An Explosion of Acting Talent

Jiang Jinran had thought Lu Wanning would only come to reap the rewards after Lu Yunxiao made his move against Jiang Yuehan.

From the look of things, Jiang Yuehan probably didn't know Lu Wanning was coming.

This young lady had probably come uninvited, hoping to meet Jiang Yuehan ahead of time.

Wait...

In that case, would Jiang Yuehan fall for Lu Wanning at first sight, just like in the book, let love take deep root, and get together with her without Lu Yunxiao even needing to spike his drink...?

Then what was she even going to rescue him for?

She'd be ruining someone's romance, ruining their night of passion!

No!

What kind of damned romance was that?!

Could a romance that made you a bootlicker, licking until you turned dark, licking until you were doomed beyond redemption, even count as romance?!

That was a cursed entanglement!

Clearly, with someone as promiscuous as Lu Wanning, even if something really did happen between her and Jiang Yuehan tonight, she probably wouldn't make their relationship official. Instead, just as the book described, she would keep things ambiguous, drawing close and pulling away, neither accepting nor rejecting him, while also seeing other handsome men...

Just thinking about it made Jiang Jinran feel a little sick.

No.

She had to do something.

Jiang Jinran felt around in her pocket and pulled out a face mask.

She put it on, covering her face.

She wasn't sure whether Lu Wanning had seen her face at the café today, so she decided to hide her appearance, just to be safe.

Once she was ready, Jiang Jinran returned to the door of private room 2013.

Her gaze shifted, and only then did she notice the black-clad bodyguards stationed at the entrance to the corridor.

No wonder...

At first, she had wondered why there weren't any bodyguards outside the door.

People of Jiang Yuehan's and Lu Yunxiao's standing were bound to have bodyguards in droves.

So they were stationed over by the corridor.

Jiang Jinran felt she was quite lucky.

If they had been guarding the door, she probably would have had no choice but to turn back.

Jiang Jinran reached out, knocked politely, then pushed the door to the private room open.

Inside the spacious room, a group of people sat around a lavish round table.

Jiang Yuehan and Lu Yunxiao sat in the center.

Jiang Jinran didn't recognize the other men in their sharp suits and polished shoes.

Lu Wanning sat beside Lu Yunxiao, wearing a gentle, sweet smile.

But at that moment, everyone's expressions and movements froze in unison.

Every gaze landed squarely on Jiang Jinran.

Jiang Jinran parted her lips, but before she could speak, several black-clad security guards rushed up behind her. One seized each of her arms, ready to drag her away immediately.

Damn!

Jiang Jinran immediately shouted, "Big Brother! It's me."

Jiang Yuehan's gaze flickered.

In fact, he had already recognized Jiang Jinran and had been about to speak, but she had called out first.

"Let her go."

Jiang Yuehan raised his brows and cast a sidelong glance at the guards, giving the order in a cold, stern voice.

The guards were a little bewildered, too.

Was this ordinary-looking young girl who had barged in without permission really Mr. Jiang's younger sister?

Once their surprise passed, they naturally had no choice but to obediently release Jiang Jinran.

After the guards left, everyone else present was still dumbfounded.

This was Jiang Yuehan's younger sister?

They had indeed vaguely heard that the Jiang Family had a younger daughter...

But none of them had ever seen her or knew her. Supposedly, because her looks weren't up to par and her abilities were mediocre, the Jiang Family rarely let him appear in public.

As time passed, everyone had almost forgotten such a person existed...

"Jiang Yuehan, why didn't you tell us your sister was coming...?" The quick-witted Lu Yunxiao was the first to react. He had a very likable face, with fair skin and two dimples that appeared when he smiled. No wonder someone as icy as Jiang Yuehan would become friends with him.

"If you'd told me sooner, I'd have made arrangements for you sooner." Lu Yunxiao stood up with a cheerful smile and beckoned warmly to Jiang Jinran. "Little sister, come on over."

Jiang Jinran merely glanced at Lu Yunxiao. Without saying a word, she ran straight to Jiang Yuehan and plopped into the seat beside him.

With her mask on, Jiang Jinran's features were obscured, and she had also taken off the little cardigan she'd been wearing earlier. Lu Wanning would most likely have a hard time recognizing her.

The first thing she did after sitting down was hug Jiang Yuehan's arm. Sounding hurt and sad, she said, "Big Brother, why didn't you answer any of my calls?"

"I was so worried. It took me so long to find this place."

Jiang Jinran's words were half true and half false, and more or less counted as nonsense.

Her acting talent exploded in full force. She looked like a sensitive, fragile child, and anyone watching could only feel sorry for her.

Jiang Yuehan was a little bewildered.

He patted his sister's shoulder soothingly while taking out his phone-

As it turned out, his phone's ringtone and vibration had somehow been switched off.

That had caused him to miss many calls, including Jiang Jinran's.

An indescribable sense of guilt couldn't help rising in Jiang Yuehan's heart.

His sister really did seem worried about him, so worried she was about to cry.

For the first time, Jiang Yuehan realized just how much this younger sister cared about him.

A jumble of feelings spread through his heart in an instant. He gently wrapped an arm around Jiang Jinran's shoulders and patted her softly, as though soothing a little child.

Everyone present had been fooled by Jiang Jinran's acting, including Jiang Yuehan.

For Jiang Jinran's part, she was indeed a little worried about Jiang Yuehan, but not terribly so. It was just that she needed to justify her sudden appearance here, so she had exaggerated her performance a little.

Once Jiang Jinran slowly calmed down, everyone warmly encouraged her to eat, their manner especially gentle.

Clearly, they were treating her like a little child who needed to be cared for.

Jiang Jinran was indeed a little hungry, so she went along with them and stuffed several mouthfuls of delicious food into her mouth. Just then-

Lu Wanning picked up her wineglass and began offering Jiang Yuehan a toast.

She was beautiful to begin with, and the off-the-shoulder outfit she wore that evening made her skin look even more like creamy jade, her charm flowing in countless forms.

She held a stemmed glass of red wine, tender glimmers seeming to ripple in her eyes.

"Mr. Jiang, I've long heard of your great reputation. Let me offer you a toast." Lu Wanning smiled beautifully and leaned forward slightly, sending the rose fragrance on her body wafting over.

Before Jiang Yuehan could move, Jiang Jinran was the first to lose her composure.

She reached out directly and grabbed Jiang Yuehan's arm again, holding it firmly in place.

The young girl pretended to be overflowing with possessiveness and said sulkily, "Big Brother is mine. You're getting too close. That's not good..."

"He's not your big brother, after all."

As soon as those words fell, the air in the room froze.

The smile on Lu Wanning's lips had already stiffened. Her eyes widened slightly as all sorts of emotions flashed through those beautiful eyes.

Surprise, embarrassment, bewilderment, anger, and a trace of almost imperceptible disgust.