SMACK!
A palm landed on Chen Mengyuan's plump and perky backside. Watching the ripples quiver, Shen Zhao sneered, "He's nothing. So what if he was hiding his strength and could fight? In the end, he's still just a short, broke commoner!"
"Ouch!" Chen Mengyuan yelped as Shen Zhao squeezed her hard. "Honey, be gentle, that hurts!"
"Compete with me? He's still too green. I've already arranged for the street office staff and the patrols to go and forcefully clear the area for demolition," Shen Zhao said with an ominous grin. "He thinks he can fight? I'd love to see him dare to touch the people from the street office or the Patrol Department. I actually hope he does try something. Once he's charged with assaulting an officer, he can look forward to rotting in jail!"
"Oh, honey, you're so wicked! But I love it!" Hearing Shen Zhao's sinister scheme, Chen Mengyuan grew incredibly excited. "This will leave Qin Lin completely cornered. Once the welfare institute is demolished, I'll have a property to collect rent from. Honey, you're amazing!"
"Mmm, ah!"
Feeling a sudden chill beneath her slip dress, Chen Mengyuan's eyes darted about before she let out a coquettish laugh and pounced on Shen Zhao—.
「Meanwhile, in a classical villa in the Xixi district of Hangcheng.」
Su Yanran, dressed in black lounge pants and a small tank top that showed off her fair, long legs shimmering under the light, pounced directly onto Lin Qingyue, who was sitting on the bed in her teal pajamas, reading a book.
The two best friends had grown up together. Even though Su Yanran had moved back to Yanjing with her parents when she was a teenager, they always made it a point to sleep together during their annual trips.
"Hey, Yanran!"
Lin Qingyue, startled as Su Yanran tackled her, looked at her now-creased book. "My book, my book!"
HISS!
Just as Lin Qingyue tried to sit up and grab her book, a shiver ran through her, and she couldn't help but draw a sharp breath.
"Hee hee!" Su Yanran chuckled, pinning her down. "You're still so sensitive!"
"Don't move! You'll ruin my book!" Glancing at how Su Yanran's tank top was stretched taut over her chest, Lin Qingyue rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Can't you wear loose pajamas? You're so shameless."
"Tsk, it's just the two of us here. No one else can see, so what's there to be shy about?" Su Yanran winked at Lin Qingyue. "Not like you, as conservative as an old lady. You act like you never plan on getting married."
"I'm genuinely not interested in marriage. It doesn't matter to me if I never find someone!"
"As if I'd believe that!" Su Yanran reached for Lin Qingyue's fair thighs. "We're both women, I know you better than that. What woman doesn't dream of wearing a wedding dress?"
"You're not married either, so you're one to talk!" Lin Qingyue quickly dodged her. "We're in the same boat, so let's not make fun of each other!"
"I'm not like you, too stubborn to admit it. I do want to get married, I just haven't met the right man," Su Yanran said with a slight shrug. "So of course, I can't give myself away so easily!"
"Don't you have plenty of suitors in Yanjing?"
"Tsk, those guys are all talk. They just use their family's power and influence to cause trouble," Su Yanran scoffed with disdain. "They are not worthy of me!"
"You're just too picky. Who's perfect?" Lin Qingyue gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "We'll be thirty in a few years. If you find someone suitable, you should get married."
"I'm not picky, I just refuse to settle," Su Yanran huffed. "Only a man who can completely conquer me is worthy of me! With those other guys, I just have to glance at them and they either start stuttering or just stare at me like greasy creeps. It's disgusting just thinking about it!"
"Oh, you!" Lin Qingyue shook her head helplessly, knowing all too well how picky her best friend had always been, looking down on everyone.
"Oh, right, Qingyue, I wanted to ask you, what kind of man do you actually like?"
"Me?" Lin Qingyue paused for a moment, then frowned thoughtfully. "Someone responsible, I suppose."
"Like Qin Lin?" Su Yanran's eyes danced mischievously. "I told you to call off the engagement today, so why didn't you? You're beautiful and the proper daughter of the Lin Family. If you drag this out, he might get ideas. For your beauty and the chance to marry into a wealthy family, he could just stubbornly refuse to break it off and pester you into marrying him."
"I don't think he's that kind of person."
"What? Don't tell me you've actually fallen for him. Why else would you defend him?"
"I haven't."
"Really?" Su Yanran's eyes twinkled as she suddenly lunged, pressing Lin Qingyue into the quilt. "Ha! I caught you! You always get weird when he's mentioned."
"This is a perfectly normal reaction, and you know it! You're the same way," Lin Qingyue immediately fought back, not willing to concede. "What woman isn't sensitive right after a hot bath?"
"Qingyue, you can't actually fall for him! We promised we'd marry the same man so we would never be separated. I'm not about to let *him* get that lucky!"
"Oh, just... let's go to sleep. We can talk about this some other time."
"Hee hee, how should we sleep—?"
As the two women's bell-like laughter filled the air, the fragrant bedroom was instantly brimming with a vibrant, spring-like energy—.