Chapter 122

Chapter 122: Miss Ruan, We Meet Again The next morning, Chu Tang slowly opened her eyes. The hangover left her head splitting with pain. Looking down and seeing the pajamas she was wearing, Chu Tang was momentarily stunned. How did she get back last night? Who changed her clothes? She only remembered going out for drinks last night, with Chen Yuanyuan dragging her to order male hosts. She couldn't hold her liquor well and was drunk after just a few glasses. She vaguely remembered seeming to see Jiang Shixu. Was it an illusion? Reaching under her pillow for her phone, Chu Tang called Chen Yuanyuan. The phone rang twice before being picked up. "Hello?" Chu Tang was taken aback. "Brother Qin Yan? Why is it you? Where's Yuanyuan?" Hearing Ruan Chutang's voice, Qin Yan snapped fully awake. He had been sleeping soundly holding Chen Yuanyuan when the phone rang. Thinking it was his own phone, he'd groggily grabbed it and answered. This call gave him quite a scare. Qin Yan's brain worked at lightning speed, and he immediately fabricated an excuse to brush it off. "Yuanyuan came back yesterday and left her phone in the living room downstairs. She's sleeping in her room upstairs right now and hasn't gotten up yet. Is there something you need her for?" He couldn't let Ruan Chutang know about his relationship with Chen Yuanyuan yet. It wasn't that he feared gossip. If word of this got out, for a man, people would only say he was romantic and charming. But for a woman, it would be different. People would whisper behind her back, saying that woman was shameless, sleeping with her own brother, calling it incest and claiming she had loose morals. Rumors would push a woman into the eye of the storm, and enough spit could drown a person. Chu Tang didn't suspect anything and only said, "Oh, okay. Have her call me back when she wakes up." Qin Yan breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright." After hanging up, Qin Yan looked down at Chen Yuanyuan beside him. "Awake?" Chen Yuanyuan's face still carried drowsiness, her eyes half-open as she hummed in acknowledgment. Because she had just woken up, Chen Yuanyuan's voice was incredibly soft and sweet, and that single "mm" directly stoked Qin Yan's fire. He leaned down and placed a kiss on Chen Yuanyuan's lips. "Baby, one more round?" Hearing this, Chen Yuanyuan snapped fully awake. She pulled the blanket over herself, her eyes guarded. "Stay away from me!" Qin Yan's gaze was tender as water, a doting smile curling at the corner of his lips. "Baby, do you know how irresistible you look right now?" Chen Yuanyuan clutched the blanket tightly, stammering nervously: "Qin, Qin Yan... don't you dare. Last night... we both drank too much last night. We're all adults, so I can pretend nothing happened. From now on... from now on, let's just keep being siblings like before." Qin Yan laughed in exasperation, raising an eyebrow. "I wasn't drunk last night. I was completely sober." Chen Yuanyuan's eyes flew wide open. Qin Yan said slowly, "Baby, I was clear-headed. I knew exactly what I was doing. Actually, I'd already realized my feelings for you long ago—I'd just been holding back and suppressing them. Last night, when you ordered those male hosts and leaned into that man's arms, I simply couldn't take it anymore." Chen Yuanyuan couldn't believe it. "You, you you you... you've liked me for that long?" Qin Yan hummed in affirmation. "Since when?" "I'm not sure of the exact day. I suppose it grew on me over time." Chen Yuanyuan bit her lip. "But I... I... I'm not ready yet." Qin Yan gently stroked her face and asked softly, "Baby, do you like me? The way a woman likes a man." "No!" Chen Yuanyuan denied outright. Qin Yan let out a low chuckle and leaned down to kiss her again. "That's alright. We can grow feelings over time." One particular word, Qin Yan deliberately emphasized with extra weight. Chen Yuanyuan's face flushed red all the way to her ears. Chinese culture truly was profound and extensive! Another round of indulgence. ... A few more days passed amid Jiangcheng's winter snow, and before they knew it, mid-January had arrived. That day, Chu Tang received a call from the head of her law firm. "Xiao Ruan, I heard you know how to play golf?" Chu Tang was wondering who had told him, when she suddenly remembered that when she'd first joined, she'd filled out an employment application form, and in the hobbies and interests section, she'd written that she enjoyed playing golf. Chu Tang replied, "Yes, Director. What's the matter?" The director chuckled warmly. "I have a major client here—Mr. Li of Tenghua Group. He loves playing golf. I've arranged for us to play with him on the eighteenth at the Southern City Royal Golf Course. I'd like you to come along." Chu Tang thought that since she'd be going with the firm's director, nothing out of the ordinary should happen, so she agreed: "Alright, Director." "This Mr. Li has several cases he can sign with us. If we close the deal, I'll give you a twenty percent commission. Xiao Ruan, I know your family is well-off and you don't care about this small money, but as lawyers, we need to gain experience and hone our negotiation skills." The fact that Chu Tang was the young miss of the Ruan family had already spread throughout the firm, and the director had naturally heard about it as well. "I understand, Director." "Good. Get yourself prepared—I'll have my assistant book your flight." "Okay." After hanging up the phone, Chu Tang glanced at the calendar on her desk. January 13th. Thirteen days had passed since New Year's Eve. She and Jiang Shixu hadn't seen each other for nearly half a month. During this time, she had been working frantically, trying not to give herself a moment of rest, because the moment she slowed down, she couldn't help but think of Jiang Shixu, and her heart ached unbearably. The entertainment news was filled with rumors about Jiang Shixu and Li Lanxi. Chu Tang didn't deliberately follow them, but she couldn't help overhearing her colleagues gossiping about them from time to time. "Did you see the trending topics? Li Lanxi and the young master of the Jiang family went on vacation to an island. They're so perfect for each other—such a stunning couple! Ugh, I can't get enough of them!" "My girl's looks go without saying—she's the undisputed top female star in the entertainment industry! No one else is worthy of the Jiang family's young master." "Hey, I heard that Lawyer Ruan from our firm is the daughter of the Ruan family, right? Did you know she almost got engaged to that Jiang guy before?" "Right, right, I know about that. It's true. The Jiang family's young master used to be Lawyer Ruan's boyfriend. I even saw him at the firm's entrance—he's really incredibly handsome!" "Huh? Really? Lawyer Ruan and the Jiang young master had a thing before?" "Shh... keep it down, don't let Lawyer Ruan hear you..." Chu Tang stood at the doorway of the break room, water cup in hand, and paused at the sound of the conversation inside. She let out a helpless sigh, said nothing, and turned to walk away. Sometimes, when she saw Li Lanxi's massive billboards on the LED screens at the mall, Chu Tang would unconsciously stop in her tracks, her heart a tangled mess of emotions. So this was the type of woman he liked. Beautiful in a bold, unrestrained way, smiling with a thousand charms—seductive and alluring. ... Soon, the day of the business trip arrived. Chu Tang boarded the flight to Nancheng with the head of the law firm. As she passed through first class, Chu Tang turned her head and, without warning, caught sight of the face she had been longing for day and night. She froze mid-step, a crack appearing in her expressionless facade. Jiang Shixu, dressed in a black overcoat, looked cold and distinguished, seated in his chair, focused on his laptop. Beside him, Li Lanxi beamed with a radiant smile. Sensing the burning gaze, Jiang Shixu looked up from his computer screen and met Chu Tang's eyes, momentarily stunned. The atmosphere was delicate. A faint, almost imperceptible trace of jealousy hung in the air, laced with threads of bitterness. Li Lanxi smiled brightly and boldly, greeting Chu Tang, "Miss Ruan, we meet again."