The Ice Cold Devil Who Left Angrily
Under the bridge, with lanterns that lit up the surroundings, the wind blew steadily as a young girl kissed a stunned young boy, separated by a mask…
This scene was unexpectedly more beautiful and moving than a direct kiss…
"Cut! Good!" Guo Qisheng came to his senses and called the scene to a stop.
"Not bad, Ning Xi, the way you dealt with this by hiding half of your face actually resulted in a better effect!" Guo Qisheng complimented, while the other crew members also nodded their heads in agreement.
"Director, as long as you're satisfied, all's good," said Ning Xi, forcing herself to smile. Dang you! I was just acting out a romantic kiss scene, not a crime scene, yet I had to act till I was physically and mentally exhausted!
Her eyes then involuntarily shifted to a certain direction…
Opposite her, the producer was saying something to Lu Tingxiao while he sat there quietly, like a dull oil painting that had been sitting in a dark corner of an old castle for many years, cold and lonely. Somewhere within his eyes, there was a heart-wrenching sort of loneliness…
Ning Xi was taken aback by that sight, hurriedly turning around to leave.
"Sis Xi, where are you going?"
"The toilet!"
Ning Xi quickly sent a text message to Lu Jingli as she walked down the corridor —
[Senior Vice President, what is your brother trying to do???]
Lu Jingli replied her swiftly, "How would I know? He was already acting weird yesterday when he saw the TV play your interview and behind-the-scenes footages. Then, this morning he saw the tabloid news about the both of you playing video games all night, so he immediately postponed a meeting and came here to inspect!"
[Did he let you know what he's thinking about doing, or if he has any plans?] Ning Xi quickly asked, since she knew that the best strategy to win was to know her enemy!
[It's not like you don't know how my brother is like – he would never tell me this kinda things!]
[Then…then was there anything that was odd about him? Try to recall anything!]
[Odd…yes, I think there was one incident! Yesterday, after he finished watching TV, he suddenly glared at a plate of carrots coldly, and then told the butler to never serve this dish! Isn't that weird? As smart as I am, I can't seem to understand what this odd behaviour means!]
[…] Ning Xi's head immediately flashed across the words "harvest the carrot". It looks like Lu Tingxiao had entirely misunderstood her and Jiang Muye!
Ning Xi thought for a while, and typed again, [How's your brother now? He should be okay, right?]
She had already used up all her brain juices to come with the idea of kissing through a mask…
[No way. The moment you kissed him, the air turned so chilly that I felt like I was ten million meters underground in some thousand year old ice cave.]
[Uhh…]
[Oh, right, little Xi Xi, where are you? Be careful! My brother's currently not in sight, and I don't know where he went. My guess is that he's probably gone to look for you, be careful okay!]
As soon as Ning Xi finished reading that last sentence from Lu Jingli, a silhouette fell from behind her, and someone was forcefully pulling her away.
She felt a hand grabbing her waist and when the world seemed to be spinning around her, she was pushed into the toilet, and she heard the sound of a door closing. Then, she felt her back pressed up roughly against the door and before she could call out in pain, her voice was muffled by a hot, crazy, and hungry mouth…
At that moment, because Ning Xi could barely breathe, the only thought that crossed her mind was —
"Dang you, Lu Jingli! You did this on purpose, didn't you!"
She refused to say out loud, "You could have warned me earlier!"
An Irrational Kiss
All along, she had always thought of Lu Tingxiao as a serious and restrained gentleman, yet this kiss was urgent, almost savage and primitive.
The grip on her waist was like iron, and her mouth was filled with the metallic taste of her own blood as her lips were being bitten. Her tongue was also getting pulled to the point of numbness, and she felt as if she was getting devoured…
"Mmm…Lu…." Whenever she attempted to fight back, he held her down even tighter and was more ruthless.
She winced at the shooting pain in her neck and looked at the man in front of her who had lost his control. He was such a stranger to her that she was worried…
Ning Xi discreetly took off the wooden hairpin from her head and quickly pointed the sharp end at his neck when he had his guard down, warning him, "Lu Tingxiao, you'd better calm down or else…!"
Lu Tingxiao's kisses stopped at her collarbone, but only for a moment. He seemed as if he was deciding where to continue, before he found his way to her lips again, with no sign of stopping…
"You…," Ning Xi felt helpless.
