After a One-Night Stand with a Seductive Bad Woman - Chapter 8

Shi Mengxi’s driving skills were, frankly, excessive.

She sped along, barely staying within the speed limit, and her sharp turns and sudden braking nearly made Lu Jia dizzy.

Clinging tightly to the seatbelt in the back, Lu Jia felt the morning’s yogurt and iced bread churning violently in her stomach.

Glancing at Rong Yi’s reflection in the rearview mirror, she saw the woman sitting as still as a pine tree, her expression perfectly calm.

Is this the legendary composure of a mentor? Lu Jia wondered inwardly.

After they got out of the car, Lu Jia pressed her temples. “Senior Sister, do you drive often?”

Shi Mengxi smiled brightly. “Not really. The other senior and junior sisters are very considerate. They usually insist on driving, saying they don’t want me to get tired.”

She handed the car keys back to Rong Yi, adding, “It’s been a while since I drove, so my skills might be a bit rusty.”

“It was fine,” Rong Yi said, glancing down to retrieve her guest pass. “Let’s go.”

Lu Jia paused, swallowing her words.

I should rent a car and practice sometime, she thought. Next time, I won’t trouble Senior Sister Shi to drive. I don’t want her to get tired either.

The opening ceremony was bustling with activity.

Rong Yi sat in the front row of guest seating, while Lu Jia and Shi Mengxi stood among the crowd at the back.

Lu Jia had always felt awkward in crowded settings. But Shi Mengxi held her wrist firmly, claiming she was afraid Lu Jia would get lost, so Lu Jia stiffened her back and forced herself to listen to the lengthy speeches on stage.

After several rounds of applause, the opening ceremony finally concluded.

The crowd surged toward the exhibition halls on either side. Rong Yi approached them. “Let’s take a look too.”

The exhibition halls were divided into thematic sections, showcasing printmaking techniques of all kinds. Rong Yi specialized in woodblock printing. Whenever they encountered particularly interesting works, she waited for the crowd around the painting to thin before pulling Lu Jia and Shi Mengxi over for a detailed explanation.

From techniques to materials, most questions were directed at Shi Mengxi. Lu Jia listened to their back-and-forth, occasionally interjecting with her own questions or sharing her thoughts.

When others approached Rong Yi for conversation, she politely excused herself with a brief greeting, saying, “I’m here with my students. Let’s chat properly another time,” before pulling them away.

Shi Mengxi whispered in Lu Jia’s ear, “Our director’s a bit of a social phobe, but she loves exhibitions. She always uses us as a shield.”

Lu Jia nodded. It was clear Director Rong was even more socially anxious than she was.

Rong Yi had other commitments and left after about an hour, calling a driver to take her home and leaving the others to explore the exhibition on their own.

“I haven’t even had breakfast yet, Xiao Lu. Are you leaving too?” Shi Mengxi rubbed her stomach and playfully nudged Lu Jia’s elbow with a grin. “Director Rong’s gone, so we can head out too.”

Lu Jia politely declined. “I’ll stay a bit longer. Senior Sister, you should go get something to eat. Be careful on your way home.”

Shi Mengxi nodded cheerfully. “Alright, see you next time!”

After browsing two exhibition halls filled with diverse masterpieces, Lu Jia found herself overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information she had been processing. She retreated to the lobby on the first floor to take a break.

“Little Sister Lu, what a coincidence.”

The familiar, sultry voice came from behind her, cutting through the murmur of conversation like a sharp note.

Lu Jia turned to see Sheng Shubai raising an eyebrow at her. “Here alone?”

“Professor Sheng,” Lu Jia greeted with a nod. “I came with Director Rong and Senior Sister.”

Sheng Shubai turned to leave, but Lu Jia added, “They left a few minutes ago. It’s a shame we didn’t run into you earlier.”

What a coincidence!

Sheng Shubai turned back and sat beside Lu Jia, smiling. “So, you’re the only one left?”

Lu Jia nodded. “I was planning to look around a bit more.”

