Falling After Marriage - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: What Did You Give Me?

The Maybach slowly slid toward the exit.

Lin Jin leaned back in the rear seat, her alluring eyes trailing the person outside the window.

As they passed each other and parted, she deliberately brought her suit jacket to her nose to inhale and kiss, the faint scent of lemon wrapped in thin sweat, stirring a craving for indulgence.

She squinted her eyes, fantasizing about the luscious scene of that rough fingertip causing chaos, and her smile became increasingly difficult to contain.

Cheng Sangluo stood rooted to the spot, mentally sneering that the crazy woman was truly disgusting, even her departure was so irritating.

Although her expression was restrained, her erratic breathing betrayed her feigned composure. Only when the car’s shadow completely disappeared did she lower her gaze to the room key card.

The ground light made the card dazzling, as if mocking her cowardice, the fact that she didn’t even dare to recall the finer details of that night.

Just as she was about to lift her foot to crush it fiercely, her foot hovered in the air, then slowly retreated.

Cheng Sangluo dejectedly held her forehead, a smile of unknown meaning rising on her lips—a smile fraught with bitterness and an inexpressible sense of helplessness.

Half a month ago.

Pouring slanted rain washed over the eaves. The air was filled with a faint smell of earth.

Cheng Sangluo crouched by the entrance of a convenience store, burying her head to gnaw on a cold rice ball.

She was covered in mud, her soaked long hair clinging to her neck. Several blood-oozing scratches were exposed on the back of her neck.

She was likely too hungry to care about her disheveled state. She roughly wiped her nose and, looking at the potted plant, the sharpness in her eyes softened slightly.

She was relieved that although the recent fight was intense, the scattered few small daisies hadn’t been harmed.

“Does it taste good?”

A pair of kitten-heel pumps made of fine kid leather silently intruded into her sight, bringing a faintly cool, smiling question.

That clear, moist voice was like a stringed instrument; just a few words could make one’s heart itch.

Cheng Sangluo looked up, following the sound, and was momentarily stunned, her breathing slowing.

The woman stood in the rain, holding an umbrella. A tailored qipao made the rainy mist appear like a traditional ink painting.

Her condescending gaze was like ripples surfacing from a deep abyss, and her gentle smile, no matter how one looked at it, held no warmth.

Cheng Sangluo’s mouth was still stuffed with rice, and she mumbled: “Doesn’t taste great.”

The woman stepped closer and whispered: “You just injured several people. The other party called the police and is looking for you everywhere.”

The sudden change in topic created a tense atmosphere.

Cheng Sangluo froze for a moment, vigilant: “Are you following me?”

She scooped up the potted plant, ready to flee. Who wants to get released from prison only to be hauled into the station for a cup of tea right after?

“Don’t you think I’m here to help you?” The woman promptly hooked her hand onto Cheng Sangluo’s clothing hem. When she saw the scratches, her eyes cooled slightly.

Cheng Sangluo shrugged off her hand, resisting: “We are strangers. You have no reason to help me.”

Her intuition told her that this person was untrustworthy. She looked elegant but was filled with malice, especially those deep, smiling eyes.

“Why so many reasons? I simply want to take a stray puppy home.”

The woman didn’t smile as she answered; this jest was delivered very seriously.

She looked up at the main road, chuckling inwardly at the coincidence of fate.

Cheng Sangluo followed her gaze. A police car, lights flashing, was approaching from a distance.

She nervously turned her head away and questioned in a low voice: “Who are you, and what exactly do you want?”

The woman rested the umbrella over Cheng Sangluo’s shoulder, a gesture of protection, yet her tone was anything but kind: “Come with me, or that’s the car you’ll be riding in.”

Evidently, this smiling threat had the effect of shaking her resolve.

Cheng Sangluo remained silent, seemingly weighing which was more dangerous: the woman or the police car?

As she pondered, a cool sensation touched her face. The faint scent of cedar drilled into her nostrils, soothing her doubts.

“Clothes can be dirty, but your face must be clean. This is the least respect you can show yourself.” The woman took a wet wipe and carefully wiped away the mud from Cheng Sangluo’s face, bit by bit. “My name is Lin Jin. You will thank me.”

