I Could Never Fall In Love With A Villain - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: You Really Don’t Like Her?

Under the hazy lights, her bright smile and the slight upward tilt of her eyes exuded a captivating charm.

Song Xingyao stared at her and smirked. “Mu Yin, I really shouldn’t underestimate you… You’ve got quite the nerve.”

Mu Yin, however, shifted her gaze at that moment. Facing the crowd, she greeted everyone with poise. “Hello everyone, I’m Mu Yin.”

Song Xingyao felt a pang of discomfort. This feeling had been occurring far too frequently lately.

He originally thought he held the upper hand—approaching Mu Yin with a specific purpose—and that everything should be under his control. Yet, every single time, Mu Yin managed to effortlessly snatch the initiative back into her own hands.

After the introductions, everyone took their seats. Following her memory of the original story, Mu Yin focused her attention on one man. He looked to be about forty years old, with sharp features and the demeanor of a mature gentleman. His aura was different from Song Xingyao’s arrogance; he was more like Song Jinxun’s type.

Song Xingyao’s attention was already fixed on Mu Yin, so he naturally noticed. He leaned close to her ear, his warm breath lingering against her neck. “Mu Yin, what’s the meaning of staring at another man like that?”

“I’m interested,” she replied quite frankly.

Song Xingyao stared at her from such a close distance, a slow smirk forming on his lips. “You come out with me, and then say you’re interested in another man? Mu Yin, you’re something else.”

Though his words sounded like jealousy, his eyes held only scrutiny and observation. There was very little genuine care in his tone. He was now filled with curiosity about Mu Yin, wanting to know why this person was so completely different from his impressions of her.

Seeing their small interactions, someone nearby immediately shouted, “What kind of secrets are you two whispering? This won’t do! Speak up so we can all hear.”

Without waiting for Song Xingyao to make an excuse, Mu Yin tilted her chin and smiled. “Exactly. What’s the fun in whispering… Why don’t we play a game instead?”

Not only was she willing to follow him to a place like this, but she even wanted to play a game. Truly, she could not be underestimated.

The group was already getting bored with drinking. Hearing Mu Yin’s suggestion, they grew restless and responded enthusiastically.

“What game?”

“Truth or Dare?”

“That’s too old-fashioned. How about ‘Never Have I Ever’?”

“I already know most of your business… boring. Let’s play ‘Number Bomb,’ simple and exciting.”

As the crowd discussed heatedly, the mature gentleman produced a deck of playing cards from under the table. At the sight of them, the table went silent for a moment. Then, they collectively resumed their discussion.

“Old-fashioned it is, let’s do Truth or Dare.”

“What do you mean old-fashioned?! That’s called a classic. Classics are fun.”

The mature gentleman spoke slowly, “Let’s play cards. Anyone interested?”

Mu Yin raised her hand.

Song Xingyao immediately grabbed her hand and pulled it down. “Do you even know the rules? This is Li Ziming. He’s famous at the bar for having something wrong with his head; because he won an award for mental arithmetic, he tries to play cards with everyone he meets.”

“Something wrong with my head?” Li Ziming reminded him. “How can you speak ill of someone to their face?”

Song Xingyao scoffed. “You’re not exactly a person anyway.”

Li Ziming laughed and shook his head, turning his gaze toward Mu Yin. “Do you really want to play? The rules are simple, but… it’s not a game of luck. It depends on skill.”

“That’s perfect then. Let’s choose that.” Mu Yin ignored Song Xingyao and raised her hand again. “If it were a game of luck, my chances of losing would be very high. After all, my luck isn’t very good.”

Song Xingyao stared at her. Though he didn’t stop her again, his gaze became complicated. At this moment, Mu Yin seemed to have returned to being the proud eldest daughter of the Mu family. Yet, she was different. In his memory, that arrogant girl’s confidence came from the Mu family behind her; but the current her—her confidence came from within herself.

Hearing her words, Li Ziming looked intrigued. He then slowly explained the rules. There were only five, but each was filled with complex numbers, making it sound like a math lecture. The others looked down at their phones from the very first sentence—solving math problems was nowhere near as fun as browsing their phones. No one wanted to join.

After finishing, Li Ziming asked, “Are you sure? If you lose too badly, you won’t cry, will you?”

Mu Yin’s eyes crinkled. “You look like a decent man. Surely you don’t have the same stereotype about girls and arithmetic as other men do?”

Li Ziming was momentarily stunned, then laughed. “My apologies. Let’s begin.”

For the sake of the game, Mu Yin stood up and swapped seats with someone nearby. The others had no intention of participating, but seeing Mu Yin’s confident and poised manner, they gathered around to watch the show.

“Make room, I’m playing too.”

Song Xingyao, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up. As he stood, the person on the other side of Li Ziming was sharp enough to get up and let him sit. The booth area suddenly became lively.

“For real? Looks like Song Xingyao is getting serious.”

