More Than Like
Bai Xin was still in a dress, a French tea-break waist-cinching dress, adorned with palm-sized pink roses scattered in twos and threes. The moment she entered, the entire white and brown-wood ambiance seemed to welcome spring.
Cheng Jiqing’s eyes, as if absorbing color, took her in completely.
She glanced at those white calves: “Is it cold outside? Keep a jacket in the car from now on, the autumn mornings and evenings are cool.”
Bai Xin looked at Cheng Jiqing, and responded, “It’s alright.”
She replied as if her mind was elsewhere, just looking at her.
Cheng Jiqing withdrew her gaze to get a towel from the side. She was terribly sweaty. Just as she straightened up, Bai Xin pressed against her from behind. She remembered a time in Nanyang when Bai Xin had provoked her with those words.
Suddenly, she also said, “Isn’t Miss Bai’s preference a bit too singular?”
This person always liked to hug her from behind.
Unexpectedly, like a sneak attack.
Bai Xin’s chin rested on that sweat-drenched shoulder.
Looking at the person in the mirror, the deep purple dance leotard clung to the body, perfectly revealing the clavicles, so her chin could directly touch the skin.
It felt like being touched by hot water.
Bai Xin curved her lips slightly: “En, I just like it.”
Cheng Jiqing also smiled, reaching out to lift that chin: “Alright, stop hugging, I’m all sweaty.”
Bai Xin refused to move, her upper body not budging an inch, saying, “I said, I like it.”
Cheng Jiqing: “…” Quite stubborn.
Cheng Jiqing let her be, not moving her for the moment. She raised the towel to wipe her face. Just as she was about to wipe her neck, Bai Xin’s fingertips intercepted. She paused, looking at Bai Xin in the mirror.
The omega lowered her eyes, gazing at her neck, near the gland.
“Cheng Jiqing, I want to bite it.”
“…” Cheng Jiqing’s eardrums tingled, her throat gradually itching: “You’re not embarrassed at all, are you.”
Bai Xin raised her eyes: “Are you embarrassed?”
Cheng Jiqing turned sideways, moving the person off her shoulder. If she wanted to go back properly, it was best to stop now.
“You bought a cake too?”
Cheng Jiqing looked down at the box on the amplifier, where she could see two cherries nestled in white cream.
She had been cutting out sugar for a while, but looking at it now, she felt a bit greedy.
Bai Xin knew Cheng Jiqing was changing the subject, but she wasn’t the least bit unhappy. Instead, she gazed at that slightly red ear tip, feeling delighted.
After all this time, Cheng Jiqing probably hasn’t had it easy either.
“Let’s eat it here, I’m a bit hungry.” Bai Xin didn’t wait for her reply and walked over to open the box.
A cherry cake, not very big.
She scooped a piece and ate it in front of Cheng Jiqing, watching Cheng Jiqing as she ate, her tongue lightly touching the corner of her mouth: “Come and eat.”
The sweat from Cheng Jiqing’s dance hadn’t dissipated, and another wave inexplicably surged.
She first took a few sips of water before going over. Bai Xin didn’t give her a spoon, but used her own to scoop a bite for her, giving her the cherry.
Cheng Jiqing didn’t refuse, naturally accepting it.
“Is it good? The cherry.”
As Cheng Jiqing bit into the cherry, her teeth felt a tang. Fresh fruit from October, the juice sweet and sour. It was just Bai Xin’s suggestive tone that stirred other thoughts in her.
She didn’t know when or where she had heard about tying a cherry stem with one’s tongue, but it had stuck in her mind.
Cheng Jiqing felt even hotter, saying, “Then, are we still going to eat when we get back?”
Bai Xin loved sweets. She lowered her head, poking at the cream, eating several mouthfuls without feeling it was too rich.
She shook her head.
With such deep thoughts, how could one have an appetite?
Cheng Jiqing watched her eat mouthful after mouthful, cream smudging the corner of her mouth, making her look more and more like a gluttonous kitten. Bai Xin was never afraid of gaining weight; Cheng Jiqing had never found an ounce of excess fat on her.