Cheng Sangluo was lost in thought, as if bewitched, and unconsciously followed her lead.

From the angle Cheng Sangluo couldn’t see, Lin Jin’s face blossomed into a smile, as if encountering spring in the middle of summer.

Linxitai was a famous affluent community in Zhouhai.

Lin Jin’s apartment was on the most expensive floor in the city. The interior decor was minimalist but highly sophisticated.

Currently, Cheng Sangluo stood awkwardly in front of the coffee table, her fingertips picking at the soil in the potted plant, completely out of place.

Her imagination was lacking; she couldn’t estimate that this apartment cost hundreds of thousands per square meter. She only felt gray and dusty, like a joke.

“Are you going to keep holding it like that?” Lin Jin leaned lazily on the sofa, her tone strangely sour.

She resented that the puppy had fought those people fiercely, yet this pot of small daisies was protected exceptionally well.

A cheap potted plant shouldn’t have such high status.

“It’s a gift I gave myself.”

Cheng Sangluo’s gaze was tender as she admired the flowers. She placed the pot on the coffee table with extreme gentleness, even her minor adjustments were careful.

Lin Jin became increasingly displeased. She simply stood up and led the way: “Go take a bath. It would be troublesome if you catch a cold and get a fever.”

Cheng Sangluo realized this woman was skilled in logic and rhetoric. She had been brought here all the way, and every time she suggested getting off, she was deflected with various unanswerable excuses.

When she hesitantly entered the bathroom, Lin Jin was already sitting by the tub, checking the water temperature.

Cheng Sangluo maintained a safe distance, suspicious: “No one is good to a stranger for no reason. What is your goal?”

“Consider it a great act of charity on my part, then.” Lin Jin turned her face away, making her eyes unreadable. Her fingertips swept across the water, creating ripples.

Cheng Sangluo didn’t accept such perfunctory answers and leaned against the wall, refusing to move.

The steam, wrapped in fragrant scents, was quietly dismantling the cold standoff.

Lin Jin walked toward the stubborn person: “I saw Mr. Xu’s people bullying you. Girls, you know, tend to want to help other girls. Is that answer satisfactory?”

Hearing that repulsive surname, killing intent flared in Cheng Sangluo’s eyes: “You know Xu Songheng?”

“I am his client, but we are not the same kind of people.” Lin Jin looked calm. Before leaving, she instructed: “Throw out your dirty clothes. The washing machine can dry them quickly. You’ll soon be a clean little puppy again.”

No one liked being called a dog. Cheng Sangluo slammed the bathroom door shut. The sound of running water stirred her irritation.

She took off her T-shirt, revealing healthy, tanned skin. Even without deliberately flexing, the lean muscles on her body were clearly defined, though there were several ugly bruises on her lower back.

Lin Jin waited quietly by the door. When the clothes were thrown out through the gap, the person inside had already closed the door again.

Bending down to pick up the clothes, she didn’t seem to mind the dirt, covering her nose and inhaling deeply at the collar.

“Mmm~ It’s the little puppy’s scent~”

She strolled into the laundry room.

As Lin Jin shoved the dirty clothes into the drum, she felt a damp piece of paper in the pocket of the pants.

Curious, she unfolded it. It was a certificate of release from prison, dated today.

She suppressed her frivolous smile, holding the certificate up to the light, her eyes deepening with intense melancholy.

Her fair, slender finger traced every word, as if tracing the puppy’s outline. “Cheng Sangluo… Happy rebirth…”

“No, it should be… Welcome back to the mortal hell…”

Inside the bathroom, mist swirled.

Water droplets streamed down Cheng Sangluo’s chin, but they couldn’t wash away the exhaustion covering her.

Suddenly, her spine stiffened. She sprang out of the tub as if electrocuted, not even pausing to wipe the wet hair sticking to her forehead.

Rushing back to the living room, her expression was frantic, her gaze scattered. She didn’t know if it was because she was searching for the certificate or drawn by the slender figure.

Lin Jin had changed into a sleep dress. Under the black satin robe, the sheer straps of the slip revealed tempting charm.

This woman always held a lazy posture, leaning sideways on the sofa, much like a sleepy cat.

