Seducing Him - Chapter 35

The new semester began in mid-February, right in the heart of spring.

This season was neither truly cold nor really warm. The lingering chill of early spring was still in the air, cool but no longer the bone-piercing cold of winter. Along the avenue leading to the dorms, peach blossoms in shades of pink bloomed in abundance.

The last few days of her break had been completely wasted away by Lu Jin, leaving her legs weak and unsteady, as though she had been drained by some ghost.

So, the moment the semester started, Ci Yiyang couldn’t wait to return to campus.

In the dorm, she met up with Ming Ying, who immediately hugged her tightly for a long while.

“Finally, I get to see you again! I missed you so much. How’s your grandma doing?”

The two of them had stayed in touch frequently over winter break, so Ming Ying knew her grandmother had been hospitalized. But Ming Ying had been overseas at the time and couldn’t return. Still, she had arranged to send plenty of things over through errands.

Ci Yiyang shook her head gently. “She’s fine now. She’s already been discharged. As long as she avoids stress and takes time to recover, there shouldn’t be any big issues.”

“That’s such a relief.” Ming Ying patted her chest, finally able to breathe easy. Then she turned to pick something up from the desk. “Oh right, I brought you a little gift from Snow Island.”

As she handed over the beautifully decorated gift box, she explained, “It’s really fun—you just scan it, and it projects a panoramic view of the island.”

Ci Yiyang accepted it, then turned around to open her suitcase to find the gift she had prepared.

Ming Ying opened the box, and upon seeing what was inside, she squealed and covered her mouth in delight. “It’s my favorite lipstick shade! The moment this color launched, it sold out everywhere. I set reminders and still couldn’t get one. I just casually mentioned it, and you actually got it for me. I love you so much!”

She hugged Ci Yiyang, planting several quick kisses on her, before happily sitting in front of the mirror to try it on.

Seeing how pleased she was, Ci Yiyang smiled softly and continued unpacking her things.

After a while, she suddenly realized that Chen Yao’an still hadn’t returned.

She looked up. “By the way, where’s An’an?”

Ming Ying, applying the lipstick, replied, “No idea. She said something came up, and she might not even make it to the evening class meeting.”

“Alright then, I’ll give her the gift later.”

At five o’clock, the counselor had organized a class meeting. But by then, Chen Yao’an still hadn’t come back, and neither calls nor texts were being answered.

Since the teaching buildings for both Ming Ying’s and Ci Yiyang’s class meetings were close by, they went together.

The class meeting was uneventful. By the time it ended, Ming Ying still hadn’t come out, so Ci Yiyang waited outside. That was when she ran into her senior.

“Senior, are you waiting for Xiaoxiao?”

He nodded, glancing behind her, then asked, “Weren’t you two together for the meeting? Why hasn’t she come out?”

“She was just called away by the counselor. Not sure when she’ll be done.”

“I see.” His expression clearly dimmed, and he sat down on a bench. “Then I’ll wait here for her.”

They both sat on the benches by the flowerbeds under Building A5, chatting while waiting.

After a while, her senior received a phone call. With an apologetic smile, he said, “I’ll head off first. Xiaoxiao’s already gone back to the dorm.”

“Alright.”

By the time Ming Ying came out, it was already six or seven in the evening.

“I’m exhausted,” she groaned, immediately hanging onto Ci Yiyang. With a sigh, she whispered, “Whose class meeting even makes you perform dissections? I should never have chosen medicine. The pay isn’t even great, but the workload is endless.”

Ci Yiyang chuckled and comforted her.

Ming Ying’s professor was a well-known figure in the field. Back during freshman year, even when they were still in military training, they had already heard that Professor Chen was extremely strict. Despite all her praying that she wouldn’t be assigned to him, she inevitably had been, which meant she was constantly dragged into the lab from freshman year to now, their junior year.

Though she often complained, her studies had never slipped. Sometimes she even spent the night in the lab.

The two of them laughed and chatted as they returned to their dorm. But before they could enter, Ci Yiyang’s phone buzzed.

She didn’t even need to check to know who it was.

