The Subtle Seduction of My Ex-Girlfriend’s Aunt - Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Seeing Her Rage and Desolation.

In her previous life, Song Wuqi had been on a business trip in Yang City and hadn’t attended Xia Xin’er’s birthday banquet. Tang Ran truly hadn’t expected to see her here—or Ye Xiaoyu.

Ye Xiaoyu wasn’t part of their small social circle, nor was she someone who should have been here. She wore a white formal gown with a clean, fluid design and soft, high-quality fabric; it was clearly no ordinary dress. Tang Ran remembered that Ye Xiaoyu’s family wasn’t wealthy. There was no way she would spend ten times an assistant’s monthly salary on a dress for herself.

Then there was Song Wuqi standing in front of her, adorned in a glittering gemstone necklace and a champagne-colored mermaid gown. Her style was a complete contrast to Ye Xiaoyu’s.

If Tang Ran hadn’t received those photos from the private investigator, she truly might not have suspected any relationship between the two. But more than that, what puzzled Tang Ran was whether Song Wuqi had accidentally taken whatever “insanity pills” Sun Xiao was on. How else could she be so bold as to bring Ye Xiaoyu to this party?

Did Song Wuqi think that one slap wasn’t enough? Or did she truly believe Tang Ran was a blind fool who could be easily deceived?

Tang Ran let out a self-deprecating sneer. In my last life, wasn’t I exactly that blind fool? Ye Xiaoyu and Song Wuqi had practically conceived a child under her nose, and she had been “idiotic” enough to believe Song Wuqi loved her.

Taking another look at the pair of scumbags standing together, Tang Ran feared she might lose control and grab a dessert knife to stab them in public. She turned and walked toward the exit, needing fresh air to suppress the rising nausea.

“Tang Ran!”

Seeing her walk away, Song Wuqi immediately gave chase. Ye Xiaoyu watched Song Wuqi’s retreating back and bit her lip, but the expression was gone in a flash, replaced by a smile.

She held out a gift box and walked up to Lu Shuyang. “Senior sister, this is my gift for Miss Xia. I hope she doesn’t find it too humble.”

Ye Xiaoyu was a junior from Lu Shuyang’s same mentor. Lu Shuyang had a good relationship with the mentor and often visited even after graduation. She had frequently heard the mentor praise this junior as hardworking and capable, asking Lu Shuyang to look out for her. Lu Shuyang had originally intended to introduce Ye Xiaoyu to work at the Lu Corporation, but Xin’er hadn’t liked her, so she recommended her to the Song Corporation instead.

Of course, she only made the recommendation; Ye Xiaoyu had secured the position as Song Wuqi’s assistant on her own. Her work ability was indeed good.

However, seeing her appear with Song Wuqi today, Lu Shuyang regretted agreeing to her mentor’s request. Ye Xiaoyu was far from the “pure” girl her mentor thought she was. Lu Shuyang hadn’t invited Ye Xiaoyu to the party, and Ye Xiaoyu should not have come with Song Wuqi.

Her innate upbringing prevented Lu Shuyang from the rudeness of kicking someone out. She took the gift and said coolly, “Thank you.”

Ye Xiaoyu lowered her head shyly. “You’re too kind, Senior. I only made it into Song’s thanks to your recommendation. I was wondering if you had time tomorrow? I wanted to—”

“Shuyang, come here for a moment.”

Her words were cut off by Xia Xin’er’s call. Lu Shuyang gave Ye Xiaoyu an apologetic look and turned away. If Ye Xiaoyu didn’t respect herself, Lu Shuyang felt no need to maintain social niceties for her.

After a moment of awkward silence, Ye Xiaoyu put on a hurt, pitiful expression. When Lu Shuyang walked over, Xia Xin’er pouted. “She’s not a good person. Don’t talk to her anymore.”

“Alright.” Lu Shuyang patted her head dotingly.

In the courtyard.

“Ranran, let me explain,” Song Wuqi said, grabbing Tang Ran’s arm. “Ye Xiaoyu is Lu Shuyang’s junior. I didn’t bring her here.”

She assumed Tang Ran was walking away because she was jealous of seeing her with Ye Xiaoyu. It was true that Ye Xiaoyu hadn’t come with her, but when Ye Xiaoyu mentioned wanting to come and thank Lu Shuyang, Song Wuqi hadn’t refused. She had arranged an extra invitation for her and didn’t bother to avoid her when they met at the entrance.

Song Wuqi did this mainly for Tang Ran. After the argument at the bar, Tang Ran hadn’t contacted her. As time passed, Song Wuqi grew uneasy, feeling that if she didn’t reach out, Tang Ran might never talk to her again. Unsure of Tang Ran’s attitude, she came up with this test.

Tang Ran had fought with her because of Ye Xiaoyu. If she appeared with Ye Xiaoyu and Tang Ran got angry, it would prove Tang Ran still cared. The reaction proved the test worked, and Song Wuqi’s heart finally settled.

“If there’s nothing between you, why are you so nervous?” Tang Ran shook off her hand and raised an eyebrow, her tone indifferent. “Someone might think you have a guilty conscience.”

On several nights during the business trip, Ye Xiaoyu hadn’t left Song Wuqi’s room until late at night. Whether they were truly discussing work or doing something else, Tang Ran didn’t care to guess. The photos she had received ten minutes ago had already exposed Song Wuqi’s self-righteous explanations as a pack of lies.

“No, no, I only explained because I was afraid you’d misunderstand,” Song Wuqi denied quickly. “It’s good that you understand. I brought you a gift from Yang City.”

