Chapter 20

Another day with no afternoon classes, the other three dorm mates went out to eat and still haven't returned.

I guess they don't know where they went to mess around.

Jiang Cheng returned from the coffee shop where he had met Li Qinqin that month, then played games alone in the dorm.

On the way, he glanced at his phone.

Yujie's avatar had no red dot.

Jiang Cheng thought we had agreed to have dinner together tonight, but there's been no word.

But when he checked the time, it was 4 p. m...

But the class group showed a red notification; Jiang Cheng opened it and saw that class monitor Zhouzixin had tagged everyone.

Zhouzixin's mass message was roughly a call for classmates to join a team-building activity together.

Jiang Cheng just glanced at it, turned off his phone, and continued playing games.

Until night fell.

The other three dorm mates still hadn't returned, but his phone rang.

The screen displayed two characters:

「Yujie」

Jiang Cheng picked up the phone, and Yujie's voice came from the other end.

「Sorry, I'm busy with company matters, so I'm only calling you now. »

Yujie's first words on the phone were actually an apology, which somewhat surprised Jiang Cheng.

However, from beginning to end until now, there's indeed no sign that Yujie meant to tease him.

On the contrary, Yujie herself almost ruined her reputation, yet she didn't utter a single complaint.

But to say Yujie likes him, truly fell in love with him—that's definitely impossible; Jiang Cheng thinks he's not a love‑brain!

Yujie should be even less likely to be a love‑brain, right? Su Manyao sent Jiang Cheng a restaurant address, and she had already reserved a seat.

Jiang Cheng looked at the name and location: the restaurant is on the riverbank of Modu, and its standing at that location is not low.

Jiang Cheng went downstairs, left the school, and hailed a taxi!

Will go to see monsters!

In the taxi, the driver kept glancing at Jiang Cheng in the rearview mirror, making Jiang Cheng feel uneasy.

Finally, the driver spoke first, "Young man, the restaurant you're going to must be expensive, right?"

The driver was enthusiastic; in such a small space inside the car, Jiang Cheng couldn't pretend not to hear, so he casually replied, "I don't know, it's my first time going there."

The driver chuckled and said, "That's right; I've been driving a taxi for six years, I've heard fellow drivers talk about this restaurant, but this is the first time I've taken a customer there—I guess most people who go there drive themselves."

Jiang Cheng didn't respond to that.

After a while the driver said again, "It's good to be young and have means; when I was young, I also had a rich older woman take a liking to me, but I was too proud and unwilling, and now looking back I think it was stupid."

I'm screwed!

The driver's words were so obvious that Jiang Cheng couldn't possibly not understand what he meant—was he treating himself like a fool? Am I that kind of person? But the image of the Yujie appeared in his mind, slender waist, long legs, a beautiful rich beauty…

Huh? Actually, that doesn't sound bad.

…

The restaurant is by the river and covers a large area.

The left side is a parking lot, but Jiang Cheng got off at the roadside and walked in.

As he approached the entrance, looking toward the left-side parking lot, two people happened to be walking ahead of him.

Jiang Cheng glanced over, feeling they looked somewhat familiar, but he couldn't recall where he'd seen them, so he didn't think much of it. Entering the restaurant, the interior featured a light-luxury décor, dim lighting; women with light and heavy makeup in that glow all appeared fair-skinned and beautiful, their chatting barely visible, which perfectly hid any flaws in their foundation and revealed a pearl-like, luxurious sparkle.

A person dressed in Republican-era style came over to inquire, and Jiang Cheng gave her a reservation number.

Following the consultant to a seat in the hall, the table was set with bright red roses and a steadily burning candle.

Soft music played around him, and Jiang Cheng thought, "No wonder the driver said the place is expensive; upon closer observation, one can see that the color scheme, décor, and lighting design are all meticulously arranged, making people's moods unconsciously calm down."

After sitting down, he saw the two people on the sofa ahead—exactly the man and woman who had walked in front of him when he entered.

Jiang Cheng then realized why the man looked familiar—it was Zheng Zhiming, who had been embracing literature club member Li Siyu in the library earlier that day.

However, the woman sitting opposite him was no longer Li Siyu.

But due to the seating arrangement, Zheng Zhiming's sideways face was toward Jiang Cheng, while the woman opposite him was facing Jiang Cheng directly.

She saw Jiang Chen's gaze and thought Jiang Cheng was looking at her.

As a well-bred socialite who had carefully cultivated herself, she was captivated by Jiang Cheng's looks and unconsciously threw him a flirtatious glance.

Zheng Zhiming noticed this scene and turned his head to look over.

Seeing Jiang Cheng, he furrowed his brow slightly.

Just then, a waiter came over with a menu and stood beside Jiang Cheng.

The waiter opened the menu, said a few words to Jiang Cheng, who waved him off, and the waiter left.

Zheng Zhiming let out a cold snort, turned his head to glance at the woman opposite him.

"Do you think that guy is handsome?"

The woman was momentarily flustered by his question, but quickly replied with a sultry glance, "Pfft, just a youngster—what charm could he have compared to Brother Ming?"

Zheng Zhiming said nothing, stood up, and walked toward Jiang Cheng.

Jiang Cheng was playing with his phone when he sensed a shadow appear in front of him; he looked up.

"Brother, there's no need for you to follow me, right?"

Zheng Zhiming pulled out the chair in front of Jiang Cheng, sat down with a swagger, and looked at Jiang Cheng with disdain as he said.

Jiang Cheng furrowed his brow and said, "Do you have some kind of problem?"

Zheng Zhiming widened his eyes, stared at Jiang Cheng, and suddenly sneered, "I know your purpose—you want to follow me, catch evidence, and then tell Li Siyu that I have a woman outside."

Zheng Zhiming put on an appearance, as if he were stating facts.

Especially just now, when the waiter came over to let Jiang Cheng order, but Jiang Cheng waved his hand and refused, which made him even more certain that Jiang Cheng was just a student—how could he possibly afford to consume at this restaurant? He was only following behind him.

Jiang Cheng looked at him with the expression of looking at an idiot, wondering whether to call security now or later.

Zheng Zhiming, however, twitched the corner of his mouth and continued, "Little buddy, I'm telling you, you're too naive."

He leaned his body forward a bit, as if trying to intimidate Jiang Cheng with his aura, and continued, "As long as I give Li Sixiu money, let alone playing with women behind her back, even if I do it right in front of her, what's it to you?"

"The woman who makes you lose your soul at a glance is nothing in front of me!"

Zheng Zhiming finished speaking, and he was waiting for Jiang Cheng's angry reaction!

But just then, at the restaurant entrance, a woman walked in wearing a long dress made of dark gold sequins.

The woman had her hair coiled up, with a few strands of black hair falling beside her face.

Her brows and eyes were like a painting, her demeanor like ice; the snow-white collarbone beneath her neck was unusually prominent under the carefully designed lighting, setting off the crystal necklace draped around her neck.

When my flower blooms, it kills all other flowers; the six palaces' powders and dyes lose their color.

The woman's appearance was like a attention-grabbing black hole; starting from the first person who noticed her, the Matthew effect took hold, and gazes poured over, unable to look away, regardless of gender.

(End of chapter)