After Failing To Tame The Scumbag - Chapter 29

“History repeating itself.”

“Senior, you always seem so calm,” Jiang Fanyin regained her gentle and friendly persona, as if the brief flash of aggression from before was merely an illusion. “I truly envy those who have been steadfastly chosen by you.”

“Don’t call me ‘Senior’,” Yun Chuxiu looked up faintly, having barely finished her lunch. She spoke calmly, “Our relationship isn’t significant enough to warrant revisiting the past.”

“How heartless…” Jiang Fanyin only smiled. She wasn’t fixated on a meal she couldn’t eat, instead, she seemed more interested in other information.

“I thought it was just Ji Jin’s little temper, but I didn’t expect… even after breaking up with her, you still maintain such psychological care for her.”

Yun Chuxiu didn’t hide her discomfort at those words. “President Jiang, there is no need for you to be so concerned about my love life.”

Jiang Fanyin followed up smoothly: “I’m only concerned about you.”

Yun Chuxiu: “…”

Expressionless, Yun Chuxiu wiped the corners of her mouth, grabbed her bag, and stood up to leave.

“Miss Yun, remember what I said today,” Jiang Fanyin called out from behind. She didn’t give chase, acting as if she knew the other woman wouldn’t simply ignore her voice. She added meaningfully, “I would be very happy for you to come to me for help.”

…Thank you, but no thanks.

Yun Chuxiu couldn’t handle this brand of enthusiasm and silently quickened her pace.

After a chaotic half-day, peace felt particularly precious.

Yun Chuxiu returned to the headquarters of “Yun Jian.” In fact, since the beginning of the year, she had slowly delegated power to trusted subordinates. She spent most of her time in her private studio, enjoying a bit of leisure time.

She hadn’t expected that when life became truly annoying, work would become a form of solace. At least work just stayed there, all the rewards were tangible. It wouldn’t grow unpredictable thoughts like a baffling human being, nor would it be impossible to avoid.

Yun Chuxiu had to admit that Jiang Fanyin had found a perfect point of provocation. Regarding this matter, it was indeed difficult for her to forgive Ji Jin for “repeating her mistakes.”

…Actually, it’s not really repeating mistakes, she thought, a moment of dazed bitterness crossing her eyes. She realized with some helplessness that despite saying they had broken up, their relationship didn’t seem like something that could be ended so easily.

Years of accumulated time had already fused their two hearts together. They were no longer limited by a title or confined by a social relationship.

Because of this, she had to clearly define the boundaries over and over again, preventing herself from sinking back in.

If this was also a “sequel”… it was far too exhausting.

Yun Chuxiu laughed at herself. She picked up a magazine from her desk and flipped through it, only for a small slip of paper with a smiley face drawn on it to fall out. The magazine was no longer current, it had sat lonely on the desk for a long time, and the paper had been pressed flat, losing its original playfulness.

…It’s all in the past now.

Yun Chuxiu calmly crumpled the smiley face into a ball and threw it into the trash. She didn’t need to guess who the culprit was.

Speak of the devil.

“Axxiu, are you off work yet?”

Just after seven, Ji Jin appeared silently at the open door. As if nothing had happened, she smiled and waved. “I only came over after finishing all my work properly. Do I have the honor of treating Axxiu to dinner?”

Yun Chuxiu frowned. “Who let you in?”

“When I come to see you, hasn’t it always been without needing an announcement?” Ji Jin heard the underlying meaning in her words. Her smile faltered slightly as she forced a change of subject. “I booked a restaurant you like. At this time…”

“I’m not going,” Yun Chuxiu finished typing her last word. Her voice was cold, and a small trace of resentment was hidden within it. “Ji Jin, I don’t want to keep reminding you of our current relationship. It makes me feel weary.”

“Even friends can eat together,” Ji Jin’s smile was stiff, her dark eyes meeting Yun’s. “Surely, I’m not even considered a friend anymore.”

“Ji Jin, stop it.”

Yun Chuxiu fell silent for two seconds and pinched the bridge of her nose. Her already overloaded brain felt increasingly tired. She just wanted to resolve the trouble in front of her quickly or failing that, just close her eyes and end the day.

She was reluctant to handle problems when she wasn’t in a good state. It was like carrying a bomb she couldn’t control, especially in front of this person.

Yun Chuxiu thought: she might be calm, but she wasn’t without a temper. To come here and show such attentiveness right after news of a blind date leaked…

Maintaining her calm facade, Yun Chuxiu tried to persuade her in a toneless voice: “Go back first. I really have no appetite right now.”

“Is it no appetite, or do you just not want to eat with me?”

Ji Jin was equally calm, but it was a cold, over the top calmness. Her voice was low and heavy, dropping like shards of ice. “When you were dining with Jiang Fanyin, weren’t you quite happy?”

“But I’m not allowed?”

Yun Chuxiu sighed. “Where are you getting this gossip from? I was just cornered by her at a table. If that counts as ‘dining happily,’ then your definition of happiness is far too broad.”

“And….”