Someone whistled. “This is a hero saving a beauty! Ziming, take it easy. Song Xingyao is actually quite skilled at this game.”

Hero saving a beauty? Mu Yin sneered in her heart.

After shuffling, the cards were dealt.

After the first round, Song Xingyao and Li Ziming each drank a glass. After the second round, they each drank a second glass. After the third round, they each drank a third glass.

This was, after all, a drinking game. Even with numerical mechanics, the rules weren’t overly complex, and each round went by quickly. The true test was arithmetic skill and speed. Yet, it was rare to see such speed.

Li Ziming was a veteran winner of this game. Song Xingyao rarely played, but that didn’t mean he was bad. If he got serious, he was on par with Li Ziming. But today, both of them had stumbled repeatedly.

The crowd went quiet, but the excitement in their eyes was undeniable. Watching a hero save a beauty was boring compared to watching two pros get rubbed into the dirt by a newcomer.

Mu Yin smiled nonchalantly and played her card. “Can you two pick up the pace a bit?”

“…” “…”

Under the high pressure of her peak mockery, Song Xingyao and Li Ziming eventually won a round each, finally salvaging a tiny bit of their remaining dignity.

Song Xingyao drained his glass. This feeling of tension… it had been a long time since he’d felt it. He couldn’t help but whisper in her ear, “I remember you majored in Management?” And the Mu family had paid quite a bit in “construction fees” to get her into that school abroad.

“Then your understanding of me is far too shallow.” Mu Yin also picked up her glass and smiled lazily.

Staring at her smile, Song Xingyao’s Adam’s apple bobbed involuntarily. He suddenly felt a bit flushed. …The alcohol tonight was a bit strong.

“I concede.” Li Ziming looked at Mu Yin with a newfound sense of admiration. “I shouldn’t have held onto that stereotype.”

“You’re very skilled as well,” Mu Yin said.

Song Xingyao clearly felt ignored. Even though he and Li Ziming had tied, Mu Yin didn’t even spare a word of praise for him. Though he wasn’t particularly sensitive, he vaguely sensed something now—Mu Yin was intentionally approaching Li Ziming.

Just as he realized this, he heard Mu Yin ask curiously, “Since you’re so good with numbers, what do you do for a living?”

Li Ziming smiled. “My Master’s degree was related, but currently, I work in investment.”

Mu Yin was supportive. “No wonder you like numbers. Only numbers allow for rational decision-making. May I have your business card?”

“Of course.”

Taking the card from Li Ziming, Mu Yin offered a few more polite words, feeling delighted. Coming here today was the right move. She only knew from the original story that Song Xingyao had a drinking buddy named Li Ziming, but she wasn’t sure if she’d run into him—she hadn’t expected her luck to be so good for once.

Beside her, Song Xingyao looked utterly incredulous. While the group became active again, he grabbed her wrist and stared into her eyes. She remained composed, neither avoiding him nor acting shy.

Soon, he was the one who backed down. He eventually scoffed, “Mu Yin, you couldn’t have fallen for him, could you? Let me advise you to give up; Li Ziming is married.”

“Is ‘falling for someone’ the only thing in your head?” Mu Yin’s eyes curved, but there was no mirage of a smile in them. “Socializing between people involves interests besides emotions… just like you and me. Surely you haven’t forgotten that?”

Song Xingyao was momentarily speechless, not expecting her to be so blunt.

Having secured the business card, Mu Yin was ready to leave, wanting no further entanglement with Song Xingyao. “I’m heading back.”

Song Xingyao immediately said, “I’ll take you in a bit, no rush.”

“No need.” Mu Yin rejected him rudely. “Coming out with you was already enough of a hassle. I don’t want you taking me back to the Mu house and causing even more trouble.”

Without waiting for his response, she stood up and walked away. This person always had a smiling face, yet she was direct and prickly. She wouldn’t wrong herself, wouldn’t say hypocritical nice things to him, and wasn’t afraid of conflict—because she truly didn’t care.

Song Xingyao watched Mu Yin move through the crowd in silence. Her back was straight, and even in simple clothes, she easily drew everyone’s eyes.

A friend leaned in. “Who was that? Tell the truth—did you really give up your dreams to return and fight for the inheritance?”

“Honestly, I’d rather you were doing it for a girl. At least… that’s the Song Xingyao we know.”

Song Xingyao gave a playful smirk. “Then sorry to disappoint you.”

Li Ziming looked up from his drink. “She’s a great girl. You really don’t like her?”

The question made Song Xingyao frown as he recalled the Mu Yin of the past. The arrogant eldest daughter who lashed out at others for no reason. The vain girl who thought she hid it well, but whose bones were filled with arrogant malice.

Even if she had changed from the person in his memory, it didn’t change the facts of the past. If it weren’t for sabotaging the alliance between Song Jinxun and the Mu family, he wouldn’t have approached her at all.

Thinking of this, he drained his glass and laughed. “How could I?”