My Queen, My Rules - 50
Kiss Me
Thirty seconds later, Ji Mingshu hurriedly slipped into her heels and rushed out the door, barely preserving the last vestige of elegance she could muster in her post-makeup-removal state.
She jabbed the call buttons for all four elevators on either side, then stood there like an idiot waiting, silently reminiscing about the private penthouse elevator back at Bocui Tianhua.
Thirty seconds. Not here.
One minute. Still not here.
So slow! Trash building! (tvt)
At one minute and eighteen seconds, an elevator finally arrived.
Ji Mingshu swept inside like a whirlwind, shoving Gu Kaiyang, who was still absorbed in her phone, straight back out.
Gu Kaiyang stood there dazed as the doors closed. Was that Ji Mingshu? Damn it, I don't have the key card! Is she rushing to a funeral?
To be fair, Ji Mingshu wasn't in much better spirits herself. Walking toward Cen Sen felt about as cheerful as paying respects at a cemetery.
Her heart pounded the entire way down. She felt nervous, inexplicably guilty, and couldn't stop wondering when Cen Sen had arrived, what he and Cen Yang had talked about downstairs, and most importantly... when Cen Yang dropped her off, he'd hugged her. Had Cen Sen seen it?
Her heart thumped wildly in her chest, but after a few moments, she suddenly frowned.
Hold on. This Dog Man invested in Li Wenyin's movie without the slightest hint of guilt and acted as though he'd done absolutely nothing wrong. So what if I had dinner with Cen Yang? So what if old friends shared a hug?
Cen Sen already committed every offense from one to fourteen, and all I'd done was stick one tiny little toe over the line at fifteen. Why should I feel guilty!
That's right.
Exactly.
With this thought, her back straightened almost imperceptibly.
She even reflected that this was probably the unfortunate side effect of having such a strong moral compass. Terrible. Absolutely terrible. All it did was hurt herself while benefiting Cen Sen.
Xinggang International was a busy office tower with constant foot traffic. Even after she got into the elevator, it seemed to stop every other floor. People kept getting on and off, and it took a full five minutes to descend from the thirty-third floor to the lobby.
Snow drifted outside. The air was bitterly cold, and the wind cut through everything.
Ji Mingshu wrapped her coat tighter and crossed the street with the crowd. Only when she reached the curb did she belatedly realize that Cen Yang and his white Mercedes were already gone.
Only Cen Sen remained. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his overcoat as he leaned casually against his Maybach, his expression calm, his gaze indifferent.
Like a judge waiting to deliver a verdict.
So this is what living hell looks like, she thought. Hell may be empty, but Cen Sen is still walking the earth.
The first thing out of her mouth was, "Where's Cen Yang? Did he leave?"
"He left."
Cen Sen answered simply.bHis voice was wrapped in the falling snow, cool and distant.
Ji Mingshu's little canary heart gave a violent flutter. After a stiff pause, she forced herself to ask, "Then... what were you two talking about?"
"What do you think?"
He lowered his eyes to meet hers.
Ji Mingshu opened her mouth, but no words came out.
After a long silence, she tried a different approach. "When did you get here?"
"Six-thirty."
...?
Six-thirty? She'd only left the restaurant at six-thirty. Which meant, from the moment she walked out until Cen Yang drove her back...
He'd seen everything?
Her first instinct was to explain. But then she remembered the entire mental pep talk she'd given herself in the elevator.
Explain what? Why should she explain anything? What right did this Dog Man have to demand an explanation?
In the span of barely three or four seconds, Ji Mingshu completely changed her attitude.
She straightened proudly, poked a finger against Cen Sen's chest, and declared with complete confidence, "Please remember that we're currently in 'pending divorce’ status! You had the nerve to invest in Li Wenying's movie, so what's wrong with me having dinner with Cen Yang and giving him a hug? I haven't even put you on trial yet, so don't even think about standing here judging me!"
Cen Sen simply looked at her without saying anything.
Then, as naturally as breathing, he wrapped his hand around the finger poking his chest, closed it around her whole hand, and slipped it into the pocket of his overcoat.
???
Ji Mingshu's brain promptly froze.
