Edge of A Burning Kiss - Chapter 19

The manager pushed open the heavy door to the private room.

“Wow, this really lives up to being President Qin’s exclusive room,” someone murmured in awe.

The room was absurdly large, decorated with understated luxury, every detail screamed, “I’ve got money.”

Xia Jin silently scoffed to herself. She had thought her office was well-decorated, but who knew a single bar could outshine Stellar Cube in extravagance?

The joys of capitalists were beyond her imagination. When she got rich, she’d even stud her desk with diamonds!

Everyone found comfortable seats, and the atmosphere grew subtly awkward.

After all, the rowdy friends Tang Wenlun had brought along had never interacted with the famously stern President Qin before. They were all filled with a mix of reverence and curiosity.

Noticing the awkwardness, Tang Wenlun slapped his thigh. “Sitting around like this is boring! Let’s play something!”

Someone immediately chimed in, “How about Truth or Dare?”

“Yeah, yeah!”

“That’s so cliché.”

“Who cares? Just admit it’s exciting!”

Xia Jin was indifferent, she wasn’t picky about party games.

But when she caught Qin Yu nodding slightly out of the corner of her eye, signaling his agreement, she was stunned.

Leaning in, she whispered to Qin Yu, “A big-shot CEO like you, signing billion-dollar contracts every day, still plays kiddie games like this?”

As Qin Yu lowered his head, he caught the unique scent of Xia Jin’s hair. Thankfully, the dim lighting hid the faint blush creeping up his ears.

He cleared his throat. “No choice. Being busy all day is exhausting. Sometimes you need a kiddie game to give your brain a break.”

Xia Jin straightened up and gave Qin Yu a long look. Him, busy? She hadn’t seen him work a single day this week.

With both Qin Yu and Xia Jin on board, no one else objected, and the game quickly began.

The first round landed on a poor soul from the Northeast, who drew “Dare” and was forced to act out a domineering CEO scene in the corner alone.

“Damn woman! You’re playing with fire! You can’t escape the grasp of Chu Batian! The geese I raise are slaughtered only for you!”

The group burst into laughter. “Hahahaha! Zhang Ke, I’d invest in a Northeastern CEO short drama for you! My heart beats only for Chu Batian!”

Zhang Ke scowled. “Piss off!”

Xia Jin couldn’t help but laugh so hard she collapsed onto Qin Yu’s shoulder.

The second round, a male influencer brought by a rich second-generation heir was asked a truth question.

“When was your last kiss?”

The influencer blushed. “An hour ago.”

Xia Jin sighed to Qin Yu, “I’ve watched his livestreams before. He seemed so normal, who knew he was gay?”

A few rounds passed without much excitement.

Until the King card landed in Tang Wenlun’s hands!

Tang Wenlun grinned, flashing all eight teeth, looking like he was about to steal Zhang Ke’s geese.

His sharp gaze swept over the circle of faces before locking onto Xia Jin.

More precisely, onto the facedown card in front of her.

Tang Wenlun’s eyes were as sharp as an eagle’s. Xia Jin strongly suspected he’d peeked at her card number.

“Ahem!” Tang Wenlun cleared his throat and slapped the Joker card onto the center of the table. “I choose you, Three of Spades!”

Xia Jin resignedly flipped over her card. Sure enough, it was the Three of Spades.

She glared at Tang Wenlun, this jerk was definitely doing it on purpose!

Tang Wenlun ignored her dagger-like gaze and grinned. “Truth or dare?”

“Truth,” Xia Jin answered without hesitation.

God only knew what outrageous stunt he’d make her do for a dare.

“Alrighty then!” Tang Wenlun drew out his words, building up the suspense. “Here’s the question, Xia Jin, have you ever genuinely liked someone?”

The moment the question was asked, the chatter in the private room instantly died down.

Holy shit. No one had expected Tang Wenlun to be so bold, after all, Xia Jin was famously known in their circle for having zero romantic rumors.

Everyone’s gossip radar perked up at once, their eyes locking onto Xia Jin’s face.

Even Qin Yu, who had been leaning back on the sofa with his eyes closed, well, pretending to rest, subtly lifted his eyelids.

Under the weight of so many stares, Xia Jin felt like a monkey in a zoo. She picked up her juice glass and took a slow sip, buying time before finally answering.

“Yeah.”

Just two words, light as a feather, yet they dropped like a depth charge into the still waters of the room.

“Whoa!”

The room erupted in barely contained gasps and exclamations.

Others immediately jumped in with eager follow-ups:

“Who? Who? How come I never knew? Is it someone we know?”

“Yeah, Boss Xia! Spill the tea!”

“Who was blind enough to let you slip away?”

“We promise not to spread it around!”

Xia Jin looked at the sea of curious faces, especially Tang Wenlun’s punchable “spill-it-I-want-the-gossip” expression, and suddenly smiled.

Setting down her glass, she blinked at the crowd. “Want to know?”

“Yes, yes, yes!” They nodded like eager puppies.

Xia Jin leisurely replied, “That’s the next question. Whoever draws me next can ask then.”

“Awww!” A chorus of disappointed groans filled the room.

“Xia Jin, you’re so cruel!” Tang Wenlun huffed, clearly frustrated at not getting his way. Next time, he was definitely drawing the Joker.

Xia Jin smirked at him and ignored his sulking.

The game continued.

Shuffle, deal.

This round, the Joker landed in the hands of a young guy with pink hair, a close friend of Tang Wenlun’s and the one who had suggested playing Truth or Dare in the first place.

Jiang Yuhao held the Joker, glancing around before his gaze lingered with interest between Qin Yu and Xia Jin.

Probably realizing Tang Wenlun hadn’t gotten an answer from Xia Jin earlier, he wanted to pick up the baton. But since he wasn’t as familiar with Xia Jin, he hesitated, not wanting to overstep.

He was on better terms with Qin Yu, though, so after some thought,

“Got it!” Jiang Yuhao snapped his fingers. “I pick the Seven of Diamonds, and President Qin, you two have to sing a duet! A love song!”

“Pfft!” Tang Wenlun nearly spat out his drink.

“Holy shit! Dude, you’ve got guts! You actually dared to pick President Qin?!”

“Legend! I’ve always wanted to hear President Qin sing!”

“This is perfect! Hurry up, hurry up!”

The atmosphere in the private room instantly reignited, with everyone eagerly trying to spot who the lucky holder of the Seven of Diamonds was the one destined to sing a love duet with Qin Yu.

Xia Jin’s heart skipped a beat as a wave of foreboding washed over her.

Stiffly, she lowered her gaze to the card in front of her.

A glaring red diamond, with a clear number 7.

Xia Jin was certain she must have forgotten to check the almanac before leaving home today. How could luck be this cruel?

Wait, come to think of it, ever since meeting Qin Yu, it seemed like every bizarre coincidence had found its way to her.

Under the expectant stares of the crowd, Xia Jin reluctantly revealed the Seven of Diamonds in her hand.

The room fell silent once more.

Then, an even louder eruption of laughter and teasing followed.

Tang Wenlun pounded the table, howling with laughter: “Hahaha! Fate! Xia Jin! This is destiny at work!”

Xia Jin: “…”

Right now, all she wanted was to throw Tang Wenlun a chair and all, straight out the door.