Ji Jin’s expression softened slightly, but she kept her face tense, determined to let Yun know the severity of the situation if it were true. “And what?”

“I don’t have any obligation to explain myself to you, do I?” Yun Chuxiu was physically and mentally exhausted, and her patience was wearing thin. Her pale eyes stared directly into the cold light, their temperature dropping as if a layer of frost had formed. “To spy on me like this… Ji Jin, who is the real control freak?”

“It’s my fault.”

Ji Jin apologized as quickly as ever, as if she didn’t need to consider the cause or effect. Naturally, she had no intention of actually changing. She looked deeply at Yun Chuxiu and said, “Your popularity is very high right now. That photo of you eating with Jiang Fanyin was sent to me by someone else.”

The Ji family was prestigious in Yucheng. The news of that rejected proposal had spread long ago, causing quite a stir online, even providing a business opportunity for those looking to profit.

“Jiang Fanyin is just too recognizable,” Ji Jin said, omitting her own role in the matter and accurately finding a scapegoat. She said innocently, “She’s also cunning and treacherous… I was just worried you were being tricked by her.”

“She has no reason to trick me for the time being,” Yun Chuxiu’s head throbbed; she desperately wanted to end the conversation. “I wasn’t tricked either, it’s just…”

She hesitated, looking down at a blank piece of paper. She habitually tried to curl her lips into a smile but failed. “It was just an exchange about insignificant things.”

Ji Jin stared at her, keenly sensing the constraint. She wanted to dig deeper, but before she could speak, the other woman issued an eviction notice.

Yun Chuxiu looked up calmly. Her eyes, which usually felt as vast as the sea, suddenly seemed to have run dry.

“Now that you have your answer, you should leave.”

…How could I leave now?

Ji Jin couldn’t ignore the wrongness in her gaze. Not only did she not retreat, but she stepped into the office and closed the door behind her.

Yun Chuxiu looked at her with displeasure.

Ji Jin opened her mouth, suppressed the sourness overflowing in her heart, and crouched down by the chair. She used her old trick, looking up with pitiful, moist eyes.

“I want to stay with you,” she said. She didn’t want to miss any hidden dangers, yet she wasn’t used to deceiving Yun Chuxiu. She could only reveal the truest feelings hidden deep in her heart over and over again. “Even if it’s fake, news like that makes me very uneasy… Axxiu, just pretend I’m not here, okay? Let me stay for a bit, don’t drive me away like this.”

As she spoke, she took a deep breath. Her lowered hand quietly reached up, and she tilted her face toward her. “Axxiu, you know I won’t give up on you.”

Yun Chuxiu pressed against her face and pushed her away.

“Then your persistence is quite cheap,” she said. She rarely spoke such harsh words, but now, the thought of Ji Jin frantically chasing her while simultaneously making other arrangements behind her back made it impossible for even the most refined person to endure.

“You want to stay by my side? Fine, I can give you that chance,” Yun Chuxiu turned, her hand catching Ji Jin’s chin as she stared straight into those eyes. “But don’t you have anything to confess to me?”

“Ji Jin,” her heart felt painfully tight, her voice turning raspy, “I don’t keep ‘unclean’ things around me. The same goes for people.”

“Did Jiang Fanyin say something nonsense to you?” Ji Jin didn’t react at all, assuming her contemptible rival had slandered her again. She quickly pledged her loyalty. “If there was really something going on, how could I hide it from you?”

Maintaining her position while being held by the chin, she fumbled for her phone and handed it over. Her eyes were sincere, and her attitude was cooperative. “Your fingerprint is still registered, and the password is your birthday. I haven’t changed a thing.”

“If you don’t believe me, you can check every single message. I really haven’t done anything.”

Yun Chuxiu glanced suspiciously at the phone screen. Considering Ji Jin’s credibility on such matters, she chose to give her one more chance.

“So the blind date is also fake?”

Ji Jin shook her head instinctively. She seemed surprised that this specific matter had been brought up, her eyes widening. “I didn’t agree to it!”

She denied it firmly first, then muttered with a headache: “Gu Yili is so unreliable… we agreed she wouldn’t say anything.”

It had only been such a short time!

“So it is true,” Yun Chuxiu’s attitude turned cold, a mocking smile playing on her lips. “Then why didn’t you say so when I asked you just now?”

Ji Jin said helplessly, “I thought that matter was already resolved.”

“You should know that I hate this kind of concealment,” Yun Chuxiu looked at her, as if trying to find something more real in those defenseless eyes. “Acting like it never happened just because it’s over. Ji Jin, how am I supposed to believe you?”

That recording kept echoing in her mind. It was like this even when she was still the girlfriend; what about now?

Yun Chuxiu admitted she was far from being so broad-minded. What she wanted was definitely more than just a single sentence.

“Where is the evidence?” She smiled, her emotions reaching a threshold, tearing open something even more raw. “If it’s just words, how do I know you aren’t going off to accompany another daughter of a family friend who just returned from abroad?”

The bomb she had been holding finally exploded.