The Quagmire of Desire: From Gambling Addict and Village Flower to Movie Queen

The next morning at eight o'clock, Sun Xiaoyan had already prepared breakfast: millet porridge, fried eggs, and cucumber salad.

She took a couple of bites, wiped her mouth, and said, "I'm going to the shop. Leave the bowls there when you're done eating; I'll wash them when I get back tonight."

Liu Meiling was brushing her teeth, her mouth full of foam, and she waved her hand vaguely.

Xiao Hui was still half asleep, sitting at the dining table, staring blankly at the bowl of porridge in front of him.

Xiaoyan changed into a floral shirt and went out. As she left, she turned back and said, "Aren't you two going to register for driving school? Go early, don't dawdle."

Meiling rinsed her mouth, wiped it, walked to the dining table, sat down, and took a big gulp of porridge: "Did you hear that? Tsk tsk tsk, our eldest sister is urging us."

Xiao Hui rubbed his eyes: "Okay."

Half an hour later, the two finished eating, tidied up, changed their clothes, and went out.

Meiling wore a new white tight-fitting T-shirt with light blue tight-fitting jeans that hugged her hips and thighs tightly, revealing her curves as she walked.

She looked at herself in the mirror before leaving the house and was quite satisfied, muttering to herself, "Not bad, I haven't gained weight."

Xiao Hui glanced at her, said nothing, and opened the door with his head down.

The two hailed a taxi and headed straight for the driving school.

When they arrived at the driving school entrance, Meiling looked up at the signboard.

The storefront, bearing the large characters "Hongda Driving School," is quite spacious, with several training vehicles parked in front.

"That's it?" Meiling asked.

Xiao Hui nodded: "Yeah, my classmate recommended him. He said the coach is easy to talk to and doesn't yell at people."

"Alright, let's go in."

Meiling walked ahead, her tight T-shirt making her chest bulge, causing her to sway as she walked. Several men turned to look at her along the way from the door to the lobby.

Xiao Hui followed behind and saw a man riding an electric bike almost crash into a utility pole. He looked a little embarrassed and quickly walked into the lobby with his head down.

The air conditioning in the lobby was on full blast, and a middle-aged man in a gray shirt was sitting at the front desk, looking down at his phone.

Hearing someone come in, he looked up and his eyes widened.

He stared at Meiling's chest for several seconds, his eyes glazed over, as if they were glued there.

Meiling didn't mind and walked to the front desk with a smile: "Hello, my brother has made an appointment to register."

"Huh? Oh, oh, oh..." The middle-aged man finally came to his senses, stammering, "You...you're registering, right? Please sit down, please sit down."

His eyes were still scanning Meiling, and his fingers were randomly pressing keys on the computer keyboard.

Xiao Hui walked over and handed over his ID card and appointment number: "I made the appointment, my surname is Chen."

The middle-aged man took the ID card, then couldn't help but glance at Meiling before looking down at the card: "Oh, Chen Hui, right? You're over eighteen?"

"It's full."

The middle-aged man took out a stack of forms from the drawer and handed them over: "Fill these out. Sign here and write your phone number here."

Meiling took the form and efficiently filled in most of it for Xiaohui.

Although she is not highly educated, she is quite good at writing her own name and phone number, writing each stroke carefully and meticulously.

Xiao Hui filled in the rest of the paper, writing his age and address, and then handed it to the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man glanced at Meiling again, his eyes lingering on her chest, muttering, "You two are...."

"I'm his sister," Meiling said with a smile.

"Oh, brother and sister..." The middle-aged man nodded, seemingly lost in thought, his eyes fixed on one spot.

Xiao Hui coughed beside him.

"Um, let's pay," the middle-aged man said. "Two thousand four hundred per person, four thousand eight hundred for two people."

Meiling reached into her pocket, pulled out a wad of cash, counted out four thousand eight, and placed it directly on the counter.

As soon as Xiao Hui saw the money, he quickly reached out to stop her, saying, "Sis, I'll pay—"

Meiling slapped his hand away and pushed the money in front of the middle-aged man: "What are you contributing? You've already given us so much, where did you get the money?"

"I have--"

"What nonsense!" Meiling stubbed out the cigarette in her mouth, laughing and scolding, "Why are you so worried about making money now that I can? Take it and learn properly, so you can drive a manual car and take me for a ride someday."

Xiao Hui opened his mouth, remained silent for a few seconds, and then whispered, "Thank you, sister."

Meiling reached out and ruffled his hair, smiling happily: "Thank me for nothing."

The middle-aged man took the money, gave a receipt, and then said a few more words: "Go back and download a driving test guide, and start by practicing the questions for the first part. I'll let you know the exam time later."

Meiling nodded: "Okay, I understand."

Just as the two were about to leave, a group of people suddenly walked in through the entrance of the hall.

Seven or eight people were crowding around a woman wearing sunglasses and a mask in the middle.

The woman was tall and slender, wearing a white dress and high heels, walking as if she were on a catwalk.

Two young girls followed behind him, one holding an umbrella and the other carrying a bag. Behind them were several male assistants, carrying coffee, documents, and fans. He was surrounded by a large entourage.

One of the girls, holding an umbrella, rushed in, her voice shrill: "It's so hot! It's so hot! This awful place is like it doesn't even have air conditioning!"

