Mute Beauty

Chapter 30: Ambiguity

From the moment she woke up, it felt like she was waiting, though not quite certain for what. Two hours into her work, Yu Ting finally received a good morning message from Ran Ling.

Ran Ling didn't have the habit of waking up early or exercising; she loved to sleep in.

With some free time, Yu Ting chatted with her for a bit. By the evening, it seemed that the painting Ran Ling had mentioned the night before was finished. Without waiting for Yu Ting to return, she took a special photo of it and sent it to Yu Ting.

At a glance, Yu Ting could tell what it was.

It was a depiction of herself from a top-down perspective along with the bouquet of pink roses from the previous day.

In the painting, a woman dressed in a black suit sits with her legs crossed, leaning on the table, her eyes downcast. Her slender fingers gently touch the petals, and she gazes down with a smile, inhaling the floral scent.

Yu Ting leaned down to smell the flowers while Ran Ling looked at her. That moment was deeply etched in her mind. After sending Yu Ting off to the airport, Ran Ling began to paint, continuing until eleven o'clock at night when Yu Ting finally replied to her messages.

"Is this a gift for me?" Yu Ting asked.

Ran Ling replied, "Of course I won't give Ting Ting to anyone."

Of course, she wouldn't give Ting Ting to anyone?

Yu Ting was taken aback and laughed.

Perhaps finding it amusing, Yu Ting saved the painting and, without Ran Ling's permission, posted it on her social media without a caption.

Many people liked and commented on it, and soon she saw Ran Ling's profile picture pop up.

During their farewell at the airport, Ran Ling had shown a clingy reluctance, adding to the shadow left by the last time she had been abroad and felt abandoned. Yu Ting thought that in the following days, Ran Ling would be very attached to her. She even prepared herself for a flood of messages, but that wasn't the case. Ran Ling didn't message her very often. Instead, most of her messages came during mealtimes or breaks, expressing concern and care, and occasionally sharing photos of the flowers and plants at her home.

Yu Ting kept her promise, replying to every message and video calling her every night to go to sleep together.

The two days passed by quickly.

Work in the Canton City went smoothly. After having the last meal with a client at noon, Yu Ting had her assistant book a flight for three in the afternoon, arriving in Yun City at five-thirty. Ran Ling picked her up at the airport, already having everything prepared. They drove straight to the Ran family's old house, arriving just in time.

The Ran Group was led by Old Lady Ran. Unlike the Yu family, which had only Yu Ting's father as the sole surviving child, the Ran family was much larger. Including the adopted ones, Old Lady Ran had five children: three boys and two girls. Ran Long was the youngest, with two older sisters and two older brothers, all of whom were several years older than him and had established themselves in the business early on. Ran Long was the last one, and he held the weakest position in this family full of power struggles. It is often said that younger sons are favored, but Old Lady Ran considered him weak and inept, not giving him much regard.

In earlier years, the siblings were relatively harmonious. However, after each of them started their own families, internal competition became extremely intense. After being oppressed and belittled for so many years, Ran Long finally managed to rise to prominence—he had married into the powerful Yu family.