The Master's Mask Unveiled Again-Chapter 1290 - 1289: Yun Sang Extra—Who Sends the Embroidered Letter from the Clouds? (1)
Since Xiao Lewu was born, Lu Xun and Yun Zhishu have lost the drive for ambition. Is making money more important than spending time with their grandson? Can building a career beat making their grandson happy?
The two elders completely stopped managing the company’s affairs and handed Yunxiao Group entirely over to Yun Sang.
The reason they didn’t give it to Lu Mian was that Lu Mian declined very decisively.
Yun Sang had no choice, unwillingly taking over the family business, and posted on social media.
[I never thought there would be a day when my sister and I would disagree.]
All friends expressed their concern one after another.
Ye Jinwen: [Brother Yun, that’s your fault. How’s Little Mianmian doing?]
That’s clearly the old "Protect Mian Squad."
Shadow Hunting Team Xun Xiaoran: [God Yun, I suggest you reflect on yourself.]
Shadow Hunting Team Cheng Feng: [God Yun, please respect our 6v7 goddess.]
Yun Sang was exasperated; these brothers were hanging out for nothing.
Shu Shu also commented: [Stop your excessive behavior! Mianmian yyds!]
Yun Sang: ...
A bunch of people left comments, but only Feng Ting’s words were a bit more normal.
Feng Ting: [What happened?]
Yun Sang, feeling frustrated, looked at the responses and finally replied to Shu Shu, which was also an explanation for everyone.
[Neither my sister nor I want to inherit the family wealth, leading to a disagreement, and I just couldn’t outmatch her. Am I really that over the top?]
Following this sentence, there was a crying emoji.
But this emoji just looked like it was asking for a beating.
Shu Shu angrily replied: [You are really over the top with us...]
Feng Ting understood the situation, glanced at the exchange between the two, and silently put away his phone to continue the meeting.
——
As Xiao Lewu grew up year by year, Yun Sang also fully supported Yunxiao Group, making the company bigger and becoming a leader in the global computer industry.
Friends around him also had their own developments.
His beloved Shadow Hunting Team recruited many new members, with quite a few promising ones, reminiscent of his own style back in the day. Teammates from back then were either getting married or in love. Sometimes it was difficult to get them all together for a dinner.
Ye Jinwen and Ya Ling, after getting engaged, gradually put aside their differences and went abroad together for further studies, planning to get married when they returned. Ye Jinwen, successful in both career and love, always looked smug when chatting with him.
Yunxiao Group collaborated with Sufeng Games, and one of the "Xi-Sang Brothers", Lu Xi, had a girlfriend too. The couple was so sweet that Lu Xi even designed a romantic game, and Yun Sang often overheard female colleagues at the company discussing which character in the game was more handsome.
Yun Sang didn’t notice anything before, but as there were fewer brothers to drink and chat with, he realized—
Everyone else was coupled up, and only he was sticking to the original promise: best buddies should stay together; whoever finds a partner first is a fool.
With no one to play with him, he played with his big nephew.
The big nephew was adorable and sweet, much more fun than drinking and chatting with a bunch of guys.
But now, when Yun Sang was urged to marry by a four-year-old, he realized the seriousness of the situation.
"You brat, just wait, I’ll find you an aunt soon!" Bold words were easy to say but hard to follow through with.
Who was he supposed to find to be the aunt...?
The man stood at the door, impatiently kicking the steps with his long legs, feeling very annoyed. Especially as a specific face began to take shape in his mind, he became even more unsettled.
Afternoon.
Xiao Lewu, holding a piece of mail, found Yun Sang.
The mail was light and thin, probably containing some sort of document.
"Uncle, your letter."
Yun Sang took it, puzzled, and opened the envelope; he didn’t remember expecting any mail recently.
Opening the envelope, some small cards fell out.
Xiao Lewu squatted down to help his uncle pick them up.
The cards were Polaroid photos, featuring a familiar girl with big, smiling crescent eyes, looking bright and cheerful.
Xiao Lewu recognized her; she was a good friend of his mom and frequently visited their home.
"It’s Aunt Shu Shu."
The little guy seriously handed over the photo.
