CHAPTER 57: CHAPTER 57: CLOTHES GONE MISSING

"I’m leaving now, sorry for interrupting. You guys carry on." Lin Wanwan smiled and said goodbye, then opened the door of the dressing room to look for Chen Jinyu.

Lin Wanwan’s phone was entrusted to someone to hold before she went on stage, and now she needs to find her to get it back and change into her outfit to leave.

Chen Jinyu was already waiting for Lin Wanwan at the bathroom entrance in Times Square.

This group of freelance models doesn’t have exclusive dressing rooms at the show, so they make do at the bathrooms in the plaza. Luckily, the bathrooms in Times Square are like those in star-rated hotels.

To Lin Wanwan, the washroom was even more upscale than the models’ partitioned dressing room at the show. The only thing missing was the mirrors with make-up lights.

"Wanwan, you were so beautiful just now! Oh my God, you even held hands with Xiao Junning! How was it, worth the trip, right? I’d say you don’t have to wash your hand and can go straight to bed."

"Yeah, yeah, so envious! It’s Xiao Junning!"

Chen Jinyu and the girls around her spoke excitedly.

Lin Wanwan chuckled, "I don’t chase stars, what’s there to be excited about? It was unexpected, that wasn’t in the script!"

"Come on, he’s Xiao Junning!"

Chen Jinyu laughed, "By the way, Xiao Junning is also from Yongcheng, Wanwan, you could have spoken dialect with him."

Lin Wanwan shrugged, "We just met on stage for a moment, no conversation throughout, you all saw it. Alright, I need to change clothes and leave, I’m tired."

Chen Jinyu said, "Don’t be like that, it’s rare that we’re all together today, how about us girls having a night snack together? My treat. I know a newly opened quiet bar in the old Bund area, the resident singer there is handsome, plus, they sell skewers too! Watching the night scene while eating skewers and listening to a handsome guy sing, isn’t that great?"

Lin Wanwan uninterestedly said, "Forget it, I’m really a bit tired, you guys go have fun."

"Come on, join us together."

The girls coaxed for a bit, but Lin Wanwan was determined, wanting to leave after earning her paycheck.

While looking for her bag that contained her clothes and makeup, Lin Wanwan was stunned, her bag had disappeared.

Clearly, all the girls’ bags were placed in the same cabinet backstage at the show, why was hers missing?

Chen Jinyu was quite anxious too; she needed Lin Wanwan to change out of the gown to return it to the host.

"Could someone have taken it by mistake? You just had a set of unbranded sportswear inside, not worth much, how did it get lost?"

Lin Wanwan sighed, "Looks like I’ll have to wear the gown back first, and return it tomorrow, okay? Can you check with the person in charge?"

Chen Jinyu frowned slightly, "Otherwise, I’ll go to the mall to get you something to replace it."

Lin Wanwan lit up her phone to show the time, "It’s ten ten! Apart from the show, other shops are long closed. Otherwise, I would’ve bought it myself, no need to trouble you."

"Alright then, no choice," Chen Jinyu actually wanted to suggest wearing her dress, since the evening gown she wore wasn’t expensive, a few hundred bucks from Taobao. But facing Lin Wanwan’s radiant appearance, she felt embarrassed to voice it, making it seem like she didn’t trust her.

Just as Chen Jinyu was about to reluctantly go find the person in charge, Lin Wanwan linked arms with her and said, "Let’s talk to them together."

"Alright." Chen Jinyu didn’t oppose, hopefully the person in charge wouldn’t make things difficult seeing Lin Wanwan’s beauty.

"Your phone seems to be vibrating." Chen Jinyu said.

Lin Wanwan picked up the phone to see it was a call from Lu Shouyue, she answered, "Mr. Lu, what a coincidence."

"Yes, such a coincidence. Didn’t expect you to still be modeling, it’s an honor for Cartier to have you."

Lin Wanwan laughed, "I’m just a small-time model worth less than two thousand."

After exchanging pleasantries, Lu Shouyue asked, "It’s quite late, and you don’t have a car, should I give you a ride?"

Lin Wanwan didn’t want to bother him and casually replied, "No need, it’s quite convenient for me to call a ride-hailing service."

Lu Shouyue confidently said, "I wouldn’t be so sure, imagine how many people are coming out from the show now. Lots of them were drinking at the banquet before, can’t drive and need rides."

Lin Wanwan thought it sounded right and then laughed, "Okay, then I’ll trouble you, we’ll get in touch in the underground garage later."

After hanging up, Chen Jinyu gossipingly nudged her shoulder, "What’s with Mr. Lu? There’s something going on, his voice sounds so charming, he must be a hottie."

Lin Wanwan said, "Are you Sherlock Holmes? Can you tell someone is handsome just by hearing their voice? Anyway, there’s nothing between us, given his education and career, he must not be young, probably around thirty, much older than me."

"Pft, what’s thirty? Men only gain charm at thirty," Chen Jinyu expertly commented.

Lin Wanwan smiled without replying.

Quickly, the two found the clothing manager of the show amid the chaos, Chen Jinyu directly stated their purpose.

The person in charge furrowed his brows higher than a mountain, with an arrogant demeanor, "Lost your own clothes and want to wear this SV gown back? Are you kidding? Do you know how much this gown costs per piece? You really dare to imagine anything."

Chen Jinyu said, "Really sorry, but the clothes can’t be found, no way to change out of it."

The manager looked Lin Wanwan up and down, initially wanting to say something nastier but held back, Lin Wanwan’s beauty earning a bit of respect. Someone with such looks is akin to having a key to high society, it’s hard to tell when they’ll make it big.

He sighed, "It’s not that I’m being difficult, I’m in a bind too. I have an early flight tomorrow, need to take all the clothes. If you wear it now, I won’t be able to find you tomorrow. What about the dress you brought? Let this lady wear it temporarily?"

Chen Jinyu looked at Lin Wanwan, clearly meaning the same.

Lin Wanwan immediately said, "True, almost forgot you have a dress on your end, I’ll go change."

"Wanwan, turns out you’re here." At that moment, a familiar voice came from behind, it was Lu Shouyue arriving.

Lin Wanwan turned to look at him, "Mr. Lu."

Lu Shouyue said, "No need to meet at the parking lot, let’s head down together."

"Ah, it’s Lu Sho!" The manager, upon seeing Lu Shouyue, immediately beamed with a bright smile, passed between Lin Wanwan and Chen Jinyu to greet Lu Shouyue with both hands extended.

Lu Shouyue politely shook hands with the manager and asked, "What’s going on?"

The manager cheerfully explained the matter again, then said to Lin Wanwan, "Oh, so you know Lu Sho, that’s fine then, with his status, you can return the clothes a few days later. I’ll explain it to the brand."

In his mind, he silently praised his own judgment, see, he knew such a beauty is no ordinary figure; lucky to have held restraint earlier, avoiding offense.