Captive Moon: Redeemed the Wrong Temptress (GL) - Chapter 8

Jiang Yunong heard the parrot’s comical “woman, woman” and still wanted to laugh. But when she tugged at the corners of her mouth, she couldn’t manage even the faintest smile.

A sudden warmth spread across Jiang Yunong’s shoulder. Snapping out of her reverie, she saw Bai Lan’s hand resting there.

“You really loved her,” Bai Lan said, her eyes earnest and shining with an unwavering light, more captivating than the hazy moonlight filtering through the window.

For a moment, Jiang Yunong was lost in a daze. “Yes… yes, I did,” she murmured.

“You don’t have to force a smile. Heartbreak is a terrible, terrible feeling. You loved her so much, you must have considered her feelings deeply. But she didn’t reciprocate.”

Bai Lan wrapped her arms around Jiang Yunong, her frail, weakened body supporting her wavering Master.

“It’s not your fault she stopped loving you. It has nothing to do with you. She’s just a bad person, a heartless woman. She didn’t have the courage to tell you she no longer loved you, to break up or even argue. Instead, she secretly hurt you behind your back.”

Jiang Yunong lowered her gaze and let out a soft laugh. “I know,” she said. Her sadness was simply for the four years they had lost together. Nothing more.

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to go back to the past. It’s just that she wasn’t the right person for you. You’ll find someone else, another love. Something even better.”

As Jiang Yunong listened to Bai Lan’s distant words, she felt like she was hearing the fall of rain. It formed a painting of indescribable emotion, etching itself into her heart. Jiang Yunong once again realized Bai Lan truly had a gift for bartending.

“Can I lean on you?” Jiang Yunong asked, her brow unfurrowing.

“Yunong, you’re my Master,” Bai Lan said, drawing Jiang Yunong into her arms. “I only obey your commands, I just don’t call you that. You can do anything you want with me. Lean on me, hold me, kiss me, even…” Bai Lan tightened her grip on Jiang Yunong’s shoulders. “Don’t forget that.”

Jiang Yunong closed her eyes, each breath filled with Bai Lan’s scent. She sank into the sweet-smelling embrace. “I… understand.”

Bai Lan was hers. At least, she would never betray her. And she would never refuse her.

“What do you want for dinner?” Jiang Yunong glanced at the clock. After taking the fever reducer, Bai Lan’s spirits had visibly improved.

“I’ll handle it,” Bai Lan said, following Jiang Yunong into the kitchen.

“It’s just one meal. I’m more familiar with the kitchen, so let me take care of it.”

Jiang Yunong had drawn strength from Bai Lan and wanted to reciprocate. Besides, she felt guilty for leaving Bai Lan home alone all day, sick and hungry.

“Yunong, I can handle this,” Bai Lan said, simply wanting to ease Jiang Yunong’s burden.

“But you’re still sick.” Neither woman would yield. Jiang Yunong grabbed the vegetables and began washing them.

“But don’t you have work to do?” Bai Lan countered with an argument Jiang Yunong couldn’t refute.

Jiang Yunong paused, biting her lip. “Then… I’ll leave it to you.”

She had been delayed by over forty minutes and would have to work late tonight.

“Go get back to work. From now on, I’ll take care of things like this for you,” Bai Lan said, ushering Jiang Yunong into the study.

Watching Bai Lan leave the study, Jiang Yunong’s mind raced with questions. How did Bai Lan know I had work to do?

She opened her laptop, focusing on completing the filing, leaving no room for further thought.

Half an hour later, Bai Lan called Jiang Yunong out for dinner.

Still preoccupied with work, Jiang Yunong accidentally bumped into Bai Lan’s arms. She covered her head, trying to pull away, but Bai Lan held her close and led her to the dining table.

“You seem troubled,” Bai Lan said, handing Jiang Yunong a drink.

Jiang Yunong took a sip, and the sweet-bitter taste was irresistible. It mirrored her current restless mood perfectly.

“Hmm. I don’t know…” She hesitated, unsure whether to confide in Bai Lan.

“If you don’t mind, tell me about it,” Bai Lan said, winking at Jiang Yunong. “After all, you don’t have to worry about me telling anyone.”

Jiang Yunong slowly looked up at Bai Lan. She saw Bai Lan’s gentle blink, her luminous eyes even more captivating than before. They held trust and dependence.