Yun Sang was like a cat with its tail stepped on, pausing for a moment, then messily tousled Xiao Lewu’s little head.
"You brat, what nonsense are you spouting? Have you gone crazy thinking about aunts?"
After saying that, his ears inexplicably felt hot, and he hurriedly took back the photos.
Xiao Lewu put his hands behind his back and circled Yun Sang, analyzing like a little adult: "But she’s hugging you in the photo. Adults doing this kind of thing means they’re a couple, right?"
The logical reasoning was exactly cut from the same mold as Lu Mian.
Yun Sang quickly took a closer look at a few photos, briefly wondering if he had the problem of blacking out after drinking, why didn’t he remember such a scene?
Shu Shu hugging him... it wasn’t impossible, right?
However, before Yun Sang could feel secretly pleased for a few seconds, he figured out what was going on with the photos.
Suddenly, he felt a pang of sourness in his heart.
"Lu Lu."
Xiao Lewu’s nickname was "Lu Lu."
Yun Sang sighed and, with long fingers pinching the photos, seriously explained to his nephew: "This is my wax figure, not me. You’re still young, so it’s understandable if you can’t tell the difference right away."
This was at a wax museum in Hǎichéng.
Back when the Shadow Hunting Team won the CTF world championship, the wax museum made this figure.
The model was vivid, so real it was hard to distinguish between fake and real.
This time when Shu Shu and the physics research institute went on a team-building trip, she took photos there. Upon seeing the wax figure and finding it amusing, she took the photo and mailed it back.
"A wax figure, huh..." Xiao Lewu shook his head, clearly disappointed.
Yun Sang was momentarily speechless, seeing Shu Shu in the photo holding his wax figure so intimately and cheerfully, he couldn’t help but feel envious of "himself."
Was hugging a wax figure more satisfying than hugging a real person?
When she visited the Yun family, she didn’t seem to think much of him...
Over the years, after Shu Shu graduated from Qing University, she went to work at the physics research institute.
They didn’t intersect much in work, mostly communicating online and maintaining a friendly relationship over the years.
On days off, Shu Shu often came to visit.
He knew she mainly came for Lu Mian and Xiao Lewu.
If it wasn’t for the connection through Mianmian, he and Shu Shu would probably revert to being strangers.
Yun Sang wasn’t one to dwell on things; if he couldn’t figure something out, he just wouldn’t think about it.
At least he’s quite satisfied with his current state and life. Once the balance is broken, the outcome may not be what he desires.
"Uncle." Xiao Lewu noticed Yun Sang was lost in thought, tugged at his sleeve, and seriously asked him, "Does Aunt Shu Shu have a boyfriend?"
"Of course not!" This point, Yun Sang was very certain.
"Then who is this uncle?" The little guy pointed to another photo of a man and curiously asked.
"What uncle? Where is an uncle? Let me see!"
Yun Sang snatched the photo back.
Sure enough, in the photo, there was a young man with a scholarly air in a white shirt.
This was their research institute’s group photo; the man stood on the right side of Shu Shu, his body subconsciously leaning towards her.
Not only in this photo, but in several group photos, this man appeared.
Ironically, this person always appeared next to Shu Shu. There’s even a photo where the man isn’t looking at the camera; he’s gazing at Shu Shu passionately.
Even the straight Yun Sang, slow as he was, could see what this man’s intentions were.
The photo in his hand was crumpled, and a sense of crisis arose spontaneously.
"He’s probably her colleague." Yun Sang bit down, barely explaining, his eyes glued to the photo, staring intently.
Xiao Lewu glanced up at Yun Sang, thinking to himself that uncle was really anxious this time, truly anxious.
Luckily, the little guy hadn’t inherited the Yun family’s blunt nature and was already adept at reading expressions at a young age. He had his own matters to attend to, and if he could send uncle away this time, it would be pretty good...
The little guy’s thoughts shifted, and he pursed his lips and muttered.
"So, Aunt Shu Shu and this uncle are going to work together every day, eating in the cafeteria together, and traveling together? Then am I going to eat Aunt Shu Shu’s wedding candy soon?"
"W-wedding candy..." Yun Sang was provoked.
"If my mom knew, she would probably be very happy too." After saying that, Xiao Lewu ran off.
