My Queen, My Rules - 12
Slap
Perhaps trust existed between some people, but as far as Ji Mingshu was concerned, there was absolutely none between her and Cen Sen.
Standing beside the dining table, she watched him eat with maddening composure, her mind replaying one word from before they went to bed.
‘Accept’.
—Are you accepting the bribe? If yes, you are never to bring up the men’s restroom again.
—I accept.
Slap, slap, slap.
After pounding her down there, he went on to slap her in the face. Truly a model husband, so hardworking he could move all of China to tears.
And the way this husband sat there, calmly enjoying the fruits of his labor under her burning stare.
Just... magnificent :)
After glaring at him for a while, Ji Mingshu closed her eyes, so furious she'd already burned through tomorrow's breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Without another word, she stomped back to the bedroom, locked the door behind her, and rolled around wildly across the bed.
The sweet, lingering scent of their intimacy still hung in the room. The more she tossed and turned, the more awake she felt. All she could think was how she'd been well and truly duped into a marital one-night stand.
The same scenes looped endlessly through her mind. Finally, too angry to lie still any longer, she sprang off the bed, determined to storm downstairs and wage an all-out war against that lying scumbag who'd eaten alone after tricking her into bed.
Instead, the moment she yanked open the bedroom door, she nearly walked straight into the very same scumbag.
Cen Sen stood outside holding a steaming bowl of freshly made pork rib noodles.
The springy noodles and tender ribs were perfectly glazed, sprinkled with finely chopped scallions, and above all...
The smell.
Staring fixedly at the bowl, Ji Mingshu swallowed quietly.
"Cen Sen. You're such a good person."
Ding! One "Good Person Card” awarded.
Without bothering to see his reaction, she reverently accepted the bowl, carried it to her vanity, carefully pulled out the chair, and sat down properly.
Ji Mingshu was a pleasure to watch while eating. Every bite was tiny and elegant. She remained quiet the entire time, never making even the faintest slurping sound.
Whether this was a testament to her impeccable young lady upbringing, or the perfect embodiment of ‘Payment received, Complaint service terminated,’ was to anyone’s guess.
She slept surprisingly well that night.
At exactly eight the next morning, Zhou Jiaheng called as scheduled to serve as Cen Sen's human alarm clock.
After hanging up, Cen Sen lay in bed for a moment, slowly pinching the bridge of his nose.
Back when he was studying in the United States, he'd occasionally cook for himself whenever he had free time. Years had passed since then, and last night's late-night trip to the kitchen had unexpectedly been his first since starting work.
Shaking off the thought, he turned his head.
The summer morning sunlight poured brilliantly through the room, yet Ji Mingshu remained motionless, lying there as peacefully as a stick of dough waiting to be fried into a youtiao.
She had never been a graceful sleeper. The Ji family had hired countless tutors while raising her, but apparently none of them had thought to hire someone to teach her how a proper young lady was supposed to sleep.
When they had first married, she'd made an effort to maintain a respectable sleeping posture.
It hadn't lasted long.
Before long, her true habits surfaced again and again, especially after they'd slept together. Whenever her guard was down, she became remarkably unrestrained.
Just like now.
She was wrapped around him like an octopus, one long, bare, perfectly shaped leg draped casually across his waist.
Cen Sen was a perfectly normal man. Waking up first thing in the morning with a breathtaking beauty clinging to him in rumpled, barely decent clothing like this... it was hard not to react.
Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time.
He peeled the octopus off himself without much tenderness or hesitation.
Still, just before leaving, he paused for a brief moment and drew the blackout curtains shut.
***
Whenever Ji Mingshu returned from overseas, she'd usually spend half a day sleeping off the jet lag.
This time, however, exhausted in body and soul, she slept straight through until six in the evening.
Her phone was flooded with missed calls and unread WeChat messages.
She skimmed through them casually. Several messages, including one from Jiang Chun, were asking whether she would be attending Second Young Master Zhang's birthday party that evening.
The Zhang family had two sons. The elder was Zhang Qi; the younger, Zhang Lin.
Zhang Qi was about the same age as Cen Sen and had already taken over a large portion of the family's business. Since the Zhang family specialized in tourism development, he and Cen Sen likely crossed paths professionally quite often.
Zhang Lin was the late-in-life youngest child, spoiled by the entire family from childhood.
Turning twenty today?
