Seducing Him - Chapter 13
It rained all day on Saturday, and the weekend only cleared up afterward.
Morning.
Perhaps because of the rain, the windowsill was still wet, and the weather was cooler than the past few days. Looking out through the translucent light-blue glass, the European-style spire and rooftop covered in creeping vines no longer looked droopy.
By the afternoon, Lu Jin came downstairs. His eyelids drooped as he lazily opened the refrigerator, took a sip of mineral water, and then glanced at Ci Yiyang, who was sitting in the sunlit area.
She was wearing a white dress, legs curled up, her head gently resting on the hanging chair. The long white dress draped over her ankles.
She seemed to be watching the workers outside trimming the clouds of pine and greenery, unaware that he had already come downstairs. Her curled black eyelashes quivered slightly in the sunlight, which carried specks of dust.
Sensing his gaze on her, Ci Yiyang turned to look at him. Her fair face, bathed in sunlight, glowed with pink, and her almond-shaped eyes curved into a smile. “Awake.”
Lu Jin responded with a faint “hm,” then tossed the empty bottle into the trash and walked toward her.
He sat on the sofa, every feature relaxed in tired laziness.
These past few nights, she had been sleeping in his room. One thing led to another, and once it happened the first time, there were multiple nights after that—he couldn’t refuse.
She always turned off the lights and fell asleep quickly, never noticing that he hadn’t slept at all through the night.
It wasn’t until the morning when she saw him sitting on the sofa with his eyes closed that she realized he truly hadn’t slept.
He didn’t mention it, and naturally, she wouldn’t bring it up either.
Now, seeing the young man half-reclined nearby, his normally pale skin slightly flushed from the irregular sleep schedule, he exuded a languid kind of beauty.
It was enviable.
Ci Yiyang turned her eyes away and continued watching outside.
After a few minutes, the slightly rested young man suddenly opened his eyes and asked, turning his head, “When are you leaving, sister? I can see you off.”
She had to return to school early today.
“No need, I’ll take a taxi myself,” Ci Yiyang politely refused.
Lu Jin’s question had been casual anyway, so after being refused, he didn’t mention it again, closing his eyes in lethargy.
Afternoon.
After finishing her meal, Ci Yiyang took a taxi back to school.
School life remained unchanged. Ming Ying was studying medicine and planning for graduate exams, so she had been in the lab since the semester started. Chen Yao’an had to conduct a social research survey, leaving Ci Yiyang with comparatively more free time.
Lu Jin had been away in other cities for competitions, so she wouldn’t be returning for a while.
Time passed quickly. A few days before the National Day holiday, Ming Ying returned from the lab disheveled, barely had time to lie down, and suddenly received a message from her professional course teacher.
She couldn’t help but groan, “Ahhh, someone save me! I’m going crazy, why is it still me!!”
“What happened?” Chen Yao’an asked, curious about what she had seen.
Ming Ying turned the phone over, looking miserable.
Chen Yao’an laughed upon seeing it.
Ci Yiyang glanced at it as well.
It was the report Ming Ying had failed to complete over the summer. Previously, the teacher had taken it back and planned to reassign it, but now it was back on her plate. That explained her reaction.
Ci Yiyang comforted her: “It’s okay, it shows that the teacher values you. Your professional knowledge is better than everyone else’s.”
Ming Ying collapsed into her arms, sighing pitifully: “Really, this is insane.”
Chen Yao’an, after laughing, joined in comforting her: “Yes, you’re sick if you want to study medicine. Who told you to choose it?”
Ming Ying: …
After a pause, she stretched out the words: “Encourage someone to study medicine, and may lightning strike…”
Chen Yao’an shook her head, went to the bathroom with her nightgown to wash up.
Ci Yiyang was about to comfort Ming Ying again when she suddenly recalled the report Ming Ying had to do.
She vaguely remembered the title.
“Some… something about ‘male…’”
Looking at the darkening sky outside, Ci Yiyang asked softly, “Is your report public, or confidential?”
Ming Ying: “It’s public. The teacher had been researching it last semester and posted it on the school forum to recruit contributors. Nobody took it then or this semester, so she took it back. I thought I escaped, but it’s still on me in the end.”
Ci Yiyang listened patiently, then said: “Can I have a copy?”
Ming Ying was momentarily stunned, thinking she had misheard: “You want what?”
Ci Yiyang calmly repeated: “Can I have a copy too? I want to see if I can help you.”
