Chapter 8: You're Quite Dedicated

Li Jingche straightened his collar, sensing that the momentous occasion was perhaps upon him. He nodded slowly.

Jian Qing drew in a sharp breath, just about to speak when her gaze landed on a familiar figure on the sidewalk—

Ren Yishan.

She immediately understood, flashed Li Jingche an "OK" gesture, and said, "Well, Thirty-three, you're really dedicated, acting out the whole performance for Ren Yishan's sake, even keeping up the disguise to the end. Impressive."

Li Jingche's eyes darkened as he looked in the direction Jian Qing had glanced. Ren Yishan and Ren Tianchuan were pacing around the commercial complex opposite Yuling Company.

He had never met Ren Tianchuan, but he had encountered Ren Yishan yesterday.

A sigh escaped him as he turned to Jian Qing, waiting until her car was parked in Yuling Company's underground garage before asking, just as she was about to get out, "You didn’t use it today."

"What?"

"The sanitary pad."

"..."

"I bought some this morning and left them on your nightstand. You didn't use them."

Jian Qing was momentarily speechless, as if caught in the act.

"Jian Qing, you lied to me."

"I can explain."

But Li Jingche had already closed the door and left.

His long legs strode forward, his gait so elegant, and his small backside especially...

Ugh! Now was not the time for admiration!

Jian Qing was lost in the allure of his departing figure, about to chase after him when her phone rang.

"..."

Forget it, she thought, and transferred fifty thousand to him as compensation.

After sending the money, Jian Qing answered the call. On the other end was Xiao Yunchen's accusatory voice: "Jian Qing, you really are a reckless woman! Sleeping with some pretty boy you just met, it's disgusting!"

"Are you a rooster? Screaming first thing in the morning?"

Last night, Xiao Yunchen had spent hours staring at the condoms left on the table. He'd tried to call Jian Qing, but she kept hanging up, eventually shutting off her phone.

Now, finally able to reach her, his anger and frustration poured out: "Am I wrong? Oh, XXL size—did you find a rolling pin?"

"Brother, are you alright?"

Jian Qing couldn't help but laugh at Xiao Yunchen, recalling Li Jingche’s serious expression as he pulled a condom from his pocket.

It was actually quite adorable!

"Jian Qing, when I was sixteen, I risked my life for you. I still have scars. When I was twenty-four, I gave you a year’s worth of blood transfusions. Is this how you repay me?"

"..."

"If you hadn't treated me so coldly, would I be the way I am now?"

Jian Qing's smile abruptly faded.

Heh, not so funny anymore.

She vaguely remembered some of the things Xiao Yunchen mentioned, but couldn’t recall them clearly. Her memory seemed fractured around ages ten and eighteen; she remembered little, and nothing specific.

She had previously asked her mother, but her mother only said that growing up meant forgetting insignificant things.

Clearly, though, those events mattered—at least to Jian Qing and Xiao Yunchen.

Taking a slow breath, Jian Qing's face turned icy: "Enough. Don't covet what's in the pot while eating from the bowl. If you keep this up, I'll hand the phone to your fiancée."

"Is Shanshan with you?"

Xiao Yunchen immediately calmed.

With a cold smile, Jian Qing felt the last traces of pity and unease vanish: "She’s not."

Xiao Yunchen: "Jian Qing, you—!"

Then, only a busy signal.

After hanging up, Jian Qing glanced at her phone. She had already mapped her route to the studio on the navigation app, but seeing the lines of rush hour traffic, she changed her destination.

Haiqing Hedyan, where guests could stay overnight.

When Jian Qing arrived that morning, Yan Jin, a VIP client, was already resting in a private suite.

The general manager was absent, so Jian Qing showed her ID card and was led to Yan Jin’s room.

Opening the door, she found no chaos—three young male models were sleeping on the carpet or sofas, while Yan Jin had the large bed to herself. Hearing the lock turn, Yan Jin lifted an eyelid.

"What brings you here, Qingqing?"

"You've been playing pretty wild."

Jian Qing tossed a bottle of iced tea to Yan Jin to help her sober up. Watching the male models rise and prepare to leave, Jian Qing found herself staring at one of the youths.

He was clever; once dressed, he took out a business card and handed it to Jian Qing, clinging to her arm playfully: "Sister, make sure to book me next time!"

Jian Qing smiled without replying. After the youth left, she casually tossed the card into her bag.

His eyes resembled Li Jingche’s, though lacking the fierceness and depth. The flavor was missing.

She could now understand why Da Ju searched so obsessively for Pure Yuan Empress figurines.

"Gulp, gulp... ah—"

Yan Jin drained the iced tea with satisfaction, then headed to the bathroom, grumbling as she washed up: "Those four little brats nearly drove me mad last night! I dragged them to play 'Identity V' all night—my blood pressure almost spiked!"

Only Yan Jin could spend a night with male models gaming instead of indulging in debauchery.

Moreover, she was obsessed with ranking points.

Jian Qing patted Yan Jin’s back. When their eyes met, Jian Qing asked, "Do you remember anything from when I was ten?"

"How much?"

Yan Jin’s face was covered in foamy cleanser, raising a brow as she replied.

"When I was ten and eighteen, do you remember anything?"

Yan Jin looked away, rinsing off the foam: "At ten, we played in the mud. At eighteen, you went abroad as an exchange student—I lost track of you then."

"Aside from playing in the mud, anything else?"

"We went to school, what else could we do?"

"Did anything dangerous happen to me?"

"What danger? Aunt Jian would’ve assigned you ten bodyguards if she could—who’d dare touch you?"

Yan Jin laughed, seeing Jian Qing hesitate as if wanting to argue but unsure what to say, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Why ask about this all of a sudden?"

"No reason."

Without the answers she sought, Jian Qing curled up on the bed, ears drooping like a dejected kitten, staring at the ceiling.

Yan Jin emerged from the bathroom, saw her gloomy mood, and tapped the glass of the transparent shower: "This year’s jewelry design competition is about to start. Has Aunt Jian considered having you represent the company?"

Jian Qing shook her head: "You know me—I opened a small studio to level up, and I've got plenty of orders now. I’m registering as an independent studio, so don’t worry."

Jian Qing’s mother protected her fiercely, keeping her from business battles to avoid any fallout, but always provided the best resources for practice.

Jian Qing didn’t let her down, opening "Wangcai Studio" and taking freelance orders. Her unique cutting techniques attracted many socialites, and clients kept coming.

Yan Jin stretched lazily: "Coincidentally, next week is the eldest Li’s birthday. I have a loose diamond—Qingqing, could you..."

But before she finished, Yan Jin’s phone rang.

She answered, and a woman’s trembling voice came through: "Miss! Miss, please come back and talk to the master—madam is about to be beaten to death!"