Jiang Yunong forced a smile. “I haven’t been at the company long. The atmosphere is terrible—lots of backstabbing and infighting, and the workload is huge.”

“Honestly, being tired or working hard wouldn’t be so bad. I’m young, I can handle it. But…”

Bai Lan finished her sentence. “But your colleagues are awful.”

“Yeah. I don’t really know most of my colleagues. They’re always rushing around. The supervisor is cold too—all he cares about is results and efficiency.”

“I was hired as a designer, but as a junior employee, I can’t be the lead designer. I’m stuck doing grunt work, like running errands and preparing drafts for the senior designers.”

Jiang Yunong sighed. It turns out every new hire is treated like a workhorse. Unless you have connections. Like Deng Hao.

“This is such a waste of your talent,” Bai Lan said, listening intently. “Why don’t they let you work as an assistant to one of the senior designers?”

She seemed very experienced.

“Here’s the problem. The designer I’m supposed to be assisting is always busy, traveling every day. The last time I saw her was half a month ago. She doesn’t respond to my emails or Instagram messages, and her office is always empty.”

“I’ve just been doing odd jobs with the team. Last week, we had to file a project. We finished it up properly on Friday, everything was done. That day, I got the final version from another team member. I was supposed to check it for errors, make corrections, and finalize the presentation slides for our meeting.”

“I stayed late, and a guy named Deng Hao was also working overtime. Looking back, I think he did it on purpose. But at the time, I didn’t suspect a thing.”

“He came to discuss work matters with me, and I told him what he wanted to know. During the conversation, he started acting strangely. At the time, I thought he had ulterior motives and instinctively moved away, which gave him the opening he needed to damage the USB drive containing the backup files.”

“After that, I confronted him, but he snatched the printed documents from me. The surveillance cameras should have captured the whole thing. But my team leader wouldn’t listen to me.”

Jiang Yunong took a bite of beef. Suddenly, she started coughing.

“What’s wrong?” Bai Lan quickly patted Jiang Yunong’s back and wiped her mouth.

“Sister…” Jiang Yunong held up the half-chewed beef for Bai Lan to see. “This isn’t cooked through yet,” she said, a mix of amusement and exasperation in her voice. She had assumed Bai Lan knew how to cook.

“Oh, I’m so sorry! I didn’t even notice. I remember tasting one piece that was cooked. I’ll stir-fry it a bit more.”

Bai Lan hurriedly picked up the beef and rushed into the kitchen.

Jiang Yunong followed. “These are cut into larger pieces, so the middle isn’t cooked through. Is this your first time cooking, Sister?”

Bai Lan nodded sheepishly. “When I had time at home, I’d just boil some noodles or eat takeout.”

“I told you I should have done it,” Jiang Yunong said, reaching for the pan. “Meat this size usually needs to simmer for fifteen minutes.”

“But you’re so busy,” Bai Lan protested softly, her ears flushed pink. “The deadline for your supplemental filing must be coming up soon, right?”

Bai Lan’s gentle voice made Jiang Yunong’s mind wander. “I still have time to cook,” she insisted, wanting to refuse.

But Bai Lan was determined to do it herself. “Master, I want to help you. Just let me practice a few more times.”

The word “Master” distracted Jiang Yunong, her heart clenching sharply. The pan slipped from her grasp. Now she could only watch Bai Lan cook.

“Keep telling me. What happened next? Your colleague who filed the report must have had a backup, right?”

Bai Lan turned on the heat and resumed stir-frying the beef.

“That’s what I found suspicious too. To prevent leaks, computers are usually not allowed to be taken home. My colleague’s computer was left at the office. The next day, we searched together, but we couldn’t find any backup files on her computer.”

Jiang Yunong had spent half the day running around just to get permission to take her computer home.

Bai Lan listened to the whole story, her mind already working.

“It’s probably that Deng guy who’s behind this. Have you considered… retaliating in kind?” Bai Lan chose her words carefully.

“You mean sabotage his project? What if I get caught? He has connections in the company,” Jiang Yunong hesitated.

“With people like him, they won’t learn unless you fight fire with fire. Otherwise, they’ll just keep coming after you,” Bai Lan said calmly, her earlier shyness and meekness completely gone.

It was as if she had been born knowing these tactics. Some memory that didn’t belong to her present life had crawled into her mind.

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