The frosted glass of the bathroom floor was covered in a layer of mist. Ji Xiao was huffing and puffing, her hand propped on the edge of the bathtub.
A name slipped out from her lips, and the hand that was originally hitching up her shoulder strap, faltered.
With a click, the bathroom light came on.
"Miss Ji, are you doing this out of revenge for Ren Ounan?" The sarcastic question carried a hint of chilling disdain.
Ji Xiao suddenly sobered up.
She raised her eyes, still hazy with lingering emotions and looked at the man in front of her.
Through the steam, his eyebrows were slightly raised; his skin was as flawless as porcelain, and his deep amber eyes were riveted on his handsome face, giving him an air of aloof sophistication.
He was the man every woman in Wei city craved.
And now, she was in a bathtub with him! They had almost just had an...
Ji Xiao swallowed down her saliva as her consciousness started to return.
Just half an hour ago...
She had attended her ex-boyfriend's engagement banquet.
No one invited her, yet she found a way to force herself in.
In a corner where no one noticed, she was getting herself drunk on one glass of red wine after another.
Everyone else was celebrating, dancing and swaying to the music, and she had thrown herself onto the neck of Mu Zejiu.
Since Ren Ounan could discard their four-year-long affection for her in a flash just to hook up with the heiress, what was keeping her from moving on?
In matters of male and female, it's either a never-ending entanglement of interests, or ceaseless love. No one will be there, expecting no reward in return.
Heartbroken and disappointed, she's struck by a sudden sense of clarity.
In a fit of hysteria, she desired release—
"Are you listening?"
Mu Zejiu pinned himself near Ji Xiao's neck. Unlike the passionate kisses from before, he simply caressed her neck, "Are you using me?"
Using him?
To be fair, the moment she held his neck, she knew it was Mu Zejiu.
A renowned gold-standard lawyer in the political and legal arena, a tycoon with numerous assets, the elder brother of her ex-boyfriend's future wife.
Indeed, he was the perfect choice to retaliate against Ren Ounan.
But choosing him, throwing herself into his arms, Ji Xiao seemed to be simply charmed by alcohol and his attractive looks.
Hence, when Mu Zejiu questioned her from a superior stance, Ji Xiao nodded, and then shook her head.
Mu Zejiu chuckled coldly, abruptly stood from the bathtub, picked up the robe on the side, and exited the room.
All the romantic passion in the bathtub was finally extinguished.
As Ji Xiao watched his retreating figure, she slowly rose from the water.
Her clothes were already soaked through, and her contour was vaguely visible underneath. If it weren't for that untimely spoken name, the two might have already ignited a passionate fire.
She followed him out of the bathroom and stopped by the deep-sea-blue sofa, "I'm sorry, Mr. Mu. I must have drunk a bit too much..."
The man didn't speak. His scorching gaze swept up and down her figure, a chilly smirk appeared at the corner of his mouth.
The air grew silent as death.
The man calmly lit up a cigarette and said nonchalantly, "Seduce me, provoke me, kiss me, and even want to sleep with me to disgust Ren Ounan?"
His tone had shifted from questioning to conviction.
Without waiting for Ji Xiao's answer, he handed her clean clothes placed at his side, "Change into these. I'll take you home."
Ji Xiao accepted without any pretense, turned around to enter the bathroom. After drying her body with a disposable towel and changing into the provided clothes, she bundled up her wet clothes and threw them into the trash.
When she stepped back out, Mu Ze had already put out his cigarette.
The air still hanged heavy with silence, as if their previous flirtation belonged to another lifetime.
Mu Ze naturally handed his coat to Ji Xiao, who accepted it silently. The two then walked in unison towards the private elevator that led to the underground garage.
During this time, aside from Mu Ze asking for the address, no words were exchanged.
Mu Ze drove a Rolls-Royce Phantom. Throughout the journey, he focused on the road with a hint of furrow in his brow, as if thinking about something.
Ji Xiao occasionally glanced at him, silently musing: A man like him, a favored child of heaven, must have as many women around him as there are stars in the sky.
Therefore, that provocative encounter in the bathtub, must have been honed through countless battles. Even now, in her sobriety, she could not forget the touch of emotion from that moment.
"Is this it?" Mu Zejiu asked lightly as the vehicle came to a halt near the destination.
"Thank you."
Without responding, Mu Zejiu pulled out a business card with his elegant fingers and passed it over.
Ji Xiao was taken aback for a moment. The subtle hint between an adult man and woman, how could she not understand? What she couldn't comprehend was the fact that even at this point, Mu Zejiu wanted to pursue something more with her. Although, she too desired something.
But she was rational enough to recognize that Mu Zejiu was not a man she could afford to mess with.
She returned the business card, "No need, Mr. Mu, I just drank too much tonight."
Mu Zejiu did not respond further.
He nodded lightly, then got out of the car to open the door for Ji Xiao as if his earlier rejection and their previous ambiguous interaction in the bathtub had never happened.
As for him, he simply opened her car door as a gentleman would.
Ji Xiao wasn’t inhibited; she lightly lifted her legs, her full hips leaving the seat, raising her arm graciously to wave to him.
Mu Zejiu's hawk-like eyes briefly scanned her as he politely nodded before driving away.
The black Rolls-Royce Phantom slowly disappeared from her sight.
Ji Xiao was staring in the direction the car had gone, lost in a daze.
A chill wind blew, gradually cooling.
The cool wind traveled up from Ji Xiao's ankles to her warm chest.
It was then she suddenly realized, she was still wearing his coat.
