Wan Qingsi was scowling from came down from the second floor. His eyes kept straying towards Ah Sha. “And why the h.e.l.l that douchebag Lin Musheng even here?”
“You just returned to the country so I’m sure a lot of people want to get to know you better. I should let others have the opportunity to dance with you!” Wan Qingsi pointed at a man. “See that man over there? That’s the oldest son of Liu Enterprises. Why don’t you go interact with him!”
With that Wan Qingsi left Ying Xin and headed straight towards Ah Sha. Everyone was staring at Ying Xin, seeing how she would react when Wan Qingsi literally pushed her towards another man and then walked away from her. Her reaction wasn’t what everyone had been antic.i.p.ating. She just smiled and headed over towards Young Master Liu. “Mr. Liu, would you mind sharing a dance with me?”
Liu Mingqiang was surprised at first, but then he quickly agreed. The other men beside him were eyeing him enviously. “d.a.m.n it. We should’ve taken the initiative and asked her! How the heck are we supposed to know that Wan Qingsi would reject Ying Xin!”
“What the h.e.l.l is this guy doing here?” Wan Qingsi growled, pulling Ah Sha into his arms, then glared at Lin Musheng.
Lin Musheng beat Ah Sha to a response. “Hey, hey,” Lin Musheng said. “Watch where you’re putting your hands! Other people are looking over.”
“Let them look. Why should I be afraid of them?” Wan Qingsi planted a kiss on Ah Sha’s forehead. “You think you can swoop in and take advantage of Ah Sha?” Wan Qingsi snorted. “In your dreams!”
“You see that?” Lin Musheng said, looking at Ah Sha. “This guy is such a douche, right? This is what we call ‘eyeing the contents of the pot while eating from a bowl.’ Just moments ago, he was standing beside another woman. And now look at him!”
Ah Sha held back Wan Qingsi before he could argue, then glared at Lin Musheng. “Didn’t you promise me that you wouldn’t pick a fight here?”
“Oh, no. This isn’t me picking a fight. This is me stating a fact,” Lin Musheng said, then raised his gla.s.s. “Look who’s here?”
Ying Xin had known of Mei Jing’s existence even before she came back to the country. She’d even read Mei Jing’s file, and realized that Mei Jing had no background whatsoever—she was merely a Chinese who’d returned after a long stay overseas. For the life of her, Ying Xin couldn’t figure out what Wan Qingsi even saw in Mei Jing. Beauty? Surely not. Ying Xin was definitely at least as good looking as Mei Jing. Plus, Ying Xin had a powerful house like the Ying family behind her.
No matter how Ying Xin thought about it, Wan Qingsi’s behavior didn’t make sense. The only thing she could come up with to explain his behavior was that he had been bewitched by this Mei Jing woman. Then again… men are fickle creatures. n.o.body knew what would happen in the future.
“Nice to meet you, Miss Mei Jing!” Ying Xin greeted Mei Jing jovially. When Ying Xin saw Wan Qingsi’s hand resting on Mei Jing’s waist, she sighed and said, “Brother Xunxun, we’re still betrothed to each other, you know. Wouldn’t you at least try to give me some face?”
When she spoke, Ying Xin’s eyes held no malice; it was as though she were making a joke. Mei Jing stepped away from Wan Qingsi’s arms, giving Lin Musheng the chance to step in between them.
“M-miss Ying… Nice to meet you.” Mei Jing gave Ying Xin a look of panic. “What’s with that friendly att.i.tude?” Mei Jing thought. “Is she really willing to let Wan Qingsi go?”
When Wan Qingsi looked at Ying Xin, there was a look of displeasure on his face, but Ying Xin pretended not to notice. Instead, she kept smiling at Mei Jing. “I’ve watched your movie, ‘Apocalypse.’ I’m a big fan of you!” Ying Xin took out her phone from her clutch. “Can we take a photo together?”
“I thought you hated sci-fi,” Wan Qingsi said, giving Ying Xin a strange look. His eyes were unreadable. Ying Xin chuckled sheepishly. “But I’m Depp’s fan!”
Ying Xin stepped forward and struck a pose beside Ah Sha. “After that, I discovered Miss Mei Jing’s fantastic acting talents!” She raised her phone and they took two photos together, then retreated several steps. “Can I upload this on Weibo?” she asked Mei Jing excitedly.