Then she rushed to the front desk and shouted, "Hey, you, Xiao Zhang, hurry up and register me, quick!"

Another assistant carrying bags walked directly to the students who were queuing up and waved his hand, saying, "Excuse me, excuse me, we're in a hurry."

The trainees were completely bewildered, but seeing the situation, they didn't dare say anything and moved to the side.

Meiling and Xiaohui hadn't left yet, and they happened to be standing there watching this scene.

Xiao Hui frowned and muttered, "Who is this, making such a big fuss?"

Meiling remained silent, standing there with a cigarette in her mouth, her gaze fixed on the woman.

The woman took off her sunglasses, revealing her delicate features.

Her skin was so white it practically glowed, her eyes were big, her nose was straight, and her lips were thin. As long as her expression was appropriate, it was a face that would definitely look good on TV.

But in reality, it's not that beautiful.

In reality, she always seems to have a long face, with furrowed brows, impatient eyes, downturned corners of her mouth, and pursed lips, as if the whole world owes her eight million.

A pretty face paired with such an impatient expression doesn't give off a cool vibe, it gives off a mean and sarcastic feeling, the kind of meanness that makes you want to stay away from her.

She stood in the middle of the hall, glanced around, and then saw Meiling.

And the cigarette dangling from her mouth.

The woman frowned, her tone filled with disgust: "Smoking here? Doesn't your driving school do anything about it?"

Meiling's smile remained, but her eyes turned cold.

She slowly took a drag of her cigarette, blew out a puff of smoke, and said nothing.

The little girl next to the woman immediately chimed in, "Hey, I'm talking to you! Can't you see we don't allow smoking here?"

Meiling then slowly said, "There aren't any no-smoking signs in the lobby."

"You—" The girl was about to lash out when the woman raised her hand to interrupt her.

The woman glanced at Meiling, her eyes sweeping over her from head to toe with disdain, then turned and went straight into the office, leaving behind the words, "Why waste your breath on someone like that?"

Several assistants quickly followed her inside, and the lobby was emptied again.

Meiling stood there, expressionless, watching the woman's retreating figure, and stubbed out her cigarette on the nearby trash can.

Xiao Hui tugged at her arm: "Let's go, sis, stop looking."

Meiling was being pulled away by Xiaohui, but she still glanced back at the woman, lost in thought.

Stepping out of the driving school, the sunlight was blinding.

Meiling asked, "Xiaohui, who is that woman? Such a big entourage, bringing seven or eight people just to register, is she some big star?"

Xiao Hui took out his phone, scrolled through it, and then turned the screen to show Mei Ling: "I took a picture of her and searched for it."

Meiling leaned closer to take a look.

The screen prominently displays: Su Wanni, actress, whose works include "Love Strategy", "Meet You", and "Youth Without Regret" (all low-budget web dramas with minor female roles), and has fewer than 100,000 fans across the internet.

Xiao Hui said, "I'm just an unknown actor. I've never even played a lead role in an idol drama. I've only ever played minor roles. I don't even have as many fans online as the old lady who sells pancakes outside our chess and card shop."

Meiling was stunned for a moment: "That's it?"

"That's it." Xiao Hui put away his phone. "Let's go. What's so interesting about someone like that?"

Meiling didn't rush to leave. She stood at the entrance of the driving school and watched the van that had picked up Su Wanni slowly drive away.

A thought suddenly popped into her head.

This obscure female celebrity gets surrounded by seven or eight people, all bossing her around, whenever she goes out.

What if they were bigger stars? What if I and Xiaoyan were in that position?

Meiling shook her head, realizing she was overthinking things, and cursed herself, "Are you crazy, Liu Meiling?"

Xiao Hui had already walked several meters away when he turned back and called out, "Sis, let's go!"

"Here it comes, here it comes."

Meiling quickly followed.

The two walked out of the street where the driving school was located. The sun was shining brightly, and people were coming and going on the street.

Meiling checked the time; it was only 10:30 a.m., and she didn't have anything to do in the afternoon.

She patted Xiaohui on the shoulder: "Come on, let's go to the market."

"Why are you going to the market?"

"I'll buy you pork ribs and fish to nourish your brain. You're going to college soon, so don't study too hard and become dull."

Xiao Hui was both amused and exasperated: "Sis, I haven't started school yet."

"I still have to make it up. It would be so embarrassing if I failed the exam." Meiling had already strode towards the vegetable market.

Xiao Hui had no choice but to follow.

The market was bustling with activity, filled with the sounds of various people haggling over prices.

Meiling walked to the meat stall, picked out two spare ribs, and then went to the fish stall next door to pick out a live sea bass.

The fishmonger was a straightforward woman. While cleaning the fish, she asked, "Young lady, who are you cooking for? You're so willing to spend money."

Meiling smiled and said, "I'm giving my brother some brain-boosting nutrition."

The aunt glanced at Xiao Hui standing next to her and said with a smile, "Oh my, your brother looks quite dashing."

Meiling took the fish, paid for it, and turned to Xiaohui, saying, "I'll make you braised pork ribs and steamed fish for dinner tonight. I guarantee it'll be delicious."

Xiao Hui took the food, a slight smile curving his lips: "Thank you, sis."

Meiling ruffled his hair again, like she was patting a child: "No need to thank me, let's go home."