As the clock tower struck its fourth chime, Yu Jiuyuan was standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window of the student council office, watching the twilight below being pierced by the sound of cars.
The windowpane reflected her figure behind her. Su Jingshu sat on the sofa, her fingertips repeatedly stroking her phone screen, where an encrypted photo was stored—a screenshot from the surveillance footage of her mother's last hour before she fell to her death.
"There's been some activity from the Ji family."
Su Jingshu suddenly spoke, breaking the silence in the room, "My father received an anonymous email today saying that the officer in charge of the land dispute back then will show up after the banquet, and it also included a photo of him now."
Yu Jiuyuan turned around, and the moonlight fell on her shoulder, turning her white school uniform skirt into a light silver-blue.
She picked up the dinner program on the table and traced her finger across the line for "Speech by Mystery Guest": "Did you send this out?"
Yes and no.
Su Jingshu raised her head, a burning light in her eyes. "I only posted the photos, I didn't say he would come. It seems someone is more eager than us to embarrass the Ji family."
She tapped on another recording on her phone. The moment she pressed play, Ji Luoqin's cold voice came through, filled with suppressed anger: "Find out who sent the photos. If I find out it's related to Yu Jiuyuan..."
The recording abruptly stopped.
Su Jingshu turned off her phone and looked at Yu Jiuyuan: "He seems to care about you a lot."
Yu Jiuyuan didn't reply, but instead walked to the wine cabinet and poured herself a glass of red wine.
The scarlet liquid rippled in the crystal glass, much like the bloodshot look in his eyes the first time she gave Ji Luo the medicine.
"Do you care?" She chuckled softly and handed the wine glass to Su Jingshu.
"He only cares whether his prey has been touched by others. Just like Xie Zhecheng cares whether there are any typos in his reports, Lin Yanran cares whether his antiques are fakes."
Su Jingshu took the wine glass, her fingertips icy cold: "What about Rong Shenghan? He seems to be really..."
"Really what?" Yu Jiuyuan interrupted her, her tone carrying a hint of nonchalant cruelty. "Really willing to be locked in the villa by me? Or really willing to investigate things he shouldn't be involved in?"
She walked to the sofa, leaned close to Su Jingshu, and the two were so close that they could feel each other's breath.
Yu Jiuyuan's gaze fell on the scar on the inside of the other person's wrist, a mark left by an iron chain, somewhat similar to the old wound on Rong Shenghan's collarbone.
"Do you think Rong Shenghan is staying with me only because of the power behind the Su family?"
Yu Jiuyuan's voice was very soft, like a lover's murmur.
"His mother's marriage to that 'shadow shareholder' of the Ji family was ruined by the Su family. He wanted to see the Su family go bankrupt even more than you do."
Su Jingshu's wine glass swayed, and red wine splashed onto the sofa, leaving dark stains like a suddenly blooming flower of blood.
"You knew all along?" Her voice trembled. "You included all of us from the very beginning?"
"Otherwise what?" Yu Jiuyuan straightened up, adjusted the collar of her school uniform, and moved as gracefully as if she were attending a grand ball.
"Miss Su, you don't really think that I would risk the Yu family's reputation for you based on just a few words, do you?"
The office door was pushed open, and Ji Nianqin walked in.
He was wearing the same black suit as Ji Luoqin, but he had a more gentle demeanor than his younger brother. When he saw Su Jingshu on the sofa, a hint of coldness flashed in his eyes.
"Is your sister busy?" He walked to Yu Jiuyuan's side and naturally tidied the stray hairs behind her ear, the warmth of his fingertips carrying a deliberate tenderness.
“I just came from my father’s place. He said that our engagement will be announced at the dinner party.”
Su Jingshu suddenly stood up, and the wine glass in her hand crashed to the ground with a loud bang, shattering into countless pieces.
"A marriage contract?" She seemed to have heard something unbelievable, her gaze sweeping back and forth between Yu Jiuyuan and Ji Nianqin.
"You want to form a marriage alliance with the Ji family? Then what about the Su family..."
"What will happen to the Su family? What will become of them?"
Looking at her panicked appearance, Yu Jiuyuan suddenly found it somewhat amusing. "The marriage alliance is the Ji family's business, and the Su family's business is mine. There is no conflict between them."
Ji Nianqin chuckled softly, reaching out to put her arm around Yu Jiuyuan's waist, the gesture intimate yet assertive: "Miss Su, if you have nothing else, please go back first. My sister and I still have things to discuss."
Su Jingshu didn't move, but stared intently at Yu Jiuyuan: "You lied to me? You've been using me from the very beginning?"
"Yes." Yu Jiuyuan answered crisply, the innocence in her eyes long gone, leaving only cold honesty.
"From the moment you said you would help me destroy the Su family, you were just a pawn in my game."
"You're a madman!"
Su Jingshu suddenly screamed, grabbed the documents on the table, and threw them at Yu Jiuyuan, "You'll get your comeuppance! Do you think the Ji family is truly kind to you? They just want to use you to control the Yu family!"
The documents were scattered all over the floor, and one of them drifted to Ji Nianqin's feet. It was a secret cooperation agreement between the Su family and the Ji Group, and Ji Luoqin's name was clearly signed.
Ji Nianqin bent down to pick up the paper, her smile unchanged, but her eyes turned cold: "It seems Miss Su knows quite a bit."
Su Jingshu then realized she had made a mistake, her face turned pale as she took a step back and turned to run towards the door.
But as soon as he reached the door, he bumped into a solid chest.
Ji Luoqin had appeared there at some point, her suit jacket casually draped over her arm, the collar of her white shirt open, revealing her sexy collarbone, but her eyes were like icy knives, fixed on Su Jingshu.
"Why are you running?" His voice was low and hoarse, carrying the languor of someone just coming from a bar, yet it carried a chilling danger. "Won't you repeat what you just said?"
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