After Failing To Tame The Scumbag - Chapter 1

“Will there ever be a chance to give it away?”

In early July, Yucheng was at its peak heat. Even a thin short-sleeved shirt felt like too much, and the asphalt on the streets looked as if it were about to melt under the scorching sun.

Ding.

The faint chime of a clock echoed. Yun Chuxiu, who was busy “pitter-pattering” away at her keyboard, paused slightly. She reached out and picked up her silent phone.

The detached villa was suddenly, terrifyingly quiet.

Yun Chuxiu rubbed the bridge of her nose and idly scrolled through her pinned messages. The latest one was from three hours ago. The contact labeled “A-Jin” said there was a business dinner tonight and she would be back a bit late.

Ji Jin was always busy with work, coming home late was common. Usually, she would either make it back before the curfew or inform Yun Chuxiu in advance so she could sleep early and not wait up.

Tonight felt a bit off. Yun Chuxiu leaned over to look at the darkening sky, took a sip of warm tea to soothe her throat, and dialed the number directly.

While waiting for the call to connect, she glanced at the location tracker. The little green dot was pinned at “Juan Niao Bar,” exactly where it had been three hours ago.

“…Hello?” The call connected quickly. Ji Jin paused deliberately, her voice thick with the scent of alcohol, muffled by the rowdy chatter in the background. “A-Xiu… these people are so difficult. I’ve had a bit to drink and I’m not very clear-headed right now… I’ll find a quiet spot and call you back in a bit.”

The phone clicked off. A split second before the hang-up, the sound of people heckling could be heard, saying things like, “I knew President Ji would be the first one…” After that, there was only the silence of the villa.

Yun Chuxiu remained silent for a moment, staring at the fading screen. She sighed, grabbed her car keys from the table, and walked out the door.

“Juan Niao Bar” was an overly familiar place, not too far from home. As Yun Chuxiu navigated through the bustling streets, she estimated the amount of alcohol Ji Jin must have consumed, a helpless smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

Ji Jin was always like this, acting seven parts drunk when she was only three parts gone, using the liquid courage to whine and act childishly clingy.

While waiting at a red light, Yun Chuxiu fingered the blue velvet box sitting beside her. A faint smile touched her lips, but it quickly turned into a weary frown.

Counting it up… this thing had been stuck in her hands twice now. Was there really a chance to ever give it away?

Yun Chuxiu lowered her gaze, but fortunately, the light turned green, leaving her no time to dwell on it.

On the other side, Ji Jin had no idea what she was about to face.

Another phone on the table lit up. An elite, refined-looking man’s eyes brightened. He grinned for two seconds before deliberately suppressing it, coughing toward his business partners and lowering his voice in a fast, hurried tone: “Mine! This time it’s mine!”

“Tsk” The woman sitting to Ji Jin’s right rolled her eyes elegantly, annoyed after waiting for her own phone to stay dark. She took a frustrated sip of her drink. “What’s so great about this game… no one ever beats President Ji anyway. It’s the same every time, it’s getting a bit boring.”

“I accept the compliment, but I didn’t cheat, who told our A-Xiu to be so considerate?” Ji Jin wasn’t annoyed in fact, she took it as a point of pride. She clinked her glass with the others and smirked. “Anyway, no one here is short on cash to settle the tab.”

“Whether it’s being ‘considerate’ or just ‘control issues’ is for President Ji to decide.”

A voice cut through the air like a stray branch.

The dim lights shimmered on the golden liquid in the glasses, the voice itself seemingly stained with intoxicating alcohol.

The smile on Ji Jin’s face faltered. She looked up at the hand reaching out from across the table. After a pause, a playful glint appeared in her eyes: “Oh, so it’s President Jiang speaking. How rare. I thought President Jiang looked down on our little games. I didn’t expect you to start acting all authoritative just because you’re about to lose.”

“Acting authoritative…?” The woman opposite her didn’t flinch. Even though her hand was left hanging in the air, she didn’t get angry. Instead, she laughed. “Losing to Yun Chuxiu is something I don’t mind.”

“Jiang Fanyin!”

“I’m not deaf,” Jiang Fanyin said, mockingly rubbing her ear before replying in a polite yet provocative tone. “However, President Ji seems quite drunk. Can you even tell the time?”

“It’s eleven o’clock. If I recall correctly, you’ve passed your curfew.”

Ji Jin’s expression went cold. “Jiang Fanyin, is this how you spend your time? Peeking into other people’s family business?”

“I just happened to pass by,” Jiang Fanyin raised an eyebrow, rubbing her chin as if reminiscing. “In the middle of the night, I saw Miss Yun standing lonely under a streetlamp with a dark shadow beside her. I thought she’d gotten a big dog to walk, but when I stopped the car, I realized it was President Ji.”

“Hmm… now that I think about it, I was too embarrassed at the time to apologize for mistaking President Ji for a dog,” Jiang Fanyin said nonchalantly, draining her glass in one go. “This drink is my apology. It’s late; let’s end the game. This round is on me.”

Eyes locked, sparks flew. The booth, which had been silent for a while, grew even quieter, save for the sound of people swallowing nervously.

“You two,” a voice from behind interrupted Ji Jin’s mounting tension.

Ji Jin’s reflexes were faster than her brain. Before she could process it, her hand had already accurately grabbed the person beside her.

“A-Xiu,” the delayed drunkenness hit her. Ji Jin’s instinct kicked in; as soon as she heard that familiar tone, she immediately softened. “Why did you come to pick me up?”

Yun Chuxiu glanced at her, her voice neither hot nor cold: “If I didn’t come, you’d be having a public brawl.”

Ji Jin rubbed her flushed face, her voice dropping. “Do I look that bad?”

