Moonlight Allure - Chapter 21

Li Jiannan’s eyes darted around before he threw an arm over Jiang Xueyin’s shoulder, leading her away from the billiard room to a quiet corner of the corridor. “Worried about being caught on camera and tarnishing the Jiang family name? Relax. With me, you’re safe no one’s taking pictures here.”

Jiang Xueyin instinctively toyed with her brooch, her eyes crinkling with a fake smile. “But my Omega is still on the ship. Doing this wouldn’t it be a bit much?”

“What’s there to worry about?” Li Jiannan patted her shoulder. “Rest easy.”

Jiang Xueyin’s gaze sharpened as she stared at the sapphire ring on Li Jiannan’s index finger. She smiled and said, “Unless I avoid seeing my Omega until we dock, she’ll notice the moment I do something I shouldn’t. I don’t want a

divorce. Still, is there anywhere around here to, say, broaden my horizons?”

“Broaden your horizons, eh?” Li Jiannan sized her up, a flicker of suspicion crossing his eyes, followed by a look of hesitation.

“The people on this ship wear three kinds of rings: red, green, and blue,” Jiang Xueyin said casually. “Red is for those with invitations, green is for the plus-ones, so what’s the story with the blue ones? Is a red ring somehow inferior to a blue one?”

Li Jiannan chuckled. “Not exactly. The rings are just passes. The blue ring grants access to certain areas that the others can’t reach.”

“Oh? Is there really a place on this ship I’m not allowed to see?” Jiang Xueyin raised an eyebrow with an air of nonchalance.

“It’s not that you can’t see it.” Li Jiannan scratched his head. “It’s just that you never cared for that sort of thing before, and after you got married, you certainly wouldn’t have come looking.”

“Why not let me open my eyes a bit?” Jiang Xueyin paused. “Just don’t let my Omega find out. You have no idea how stifling these past three years have been.”

Li Jiannan let out a loud laugh and slapped her back. “I knew it! How could anyone endure three years of boredom? Come on, I’ll take you to see it!”

“Where to?” Jiang Xueyin asked.

Li Jiannan winked. “The auction house on the fourth floor.”

Jiang Xueyin rubbed her palms together, her heart beginning to race. “But doesn’t the auction start at eight tonight?”

“There’s a smaller auction house inside the main one. Only people like me with blue rings can get in. This private auction starts in the evening and lasts for an hour.” Li Jiannan gave a low chuckle and handed a blue ring to Jiang Xueyin.

“I’ll get in with my face; you take the ring.”

“My thanks, Young Master Li.” Jiang Xueyin didn’t remove her ruby ring; instead, she slipped the sapphire one onto her other hand.

As they emerged from the first floor and reached the entrance of the fourth-floor auction house, they happened to run into Qiao Wanyi and Xiao Nianru.

“Niannian! What are you doing here?” Jiang Xueyin saw the concern in Xiao Nianru’s eyes and felt a surge of joy. She nearly forgot Li Jiannan was standing right there and quickly restrained her expression, though her eyes remained bright.

Xiao Nianru said gently, “I was worried about you, so I came to find you.”

Li Jiannan smirked. “Relax, Miss Xiao. This cruise isn’t exactly a dangerous place. Or do you just not trust your Alpha?”

“I do.” Xiao Nianru stepped forward and took Jiang Xueyin’s hand, her eyes flickering.

Jiang Xueyin felt Xiao Nianru tracing something into her palm, it felt like the words “Be careful.”

Her brows curved as she nodded. “Don’t worry.”

Li Jiannan’s attention shifted to Qiao Wanyi. She was of mixed heritage with natural blonde hair and sharp, phoenix-like eyes. Her dark gaze felt piercing as she looked at him. For a moment, he was entranced, only snapping out of it when Jiang Xueyin waved a hand in front of his face.

“Let’s go,” Jiang Xueyin said in a low voice, suppressing her irritation.

“Right, let’s go.” Li Jiannan reluctantly looked away. He asked curiously, “By the way, what were you doing just now, leaning in so close to your Omega?”

“Just soothing her so she doesn’t get suspicious. Why?” Jiang Xueyin narrowed her eyes. “It’s not like I could bring her inside, right?”

“That would be quite inappropriate,” Li Jiannan chuckled. “Let’s go.”

As it turned out, the fourth-floor auction house held a world of its own.

At the far end of the venue was a stairwell. Half a flight up sat a pair of heavy, luxurious doors guarded by several men. Under Li Jiannan’s lead, Jiang Xueyin entered smoothly.

Inside was a private auction room, roughly the size of the first-floor billiard room. The air was thick with disorienting, multicolored lights that made Jiang Xueyin frown. She hated this kind of lighting, it was blinding.

The layout wasn’t like a standard auction with a stage at the front and buyers in rows. Instead, the center featured an octagonal cage. Sofas and coffee tables surrounded it, and there were very few people present.

A sense of unease settled in Jiang Xueyin’s chest. Looking up, she noticed small private rooms on a second level with one-way glass windows.

“What are you looking at?” Li Jiannan asked.

Jiang Xueyin’s eyes flickered. “Aren’t you the host? Why aren’t you in your own booth?”

Li Jiannan shrugged helplessly. “Someone wants to play ‘Golden House, Hidden Pearl’ keeping things under wraps so outsiders can’t see. I gave the only booth to him. Besides, I prefer being where the action is.”

“Golden House, Hidden Pearl.” Jiang Xueyin murmured to herself. Her mind immediately jumped to Lin Shan and Lin Xi. She glanced at the one-way glass again, wondering: if it really was them, how could she get Lin Xi out?

“Have a seat.” Li Jiannan sat on the nearest sofa and began drinking contentedly.

Jiang Xueyin nodded but didn’t touch the wine or snacks on the table. With some time before the start and phones prohibited inside, she decided to fish for information from Li Jiannan. “Do you know who’s hidden in that room?”

“Hmm?” Li Jiannan took a sip of wine. “How should I know? Why do you care?”

“Just curious.” Jiang Xueyin withdrew her gaze and waited for the auction to begin.

Outside, Xiao Nianru and Qiao Wanyi sat at the bar—one drinking juice, the other coffee. Both were Omegas.

Qiao Wanyi scanned the room, her voice cold. “Notice that? The crowd out here is thinning.”

Xiao Nianru took a sip of juice. “I’ve seen a few people heading toward the fourth floor, even though the main auction hasn’t started yet.”

“Who knows what they’re up to?” A mocking smile touched Qiao Wanyi’s lips. “These ‘upper-class’ types look glamorous on the surface, but they’re rotten to the core inside.”

She thought of her father back in Country W posing as a refined gentleman while being filthy and hypocritical. She couldn’t understand how her mother had ever fallen for such a man. She paused and looked at Xiao Nianru. “Your Alpha, she’s not simple. How did she talk Li Jiannan into taking her in there? Are they birds of a feather? Mingyue mentioned she’s turned over a new leaf, but still.”

“She’s different,” Xiao Nianru said with total conviction.

If it were the original Jiang Xueyin, she would have agreed they were two of a kind. But this Jiang Xueyin made no effort to hide her changes; she had laid everything bare. Jiang Xueyin trusted her.

But why did she come to this world? And how does she know so many things she shouldn’t? A small seed of doubt still lingered in Xiao Nianru’s heart.

When the time arrived, the doors to the private auction were locked. The lights inside began to pulse and sway.

The host gave a brief, perfunctory welcome before getting straight to business. “Bring out the first item!”

Inside the octagonal cage, a lift began to rise. What emerged was not an object, but a “person.”