Her figure was as perfect as if meticulously sculpted, unlike her own, which required regular exercise to maintain.
Cheng Jiqing’s gaze lingered on the cream at the corner of Bai Xin’s mouth. Unable to resist, she wiped it away with her thumb. Bai Xin looked up and said, “I bought this specially to celebrate with you, not even a taste?”
“I ate some.”
She had clearly eaten two bites.
Bai Xin looked dissatisfied. Cheng Jiqing thought that if one person didn’t eat during a meal, the other would indeed lose their appetite. She went to get a spoon.
As she was bringing it to her mouth, her elbow was bumped, and all the cream smeared onto her lips and the corner of her mouth.
Cheng Jiqing looked over speechlessly, her eyes holding only inquiry and tolerance, not a hint of anger.
Bai Xin stared at her intently for a few seconds. Seeing her about to reach for a tissue, she suddenly dropped the spoon, slowly took a step closer, and then reached out to cup Cheng Jiqing’s face.
Cheng Jiqing’s cheeks burned from the touch of her palms. Bai Xin intentionally used some force, squeezing her cheeks, making Cheng Jiqing part her lips.
The sense of dominance was particularly strong.
The sweet fragrance of cream.
Full of delightful and invigorating sugar.
The omega was overly soft and charming, yet insisted on being dominant in this aspect. Of course, that was only at the very beginning…
Cheng Jiqing wasn’t one to spoil the mood, and truthfully, she herself couldn’t resist that captivating kiss.
She wasn’t a saint, after all.
“Sweet?” Bai Xin pulled back her lips, her forehead resting against Cheng Jiqing’s, her fingers brushing against her cheek. “Delicious?”
Cheng Jiqing’s brown eyes had unknowingly deepened. She lowered her gaze to look at those crimson lips: “You tasted mine, shouldn’t I be asking you if it’s sweet?”
She was shocked at how hoarse her voice had become.
Bai Xin’s mouth had always been formidable. Cheng Jiqing didn’t give her a chance to retort, lowering her head to kiss her again.
A new rule was broken.
With mutual responses, neither could escape culpability.
But if it was just a little indulgence, a brief taste, it wouldn’t count as a severe breach, right?
Cheng Jiqing thought so.
Bai Xin’s stamina was limited; she couldn’t hold out for more than a few minutes, her legs becoming very weak. Only then did Cheng Jiqing release her: “Your constitution, you still need to train it.”
“Don’t stop.” Bai Xin tilted her face up, her eyes lowered, alluring like a demoness.
Bai Xin was inwardly agitated, her gland turbulent, her patience thin as she called out: “Cheng Jiqing.”
Cheng Jiqing’s breathing was heavy; if this continued, she really wouldn’t be able to stop.
Bai Xin, perhaps seeing through her intentions, grabbed Cheng Jiqing’s hand and pulled it towards the cake on the amplifier nearby…
Her fingertips sank into the cream cake, picking up a soft, dense dollop of sweetness.
Bai Xin traced from Cheng Jiqing’s wrist, to her cream-covered index finger, brushing it over her lips, then dotting it on her neck.
She tilted her head back slightly, then stared into Cheng Jiqing’s eyes, tucking her hair behind her ear with her little finger, before guiding Cheng Jiqing’s still cream-laden index finger to her gland.
“Cheng Jiqing,” Bai Xin said softly, “I’m not like this in front of just anyone. Besides you, there’s no one else who makes me like this.”
“Only with you, will I…”
The cream on her finger was all gone.
Cheng Jiqing felt as if her fingertips were burning, her ears were burning, her heart was burning—no, her entire body was burning.
Burning to the point of confusion, losing her reason, her flesh torn and her soul decadent, enticed by those peach-blossom eyes, as if pink needles were vying to pierce her heart.
Her heart beat as if in freefall.
She had lost the will to resist; how could she let Bai Xin take the lead again?
The dance studio’s soundproofing was decent, but not so absolute as to be a vacuum.
