At 9 p.m., Jiang Xingxing finished her last scene of the day, changed into her regular clothes in the dressing room, quickly removed her makeup in front of the vanity, and left the set.
A few of the palace maid extras quickly caught up to her.
“Xingxing, who was that guy who came to see you today? Is he your relative?”
Jiang Xingxing was startled by the question, worried she might slip up. She quickly replied, “Uh, he’s my…”
“Is he your brother?”
“We’ve never heard you had such a handsome brother.”
Handsome? He didn’t even show his face—how could they tell he was handsome?
Sure enough, women have an uncanny instinct for spotting good-looking men.
“Xingxing, we weren’t very nice to you before, said a lot of bad things. We want to apologize.”
“Yeah, Xingxing, you’re the bigger person, don’t hold it against us.”
“So… any chance we could meet your brother for a meal someday? Just to get to know him.”
Without thinking, Jiang Xingxing flatly refused, “No way.”
“Why not?”
“Why so stingy?”
“Because…” she paused for a moment and then said, “He’s my boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend!” the girls gasped. “When did you start dating? Unbelievable!”
The implication was clear: someone like her, dating a guy that handsome? Hard to believe.
From their astonished expressions, Jiang Xingxing could sense their disdain.
They had always looked down on her, thinking she was unattractive. Now that she could show them up, she felt quite pleased.
“We’ve been dating for a while now.”
“Why didn’t you tell us earlier?”
“Yeah, so secretive. Were you worried we’d steal him from you?”
Jiang Xingxing thought to herself, “Even if you wanted to, you wouldn’t have the ability.”
Song Xiaoxiao, who had always opposed Jiang Xingxing, stayed silent off to the side. Song Xiaoxiao, with her good looks and having played a few supporting roles, often acted like the leader of the group of palace maids. But now, with Jiang Xingxing as the center of attention, she was clearly unhappy.
Another girl asked, “But Xingxing, how did you land such a handsome boyfriend?”
“Yeah, share your secret with us!”
Song Xiaoxiao sneered, “Who knows how many times she had to throw herself at him before he finally agreed.”
Jiang Xingxing glanced at her and calmly said, “He’s the one chasing me. I’m still considering it.”
Her words left the group of girls exchanging bewildered glances. Could there really be a man out there interested in a woman with scars on her face?
But based on the guy’s caring attitude toward her today, he did seem very close to her.
Song Xiaoxiao clenched her teeth and said, “These days, what’s the use of being handsome? Handsome doesn’t pay the bills. Look at her boyfriend—he was dressed so poorly. What does he do? He probably doesn’t have much money.”
Indeed, the guy did look shabby today.
Jiang Xingxing replied, “Oh, he’s really not that good. His family’s only worth a few billion. He just got kicked out of his house and has nowhere to go, so he’s shamelessly staying at my place.”
The girls collectively gasped. True or not, just hearing “a few billion” was enough to stun them.
Jiang Xingxing had no idea how much money Shang Jie actually had. She just made up a number. In the heat of the moment, it was all about not losing face. Whether it was true or not didn’t matter—what mattered was enjoying the moment and having some fun.
“I’m leaving first! He’s still waiting for me to come home for dinner”
…
“I’m back!”
Jiang Xingxing rushed up to the rooftop, her spirits high. She had expected to see a certain sexy man, who usually didn’t like to wear a shirt, leaning against the balcony, smoking while enjoying the night view. But to her surprise, the rooftop was empty, and the sofa and small table had disappeared.
“Mr. Shang, I’m back! I brought some tasty braised snacks, and we can share a drink tonight.”
She felt something was off. Pulling out her key, she unlocked the door.
When the door swung open, the room was dimly lit. She turned on the wall lamp, only to find that the sofa, tables, and chairs had all been returned to their original places. The coffee table seemed to have been wiped clean and looked as good as new. Everything had been neatly organized, and the clothes and bra she had tossed around were now folded perfectly on the bed.
Jiang Xingxing: …
Did you leave?
The events of the past few days felt like a thrilling and surreal dream. Now that it was over, it was as if she had just woken up, unable to fully grasp the reality.
A strange sense of loss welled up in her chest, neither rising nor falling, leaving her feeling uncomfortable and stuck.
She walked to the window and opened it. A cool breeze brushed against her cheek.
In the southern region, it was common for rain to fall at night, and outside, a light drizzle began to descend. The city’s neon lights shimmered through a misty haze.
In her daze, she started to wonder if these past few days had been real. If it had all been a dream, it would have certainly been a sweet one.
She had been lonely for so long, and this man had suddenly barged into her life, disrupting her routine and filling her days with excitement.
She hadn’t expected that just when she had started to taste happiness, she would lose it so soon.
It was all so fleeting.
After the initial feeling of melancholy, Jiang Xingxing began to worry. He had taken a huge risk sneaking out today. What if someone had spotted him? The internet was full of his “wanted” posters, and the police were searching for him.
What if his terrifying older brother had caught him and locked him up?
