Jiaochen

Under her gaze, Fu Yanzhi turned his head sideways to see his lipstick stained fingers before looking back to her.

The two’s eyes met.

Ji Qingying pursed her lip before pulling on his clothes. “I’ll find some tissue and help you wipe it off.”

“No need.”

Fu Yanzhi paused a bit before simply rubbing his thumb and index finger to further smear the lipstick stain.

Ji Qingying didn't quite understand what he meant by doing this.

So she simply stared at his every move, her heart feeling as if it was suspended in midair, beholden to his every action.

“Help me wipe it off later when we get home.”

“……”

They’re both adults, so how could Ji Qingying not understand what Fu Yanzhi meant.

“Oh,” she said while her cheeks flushed, “We’ll see.”

Then she pointed a finger at him, “I’m going to the restroom first, then I’ll go to the hall.”

Fu Yanzhi nodded after which he lowered his gaze to look at her, “Would you like me to help you put on lipstick?”

Impulsively, Ji Qingying wanted to immediately agree.

But before she could, Fu Yanzhi’s phone rang.

With that, she recovered her senses and pushed him away. “It’s getting late, so I’m going first.”

Without waiting for his reply, Ji Qingying pushed open the door and rushed into the restroom.

Fu Yanzhi looked at her fleeing back, silently smiling.

Wanting to be a rogue, but having no courage to do so. This phrase perfectly describes Ji Qingying.

The two then returned to the hall separately. Except for Ye Qing, who gave Fu Yanzhi a teasing look, no one else noticed what they did in the 20 minutes they disappeared.

Xu Bingying looked at Ji Qingying suspiciously before whispering, “What have you been doing all this time?”

Ji Qingying nonchalantly replied, “I simply went to wash my hands in the restroom.”

“Oh?” Xu Bingying replied while staring at her overtly rosy lips and her red cheeks and then casually remarked, “Is your face red because you’re drunk?”

“…”

Ji Qingying was stunned for a bit, then said, “Yes.”

Xu Bingying nodded before whispering again, “Then you’ll have to drink less later, as your face is already bright red right now.”

“…Okay.”

Feeling guilty, Ji Qingying looked away while saying, “I also don’t like drinking if it isn’t necessary.”

While the two continued their hushed conversation off to the side, Ji Qingying’s eyes darted around the room to catch a glimpse of Fu Yanzhi from time to time.

Ye Qingzheng was busy chatting up the organizer, while Fu Yanzhi stood beside her, particularly eye-catching.

Soon after, Ji Qingying and the others were taken to where the organizer was.

Zhou Zhilan and Ye Qing were both present as well, chatting happily away.

When she, Xu Bingying, and the other designers came, the organizer smiled and said, “Come! Let me introduce you to Mrs Zhou and President Ye. This is our champion this season, Ji Qingying. Mrs Zhou and President Ye must have already met her, right?”

Ye Qing nodded and smiled, “Yes, I’ve met her before. She’s an outstanding designer.”

Ye Qingying: “……”

She had no choice but to pretend not to know her well so she greeted her politely, “Hello again, President Ye.”

Ye Qing smiled and remarked on her red face, “You look especially beautiful today.”

The organizer laughed, “Indeed she is.”

After saying that, he then looked at Zhou Zhilan, “This is Mrs Zhou.”

The genuine smile on Ji Qingying’s face faded into a standard professional smile, “Hello, Mrs Zhou.”

Zhou Zhilan simply stared at her for a little bit, before nodding and lightly saying, “Hello.”

Xu Bingying and the other designers were also introduced one by one.

After all the introductions, the group started to chat about fashion design. Later on, it had even touched upon the current market trends.

As Ji Qingying listened in on the conversations, her expression grew increasingly flustered.

It was basically Zhou Zhilan and Ye Qing having a conversation, while the rest of them were only there to nod their heads and echo their opinions.

She had to admit that, even though Zhou Zhilan was a failure as a mother, she knew fashion design and the current market better than anyone here.

This made her a bit reluctant to listen.

She had never taken Zhou Zhilan as her goal or role model, but at this moment, she had to steel her resolve to not do so.

Having her thoughts elsewhere, her eyes drooped and her mouth went into a straight line.

Before she knew it, someone had gently stroked her fingers.

Surprised, she raised her head reflexively.

Unbeknownst to her, Fu Yanzhi had somehow changed his position with Ye Qing and was now standing beside her.#pleasereadthischapteratfoxaholic.com

In that lively scene, Ji Qingying silently stared only at him.

She looked straight into those long and narrow eyes of his, before finally veering down to him holding on to her thumb. She suddenly understood.

‘He knew.’

He was trying to calm her down.

She paused for a moment before quietly shuffling her feet to get just a little closer to him.

She didn’t know how Fu Yanzhi knew that she was feeling a bit down, but all she knew was her mood was greatly lifted when he hooked her fingers with his.

Their two thumbs were tightly knit together, like a knot.

The warmth from his finger seemed to travel along her body up to her chest. Ji Qingying felt that she was surrounded by his warmth and an endless stream of heat was continuously exuding from him to her, which made her feel at ease.

Ji Qingying lips curved into a smile. Then she noticed that Zhou Zhilan’s gaze lingered on her for a moment, before settling on Fu Yanzhi.

Ye Qing also followed Zhou Zhilan’s gaze and also noticed the two were holding hands. She cleared throat, feeling a little helpless.

After a while, Zhou Zhilan was inevitably pulled away by others. When Xu Bingying was just about to pull Ji Qingying away, Ye Qing smiled and said, “Qingying, I adore your design this time, so do you have some time to talk?”

Ji Qingying nodded, “I do.”

Xu Bingying got the hint so she hurriedly whispered to Ji Qingying, “I’m going ahead first. Come when you’re finished.”

“Okay.”

As soon as Xu Bingying left, Fu Yanzhi turned to introduce her to Ye Qing, “Mom, this is my girlfriend.”

***

[ADVANCED CHAPTERS]

Special thanks to: Jackie Ho, Christiine Govinden-Loh, Asalin,Bradford M, Sweetly Karen, Aileen Smart Montero, Pang Vang, Alizer Gondra, PotatoRunner, Kassandragc, Felicyana, JESSICA DO, Cinder 111, Алексей Ганусяк, Crystal Starks-Webb, Megan Johnson, Kaylamatea, Kascia Samel, Maria Lorenzo, Heidi08, Dionne Cheng, Moonweol, Chanel, Kiriarangi Rameka, Tammi Do, Morat, Samantha Co, GronkJuice ., Faleilelagi Tasi, KunLisa, WaiMan Chen, WOLFSBAN FILMS, Michelle Keim, Prissy M,Olabisi Alo, Shim Rie,BeanDerDunDat, saran s, Valentina, Brittany Bryan, Rezkin,Jaan, PinkPrincessLacus❤❤❤❤