On the screen, pinned to the top, was a short message:

Miss you.

Below it was a photo of a dark nightscape.

At a glance, she recognized it—it was of the man-made lake on the south campus.

Though nothing was stated outright, the message and photo carried an unspoken invitation, hinting that he was there waiting, hoping she would come find him.

Her first instinct was to refuse, but she quickly thought of how Lu Jin was likely in a fervent mood now. So instead, she looked up at Ming Ying and said, “I need to step out for a bit.”

“Someone looking for you?” Ming Ying asked.

Ci Yiyang pressed her lips together, unsure how to explain Lu Jin.

But Ming Ying noticed her troubled look and immediately understood. “I get it. Go on then.”

Ci Yiyang nodded lightly and left the dorm.

Ming Ying went back alone. Not long after, Chen Yao’an returned.

She was carrying several bags, which she casually dropped on the floor before standing still, expression blank.

Ming Ying picked one up and opened it, then gasped in shock. “Isn’t this that super popular chocolate everyone was talking about recently? I heard it’s made by the royal chef of country Y. It’s so rare even money can’t buy it, and you’re tossing bags of it on the floor?!”

Then she remembered Yao’an had been missing all day. “You didn’t even go to the class meeting. Hey, whose jacket is that you’re wearing? Who brought you back just now?”

Yao’an slowly removed the jacket and tossed it into the trash before calmly replying, “My brother.”

“Did your brother buy the chocolates too?”

In the dorm, Yao’an was the only one who loved chocolates, and since she had gone out to see her brother, the connection was obvious.

“Mhm,” she nodded.

“Must be nice to have a brother,” Ming Ying said enviously. “Yangyang has a younger brother, and you’ve got an older one.”

At those words, Yao’an snapped the chocolate she was biting in half, a faint smile playing on her lips. “Keep talking like that, and I’ll wish you end up with both a brother and a younger brother.”

Ming Ying quickly shook her head. “Forget it. Your brother, sure, but Yangyang’s younger brother? No thanks.”

Yao’an’s brother was tall, long-legged, and strikingly handsome—like a model walking a runway. Even as family, he was a feast for the eyes every day at home.

But Ci Yiyang’s younger brother—no one had even seen him yet. Who knew what kind of person he was?

Yao’an gave her a glance but said nothing, turning instead to pack her belongings.

“What are you packing for?” Ming Ying asked curiously.

“He wants me to move back home.”

“Huh…” Ming Ying blinked in surprise. “Why suddenly? You’ve always stayed in the dorm.”

Yao’an’s hands paused slightly, lips pressed together as though recalling something unpleasant. “It’ll only be for a few days.”

Sensing she didn’t want to talk about it, Ming Ying assumed it was just some family quarrel during winter break. She didn’t press further, instead helping her pack.

Mingde Lake.

Though man-made, Peking University’s Mingde Lake was beautiful. Especially at night, when the moonlight shimmered over its rippling surface and reflected beneath the arching stone bridge, it had the poetic charm of Jiangnan.

By the time Ci Yiyang arrived, few people were around. As she stepped onto the bridge, she looked up and spotted him beneath a streetlamp in the distance. The moonlight behind him seemed to merge his figure into the cold quiet of the night.

He sat on a bench, long legs casually bent, his black windbreaker zipped high enough to cover half his face, though it couldn’t conceal his striking bone structure. Aloof and untouchable, yet arrogantly eye-catching.

Ci Yiyang also noticed a few girls nearby stealing glances at him, clearly wanting to approach but too timid to do so.

Since they didn’t dare, one sent him a message instead.

His phone buzzed.

Lu Jin lazily lifted his eyelids and glanced at the screen.

[Someone’s here, I’m heading back first.]

He pocketed the phone and stood up, ready to leave.

“H-hi.” The group of girls, realizing he was about to leave, quickly called out to him.

He stopped, turning his head slightly. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a white figure walking away down a path on the other side of the bridge.

The girl mistook his gaze as directed at her. Seeing his faint, indifferent smile, her heart leapt into her throat. Seizing the chance, she nervously handed over her phone. “C-could we… maybe add each other? I-I…”

But before she could finish stammering, his polite yet cold voice cut her off.