She pulled out a necklace. Her pride as a young miss prevented her from saying “stop being angry,” so she used the gift as a bridge to move past the week of cold war. In her mind, if they hadn’t “argued,” she wasn’t the one bowing her head to apologize.

Tang Ran sneered inwardly. In her last life, they were married for three years; even though they spent little time together, Tang Ran knew her well. Especially after seeing through Song Wuqi’s hypocritical mask, Tang Ran knew exactly what she was thinking just by her expression.

Tang Ran took the gift, gave it a brief glance, and tucked it away. Acting as if nothing had happened, she asked, “Did you get back last night?”

Regarding Song Wuqi, she wanted more than just a simple breakup. Until she could achieve her goals, Tang Ran didn’t mind enduring the nausea to play along.

“Yes.” Song Wuqi breathed a sigh of relief and nodded with a smile. The fact that Tang Ran knew she returned at night meant she had been keeping tabs on her itinerary. Her plain reaction to the gift was automatically interpreted by Song Wuqi as Tang Ran being “used to fine things”—unlike Ye Xiaoyu, who would be moved to tears by a single dress.

Song Wuqi rambled on about her trip while Tang Ran gave perfunctory responses, calculating how to make her plan more perfect. Simply unmasking Song Wuqi’s hypocrisy was too boring and too merciful. She wanted to use a dull knife to slowly carve into Song Wuqi, making her experience what she had in her past life: raising her hopes time and again, only for them to be shattered, until she reached utter despair.

Lively sounds came from the backyard. Lu Shuyang had hired a band for the party, and it sounded like they were starting. Tang Ran quickened her pace. As she entered the yard, people came over to greet them.

In the distance, she saw Ye Xiaoyu and Sun Xiao. Both were looking in their direction with the same intensely resentful gaze. Tang Ran’s lips curled into a smile. She intentionally looped her arm through Song Wuqi’s. “I’m going to find Xin’er.”

Her tone was devoid of emotion, but the gesture looked intimate to onlookers. Song Wuqi thought so too. The background music was too loud for her to hear Tang Ran’s tone clearly, so she just smiled and nodded.

Tang Ran deliberately patted her arm before leaving, casting a contemptuous glance toward the other two. Seeing the jealousy in their eyes deepen, Tang Ran’s smile grew brighter.

She walked away quickly. If she stayed with Song Wuqi a moment longer, she’d throw up last night’s dinner. Being able to annoy Ye Xiaoyu and Sun Xiao at the same time was an unexpected bonus. She wondered if a good show would follow. She only hoped Ye Xiaoyu wouldn’t disappoint her.

Tang Ran took a glass of red wine from a waiter’s tray and whispered something to her. The waiter hesitated, but Tang Ran looked at her with a beautiful, curved smile. The waiter’s face reddened. She nodded and pulled out her phone to show a QR code.

Tang Ran took a sip of wine, placed the glass back on the tray, smiled at her, and turned to go upstairs. The waiter stared at the faint red lip mark on the glass for a long time.

Her phone pinged. Blushing, she checked her phone and saw a friend request. She looked back in surprise to find Tang Ran.

Tang Ran was standing on the second-floor balcony, leaning slightly over the railing, looking down at the courtyard in a lazy posture. When her eyes met the waiter’s, she winked. The waiter’s face heated up again. She lowered her head, took a deep breath, and headed toward the kitchen.

Tang Ran’s eyes crinkled into crescents. She withdrew her gaze, turned to lean her back against the railing, and looked at the infinite night sky. The smile slowly faded from her face. The quiet ink-blue of the sky helped calm the rage in her heart. She slowed her breathing, her gaze losing focus.

In the neighboring villa.

Murong Yi was lying on a rattan chair, lazily scrolling through her phone. Two notification banners appeared at the top of the screen. she opened them and sat up abruptly. The chair hit the ground with a thud.

Song Zhixu, standing by the railing, turned at the sound. Murong Yi quickly handed her the phone. “Xiao He sent this. Should we stop it?”

Song Zhixu glanced at it and said calmly, “Agree to it.”

Murong Yi raised an eyebrow in surprise but sat back and replied to Xiao He.

A dense roll of drums pulled Tang Ran back from her daze. She looked down and saw the waiter leading Song Wuqi into the villa. The south side of the villa’s atrium was a continuous floor-to-ceiling glass window; standing on the balcony, one could clearly see the situation inside.

The waiter led Song Wuqi to a guest room on the first floor. A moment later, Ye Xiaoyu also entered the villa.

A smile returned to Tang Ran’s face. She withdrew her gaze and unhurriedly straightened her clothes, preparing to go downstairs. As she stepped onto the staircase, Tang Ran instinctively glanced sideways.

Her gaze unexpectedly met a pair of light brown eyes. The gentle light in them was like a clear spring, rippling with soft waves. The owner of those eyes was the “big-shot lady” she had met in the front courtyard.

Xia Mo’s and Xia Xin’er’s villas were identical in design, separated by their respective halves of the garden. Song Zhixu was standing on the second-floor balcony of the neighboring villa, just as Tang Ran was.

A sudden wave of panic washed over Tang Ran. It felt as if the person opposite had not only seen all her small maneuvers but had also seen through her heart.

She had seen her rage and her desolation.

Tang Ran quickly turned her head, pretending not to see her, and went downstairs without looking back. Stepping into the villa and confirming she could no longer be seen, she finally regulated her breathing.

The waiter waiting at the door breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her. Tang Ran’s lips curved as she knocked on the door of the guest room.

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