The thought made Jiang Xingxing anxious. She sat down on the sofa, but after a few moments of deliberation, she grabbed her purse and prepared to go out and look for him.
But the world was vast—where would she even begin to search for him?
As she sat there, restless, she suddenly heard familiar, slow footsteps outside the door.
Jiang Xingxing rushed to the door and swung it open in one swift motion.
Shang Jie, still wearing the same tank top from earlier, had his slender fingers clenched into a fist, raised mid-air, about to knock. Startled by the door opening unexpectedly, he found himself face to face with a wide-eyed woman staring at him.
The lollipop on his left cheek was slowly moved to his right cheek, creating a bulge—
“What’s wrong?”
The stone hanging in Jiang Xingxing’s heart fell heavily to the ground, her anxiety was lifted as soon as she saw him. With his return, she was at a loss, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, and she just stood there, stunned.
Shang Jie took the lollipop out of his mouth and licked it. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Where have you been?”
He walked into the room nonchalantly, shaking the pocket in his hand. “Got some money, bought a few bottles of alcohol, a few packs of cigarettes, and also got you some nice things.”
Jiang Xingxing ignored the pocket and asked, “Why did you move the sofa and table back into the room?”
She had thought he had left.
Shang Jie glanced outside the window casually. “It started raining, didn’t it? If you like, I can move them back outside.”
Jiang Xingxing breathed a sigh of relief, sat down next to the sofa, and began rummaging through the pocket, trying to hide her emotions.
Shang Jie sat beside her and helped her take out the items from the pocket.
“A few cans of beer and some snacks. We can have a drink tonight.”
Jiang Xingxing smiled slightly, though the smile quickly faded.
“How coincidental, I also bought some snacks,” she said.
“That’s perfect.”
Shang Jie licked his lollipop and said calmly, “What’s with the shouting?”
Jiang Xingxing poured out all the items from the pocket. Among them was a set of high-end skincare products, a brand she had heard of but never used, and one she had never dared to buy even if she wanted to.
Looking at the items on the table, she asked curiously, “Where did you get the money?”
Shang Jie replied casually, “I sold that suit.”
Jiang Xingxing then realized that the Armani custom-made suit, which she had carefully ironed and hung on the wall, was now missing.
Even someone as poor as her knew that suit was very valuable.
Curiously, she asked, “How much did you sell it for?”
“At one percent of the price, four thousand yuan.”
Jiang Xingxing: ???
She counted on her fingers for a while, calculating that the suit was worth a whole four hundred thousand yuan!
He had sold a four hundred thousand yuan suit for only four thousand yuan.
Jiang Xingxing felt her heart bleeding. She clutched her chest and looked at Shang Jie with frustration, “Who did you sell it to?”
Was there any way to buy it back? You can’t just sell something worth four hundred thousand like that!
“I sold it on a local trading website. I didn’t show my face, so it’s safe.”
Seeing Jiang Xingxing’s face change from blue to white, Shang Jie said nonchalantly, “It’s nothing to be sorry about. I never liked wearing such a formal suit anyway. Besides, it was my brother’s suit.”
Jiang Xingxing cursed inwardly, noting the emphasis on the last part—since it was his brother’s, it didn’t matter if it was sold cheaply.
Four thousand yuan wasn’t a small amount for Jiang Xingxing, but compared to four hundred thousand yuan, her heart was still bleeding. She asked, “How much is left?”
Shang Jie reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a few crumpled hundred yuan notes—these were the same ones she had given him today.
“Is this all?”
“Three thousand went on this set of skincare products, and the rest I spent on cigarettes and alcohol.”
Jiang Xingxing: …
What a man who doesn’t know how to manage money!
However, calming down and looking at the expensive skincare products on the table, she couldn’t help but feel touched. This man had not spent a penny of her money and had bought her such a valuable gift. No matter what, she couldn’t bring herself to blame him.
When someone treats you well, you should be grateful, no matter the method. There are not many people in the world who are good to her, so she treasures every one of them.
Shang Jie didn’t notice the change in Jiang Xingxing’s emotions. He stood up, stretched his arms, and made a cracking sound. “I’m going to take a shower.”
“Hey, wait a minute.” Jiang Xingxing pulled out a set of newly bought men’s pajamas and handed them over. “Put these on. Don’t be shirtless. It’s almost autumn, and the weather is getting cooler.”
Shang Jie raised an eyebrow and looked at the clean, soft light gray pajamas.
Autumn was still some time away.
Was this woman thinking of living with him…
Seeing Shang Jie silent, Jiang Xingxing pushed the pajamas towards him and turned to leave. Shang Jie grabbed her wrist.
The wrist was slender and the skin soft.
Jiang Xingxing was puzzled. “What’s wrong?”
Shang Jie’s lips curved into a slight smile as he pushed the lollipop into her mouth.
“I’ve marked you.”
Thanks for visiting. If you like this story, then I’m shamelessly asking you to visit NovelUpdates and give a 5⭐ review. (人❛ᴗ❛)♪тнайк чоц♪(❛ᴗ❛*人)