He Lost Control with Jealousy — What Happened to Being Untouchable? - Chapter 19

Lin Lan shot Xu Shiming an ambiguous glance and said coldly, “Sun Meixi mentioned that Wang Sheng’s collaborations with the Lu family have all been suspended. He’s too busy dealing with his own mess now.”

Even if she hadn’t brought it up, Xu Shiming would have found out soon enough.

“Is that so?” Xu Shiming set down the building blocks in his hand, visibly excited.

“That’s fantastic! This means Sang Wan won’t have to marry him. With Sang Wan’s current fame, she might be worth even more now.”

Xu Mingyue, unhappy that her father seemed indifferent to her own concerns, pouted. “Dad, stop thinking about Sang Wan all the time. Help me figure something out, I want to marry into the Lu family.”

“You’ll have to prove yourself worthy of Young Master Lu’s favor first.”

Xu Shiming sighed helplessly. It was obvious to everyone that Lu Jinxuan had no interest in Xu Mingyue, what could he possibly do about that?

But Sang Wan would never make it into the Lu family either.

Lin Lan gave Xu Shiming a displeased look before patting her daughter’s hand reassuringly. “Don’t worry, Mom will think of a way.”

After freshening up, Sang Wan settled in the study to sketch. Her mind had been restless these past few days, but tonight, for the first time in a while, she felt a rare sense of calm. Ideas flowed effortlessly from her thoughts.

A message notification chimed.

Lu Jinxuan: [Miss Sang, are you free tomorrow evening?]

Lu Jinxuan: [No ulterior motives, I just feel bad about the company standing you up. I’d like to make it up to you.]

Sang Wan stared at the screen, thinking of Lu Jinxuan. He seemed so guileless. It would be a shame if he fell prey to Xu Mingyue’s scheming ways.

Driven by the noble intention of rescuing someone from misfortune, not to mention the added bonus of infuriating that mother-daughter duo, Sang Wan agreed.

…

The next evening, as dusk deepened.

Inside an elegantly decorated private dining room, the faint scent of sandalwood lingered in the air.

Lu Jinxuan sat awkwardly across from Sang Wan, his gaze flitting toward her before quickly darting away, his ears tinged with pink.

“Miss Sang… thank you for agreeing to meet.”

Noticing his nervousness, Sang Wan found it amusing that the eldest grandson of the Lu family could be so shy, devoid of the usual arrogance associated with wealthy heirs.

She lifted her teacup, taking a delicate sip with graceful poise. “No need for formalities, Young Master Lu. Just call me Sang Wan.”

Tonight, she wore a moon-white dress that accentuated her porcelain skin. Her long, silky hair cascaded loosely, softening the dazzling aura she carried on stage into something gentler, more approachable.

Lu Jinxuan’s heartbeat quickened as he looked at her. Summoning his courage, he blurted, “What’s your relationship with my uncle?”

Sang Wan’s lips curved. So their encounter at Wang Sheng’s birthday banquet had indeed sparked misunderstandings.

“We only just met.”

“Really? But my uncle terminated all of Lu Corporation’s collaborations with my uncle-in-law because of you.”

Sang Wan froze. No wonder Xu Shiming hadn’t pressured her lately, Wang Sheng was too preoccupied with his own troubles.

“Young Master Lu, what do you mean? I truly only just met your uncle. That day, I was just borrowing his influence to shake off Wang Sheng.”

Lu Jinxuan frowned in confusion. “Then why did my uncle suddenly cut ties with Uncle-in-law? He even begged my mother to intervene.”

A ripple of emotion stirred in Sang Wan’s heart. Could Lu Tingzhou have really done this for her?

But he didn’t like her, if anything, he seemed to disdain her. How could that be?

Suppressing the thought, Sang Wan chuckled awkwardly. “There must be another reason.”

Hearing this, Lu Jinxuan’s tension eased. That made sense, his uncle didn’t seem interested in women anyway.

Emboldened, he took a deep breath. “Sang Wan… actually, I… I think I fell for you at first sight.”

Sang Wan’s hand holding the teacup paused slightly as she lifted her gaze to meet his. Her clear eyes held a trace of surprise before melting into a faint smile.

Familiar words.

“Young Master Lu, that’s quite the joke you’re making.”

Lu Jinxuan grew flustered, his cheeks flushing even redder. “I’m not joking! I’m serious! I know this might seem sudden, but I hope… I hope you’ll give me a chance to pursue you.”

His tone was earnest, his gaze fervent.

Sang Wan set down her teacup, her fingertips lightly tapping against the tabletop, producing a soft, rhythmic sound.

“Lu Jinxuan, the truth is, I’ve been using you. I… I owe you an apology.”

She switched her form of address, her voice gentle yet carrying an unyielding distance.

“I could tell you weren’t particularly interested in Xu Mingyue, so I thought I’d persuade you to give up on her. To put it bluntly, I just wanted to spite her.”

Lu Jinxuan froze, clearly not expecting such blunt honesty from Sang Wan.

Though, deep down, he had sensed it.

Sang Wan looked at him and continued, “Xu Mingyue puts on an act of innocence and kindness in front of you, but she’s not a good match. She’s only approaching you because of the Lu family’s influence. Of course, I’m no saint either, I just don’t want her to get her way.”

At the mention of Xu Mingyue, Lu Jinxuan sighed helplessly. He had no idea what kind of spell she had cast on his mother, who was dead set on making him marry her.

“I never liked her in the first place! It’s all my mom, she insists on pushing us together!”

Sang Wan chuckled. “Then it seems your road ahead won’t be easy.”

Lu Jinxuan hadn’t expected his heartfelt confession to steer the conversation in this direction.