"I've been negotiating an acquisition these past few days. Seventy-two straight hours without sleep. I got back this morning and rested for a few hours. I was planning to pick you up for dinner tonight, then watch a movie together. You've already eaten, but I haven't eaten anything since this morning."
His expression remained calm. His voice stayed perfectly even, as though he were calmly presenting a report in a meeting.
Yet somehow, Ji Mingshu heard the faintest trace of grievance hidden inside that matter-of-fact rundown of his schedule.
And the important part was, he'd actually come at six-thirty to take her out to dinner and a movie.
The tiny bit of righteous momentum she'd built vanished instantly, replaced by a sharp pang of regret and guilt.
After a long silence, she lowered her eyes and muttered quietly, "Actually… I didn't eat much at that French dinner either."
After thinking for a moment, Cen Sen said, "Then let's eat."
He casually brushed the snowflakes from her coat before taking her hand and leading her toward the passenger seat.
Once the door was open, Ji Mingshu climbed in somewhat absentmindedly.
She reached for the seatbelt, but Cen Sen leaned over before she could and fastened it for her.
For those few seconds, they were incredibly close. She could smell the faint scent of cedar lingering on him. She could also see several delicate six-pointed snowflakes slowly melting in his short black hair.
For reasons she couldn't explain, she suddenly wanted to kiss him.
He'd been standing outside for so long; his lips must be cool, like chilled jelly fresh out of the refrigerator.
Just then, Cen Sen turned to look at her.
Their eyes met.
Ji Mingshu leaned back against the seat, maintaining an air of composed elegance. Meanwhile, every single cell in her body was screaming: Kiss me! Kiss me! Hurry up and kiss me! If you kiss me, I won't make you kneel and apologize anymore!!!
Unfortunately, after holding her gaze for three seconds, Cen Sen simply straightened up without a hint of romance, walked around the car, and got into the driver's seat.
It was almost as though that smooth move of slipping her hand into his pocket earlier had been performed by a passing ghost who couldn't stand to watch anymore.
"..."
Hmph. Apparently he preferred kneeling to apologize after all. :)
Just as a herd of grumpy fluffballs were stampeding through Ji Mingshu's mind, Gu Kaiyang suddenly called.
She answered with a casual "Hello," then immediately adopted a perfectly serious tone. "I'm a little hungry, so I'm grabbing something to eat before heading back. What's up? Do you need something? Did you get stuck working late and miss dinner? Want me to bring you something?"
"N-No, it's fine. Nothing's wrong. I just... dialed the wrong number. Yeah. Wrong number."
Gu Kaiyang swiftly and decisively hung up. She stared at the Maybach disappearing down the street and remained rooted to the sidewalk for a long time.
The cold wind howled around her.
It wasn't until a little girl selling flowers called out, "Miss?" that she finally snapped back to reality.
She hurriedly bought a bouquet, then called Jiang Chun. "Where are you?"
"I'm eating," Jiang Chun mumbled through a mouthful of food. "Tang Zhizhou and I are having hotpot over by Biqiao."
Gu Kaiyang: "Are you going back to the apartment tonight?"
Jiang Chun instantly blushed. She swallowed her slice of beef, took a sip of cola, covered the phone, and whispered, "What nonsense are you talking about? Tang Zhizhou and I are completely innocent! Of course I'm going home! Besides, my dad calls every night at midnight to check on me!"
Gu Kaiyang couldn't care less about anyone's love life. "Then put me up for the night. Finish your dinner. I'll wait for you at the café downstairs from your place. Ji Mingshu ran off with her husband and took my key card with her!"
"Can't you just ask her to bring it back?"
"Has your brain been cooked in hotpot broth? This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to send the goddess away! And you expect me to interrupt them? I'd rather freeze to death under an overpass than call Ji Mingshu again tonight!"
Jiang Chun: "…"
Unbelievable.
***
Christmas Eve had transformed the city center into a festival of lights. Christmas music floated through every street. The squares and sidewalks were lined with Christmas trees of every size. A thin blanket of snow had already begun to settle across the ground.
Judging by the sky, it wasn't stopping anytime soon.
Despite the holiday, nearly midnight left only Japanese restaurants and hotpot places. The remaining noodle shops and BBQ joints had less-than-ideal dining environments. Since Cen Sen wasn't fond of Japanese food, hotpot became their only real option.