“Sorry, you’re blocking the way.”

The voice was too beautiful. Instinctively, she looked up.

Backlit, his features were sharp and distant, his eyes so strikingly beautiful she was left speechless.

He lowered his gaze briefly, then brushed past her onto the bridge.

Only after he had gone did her friends shake her awake with shrieks.

“We finally saw him in person! So tall, so handsome—he looks even better than in photos or videos. His eyes are so deep, he could make even looking at a dog seem soulful. And his voice… I can’t even imagine how good it’d feel to date him.”

The girl who had tried for his contact info flushed at the memory of his voice.

He… really was that good-looking.

Meanwhile, Ci Yiyang had just stepped off the path when someone suddenly grabbed her wrist from behind. With a sharp tug, she stumbled backward into a coldly fragrant embrace.

Startled by the suddenness in the dark, she nearly screamed.

“Shh.” A hand covered her lips, and a chin pressed lightly against her shoulder.

Woodsy notes mixed with a faint scent that made her heart race.

She lifted her wide, black-and-white eyes.

It was Lu Jin.

From behind, he held her close. His fine, tousled black hair fell low, shadowing the light in his eyes. In the dark, his lips looked strikingly red.

Perhaps it was the way he wrapped an arm around her waist while the other covered her mouth—the very air seemed to close in, pressing down on her. Yet he was smiling.

“Let go, there are people around,” she whispered, clutching at his arm, her fingers brushing the tensioned veins and warmth of his skin. Her heart skipped a beat.

He removed his hand from her lips, intertwining their fingers instead, a faint smile curving his face. “You only sent me a message before leaving—didn’t even give me a chance to reply.”

She glanced back. Luckily, at this hour, few people came by.

“Let go,” she said quietly. “No, I did see your message and came here. It’s just… I saw people around you, so I left.”

Her words meant something simple. But in his ears, they twisted into something else entirely.

He turned her face to look at him directly. “So, you left because you were jealous, seeing someone approach me?”

His features were sharp and defined, his eyes shadowed and deep as he bent close, so dark they seemed bottomless. Yet his tone was gentle, soft, almost coaxing.

That hadn’t been her intention at all—she had only wanted to avoid being seen. But knowing how he was, if unsatisfied, he would only cling more.

“…Yes.”

“My fault then, for talking to someone else.” He admitted his mistake quickly, though his gaze lingered over her, slow and deliberate.

Her scent wasn’t just her own—it carried traces from someone else. That could only happen after being hugged.

Ci Yiyang ignored the weight behind his words, trying to shift the topic. “It’s late. What did you want from me?”

He brought her hand to his face, his voice soft and airy, clinging like a breeze. “Missed you.”

Then he tilted his head, gently biting her finger, his lips brushing in an intimate gesture of longing.

A shiver ran down her back. Uncomfortable, she tried to pull away, but his grip was firm.

In the dim light, he gazed at her pale, luminous face—like a night-blooming flower releasing its intoxicating fragrance.

He truly had missed her.

From the very moment they had parted, he had begun missing her already.

“Jiejie, who did you see today?” His breath was uneven, his tone pressed low. After releasing her dampened finger, he leaned close, almost as if scenting her, checking if she carried someone else’s presence.

“There were a lot of people at the class meeting. I don’t really remember.” She turned her head away from him.

“I saw you talking with a man earlier. Who was that?” His nose brushed against her neck, rubbing gently.

“That was my senior. He came to pick someone up.”

“His girlfriend?”

“Yes.” She squirmed at the ticklish touch and pushed his face away.

“I see.” His eyes finally softened into a smile. “Since he already has a girlfriend, make sure you stay away from him, okay?”

Even if another man already had a girlfriend, he still grew jealous when she spoke to them.

“…I know.” She turned her head, only for him to tilt her chin back again.

Their lips brushed his jawline. From his throat slipped a low, involuntary murmur—

“…Jiejie…”

Silent, yet thick with temptation, it revealed the depth of his longing to draw closer.