Yun Chuxiu sighed softly.

“Go outside and get some air to sober up,” she patted Ji Jin’s head, guiding her out by the shoulder. Her face maintained a faint look of helplessness until Ji Jin slowly rounded the corner out the door. Then, the soft expression vanished completely.

“Miss Yun doesn’t seem to like me very much?” Jiang Fanyin, the first to be stared down, narrowed her eyes and sneered, exposing the truth without mercy. “Ji Jin’s tolerance isn’t that low. She’s stalling because she calculated that you would definitely come. I believe someone as smart as Miss Yun can see that clearly.”

“I don’t care,” Yun Chuxiu frowned. She understood the hidden barbs in the other woman’s words, essentially saying Ji Jin was faking weakness and was responsible for the situation.

But so what?

Yun Chuxiu leaned down to look at Jiang Fanyin. The dim, warm light cascaded over her, a few sparks reflecting in her backlit eyes.

She flattened her lips, looking like a piece of cold jade that couldn’t be warmed. “Ji Jin is sincere. She doesn’t play word games. If President Jiang enjoys dragging people into soap operas, you should find a more like-minded partner for your performances.”

“Also, I’ve waived the bill for this table. Consider it an apology on Ji Jin’s behalf. She takes things too seriously; it was just a game, there’s no need to force a win or loss.”

With that, Yun Chuxiu didn’t give them a chance to reply and turned to walk toward the exit.

“…”

The refined man swallowed hard again.

Although they were business partners, the two people you absolutely couldn’t offend at this table were the young misses of the Ji and Jiang families. These two were pampered wherever they went, forget being embarrassed to their faces, even a misplaced word was rare.

“This…” Seeing Jiang Fanyin laughing to herself while drinking again, someone tried to gauge her mood to liven up the dead atmosphere. “It seems President Jiang was right. This Miss Yun really doesn’t know how to appreciate a favor. She should watch her surroundings; everyone here has seen big scenes…” Sizzle.

“Sorry, my hand slipped,” Jiang Fanyin tilted her wrist. Her glass was empty, the freshly poured liquor had landed squarely on the speaker.

the man smiled sheepishly and waved it off, acting as if nothing happened.

Jiang Fanyin gave a light huff. The remaining ice in her glass rattled, sounding hollow without the liquid to cushion it.

Someone stood up with a bottle. “President Jiang, would you like more?”

Jiang Fanyin moved her hand to avoid the gesture. She had no interest in drinking further, but she wasn’t in a rush to leave either. She just squinted at the door where the silhouette had disappeared, lost in thought.

On the other side, the atmosphere wasn’t as harmonious as Ji Jin had imagined.

The perfect amount of alcohol, a hazy neon night, plus a little post-excitement flair… Ji Jin was feeling restless. While waiting under the streetlamp for a brief moment, she had even unbuttoned her crisp shirt to vent the heat.

Then she ran right into Yun Chuxiu’s cold, frowning face.

Ji Jin didn’t care about the “vibe” anymore. She hurried over to her, grabbing her and asking questions while glancing back at the bar door. Her superficial drunkenness cleared instantly.

“Did any of them bully you? Isn’t Lin Xing here today? What’s she doing, just watching her boss get bullied?”

“I should be asking you that,” Yun Chuxiu finally spoke, pulling her hand away. Her tone was flat. “Drinking with others until now and using an excuse to lure me here just so I could see you arguing with Jiang Fanyin in front of everyone?”

“It was for the partnership…”

“Don’t give me that ‘business partner’ nonsense,” Yun Chuxiu’s voice remained steady, demanding a real reason. “When it’s actual business and when it’s just fooling around… you don’t think I can tell the difference?”

“…”

Ji Jin shrugged. Knowing a random lie wouldn’t work, she let herself sink back into a drunken state. She looked at Yun Chuxiu with damp, beautiful eyes. After the wind blew for a while, she mumbled, “Jiang Fanyin keeps mentioning your name.”

Yun Chuxiu folded her arms. She expected some earth-shattering reason, not a petty grievance.

She sighed, and the deliberate coldness melted away. “She just likes to provoke you. Besides our brief encounter in school, when have I ever met her without you being there?”

Yun Chuxiu helplessly pinched her earlobe. Ji Jin took the opportunity to lean in and hug her. Her alcohol-laden eyes lowered, fixing on their intertwined shadows, and she felt a secret joy.

“Don’t mention her,” Ji Jin’s voice was muffled against Yun Chuxiu’s shoulder, like a piece of wet cotton damp and clinging with a seductive, coquettish trail. “I didn’t do well today. When we get home, A-Xiu can be as angry as she wants.”

Yun Chuxiu dragged the “giant marshmallow” forward and laughed softly. “Then you’re sleeping alone tonight.”

“That definitely won’t work,” the marshmallow “bit” back, nuzzling her neck.

The hot summer breeze couldn’t stop Ji Jin’s persistent clinginess. She hung off Yun Chuxiu’s back, ignoring their height difference. She focused only on the proximity of their two heartbeats, humming a soft tune. She was perfectly content until they reached the car, where she reluctantly let go and sat in the passenger seat.

The view became even dimmer. Ji Jin rubbed her eyes and reached for the tissues nearby, but her hand touched something else first, a small square shaped box.

Her movements froze instantly.

“Ji Jin?” Yun Chuxiu noticed. Her hands stayed on the steering wheel, but she turned to look at her.

Ji Jin subconsciously hid the small box in her palm. The cool touch of the box was like a shot of adrenaline, momentarily freezing her burning heart.

Yun Chuxiu didn’t speak. Her steady breathing hitched for a moment, as if she were waiting for something.

A mere arm’s length away, Ji Jin simply closed her eyes in evasion.