Spring Branches

The first ray of sunlight in the early morning pierced through the cracks in the darkness and lazily filtered through the window, illuminating the house with a golden glow.

It is four o'clock in the morning. Lu Tangtang is sitting listlessly on the sofa. There is a huge makeup box on the coffee table in front of her. A girl wearing a mask is applying makeup on her face.

Just now, she had fallen asleep for just an hour when several people pulled her from the bed to the sofa and started dressing her up.

Suddenly, the phone in her hand vibrated. Lu Tangtang lowered her eyes and saw that it was a voice message from Smith Tang Wen.

Smith Tangwen: Good morning, Tangtang. The makeup artist should have put on your makeup by now. You should cheer up. Today's occasion is very important. I will send you a message downstairs and you can come downstairs. We will go in the same car.

After turning off the phone, an unfamiliar verification request popped up on the screen again.

This is the tenth one today.

Lu Tangtang sighed lightly, clicked "Reject" and turned off her phone.

Makeup artist: "Beautiful lady, close your eyes."

*

When Lu Tangtang and Smith Tang Wen arrived at the venue, most people had already arrived, and the remaining few were all high-profile and heavyweight teachers.

Lu Tangtang awkwardly took Smith Tangwen's arm and got out of the car.

Lu Tangtang's evening dress was a fishtail design, which made her curvy figure even more exquisite. The back of the dress was hollowed out, revealing a beautiful back that was white and smooth, extremely beautiful.

The makeup is cool and elegant, and the eyes are like an ink painting, gentle as water, full of affection, and full of oriental charm. The long brown hair is tied up low, with a simple and fresh hairpin inserted.

The flash lights were snapping photos of the two people from all angles.

It was Lu Tangtang’s first time attending an international event. Her heart was beating faster and she felt a chill down her spine.

Smith Tang Wen saw it, smiled and patted the back of Lu Tangtang's hand, comforting her: "Take a breath, relax, it's okay."

Lu Tangtang took a breath and exhaled, and the tension slowly faded away.

Walk up to the signature board for an interview.

The female reporter in the lead had a fierce look on her face, and her eyes blinked slightly. Her words were like a biting cold wind, sharp and cold: "Excuse me, Ms. Lu Tangtang, are you just accompanying the teacher to receive the award, or are you here to take his place?"

"..." Lu Tangtang paused.

On the way here, Smith Tangwen told her that the reporter was just simply asking about her thoughts on the event and did not expect to ask such a question.

Smith Tang Wen laughed and asked, "What do you think of this reporter?"

The female reporter's momentum did not diminish: "I heard that Miss Lu is Lu Chixie's sister, right? Why don't you stay for a moment and take a group photo with us."

“…”Lu Tangtang.

It is obvious that this female reporter is a shill.

After Lu Chixie and Shen Wanyan reached an agreement, someone released all the evidence of Lu Tangtang's drug use and the prison term determined by the police. All news about Lu Tangtang disappeared overnight.

Whenever Lu Tangtang appears in public, she is disguised tightly and her true identity has never been revealed. So how do reporters know that they are brother and sister?

Who told her the truth and who invited her here?

Smith Tang Wen's face became more and more embarrassed.

Seeing this, the staff came over and took the female reporter away.

The female reporter was spitting foul language and was not giving up: "Ms. Lu is not in jail. She has been studying at Jinda University for the past few months. Why did the police come up with such a solution?"

"Miss Lu, you and..."

The female reporter was eventually dragged out by the burly bodyguard.

As soon as they entered the banquet hall, An Zaolin came up with Lu Chixie.

An Zaolin was wearing a simple off-shoulder long dress, with her long hair fluttering in the wind. She waved enthusiastically, with a bright and brilliant smile, and her whole body exuded a strong sense of confidence.

Lu Chixie always had a cold face, giving off an aura of keeping strangers away, and his black eyes were tinged with a hint of alienation and indifference. His clothes were always alternating between black, white and gray.

Go to the signature board.

The reporter asked: "Teacher Lu and Teacher An have been dating for such a long time, and both of them have outstanding works. I would like to ask if the two teachers have any plans to further consider marriage?"

An Zaolin glanced at Lu Chixie with charming eyes and smiled shyly, "Teacher Lu and I have the same idea and are planning it."

Reporter: "Congratulations to both teachers in advance."

"..."

The reporter asked two simple questions and then let the two go.

*

Lu Chixie sat in seat 5 in the first row, with two American movie stars next to him. Smith Tangwen and Lu Tangtang sat at the edge of the first row, while An Zaolin sat in seat 5 in the third row.

