*Whoosh — !*
As soon as Su Wanli finished speaking, a streak of flowing light pierced the deep curtain of night behind her, exploding with a roar in the starry sky.
The massive sound caused Meng Wange to subconsciously squint her eyes, but her gaze could not shift even an inch from the scene before her.
The brilliant, dazzling light spread out behind the girl in the red dress like a surging golden river, outlining her figure with crystalline clarity.
Whether it was her pinned-up hair, her slender neck, or her elegant shoulders, everything was plated with a shifting golden edge by the fireworks.
That vibrant red evening gown billowed gently in the night breeze, looking like a mass of burning fire.
Looking at the sky full of fireworks and at Su Wanli standing in the center of the flames, Meng Wange involuntarily held her breath, dazed and rooted to the spot, momentarily unable to speak.
‘…What is this?’
No, more accurately — ‘Why?’
‘Why am I seeing such a sight at this moment? Has my illness not been cured, and is this all just a fleeting hallucination?’
It was not until the last wisp of light faded into the night sky that Meng Wange regained her senses.
“Miss Su…”
“Shh — “
Su Wanli raised one finger, revealing a smug and crafty smile.
“Be quiet, it isn’t over yet.”
Just as she said, the moment the first round of fireworks faded, the second and third followed in close succession, soaring into the sky.
Countless brilliant colors interlaced and bloomed against the night curtain behind her before slowly falling away.
The flickering light and shadows blurred into an ethereal halo beside her smooth profile. Su Wanli turned around and tilted her head back slightly, gazing up at the night sky along with Meng Wange.
Despite the deafening roar in her ears, Meng Wange felt a strange sense of tranquility.
The maid outfit, the painting lessons, the vegetable porridge, the gaming console, the “Mille-feuille Romance,” the sky full of fireworks… and now, this girl standing beside her, carrying herself with both arrogance and whimsy.
‘Come on, Meng Wange, let me see what other expressions you can make.’
‘Heh, you haven’t seen much of the world, have you? This young lady will open your eyes.’
‘Remember, everything today must go according to my arrangements. No talking back, and no refusing!’
The things Su Wanli had said over the past few days flashed through her mind one by one.
‘Ah… so that’s how it is.’
Only now did Meng Wange realize that everything Su Wanli had done today was perhaps for a single, pure purpose: to take every beautiful thing she could think of, lay it out before her, and share it.
She wanted to see an expression of “happiness” on her face.
For a lonely soul who had grown up alone and never had a companion, Su Wanli was using her own unique way to try and make her experience “happiness” again.
The result was obvious. She had succeeded.
At this moment, Meng Wange’s chest was filled with unprecedented warmth and joy.
However, for some reason, she could not manage a natural smile as she usually did. A few drops of crystalline liquid fell uncontrollably from the corners of her eyes.
‘No, it shouldn’t be like this.’
Miss Su was a clumsy person who was easily influenced by others. If she saw her crying, she would definitely panic and not know what to do.
‘Smile, Meng Wange. Just like before, use a gentle and polite smile to respond to others. Let her feel your kindness and your friendship…’
‘How strange.’
The more she thought this, the blurrier her vision became. Despite all the grievances and setbacks she had endured in the past, she had never shed a single tear.
‘This won’t do.’
She had to let Su Wanli know what everything she was doing right now truly meant to her.
Meng Wange took a deep breath and stepped forward.
On the other side —
‘Heh, how about that? Stunned, aren’t you?’
Looking at the Main Heroine with the Halo standing there dazed, Su Wanli mentally pumped her fist in triumph and showed her most satisfied smile of the day.
From the moment she stepped out of her room this morning, she had been conceptualizing tonight’s plan. She had Zhang Ma prepare the evening gown, ordered the cake from the dessert shop, and arranged a fireworks show in a corner of the manor.
Although she had accidentally overslept in her room because of that trash game and nearly missed the preparation time, it wasn’t a big deal.
She had changed into her gown and finished her styling in less than 20 minutes, then personally came up to supervise the placement of the table and positions.
In the end, she had successfully created the most perfect stage for tonight.
‘…Even if there were a few minor mistakes during the process.’
For instance, it took a lot of effort to light the fuse for the cake, and the fireworks went off earlier than expected.
Originally, she had planned to wait until Meng Wange thought it was “nothing special” before snapping her fingers coolly to make the fireworks explode behind her…
‘But it doesn’t matter! Those were within acceptable limits!’
The result was great; all the effort hadn’t been in vain!
Look — the Meng Wange who usually wore a faint smile was now standing there like a statue, completely still.
‘…Wait, is she looking at the fireworks or at me?’
‘Hiss, is it an illusion? I feel like her gaze has been fixed on me this whole time…’
‘Whatever, it doesn’t matter!’
Regardless of what she was looking at, this wave of favorability must have spiked! Maybe it had already dropped to 35 or so!?
‘…Right?’
Su Wanli suddenly felt a bit uneasy. She realized she had completely ignored Meng Wange’s physical condition and let her stand out here in the cold wind on the roof. However, since she could play games for so long in the afternoon, she should have recovered mostly…
‘Surely she won’t be angry, right?’
Su Wanli’s smile stiffened slightly as she peeked cautiously at the other girl.
‘Wait…?’
Meng Wange’s expression was a bit strange. She looked blank… like she was shocked?
No — those were… tears?
‘She’s crying?’
‘How could this be!?’
‘All I did was set off some fireworks! Does she actually hate this kind of thing? Does she think it’s polluting the environment or something!?’
‘It’s over… is this what they call the Villainess Talent? No matter how hard I try, I always mess it up!?’
Just as Su Wanli was about to offer a panicked explanation, Meng Wange moved. With tears shimmering in her eyes, she took two steps closer.
“Miss Su.”
“Ah, this… I didn’t specially — I mean, the fireworks weren’t really — “
“Yes, I know.”
Meng Wange chuckled softly.
Then, she opened her arms and pulled Su Wanli into a full embrace.
“Regardless, Miss Su, thank you for everything you prepared for me.”
“I like it… very much.”