Zhong Chuxi fell silent.
"Isn't there a very popular saying online?" Chen Jiaxue smiled.
"'If someone gave you five hundred thousand a month to help a mistress through her postpartum recovery, would you do it?' — The comments below are all 'Yes'."
She looked at Zhong Chuxi: "So you see, those women are willing to do anything for money without even meeting the person. But what about Young Master Jiang? He gives money, gifts, and respect; he never treats us as playthings. Do you think a man like that would be bad to his own girlfriend?"
Zhong Chuxi's mind was in a mess.
She thought of how Zhou Ying looked every time she mentioned Jiang Cheng, and the photos in Zhou Ying's phone.
She remembered the light on Zhou Ying's face when she said, "He's really good to me."
If she told Zhou Ying about today...
What would happen to Zhou Ying?
Would they break up? Would she cry? Would she hate Jiang Cheng?
And then what?
"I don't know..."
Seeing Zhong Chuxi wavering, Chen Jiaxue took her hand.
She put on the act of a caring older sister.
"Actually, from my perspective, I should hope you'd tell your friend, but I'm also a woman, and I know how regrettable it would be if she missed out on a man as good as Young Master Jiang..."
It was a pity Jiang Cheng was walking ahead and didn't hear Chen Jiaxue's words with his own ears.
If he had, Jiang Cheng would definitely have exclaimed: This girl is really good at talking nonsense...
Seeing Zhong Chuxi looking at her with a frown, Chen Jiaxue continued: "If you tell her, your friend loses the man who buys her a house and a car and treats her like a treasure, and she'll become a woman 'hurt by a scumbag'."
"And then? Will she be able to find a man better than Jiang Cheng? Can you guarantee that?"
This string of words left Zhong Chuxi silent once again.
Zhong Chuxi didn't know if things would turn out that way...
She only knew that Zhou Ying was very happy right now.
And it seemed she... didn't have the right to break that happiness.
"I'm not speaking up for Young Master Jiang," Chen Jiaxue said softly. "I just feel that for some things, not knowing is a kind of happiness. If your best friend is truly happy, then let her continue to be happy. Don't you agree?"
Zhong Chuxi bit her lip, lowered her head, and looked at the bag in her hand.
She nodded to Chen Jiaxue and quickly walked toward Jiang Cheng.
"Jiang Cheng!"
Seeing this, Jiang Cheng slowed down and glanced back at her.
In that glance, there was no nervousness, no testing, and nothing superfluous.
It was as if he truly didn't care what she chose.
It was as if he had truly left the power of choice entirely to her.
"Hmm?"
After catching up, Zhong Chuxi gestured by lifting the bag in her hand: "Jiang Cheng, this is too expensive, I can't accept it from you..."
As Zhong Chuxi spoke, Jiang Cheng had already felt the signal from his Danger Perception Skill fade.
So this was likely thanks to Chen Jiaxue...
After raising an eyebrow, Jiang Cheng's hand didn't move.
"Why give it back to me? Can I wear it? It was bought for you, just take it and that's that..."
"That won't do, we don't have that kind of relationship, how can I accept such an expensive gift from you..."
Seeing her small mouth muttering as she spoke, Jiang Cheng teased with a smile: "I get the feeling you aren't very satisfied with our current relationship..."
Hearing this, Zhong Chuxi's face turned slightly red, but she still argued back: "I am not..." Her voice dropped lower, carrying a hint of reluctance, "Do... do you really like Zhou Ying?"
This question made Jiang Cheng's footsteps pause.
The figures of Chen Jiaxue, Zhao Yihan, and Chloe were wandering not far ahead, occasionally glancing back at him.
After glancing at The three women, Jiang Cheng looked back at Zhong Chuxi beside him.
"Naturally, I like her..."
Seeing a trace of deep affection in Jiang Cheng's eyes as he spoke, Zhong Chuxi's eyelashes fluttered.
Big brother, your face changes really fast.
You just spent millions on these girls, and in the blink of an eye, it's like you only deeply love Zhou Ying in this world.
How on earth do you make that expression?
She was starting to find him incomprehensible...
"Then what about them?" Zhong Chuxi pointed at The three women ahead, her voice tight, "Do you like them too?"
Jiang Cheng followed her gaze.
Chen Jiaxue was standing on her tiptoes looking at dolls in a shop window, Zhao Yihan was smiling and saying something nearby, and Chloe's blonde hair was shimmering in the sunlight, causing several passing boys to repeatedly look back.
He thought about it.
If Zhong Chuxi had only asked about Chloe.
Jiang Cheng might have said "I like her."
Not a fake like, but the kind of appreciation a man has for a beautiful woman, an enjoyment of fleeting pleasure.
Of course, this like might just be like; compared to Zhou Ying, the intensity would be different.
He never denied his own fickleness, and he never gave those women false promises.
But Chen Jiaxue and Zhao Yihan?
Although they were also women by his side, they were ultimately different.
Thinking this, Jiang Cheng shook his head honestly: "They... are different from Zhou Ying."
"How are they different?"
"Zhou Ying is someone I want to keep by my side forever," Jiang Cheng said very bluntly. "They... are not."
Zhong Chuxi fell silent, then threw out another question: "Then do you treat them the same as Zhou Ying? Will you buy them houses and cars in the future too?"
Jiang Cheng looked at her and remained silent for a few seconds.
Girls like Zhou Ying, Qiao Yinyin, or Wang Yuyan were women he treated seriously.
They had given him their first time, and there was an emotional foundation between them; it wasn't a fast-food relationship like a one-night stand.
Buying them houses and cars, he was willing and felt it was worth it.
He was never stingy with such women.
If it should be given, he gave it; that was his principle.
But Chen Jiaxue and Zhao Yihan?
Jiang Cheng calculated in his mind: strictly speaking, the longest time he had spent with these two was last night.
The previous times were only for a few hours, adding up to less than a day in total.
Less than a day.
He chuckled inwardly.
Feelings? Hard to say. Getting to know each other? Almost none.
Aside from what happened last night, how much did he know about them?
And how much did they know about him?
If he had to buy a house and a car for every woman he'd crossed paths with, what would he become? A wealth-scattering boy?
A foolish rich sucker?
He was a good man, sure, but he wasn't some brainless second-generation heir.
In this day and age, women are realistic; are men not realistic too?
When a woman sleeps with a man, she calculates what this man can give her—money, resources, security, whatever.
So why can't a man calculate? For every penny he spends, shouldn't he see if it's worth it?
This isn't being stingy; it's being clear-headed.
Seeing his thoughts becoming more and more realistic, Jiang Cheng's brow furrowed slightly.
Exactly, this was one of the reasons why Jiang Cheng went through the trouble of actually dating these women.
If he couldn't maintain his original heart...
Then as his wealth increased, he would only become more and more indifferent.
Standing at the top but becoming a lonely soul with a desert for a heart—what would be the point of that?
Jiang Cheng pulled back his thoughts and looked at the girl staring expectantly at him, his lips twitching slightly.
He knew what answer she wanted to hear.
But he didn't plan on giving it.