Chapter 24

After leaving the villa, Cheng Yan didn’t return for two straight days.

Summer break had arrived, and the competition she was planning to enter had begun accepting registrations.

Building a team, filling out forms, all sorts of project application documents and notices, various papers needing to be printed, signed, and stamped. Although the team had divided the work, as the team leader, Cheng Yan always had a bit more to handle than the others.

It wasn’t until the evening of the third day that Jun Jianqing, who had been silent for days, sent a WeChat message.

Jun Jianqing: 【Come back tonight.】

Cheng Yan: 【Okay.】

She packaged the last file and sent it to the competition’s designated submission email. After logging out, she scrolled her mouse and clicked into a folder she had named “Self-Improvement.”

This folder contained the fruits of her labor over the past two days, fully demonstrating her ability to gather information from the internet.

Right now, her gaze on the screen was just as serious as it had been the previous two days.

After reading for about half an hour, Cheng Yan took her nail clippers out of the drawer.

Keeping long nails made lab work inconvenient; a single slip-up could ruin any delicate operation. Because of this, Cheng Yan’s nails had never been long since she started university.

But ‘not long’ didn’t mean ‘short.’ The part of the nail extending past the nail bed stuck out a bit. In daily life, it wasn’t noticeable, but once it scraped against a place that was very soft and sensitive, it could be painful.

Cheng Yan stared at her nails, took the clippers, and trimmed them meticulously, bit by bit. The nails were now close against the skin; trimming any further would cut into the flesh.

Satisfied, she stopped snipping. She then took out a nail file and buffed her freshly trimmed nails until they were perfectly smooth, ensuring there were no protruding sharp edges. Only then did she put down her tools, wash her hands, and apply hand cream.

Before leaving, she pulled open her drawer, took out a package she had just received and opened that day, stuffed it into her bag, and then left.

Just as she stepped out of her dormitory building, Cheng Yan’s phone vibrated again.

Jun Jianqing: 【I’m waiting for you outside the main gate.】

She was a little surprised but immediately replied: 【I’ll be right there.】

It was summer break, so there weren’t many people on campus to begin with. As soon as Cheng Yan stepped out of the university’s main gate, she spotted the familiar black Maybach parked by the curb.

When she jogged over, a bodyguard was already there to open the car door for her. Cheng Yan said “thank you” as she ducked into the car and settled into her seat. Next to her sat Jun Jianqing.

Cheng Yan put her bag on her lap and glanced in the direction the car was headed. It didn’t seem to be the route back to the villa. She turned her head towards Jun Jianqing, who was looking down at her phone and not paying her any attention, and couldn’t help but ask: “President Jun? Where are we going?”

Jun Jianqing lifted her eyes and asked, “Have you had dinner?”

Cheng Yan shook her head. “Not yet.”

During summer break, most of the students had left campus, and only a few dining hall windows remained open. After finishing her tasks, thinking of the limited options available, Cheng Yan hadn’t really felt like going to buy dinner. Besides, she wasn’t very hungry, so she had simply eaten nothing and focused on learning some useful little tips in her dorm room while she still had a bit of time.

Jun Jianqing: “Accompany me to eat.”

Cheng Yan obediently replied, “Alright.”

Then she sat ramrod straight in the car, not initiating any more conversation.

She was acting very obedient, whatever Jun Jianqing said, she did. This behavior made Jun Jianqing shift her gaze to look at her once more.

Every corner of the car cabin was silent.

Jun Jianqing was long accustomed to, and even enjoyed, such moments. Yet, she couldn’t help but recall her previous meetings with Cheng Yan, when the other woman’s eyes had curved upwards and she had smiled a genuine smile.

She couldn’t help but frown.

“What have you been busy with these past two days?”

Cheng Yan thought she was being reproached for not taking the initiative to send a message over the last two days. She organized her words and said, “President Jun, recently there’s been a new project in the lab. The professor asked me to participate. Although I’m not at the core, I’ve still learned a lot. And I’ve also been busy preparing for a competition recently, so it has been quite hectic.”

“Also, I calculated the time. I’m back at the villa tonight, Friday, and that includes Saturday—so that’s two nights. But I left on Tuesday morning, so this week is indeed three days. I haven’t vio—”

The rest of her words automatically died away under Jun Jianqing’s expressionless stare.

“Three days means three nights?” Jun Jianqing asked.

Cheng Yan’s eyes widened slightly, as if to say, “Isn’t it?”

But Jun Jianqing’s expression told her it wasn’t so.

Cheng Yan fell silent for a moment. “I thought those ‘three days’ specifically meant three nights. After all, right now, I’m your kept bed partner. My primary function—isn’t it at night?”

When she said the words “kept,” her tone was very flat, betraying no discernible emotion.

“Bed partner?”

Jun Jianqing repeated the phrase, feeling as if she might be driven to laughter by anger.

Cheng Yan looked at her with her amber eyes, her gaze clearly saying, “Yes, isn’t it just a bed partner?”

Could it be a mistress?

But that night, she had only seen desire in Jun Jianqing’s eyes. On ordinary days, she couldn’t detect any emotion resembling affection.

It was as if Cheng Yan had written her true feelings plainly on her face.

But deep down, she also knew clearly that what she said was true. It was merely a passing interest.

For both of them.

Jun Jianqing’s gaze was dark as she said sarcastically, “Bed partner? Do you think you’re qualified?”

On the very first night, this person had made that place swell, requiring medication for two or three days.

Jun Jianqing had never been in such a sorry state.