Yun Sang stood there in a daze, strong emotions entangling his heart.
The scorching gaze was almost penetrating through the photo...
——
Wax Museum.
Shu Shu already knew there was a Yun Sang wax figure here, and she made plans early. Once inside, she quickly found "Yun Sang" and took photos.
The Yun Sang wearing the team uniform was still the way he was five years ago.
Bold, mischievous, and defiant.
He had a world gold medal hanging on his chest, his honor badge.
The wax figure was very realistic, every detail finely crafted, and the height difference was the most familiar to her.
Shu Shu thought regretfully, if only she’d known Yun Sang earlier, she wished to witness his most uninhibited and carefree times.
Shu Shu asked her colleague and friend Qiao Yaning to take several photos for her.
At first, she stood properly, but later Shu Shu completely let go, hugging and embracing, even pretending to kiss.
Qiao Yaning was taking photos while she teased her.
"When he’s around in person, you never see him this proactively. But a wax figure, you treat it like a treasure."
"How can it be the same?" Shu Shu explained, "Wax figures don’t talk back, they’re well-behaved. Unlike Yun Sang, who can make someone angry with a single sentence."
Besides, how could she have the nerve to act so freely with a real person!
Though she’s a face enthusiast, she really wants to touch Yun Sang.
"He’s just a bit straightforward, but he’s quite attentive to you."
"Really? He’s the same to you, isn’t he? Aren’t we both Mianmian’s good friends?" Shu Shu said lightly.
Qiao Yaning pouted, "Only you think so."
As the two girls were taking photos, their colleague Song Zheng from the research institute walked over, smiling.
Song Zheng had a warm demeanor, naturally with a scholarly air, polite and refined.
He also graduated from the Qing University Physics Department, two years behind Shu Shu and Qiao Yaning. At the same research institute, supervised by the same mentor, Song Zheng had always taken good care of these two juniors in the past two years, particularly taking care of Shu Shu.
"Junior Shu, there are many more wax figures over there. Let’s check them out together."
Song Zheng’s intentions were clear to the entire physics research institute.
Everyone thought the two were a good match, and even the director encouraged it. The physics research institute had a gender imbalance; matching one couple made a difference.
Qiao Yaning took the opportunity to tease, "Senior brother, I’m here too."
"Junior Qiao, come along." Song Zheng spoke naturally.
Shu Shu slowly released Yun Sang’s wax figure, glancing at Qiao Yaning, hinting crazily.
She knew Song Zheng’s intentions but he never explicitly said anything, and he took care of her usually. She found it hard to reject...
Song Zheng didn’t ask for permission and gently pushed the backs of both girls, "Let’s go, there are wax figures of the physics legends over there; you must be interested."
Realizing she couldn’t escape, Shu Shu could only refuse.
"Senior brother, you go ahead. I want to look around here."
Song Zheng was puzzled, "This is just a gamer, is it that fascinating?"
He didn’t quite understand why Shu Shu spent so long photographing someone from the esports world.
This remark even made Qiao Yaning uncomfortable as Song Zheng’s tone disdained gamers.
Shu Shu was even more annoyed.
"Senior brother, he’s won many gold medals and trophies in competitions, and he’s brought glory to the country. It’s just different career paths, not simply playing games as you put it."
The jaunty, tender girl had her own principles.
When she spoke seriously, she was quite fierce.
Song Zheng froze for a moment, "Alright, alright, whatever you say, then I’ll stay here with you, okay?"
"No need." Shu Shu’s voice was cold, "Ningning, let’s go downstairs."
"Okay."
The two girls decisively left, with Song Zheng watching their backs, not understanding how girls were so complicated.
After a fleeting frustration, Song Zheng resumed his refined demeanor.
He was determined to win over Shu Shu.
——
The physics research institute chose a romantic, upscale riverside hotel for accommodations.
After returning to her room, Shu Shu spread out her travel photos on the bed to pick and prepare for mailing.
The photos hid some of her thoughts, and she wasn’t sure if Yun Sang could understand.
That straight guy probably wouldn’t get it...
But she didn’t want to wait anymore; if she didn’t try, who knows what the outcome would be?
