Secretly Seducing the Third Female Lead Behind the System’s Back - Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Can You Give Me a Kiss?

Bai Chu sat across from her, arms crossed as she looked at her. “How long have you been here?”

Jiang Yisheng grinned cheekily. “I came right after you sent me the location. This place is close to the office.”

“Haven’t eaten lunch yet?” Bai Chu asked.

“Nope. You didn’t eat much earlier either—keep me company and eat a bit more?” Jiang Yisheng said as she stood up and sat beside Bai Chu, opening the menu for her.

She called the waiter over. Knowing Bai Chu didn’t care much about food, she just went ahead and ordered for both of them.

After placing the order, she looked at Bai Chu. “Anything else you want?”

Bai Chu shook her head.

“That’s it,” Jiang Yisheng said, closing the menu and telling the waiter, “No scallions, ginger, or garlic—everything else as usual.”

Once the waiter left, Jiang Yisheng leaned against Bai Chu’s shoulder, taking in her scent with an almost greedy comfort.

Bai Chu kept her arms crossed, but Jiang Yisheng slipped her hand into the crook of her elbow. Once Bai Chu realized, she slowly relaxed her arm, letting Jiang Yisheng loop her arm through naturally.

Jiang Yisheng found her hand and gently massaged her palm.

“Are you thinking about He Youran and her parents?” she murmured, chin resting on Bai Chu’s shoulder.

Bai Chu looked down at her hand being casually played with and softly responded, “Mm.”

“I’ve always envied Youran,” Bai Chu exhaled lightly. “Envious of her complete family, of the fact that she has parents who love her.”

Jiang Yisheng straightened up a little but still stayed close, gripping Bai Chu’s hand tightly—letting her know she was there.

Bai Chu swallowed and thought for a moment before continuing. “My parents died when I was very young, and I was adopted by Uncle He.”

“I’ve always known it’s only natural for adults to favor their own children. So I never compared myself to Youran. Even though Uncle and Aunt He weren’t perfect, the fact that they took me in when I had nowhere to go was real.”

“That kind of kindness—I’ll never forget,” Bai Chu said, tightening her grip and wrapping Jiang Yisheng’s hand tightly in hers.

Jiang Yisheng bit her lip. “Bai Chu-jie, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop earlier, but their voices were loud…”

Bai Chu nodded, signaling her to go on.

“Youran’s parents ask you for fifty thousand a month but tell Youran it’s five thousand.” Jiang Yisheng frowned. “You’ve already repaid everything you owe them. You don’t need to keep giving.”

Bai Chu gave Jiang Yisheng’s hand a gentle squeeze. “I’ve only repaid them in money. But kindness like that can’t be measured or paid back.”

Jiang Yisheng sighed silently and looked up at Bai Chu with heartache in her eyes.

She knew everything Bai Chu had gone through—but she had to pretend not to. If she wanted to guide Bai Chu, she had to appear to understand her past… even if it meant letting her hold that pain alone.

Bai Chu noticed Jiang Yisheng’s gaze and looked back at her.

She understood the look in Jiang Yisheng’s eyes—it was heartache.

She reached up to gently touch Jiang Yisheng’s cheek.

Her skin was so smooth and soft, Bai Chu couldn’t resist stroking it again.

“It’s okay. It’s all in the past now,” Bai Chu said gently, trying to comfort her.

But hearing those words only made Jiang Yisheng feel worse. Her eyes welled up with tears.

Seeing her like that, Bai Chu pulled a couple of tissues and smiled helplessly, wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes.

“What are you crying for?” she asked like she was soothing a child.

Jiang Yisheng sniffled, took the tissues, and messily wiped her own face.

By then, the food had started to arrive. Jiang Yisheng busied herself putting vegetables and meat into the hot pot.

“I already made the dipping sauce. Try it—if you don’t like it, I’ll get you another one,” she said, pushing a bowl toward Bai Chu.

Bai Chu raised an eyebrow. “So you knew I’d come back to eat with you?”

“Of course!” Jiang Yisheng said proudly. “Even if you hadn’t noticed me, I was planning to call you once you left to make you come back and eat.”

Bai Chu fondly poked her forehead and picked up a piece of cooked meat for her.

“Try it already,” Jiang Yisheng urged.

Bai Chu picked up a piece of meat, dipped it, and took a bite. She nodded sincerely. “It’s good.”

Jiang Yisheng leaned in and teased, “You say that about everything.”

She’d noticed that Bai Chu didn’t have much appetite. For Jiang Yisheng, a work lunch rated about 40% in happiness, BBQ was 80%, and hot pot was a full 100%.

But for Bai Chu, a work lunch and a hot pot meal were almost the same.

What she didn’t know was, as long as Jiang Yisheng was there, any meal—no matter what—was a 100% happiness experience for Bai Chu.

Jiang Yisheng kept piling food into Bai Chu’s bowl, chattering as she did:

“The beef tripe is cooked just right—eat it while it’s hot!”

“Try the meat with pickled radish—it’s amazing.”

“…And this…”

Eventually, Bai Chu really couldn’t eat any more. She raised a hand and stopped her. “Jiang Yisheng, I’m about to burst.”

