Chapter 3

What drew Fu Xiangqing’s attention back was a feminine voice coming from behind Lu Zimin.

It was sticky and soft, as if the speaker had a mouthful of honey, sweet enough to melt the heart.

“Zimin, so this is the precious girlfriend you’ve been hiding from us?”

Judging solely by the voice, Fu Xiangqing figured it belonged to a sweet-looking girl.

But when she turned to look, the woman’s appearance was far removed from her imagination.

If Fu Xiangqing was a wild lily blooming in the morning sun—pure and innocent, utterly harmless—then this woman was a fiery rose unfurling at midnight, her red lips alluring, her eyes seductive, every gesture radiating an intoxicating, soul-stealing charm.

Clearly, she was the Zhao Xiaoshan the other two girls had mentioned.

After her teasing remark, Zhao Xiaoshan sauntered over to Lu Zimin and sidled up beside him before coming to a stop.

Their proximity had crossed well beyond the bounds of propriety, yet Lu Zimin made no effort to pull away, as if he were long accustomed to her presence.

Watching their intimate stance, Fu Xiangqing couldn’t help but think of two phrases that didn’t quite fit: a talented man and a beautiful woman, a match made in heaven.

No sooner had the thought crossed her mind than she dismissed it as absurd.

The awkward tension among the four didn’t linger for long.

Lu Zimin, the only one connected to everyone else present, seemed to finally shake himself free of whatever trance had held him.

He spotted his girlfriend pinned between the unfamiliar young man and the door, and hurried over in a few long strides. As soon as he reached her, he seized her wrist.

Fu Xiangqing stumbled forward from the sudden yank, her head knocking against Lu Zimin’s chest.

Her forehead stung a little, but what troubled her more was the faint whiff of unfamiliar perfume she caught from his embrace—lingering just enough to notice.

She took a step back and turned her head, covering her nose as she sneezed.

Fu Xiangqing disliked the scent. It was too heavy, too cloying; compared to the young man’s natural, subtle fragrance, it could only be described as cheap.

Lu Zimin didn’t notice anything amiss with his girlfriend. Right now, he was eyeing the young man beside them with open hostility.

He knew full well that Fu Xiangqing wasn’t the type to flirt with other men right under his nose.

But confronting a rival who outshone him in every way stirred a dark flicker of suspicion in his heart.

What if?

Why had they been standing so close?

She hated physical contact with others—why hadn’t she pulled away?

Her wrist was still in his grip, and his sudden tightening nearly made her wince in pain.

Lu Zimin spoke first.

He turned to her with a sour expression, his tone laced with accusation and distrust. “You really came here on your own? With your personality, there’s no way you’d go knocking on doors one by one. You must have run into someone on the way, right?”

Fu Xiangqing found his words utterly baffling. “Wasn’t it you who told your fr—”

The rest of her sentence was drowned out by a burst of cheerful feminine laughter.

“What are you all chatting about? Why haven’t you come in yet? Everyone’s waiting on you guys.”

Fu Xiangqing instantly recognized the voice as belonging to the first girl who had greeted her when the door opened.

Setting aside her argument with Lu Zimin for the moment, she turned to see what the friendly speaker looked like.

It was a short-haired girl with a bright, sunny face. When she smiled, she seemed to glow, dazzling and radiant.

Seeing who it was, Lu Zimin softened his tone, even injecting a note of flattery. “Senior Jiang, you’re here too?”

Jiang Shiyan smiled warmly, her gaze flicking casually over Fu Xiangqing’s slender wrist in his tight grip. She teased, “What, afraid we’ll gobble up Xiangqing? Holding on that tight—you’re really rubbing it in for us single dogs, huh?”

Lu Zimin immediately let go and chuckled obsequiously. “Senior Jiang, you’re joking. Everyone knows the line of guys chasing you stretches from the South Gate to the North Gate. If you wanted to, you’d be off the market long before me.”

Jiang Shiyan didn’t respond to that, turning her attention to Fu Xiangqing instead. “Hello, Xiangqing. I’ve heard about you for ages but never had the chance to meet until today. You’re just as cute as I imagined.”

Senior Jiang was about the same height as the unfamiliar young man and had to tilt her head down slightly to meet Fu Xiangqing’s eyes.

This wasn’t the first time Fu Xiangqing had encountered such a confident, outgoing girl. The first time, insecurity had led her to the worst possible response.

This time, Fu Xiangqing resolved to cast aside that humiliating self-doubt. In a trembling voice, she replied, “Hello, Senior.”

Making that change was hard. Those simple three words had exhausted every ounce of courage she’d mustered.

Fortunately, things turned out fine. Hearing her response, Jiang Shiyan reached out and ruffled Fu Xiangqing’s head, which looked incredibly soft and inviting. “Good taste. You’re such a good girl. Alright, since we’re here to sing K, let’s not hang around outside. I’ll foot the bill for this round. Xiangqing, order whatever you want—just scan the code on your phone later. Eat and drink your fill; don’t stand on ceremony with me.”

Fu Xiangqing rarely received this kind of special attention, and for a moment, she grew reserved and quiet again.

Jiang Shiyan didn’t mind her less-than-polite reaction. She withdrew the hand still resting on Fu Xiangqing’s hair and smiled. “You all go on in. I need to use the restroom.”

Lu Zimin, standing off to the side, saw that she hadn’t replied and grew anxious. He leaned down to her ear and whispered in exasperation, “Senior Jiang’s talking to you! What are you zoning out for?”

Fu Xiangqing snapped back to attention and hurriedly responded, “Thank you, Senior Jiang.”