The venue was a little dark. Lu Chixie looked for Lu Tangtang covertly but didn't see her. His phone was taken away by his agent, so he just looked at the stage quietly.

After staying there for twenty minutes, Lu Tangtang was extremely sleepy.

Smith Tang Wen saw this and whispered in Lu Tangtang's ear, "Go take a rest, find something to eat, and cheer up."

Lu Tangtang carefully left the venue and went to the bathroom.

He rinsed his hands with cold water and took a piece of paper to wipe the water.

Looking at her beautiful self in the mirror, Lu Tangtang was very happy.

Because she can look good even without makeup, and also because she is too lazy, she never wears makeup unless it is absolutely necessary in very important occasions.

After admiring the beautiful face for a while, when Lu Tangtang was about to go out, suddenly a lightning-fast figure pulled her into the first door of the bathroom.

After the world spun around, Lu Tangtang saw the face of the woman in front of him clearly and his eyes widened in shock.

An Zaolin pinched Lu Tangtang's chin and looked at her carefully: "So it's you."

Lu Tangtang tried to shake An Zaolin's hand but failed. She was surprisingly strong. She frowned and asked in a deep voice, "What do you mean?"

"So you are the white moonlight that Chi Xie has been thinking about."

Lu Tangtang: “…”

When An Zaolin saw the recent interview with Lu Tangtang going viral on Weibo, he was furious.

She always felt that Lu Chixie cared too much for his sister Lu Tangtang, even more than his own sister. She comforted herself in her heart that Lu Chixie just felt sorry for Lu Tangtang's life experience, so he cared too much. Once he disappeared from the world, she cared even less about her. No one mentioned her, and they even forgot that there was such a person as Lu Tangtang.

Unexpectedly, Lu Chixie's agent accidentally handed the phone to An Zaolin with the screen still on. An Zaolin opened WeChat under the pretext that she was Lu Chixie's girlfriend. After seeing the pinned memo, she wanted to kill Lu Tangtang.

memorandum:

I fell in love with the little girl my mother adopted at first sight. Later, my mother had a younger sister and wanted to send her back, so I planned to secretly send her to the United States.

My mother didn't allow me to have any contact with her, so I secretly took care of her gently, visited her once a month, hired detectives to secretly film her, drugged her when she was asleep, slept next to her, and hugged her so that I could fall asleep without the need for drugs.

"Let me go." Lu Tangtang said solemnly, his brows tightly furrowed, with confusion and puzzlement in his eyes.

"Bitch." An Zaolin gnashed his teeth and pinched harder and harder: "Who are you dressing up so well for? Huh? Are you trying to seduce Chi Xie?"

"I don't understand what you are saying." Lu Tangtang said with some difficulty. There was a large red spot on her neck and there were slight red bloodshot in her eye sockets.

"Stop playing dumb." The more he thought about An Zaolin, the angrier he got. He felt like he was being fooled.

He was so angry that he slapped Lu Tangtang loudly without thinking.

Lu Tangtang widened her eyes in surprise, with an expression of disbelief.

An Zaolin said: "This is just a lesson for you. Go back to the United States and stay away from it. If you show up again, I will make you suffer ten thousand times more."

After An Zaolin left, Lu Tangtang reacted belatedly.

She was just beaten by An Zaolin.

Also gave a warning.

Lu Tangtang closed her eyes and exhaled.

I'll just wait for this slap in the face, there's always a long way to go.

If he continued to beat, scold and insult him indiscriminately, she would dissect An Zaolin like a rat and feed the parts to the dogs to eat.

*

Lu Tangtang returned to her seat. The lighting was too dim, and she had just asked the makeup artist to cover up her fingerprints with powder. If she didn't look carefully, she wouldn't be able to see any changes.

The awards ceremony is two-thirds through.

When Lu Tangtang came in, the winners of the Academy Awards were being announced. The female guests were in an uproar, and the applause was louder than any other award ceremony.

The three nominees on the stage were all under 40 years old, all of them were upright and dignified. Except for Lu Chixie, the other two were not married.

Smith Tang Wen crossed his legs and smiled calmly: "Guess, among the three people on the stage, who will be the winner of this year's Academy Awards?"

Lu Tangtang stared at Lu Chixie intently, a little dazed.

What An Zaolin said just now emerged in my mind.

Is she the white moonlight that Lu Chixie has been thinking about?

Was she just saying this to provoke her, or was it true?