Ming Ying hurriedly shook her head: “No, no. I’m just frustrated. Actually, I’ve had many ex-boyfriends. For data, I could ask them to fill it out. The problem is it’s hard to get rid of them afterward.”
Ming Ying enjoyed the chase but not the intimacy. If she accepted a man’s pursuit and realized he wanted to get physical, she would find an excuse to break up.
In her words: dating is fine, but if a non-virgin wants to be intimate, forget it. But she also thought virgins weren’t skilled enough, so she’d have multiple ex-boyfriends.
“I understand,” Ci Yiyang comforted her. “Don’t worry. The data I give will be real.”
“Really… really?” Ming Ying looked at her in disbelief. “Where would you get actual research?”
Ci Yiyang explained calmly: “You know, my father is getting remarried.”
“Hmm… what does that have to do with it?”
Ming Ying blinked, then exclaimed: “What are you going to do for me? Don’t go through all that trouble for me!”
Ci Yiyang covered her ears and spoke gently to interrupt her: “It’s nothing like that.”
Ming Ying: “Then what do you mean?”
Ci Yiyang explained: “I have plenty of free time, so I can search online for data, watch videos, and compare numbers. That should help with your research.”
Ming Ying hadn’t thought of using videos. Hearing this, her eyes lit up: “Ah—how didn’t I think of that! It really has to be you! As expected of the top scorer, your brain is smarter than ours.”
Ci Yiyang smiled faintly: “Then I’ll help you.”
“Thanks, my dear Yiyang. I’ll properly thank you when I have time.” Ming Ying felt comforted and sent her the download link.
Ci Yiyang smiled, saying it was no problem.
Ming Ying’s trouble was solved, and she forgot what she had originally said.
Ci Yiyang planned to create a set of genuine data.
She wanted to study Lu Jin.
The National Day holiday arrived, Lu Jin’s competitions were over, and he had returned.
Thursday.
Ci Yiyang brought the printed but unfilled data report back to the manor.
Lu Jin hadn’t woken yet, likely tired from the recent competitions.
Seeing him still asleep, Ci Yiyang helped the household staff pass the time.
By afternoon, as the sun sank and the horizon glowed crimson, the young man finally woke.
“When did you arrive, sister?”
He stood upstairs, arms lazily resting on the railing, eyes droopy, looking down at Ci Yiyang squatting in a corner with the staff, seemingly digging flowers or weeds.
She wore a pretty straw hat, her white dress stained with soil, but it didn’t look dirty—rather, it made her appear flushed.
Hearing his voice, Ci Yiyang lifted her sweat-speckled face, blinked her dark eyes, and made up an excuse: “I’m helping a friend with a mentor-assigned task.”
He smiled from above: “So, sister is helping someone cheat.”
Ci Yiyang clapped her hands, brushed the dirt off, and said: “No, I don’t even know how to explain it to you. Wait for me downstairs, I’ll come up.”
“Come to me…” His long eyelashes trembled, a faint red tint appeared on his unnaturally pale face, and a gentle smile followed.
“All right.”
When Ci Yiyang went upstairs, he wasn’t in the bedroom but in the art room on the third floor.
She had only been there once before.
He sat on a high stool, beside an open vintage window. A breeze lifted the loose white linen clothes he wore, matching pants, and white shoes, giving him a serene, pine-like elegance.
Ci Yiyang asked, “May I come in?”
Hearing her voice, he turned, lips curved: “You may.”
She walked over, sitting beside him, seeing half-finished butterfly specimens before him.
White butterflies pinned on rose vines with thin, sharp needles, wings still fluttering.
Fragile as they were, the beauty of the arrangement could not hide the cruelty of its making.
Ci Yiyang frowned slightly and averted her gaze.
He was focused on his work but glanced at her movement. The sharp needle paused in his hand. He set it down and turned toward her: “Sister, you said you had something to discuss with me. What is it?”
Referring to her task, she hesitated, biting her lip: “It’s… my elective teacher suddenly assigned a task. I couldn’t find anyone to help, so I came to you.”
The report she held had five pages. Studying only one person couldn’t represent the whole, so she printed several copies, thick like a small book.
Lu Jin’s gaze fell on the thick stack on her lap, then lifted to her red-tipped ears peeking from her smooth black hair.
He didn’t say yes or ask what kind of report it was, just looked at it. His dark eyes seemed to hold an empty calm, giving off a cold, serene aura.
Ci Yiyang waited patiently for tens of seconds before he spoke.
“How do you want me to help?” He leaned back, legs slightly apart, forming a clean, cool picture of length and posture.
