Chapter 96: Jin Shi Yue, Will You Be Lian Li’s Miracle?
On the sofa, her on top of him, the pose was eerily familiar.
Lian Li’s bright, watery eyes gazed at the man beneath her, the events of that night involuntarily surfacing in her mind, causing her cheeks to flush.
“Mm.”
After Lian Li replied, she made to get up and off him. Just as she pulled away slightly, a large hand on her lower back suddenly pressed her back down forcefully.
Caught off guard, Lian Li bumped her head against Jin Shi Yue’s shoulder, her lips brushing past his ear.
His ear, like his thin lips, was warm and soft.
Lian Li pushed herself up to look at Jin Shi Yue, and he was looking at her too. Their eyes met, their gazes intertwined, inexplicably creating an ambiguous atmosphere.
Jin Shi Yue’s dark eyes were calm, his posture relaxed: “Am I comfortable to sit on?”
“No.”
Lian Li didn’t want to say she hadn’t done it on purpose anymore. She realized that any further explanations to him were futile.
“Is that so?” Jin Shi Yue raised an eyebrow, his words laced with a deep meaning, as if coaxing, “Try sitting a few more times?”
Lian Li couldn’t tell if he was referring to “sitting” or “doing,” and chose not to answer.
She reached back, trying to pry his hand from her waist: “I need to go wash up.”
As the girl turned her head to look back, her body shifted, brushing against a certain spot. Jin Shi Yue’s eyes darkened instantly. Lian Li seemed completely oblivious, still focused on prying his hand away.
Before the situation escalated, Jin Shi Yue voluntarily let go of her.
Lian Li pushed herself up and went into the restroom as if nothing had happened.
She closed the restroom door, her palm touching her slightly flushed cheeks.
Did Jin Shi Yue have a reaction just now?
Lian Li shook her head, dismissing the sensation.
In the morning, men are all like that; it’s normal.
When Lian Li came out after washing up, the aroma of breakfast filled the air. The sofa in the living room was empty. She looked around and found Jin Shi Yue at the dining table.
Lian Li walked over, glanced at the rich and nutritious food on the table, and then looked up at Jin Shi Yue.
The Eldest Young Master’s hands were clearly unused to manual labor; the breakfast was likely delivered by someone he hired.
After breakfast, Lian Li thought for a moment and used a thermometer to take Jin Shi Yue’s temperature twice.
Jin Shi Yue leaned back lazily in his chair, a hint of a nonchalant smile playing on his lips: “Worried about me so much?”
“Mm.” Lian Li didn’t deny it. “I’m worried you’ll come knocking on my door again tonight with a fever.”
Jin Shi Yue’s eyes clearly reflected her calm and composed demeanor. Upon hearing her words, his long fingers, which had been lightly tapping the table, paused slightly.
An unexpected answer.
Once Lian Li was sure he wouldn’t come over sick again, she asked him to leave.
Jin Shi Yue knew when to quit. He hooked his fingers around the jacket on the sofa, draped it over his arm, and strode towards the door.
The moment his foot crossed the threshold, Lian Li closed the door behind him.
Jin Shi Yue looked at the closed door, a thought occurring to him, and he curved his lips into a lazy smile.
Inside, Lian Li walked towards the sofa, looking down at the surveillance footage on her mobile phone. She didn’t know what he was smiling about; it was baffling.
It made her smile inexplicably too.
Lian Li had lunch outside, and after eating, she went to the Wen Gang Orchestra.
Leaving the orchestra in the evening, Lian Li remembered Shen Huaining’s farewell party was tonight. She thought about it and, having no other plans, messaged Shen Huaining to say she would attend on time.
Due to the Shen Family’s downfall, Shen Huaining’s farewell party was not grand. It was held at the STAR bar, inviting friends who were close to her and not those who would kick her while she was down.
The ancients truly did not deceive me; adversity reveals true friendship.
Most of the people who had previously fawned over Shen Huaining did not show up. Those present were basically friends who valued loyalty over profit.
