mianmian, thanks to you, Grandpa has already secured a spot for MM Ji’s trial opening." Xiao Jianli was as delighted as an eighty-year-old child who had found treasure.

Lu Mian massaged her forehead. "You could’ve just told me..."

She suddenly remembered that the reservation list Yuren had sent her still lay unopened in her email inbox.

In the future, she’d need to remind Yuren to specifically reserve slots for relatives and friends to ensure they could dine at MM Ji anytime without issue.

——

The summer vacation seemed to fly by.

As acceptance letters were distributed one by one, July gradually turned to its end.

Lu Mian had been quite busy during that period. MM Ji was set to officially open on August 8th, and ten days of trial operations had been planned beforehand.

Additionally, August 1st marked the opening ceremony of the Jinjing Diverse Music Festival, for which she needed to find time to help La Ge with post-production tuning.

That day was July 30th.

Fu Yu had organized a meetup, inviting La Ge, Shen Yixin, Master Kunyang, and Lu Mian to MM Ji Restaurant.

He thought it was the perfect location to treat everyone to a nice meal.

Given MM Ji’s stellar reputation and crowd-pleasing dishes, it was the ideal choice.

He’d heard previously that booking a table there was notoriously difficult, but he surprisingly managed to secure a private room with ease.

Fu Yu was overjoyed and arrived early to wait in the private room.

MM Ji.

It was the second day of its trial opening.

The expansive restaurant had all of its booths fully occupied. Local residents of Jinjing flocked to the place based on word of mouth. Many insiders, having heard the news early on, had reserved tables through various connections.

The first day of trial opening was packed, and the second day brought the same bustling crowd. A long queue extended outside the restaurant.

Through the window in his private room, Fu Yu glanced down and instantly felt incredibly lucky.

He calculated in his head; such a restaurant must bring in at least ten to eighty thousand yuan in daily revenue.

While Fu Yu was busy figuring out how much MM Ji could earn in a day, the door to the private room was pushed open.