He took in the triangle outlined by Qiao Yinyin's skin-tight yoga pants.
Jiang Cheng answered with a grin, "As everyone knows, when a man isn't stingy with his money, he might end up being stingy with something else…"
"Really? I'm ready~~"
Jiang Cheng flirted shamelessly with Qiao Yinyin, while Qiu Yihe, at that exact moment, was nowhere near as relaxed.
She hugged her quilt tightly and punched the mattress again and again.
Between sobs she muttered, "That bastard Jiang Cheng… wuu…"
For all her worldly knowledge—even dissecting human bodies in class—
she had never imagined that the move just now
would stir something inside her she'd never felt before.
It felt like desire,
a surging tide that swept through her in an instant.
Though she usually talked big and cracked dirty jokes,
as though the pleasures of the flesh meant nothing to her,
in truth it was only because she'd never actually experienced them.
Her job demanded she stay rational.
Yet desire spares no one, man or woman.
Besides, she wasn't wholly indifferent to Jiang Cheng.
It was simply the nature of her work
that made her deeply distrust anything to do with love.
From a professional standpoint, people in her line were mostly single:
firstly, the work environment shaped them;
secondly, long hours spent dissecting the darker sides of humanity
left them hyper-vigilant toward everyone and everything.
Qiu Yihe didn't believe Jiang Cheng had any real interest in her
and had always kept her guard up around him.
Now, under the influence of alcohol and the thrill of their earlier contact,
his image floated unbidden into her mind, wild thoughts crowding in.
"What on earth am I fantasizing about?! So embarrassing…"
"Ugh, I wonder if Jiang Cheng noticed anything weird just now."
The more she thought about it, the hotter her cheeks burned; a rabbit seemed to be thumping in her chest.
"Wait… he was… pressing against me—damn it!"
The realization flashed through her and her face turned scarlet, as though it might drip blood.
As she spoke she tugged in frustration at her panties, which had ridden up between her cheeks.
She realized Jiang Cheng had completely rattled her, and nameless anger surged.
She glared fiercely at the doorway,
then, as if to vent the feeling,
snatched the beer can beside the bed,
popped it open and gulped down several mouthfuls.
The bitter liquid slid down her throat, doing nothing to calm the restlessness inside.
After two cans her head began to spin,
yet, oddly, the memory of her tussle with Jiang Cheng only grew sharper.
She recalled that when he'd pinned her to the wall, his hips had pressed forward—"Jerk!"
"That little punk is way too cocky!"
The more she dwelt on it, the angrier she got; she'd practically short-circuited just now.
She hadn't even pushed back to let him taste a little provocation of his own.
"Agh!!" she yelled, mortified.
"How could I let him strut off like that? Why am I such a coward?!"
So humiliating, Qiu Yihe.
No way—she couldn't let it go.
This wasn't her style!
She had to pay him back in kind.
Absolutely not letting it end here.
Fueled by the alcohol, her agitation surged until her fury blazed.
At last she made up her mind.
She shot to her feet, body trembling with rage.
She swayed for a second,
then steadied herself against the rush of blood to her head.
Fuming, she yanked the door open and stormed toward Jiang Cheng's room.
His door was ajar.
He lay half-reclined on the bed, still flirting with Qiao Yinyin on video.
"Oh, you didn't look like that when you were sitting on me. Why don't you close your eyes and moan a couple of times so I can see?"
"Big bro, meeting in person costs extra~~"
Just as Qiao Yinyin finished speaking from the phone screen,
Qiu Yihe barged in.
Without a word she shoved Jiang Cheng flat.
"Nice, little punk—got guts, huh? Think you can tease me?"
Pinned beneath this big-breasted woman,
Jiang Cheng stared blankly for several seconds—
mostly because on the screen Qiao Yinyin had already peeled off her yoga pants,
and in another sentence would have started putting on a real show for him.
Seeing Qiu Yihe flushed with drink,
"How much did you have? You're wasted," he asked helplessly, trying to squirm free.
But she seemed oblivious to how improper this was.
Not only did she not let go,
she deliberately pressed down harder,
especially with her lower body, for some reason adding extra force.
No hot-blooded guy could stay unmoved by that pressure.
"You're the drunk one!" She grabbed his tie and shoved her face close, fierce.
"You dared grind on me? Think I won't slap on an armbar right now and show you what the women's combat champ from police academy can—huh?" She hissed, breath thick with beer.
This was a goddamn disaster.
If Qiao Yinyin weren't still on the line, Jiang Cheng would've shown her what "top-tier" meant.
But the call was still live.
Awkward.
Before he could flip the phone to show her,
Qiao Yinyin's voice came through.
"darling, who's there~~"
Moments earlier the spinning phone had caught a glimpse of Qiu Yihe,
and her voice had carried straight to Qiao Yinyin.
Though Qiao Yinyin couldn't actually see what the two were doing on the bed,
imagining a lone man and woman tussling there was enough to make her stomach twist.
After all, seeing another woman pop up beside Jiang Cheng late at night would upset anyone.
Even if Qiao Yinyin didn't dare lash out at Jiang Cheng,
inside she must already be drowning in vinegar, her mood souring by the second.