This guy, can he read minds?
He knew that she would not hurt a single hair on him, he knew that…she would not be able to bring herself to do it.
Her mind flashed across to a story she once read, about a girl's beloved who was cursed to become a monster, yet the girl could not bear to leave him. She even let him have her flesh and blood so that he would not hurt the local villagers and get killed in the process…
When she had finished reading the story, she thought the girl was a total idiot. But now, she had become that idiot.
Lu Tingxiao's kisses lingered repeatedly at her sensitive earlobe, when Ning Xi finally had the chance to quickly say, "Lu Tingxiao, did you forget what you promised me? Or are you breaking your promise?"
When he heard her voice, some rationality passed through his eyes and he paused before replying mellowly, "Inspection."
Ning Xi almost laughed at this. "Inspection? Who inspects like you? With you sitting there, who wouldn't be distracted from their acting?"
"Professionalism," he replied monotonously.
"Are you trying to say that I'm not professional? You…Fine! I really haven't been very professional today, but there will be no next time! Also, if you're just here to inspect, then what are you doing right now?" Ning Xi questioned.
Lu Tingxiao wrapped her tightly in his arms, as if hugging his favorite toy that he had just snatched back from other kids, and did not say a word more.
At this point, Ning Xi was a mess. All the negative thoughts she had tried so hard to suppress surfaced, forcing her to face the music and make a decision…
Moments passed, and as Ning Xi was about to go limp in his warm, intoxicating embrace, she came back to her senses. She took a deep sigh before saying, "Lu Tingxiao, you gave me seven days. Well, you don't have to wait for seven days, I can just answer you now."
"I don't want to hear it," said Lu Tingxiao, whose expression tightened and he immediately went in for a kiss again, in an attempt to stop her from saying more.
Ning Xi had a look of despair as she dodged him, "Lu Tingxiao, listen to me."
As if afraid she would hesitate, Ning Xi squeezed her eyes tightly before looking at him and said —
No One Can Replace The Person I Like
"Lu Tingxiao, I've already told you from the start – there is already someone that I like, very, very, much! Even though there are reasons that I can't be with him, he will live in my heart forever, filling it to the brim, so much so that no one else can replace him. There just isn't any more space for anyone else. Even if that person was more wonderful, and even more perfect, it would still be a no, do you understand?" Ning Xi blurted out before she could stop herself.
With Ning Xi's every word, Lu Tingxiao felt his entire body stiffen, his face aloof. His fingers touched her chin as he denied, "Lying! Ning Xi, you're lying!"
Ning Xi raised up two fingers, and stared at him with determined eyes, "Then I'll swear, that if I was lying, I would never be famous in this lifetime, I would get hit by lightning and thunder, I would get hit by a car…"
"Stop it!" Lu Tingxiao could not stand this any longer and burst out of the room.
Listening to the sound of his footsteps leaving, Ning Xi felt herself somewhat relieved.
You did the right thing…Ning Xi, you did the right thing…
You should have done this from the start…You were just greedy for too long…You just did not cut it off earlier…
When Ning Xi slowly walked out, she was surprised to find someone leaning quietly against the wall with a cigarette that was practically burnt out in his hand, indicating just about how long he might have been standing there.
"Jiang Muye…," Ning Xi trailed off in shock.
Jiang Muye breathed out a long ring of smoke, looked down and laughed to himself, "The one you said whom you like very, very, very much…so much so that no matter how amazing others may be, they could not replace this person…you're talking about Lu Tingxiao, aren't you? Hah, it's seldom that Lu Tingxiao who's usually quite smart could be fooled by this…"
Ning Xi remained silent.
Jiang Muye turned his head to look at Ning Xi and quietly said, "It was you who rejected him, yet it seems like you're worse off than he is…"
It had been a long time since he had seen her like this. She seemed like she was at someone's death anniversary, engulfed in a dark aura with no sign of light or energy…
Jiang Muye suddenly did not know what to say, and frustratedly lit another cigarette.
After hearing Ning Xi reject Lu Tingxiao, not only did he not feel happy at all, instead he felt slightly sorry for them.