The floor was dirty; in a moment, she might not have a free hand to cover the cat’s mouth.
She held the person steady, her long arm stretched out, and turned the music to its maximum volume…
Cheng Jiqing leaned down, starting from the red lips, gradually following the path dictated by the cream, exploring deeper step by step. Her face was buried in Bai Xin’s neck, her sweaty face pressed against Bai Xin’s hot ear.
Bai Xin couldn’t stand, and Cheng Jiqing involuntarily took two steps back, pressing her against the barre.
The red roses on the dress trembled into a blur.
A tango piece—《Por Una Cabeza》 (A Step Away).
“Hold on tight.”
Cheng Jiqing pressed Bai Xin’s hands onto the barre.
Bai Xin leaned back against the barre, one hand gripping it tightly, the other clutching Cheng Jiqing’s shoulder.
Cheng Jiqing didn’t need to look to know her back was being scratched by cat claws.
Bai Xin couldn’t bear it and slid down the barre, trembling violently. Cheng Jiqing scooped her into her arms. She couldn’t help but cry out, “Chengcheng…”
Cheng Jiqing was drenched in sweat, but hearing that sound was like an addiction.
Her excitement was pushed to the extreme, especially seeing the omega’s back flushed red in the mirror. She intentionally and unintentionally pressed the person to call out a few more times.
Many people called her Chengcheng.
Especially in her previous world.
Here, there were also those who called her by this nickname.
But only the one from Bai Xin’s lips made her heart flutter.
Countless emotions, a shared physical and mental experience, all transformed into that trembling, suffocating phrase.
“Xinxin…”
Bai Xin had lost all resistance, like duckweed in water, swaying with the wind. She thought, if Cheng Jiqing hated her, with such methods to make her fall apart, she would probably be fish on the chopping block, only to be slaughtered and tormented.
Cheng Jiqing learned too quickly, the type to get a certificate after just one lesson and one try.
“Do you like me?”
Amidst the music, Cheng Jiqing suddenly leaned close to her ear and asked.
Bai Xin’s heart leaped violently. She had never said it, never.
She opened her mouth, seemingly about to answer, but Cheng Jiqing found her too slow.
《A Step Away》, perfectly interpreted Bai Xin’s state of mind in the next moment.
One step away, seemingly about to obtain, yet seemingly distant again, always one step away.
Always feeling a sense of loss.
She grabbed Cheng Jiqing’s wrist, her forehead bumping against Cheng Jiqing’s heart: “Li-like.”
She liked her immensely.
The kind of like where she only wanted Cheng Jiqing to belong to her alone.
Sweat splattered on the floor.
The White Jade Bodhi lay on the amplifier, quiet. The tango music was melodious yet passionate, its volume piercingly loud.
That night, back in Nanjing, Bai Xin lay in Cheng Jiqing’s arms, asking softly.
“Why didn’t you say it?”
She had said it, but Cheng Jiqing hadn’t.
This woman never suffered a loss.
On the table, the book 《Ashore》, its cover half seawater, half desert, glowed faintly yellow.
Cheng Jiqing reached out and turned off the light, lay down, and pulled the person who had broken the rules with her into her embrace.
Rules.
They were bullshit.
Yes, when she got ruthless, she even cursed herself.
Although she had preserved her own half, she had only given Bai Xin what she wanted, but she also knew Bai Xin had still won.
“I like you,” Cheng Jiqing said.
Probably a little more than like.
But that was too dangerous. With Bai Xin, she always had a faint sense of uncertainty.
If it were before, she would have protected herself first.
But in front of Bai Xin, she still added a sentence. She felt she needed to say it for Bai Xin to hear.
In matters of emotion, leaving oneself a way out was irresponsible towards Bai Xin.
She said seriously: “En… a little more than like.”
Bai Xin’s heart trembled slightly, as if struck heavily by something. She tightened her embrace around Cheng Jiqing.
Cheng Jiqing was always sincere. That heartfelt sincerity made her own secret schemes, those calculations of gain and loss, seem utterly shameful.
