Chapter 10

“Jiang Yi, are you in there?”

Her coworker Lin Fei’s voice came from outside the door. Jiang Yi hurriedly finished applying her lipstick, checked that there was nothing improper about her appearance, then rushed out to meet her.

“I’m here. Has everyone else arrived?”

“They’re all here. We’re just waiting for you.” Lin Fei led her toward the private room.

There were five or six people inside, all coworkers Jiang Yi had only recently met.

“Jiang Yi, come over here. What songs do you like? I’ll queue them for you. And order whatever you want to eat too,” a male coworker greeted her enthusiastically.

Jiang Yi felt he was being a little overly enthusiastic.

She knew that feeling all too well. Back at university, male classmates had often tried to show their interest in her, but unfortunately, she had never been interested in any of them.

The only person she had ever been interested in…

Had ended up wasting two years of her life.

Jiang Yi shook that person’s image from her mind, accepted the menu Lin Fei handed her, and politely declined the male coworker’s invitation to sing a duet.

“Jiang Yi, do you eat spicy food?” Lin Fei asked. “The bailiantales.comrest of us can’t live without it, but I heard you’re from the south, so I wasn’t sure whether you could handle spice.”

“Then let’s order spicy dishes. I like them too, and there isn’t really anything I avoid eating.”

“What about you, Sixin?” Lin Fei asked Ye Sixin, who was sitting nearby.

Ye Sixin had joined the company at almost the same time as Jiang Yi and was also considered a newcomer, though she was slightly younger.

“Ah, I can’t eat spicy food. I can’t tolerate even the tiniest bit.” Ye Sixin glanced at Yan Zhijie, who was adjusting the sound system, then looked at Jiang Yi, who was ordering food, and smiled. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about me. Just order whatever you like.”

“How could we ignore you? There are plenty of non-spicy dishes too. Here, take a look and order whatever you want.”

Lin Fei was a team leader in their department and had worked at the company for several years. She had always been approachable and considerate.

Once they finished ordering, the coworkers chatted and laughed. One moment they discussed gossip, the next celebrities, and then which department caused the most trouble. The room was filled with lively conversation.

“Brother Yan, let’s sing a duet,” Ye Sixin said as she walked over.

Yan Zhijie checked the time. “Sure.”

After they finished one song, Ye Sixin wanted to continue.

Yan Zhijie hurriedly waved his hands.

“No, no. You sing much better than I do. You can keep going by yourself, Sixin.”

After declining, Yan Zhijie sat down on the sofa.

“Jiang Yi, I heard you graduated from Huayi University. Is that right?”

Jiang Yi nodded.

“I graduated from Huayi University too. What year were you? I was class of 2014.”

“Class of 2016.”

“I didn’t expect us to be alumni. Junior, what a coincidence that we met.”

“Just call me Jiang Yi.” She smiled politely.

Seeing that the atmosphere between them was about to become awkward, Lin Fei stepped in to smooth things over.

“The food is here. Everyone, let’s eat.”

At the dining table, Yan Zhijie said, “Jiang Yi, Ye Sixin, remember to eat plenty. The food at the company isn’t nearly this good.”

Yan Zhijie mixed easily with the other coworkers and was usually the loudest among them.

Jiang Yi did not think much of it. Ye Sixin, [stolen content]however, stared at the spicy diced chicken and hot-and-sour fish that Yan Zhijie had rotated toward her and could not bring herself to pick up her chopsticks.

“Brother Yan, I can’t eat spicy food.”

Yan Zhijie seemed to remember only then.

“Oh, right, right. I forgot. Then help yourself to something else, Sixin.”

The male coworkers enjoyed drinking and ordered a bottle of strong liquor, sipping it from small cups.

Once they became excited, they could not resist making a fuss and urging the women to drink too.

Lin Fei firmly refused.

“Stop trying to persuade me. I wouldn’t drink that stuff even if you killed me. It burns like hell.”

She had barely finished speaking when she saw Jiang Yi lift her glass and down it in one gulp. Without changing expression, Jiang Yi drank three more glasses in succession.

“This… Jiang Yi, I couldn’t tell you had such a high alcohol tolerance.”

It was not only Lin Fei who was shocked. Even the male coworkers were surprised.

“It’s nothing. I drank a lot before, so I got used to it.”

Shen Siyun liked collecting wine and would sometimes brew fruit wine herself. Whenever she took a unauthorized copybath, she would pour herself a glass to enjoy.

During the two years Jiang Yi had stayed by her side, she had drunk plenty as well.

Sometimes wine was used to heighten the mood before sex. Sometimes they drank while admiring the moon and talking intimately. Holidays and candlelit dinners went without saying.

The most outrageous incident Jiang Yi remembered was when Shen Siyun returned to the Shen family home without taking her along.

Jiang Yi had felt so wronged and upset that she guzzled down several bottles of Shen Siyun’s favorite wine until they were completely empty.

Even that was not enough.

Using the alcohol to bolster her courage, she called Shen Siyun on video and, right before her eyes, poured dozens of bottles of wine into the bathtub. Then she treated Shen Siyun to the seductive spectacle of a beautiful woman bathing in wine.

Shen Siyun had been so furious that she nearly exploded. She rushed back overnight, originally intending to lose her temper at Jiang Yi.

But somehow, perhaps because she could not bear to waste all that wine, she simply gave up resisting and joined Jiang Yi in the wine bath.

Jiang Yi’s memories of what happened afterward were somewhat unclear, fragmented as though she had blacked out.

She only vaguely remembered Shen Siyun’s gentle fingers lingering over every inch of her body, and the two of them standing together beneath the shower while Shen Siyun washed the scent of alcohol from her skin.

At the time, Jiang Yi had thought she had won.

