Chapter 27

“Cough, cough.” Jun Lijiang coughed twice, covering her mouth.

Seeing that she still hadn’t attracted Jun Jianqing’s attention, she coughed heavily twice more.

“Cough! Cough!”

Jun Jianqing looked up, her gaze displeased. She said, “If you’re sick, go to the hospital.”

Jun Lijiang pointed at her own neck and said, “Cousin, are there a lot of plants around your villa? Are the servants so negligent with pest control? How are the mosquitoes in your villa so rampant?”

She even pretended to scratch her neck, deliberately creating a few red marks.

Jun Jianqing watched her antics impassively. “What are you trying to say?”

Feeling like a monkey performing, Jun Lijiang thought with a bit of heartache.

“Cousin, right here—” Jun Lijiang gave up on hinting and pointed at Jun Jianqing’s neck. She lowered her head, deadpan. “There’s a mark.”

A minute later, when she looked up, the person on the opposite sofa was gone. Only the newspaper remained on the table, rustling silently in the breeze.

Jun Lijiang couldn’t help it; she laughed.

Jun Jianqing was currently tilting her head back, looking in the mirror. A red mark was clearly visible on her neck.

Thinking of how she had come downstairs this morning, completely oblivious, she couldn’t help but frown.

Cheng Yan has no sense of restraint, she thought.

She lowered her head, wanting to send a WeChat message to warn her not to leave marks on her body in the future. Just as she tapped into the chat window, her hand paused. Jun Jianqing suddenly realized that, knowing Cheng Yan’s personality—the type that would follow orders exactly to the letter—if she truly ordered her not to leave marks anymore, Cheng Yan might simply avoid kissing her altogether, solving the problem once and for all.

Hesitating for a moment, Jun Jianqing closed her phone.

She’s still young. It’s normal not to know her own strength when it comes to these things.

Jun Jianqing picked up the new clothes beside her, ready to change into a high-collared shirt. Suddenly, she remembered something and pulled her clothing down further, revealing her fair, slender collarbone.

Light and dark teeth marks were imprinted upon its surface.

Her fingertip tapped a vivid red tooth mark. There was no pain.

But last night, when Cheng Yan, in her excitement, hadn’t controlled her force, it had indeed hurt somewhat.

It was just that she, too, had been immersed in pleasure at the time and had ignored it.

Now, looking at these marks and recalling previous nights, Jun Jianqing’s eyes darkened slightly.

It seemed Cheng Yan particularly enjoyed leaving traces on her body.

—

Ten minutes after her cousin had left, Jun Lijiang watched her return, now in a different outfit. Her neck was tightly covered. She held back a laugh, then composed her expression to one of seriousness. Looking up, she offered some advice.

“Actually, Cousin, if you don’t like it, just tell her directly. Tell her to be more mindful of boundaries.”

She hadn’t missed the slight change in her cousin’s expression when she’d pointed out the mark.

Drawing on her own extensive experience in such arrangements, Jun Lijiang said, “In these bedroom matters, isn’t it all about mutual pleasure? We provide the resources and money; she takes the money and does her job. She should make you happy. How can she be so thoughtless as to trouble you?”

If it hadn’t been her visiting today, but someone else, where would her cousin’s dignity be?

“Sometimes, a mistress needs to be trained,” said Jun Lijiang, who always prioritized her own pleasure in such affairs.

She actually wanted to add: A mistress, well, if you fancy one, you keep her. If she’s disobedient or doesn’t know her place, you change her. With our power and influence, the last thing we lack is people who suit our fancy.

After all, training required effort. It was easier to just swap her out—there would always be smart ones who knew how to learn on their own.

But it was obvious her cousin wasn’t tired of this one yet. So, Jun Lijiang wisely refrained from offering the other suggestion.

“Train?” Jun Jianqing raised an eyebrow.

Jun Lijiang said, “Yes. Mold her into someone who perfectly fits you. It’ll just require some effort on your part.”

Of course, sometimes, the one you trained yourself truly offered a unique kind of pleasure.

Jun Jianqing took a sip of tea, then wiped her fingers with a handkerchief. “Do you do this often?” she asked.

“Not really,” Jun Lijiang recalled. “A few times, maybe.”

Later, she discovered it was easier to change partners than to train them.

That was why her mistress contracts were usually short-term.

Knowing that her cousin had started a three-year arrangement, Jun Lijiang had been quite surprised.

Three years? Isn’t that way too long? Won’t she get bored?

Or, aren’t you afraid of feeding her ambitions too much?

But that’s not something for me to worry about. I’ll just keep my thoughts to myself.

“Then your luck isn’t very good,” Jun Jianqing commented blandly.

“?”

“Cousin, what do you mean?”

Jun Lijiang didn’t understand and humbly asked for guidance.

Jun Jianqing glanced at her. “Cheng Yan doesn’t need training.”

She suited her in every way.

Except for some moments when her words were poorly chosen.

But that was okay. Young people could be a bit brash. It was normal not to read the room perfectly.

Her cousin’s tone was very flat, just a matter-of-fact statement.

But for some reason, Jun Lijiang detected a hint of smugness and sarcasm in it.

“…”

Was she saying I have bad taste?

Jun Lijiang: I’ve been attacked.

—

In the blink of an eye, late August arrived.

Time had finally reached the tail end of the blazing summer, and Mingjiang City was brimming with new vitality once again.

As late August turned into early September, the start of the university term approached. Many new students from other cities had chosen to arrive in Mingjiang ahead of time, planning to first explore the city with their families before settling down to study once the semester began.

Zhu Jingran’s auto repair shop was already situated on a prime road. With the recent influx of people into Mingjiang City, her business had also become livelier.

