Seducing Him - Chapter 37

After their relationship breakthrough, Ci Yiyang feels Lu Jin has started to fall deeply in love. In response, she begins to distance herself from him, reducing her weekly visits home and occasionally ignoring his messages to test his commitment. Lu Jin seems to notice her coldness and sends fewer messages. Ci Yiyang doesn’t ignore him completely, sometimes replying to his texts, but she is busy with school and outings with her senior, often taking two or three days to reply.

On a Tuesday with only one morning class, Ci Yiyang finishes and heads to a corporate event location provided by her senior. She’s in a hurry and accidentally leaves her press pass in the taxi, and is stopped by a security guard. A handsome, well-built man in a black suit and sunglasses, followed by two bodyguards, steps in and vouches for her, saying, “She’s my invitee.” The security guard immediately apologizes and lets them in, addressing the man as Mr. Chen.

In the elevator, Ci Yiyang notices the man’s intense presence. He removes his sunglasses, revealing a handsome face, and she suddenly recognizes him as Chen Changjin, the older brother of her friend, Chen Yao’an. He teases her for calling him “Mr. Chen” when she used to call him “ge” (brother) three years ago. Ci Yiyang is surprised he remembers her and apologizes, calling him “ge” again. He laughs and tells her to hurry to the event, mentioning he heard she was a journalism major.

After she leaves, Chen Changjin laughs again, then sends a voice message to Lu Jin before handing his phone to his assistant. He regrets not hearing her call him “ge” a few more times.

Ci Yiyang finds her senior at the event. They listen to the audio recording of the interview, with her senior providing guidance. Her phone vibrates with a call from her father, Luo Lin. She hesitates, thinking about how he never called when her grandmother was sick. She suspects he’s calling to talk about his marriage to Lu Lan. Her senior gives her space, and she takes the call.

Luo Lin tells her that he and Lu Lan will be returning soon to get married. He asks her to tell her grandmother, as her grandmother is still unaware of his plans. Ci Yiyang is shocked by his insensitivity, wondering how he could be so eager to remarry after only a year since her mother’s death. She calmly questions his haste and asks why he can’t wait three years out of respect for her late mother. Luo Lin gets angry, telling her not to mention her mother and that she has been dead for a long time. He tells her she needs to accept Lu Lan as a stepmother and Lu Jin as a brother, and encourages her to live at home for a few months to bond with them. Ci Yiyang is filled with sarcasm and anger, thinking she would rather sleep with Lu Jin than accept him as a brother. She asks him if he even knows that her grandmother is sick. Luo Lin seems surprised and says he will call back later, but then hangs up after telling her not to mention her mother in front of Lu Lan.

Ci Yiyang’s phone falls from her hand, its screen cracking. She picks it up, her heart feeling equally broken. Her father sends her a text, stating he will finalize the wedding date soon. She is determined not to let the wedding happen so quickly.

Meanwhile, Chen Changjin, from a floor above, sees Ci Yiyang sitting alone and looking dejected. His assistant hands him his phone, and he answers a call from Chen Yao’an, telling her to hurry home. After hanging up, he looks down again to see Ci Yiyang talking to her senior. The senior, noticing her sadness, gives her a bottle of water and offers to take her back to school, mentioning he is going to confess to his crush, Xiaoxiao, later that night. Ci Yiyang encourages him and wishes him luck.

The next day, after class, Ci Yiyang runs into Yun Jiayi and Jing Zuoyuan on her way back to her dorm. Yun Jiayi, who is very affectionate, hugs her and invites her to dinner. Ci Yiyang agrees, unable to refuse the young girl’s adorable persistence. They go to a hot pot restaurant, a place Jing Zuoyuan normally wouldn’t go to because of the strong smells. Yun Jiayi teases her cousin, saying he is “pretentious.” Jing Zuoyuan, unfazed, laughs and tells them they will have to pay.

Yun Jiayi orders a spicy hot pot, despite Jing Zuoyuan’s dislike for spicy food. She also orders beer, insisting it pairs perfectly with hot pot. Ci Yiyang admits she doesn’t drink much, but agrees to have a small glass of fruit-flavored wine. Jing Zuoyuan watches the two girls, amused by their conversation.

During the meal, a waiter accidentally spills duck bl00d on Ci Yiyang’s white dress. Jing Zuoyuan quickly pulls her to safety, holding her in a polite, non-intrusive embrace. Ci Yiyang apologizes and goes to the bathroom to clean up.

As soon as she leaves, Yun Jiayi, who deliberately caused the accident, confesses to Jing Zuoyuan that she did it to give him a chance to be a hero. She points out, “Look, didn’t you just get to hug Yiyang just now? Did you ever get to do that before?” She tells him to use his jacket to create “ambiguity” and then leave them alone so he can confess to her while she’s slightly tipsy. As she’s speaking, she notices a handsome man with long legs walking by. She gasps, recognizing him as Lu Jin. Jing Zuoyuan, preoccupied, doesn’t see him.

In the bathroom, Ci Yiyang finds that the stain won’t come out. As she is about to leave, she looks up and sees Lu Jin leaning against the door frame, watching her.