Secretly Seducing the Third Female Lead Behind the System’s Back - Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Jealousy

Jiang Yisheng clasped her hands tightly behind her back.

She could clearly feel the cool softness of Bai Chu’s lips and the occasional gentle pressure.

Jiang Yisheng wished this moment could last forever. She even felt like breathing might disturb the precious calm.

After a long while, the softness on her forehead gradually faded.

Jiang Yisheng looked up and met Bai Chu’s gaze—her eyes were like a clear spring, and just one glance brought a sense of coolness and peace.

It felt as though they could hold all of Jiang Yisheng’s emotions.

Before she could recover, Bai Chu quickly left her with a short, “I’m going.”

Watching Bai Chu’s retreating figure, Jiang Yisheng’s heart felt like it was swelling up.

She skipped back into the car, leaning against the window and staring at the windows of Bai Chu’s apartment. They had only just parted, but she already missed her.

She pulled out her phone and sent Bai Chu a string of emojis—only then did she feel slightly better.

On the way home, Jiang Yisheng listened to music and watched the river scenery through the window.

She loved this place, loved the scenery of this world, loved the people in it—and loved Bai Chu even more!

She opened the car window just a crack, letting the wind mess up her hair. Breathing in the freshness of spring, she gently swayed her head in comfort.

The driver, seeing Jiang Yisheng’s cheerful mood in the rearview mirror, couldn’t help but smile too.

Suddenly, he sensed that a taxi had been following closely behind them for some time. Narrowing his eyes, he changed routes.

He deliberately detoured to the front of the Yujiang office building. When he checked the rearview mirror again, the taxi was gone.

Only then did he resume driving Jiang Yisheng home.

Meanwhile, completely unaware, Jiang Yisheng had fallen fast asleep, a slight smile still playing on her lips.

…

“When I was driving Miss Jiang home today, a taxi was following us the whole time. It disappeared after I circled around the office building.” Driver Zhang Xingjun reported to Yu Mushan in sign language.

Yu Mushan watched his hands seriously, unconsciously twisting a pen between his fingers.

“From now on, use two cars when picking her up and dropping her off. Put four bodyguards in the second car,” Yu Mushan said with a frown.

Driver Zhang Xingjun respectfully nodded.

“And don’t let her find out,” Yu Mushan added.

The driver nodded again.

After Bai Chu got home, she saw the emoji bombardment from Jiang Yisheng. Lately, she’d stolen quite a few of Jiang Yisheng’s emojis and picked the one she thought was cutest to send back.

“Let me know when you get home.”

After sending it, she stared at their chat log, recalling that kiss downstairs.

Even though she was alone in her room, Bai Chu still felt incredibly shy. She quickly drank a glass of water, trying to calm her flustered heart.

She put her phone in her pocket. Since she finally had a rare bit of free time, she decided to tidy up her place.

She put on some soft music to help clear her mind as she worked.

Bai Chu rarely hired a cleaning lady. Even when Lü Mu offered to help, she usually refused. She believed organizing her space was something she should do herself.

This apartment was purchased in her second year of work using her housing fund. The real estate prices in Jiangcheng were high, and even with a good salary, it was hard to save enough money quickly.

Still, she hadn’t cut corners on the interior—she customized every detail with the design team, just so she could live comfortably.

As a child who once had to live in a storage room, she had always longed for a place of her own.

So when she finally had the means, the first thing she did was fulfill her deepest wish.

A way for the adult her to make amends with her younger self.

After receiving a message from Jiang Yisheng confirming she got home safely, Bai Chu finally put her phone aside. She spent the whole afternoon cleaning and felt a sense of satisfaction as she sat on the couch.

She picked up her phone again, and sure enough, another message from Jiang Yisheng had come in.

“Look at my pink bed sheets!”

In the photo, the pink sheets shimmered slightly in the sunlight—smooth and pristine. But in the bottom right corner was a tiny, soft-looking foot, only a few toes peeking out.

“I ate too much at lunch, so I decided to skip dinner.”

“Hehe, but I can still have a little cake.”

On the table was a tiramisu and a glass of juice beside it.

“What are you doing?”

“Did you miss me?”

Looking at the string of messages, Bai Chu felt her heart fill to the brim.

She initiated a video call. The ringtone barely rang before it was picked up.

Jiang Yisheng’s brilliant smile lit up the screen.

“You missed me, didn’t you?” she said, striking a smug, playful pose.

Bai Chu’s eyes crinkled with a smile but didn’t answer. Still, the warmth in her gaze deepened.

Lying on the bed, Jiang Yisheng was overjoyed. This was the first time Bai Chu had video-called her—she must miss her!

