Chapter 65 Ling Jue Loses His Temper?

Chapter 65: Ling Jue Gets Angry?

Shi Qilan looked horrified. "Don't go spreading rumors about me."

She tossed her beautiful short hair and gazed at Qin Shuyi with a fondness that seemed beyond her years.

"I just realized Miss Qin and I really click, and I wanted to be friends with her."

Later, she'd put two and two together. The reason Ling Jue had agreed so easily that day—promising her a partnership opportunity if she handled her uncle's family—was entirely because he had seen Qin Shuyi on a blind date with someone else. He simply hadn't been in the mood to deal with her.

Otherwise, that negotiation would have definitely been a drawn-out battle.

How could Qin Shuyi not be considered her lucky star?

As for the two of them seeming to have a falling out? Was there any risk in befriending Qin Shuyi?

Heh.

Shi Qilan wore a mysterious smile, as if holding too many secrets to share.

Given how that certain someone was so obedient in front of that other certain someone, she'd bet a dollar she hadn't placed her bet wrong.

Zhao Jinyu shot a jealous glance at the smug Shi Qilan.

With her miserly, what's-in-it-for-me attitude, she must have gotten some advantage.

Damn it, why couldn't that fortune come her way!

The two women, vying with each other, each took one of Qin Shuyi's arms and led her inside.

The three men left behind exchanged looks and silently followed.

Ling Jue watched the figure walking ahead with her back to him, his eyes darkening.

...

The pair who had started the evening without a word met again by the banquet tables.

Due to Xie Muchen's faulty intel, Zhao Jinyu had specifically seated them together.

She awkwardly opened her mouth, wondering if she should change their seats, but Ling Jue sat down first.

Qin Shuyi then calmly took her seat at the table.

Apart from not speaking to each other, no one would guess there was any conflict between them.

Zhao Jinyu let out a sigh of relief and decisively shut her mouth and slipped away.

She felt her plans for the night might still be salvageable.

Once the two engaged hosts left, the sharper guests sensed the awkward tension in the air. They avoided the topic and steered clear of trouble, but there was still the innocent and blunt Fan Chaochao.

As Ji Xiuhang's cousin, she, like her brother, was behind on the news.

Her memory was still stuck on their closeness at Tao Wangxi's welcome-back party.

"Brother Jue, Sister Shuyi, why aren't you two talking?"

The chattering girl blinked curiously, suddenly asking the unusually silent pair at the table.

The air froze for a second.

Shi Qilan looked at Fan Chaochao as if looking at someone with a death wish.

Wow, going straight for the jugular.

While others at the table seemed unresponsive, they all subtly pricked up their ears.

Ling Jue remained silent.

Qin Shuyi looked at Fan Chaochao and smiled. "We broke up."

"Cough, cough." A chorus of coughs erupted around the table.

Although many knew about their split, there were also plenty of rumors saying they had gotten back together.

Seeing them seated together at the banquet today, most had assumed the gossip was true.

Ling Jue lowered his eyelashes, his fingers tracing the rim of his red wine glass. His mood was unreadable, as if he was letting her make the announcement.

Fan Chaochao's mouth fell open. "Uh... broke up... breaking up is good, happy breakup, I mean, no." She slapped her own mouth. "Why?!"

She thought they were such a good match!

Qin Shuyi glanced at Ling Jue. He still appeared detached, though his expression darkened further at Fan Chaochao's "happy breakup" comment.

"No particular reason. We just weren't compatible."

Since it was already said, there was no point in hiding it.

Fan Chaochao pursed her lips but didn't press further.

Ji Xiuhang, however, raised an eyebrow. "Did Miss Qin end it?"

He thought they had reconciled and then split again.

Qin Shuyi replied, "Of course it was Master Jue who called it off."

Ji Xiuhang raised his brows in surprise. Given how Ling Jue had acted—like someone who'd been slapped but still went to lick the hand that hit him—he didn't believe he'd dare end it a second time.

He looked teasingly at Ling Jue, who remained silent but whose presence was strongly felt.

Sure enough, a faint, seemingly mocking smile appeared at the corner of Ling Jue's mouth. "Oh? How come I remember it was Miss Qin who rejected me?"

The eyes of the people at the table, who were trying hard to be invisible, secretly lit up.

What? Qin Shuyi actually dumped Master Jue?!

What shocking gossip.

Most people couldn't believe it, but Shi Qilan, recalling the scene in the café that day, smirked.

People shouldn't always be so high and mighty; they need someone to teach them a lesson.

Qin Shuyi remained expressionless. "Perhaps there was a misunderstanding in our communication."

"Maybe," Ling Jue said.

He took a sip of wine and didn't feel like talking anymore.

Ji Xiuhang *tsked* inwardly.

Claiming not to care, yet deliberately saying that to give her face.

On the surface it was a challenge, but at its heart, it was protective.

For regular couples, when there's no clear wrongdoer, the one who calls it off gets all the blame.

But given the unequal status between Ling Jue and Qin Shuyi, if Ling Jue had been the one to propose the breakup, everyone would have taken it for granted, assuming Ling Jue was done with her and that Qin Shuyi was nothing special. Behind her back, they might even talk trash.

However, if it were Qin Shuyi who actively rejected Ling Jue, others would instead think more highly of her.

Qin Shuyi had taken the initiative to say that Ling Jue proposed the breakup, which was a gesture to give him face. But Ling Jue's comeback was also a way of expressing his own stance.

Between him and Qin Shuyi, it was Qin Shuyi who held the dominant position.

Sure enough, despite this little episode, everyone remained very enthusiastic toward Qin Shuyi, who was an outsider.

...

Ling Jue was clearly in a bad mood. Aside from Ji Xiuhang, no one dared to strike up a conversation with him at a time like this.

Fan Chaochao, regretting she'd brought up the wrong topic, was now chatting with Qin Shuyi alongside Shi Qilan, even deliberately sharing some gossip about wealthy families to lighten the mood.

Following Fan Chaochao's pointing direction, Qin Shuyi looked over. Before she could spot the male lead rumored to be entangled in a stormy, ill-fated romance with his stepmother, she first caught sight of a familiar silhouette.

Her brow furrowed.

When she looked again, the person had already disappeared.

Her mind elsewhere, she picked up her spoon, her eyes still searching among the busy crowd outside the venue.

Just as the food was about to reach her mouth, someone grabbed her wrist.

Ling Jue's brow was furrowed, his arrogant expression now tight, and a faint trace of anger seemed to flicker in his eyes. "Qin Shuyi, are you stupid? What are you doing, just eating anything?"

Master Jue, who had been unusually cold and sparing with words all day, was now letting out sentence after sentence, as if he was seriously pissed off.

"I take my eyes off you for a moment, and you run into trouble. Can't you focus when you eat? What's so captivating over there that you can't tear your eyes away? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to eat the wrong thing? Do you want to end up in the hospital for days again?"

The spoon in her hand was taken away and placed back in the bowl, and the sweet soup was also removed at his instruction.

Not only was Qin Shuyi being scolded, but everyone else at the table was startled by his outburst.

Fan Chaochao stammered, "Uh... uh..." and swallowed nervously. "Um, Brother Jue, it's just a bowl of sweet soup. Let's not overreact, okay?"

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