For the first time, Bai Xin had a thought—her secrets, she wanted to tell Cheng Jiqing.
The thought arose, the thought fell.
That night she slept, and when she woke again in the morning… Bai Xin looked at Cheng Jiqing’s exquisite, jade-like face, and a sense of retreat welled up.
If I tell her now, will this tenderness still exist?
Everything is peaceful; why should I seek unpleasantness, why cause trouble for myself just when I’ve gotten together with Cheng Jiqing?
Bai Xin knew this mentality was wishful thinking.
But people are like that.
Even if 《Murphy’s Law》1 exists in this world, how many people truly take fatalism to heart?
This night, Bai Xin had a rare good sleep.
When Cheng Jiqing woke up, there was no one beside her. She blinked her eyes, her hand reaching into the quilt—a patch of cool warmth. That person should have been up for a while.
Perhaps due to bad past experiences, she frowned slightly, put on her pajamas, and walked out of the room.
As soon as she opened the door, she heard the sound of typing on a laptop. Cheng Jiqing’s gaze paused slightly on the sofa, her heart easing: “So early?”
It was only just past six.
Bai Xin looked up, her voice not quite clear: “Just checking a couple of emails, afraid to wake you.”
Cheng Jiqing hummed in acknowledgment, poured a few mouthfuls of water, and got a glass for Bai Xin too.
She walked over, her eyes lowered.
Bai Xin sat cross-legged, the dress on her not at all demure.
She sat down, smoothed the skirt that had ridden up, covering the snow-white skin, and said, “What do you want to eat this morning?”
Bai Xin’s eyes were a little sore, her tone lazy after being sated: “Anything is fine…”
Cheng Jiqing unconsciously reached out and pinched that small earlobe.
“Okay.”
This gesture was extremely pleasing to Bai Xin, although Cheng Jiqing hadn’t completely broken her abstinence last night, nor had she marked her. She knew this was Cheng Jiqing’s final bottom line.
At least from now on, she knew what a ruthless person Cheng Jiqing could be.
She turned her head, her chin lifted.
A look that needed no words.
Cheng Jiqing’s lips curved up. She leaned forward and lightly touched Bai Xin’s lips.
Cheng Jiqing had bought pork ribs, specially to cook congee for Bai Xin.
That body needed proper nourishment.
While the congee was simmering, Cheng Jiqing went back to her room, got a book, and sat down beside Bai Xin. She had read half of 《Ashore》; a few pages each day had become a short-term habit for her.
The living room was bright and clean.
Early autumn in Beicheng arrived quickly. A few days ago it was still scorching hot, but in less than two days, the cooling trend became increasingly obvious.
But the room was still warm and cozy.
There was the aroma of pork rib congee, and under the tranquility of a homey atmosphere, was the peace of mind belonging to two people.
“What book?”
Bai Xin closed the receipt full of English and took a moment to glance beside her.
Cheng Jiqing spread the cover open.
“The one on the table.” Bai Xin had seen it many times. She didn’t like these romance novels and didn’t pay much attention to them.
But she knew whose it was.
Cheng Jiqing said: “Tong Yanxi’s, the director whose audition I went to.”
Bai Xin said: “I know, Tang Jia’s ex-wife.”
Cheng Jiqing: “…?”
Cheng Jiqing choked, thinking she had misheard: “Who??”
“Tang Jia,” Bai Xin said faintly.
“…”
Cheng Jiqing’s mouth fell open in surprise. Tang Jia’s ex-wife?! Was Tong Yanxi?!
“En, they divorced a while ago.” Bai Xin found her surprised expression amusing, the corners of her eyes curving: “Very surprised?”
Cheng Jiqing: “Wouldn’t it be strange if I wasn’t?”
In her eyes, they were two people who were completely unrelated2.
“Why did they divorce?”
Bai Xin shook her head.
After a pause, she remembered what Tang Jia had said to her in that room in Nanyang City District.
She had asked too.
At that time, Tang Jia had said—”If you don’t love, naturally you get divorced.”