“Of course!” Ah Sha answered immediately. Just then, an idea struck Lin Musheng. He stepped forward and grabbed Ah Sha’s arm, then dragged her towards the dance floor. “Come on, let’s dance!” Lin Musheng said. All of a sudden, Wan Qingsi burst forward. The next thing Lin Musheng knew, Ah Sha was heading to the dance floor inside Wan Qingsi’s arms.
Lin Musheng gritted his teeth and glared at Wan Qingsi. Beside him, Ying Xin pressed her lips together in amus.e.m.e.nt. “You like Miss Mei Jing a lot, don’t you, Mr. Lin?”
“Yup!” Lin Musheng turned and stared at Ying Xin. “That’s why you must hurry up and marry Wan Qingsi already, geez. That way, n.o.body would stand in the way between Ah Sha and me.”
Ying Xin smiled at him sheepishly. “Not even I can stop Brother Xunxun if he wants to have fun!”
“Fun?” Lin Musheng gave Ying Xin several once-overs, then smirked. “Then I guess you should enjoy the show, Miss Ying. Wan Qingsi would definitely have fun. Tons of them.”
Ying Xin chuckled, and then smiled back at Lin Musheng. n.o.body noticed the clenched fists Ying Xin kept at her sides.
When Ah Sha walked out of the ladies’ room, she ran into Ying Xin, not that she was surprised.
Ah Sha quickly feigned panic. “M-mi-miss Ying?”
“This woman really is like what everyone said she is. Just an arm candy,” Ying Xin thought with a frown. “Look at her! She’s terrified of me! What on earth does Wan Qingsi see in this woman?”
“Don’t be afraid. I just wanted a chat, that’s all.” Ying Xin stared at her. Ah Sha cowered at the corner of the call and nodded vigorously. “I know it’s my fault,” Ah Sha said. “I should have been with President Wan. Y-you… you—”
“It isn’t your fault alone!” Ying Xin cut her off, then smiled. “But you have the same nickname as me. What a coincidence.”
“I didn’t know your nickname is Ah Sha as well,” Ying Xin added. “President Wan told me about it. Said that we have the same nickname,” Ah Sha quickly explained.
“I hadn’t been with him during recent years. When another Ah Sha appeared, I guess it’s inevitable that he used you as a subst.i.tute.” Ying Xin patted Ah Sha’s shoulder. “Brother Xunxun likes you. You can stay by his side. I don’t mind.”
Ah Sha stared at Ying Xin in disbelief. “You’re not angry?”
“No, I’m not. Just a bit sad that’s all.” A wistful look formed in Ying Xin’s eyes. “But it’s okay. I know he’ll return once he’s had his fun.”
Subtext: No matter how infatuated Wan Qingsi is with you now, he’ll return to me eventually…
“What are you guys doing?” Wan Qingsi glanced at Ah Sha, who shook her head lightly at him. Ying Xin chuckled into her mouth. “Is this a habit? Following women into the ladies’ room?” she said in amus.e.m.e.nt.
“Time to go. Ah Nan is waiting for you,” Wan Qingsi said, then turned around and walked away. Ying Xin followed him. After taking a few steps, Ying Xin turned back around to look at Ah Sha. “I do hope we can become good friends!”
After Ying Xin left, Lin Musheng came out from the men’s room. “Not bad for an impostor,” he said. “At least she’s got some brains.”
“What were you doing hiding in the men’s room?” Ah Sha asked him in amus.e.m.e.nt.
“You have to ask? To protect you, of course! How can I protect you without sticking with you at all times? Geez.” Lin Musheng poked Ah Sha’s head. “You’re so cruel. That b.a.s.t.a.r.d Wan Qingsi is all you think about.”
Ah Sha ignored Lin Musheng and kept her eyes on Wan Qingsi and Ying Xin who had just stepped out of the entrance. “You can’t find out anything about this woman?”
“Yeah? How? Right now she’s you. Her past is your past,” Lin Musheng said, draping his jacket onto her shoulder. “Let’s go. I’ll take you home!”
However, the path of Lin Musheng’s car was blocked just outside the beach.