He knew, Ning Xi was officially head over heels for Lu Tingxiao…
But if even Lu Tingxiao could not succeed, what more him? Someone who did not even have the guts to admit "I like you"…
Jiang Muye sighed, and finally said the words he had been in a dilemma whether to express or not, "Ning Xi, you don't have to be this way. If you really like him, then just get together with him!"
As soon as he said that, he actually felt a slight sense of relief.
Ning Xi bitterly smiled back and said, "Jiang Muye, weren't you the one who was against this?"
Jiang Muye raised his brows and replied in a casual manner, "I was against this only because I didn't want you to be my aunt! But you are my good friend after all, I hope that you can be happy…"
He earnestly looked at her, "Ning Xi, before this I didn't believe that Lu Tingxiao would be sincere, but now…if he really did like you, he wouldn't care about your status and your job. He also even has the power to protect you from further harm!"
Ning Xi's face darkened as she pleaded, "Jiang Muye, just stop."
If the underlying issue was just because of her status, that would be but a minor bump in the road. No matter her status, her class or her job, as long as she lived, she could change her circumstances. But how would one change the past? How could she change that?
How could she change the fact that she was raped five years ago and had given birth to a bastard?
It's OverWhen Lu Tingxiao returned, Lu Jingli knew it was officially over.
The sky was falling.
The way his brother looked was even scarier than when he first took over the company years ago. At that time, father suddenly fell severely ill and was on the brink of death several times. Everyone was eyeing the position of the heir, so much so that some even tried to break apart the siblings, causing quite a blood shed among the family empire…
The Lu Tingxiao at that time had no emotions, forgetting all meanings of kinship and even using harsh means to defeat all those who tried to stir trouble within the Lu family empire…
Now, Lu Tingxiao was akin to a beast who had just been awoken from his slumber, awash in a murderous vibe.
Lu Jingli initially wanted to console him, but Lu Tingxiao chased all the house's maids away and then locked himself up all alone in the bungalow. He even instructed that no one but himself was allowed to enter.
Lu Jingli was afraid that something would happen to him, fearful that he might even blow up the house, so he waited worriedly outside.
He waited the whole night.
Yet, Lu Tingxiao still had not come out.
On top of that, something worse had happened…
Early in the morning, Father Lu personally gave him a call with an unhappy tone to drop by the old home.
Lu Family's Old Residence.
In the living room, Father Lu and Mother Lu were sitting on the sofa with crestfallen expressions.
The alarm in Lu Jingli's brain was going off frantically and almost immediately, he could guess what had gone wrong.
Indeed, something had gone terribly wrong. Father Lu raised his voice, "Bastard, explain to me what's happening here!"
White A4 papers and photographs were scattered all over the floor.
Lu Jingli briefly skimmed everything, and it was all Ning Xi's pictures and personal information. Ning Xi's identity had been exposed.
Sigh, why does this have to happen now, of all times…Lady Luck is really not on my side!
Mother Lu's expression was full of heartbreak and anger as she stared at her younger son and scolded, "Jingli, you have really disappointed me! You can mess with other things, but this is your brother's marriage we're talking about! How could you not understand the implications of this and help him hide this from us!"
"I thought it was someone from a proper household of suitable class and status, but it turns out she is just a little actress girl, with a very complicated private life! How could someone like this be our Lu family's daughter-in-law, and be the mother to my grandchildren?!" Father Lu shouted as he slammed the table.
Lu Jingli shuddered and cold sweat trickled down his face as he thought about how he had left Little Treasure under their care.
"What spell did that woman cast onto your brother? The fact that she could let the arrogant Lu Tingxiao fancy her!"
"Thank goodness we noticed this early. Otherwise, the both of you would have only told us after all was said and done, right? This is ridiculous!"
Both parents went on and on their tirade for at least half an hour.
Initially, Lu Jingli did try to explain himself but he soon gave up. He sat on the sofa and idly started counting the tea leaves in his cup as they scolded him.
Mother Lu gave him a death stare and said, "You little punk! Are you listening to us or not?"
Lu Jingli put down his teacup and blinked twice before asking, "Eh? Are the both of you done talking? Can you please let your dear son, who's been scolded harshly, have a say now?"
Father Lu scoffed, "Fine! You speak! I would like to know what you have to say for yourself!"