Ji Mingshu confirmed again.
Yep, twenty. A milestone birthday.
Scrolling farther down, she found Zhang Lin's invitation and replied with a simple OK gesture.
His response came almost instantly: "Thanks for honoring me with your presence, Sister Shu!"
Zhang Lin had spent a long time preparing for this birthday party. Clever as ever, he'd chosen to hold it at the pub he was about to open, turning the entire celebration into one giant advertisement.
By the time Ji Mingshu arrived, the atmosphere inside was already lively.
Zhang Lin seemed to have considerable influence. Most of the familiar faces from the capital's elite circle had shown up, along with a crowd of internet influencers and rising celebrities whose names she couldn't even know.
Second Young Master Zhang personally came outside to greet Ji Mingshu.
Despite his young age, he had already mastered the art of shameless flattery to perfection. Standing at the entrance, he showered her with compliments, calling her "Sister" every other sentence with such practiced warmth that, had he actually possessed an older sister, she'd probably have wanted to crawl back into their mother's womb just to escape his greasy tongue.
At gatherings like these, the host's attitude was a direct reflection of a guest's status.
Among everyone attending tonight, only a handful were important enough to receive Zhang Lin’s personal welcome.
Even those who had never met Ji Mingshu immediately understood that she was someone significant.
Once she took her seat, another relay began.
Her circle of professional plastic sisters eagerly picked up where Zhang Lin had left off, surrounding her with an endless barrage of exaggerated praise.
Ji Mingshu played along graciously. She apologized for arriving late, voluntarily finished a glass of juice as punishment, then chatted with them about the couture week that had ended only a few days earlier.
This dazzling world of luxury, glamour, and endless social performances was Ji Mingshu's natural habitat.
She navigated it with effortless ease.
Zhang Baoshu had also come that evening.
More than a month had passed since she'd accompanied Zhang Qi to that business dinner.
In that short month, she'd experienced more twists and turns than she had in the her nineteen years combined.
The youth campus drama she'd filmed before graduation had finally premiered, more than twenty episodes had already aired online.
The reception wasn't explosive, but it hadn't flopped into oblivion either.
At the very least, her fresh and natural portrayal of the female lead had effortlessly earned her more than five hundred thousand followers.
Combined with the traffic her agency had purchased for her, she'd officially become one of the industry's promising young actresses, boasting over a million followers. Every post on Weibo now attracted thousands of comments, shares, and likes.
To outsiders, it looked like simple luck, a beginner stumbling into the spotlight.
Only she knew the truth.
Every glamorous moment seen by the public demanded its own hidden price.
That night, after Cen Sen rejected her without the slightest mercy, her pride had shattered piece by piece.
Even now, she couldn't understand what she'd been thinking.
She'd turned around and somehow ended up in Young Master Zhang's bed instead.
He belittled her endlessly with his words, acting as though she wasn't worth his attention, but when it came down to it, his body had been far more honest.
After spending three consecutive nights with him, the drama that had been shelved was finally released. Senior artists under the same manager, who had once barely acknowledged her existence, suddenly began treating her with respect. Television productions that previously wouldn't even consider her for a fourth female lead now actively invited her to play the second female lead.
Once someone had taken the shortcut and tasted how easily fame and fortune could be obtained, it became incredibly difficult to return to climbing step by step.
Zhang Baoshu was no exception.
Truthfully, she would have welcomed the rumors linking her to First Young Master Zhang. Unfortunately, he hadn't even left her a way to contact him. Since those three nights together, they had never met again.
After only a month, no one suspected anything yet.
Given enough time, however, people would eventually realize that their relationship wasn't nearly close enough for anyone to truthfully say she was "with" him.
Without him, whether she could gain anything more remained uncertain.
She wasn't even sure whether she'd be able to hold on to everything she'd already obtained.
Tonight, she'd managed to get into the party through her manager.
Her only hope was to run into Zhang Qiagain, rekindle their connection, and relive what they'd shared before.
Zhang Baoshu had arrived early.
Her eyes repeatedly drifted toward Zhang Lin. She assumed his older brother would surely appear for such an important birthday.
Instead, disappointment greeted her again and again.
Just before the party officially began, she watched Zhang Lin enthusiastically escort someone inside from the entrance.
The pub lighting was dim. At first glance, she'd thought he was welcoming his older brother.
Looking closer, she realized it was a woman.