She had made Shen Siyun choose her over the Shen family.

Shen Siyun liked her and could not let her go. That was why she had returned.

But Jiang Yi had forgotten that if Shen Siyun had truly liked her, there never would have been a choice to begin with.

She would simply have taken Jiang Yi home to meet her family.

At the end of the day, to Shen Siyun, Jiang Yi was someone fit only to be played with, never someone to grow old with.

Jiang Yi concealed the bitterness in her heart and smiled.

“Everyone, keep going.”

Ye Sixin glanced at the empty glass in Jiang Yi’s hand. Her competitive spirit flared, and she steeled herself before copying Jiang Yi and downing a glass in one gulp.

“Cough, cough, cough—”

“Sixin, why are you being so reckless too? This liquor is forty percent alcohol!” Lin Fei noticed that Ye Sixin was choking nonstop. Her face had turned flushed, and her gaze was unfocused.

“Oh no, is she already drunk?”

With a thud, Ye Sixin collapsed face-first onto the table.

Lin Fei: “…”

“Forget it. We’re about done for today anyway. Everyone should head home. I’ll help call cars for you.”

After settling the bill, several of them stood outside the entrance to BEATING HEART.

The other coworkers had already left. Only Ye Sixin, Lin Fei, Yan Zhijie, and Jiang Yi remained.

“Sixin, where do you live? The car will be here soon.” Lin Fei supported her.

“She’s so drunk that sending her off in a car alone wouldn’t be safe.” Jiang Yi frowned. “Why don’t we get her a hotel room?”

Lin Fei looked at the completely unconscious Ye Sixin. It truly would not be safe.

“A hotel room is expensive. She only just started working and probably doesn’t have much money. Forget it. I’ll take her back to my place.”

“Be careful on the way,” Jiang Yi said.

When the car arrived, Lin Fei helped Ye Sixin inside and left.

Yan Zhijie watched the taillights disappear before turning back and scratching his head.

“Jiang Yi, do you want me to take you home? I drove here.”

“You’ve been drinking. Don’t drive. Call a designated driver to take you home.”

“Then how are you getting back?”

Jiang Yi answered simply, “I’ll call a car.”

“…All right, then. Send a message in the group when you get home safely.”

Yan Zhijie got into the passenger seat.

“See you Monday.”

Jiang Yi nodded.

After finally seeing him off, she was about to call a car when Song Rao sent her a message asking where she was.

Jiang Yi shared her location.

Song Rao immediately replied, “Perfect. I’ll pass by there on my way home. Wait a little longer. I’ll come pick you up.”

“All right.”

Her phone had only five percent battery left and looked as though it would not last much longer.

Jiang Yi turned back toward BEATING [Read on BaiLianTales]HEART, planning to borrow a power bank and keep it alive for a while.

The moment she turned around, she saw Shen Siyun coming out with several friends.

Jiang Yi stopped in her tracks.

At the same time, the others noticed her and also came to a halt.

“Why don’t we go to Taijing City next time? It’s really fun there.”

“I heard there’s a lot of good food too. It’s worth considering.”

The group had been enthusiastically discussing where to hold their next gathering. Only when Xie Fulan stopped and directed their attention forward did the others fall silent.

Everyone tacitly turned to look at Shen Siyun.

How had they ended up witnessing a scene like this?

They exchanged glances.

Tan Yiqi: Should we say hello?

Xie Fulan: I think we can.

Guo Qingqing: Are you two insane?

A trace of awkwardness rose on Jiang Yi’s face.

She could neither leave nor stay.

Her gaze met Shen Siyun’s. The other woman still appeared angry over what had happened in the restroom, her eyes cold and indifferent.

Without even glancing sideways, Shen Siyun walked straight past her.

Jiang Yi exhaled softly and immediately relaxed.

She lifted her foot to walk toward the entrance of BEATING HEART.

At that moment, Song Rao happened to arrive. Her car stopped beside the vehicles belonging to Shen Siyun’s group.

“Jiang Yi, I’m here.” Spotting her, Song Rao called out, “Over here. Get in.”

“I’m coming,” Jiang Yi replied.

Shen Siyun’s hand paused on the car door.

Hearing the voice, Tan Yiqi and the others all turned around.

Tan Yiqi asked, “Is that the person she married?”

Guo Qingqing was slightly nearsighted. “What does she look like? Is she prettier than Siyun?”

Xie Fulan said, “She looks a little familiar.”

Then she remembered.

“Isn’t that the chemistry professor from Yin Lei’s university?”

Tan Yiqi was shocked. “A professor?”

Guo Qingqing watched the graceful figure enter the car.

“Looking at it this way, she actually made a pretty good marriage.”

Holding a Chanel-style jacket in her arms, Tan Yiqi gazed at Song Rao and sighed admiringly.

“An educated intellectual really is different. She looks so refined, wears glasses, and has such a damn restrained, seductive aura. In my opinion, Siyun’s little lover probably likes women who wear glasses. Unfortunately, Siyun doesn’t wear them. Siyun has already lost on that point.”

Guo Qingqing said, “Give it a rest. I’m going to tell my sister that your affections are wandering and have her dump you, so you can’t become my sister-in-law.”

Tan Yiqi replied, “Then you’re going to be disappointed. Your sister—”

Bang!

The car door suddenly slammed shut, cutting off their discussion.

Xie Fulan elbowed Guo Qingqing and Tan Yiqi.

“Siyun, I’ll take another car home. Be careful on the road.”

Guo Qingqing and Tan Yiqi no longer dared get into her car either.

“My sister is coming. Yiqi and I will ride back with her. Siyun, see you another time.”

Tan Yiqi grabbed Guo Qingqing and ran.

Ding Lanqi: “…”

So I’m the only one left to endure this?