Hearing this, Cheng Jiqing nodded silently: “Alright.”
She wasn’t one to actively pry into other people’s gossip, but hearing this, and touching the book in her hand, she suddenly thought of the ending of the movie 《Ashore》.
Without any reason, she slowly said, “It might not be because of a lack of love either.”
Separations in this world aren’t always due to a loss of feelings.
Bai Xin glanced sideways. Cheng Jiqing had already reopened her book.
It was just an absent-minded remark.
A few days later, Cheng Jiqing received news from 《Cat and Mint》, saying she had been kept, but she had to wait another two days.
Strangely, her role still hadn’t been decided.
Ada called her, said she would ask around, and later replied that the director team was discussing the female lead role, and she had a good chance.
She told her to wait patiently.
Ada: “Don’t worry, there’s one other person competing.”
Ada was very happy for her.
Ada said the one competing with her was Li Yunlan. She had heard of her during the open audition and had also seen Li Yunlan’s TV shows and movies. She was a Feitian Award3 winning Film Queen4.
Her strength was not to be underestimated.
“Probably no one would have thought that you, a newcomer, are competing for a role with a Film Queen. Chengcheng, I have confidence in you. Even if you’re not chosen this time, it’s a very good start.”
Cheng Jiqing actually wasn’t anxious, her mood was very calm. She smiled and said, “Okay, Ada.”
She neither felt nervous nor thought she was remarkable.
After all, she wasn’t a fledgling who had just started acting. If a comparison had to be made, then she and Li Yunlan were on the same starting line.
It wouldn’t be strange whoever was chosen.
This wait first brought Cheng Jing’s birthday banquet.
October tenth.
According to a certain saying, it was a perfect day5.
But on this day, the temperature suddenly plummeted, and the sky was also gray and gloomy. Cheng Jiqing checked the weather forecast; indeed, there would be light rain in the afternoon.
The night before this day, Bai Xin had worked too late and didn’t return to Nanjing, but went back to her apartment in Nanyang City District. A few days ago, Cheng Jiqing had received a call from VICK, saying Cheng Jing had ordered a gown for her, but she hadn’t gone to try it on.
Until the day of the birthday.
On the way, she sent Bai Xin a message: 【What time are you going? Remember to bring an umbrella.】
The banquet started at six-thirty. It was past four then, and looking up, the rain seemed about to fall.
【Will arrive ten minutes early.】
【Okay.】
【What about you?】
【Cheng Jing ordered a gown, I’m going to VICK to try it on.】
Actually, she had some at home, but it was Cheng Jing’s kind gesture, and it was her birthday, so she couldn’t refuse.
When Cheng Jiqing arrived at the store, she received Bai Xin’s reply: 【So thoughtful.】
For some reason, she sensed a hint of sourness.
Cheng Jiqing typed: 【She’s my older sister.】
Bai Xin: 【Show me after you try it on.】
Cheng Jiqing smiled and replied, okay.
Cheng Jing’s taste, as always, suited her very well: a dark green velvet slip fishtail gown, with a small black shawl.
She stood in front of the mirror and took a picture to send to Bai Xin.
After sending it, she asked: 【Yours?】
She didn’t know what Bai Xin was wearing today either. This time, the reply came quickly: 【You’ll see when we meet.】
Cheng Jiqing: 【?】
This woman sometimes really made her teeth itch.
It was five o’clock. It only took half an hour to get there from VICK. Cheng Jiqing sat in the VIP lounge drinking tea for a while. Top-grade Lapsang Souchong6, with a hint of pine smoke in its aroma, rich and mellow.
She chose a lily-scented aromatherapy, faintly enveloping the warm fragrance of the black tea, so comfortable it made one want to squint.
After squinting for more than half an hour, her phone buzzed.
Cheng Jiqing looked; it was Cheng Jing’s WeChat.
Cheng Jing sat on a nanmu wood chair, sipped some warm tea, and was messaging someone.