A graceful, elegant woman.
Disappointment washed over her once again.
Amid the noisy chatter, she overheard people nearby talking.
"Who's that woman? Why's Zhang Lin falling all over himself for her."
"No idea, but that bag she's carrying... is that a Himalayan Birkin?"
Someone else added, "Diamond encrusted, at that."
At this, Zhang Baoshu turned to study her more carefully.
The distance made her features impossible to distinguish. Even so, one thing was obvious: The woman possessed extraordinary presence.
Even from afar she radiated breathtaking beauty, the kind that effortlessly captured every eye in the room.
She could simply tuck a strand of hair behind her ear and look as though she were filming a luxury shampoo commercial.
"Don't bother looking," someone who recognized Ji Mingshu remarked casually, gesturing toward the red sofa. "She's from that kind of background."
Everyone immediately understood.
The speaker continued.
"You know Junyi Huazhang, right? Her husband's the boss of the entire Junyi Group. And his family's influence goes even deeper than that. Otherwise why do you think Zhang Lin's trying so hard?"
Junyi?
Zhang Baoshu froze.
Suddenly, Cen Sen's words from that night echoed through her mind.
"Whether it's looks, temperament, education, or family background, you don't measure up to my wife in any way. You'd do better to wash your face and wake up."
So, this was his wife?
Without even realizing it, Zhang Baoshu's sharp cat-eye manicure dug deeply into the seams of the sofa beneath her.
***
The pub grew livelier as more guests arrived.
Once everyone had gathered, Zhang Lin climbed onto the stage wearing a birthday hat, microphone in hand, and delivered a short speech.
He followed it with a spectacularly off-key birthday song.
The entire room burst into indulgent laughter and applause.
Jiang Chun showed up just as the birthday cake was brought out.
She wasn't sure if she should go over and greet Ji Mingshu. To her surprise, Ji Mingshu spotted her first and tilted her chin in invitation.
Jiang Chun immediately hurried over.
The plastic sisters had only moments earlier finished gossiping about how Yan Yu had cheated on Jiang Chun.
They'd found it strange that Ji Mingshu hadn't joined in, hadn't even cracked a smile.
Now, seeing her openly invite Jiang Chun to sit beside her, their expressions became even more peculiar.
Ji Mingshu, however, remained perfectly composed. She even had someone shift over to make room for Jiang Chun.
An inexplicable sense of pride swelled inside Jiang Chun.
Secretly tugging at the hem of Ji Mingshu's little dress, she whispered, "So yesterday... in the restroom..."
Ji Mingshu immediately shot her a look that translated perfectly into:
Mute yourself. Forget everything.
Jiang Chun instantly changed course. "So, how do I look today?"
Ji Mingshu gave her a slow once-over from head to toe.
Whether out of revenge or simple honesty, she delivered a fatal blow straight to Jiang Chun's heart. "You should probably stop trying to dress up altogether, Little Earth Goose."
Jiang Chun: "..."
Why did she subject herself to this humiliation?
Just as Ji Mingshu's arrival had attracted attention, Jiang Chun's naturally did as well.
Near Zhang Baoshu sat several young actresses and influencers. Among them was none other than the little white lotus Yan Yu had been cheating with.
Seeing Jiang Chun walk in, she sighed dramatically to her friends. "The social circles in the capital really are tiny. What do I do? That's his ex-fiancée. This is so awkward."
Her friend comforted her immediately. "What's there to feel awkward about? Yan likes you. She wouldn't be such a sore loser, right?”
Several others quickly joined the conversation.
For someone of the little white lotus's status, landing Yan Yu was a major achievement, and she wasn't about to let it go unremarked.
The people around her happily fed her ego.
Most of the time, she maintained her innocent image, lowering her head shyly and speaking very little.
Only at the critical moment did she softly add,
"Yan and her were only engaged because of their families. She knew he already had a girlfriend outside the relationship, and she still wanted to keep up this arrangement. Honestly... these things are never just one person's fault, one hand can't clap alone..."
Before she could finish speaking, a pair of gleaming high heels stepped into her field of vision.
She hadn't had time to react when, ‘SLAP!‘ A crisp, resounding slap landed squarely across her face.
For a moment, one ear rang from the impact.
Ji Mingshu looked down at her calmly.
"Well? Listen carefully. Does one hand clap?"
---
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