Chapter 26: She Was Framed

Jian Qing’s eyes darted slyly, clearly up to no good. With great wisdom comes clever cunning. If Number 33 couldn’t convincingly hold He Jiangyu’s title, then it was just like playing Werewolf: before Ren Yishan exposed his identity, let him wear another disguise.

Sitting on the bed, Jian Qing’s mind raced. She could already picture how Ren Yishan, triumphant after her socialite gathering, would return and join forces with Ren Tianchuan to boss her around.

Li Jingche emerged from his shower, rubbed his damp hair, and draped a black towel over his head. He looked up at the contemplative Jian Qing, recalling the scene when Hao Qing brushed past them earlier.

The simpler the outfit, the more flavor Jian Qing brought to it. If she had worn Hao Qing’s white designer dress today, she would have looked stunning beyond compare.

“What are you looking at?” he asked.

She looked up, meeting the man’s earnest gaze.

Li Jingche shook his head. “You look beautiful tonight. If you wore a white dress, you’d look just like... Snow White.”

His compliment was a bit awkward, but the sincerity was unmistakable.

Jian Qing smiled, leaning against the headboard and patting the space beside her. “Do you know why Snow White’s life was so troubled?”

“Why?”

“Because she was surrounded by petty people.”

As the man lay down, Jian Qing nestled into his arms. His embrace was strong and reassuring. Though the thought of Ren Yishan returning soon gave her a headache, curled up beside Number 33, it all seemed trivial.

It felt rather like a king neglecting morning court.

Li Jingche didn’t break the spell of this peaceful moment. He took Jian Qing’s phone from her restless hands. “Tonight—six hundred thousand?”

Jian Qing couldn’t understand how he always had such boundless energy. She had once suffered from moderate insomnia, but now, with Number 33, she no longer needed sleeping pills.

—

The lights burned through the night. After meeting Li Shuang, Ren Yishan felt she had finally entered high society. She waited until Xiao Yuncheng was tipsy, then took his arm and found a quiet corner for them to sit.

“Yuncheng, who knows where Jian Qing found such an actor—he even dared impersonate He Jiangyu! Now that the rumors have been dispelled, I’d like to see what face she has left to remain in the Jian family.”

Xiao Yuncheng leaned on the sofa, pinching the bridge of his nose, his speech already slurred. “She just can’t let me go. Besides, we’re together now. Why do you need to compete with her? She’s a Jian, after all—why wouldn’t she stay?”

Ren Yishan bristled and tossed her hair, her displeasure evident. “Are you saying you can’t let her go either?”

Xiao Yuncheng said nothing, as if he’d fallen asleep.

Her grip on the wine glass tightened, and Ren Yishan gritted her teeth. She couldn’t understand: both daughters of the same father, she was in no way inferior to Jian Qing. Why did Xiao Yuncheng always want both the bowl and the pot?

Slamming the glass down, Ren Yishan made a phone call: “Hello? Dad, it’s me, Shanshan. Yuncheng is drunk, and I’ve had some wine too, so driving isn’t safe. Could you ask my sister to come pick us up?”

After hanging up, she greeted Li Shuang and Hao Qing as they prepared to leave, then struck up a conversation with Du Yu. “Mr. Du, my sister will pick me up soon. Could she come to the restaurant and meet everyone?”

Du Yu readily agreed—he had no desire to play the villain.

Once everything was arranged, Ren Yishan waited like a victor, ready to reap her reward as Jian Qing arrived.

Meanwhile, in the deep hours of night, Li Jingche had just finished, and was carrying Jian Qing to the shower when her bedroom door was pounded by Ren Tianchuan.

“Jian Qing, go pick up your sister and brother-in-law.”

Jian Qing, barely asleep, startled and leapt from the bathtub, wrapped in a towel, thinking there was a burglar in the house.

She looked at Li Jingche in alarm, clearly half in dreams and half awake.

Li Jingche lowered his voice. “Ren Tianchuan’s outside, calling that Ren Yishan and Xiao Yuncheng are drunk and want us to pick them up.”

Jian Qing rubbed her temples, feeling utterly exhausted.

With the man’s help, she climbed out of the tub, slipped into a simple floral dress, and had Li Jingche wait in the shower while she went to open the door.

As soon as she did, she was met by Ren Tianchuan’s stern glare. “Go, hurry and pick up your sister and brother-in-law. Today is an important day; don’t let the other families think the Jian family is disgraceful.”

“We have drivers, why must I go?”

“Shanshan worked hard for this opportunity. I’m your father, do you think I’d harm you? Sending you to pick up your sister is giving you a chance to meet the wealthy. Don’t be ungrateful.”

With that, Ren Tianchuan tossed Jian Qing her Maybach keys.

Seeing her beloved car returned, Jian Qing had no intention of handing over the keys again.

She was just about to leave when Li Jingche grabbed her arm. “I’ll go with you.”

Jian Qing shook her head. “Ren Yishan has met the real He Jiangyu now. If you go, you’ll be embarrassed. She only wants to make things difficult for me; there’s no need for you to suffer too.”

But Li Jingche’s grip didn’t loosen. “Precisely because the real He Jiangyu is there, I must go.”

“Forget it. You’re so short on money; if Ren Yishan causes trouble, she might have the restaurant fire you. Honestly, I treasure you—especially your face. Wait for me at home.”

With that, Jian Qing slipped from Li Jingche’s grasp like a butterfly.

She got in the car, pondering how to handle Ren Yishan. Yet the ache in her body persuaded her to stick with the tried and true—her mind too weary to strategize.

Her thoughts drifted to Number 33’s hardworking body and face from earlier.

Truly, lust is a double-edged sword.

Downstairs, the doorman parked her car and invited Jian Qing upstairs.

Jian Qing knew Ren Yishan was up to no good. At the door of the private room, as the heavy doors were opened by the staff, she saw, surrounded in the center, the real He Jiangyu.

Beside He Jiangyu stood Xiao Yuncheng and Ren Yishan.

Ren Yishan greeted her first. “Sister, you’re finally here. I told Mr. He that my sister had climbed up to his mighty tree and become his girlfriend, but the others weren’t sure.”

Du Yu raised his brows. He was a bit drunk himself, and didn’t expect that even after Li Shuang, the biggest gossip lover, had left, there was still juicy news to hear. His eyes moved back and forth between He Jiangyu and Jian Qing. “Jiangyu, is it true? Miss Jian is indeed as beautiful as a fairy; your taste is impeccable.”

Du Yu’s gaze was transfixed. He got up to shake Jian Qing’s hand. “Miss Jian, I’m Du Yu, the manager of the DuTe project.”

Jian Qing nodded slightly. “Jian Qing, jewelry designer.”

“The Jian and He families are both giants in the jewelry world. If Jian Qing and Jiangyu become a pair, it’ll be a powerful alliance.”

Du Yu and Jian Qing exchanged contacts, then led her to He Jiangyu.

Neither spoke. After a glance, they quickly looked away.

How awkward!