Tu Xiuxiu bent over to pour freshly brewed tea into a small ceramic cup. It was a set of blue and white porcelain7 that Cheng Jing had bought at an auction three years ago.
Tu Xiuxiu could still remember the scene at the auction that day.
She had stared at it for a long time. Back then, she had been with Cheng Jing for less than a month. Cheng Jing had just spent a large sum of money to treat her mother’s illness. Spending over three million on a tea set was something she hadn’t imagined.
Cheng Jing asked her: “Want it?”
She knew this amount of money was nothing to Cheng Jing.
She felt it would compromise her integrity, said she wanted it, but didn’t want to accept it.
People in the opera circle always had some unwarranted loftiness. As her master had said, she valued her reputation immensely; once she “went into the sea” (debased herself), she could never “come ashore” (regain her standing).
But in reality.
She had become a mistress, had long since disgraced her master’s school, and had long since shattered her pride.
So she could no longer bear to perform opera on stage.
However, her loftiness was only for herself to see.
Because no one cared, and Cheng Jing cared even less.
She was naive back then.
She thought that as long as she desired nothing, she could always get a shred of dignity from Cheng Jing—she hadn’t agreed to be this ‘well-behaved mistress’ entirely because Cheng Jing had helped her.
From the first time she saw Cheng Jing, she knew that if Cheng Jing asked, she would definitely go.
She might not go on stage, but she could sing for Cheng Jing.
Cheng Jing said, “From now on, sing only for me.”
Cheng Jing would never know, she could remember those words until death.
That day, Cheng Jing still bought that tea set.
Without even a glance.
Yet, it was precisely by such things, mere trinkets to Cheng Jing, that she was dragged down and trapped.
Making her think that Cheng Jing at least had some feelings for her.
Tu Xiuxiu lowered her eyes. After ‘reconciling’ with Cheng Jing again, on Cheng Jing’s birthday, Cheng Jing had also taken the initiative to find her. She admitted she still held out hope for Cheng Jing.
For the past two years, although she would accompany Cheng Jing to the birthday banquet, it was always she who sought her out.
“President Cheng, it’s about time.”
Secretary Liu knocked on the door from outside, reminding her.
Cheng Jing stood up. The black halter-neck gown accentuated her slender figure, and her ear-length short hair was neat and capable.
Beautiful and elegant, with no less of the decisive aura of a businesswoman in the marketplace.
“I’ll have someone pick you up,” Cheng Jing said.
Xiu Yuan8 was built according to the standards of a traditional opera garden.
The backyard had two courtyards, with corridors on the left and right. Green vines, evergreen throughout the seasons, adorned the quaint corridors.
Tu Xiuxiu was stunned: “Pick me up?”
Cheng Jing had already opened the door: “I’m going to pick up Chengcheng.”
The sound of rain could be heard from just now; it became much louder once the door opened.
The wind blew in, carrying a chill.
Tiny goosebumps rose on Tu Xiuxiu’s skin: “So, President Cheng, your coming to see me twenty minutes early today, was it a form of advance appeasement?”
Cheng Jing’s steps paused. She turned her head: “The person picking you up is on the way.”
She did not deny Tu Xiuxiu’s words.
Tu Xiuxiu finally understood. From the very beginning, Cheng Jing had no intention of taking her to the banquet together, did she?
Perhaps even if Cheng Jing didn’t go to pick up Cheng Jiqing, as long as Cheng Jiqing was going to the banquet today, Cheng Jing would not walk into the banquet with her.
“What is this? What am I?”
In her heart, she asked a rhetorical question.
With Cheng Jiqing around, she was nothing.
More ethereal than the mist in the air.
“Does this mean that even if I go today, I have to maintain an appropriate distance from you?”
“Don’t project your subjective assumptions onto me.” Cheng Jing frowned; she wouldn’t treat her like that.
“Then what is it?”
Cheng Jing didn’t speak. She didn’t know what was wrong with Tu Xiuxiu lately, always pressing for an explanation.
She said: “Cheng Jiqing knows our relationship. If you’re allowed to go, I don’t need to do this.”