Jiang Yisheng looked at her in disbelief. “You barely ate!”

Bai Chu let out a heavy sigh and shook her head.

Finally convinced, Jiang Yisheng stopped, putting the food into her own bowl instead.

With every bite, she scooted closer to Bai Chu. Each time she did, Bai Chu would gently tuck her hair behind her ear or rub her cheek.

When Jiang Yisheng looked down to eat, Bai Chu just watched her silently…

After a leisurely meal, Bai Chu went to pay the bill.

As she finished, Jiang Yisheng peeked over at the receipt and asked, “How much was it?”

“Three hundred and twenty,” Bai Chu replied truthfully.

“That much?” Jiang Yisheng was surprised.

Bai Chu looked at her, surprised herself. She hadn’t expected Jiang Yisheng to care about the price.

“I came here with Zhang Tao last time and it was only two hundred. How did it end up being three twenty today? And you didn’t even eat as much as Zhang Tao!” Jiang Yisheng looked stunned. “I really eat a lot, huh, Bai Chu-jie?”

Even the cashier nearby couldn’t help but chuckle.

Bai Chu also laughed softly and ruffled her hair. She nodded at the cashier, then took Jiang Yisheng’s hand and led her out.

“Having a good appetite is a blessing,” she said, using an old saying to reassure her.

Jiang Yisheng leaned against her, looking up. “No, you are the blessing.”

Caught off guard, Bai Chu coughed lightly and quickened her pace.

Jiang Yisheng scrambled to keep up. “Why are you walking so fast all of a sudden? Slow down—I can’t keep up.”

Hearing that, Bai Chu slowed her steps back to a normal pace.

“Oh right, give me the receipt,” Jiang Yisheng said, holding out her hand.

Bai Chu pulled it out of her pocket and handed it over.

Jiang Yisheng unfolded the white slip and pointed to a line of text. “Look, I think their slogan is really good.”

‘There are many meanings to life—hot pot is definitely one of them.”

She read the line aloud for Bai Chu.

Bai Chu nodded after hearing it. “Makes sense.”

Jiang Yisheng poked her shoulder. “So you have to eat well, eat more.”

Bai Chu obediently nodded.

The two walked slowly, arm in arm. Sometimes Jiang Yisheng leaned against her, sometimes she swung their hands playfully, sometimes she ran ahead to act out silly stories for her…

The early spring breeze had started to carry a trace of warmth, and the willows were beginning to sprout a tender green. The thoughts of a young girl were beginning to bud with hope.

But in a shadowed corner untouched by sunlight, two eyes watched Jiang Yisheng’s back intently, like predators lying in wait…

…

When they reached the building of Yujiang, Jiang Yisheng had her driver take Bai Chu home.

They sat side by side in the back. Jiang Yisheng began introducing him, “This is Zhang Tao—I’ve mentioned him before.”

The driver was flattered and quickly turned around to nod at Bai Chu, even gesturing a polite “hello” with his hand.

“Brother Zhang, this is Bai Chu, my…” Jiang Yisheng hesitated, then looked at Bai Chu.

Bai Chu met her gaze calmly.

“…my friend,” Jiang Yisheng finished. She still didn’t dare say more—she was afraid Bai Chu wouldn’t like it.

“Hello, Brother Zhang.” Bai Chu nodded sincerely.

After the greetings, the car picked up speed and merged into traffic.

Bai Chu looked through files on her phone while Jiang Yisheng leaned against her shoulder, her breathing slowly evening out.

When her head was about to slide off, Bai Chu opened her palm and gently held her cheek, letting her rest comfortably against her shoulder again.

At that moment, Bai Chu’s driver sent a message:

“Miss He has arrived home safely.”

Bai Chu thought for a moment, opened her chat with He Youran, typed for a long while in the input bar—then deleted everything and exited the chat.

She set her phone down and looked out at the scenery rushing past the window.

She’d traveled this road many times before—but today, it somehow felt different.

She looked down at the sleeping Jiang Yisheng and felt her heart soften. She knew exactly what made today different.

…

When they arrived downstairs, Jiang Yisheng rubbed her eyes and looked outside.

“We’re here already?” She pulled her coat tight. “Let’s go.”

She got out first, waiting for Bai Chu.

“I won’t go up with you. You’ve been tired—get some rest, okay?” she reminded her gently, holding her hand.

Bai Chu nodded.

Then Jiang Yisheng suddenly remembered something. Her cheeks flushed red as she looked up shyly.

“Hm?” Bai Chu tilted her head and looked at her.

Jiang Yisheng hesitated for a long time before finally saying, “Um… can you give me a kiss?”

As soon as she said it, she immediately lowered her head, ears flushed completely red.

She waited a few seconds and didn’t hear a response.

“Then I’ll kiss you instead,” Jiang Yisheng said as she looked up, just about to tiptoe like always and kiss Bai Chu on the cheek—

The next second, something soft and cool touched her forehead.

Jiang Yisheng froze, not daring to look up. Every nerve in her body focused on that spot on her forehead. She kept her head bowed, staring at their shoes almost touching.

The spring breeze blew gently—bringing not just warmth and hope, but also unexpected surprises… and a quiet, mutual love.