Chapter 25 The Flirting Bet

Chapter 25: The Pick-up Gambit

Tao Wangxi's free hand clenched silently.

“Am I only allowed to be a flawless, emotionless puppet?”

“Wangxi, don’t get upset over this. No matter how many women Ling Jue has, in the end, there will only be one wife. You must marry into the Ling family. If the Tao family prospers, you will benefit too.”

Tao Wangxi smiled mockingly.

No matter how well the Tao family did, the family business would never be passed down to her.

This sickly body had destined her to be nothing more than a decorative tool to enhance the family’s prestige, not a true successor in control.

“Don’t worry, I will.”

Not for anyone else’s sake, but for her own—Tao Wangxi. Even if she were a flower easily overlooked, she would plant herself on the highest peak, where everyone would have to look up.

…

The Tao family’s banquet was lively and bustling on the surface, but undercurrents swirled beneath.

None of it, however, concerned Qin Shuyi and her group.

Qian Youyou watched the Tao siblings smiling on the dance floor and rubbed the goosebumps on her arm. “I don’t know why, but seeing them smile gives me the creeps.”

“Creeps? Qian Youyou, confess, how many days has it been since you last showered?” Jiang Yuzhou teased her provocatively.

“Jiang Yuzhou, does your mouth come pre-seasoned from last night?”

“Damn, Qian Youyou, you really know how to throw shade.”

“Right back at you.”

“No respect for your elders. I’m your brother.”

“Pfft, you’re only one month older.”

The two bickered like siblings. Though not related by blood, their closeness was obvious to anyone watching.

Zhou Tinglan watched them with a smile.

The reason she chose Jiang Shiheng, besides money, was the simplicity of the Jiang family’s relationships. Jiang Yuzhou wasn’t a difficult child either.

If Jiang Yuzhou had been too troublesome, for Youyou’s sake, she would never have married Jiang Shiheng.

With the Jiang family’s backing now, she wasn’t too worried about Youyou’s future.

It was Shuyi she was concerned about…

She glanced at the pair who, for the first time tonight, seemed to have eased the tension between them, and sighed.

Why did she have to meet him?

She understood the Tao family’s intention—to use tonight’s banquet to make Shuyi realize the gap between her and Ling Jue.

But even without Tao Wangxi, her sister and brother-in-law would most likely disapprove of these two being together.

Marriage was never about love alone. Differences in family background, past experiences, values, and personalities—every slight deviation would gradually wear down the relationship in daily life.

Shuyi and Ling Jue were fundamentally worlds apart.

Unless one was willing to strip away their very bones and reshape themselves for the other.

But how could they bear to see the child they watched grow up suffer like that?

Besides, Shuyi was smart. Just to spare her parents worry and avoid being scrutinized and gossiped about, she wouldn’t choose Ling Jue.

…

Zhou Tinglan worried about her niece from a practical standpoint, but Ling Jue hadn’t yet considered that aspect.

Though he had impulsively voiced the hypothetical “if he married her” while drunk, sober, he still knew the answer was no.

He simply attributed his unwillingness to let go as dissatisfaction over a prey in his game trying to escape his grasp.

“Not now.”

On the dance floor, holding Qin Shuyi as they completed the final steps, Ling Jue gave his answer to the question she had asked in the garden.

He would say it was over, but not at this moment.

Qin Shuyi was silent for a while.

“Okay.”

…

Though they had reconciled, something had quietly changed between them.

They say love, like a cough, cannot be hidden.

Ling Jue thought, it turns out the absence of love is just as clear.

When you suddenly realize the person you thought liked you doesn’t actually like you that much, a seemingly perfect relationship suddenly takes on a different shape.

Outside Qin Shuyi’s company building, Ling Jue leaned against his Ferrari, his long legs stretched out, when it suddenly occurred to him that Qin Shuyi had never introduced him to any of her colleagues.

At the entrance, noticing people leaving the company subtly slowing their steps to glance in a certain direction, Qin Shuyi couldn’t help but look too.

A colleague grabbed her hand and exclaimed, “Look, a total hottie! Tsk tsk, that face, that waist, those legs… perfection.”

Another more experienced colleague pushed up her glasses. “He must be… very capable.”

The first colleague sighed wistfully. “I wonder if he has a girlfriend.”

“Don’t even think about it. A guy like that can’t possibly be single. You probably couldn’t even get a spot in line to spend money on him.”

Qin Shuyi’s expression turned odd.

He was indeed quite capable… but rather than women spending money on him, he seemed more accustomed to splurging on them.

But the main point was, what was he doing here?!

Before she could decide whether to go over and acknowledge him, someone pushed her forward.

“Asking if he’s single won’t cost you anything. What if you get lucky? Shuyi, you go ask.”

Qin Shuyi: “?”

"Why me?"

The rest said in unison, "Because you're pretty!"

Qin Shuyi shot them a long, silent look.

Her colleagues conceded, "Alright, we're chicken."

Of course, they also knew their own limits.

Besides, while Qin Shuyi always told everyone she had a boyfriend, no one had ever seen him, and she rarely mentioned this mysterious boyfriend.

Everyone agreed it was just an excuse to avoid being set up on blind dates.

After all, Qin Shuyi's beauty was famous not just in their company, but throughout the whole area.

The most outrageous time was when a wealthy, appearance-obsessed socialite, at her cheating husband's funeral, insisted on dragging Qin Shuyi over to introduce her to men. She not only called her own son, but paraded every decent-looking, age-appropriate male relative from her extended family.

The solemn funeral nearly turned into a lively matchmaking event.

The host could barely keep a straight face.

It was no exaggeration to say Qin Shuyi was the face of their company.

Such a stunning beauty shouldn't be wasted on just anybody.

And now, a handsome guy had fallen from the sky.

They thought the two of them looked like a match made in heaven.

To cheer on the couple they were shipping, they even started making bets.

"If you get his number, I'll take that business trip project for you."

"If you ride in his fancy car, I'll buy you lunch for a month."

"A hug, and I'll be your living lucky cat for three months, meowing at everyone who comes into the office."

"Me too! A kiss, and I'll do a year of your work."

Fully aware that Qin Shuyi was cool and aloof and kept strangers at a distance, aside from the first two somewhat feasible bets, the others got increasingly carried away, their dares growing more and more outrageous.

Qin Shuyi smiled faintly. "You can lose your shirt gambling."

Her colleagues thumped their chests. "Don't worry, just go for it. We're good for it."

She suppressed a laugh. "Really, no regrets?"

"Whoever backs out is a dog."

"Fine, I'll go ask." Qin Shuyi said with a straight face.

So her colleagues watched excitedly as she strolled over. She seemed to exchange a few words, and the handsome man took out his phone.

Then, she pointed at them.

As the man glanced over, she swooped in, stood on her toes, and kissed him on the cheek.

The man seemed momentarily stunned.

Seizing the chance, Qin Shuyi yanked the car door open and slid into the passenger seat.

The handsome man bent down and said something, but she clung to the seatbelt, refusing to budge. Finally, after unsuccessful persuasion, the helpless man drove off with her.

The whole sequence was so smooth, happening in just a minute or two, that the colleagues, huddled together nervously, were left dumbfounded.

???!!!

Wait, was she really going this far to win?!

Those who'd just made the bold promises: That was totally unnecessary!!!

Qin, you beauty, have you lost your mind?!

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