Volume 1 Chapter 8: Provocation
Jiang Song couldn’t understand why Ruan Wan was so easy to bully.
Neglected by her husband, bullied by the nanny’s daughter.
Even when hailing a taxi, she could be cut off by a passerby.
The more he learned about her, the more he felt she was easy to bully.
Like the cat he once raised—when it was a stray, it was often bullied by the mischievous kids in the compound. Yet it never unsheathed its claws or bared its teeth, only retreating to a corner to lick the spots where it had been hurt.
After he adopted it and fed it for a while, the little thing developed a temper. At the slightest displeasure, it would bite his hand to vent, acting like a little tyrant.
But when guests came over, the little thing would get scared, burying its head in his arms, its white fur standing on end, its body trembling uncontrollably.
Ruan Wan was just like that cat.
“You only dare to show your temper with me.”
Jiang Song curled his lips into a smile, got out of the car, and took the things from Ruan Wan’s hands. He opened the passenger door, resting his sturdy, slender arm lazily on it. “Get in.”
Ruan Wan pursed her lips, ignoring Jiang Song’s attentiveness, and instead pulled open the rear door and sat inside.
“…”
Jiang Song’s hand, still propped on the car door, paused. Instead of getting angry, he chuckled. “So you really do see me as your driver?”
Ruan Wan didn’t respond, just sat by the window.
The collar of her light orange shirt was buttoned tightly, revealing only a slender, porcelain-white neck, delicate as jade.
Jiang Song’s throat felt a little itchy.
Probably craving a cigarette.
The car roared to life, and the street scenes outside flew past in reverse. Occasionally, passersby glanced their way.
The bright orange Rolls-Royce Cullinan was flamboyant and ostentatious, standing out excessively even in the CBD, where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold.
What Jiang Song didn’t know was that long before Ruan Wan hailed a taxi, she had already spotted his car—the audacious Cullinan, impossible to miss.
Amidst the roar of the engine, at the entrance of the Li Group building, Li Minglan turned around and caught sight of the bright orange Cullinan flaunting its way down the street, growing smaller in the distance.
He furrowed his brow.
Why had Jiang Song left?
“Mr. Li, you’re back from the meeting.” His assistant approached, taking the suit jacket from his arm and interrupting his thoughts.
Li Minglan withdrew his gaze. “Was the item delivered?”
The assistant flashed a “professional assistant, rest assured” smile. “Don’t worry, Mr. Li. It’s been delivered. I sent Xiao Qi to deliver it personally. There won’t be any mistakes.”
“Stop here at this intersection.”
As the car approached the magazine office, Ruan Wan asked Jiang Song to stop at the intersection ahead of time.
Jiang Song lifted his gaze, meeting Ruan Wan’s eyes in the rearview mirror with a playful glint. “What, am I not presentable? Then again, you are a married woman. Being seen with me might invite gossip.”
Ruan Wan ignored him and pressed the door handle, intending to get out.
But the door wouldn’t open.
She sighed. “Open the door.”
The man turned around, casually resting his left arm on the steering wheel with an air of laziness. “Miss Ruan, using someone and then discarding them isn’t a good habit. Aren’t you going to thank me?”
Not sure what she was supposed to thank him for, Ruan Wan still said, “Thank you.”
“Just saying ‘thank you’ isn’t enough.” Jiang Song adjusted his seat, leaning back. His slender fingers curled into a fist, which he held up in front of Ruan Wan.
Ruan Wan tilted her head, confused.
Then she saw an oversized silver ring on the ring finger of that large hand. The next moment, his palm opened, revealing a familiar Capybara keychain.
“How did you get my keys?”
Ruan Wan reached out to take it, but Jiang Song closed his palm again, a smile playing on his lips as he said, “Eastern Corner Manor, seven o’clock tonight. I’ll be waiting for Miss Ruan to treat me to dinner.”
“If I say no, will you give my key back?”
“No.”
“…”
Reluctantly, Ruan Wan nodded.
A glint of amusement in his eyes, Jiang Song tossed the keychain back to Ruan Wan.
“Wait.” Ruan Wan frowned, staring at the Capybara on it. “Why does it look uglier?”
“I made that one,” Jiang Song grinned, proudly claiming responsibility.
As he spoke, he pulled out his own keychain, which also had a felt Capybara hanging from it. The two asymmetrical red cheeks looked all too familiar.
“This one is yours,” he deliberately dangled it in front of Ruan Wan, raising his arm with a laugh just as she reached for it.
“What do you want?” Ruan Wan was growing impatient.
Jiang Song smirked, enjoying the sight of her annoyance, and drawled, “I’m going to see Li Minglan in a bit. Do you think he’d recognize something you made with your own hands if he saw it with me?”
What a jerk.
Ruan Wan replied, “You could always ask him.”
Her response was no fun, so Jiang Song didn’t press further, unlocking the car instead.
Ruan Wan grabbed the osmanthus cakes and quickly got out of the car.
The sweet, sticky fragrance still lingered inside.
Watching the slender figure recede through the windshield, Jiang Song’s hand on the steering wheel rubbed gently. He lit a cigarette, taking a drag.
In his memory, she rarely wore such bright colors. The soft, light orange suited her well, accentuated by the lush green sycamores on either side, creating a vibrant scene.
The flickering flame glowed amidst the white smoke as Jiang Song met the Capybara’s dopey, wide-eyed gaze.
Remembering that the owner of this silly little thing disliked the smell of smoke, he pinched out the crimson ember but spitefully blew a puff of smoke onto the plush toy.
Satisfied to see the pristine little thing tainted with the scent of vice, Jiang Song stepped on the gas, turned the car around, and headed back to the Li Group.
As soon as he entered Li Minglan’s office, he settled into the leather sofa, crossing his long legs restlessly, and casually tossed his keys onto the glass coffee table.
The clatter of metal against glass produced a less-than-pleasant noise.
“Jiang Song, you’re late.”
Li Minglan’s face appeared from behind the computer screen, displeased as he glanced toward the source of the noise. But his gaze was drawn to a plush keychain on the coffee table.
It looked familiar.
After a moment, he remembered.
Yesterday, in the underground parking garage of the mall, when Ruan Wan had tried to prove she wasn’t following him but was instead shopping for a gift, her slender pinky had hooked the keyring, causing the attached plush toy to sway gently.
Those two asymmetrically red cheeks were hard to forget.
Li Minglan asked, “Where did you get this?”
“This little thing?” Jiang Song pinched the back of the plush toy’s neck, his tone flippant. “A girl gave it to me. What, is Young Master Li interested too?”