Her voice was too soft, and Jiang Shiyan, whose attention had already shifted, didn’t catch it.

Lu Zimin was about to say something more when Zhao Xiaoshan, who had been standing alone behind them and ignored by the trio for quite some time, finally got a chance to speak. “Zimin, aren’t you coming in?”

The young man glanced at her, noting the hidden grievance in her expression. His face remained impassive, but he didn’t hesitate. He began pushing Fu Xiangqing toward the door.

At the same time, he murmured in her ear, “That’s the heiress of Jiang Real Estate—loaded family. I think she likes you. Later, find an opening to cozy up to her and snag her WeChat. Then pass it to me.”

Fu Xiangqing ignored him. She turned her head, wanting another look at the friendly Senior Jiang.

Not for any special reason—just her habit of committing to memory the things that brought her warmth.

Including people.

She expected to see only the back of Jiang Shiyan’s head, but instead, she unexpectedly locked eyes with the gaze of that unfamiliar young man, who was staring right at her.

It was all too coincidental, making her wonder if he’d been watching her the entire time.

Fu Xiangqing quickly dismissed the impractical notion. The instant their eyes met, he didn’t panic and look away. Instead, he calmly held her gaze for another second before turning back with perfect composure.

That level of poise didn’t look like the reaction of someone caught peeking.

Remembering why she’d turned in the first place, she shifted her gaze and caught sight of Jiang Shiyan smoothly and familiarly linking arms with the young man, steering him toward the restrooms.

She couldn’t see the young man’s expression, but judging from his complete lack of resistance, he was clearly used to it.

Fu Xiangqing’s calm mood from the walk over inexplicably soured a little.

This time, with Lu Zimin by her side, Fu Xiangqing wasn’t as panicked as before. She even dared to take in the layout of the room.

The others were all busy chatting with their friends around them, and no one paid her any undue attention. Relaxed, she made her way proactively to the spot in the farthest corner.

There were other empty seats on the sofa—including a space smack in the center that could fit two people.

Lu Zimin obviously knew who that prime spot was reserved for. Wisely, he headed to the corner as well.

Zhao Xiaoshan followed him and sat down pressed naturally against his side.

Everyone in the room knew one another, so the moment the two of them returned, people crowded over to chat.

Lu Zimin twisted halfway around and was soon laughing and joking right along with them.

Fu Xiangqing sat quietly off to the side.

She was like a lotus blooming in isolation from the world, untouched by all the surrounding clamor.

Her boyfriend—the one who’d invited her to this gathering—had forgotten all about her, leaving her a pitiful outcast. In a scene like that, anyone would feel upset.

But not Fu Xiangqing. She wasn’t angry in the slightest. If anything, she hoped no one would come talk to her, letting her sit in peace until it all wrapped up.

Up until then, she’d thought her desperate need for Lu Zimin’s company before entering was because he made her feel safe. Now she realized it was simpler: she just needed someone she knew to shove open that door to the unknown for her.

And the person who’d actually done it—

She didn’t even know their name.

The glass coffee table was laden with all sorts of snacks, drinks, and fruit platters. The ones right in front of Fu Xiangqing remained untouched.

She wasn’t one to rely on her phone, and sitting alone left her at loose ends. So she began admiring the platter of apple slices arranged in an artful flower pattern.

“You want some?”

The question came from Lu Zimin beside her. He finally remembered he had a girlfriend and, after all this time seated, spoke his first words to her.

Fu Xiangqing shook her head in response. She never allowed herself to be the first to touch anything untouched.

It was a habit drilled into her from childhood, one that was nearly impossible to shake.

Zhao Xiaoshan responded in a coquettish tone, “I want to try it. Help me get a piece—I just want a little taste.”

The boy then picked up a nearby fork, selected a piece, and handed it to her.

Only then did Fu Xiangqing realize that Lu Zimin hadn’t been asking her at all.

She had just begun feeling embarrassed about her own presumptuousness when Lu Zimin, sitting beside her, forked another piece of apple for her. “Xiangqing, you try some too.”

This was the second piece. Fu Xiangqing could take it, but she no longer wanted it.

He explained, “You’ve always refused to come out and play with me before, so I accidentally forgot you were here too. I know you don’t like interacting with others, so from now on, you can just sit by yourself and play on your phone, okay?”

The girl didn’t say a word. After a couple of seconds, she reached out and took the piece of apple, which counted as accepting his “thoughtful” arrangement.

What Lu Zimin liked most about her was that she never contradicted him. Seeing how obedient she was, he felt at ease and turned back to chat idly with his friends.

Fu Xiangqing paid no attention to them and instead turned her focus to the piece of apple in her hand.

She was a little curious: what kind of amazing skill could turn an ordinary, flat apple petal into something so beautifully shaped like a flower petal?

The door to the private room opened again. Everyone fell silent and looked over. When they saw who it was, they all greeted her enthusiastically.

Jiang Shiyan handled such scenes with ease. She unlinked her arm from the young man’s while smiling and responding to everyone, then sat down in the most central spot as naturally as could be under the gaze of all those eyes.

Fu Xiangqing was watching her too.

She had thought that with so many companions around, the girl wouldn’t pay her any more attention, but Jiang Shiyan suddenly turned her head, accurately locked eyes with her, and gave her a sweet, curved smile.

Fu Xiangqing was very surprised and didn’t even dare confirm that the smile was really meant for her. As she hesitated over whether to smile back, that familiar scent wafted toward her again.

She looked up instinctively and saw the young man’s handsome face.

“Can I sit here with you?”