“Why not join me?” Sheng Shubai suggested. “It would be nice to have company, and it’ll keep things from getting boring.”

For years, Sheng Shubai had maintained a respectful distance from printmaking. Today, she had only come because an elder from another family, whom she knew well, had insisted she attend. It was difficult to refuse.

Having missed the opening ceremony, she couldn’t just make a quick appearance and leave. She gritted her teeth and stayed for half an hour, during which people kept approaching her to chat.

They all addressed her as “Professor Sheng” and inquired about the well-being of her family members.

Sheng Shubai maintained a bright smile, offering various excuses to slip away, only to be intercepted by the next person just a few steps later.

Now, by bringing Lu Jia along, she finally had a legitimate reason to escape the endless small talk.

“Ah, yes, this is a young acquaintance,” she said, affectionately draping an arm around Lu Jia’s shoulder. “She’s still on summer vacation and flew here specifically to see the exhibition. I’ll show her around properly first. We can catch up next time.”

Are these lines part of some standardized training manual? Lu Jia wondered inwardly.

Unfortunately, Rong Yi had already taken Lu Jia around the entire exhibition earlier. Now, with several visitors mentioning Rong Yi in succession, Sheng Shubai suppressed her irritation and asked in a low voice, “Exactly how many people did your mentor meet earlier?”

Lu Jia paused to recall, counting on her fingers several times. “Not too many… maybe a dozen or so.”

Sheng Shubai: ……

This little human shield wasn’t as effective as she’d hoped.

Fortunately, by the time they reached the final gallery, which featured classic paintings from past years, the visitors were quietly admiring the art, with only occasional murmurs between those who came in pairs.

Sheng Shubai breathed a sigh of relief.

She was truly tired of the polite chatter and had no interest in the recent works of her family members.

Following Lu Jia into the gallery, Sheng Shubai wandered distractedly, eventually lowering her head to check her phone.

Unexpectedly, the girl in front of her stopped abruptly, and Sheng Shubai nearly bumped into her.

Assuming Lu Jia was simply admiring a painting, she didn’t pay much attention. But when the girl remained motionless for two full minutes, Sheng Shubai finally glanced up casually. “Which one are you looking at so… intently?”

Her words trailed off as Sheng Shubai’s gaze fell on the artwork, then instinctively shifted to the adjacent information plaque.

It was a gold medal winner from an international competition years ago, marking the first time a Chinese work had ever been recognized at such an event. The piece had caused a sensation in the printmaking world, catapulting its young student creator from obscurity to rising star status.

Sheng Shubai’s eyes skimmed over the artist’s name, her expression remaining cool. “Do you like this piece?” she asked, turning directly to Lu Jia, trying to gauge the girl’s true feelings from her reaction.

“I don’t,” Lu Jia replied honestly, shaking her head.

Even though the artist had since become a revered elder in the printmaking world, with each of their works carrying intimidating prestige, Lu Jia remained unmoved. What she didn’t like, she still didn’t like.

She failed to notice Sheng Shubai’s expression shift from dark to bright.

Lu Jia pointed to the left side of the print, her brow furrowing slightly. “That area… seems a bit jarring.”

She had only seen images of the work before, and even then, something had felt off. Now, seeing the actual piece and studying it closely for a while, she finally understood what had been bothering her.

The artwork was a realistic black-and-white woodcut print. Its main subject was a series of cascading terraced fields, with a river, a small bridge, and a village in the distance. The sky beside the mountains was adorned with a setting sun, attempting to capture the diffuse glow of twilight.

Many praised the sunset as a stroke of genius, but Lu Jia found it jarringly out of place.

The details of the carving strokes in that area clearly differed from the rest of the print.

This discrepancy might not have been obvious on paper, but with the original wooden block displayed beneath the print, Lu Jia couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

It was like a masterpiece that should have scored a hundred, suddenly marred by an eighty-point element that stood out like a sore thumb. She couldn’t understand how this print had won a gold medal.

Lu Jia spoke her mind bluntly, unconcerned about being overheard.

Sheng Shubai quietly observed her for a few seconds before suddenly smiling.

