Chapter 223: A Heartthrob

The room in the deep night was supposed to be so quiet, but at this moment, it was livelier than ever. Everyone in the room was lost in thought, each with their own little schemes.

And Shen Ruxue was completely unaware of this hidden liveliness, simply captivated by the beauty on the bed. She leaned down slightly, placing a gentle kiss on Jiang Lai’s forehead, then rested her head against Jiang Lai’s chest, as if listening to her heartbeat.

“I know there are many people who like you by your side now. I won’t blame you, because I know you couldn’t wait for me forever… But I won’t give up.”

Shen Ruxue murmured to herself, “I’ll always be by your side, waiting for you to discover my worth.”

She had wanted to say more, but the curtain in the room suddenly rustled, causing the sweet nothings she was about to utter to be swallowed back down. She looked curiously at the drawn curtain.

“Is there… someone in the room right now?”

Only then did Shen Ruxue realize that there might be someone else hiding in her “husband’s” room.

Recalling everything she had just said, even though her voice was soft, it was still likely heard by the person behind the curtain.

At this moment, Shen Ruxue was only curious about who was hiding in Jiang Lai’s room—was it her younger sister, or that Xu Ruobing?

But now, who it was didn’t matter. Since her presence had been discovered from the start, she couldn’t stay here any longer. It was better to leave early.

Besides, she had snuck out of her own room behind her daughter’s back. It had to be said, young people these days could really stay up late. At 2 AM, when she should have been sound asleep, her daughter was still playing with her phone.

The time Shen Ruxue had squeezed out now was by using the excuse of going to the bathroom. She had wanted to take advantage of these few short minutes to be alone with Jiang Lai, to express the longing she had kept buried in her heart all these years. She never expected that someone else had the same idea.

Whether the person behind the curtain was her younger sister or someone else, if she stayed now, it would only make things worse.

If they made any big movements and woke the sleeping Jiang Lai, that would be even more troublesome.

It could be said Shen Ruxue retreated. Right now, she simply didn’t have the courage to face her sister. Even if the person behind the curtain wasn’t her sister, but Xu Ruobing who had just arrived today, she still lacked confidence.

After seeing the movement of the curtain, she grew timid and quietly slipped away.

After Shen Ruxue left, the room fell silent once more.

Xu Ruobing and Chi Yingyu emerged from behind the curtain. The two looked at each other. Compared to the initial hostility, Chi Yingyu now seemed somewhat evasive.

A huge question burned in Xu Ruobing’s mind—what exactly was Chi Yingyu hiding?

She had seen it clearly just now. Shen Ruxue still had more to say, but she was scared off by the deliberate movement Chi Yingyu created.

You have to understand, Shen Ruxue was just a university student who hadn’t yet stepped into society. How could someone like that become so infatuated with Jiang Lai? Even if Jiang Lai was charming, it shouldn’t reach this degree.

There must be some secret she didn’t know about. As for what that secret was, Xu Ruobing knew very well that she couldn’t pry it out right now.

Moonlight spilled through the trembling gap in the curtain, illuminating the two of them. They stood like that by Jiang Lai’s bedside, silent for a long time.

“Aren’t you going to explain, Miss Chi?”

Xu Ruobing asked softly, her fingertips rubbing together.

“Don’t think you can fool me. I heard everything clearly just now.”

“This isn’t something you should know,” Chi Yingyu replied flatly.

“Let’s go. The longer we stay in the room, the greater the risk of being discovered.”

All Chi Yingyu wanted now was to find her sister and ask her properly—why did she come to her brother-in-law’s room in the middle of the night to say those things?

It was fine that her brother-in-law was asleep now, but what if he wasn’t? Wouldn’t he have heard all of that?

They had clearly agreed that before dealing with the matter of Si Yina, neither of them should make any small moves.

Seeing that she couldn’t get anything out of Chi Yingyu, Xu Ruobing simply gave up, letting out a soft sigh and following her out of the room.

However, after the two returned to their room, they were destined to be unable to sleep for the rest of the night.

Xu Ruobing lay in bed, her heart full of doubt. She always felt that the woman beside her had been hiding something recently, and it was definitely something big—so big that even Jiang Lai couldn’t easily bear it.

Chi Yingyu was also suffering from insomnia. Although she lay calmly in bed, her gaze remained fixed on the night sky outside the window, her heart filled with bitterness.

She knew her own feelings for Jiang Lai. Even though her sister had agreed to it, that didn’t mean things would proceed smoothly. Perhaps these feelings would ultimately remain nothing but a beautiful fantasy.

But she was unwilling.

She didn’t want to give up just like that.

After the two left, Jiang Lai still kept her eyes tightly shut, trying hard to maintain steady breathing. But inside, her heart was churning like turbulent tides.

She never expected that this seemingly ordinary night would become a stage for emotional entanglements, with herself as the focal point surrounded by everyone.

The heartfelt words of three people still echoed in her ears.

Those gentle voices were filled with endless longing and persistence. She understood Shen Ruxue’s feelings for her, but intertwined with all sorts of complicated factors, these feelings left her at a loss.

The night light in the room was on.

Jiang Lai slowly opened her eyes, sat up from the bed, and leaned against the headboard, her eyes full of weariness and confusion. She raised a hand to rub her temples, trying to calm her chaotic thoughts.

The curtain wasn’t fully drawn. Moonlight like water spilled into the empty room. The tranquility of this moment was a world apart from the earlier “liveliness.”

Jiang Lai’s gaze fell on the bedside. Besides her sister-in-law and Xu Ruobing, Shen Ruxue’s appearance was something she had never anticipated.

The words Shen Ruxue had just spoken were like a gentle knife. Gentle, yet they brought the most intense shock.

Shen Ruxue was just a university student who hadn’t experienced the world. Why would she develop such feelings for her? The two had never even met before.

Before her transformation, Jiang Lai hadn’t even been close to her own daughter. As for Shen Ruxue—her daughter’s best friend, her best classmate—she had only heard of her occasionally.

So why would a girl she had never had contact with say such ambiguous and deep words to her tonight?

Jiang Lai could feel her own heartbeat becoming rapid and chaotic.

“Why…”

Her voice trembled slightly, even carrying a hint of collapse.

“What… am I?”

“A femme fatale?”