Obsessive Tycoon and His Swan Girl
Chapter 281: Slap in the Face (4)

Chapter 281: Chapter 281: Slap in the Face (4)

Qin Jingchen’s throat tightened slightly as he asked in a low voice, "Why didn’t you wear the bracelet?"

She had accepted it, but never put it on.

Jiang Zhe turned back to him, looking at him with a calm tone, "Most good things aren’t durable. What if it breaks when dropped?"

Qin Jingchen laughed, "That’s also true."

He stepped forward and took her hand.

The girl’s fingertips were slightly cool, touching his palm, a sensation like jade.

She tried to pull away, but it only increased the man’s grip, refusing to let go of her fingers.

This time, without allowing Jiang Zhe too much resistance, Qin Jingchen kissed her directly.

The previous two times had been her forcefully kissing him, but this time Qin Jingchen took the initiative. The kiss, however, was not aggressive; it was somewhat gentle.

With her waist seized, Jiang Zhe instinctively sensed danger and felt an impulsive need to resist.

It was a reaction written into her genes from a long time ago.

But the more dangerous something was, the more tempting it became to approach it, as the impulse to get closer now outweighed the instinct to resist.

The more alluring, the more dangerous.

It wasn’t until she felt her legs begin to give out that Jiang Zhe realized the danger had crossed the line.

She pushed against his chest with both hands, keeping a distance between them.

Qin Jingchen was taken aback, then chuckled lightly as he sensed the change in her emotions and the reason behind it.

However, he couldn’t help but feel a trace of disappointment in his eyes. Her defenses were too strong, as if nothing could give her a sense of security.

Jiang Zhe looked at her watch and said, "It’s getting late, Mr. Qin. Good night."

If Qin Jingchen had known that the watch he gave her would be the reason she used to reject him, he might not have bought the gift.

"Alright, good night," Qin Jingchen nodded, not insisting any further.

He turned to leave, and heard Jiang Zhe’s voice, "I’ve accepted your bracelet, and will send you something in return."

Qin Jingchen’s laughter came through, "Good."

He walked out, closed the door behind her, and remembering her tsundere-like facade, finally glimpsed the softness beneath her hard armor.

However, the gift Jiang Zhe had promised never materialized before Qin Jingchen left N Country.

He didn’t ask either, fearing that she might withdraw that hint of softness.

Jiang Zhe didn’t bring it up again.

On the return trip, Xun Yining saw a news item and discussed it with Fen Ye.

"So she’s saying she’s depressed?" Fen Ye asked.

"That’s what her public apology says."

The big scandal that Jiang Fanyue had caused that day meant the fashion association was not going to let her off easily.

A public apology and the retraction of her preliminary round results were part of her punishment.

That’s why Xun Yining came across the news of her apology.

Despite making a public apology with a long article as her apology letter, Jiang Fanyue still seemed to be defending herself, saying she had studied very hard all year and experienced some cyberbullying, leading to depression, which caused her to grab the wrong design draft during the finals, resulting in plagiarism.

In her post, she also shared some photos of the antidepressant medication she was taking.

Fen Ye found it amusing, depression really is like a brick, to be moved wherever it’s needed, right?

He made no comment.

Xun Yining looked at it for a while and felt that Jiang Fanyue was insincere, then put down her phone.

However, Jiang Fanyue’s move did at least somewhat quell the criticism against her online.

When she returned to the Jiang family with Gu Jiaheng by her side, Liang Jinlan did not berate her too harshly.

It allowed her to barely escape this predicament.

After bringing her home, Gu Jiaheng comforted her with a few words before preparing to leave.

Jiang Fanyue held onto him, "Jiaheng, you must help me this time."

"Don’t worry, I will," he said.

Gu Jiaheng seemed to have made some kind of decision.

At dinner time, Liang Jinlan had no appetite at all; after eating a few bites, she slammed down her chopsticks, "What do we do now?"

"Mom, about the plagiarism, it’s actually not true," Jiang Fanyue started.

"Then what is it?" Seeing a glimmer of hope, Liang Jinlan immediately asked.

"Actually, there’s been a misunderstanding; I didn’t plagiarize the designer J. It was the organizers who made a mistake. As long as they publicly admit this, I’ll be fine, and there won’t be any problems with our family’s products."

Hearing Jiang Fanyue’s words, Jiang Zhang and Liang Jinlan were overjoyed: "When will they publicly admit it? How could they make such a big mistake? What kind of operation are they running?"

"Let’s invite Jiang Zhe to dinner tomorrow. She’s acquainted with the people from the organizers; as long as she speaks up, there’s still a chance for things to turn around," Jiang Fanyue said.

Upon hearing this, Liang Jinlan couldn’t help herself, "Is it because she’s taking advantage of her status as a judge to bully you? I knew it; this was all her doing! She’s becoming more and more formidable, not caring at all about the bond between sisters, determined to push you to your death! I’ve never seen anyone as ruthless as her!"

Jiang Zhang’s impression of Jiang Zhe also soured. How could one use personal desires to hurt someone in such a way?

In a low voice, Jiang Fanyue said, "She likes Jiaheng. I might as well just let her have him."

"So, she’s still fixated on that!" Liang Jinlan had swallowed a lot of humiliation these past few days without any outlet; now that she knew the instigator was Jiang Zhe, she was naturally filled with anger.

She cursed Jiang Zhe up and down.

Turning around, she saw Jiang Yunxuan with a grim expression on his face.

Hearing the family talk about Jiang Zhe like this, Jiang Yunxuan didn’t grow accustomed to it; instead, he developed an inexplicable resentment towards them.

At home, he became increasingly silent, more reluctant to talk, often keeping to himself.

By now, his smile had become a rare sight.

Liang Jinlan was taken aback for a moment, then picked up her chopsticks, "Let’s eat."

...

The next day, Jiang Zhe, who had just adjusted to the time difference from N Country, went out to eat with Qin Jingchen.

Having not seen Xiao Meng and Xia Enci for a long time, Jiang Zhe called them to join.

Upon entering the private room and sitting down, Qin Jingchen pushed some fruit towards her.

She casually took a cherry and put it in her mouth.

"Oh right, Xiaozhe, there’s a package for you that arrived today. I brought it for you on my way here," said Xiao Meng as she handed a small package to Jiang Zhe.

Jiang Zhe picked it up, glanced at it, and opened it on the spot.

Inside was a small box containing a broken smartwatch.

Qin He leaned over for a look, "Who is it? Who sent Ms. Jiang a broken item?"

Jiang Zhe’s eyes hardened for a moment but quickly returned to normal as she responded, "A friend’s. I’m helping with a repair."

Before the dishes were served, she sat down on a nearby sofa with the object and promptly connected it to her phone.

Qin Jingchen walked over and asked, bending down, "Do you need help?"

"Not yet," Jiang Zhe replied, not hiding the phone’s content even with him around.

After watching for a while, Qin Jingchen remarked, "Did Yunxuan send it?"