Taking advantage of a rare quiet spell around noon, Cheng Yan joined her in the air-conditioned shop to share some takeout.

“What brings you here?” Zhu Jingran asked.

Finishing a chicken wing, Cheng Yan took a sip of iced Coke to cut the grease. “Came to relax my brain. Feels like it’s about to explode.”

The competition project deadline was at the end of September. She was in the final stage of experimental consolidation and had pulled an all-nighter with her team last night. Her brain felt sluggish.

Zhu Jingran put down her chicken leg, pondering. “If you need to relax your brain, sex is also a method, isn’t it? Why come here?”

She already knew about Cheng Yan and Jun Jianqing’s situation, although not in great detail. But Cheng Yan’s mental state recently was excellent, so clearly, this relationship wasn’t a burden to her. Zhu Jingran hadn’t pried.

Actually, prying was useless anyway. Cheng Yan wouldn’t tell her everything.

Though she felt like whatever these two had wasn’t exactly a proper romantic relationship.

Forget it. Cheng Yan is smarter than me. If she’s not worried, why am I fretting blindly?

Cheng Yan picked up a chicken leg to gnaw on and said, “What do you know? If I chose that method to relax, I’d be afraid of exhausting my kidneys. Not only would I not replenish, I’d probably just tire myself out completely.”

She felt that President Jun’s stipulation of staying three nights a week at the villa was absolutely correct.

For her current state of high-intensity brain use, maintaining a flawless performance three days a week was just right. Any more, and she really was afraid she’d slip up.

After all, President Jun wasn’t some fool; she was a master strategist who commanded victories in the business world.

Feeling targeted, Zhu Jingran retorted indignantly, “Of course I understand! I’m not some clueless little bird. I have a sex life too, you know!”

“Oh,” Cheng Yan asked, “Is your sex life frequent?”

“…”

Zhu Jingran suddenly snatched the chicken leg from her hand, flustered and angry. “No more for you! I bought it!”

Cheng Yan couldn’t help but laugh at her flustered reaction. Her laughter only grew louder. “I’m serious, Zhu Jingran. Don’t tell me your sex life still only consists of the first night?”

“Who says so? There have been times after that, okay?”

Cheng Yan nodded knowingly. “Oh~ So not many then?”

Zhu Jingran glared at her. “What are you so smug about? Is yours so plentiful?”

“Naturally,” Cheng Yan grabbed back her half-eaten chicken leg, delicately tore off a piece of meat, and gave her a look. “If it weren’t, would I be talking about kidney deficiency?”

Zhu Jingran scoffed, launching a counter-attack. “Maybe you were just deficient to begin with.”

Cheng Yan replied innocently, “Whether I’m deficient or not isn’t for you to say.”

That was for President Jun to say.

Assessing President Jun’s post-coital reactions every time, Cheng Yan felt she was continuously improving.

She had reason to be proud.

Zhu Jingran felt Cheng Yan’s expression right now was especially infuriating.

She viciously took a bite of her chicken leg, as if it were Cheng Yan’s flesh, her expression fierce.

After their banter, Cheng Yan felt her decision to come here at noon was exactly right. Her brain had indeed gotten a moment’s respite.

After lunch, Zhu Jingran continued working. Cheng Yan went downstairs with her to lend a hand.

Just as she was tightening a screw, Zhu Jingran, wrench in hand, said: “I saw Chen Shuhua yesterday. Her car broke down nearby. She called me, and I rode my scooter over to fix it for her.”

She glanced at Cheng Yan, whose expression hadn’t changed, and said, “Uh… she also asked me how you’ve been lately. I said you were doing fine, just a bit busy. Then she nodded and just… left.”

“Gotta say, the tip was pretty generous.”

Looks like the family crisis really has passed.

She was still someone they knew, after all. Whenever Zhu Jingran saw related news on her phone, she would pause to read it.

Cheng Yan said calmly, “Oh. So you have money now, and you only treat me to KFC?”

“…You brat, you should be grateful to even get free KFC!”

Cheng Yan complained, “You even snatched one of my chicken legs.”

Zhu Jingran tightened her grip on the wrench. “What? I did. So? What are you going to do about it?”

Cheng Yan eyed the large wrench in her hand. Her plain face broke into a smile as she beamed brightly. “Of course, I’m saying you snatched it very well.”

“Hmph, that’s more like it.”

Zhu Jingran muttered something under her breath, then turned back to the white car in front of her, continuing her repairs.

Just inwardly, she sighed. Honestly, she was also baffled about how those two’s relationship had turned into this.

But as long as Cheng Yan was fine.

While she stood there acting as a tool-passer, Cheng Yan received a phone call.

“President Jun?” Why is she calling at this hour?

“Are you free tonight?”

She didn’t immediately say yes. After her all-nighter, she was genuinely afraid President Jun was calling her back for service. “What’s up?”

“I have a banquet at 7:30 tonight. I’m temporarily short a female companion. Would you be willing to attend with me?”

Cheng Yan asked, “Is this also one of the duties of a mistress?”

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line.

Hearing the words spilling from Cheng Yan’s tactless mouth, Jun Jianqing closed her eyes, feeling her ability to remain calm was reaching master-level. She said, “It’s up to you. If you don’t want to, forget it.”

After all, the contract didn’t explicitly require it.

Cheng Yan smiled secretly, but her voice over the phone was very steady. “Alright, I’ll go then.”

“Mm. I’ll compensate you afterwards,” Jun Jianqing said.

Hanging up the phone, Cheng Yan turned to see Zhu Jingran staring at her and clicking her tongue.

“Mistress?” she said. “You two even use roleplay pet names in daily life? Impressive, impressive.”