“Difficult or not, I’ll walk it. My uncle had it tough too, but he forged his own path. I can do the same.”

Sang Wan smiled at him. This kid really wasn’t bad, he absolutely shouldn’t be ruined by Xu Mingyue and her mother.

“Since we’re being honest, I won’t hide anything either.” A hint of mischief curled at the corner of Sang Wan’s lips. “I don’t like younger men. If Young Master Lu isn’t angry with me, we can be friends. Calling me ‘Miss Sang’ feels too formal. I’m a few years older than you, if you don’t mind, we can even be like siblings.”

“Wan… S-Sister Wan?”

The object of his affection had suddenly turned into an older sister. He wasn’t quite ready to accept it.

Before he could even muster a rebuttal, Sang Wan had already defined their relationship.

“If Young Master Lu thinks I’m overstepping, you can just call me Sang Wan.”

Truthfully, Sang Wan just wanted to cut off his romantic notions. Whether he called her “sister” or not didn’t matter.

“No, no, that’s not what I meant.”

After a brief hesitation, he spoke again, “S-Sister Wan.”

His voice carried a hint of shyness, along with a childlike eagerness.

The bright, charming woman before him had rejected him, but the way she did it was something he could accept. The tension in his heart gradually dissipated.

Sang Wan nodded in satisfaction before shifting the topic with a deliberately troubled expression. “By the way, Jinxuan, I actually need to ask you for a favor.”

“Sister Wan, just say the word!”

Lu Jinxuan straightened with solemn determination, as if ready to take on any challenge.

“Well,” Sang Wan tapped her temple lightly with slender fingers, feigning slight regret, “I met your uncle because a few days ago, I accidentally… rear-ended his car…”

She glossed over the earlier “scam” incident, framing it as nothing more than an accidental collision.

“I wanted to settle it privately, it wasn’t a big deal anyway. But I don’t have your uncle’s contact information. So, you see…”

Sang Wan blinked her eyes, a hint of pleading in her gaze.

Upon hearing this, Lu Jinxuan immediately said, “No problem at all! My uncle might seem cold, but he’s actually kind-hearted. I’ll give you his phone number and WeChat, he won’t make things difficult for you.”

With that, Lu Jinxuan took out his phone and sent Sang Wan both Lu Tingzhou’s phone number and WeChat contact.

“Thanks,” Sang Wan replied, her lips curving into a smile as her goal was achieved.

But once she had Lu Tingzhou’s contact information, hesitation crept into her heart.

Her finger hovered over the screen, the vague silhouette in the profile picture strangely familiar.

She stared at it for a while but couldn’t bring herself to tap the “Add Friend” button.

He had already made it clear he disliked her, wouldn’t chasing after him like this be too undignified?

Sang Wan lightly bit her lower lip and ultimately just saved the number in her phone contacts, labeling it: Lu Tingzhou.

She didn’t add him on WeChat.

The meal ended in a relatively relaxed atmosphere.

Lu Jinxuan gallantly opened the car door for Sang Wan.

At that moment, Lu Tingzhou and Shen Yubai walked out one after the other.

Seeing the scene before him, Lu Tingzhou’s expression darkened, and his steps faltered.

Shen Yubai leaned lazily against a pillar, his roguish eyes immediately catching sight of the slender figure about to get into the car downstairs and the attentive Lu Jinxuan beside her.

“Tsk,” Shen Yubai rubbed his chin, his peach-blossom eyes narrowing with amusement. “Isn’t that little Jinxuan? And next to him… oh, the beauty who was flirting with you just the other day.”

He nudged Lu Tingzhou’s arm teasingly. “What’s this? Are we witnessing… a wife turning into a niece-in-law scenario?”

Lu Tingzhou said nothing, his deep gaze still fixed on the two who had just gotten into the car.

As the window rolled up, he caught a glimpse of that radiantly smiling face, bright eyes, pearly teeth, chatting and laughing with Lu Jinxuan.

Shen Yubai watched as Lu Jinxuan’s car drove away, then turned to Lu Tingzhou, noticing the air around him had grown noticeably heavier.

But being the provocateur he was, he couldn’t resist adding fuel to the fire. “Jealous? This is nothing. Wait till they get married, she’ll serve you tea, and you’ll have to give her a red envelope for addressing you as ‘uncle.’ And when they have kids, and those kids call you ‘grandpa,’ you’ll have to fork over even bigger red envelopes.”

Lu Tingzhou expressionlessly averted his gaze, his thin lips pressed into a tight line, and strode away without a word.

His retreating figure exuded an unmistakable aura of I’m not happy.

Shen Yubai raised an eyebrow behind him, silently grinning.

This was getting interesting. Very interesting.

Lu Tingzhou wasn’t acting normal.

The next day.

Sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains, casting dappled light onto the floor of Sang Wan’s apartment.

Curled up on the sofa with a thin blanket draped over her, Sang Wan was engrossed in reading the script for Storm Rising when her phone suddenly rang.

It was her agent, Bai Wei.

“Wanwan, are you awake?” Bai Wei’s voice carried a note of excitement.

“Just woke up a while ago, reading the script,” Sang Wan replied, her voice still laced with sleepiness. “What’s got you so worked up, Sister Wei?”

“Good news, of course, and huge news at that!” Bai Wei could barely contain her excitement. “You know Lanqin Tech, right? The top-tier intelligent technology company in the country, with first-class reputation and capabilities!”

Sang Wan perked up. “Yeah, I know them. What about it?”

“They have a newly developed smart mountaineering device under their company and want you to be their spokesperson! Their marketing director just called personally to arrange a meeting to discuss the details of the collaboration.”

Lanqin Tech?

A glint flashed in Sang Wan’s eyes.