Defiance

When she didn't answer, the caller said nothing more and hung up.

Nan Xingyu breathed a sigh of relief.

But she also felt an indescribable emptiness.

Xi Jin was going on a blind date tonight.

She had just turned around when she nearly bumped into someone.

It wasn't the aggressively cool scent Xi Jin carried.

It was a gentle, clean scent instead.

Nan Xingyu took half a step back and looked up at the person. He seemed a little familiar.

"Nan Xingyu, it really is you."

The man in front of her wore a neat, ink-black suit and smiled gently. "Remember me?"

Nan Xingyu's mind raced. Then she noticed the small beauty mark at the corner of his right eye and suddenly remembered.

"Lawyer Jiang?"

Jiang Yu looked a little hurt that she hadn't recognized him right away.

"Junior, it's only been six months since we last saw each other."

Nan Xingyu rubbed her neck awkwardly. "Sorry, I'm a little face-blind."

Jiang Yu narrowed his eyes slightly and teased her with a smile. "Looks like I have a very ordinary face, since you couldn't remember me."

"Heh heh."

Nan Xingyu gave an awkward laugh to smooth things over.

Jiang Yu had been a star lawyer at the law firm where she interned during her sophomore year.

The school had arranged the internships for everyone, and both she and Lin Piaopiao had been assigned to Hengxin Law Firm.

It was a famous red-circle law firm in Beijing's elite circles.

She had been assigned to Jiang Yu and worked as his assistant for three months.

Looking back on that internship, she didn't have any particularly vivid memories of it.

She only remembered that when Xi Jin found out her supervisor was a man, he spent every day thinking about getting her a different internship.

Every day, she coaxed Xi Jin not to stir up trouble.

She was afraid he would go to the law firm and give Jiang Yu a hard time.

Aside from work-related conversations, she hadn't even dared exchange an extra greeting with him.

So much so that one day, Jiang Yu asked her.

Did she dislike him?

The jurisprudence class had just ended, and a crowd of students came pouring into the corridor.

The corridor instantly filled with noise and activity.

Lin Piaopiao spotted Nan Xingyu standing in the corner at a glance.

And the distinguished-looking man beside her.

She immediately pulled Li Ziyan over, her eyes shining as though she had discovered a new continent.

When she got closer, she exclaimed in delight, "Senior Jiang?!"

The two immediately fell into an easy conversation.

They went from talking about recent developments at the law firm to the few days he was spending teaching at his alma mater, Peking University.

Finally, Jiang Yu offered to treat them to dinner.

Lin Piaopiao accepted on everyone's behalf without hesitation.

Nan Xingyu opened her mouth, but didn't even get a chance to refuse.

Lin Piaopiao quickly hooked an arm through hers and led her forward, lowering her voice.

"Don't even think about running away. One way or another, you're coming out to dinner with me tonight."

"Senior Jiang took such good care of you before. He even helped you revise legal documents during your internship."

"You can't even do him this favor?"

"..."

Nan Xingyu was left speechless.

Lin Piaopiao looked at her with frustration, as if she hated iron for not becoming steel.

"Look at you. You're either going home or hiding in the dorm. You're in the flower of your youth, yet you hide in a cave every day. How can that go on?"

"..."

It seemed Xi Jin really did take up all her free time.

In that luxurious house.

Thinking back on the two or three years they had been together,

they didn't seem to communicate much, either.

Most of their time together was spent enjoying themselves in bed.

Xi Jin was very controlling and didn't like her going out to have fun.

For some inexplicable reason, a rebellious impulse suddenly welled up in her heart.

In any case, Xi Jin was going on a blind date tonight and wouldn't be back anytime soon.

Outside the Jiang Group building.

Xi Jin sat in the car with the window halfway down, revealing his hard, sharply lined profile.

His eyes lowered, he typed on his phone.

[Class over?]

[Yes.]

[Wait for me at home.]

[Sticker of a kitten spacing out.]

The car door opened just then.

A rich floral fragrance wafted toward him.

It wasn't the sweet, fresh scent of white peaches that Nan Xingyu carried.

Xi Jin lifted his eyes slightly, but didn't look over.

"Hi, hello."

Jiang Yuexi got into the car with a friendly smile. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Some work came up at the last minute."

Xi Jin put down his phone. "It's fine."

His tone was flat.

They had only just met and weren't familiar with each other.

Jiang Yuexi didn't mind. After all, it was their first meeting, so it was normal to feel like strangers.

After the car started moving, she took the initiative to start a conversation.