“Then do you, in your heart, want me to go? Actually, President Cheng, you don’t, do you?”
“Tu Xiuxiu.”
Cheng Jing’s tone already carried a warning.
Tu Xiuxiu chuckled lightly, her red lips curving, the charm and softness of a Jiangnan beauty all embodied in her: “Cheng Jing, I’m not that cheap a person. Why did you have to come this time to make me…”
Hope again?
Hearing this, Cheng Jing’s expression darkened slightly: “What are you fussing about now?”
Tu Xiuxiu stared at her for a moment, then shook her head, her gaze bypassing Cheng Jing to land on the curtain of rain outside: “I was wrong. President Cheng, please go.”
The curtain of rain fell on the vines, the splashing water hitting the floor, leaving it soaking wet.
Tu Xiuxiu walked out the door, watching the departing figure until it disappeared. She reached out and caught a handful of water.
Autumn, it is cool.
It is also dead.
She smiled faintly, laughing at her own ignorance and stupidity.
Attempting to claim Cheng Jing’s heart, how dared she?
She didn’t want it anymore. She even wanted to dig that heart out and see if that person would feel pain.
Today, Little CEO Cheng will go, and that Miss Bai will go too, right?
Cheng Jiqing didn’t refuse Cheng Jing’s offer to pick her up, probably also because she wanted to find an opportunity today to ask about the fire incident, to ‘build a good relationship’ with her beforehand.
At ten past six, a black Maybach with consecutive license plate numbers stopped outside the hotel.
A higher class than the Song family’s event.
Not a single reporter, security measures were tight and flawless.
The rain had started, a drizzling mist. The puddles on the ground were from the earlier downpour.
“Watch your step,” Cheng Jing reminded.
Cheng Jiqing nodded: “Okay.”
When getting out of the car, she inexplicably looked around but hadn’t seen Bai Xin yet. She had asked in the car; by her calculation, they should have arrived around the same time.
Not seeing her, she walked with Cheng Jing towards the main entrance of the banquet hall.
There was a red carpet below. Hotel staff were constantly cleaning it with machines. The rain was light now, so it didn’t feel wet when stepped on.
Cheng Jiqing and Cheng Jing were about the same height. In terms of appearance, both belonged to the cooler type, ice beauties.
But Cheng Jiqing’s features were exceptionally superior, and she possessed an air of refined aloofness, making her comparatively more eye-catching.
As soon as they entered, the two became the focus of everyone’s attention.
To be the center of attention was just like this.
In the next second, Cheng Jiqing accurately spotted Bai Xin’s figure in the crowd.
Her eyes lit up slightly, then a strange emotion arose—Bai Xin was actually wearing a qipao9 today, white, with her hair coiled up, and rose-colored lips.
That garment hugged Bai Xin’s figure too well…
So well that she felt the dress was too eye-catching.
Bai Xin had entered earlier than Cheng Jiqing. She lowered her eyes slightly, concealing the faint triumph within. She had done it on purpose.
Cheng Jiqing’s attire was too captivating, exuding a peach-blossom charm that attracted people everywhere.
If Cheng Jiqing attracted others’ gazes, then she would attract Cheng Jiqing’s gaze.
She was determined that by the end of this event, Cheng Jiqing’s eyes would only be on her.
Bai Xin, like everyone else, slowly walked towards the two Cheng sisters.
Cheng Jiqing withdrew her gaze slightly. As she looked back, she saw Qin Yufu, who was a bit closer, smile at her. She nodded in acknowledgment.
Then her thoughts were interrupted by another voice—
“President Cheng, Little CEO Cheng.”
Zhou Yushu took a glass of red wine from a waiter’s tray and walked over.
The author has something to say:
Tu Xiuxiu will not turn dark, oh, and there’s no tearing or forcing.
I’m trying to speed up the progress, thank you for your continued support.
Chengcheng: No wonder you didn’t take a picture for me!
Bai-jie: I don’t believe you won’t look at me.
LP: I want the spice
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