This particular hot pot restaurant offered impeccable service. Even this late at night, the staff remained energetic, cheerfully wishing them "Merry Christmas" while handing them warm towels and festive Santa hats.
Ji Mingshu had the appetite of a tiny bird. Having had enjoyed a lavish dinner earlier, she couldn't eat much now. She ordered a few vegetables for appearances' sake and passed the tablet to Cen Sen.
He didn't order much either. After placing the order and returning the tablet to the server, his gaze drifted beneath the table toward Ji Mingshu's bare legs. "Are you cold?"
"I'm fine."
If she couldn't handle a little cold, was she even a glamorous, dazzling socialite?
Truthfully, sweater dresses with coats were her standard winter outfit. The real problem was that she'd rushed out in such a hurry she hadn't even changed into boots, charging downstairs in high heels instead. Her feet were genuinely a bit cold now.
Hearing her answer, Cen Sen reached for his coat, intending to take it off.
Before he could, however, a server materialized beside the table as silently as a ghost, smiling brightly with a blanket already in hand. "Miss, it's important to stay warm during winter. This blanket is for you."
"Oh... thank you."
It was Ji Mingshu's first visit here. The thoughtful service genuinely surprised her, and she accepted it with a smile.
Cen Sen glanced up at the server.
Completely oblivious, the server asked with flawless professionalism, "Sir, would you like one as well?"
"...No."
It occurred to Cen Sen that perhaps he'd gone too long without eating hotpot. Apparently modern self-service hotpot restaurants had become this attentive.
Ji Mingshu was the sort of woman who required constant high-maintenance whenever she went out.
At hot pot, she never mixed her own dipping sauce, never poured her own water, and never shell her own seafood.
Yet despite her being such a handful, Cen Sen never managed to help her with a single thing. The omnipotent servers beat him to it every single time.
As they left, Ji Mingshu praised the restaurant several times, saying its service rivaled expensive Japanese restaurants and French dining establishments that charged several thousand yuan per person.
Cen Sen said nothing. He merely crumpled the receipt in one hand and ruthlessly tossed it into the trash.
Standing at the entrance seeing guests off, one server couldn't figure out what had displeased this customer. The service had been impeccable from start to finish. Yet the man's face practically proclaimed, I'm never coming back here again.
The food service industry is just too hard.
***
By the time they finished eating, it was very late. The shopping mall's west entrance had already closed, leaving only the elevator beside the cinema still operating.
As they walked toward the theater, Cen Sen suddenly asked, "Want to watch a movie?"
"Ah? A movie? Well… I suppose."
Pink bubbles floated all through Ji Mingshu's heart. On the outside, however, she answered with practiced reluctance.
At that hour, the only movie still playing was a romance movie that had premiered that day. It had three screenings between midnight and six in the morning.
The midnight showing was packed, but the two o'clock screening they chose had absolutely no one else.
The theater was dimly lit, and the romance movie unfolded at a leisurely pace.
With no other audience around, Ji Mingshu found herself muttering commentary on the film as it played.
When the male lead mistakenly believed the heroine had slept with the second male lead, she couldn't help complaining. "This is so ridiculously melodramatic. Do investors seriously have money to burn these days? Why would anyone finance something this stupid? And that guy has rocks for brains. The heroine obviously likes him, and he still misunderstands her? Is he an idiot? He's unbelievably stupid."
Cen Sen said nothing. Quietly, he agreed with her.
He really is unbelievably stupid.
Earlier that evening, Cen Yang had said many things to him. Most of it he'd barely listened to and cared even less about. But one sentence had lodged itself firmly in his mind.
"Xiao Shu likes you now. That doesn't mean she'll like you forever."
She likes you now.
His gaze softened as it rested on the movie screen. The corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly.
Ji Mingshu was still fuming over the plot when she turned and caught Cen Sen smiling.
Question marks instantly filled her head.
Is he a psychopath? The heroine is suffering this much, and he's actually smiling? Does this man have any humanity at all?
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Author's Note:
Little Canary Baby: I barely managed to stick out my tiny little toe before I pulled it right back. This is so tragic, waaah!
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