“Ah Sha, come here!” said Wan Qingsi, who was leaning against the car blocking Lin Musheng’s. Lin Musheng glared daggers at him. Ah Sha waved at Lin Musheng with a smile, then climbed into Wan Qingsi’s car.
Wan Qingsi drove into the town area. After driving around for a while, and once he was sure that he had shaken off Lin Musheng’s tail, he pulled up under an interchange, then pulled Ah Sha’s onto his lap and began kissing her.
“Mmph…” Ah Sha was out of breath by the time he released her lips. Before she could speak, however, the zipper of her dress came undone, exposing her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Ah Sha shuddered and leaned into Wan Qingsi’s arms.
“What are you doing! Wait till we get home, okay?”
Wan Qingsi’s pants were already unb.u.t.toned. Then, he buried his head under Ah Sha’s skirt. Within seconds, he found what he was looking for and bit down. “No, I can’t wait anymore! I want you now!” he said, his voice m.u.f.fled against her.
The car horn sounded when Ah Sha’s back hit the steering wheel, the skirt of her dress raised to waist level. They both groaned when Wan Qingsi pushed in. The car began to rock gently. Ah Sha was used to allowing Wan Qingsi to have his way with her, so Wan Qingsi did. When it was over, Ah Sha lay in the car’s backseat. When they got home, she was carried by Wan Qingsi into the bathtub.
After the bath, they lay in bed, just chatting with each other. Well, more like Wan Qingsi was talking to himself, since Ah Sha was already too tired to answer him. “You’re not allowed to see Lin Musheng again,” Wan Qingsi said.
When he didn’t receive a reply, Wan Qingsi lowered his head and gave her a love bite on her chest. “You hear me?”
“Mmhm…” Ah Sha mumbled incoherently.
When Wan Qingsi noticed how tired Ah Sha was, he decided not to bother her and just let her sleep. He kept kissing her lips for a while before he fell asleep with Ah Sha in his arms.
The next day, every piece of news article featuring the ball was about the love triangle between Ying Xin, Wan Qingsi, and Ah Sha: “The Official Fiance versus The Other Woman; Easy Win for The Other Woman.” The basis for those claims was that Wan Qingsi didn’t give Ying Xin the first dance, but chose Mei Jing instead.
However, some articles wrote about the conversation they all had together during the ball. On the photo, Ying Xin was smiling brightly. It didn’t seem like she was angry at all. Other articles mentioned about Lin Musheng: “Mei Jing Using the Head of the Hong Kong Triad as Spare Tyre.” These articles then went on to compare Lin Musheng’s status with Wan Qingsi’s, claiming that Lin Musheng was at least as powerful as Wan Qingsi was.
“What did you talk about yesterday,” Wan Qingsi asked Ah Sha during breakfast. They had just finished going through the day’s gossip column and were now having talking about the ball yesterday over breakfast.
Ah Sha took a sip of milk. “She’s better than Tang Yue. She can control her emotions.”
“Of course she’s good. She altered appearance to look like another person after all.” Wan Qingsi paused, then added, “She’s just a puppet though. She’ll do whatever the puppeteer tells her to.”
“She didn’t declare war with me, which means her next step would be to try to seduce you?” Ah Sha frowned. “I think if she really wants to take control of Xin Enterprises, you’ll be an obstacle.”
Wan Qingsi kissed her. “Your a.n.a.lysis is correct!”
If Ying Xin had any tricks under her sleeves, she would never let Wan Qingsi know about them. Ying Muhai knew about where the Wan family’s allegiance lay. Asking Ying Xin to seduce Wan Qingsi and then use him to go up against Ying Qingcang was too risky.
Not even the real Ah Sha would risk that, let alone a fake. In fact, Ying Xin didn’t even dare approach Wan Qingsi on her own, because like it or not, she was still a fake. Even if she had the same face as the real Ah Sha, and even if she could mimic Ah Sha’s personality, it was still too risky. Wan Qingsi had a lot of memories with the real Ah Sha. Those memories they shared were not something that she could just mimic.
…
At the moment, Ying Xin was sitting inside Ying Qingcang’s office.
“Daddy, will I be following you around from now on? Or will I be a.s.signed to one of the lower departments?”
Ying Qingcang pressed a b.u.t.ton on the phone on his desk. The door opened, and Ah Nan stepped in.
“Young master!”
“Little miss will be following you around from now on.”