"I heard you won a shooting competition a little while ago? That's amazing. I've always thought people who can shoot are especially cool."

"Mm," Xi Jin answered.

His gaze rested on the traffic ahead.

One hand rested on the steering wheel, his posture languid and indifferent. He showed no intention of continuing the conversation.

Jiang Yuexi wasn't discouraged and asked another question. "You're so good at shooting. How did you practice? Does it take talent to learn?"

From the moment she got into the car until now, Xi Jin had only given her a polite glance when she first sat down.

He hadn't looked at her again after that.

Only when he heard the question did he respond unhurriedly, his voice even.

"I suppose it takes a little."

"Could you teach me, then?"

Jiang Yuexi's eyes lit up.

Xi Jin tapped the steering wheel lightly with a fingertip and turned to glance at her, his eyes betraying no emotion.

"If you're not afraid I'll scold you until you cry."

Jiang Yuexi smiled. "You don't look that fierce."

A laugh rumbled in Xi Jin's chest.

But it wasn't because of what she had said.

He had recalled something from the past.

At the time, Nan Xingyu had suddenly taken it into her head that she wanted to learn how to shoot.

He had taken her to a shooting range.

He had used more patience than he ever had in his life to teach her the fundamentals, even guiding her hands as he showed her how to fire.

But whenever he let go, she would miss the target entirely.

Not a single shot hit the bullseye.

The bullseye at the range wasn't the same size as the ones used in shooting competitions.

Even if she were blind, after he had spent so long teaching her to aim,

she should have hit it by then.

His patience exhausted, he said impatiently, "If you miss again, believe it or not, I'll shoot you to death tonight."

He hadn't raised his voice at her, but the fierce, cold look in his eyes scared her into crying.

Tears fell one after another, and she looked both aggrieved and stubborn.

It made him both angry and amused.

Crying had been her best trick ever since she was little.

He was sick of seeing it.

He wiped away her falling tears with the pad of his finger. "Stop those tears, or I'll shoot you to death right now."

Nan Xingyu stopped in an instant.

What a coward.

Remembering it now,

Xi Jin belatedly laughed.

Jiang Yuexi, however, thought she had broken the ice.

She asked even more enthusiastically, "Are you free this Saturday?"

Some of the smile faded from Xi Jin's face, and he returned to his usual cool indifference.

"I don't know."

"What about Sunday?"

Xi Jin finally looked at her, giving her a fleeting glance.

"Do you have that much time on your hands?"

His tone was clearly gentle, yet Jiang Yuexi inexplicably felt a chill.

She suddenly realized that she seemed to have been a little too forward.

Would he think she was an ignorant, good-for-nothing rich girl who only knew how to have fun?

"I'm busy too, you know."

She was, after all, the young lady of the Jiang Group.

Her suitors could line up from one end of the street to the other.

When had she ever been treated so coldly?

She was no longer in the mood to keep "humoring" him.

The two sat there in silence until the car pulled up outside the restaurant.

After Jiang Yuexi got out, she walked ahead on her own.

Xi Jin followed behind her at an unhurried pace.

As if he hadn't noticed her mood at all.

"Xi Jin."

A man's voice came from behind him.

A trace of impatience flashed in Xi Jin's eyes, but he turned around anyway.

The man had already come closer. "What a coincidence, running into you here."

Jiang Yuexi gave him a polite greeting and went on ahead.

"Brother Jiang."

The corners of Xi Jin's mouth curved up just slightly. "Long time no see."

"It has been a while. The last time we met was at Mid-Autumn Festival last year, when my dad invited you to dinner at our place."

Jiang Yu patted his arm with the back of his hand. "Not bad, kid. You won another gold medal."

Xi Jin put his hands in his pockets and walked beside him toward the elevator. "That's because Coach Jiang taught me well."

"My dad told me the World Championships were your last competition."

"What a shame," Jiang Yu said. "You're still so young. Why did you retire?"

Xi Jin touched the bridge of his nose with his fingertips.

He couldn't very well tell him.

Training had kept him too busy to have sex.

He lowered his hand. "My studies keep me busy, and I only have so much energy."

"True."

Jiang Yu smiled gently. "You're still studying at Peking University, and your dad must want you to take over the group's business soon, too."

The two chatted casually.

Xi Jin was the picture of courtesy.

Jiang Yu, meanwhile, was thoroughly enjoying their conversation.

"I remember this place you recommended before. The food and atmosphere were pretty good."

Jiang Yu pressed the elevator button. "I brought a few junior schoolmates here for a meal today."

Xi Jin asked casually, "Where are they?"