Ci Yiyang brought the report closer and explained: “I’m taking an elective course on the Art of Male-Female Interactions. The teacher found a report online from the medical school and asked us to fill it out. Since it’s about males, I don’t really understand, so I came to you for help.”
Her voice was soft, and as she leaned closer, Lu Jin faintly caught a subtle fragrance—like morning dew from a blooming rose, a single drop placed at the nape and ears, faint but pervasive.
To convince him, she explained at length.
Lu Jin kept his eyes down, seeming to listen seriously, though perhaps he was daydreaming, leaving her unsure how much he absorbed.
When she finished, there was still no response, not even a finger twitch.
“Can you do it?” Ci Yiyang asked, tilting her head. Seeing his gaze, she swallowed her words.
He was focused on the page she opened, eyes intent, eyelashes trembling lightly, shadowed over his cold-white skin, creating an indescribably alluring effect.
After reading the title, he looked up at her, expression both indifferent and teasing: “You want me to study male ‘er…’”
He whispered the final word, lips curving in a friendly smile.
Ci Yiyang shifted slightly, creating a subtle distance between them.
“I couldn’t find anyone else, so I thought of you.”
She lowered her lashes, tucked her hair behind her ear, showing a gentle demeanor: “And I want to study you because you’re the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. I’m curious about you.”
“Interesting points to be curious about,” Lu Jin said. His expression was casual yet unmistakably clear.
He didn’t like being studied, especially such private matters.
Ci Yiyang anticipated this, showing a slight apologetic smile: “Sorry for disturbing you. If it’s inconvenient, I’ll find someone else.”
Lu Jin’s eyes darkened. He opened his mouth to speak, but she preempted him:
“My male friends are few. If I had a choice, it’s better you. Compared to others, I like you more.”
He didn’t answer, turning to the distant sunset, stars beginning to dot the grey sky.
Even if alone, even among siblings, one wouldn’t normally study this intimately.
But she said she liked him more.
Ci Yiyang asked, “Lu Jin, can I study you?”
If not him, she’d go elsewhere. She clarified: more, not only.
His smile deepened, eyes dark with ambiguous emotion.
She continued, as a defensive move: “If it’s impossible, I’ll ask someone else. Consider it never mentioned.”
Lu Jin returned to his usual expression, gently asking: “How do you want to study? Will you write it yourself or do it hands-on?”
He had agreed.
Ci Yiyang was surprised. After so many tries, she thought he’d refuse.
“Hmm?” He turned his dark eyes to her, gaze soft: “Do you still need me?”
Ci Yiyang’s surprise faded, replying softly: “Yes… may I observe directly?”
Realizing the request sounded purposeful, she added: “Not that I doubt you’ll fake data, but I need to see it to complete my report.”
Lu Jin’s clear voice carried mild, indifferent curiosity: “You were planning on someone else if not me? Did you think, what if you picked the wrong man and couldn’t control your emotions…”
He left the sentence unfinished, but it was reasonable. Alone with a man, studying such intimate matters could be dangerous.
Ci Yiyang shook her head, showing sincerity: “No, because you’re my brother. You’re the first person I thought of. For others, I’d hesitate and probably not do it.”
He raised an eyebrow, gaze cold but carrying an unspoken implication.
“You trust me with you,” she said confidently, smiling faintly.
He swallowed, smiled, and asked casually: “When shall we start?”
Ci Yiyang thought: “As soon as possible. Can we start tonight if you’re free?”
“Sure,” he stood, looking around.
The evening was falling, corridor lights illuminating the carpeted hallway.
He extended a graceful invitation: “Then, to your room or mine?”
Ci Yiyang placed her hand in his palm, suddenly lifted by his large, warm hand.
He restrained himself, letting go and walking ahead.
Ci Yiyang, hidden, wiped the hand he touched with her sleeve, though the heat lingered on her skin.
No wonder his room was always so cool—his body temperature was high.
She followed him.
At night, room lights automatically came on. He adjusted the temperature and had her sit on the sofa with a glass of water.
“Wait here for a moment.”
“Okay.” She sat, holding the cup as he went into the bathroom.
She was satisfied with his self-conscious washing. If he didn’t clean up, she wouldn’t want to touch or see him.
The bathroom lacked soundproofing. As the shower roared, her gentle expression faded into natural coldness.
During this time, she opened her phone and searched online for keywords:
—How to tease a man.
Many results appeared, mostly mild sexual techniques.
The idea of him possibly enjoying it bored her, until she finally found methods suitable to make him uncomfortable:
Seduction and control.