Just as Bai Chu was about to speak, the screen froze. Then, the call ended abruptly.

Confused, Jiang Yisheng sat up—until a message came in:

“Yuran called.”

Jiang Yisheng pouted, grumbling angrily.

“Her again!”

Even though she knew He Yuran was a good person, it didn’t stop her from being jealous.

She folded her arms and waited for the call to come back. She even checked her phone multiple times, suspecting she had accidentally muted it or the signal was bad—but there were no new messages from Bai Chu.

Still hugging her arms, she stubbornly kept waiting, hoping that when the call came, she could dramatically act all pouty and make Bai Chu coax her.

But two hours passed—and still, no message.

She kept staring out the window, absentmindedly looking at the moon beside the Yujiang building.

Suddenly, her phone rang.

Jiang Yisheng immediately reached to pick it up—but then hesitated. A flash of petty jealousy struck her. She wanted to let Bai Chu sweat a little too.

Three seconds. That was long enough. Bai Chu would be anxious.

She easily convinced herself.

Smiling again, she looked at the screen: “Zhang Tao”

Her expression instantly dropped.

She slowly pressed answer.

“…Hello.” Her voice was cold.

Zhang Tao hesitated, realizing he had called at a bad time.

He quickly picked up her pace, reporting: “Chairman Yu said there’ll be a mid-training meeting tomorrow, and you’re to attend.”

“Got it.” Jiang Yisheng’s voice was icy, her eyes fixed on the wall sconce.

“I won’t bother you anymore then, President Jiang. Rest well.” Zhang Tao quickly hung up.

Jiang Yisheng opened her chat with Bai Chu again. Still nothing.

She threw herself onto the pillow, silently staring at the ceiling.

Maybe He Yuran was feeling down and Bai Chu was comforting her. When they were done, Bai Chu would definitely call back.

That’s what she told herself.

But as she waited, she slowly drifted off.

When she opened her eyes again, Zhang Tao was standing by the bed calling her name.

“What time is it?” Jiang Yisheng mumbled.

“Seven thirty.”

“Seven thirty at night or morning?” she blinked, confused.

“Morning.”

Jiang Yisheng jumped up and grabbed her phone—it was still on, the chat with Bai Chu open, the last message still:

“Yuran called.”

The screen had been on all night, battery down to under 20%, the icon turning red.

She had waited all night. Bai Chu hadn’t messaged once.

Jiang Yisheng exhaled hard and got up quickly.

Zhang Tao: “???”

Waking President Jiang today was unusually easy.

When they got to the office, Jiang Yisheng went straight to the ninth floor and sat in Bai Chu’s chair, waiting.

She had come early—no one noticed her. Others arrived chatting and joking as usual.

Ever since getting caught by the general manager at the door, Xie Xin now always came early. She wasn’t making that mistake again.

“Director Bai’s early today too,” Xie Xin cheerfully greeted.

“So are you,” Jiang Yisheng replied vaguely, back still turned, playing on her phone.

Xie Xin didn’t notice anything odd about her voice—maybe she just misheard.

“Sigh, I’m only early because of bad luck. The day you took leave, President Jiang caught me sneaking in on time at the door.”

She leaned in, whispering, “It’s fine though. I’ll just wait it out—once she forgets, I’ll go back to cutting it close.”

“I’ve been waking up half an hour early every day.” She yawned.

Then turned and spotted someone—her eyes widened, and her mouth hung open.

Noticing Xie Xin’s expression, Bai Chu reminded gently: “Remember to stay professional during training.”

Snapping her jaw shut, Xie Xin turned to look at Bai Chu’s seat.

If that was Bai Chu across from her… then who was in the seat?

Hearing her voice, Jiang Yisheng slowly spun the chair around.

Seeing her clearly, Xie Xin nearly fainted.

Jiang Yisheng’s mood soured even more when she saw Bai Chu walking in with He Yuran, laughing and chatting side by side.

Bai Chu had no idea what was going on. When she saw Jiang Yisheng, her eyes curved in a smile.

“You’re here so—”

Before she could finish, Jiang Yisheng stood up abruptly and brushed past her. Bai Chu thought she heard a faint, cold “hmph.”

Then Jiang Yisheng disappeared toward the elevator.

He Yuran, confused, asked, “What’s with President Jiang?”

Bai Chu shook her head—she didn’t know either.

But she could sense that Jiang Yisheng wasn’t in a good mood today.

“What’s wrong with you?” He Yuran looked at the dazed Xie Xin, concerned.

Xie Xin slumped in her chair, shaking her head miserably.

“…Yuran-jie, I think I’m about to be blacklisted by Yujiang.”