The woman’s radiant features lit up with amusement. “Well said,” she murmured, leaning closer to Lu Jia’s ear. Her soft breath brushed against Lu Jia’s skin as she lowered her voice to a barely audible whisper.

“Of course, it won by theft.”

This print was clearly her Aunt’s work, except for that ridiculous sunset.

It was nearly three in the morning.

Lu Jia rarely woke up in the middle of the night.

Today, she had stayed at the art exhibition until it closed at five in the afternoon. After parting ways with Sheng Shubai at noon, she had spent the afternoon pondering alone. In her dream, she was surrounded by prints and wood, countless inspirations surfacing.

Awakening from her dream, Lu Jia sprang up and sat up, barely managing to switch on her desk lamp.

She had only sketched a few strokes when her brush froze.

Though the atmosphere and scenes from her dream lingered faintly in her mind, she couldn’t capture them on paper.

The brush felt like it was painting on a veil of mist, each stroke feeling wrong no matter how she tried.

After sitting motionless for a long while, her sleepiness had completely vanished.

Lu Jia decided to grab a bottle of mineral water from the refrigerator, hoping to clear her head and organize her thoughts.

In the deep silence of the night, even the slightest sounds were amplified, becoming strikingly clear.

Lu Jia heard a noise outside her door.

But it wasn’t at her door. Instead, it seemed to be coming from… the hallway, across the way?

That was Sheng Shubai’s apartment.

Could it be a burglar breaking in?

Even though the woman had assured her the neighborhood had excellent security, it was now nearly 3:30 AM. Who would be visiting at this hour?

Remembering that the 福 character sticker blocked the peephole, Lu Jia paused, her hand hovering over the kitchen knife.

She’d barely ever held the thing; she was more likely to hurt herself. Instead, she shifted her grip and firmly grasped the… rolling pin, which was stuck in a rack.

Lu Jia hefted it. The weight felt just right.

With the wooden weapon in hand, she felt a surge of confidence.

She strode purposefully to the entryway, silently counted to two, and pressed down on the door handle. The rolling pin shot out ahead of her head, forming a solid barrier in front of her.

Then she found herself face-to-face with Sheng Shubai.

“…Professor Sheng?” Lu Jia blurted out in surprise.

The woman was leaning heavily against the door, one hand gripping the handle for support while the other pressed against the keypad. Distracted by the noise behind her, she entered the wrong digits, and the lock beeped twice in failure.

Her steps were unsteady, and her eyes, though bright, held a clear hint of intoxication. She’d clearly had quite a bit to drink.

Lu Jia saw her squint and glance down at her hand. Realizing she was still holding the rolling pin, she instinctively hid it behind her back.

“Are you… alright?”

Seeing Sheng Shubai’s disheveled state, Lu Jia wondered how she had managed to stumble her way up in the elevator. She wouldn’t be surprised if the woman collapsed on the sofa and slept there all night.

But then the woman beckoned her closer.

As soon as Lu Jia released the doorknob, Sheng Shubai swayed violently, clearly about to collapse.

Lu Jia hurriedly dropped the rolling pin. The wooden cylinder clattered against the tile floor, rolling away with a clatter.

With quick reflexes, Lu Jia caught Sheng Shubai, allowing the woman, reeking of alcohol and a cloyingly sweet perfume, to slump into her arms. Strangely, the combination wasn’t entirely unpleasant.

Already a few centimeters taller than Lu Jia, Sheng Shubai, now in high heels, towered over Lu Jia, who was only wearing slippers. She leaned heavily against Lu Jia, burying her face in her shoulder.

“Professor Sheng, perhaps I should…” help you inside?

Lu Jia had barely begun speaking when a sharp pain shot through her shoulder. She hissed softly, her grip tightening around the woman’s waist.

Yet Sheng Shubai refused to release her bite, her teeth pressing against Lu Jia’s flesh, the grinding motion sending waves of stinging pain through her.

Mumbled words, laced with spite, reached Lu Jia’s ears:

“Printmaking students… none of them are any good.”