Lu Tangtang still remembers the hesitation on Lu Chixie's face when he agreed to date her. The unspeakable expression at that moment is still fresh in her memory.

Lu Tangtang thought that An Zaolin must have made a mistake.

"Tangtang?" Smith Tang Wen raised his hand and waved it in front of Lu Tangtang.

Lu Tangtang came back to her senses and said, "Ah", then smiled and said, "I don't know, what do you think, teacher?"

Smith Tang Wen laughed, "I think it will be Lu Chixie."

The box office of Lu Chixie's recent hit movie is still on an upward trend, and his influence cannot be underestimated.

As for the other two big names on the stage, one was from South Korea and the other was from the United States. Lu Tangtang had watched their dramas with her classmates when she was in school. Their acting skills were indeed good and were on par with each other.

If she really had to choose one, Lu Tangtang thought, she would still choose Lu Chixie.

Smith Tangwen: "You have the answer in your heart."

Lu Tangtang remained silent.

After a while of suspense, the host read out the name of the winner.

Host: "Our Academy Award winner is... Lu Chixie! Congratulations!"

Immediately, thunderous applause broke out.

Lu Chixie stood in front of the microphone holding the trophy. He was tall and handsome, cold yet gentle. His deep eyes were full of confidence, and the corners of his lips were curled with a faint smile: "Thank you, we're even."

Just four simple words.

Although they did not understand the latter's meaning of clearing both parties, they did not think about it too much.

The last award is the Biotechnology Award, and the winner is naturally Smith Tangwen, who has been at the top of the list for many years.

Smith Tangwen on the stage took the trophy and stood in front of the microphone.

Smith Tangwen said: "If it weren't for my student Lu Tangtang, there would be no such award. It belongs to you."

After that, the big screen turned to Lu Tangtang.

Her beautiful face appeared on the big screen.

She was shocked for two seconds, then waved and smiled sweetly, with the temperament of a lady from a noble family.

Under the spotlights and gazes, Lu Tangtang walked onto the podium.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Smith Tang Wen handed the trophy to Lu Tangtang with both hands.

Lu Tangtang's eyes were sore, "Thank you, teacher."

"..."

An Zaolin in the audience turned pale with anger and stamped his feet.

The limelight belongs to her.

Two seconds later, her eyes fell on Lu Chixie.

Lu Chixie, like several other bigwigs beside him, looked at the stage indifferently. His calm eyes could not reveal any more emotions.

An Zaolin was puzzled. Shouldn't Lu Chixie be full of pride at this moment?

How can it be indifference?

Or is he faking his emotions?

After calming down, An Zaolin began to think about this matter.

Lu Chixie's agent was always smart and knew that her relationship with Lu Chixie was fake, so why was he willing to let her hold the phone? She would never make such a low-level mistake as forgetting to turn off her phone.

There is only one possibility.

She did it on purpose!

So who was behind her doing this?

In a trance, the guests gradually left and went to the next reception area.

An Zaolin was looking for Lu Chixie among the crowd.

He was still sitting in his seat without moving, staring at the stage with cold eyes, thinking about something.

An Zaolin walked over and sat next to Lu Chixie, "Stop being in a daze, let's go."

Lu Chixie nodded, pulled back the arm that An Zaolin was holding, and walked out first.

An Zaolin: “…”

*

As night falls, the lights are on.

The huge banquet hall was decorated magnificently and was bustling with people.

The men and women at the banquet wore gorgeous evening gowns, like princesses and princes from fairy tales. The ladies wore red and green long skirts, while the men wore spotless tailor-made suits with elegant ties or bow ties.

Lu Chixie stood tall in the crowd, holding a wine glass in his hand with a calm look in his eyes. The well-tailored suit made him look even taller and more handsome.

Lu Tangtang recognized him at a glance, bit her lip, and slowly lowered her head.

When she first came to the Lu family, Lu Chixie had this attitude, which made her sink into it and unable to extricate herself.

Goodbye, still heartbeating.

Smith Tang Wen, who was standing by, saw everything. He walked over and said calmly, "Be more confident. You look very beautiful today."

Lu Tangtang smiled lightly, "That's what the teacher thinks."

Smith Tang Wen laughed, "No way, I just looked around and eight out of ten boys' eyes lingered on you and wanted to come up and say hello to you."

Lu Tangtang looked around and indeed saw someone's eyes wandering over her.

Seeing Lu Tangtang turned around, a foreigner raised his glass to her.

Lu Tangtang responded by taking a sip.