Chapter 14

“Are we in a cold war?” he laughed and asked her.

“That’s right!”

“Why?”

“No reason,” she said slyly. “It’s only about two months left—it’ll be over soon. I can endure it.”

“So if I wanted to take you out for a walk later, you’d refuse without a second thought?” he probed.

Bai Ziling opened her mouth in surprise. “You want to take me out for a walk?”

“It’s barely eight o’clock—do you already want to sleep?”

“Of course not,” she said immediately.

“Want to go?” he asked coolly.

“Yes!”

“But you said we’re in a cold war,” he said, staring at her with unusually intense, deep eyes. This girl was his “wife”—whether real or nominal, she was undeniably his legal wife.

“We can resume the cold war tomorrow,” she teased. He wanted to take her out for a walk… Oh my god! She’d been waiting a whole month.

“Ceasefire?”

“One night’s ceasefire,” she said, lifting her chin.

“You… haven’t finished washing yet,” he reminded her, his gaze drifting over her exposed skin. He’d never thought a woman’s feet were worth looking at—but he found Bai Ziling’s toes… incredibly cute, incredibly pleasing.

“Give me five minutes,” she skipped away.

“Take your time washing—I’ll… wait for you.” Jiang Jie had never said anything so considerate to any woman.

Bai Ziling nearly slipped on her wet feet, and to Jiang Jie’s eyes… he suddenly realized he hadn’t thought of Yu Siqi in a very, very long time—what a miracle!

Jiang Jie hadn’t expected he could stroll casually with a girl ten years younger than him. Though she lingered longer at boutique shops, he focused on her amazed, longing expressions. At least, they walked together like a real couple.

This time, Bai Ziling wore a sleeveless floral sundress, fitted and knee-length, making her look even slimmer and taller. No wonder ordinary men liked “young-looking” girls—youth was invincible. Bai Ziling didn’t need a diploma; with her face and figure alone, she could live luxuriously.

Jiang Jie couldn’t deny that the image of her wrapped only in a towel was deeply etched into his mind—forever unforgettable.

Exhausted from walking, they found an outdoor café. The cool night breeze and leisurely mood gave Jiang Jie, always tense and on edge, a moment of relief.

Bai Ziling didn’t order coffee. She asked for sweet-and-sour egg honey drink—because right now, she felt no bitterness at all. Her heart was sweet-and-sour, just like the drink, filled with the feeling of being in love.

So Jiang Jie could have this side too—he could be so “human,” no longer always the CEO’s face, no longer that aloof, superior man.

“Jiang Jie, honestly, is a towel really that effective?” Bai Ziling joked with him.

He countered: “Were you doing it on purpose?”

“I had no idea you’d come back so early.”

“Then…” he admitted. “It was extremely effective.”

“But I didn’t show anything—not even my belly button.”

“Have you heard of ‘imagination space’?”

“So if I showed everything, you might not react at all?” she teased, chatting easily with him.

“I don’t know. Want to try showing everything?” he goaded her.

“Not a chance!”

“Bai Ziling, originally… I thought you were a… open-minded girl. After all, it’s 2003—I thought you’d risk yourself…”

“You thought I’d sneak into your bed in the dark, sleep with you at all costs, and then milk you for everything?” Bai Ziling didn’t get angry. She just looked at him calmly. “Jiang Jie, you should thank my three best friends.”

“What do they have to do with it?”

“All four of us are pure and self-respecting. We might talk wildly, but we control our actions—we never sleep around. Even if we got expelled from school, we held to one limit: never degrade or humiliate ourselves,” Bai Ziling said seriously.

Jiang Jie just listened.

“We all want to marry Jin Guixu—but we never resort to underhanded tactics.”

“They were just lucky?”

“Extremely lucky!”

Jiang Jie had heard about Lei Hanyu and Xia Zhen—they’d married in a flash, divorced suddenly, then remarried. This wasn’t a secret in Taipei’s social circles.

“I know you probably look down on me in your heart, thinking I’m a scheming woman who only wants your money, who only wants to be the CEO’s wife for life…” she curled her lip.

“Don’t you?”

“Of course I do,” she admitted frankly.

Jiang Jie laughed. “You’re refreshingly honest—and cute.”

“I want it—but I won’t use any dirty tricks. I’m actually…” she gave him a mysterious look.

“Actually what?”

“Actually, I hope… you’ll fall in love with me!” She laid her final trump card before him.

Jiang Jie didn’t respond. His gaze suddenly turned unfathomable. He sipped his cappuccino slowly. He’d never believed he could truly fall in love with any woman—not even Yu Siqi. He’d only thought she was the most suitable for him, but she’d embarrassed him, and he’d never forgotten that.

“Do you think it’s possible?” Seeing his silence, she pressed on.

“You’ve read too many romance novels,” he brushed her off.

“So you mean…”

“What is love? No one can define it clearly. But the seven necessities of life—firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, tea—we all understand those perfectly,” Jiang Jie tapped her forehead lightly. “I only need a nominal wife for three months. I have no intention of being a married man for life!”

“So…” Bai Ziling’s heart began to sink.

“Bai Ziling, we might sleep together. You might get more than three million from me. But love… that’s just a lie for naive teenagers. If there really were such a thing as shitty love, why would divorce rates be so high?”

No rebuttal. Bai Ziling believed love truly existed—but how could she make his stubborn mind understand?

“Like the Duke of Windsor’s ‘I’d give up the throne for love’…” Jiang Jie shook his head. “That’s just insane!”

“That’s a beautiful story.”

“That’s a fairy tale!” he added. “What about Prince Charles and Princess Diana? That’s neither fairy tale nor myth—it’s a joke!”

Bai Ziling glared at him. All her good mood vanished.

“Between men and women… there’s only sex,” Jiang Jie said coldly.

“You’re terrifyingly biased!”

“Ask you to die for a man…”

“If I loved him, I would!”

“Bai Ziling, you’ve probably read too many romance novels. Men only want sex—just a warm female body. Whether it’s you or another woman, do you think it makes any difference to me?” If Jiang Jie meant to hurt her, he succeeded.

The egg honey drink in her hand suddenly turned bitter, foul—like gutter water. She slammed it onto the table, face twisted in disgust.

“This is the real world!” he emphasized again.

“I want to go back,” she deliberately avoided saying “home,” since his house wasn’t truly her home.

“Not walking anymore?”

“I’ve lost the mood.”

“Bai Ziling, stop dreaming!” Jiang Jie smiled. “If I fell in love so easily, I’d have fallen hundreds, even thousands of times by now. Grow up!”

“Jiang Jie, you’re rich, you look decent—but in reality… you’re a monster who deserves to be torn into a thousand pieces!”

“Torn into a thousand pieces?”

She went further: “Or pierced by ten thousand arrows.”

“Because I told the truth?”

“Because you’re cold-blooded, selfish, heartless.”

“That just means I’m normal.”