She rested one hand on her chin, savoring the panic: “A puppy who doesn’t bathe properly will be dragged back for another wash.”

Cheng Sangluo wrapped her bathrobe tightly, constantly tugging at the collar to cover her chest: “Where are my pants?”

“In the washing machine, of course.” Lin Jin smiled knowingly, leaning forward to pour a glass of red wine: “Want a glass?”

“I don’t drink. In those pants…” Cheng Sangluo hesitated, after all, she had a criminal record, and bringing it up felt shameful.

Her peripheral vision caught the certificate perfectly intact, pressed under the potted plant on the coffee table. She let out a sigh of relief.

“Such an important thing, just casually stuffed in your pocket? Aren’t you afraid of losing it?” Lin Jin spoke lightly, picking up a bottle of mineral water and pouring it into a crystal glass: “Drink some water. Your lips are chapped.”

Cheng Sangluo was indeed very thirsty. She stared at the offered glass, swallowing her dry saliva.

After repeated hesitation, she finally accepted the kindness.

She chugged the entire glass, then asked: “Aren’t you afraid? Bringing a convict home—that’s no different from inviting a wolf into the house.”

Lin Jin was amused. Her fingers toyed with the rim of the stemmed glass, slowly swirling the liquid: “How bad can someone who protects flowers be?”

Was that a compliment? Why did it sound so cheesy?

Cheng Sangluo sat on the opposite side of the sofa, as if maintaining distance could prove she wasn’t a bad person.

She held the glass with both hands. She was still somewhat thirsty, but too reserved to move.

“If you want a drink, pour it yourself. I’m not a server.” Lin Jin teased, her gaze fixed on the puppy, seemingly admiring the fine figure with broad shoulders and a narrow waist.

Cheng Sangluo possessed a pair of sharp, eagle-like eyes, a high nose bridge, and lips that were always tightly pressed. Her sculpted features gave her an aloof, unapproachable air.

Lin Jin stared, captivated, sighing internally that those eyes were exactly like the clear, bright, and clean blue sky after a rain shower.

Alas, unlike those small daisies, she couldn’t earn any tenderness.

She took a sip of wine, with a hint of petulance, her pale feet tapping the porcelain tiles, as if waiting for something.

Cheng Sangluo felt uncomfortable under the scrutiny and kept gulping down water, wondering why her clothes weren’t dry yet.

A sudden dizzying confusion washed over her, like vines creeping inch by inch along her nerves until her whole body was paralyzed.

Her fingers slackened, and the crystal glass suddenly dropped to the floor, shattering with a crisp sound.

Cheng Sangluo slumped into the sofa, struggling to get up, but her arms wouldn’t obey.

“What did you give me to drink?!”

“Water. You chose it, didn’t you?” Lin Jin slowly sipped her wine, peering at the paralyzed puppy, her smile growing triumphant.

Cheng Sangluo’s mind was still relatively clear. She quickly reviewed the details of their interaction.

The answer wasn’t hard to guess: the problem was with the glass.

Right. Why didn’t she just hand me the mineral water bottle?

It dawned on her belatedly that meticulous traps had been hidden in the smallest details all along.

“You… what… what drug… did you put… in the glass…”

The drug was taking effect. Her whole body was burning hot, her chest felt scorched, and Cheng Sangluo’s speech became stuttered.

“Looks like the little puppy isn’t stupid~” Lin Jin clamped down on Cheng Sangluo’s jaw, her fingers deeply pinching the lips. Her other arm, like a smooth, slow snake, gradually slipped to unhook the bathrobe’s belt.

She finally tore off her pretense, revealing a sinister smile: “Ah… acting like a good person all day is exhausting. A small reward from you isn’t too much to ask, is it?”

“Crazy… crazy woman… don’t touch me…”

Cheng Sangluo’s vision swam, her eyes gradually losing focus, leaving only a pale resistance.

Lin Jin leaned down and buried her face in Cheng Sangluo’s neck, coveting the puppy’s scent. Her burning breath showed her obsession.

She ground her canine teeth against the scratches until blood beads began to seep from the wounds again, showing no sign of stopping.

Only when the faint taste of sweetness dissolved on her tongue did she let out a satisfied sigh: “So… Miss Convict… are you scared now?”

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