And what’s more, in those three days, from the moment Cheng Yan walked out of the villa, she hadn’t initiated contact even once.

Cheng Yan pursed her lips. She was indeed in the wrong about this. “I’m learning too.”

She deliberately extended her hands, showing them off. “Look.”

Jun Jianqing’s gaze instinctively fell on her fingers, so slender and straight. It instantly brought her memory back to that shaky, absurd night when she had personally measured just how long those fingers were.

Cheng Yan wiggled her fingers. Seeing she had successfully drawn Jun Jianqing’s attention, a secret smile touched the corner of her lips. She quickly smoothed her expression and said, “I trimmed my nails especially clean, so they won’t scratch you.”

Only then did Jun Jianqing notice her nails were cut very short, hugging the skin of her fingertips, without a trace of aggressiveness.

It made her think of that night—the sting of pleasure and pain when a nail had scraped against her.

Calmly averting her eyes, Jun Jianqing said with restraint, “Why are you telling me this?”

Cheng Yan answered honestly, “To prove I am indeed making an effort, and not lying.”

As if worried that she wasn’t irritating the person beside her enough, she added a special guarantee: “President Jun, rest assured, since I’ve signed the contract, I won’t do anything to go back on my word within these three years.”

At these words, the ambiguous mood stirred in Jun Jianqing’s heart by her hands instantly vanished.

“Shut up,” Jun Jianqing said, her mood poor.

Cheng Yan shut her mouth.

Glancing at the person beside her, she then closed her eyes as well, putting on the picture of an honest, obedient soul.

Ah, teasing the lofty President Jun and causing her mood to shift—it was quite amusing.

Feeling a great sense of accomplishment, Cheng Yan was secretly gleeful inside, her face the picture of perfect seriousness.

And so, they remained silent all the way until they reached their destination.

Stepping out of the car, Cheng Yan realized that Jun Jianqing had come out in a wheelchair today. The bodyguard, out of habit, stepped forward to push the wheelchair but was met with a look of rejection. He silently stepped back and stood still.

Jun Jianqing spoke: “What are you looking at? Push me in.”

Only then did Cheng Yan realize these words were directed at her.

She walked behind Jun Jianqing and started pushing the wheelchair. When she looked down, she could see the top of Jun Jianqing’s head.

She felt a secret doubt: Her legs clearly work, so why does Jun Jianqing always appear in a wheelchair?

Pushing the thought to the back of her mind, Cheng Yan surveyed her surroundings and felt a hint of familiarity.

Soon, she remembered. She and Chen Shuhua had come here to eat before, and it was Jun Jianqing who had paid the bill back then.

Thinking of this, Cheng Yan’s gaze quietly fell on Jun Jianqing, wondering what the woman was scheming.

The group made their way inside Clear Ripple. Unlike the last time she and Chen Shuhua had come, when they needed reservations and had to wait in line, as soon as Jun Jianqing appeared, an attendant led them to a private VIP room.

Inside the room, an attendant was already waiting. Seeing the guests arrive, the attendant silently prepared the tea, then stood with lowered eyes, waiting for instructions.

Jun Jianqing glanced at Cheng Yan. “What would you like to eat?”

Cheng Yan looked at the fine tea and docilely said, “Anything is fine with me.”

Jun Jianqing told the attendant, “Bring the same menu as last time.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Once the attendant left, only the two of them remained in the private room.

“Come here.”

Cheng Yan suddenly heard Jun Jianqing say this.

She paused, shifted her body closer, and sat down next to Jun Jianqing, a puzzled look on her face. “President Jun?”

“Why are you sitting so far away?”

Why are we sitting so close?

Cheng Yan kept this retort trapped in her heart, refusing to let it out.

She silently drank her tea, sip after sip.

“You like it?” Jun Jianqing asked again.

Why is she asking so many questions today?

Cheng Yan put down her teacup. “I like it.”

Jun Jianqing glanced at the tea in her cup and said calmly, “There’s some at the villa. If you like it, you can have someone brew it for you when you’re back.”

Was this a hint that she should visit the villa more often?

Cheng Yan deliberately replied, “No, that would be too much trouble for the staff.”

Jun Jianqing fell silent.

A long moment later, her gaze suddenly locked onto Cheng Yan. She asked coolly, “Cheng Yan, you’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?”

Cheng Yan’s heart gave a sudden jolt, and she immediately became nervous.

Had she seen through her act?

Was she about to be exposed?

No way, she’d only been testing the waters for a few days.

All these thoughts were known only to herself. Cheng Yan’s amber eyes met Jun Jianqing’s, innocent and bewildered. “President Jun, what are you talking about?”

“Aren’t you sulking with me?” Jun Jianqing asked. “Because you think I treat you as a bed partner?”

“?”

She really hadn’t thought that.

But Cheng Yan quickly lowered her head to avoid her gaze and said in a low voice, “Isn’t that the case?”

Jun Jianqing sneered. “A bed partner is someone you summon at will and dismiss at will. Are you that?”

“What kind of tantrum are you throwing with me? You signed the agreement, so properly fulfill the duties of a mistress. Your temper is so great—do you expect me to coax you instead?”

“Be clear about your own position, Cheng Yan.”

Alright, President Jun’s temper is quite something.

So she’s unhappy that I’m going against her.

Have to say, I’m pretty capable—I actually managed to make President Jun angry.

Cheng Yan took the hint and stopped, pursing her lips and answering, “I know my own place. I won’t act out again.”