Shang Lingyu nudged Lian Li with her elbow, signaling her to look towards the entrance: “I thought Meng Yi wouldn’t come, but I didn’t expect her to actually be here.”
Meng Yi had fair skin and red lips, exuding a cold, elegant, and noble aura. She wore a traditional Chinese-style slip dress, its fabric adorned with an oil painting, creating a highly artistic atmosphere.
The Wen Family was one of the reasons for the Shen Family’s downfall, and Meng Yi was Wen Zhixing’s fiancée. Seeing her arrive, many people’s faces showed varying degrees of surprise.
Lian Li was not surprised.
The feelings between people are complex; there is no single love, nor is there a single hate.
Shen Huaining, a professional event host, had a dignified and elegant demeanor. Every aspect of her was impeccable.
She raised her wine glass, and Lian Li, Meng Yi, and Shang Lingyu clinked theirs together.
“All four of us from the dormitory are here,” Shen Huaining said with a smile. “We didn’t have many opportunities to meet before, and now we’ll have even fewer.”
Shang Lingyu chuckled heartily: “Isn’t that the truth? You’re going abroad, I’m staying at school, Meng Yi is getting married, and Lian Li…”
She paused.
The three of them looked at Lian Li in unison. Lian Li smiled faintly: “I’m alive.”
Shang Lingyu burst into laughter: “It’s wonderful to be alive!”
Meng Yi, aloof and speaking little, simply said: “We’ll meet again as long as we’re alive.”
After clinking glasses, everyone went off to socialize and have fun. Lian Li played dice with some people, thinking as she played. The people playing with her saw that she was distracted yet kept winning, and they were about to lose their minds.
At times like this, Lian Li would usually lose a few rounds to make the other party happy.
When playing games, the most important thing is for everyone to have fun together.
That night, Lian Li began to form a rough idea in her mind of how to reject Jin Shi Yue.
However, for the next two days, Jin Shi Yue did not contact her again.
With a rare period of peace, Lian Li naturally did not initiate contact with him.
*
On Saturday night, Zhong Yang, having acquired a high-value project at a low price, invited friends to Guili Blue Bay for drinks to celebrate in their private group chat.
When Xue Shufan rushed in, Jin Shi Yue was occupying a sofa alone, his long, slender fingers holding two cards.
Xue Shufan plopped down next to Pei Qingji and downed the wine on the table in one gulp.
“You’re drinking the wine Old Pei had,” Zhong Yang said. “Crown Princess Xue, who made you so angry today? You’re so aggressive.”
Pei Qingji recalled the news from New York that the lawsuit was progressing smoothly, so it shouldn’t be an issue from that end.
“Could you guys leave for a bit? I need to talk to the Second Young Master,” Xue Shufan said, having rushed over immediately after getting off the plane, panting.
“No, you…”
The brother next to him was interrupted before he could finish speaking, as Zhong Yang and Pei Qingji led him away.
The previously lively area was now left with only Jin Shi Yue and Xue Shufan.
Jin Shi Yue dropped the cards in his hand onto the table, lifted his eyelids, and swept a very light, indifferent glance at Xue Shufan.
“Did Lian Li send you to be a mediator?”
“No. Lili doesn’t know.”
Xue Shufan got straight to the point: “You must be well aware of Lili’s situation. I don’t want to waste time with pleasantries. Today, I only have one question for you.”
Jin Shi Yue wanted Lian Li, and with his power and status, it wouldn’t be difficult.
For someone of his prominent standing to not force Lian Li, but to pursue her relentlessly, was enough to prove that his feelings for Lian Li were not a fleeting whim.
However, Xue Shufan didn’t intend to ask if he was sincere. Life is vast and boundless; whether one loves or not is their own affair.
“Lili is different from you and President Jin. Everything she has now is the result of her hard work and sweat.”
Xue Shufan stated clearly: “Can you guarantee that she won’t be dragged into your family’s disputes?”
Lian Li’s world had never held miracles, nor did she believe miracles would happen to her.
Jin Shi Yue, will you be Lian Li’s miracle?
