Chapter 309: Why Aren’t You Focused?
The young man’s skin was smooth to the touch. The moment her fingertip grazed it, his muscles tensed, revealing well-defined abs.
’Is—is this something that should be happening in public?!’
Jiang Qingli’s ears grew hot, and her mind was suddenly flooded with scenes from the manga Lin Xiyue had recommended to her.
Acting on a ’might as well’ principle, she gave his abs a quick feel before snatching her hand back. Leaning close, she whispered in Yuan Shimo’s ear, "We’re in a movie theater..."
"Sorry." Yuan Shimo pursed his thin lips. "I didn’t mean for this to happen."
As he spoke, he took Jiang Qingli’s hand and tucked it into his jacket pocket. Then, mimicking her previous action, he leaned close to her ear. "Is this okay?"
The young man’s breath was light, his lips brushing against her earlobe as if by accident, making the tip of her ear burn.
She suspected Yuan Shimo was doing it on purpose, but when she turned her head a moment later, he was watching the screen, his expression focused.
’It must be my imagination.’
’Cat Teacher is such an honorable guy. He’s the type whose ears turn bright red if I just steal a kiss. How could he possibly be trying to seduce me?’
Jiang Qingli shook the chaotic scenarios out of her head and put on a serious expression. "This is fine," she told Yuan Shimo. "Let’s focus on the movie."
She turned back to the screen and continued watching.
On the big screen, the plot entered its second half.
The suspect had been caught. Inside a narrow, dim interrogation room, a glaring white light shone down as the detective, played by Baili Jing, sat across from him.
The room was silent. Baili Jing folded his hands, raised his head, and looked directly into the camera, asking calmly:
"You had an affair, didn’t you?"
According to the plot, the detective played by Baili Jing was using hypnosis. He was currently playing the role of the suspect’s main husband, imitating his voice to trick the suspect into talking.
Jiang Qingli held her breath, waiting for the suspect’s denial.
Suddenly, the hand holding hers stirred.
Xie Youchen pried her left fingers apart, his long, slender ones squeezing into the gaps. He clumsily interlocked their fingers, as if afraid he might not know his own strength and hurt her. His movements were incredibly light, and the scorching heat of his palm melted into hers.
Jiang Qingli’s heart skipped a beat.
Before she could react, Yuan Shimo, on her right, suddenly leaned over, closing the distance between them and bringing with him the faint scent of soap.
Inside the pocket, Yuan Shimo was gently kneading her ring finger, his touch soft and suggestive, as if trying to leave his mark on it.
The camera focused on the suspect as the "dead man’s" voice rang out in fury:
"Heh, ’secretary’? He’s just your lover, isn’t he!"
"Don’t think I didn’t know! When we were on vacation in City A, you put sleeping pills in my milk every single night! After I was ’asleep,’ you and that shameless male would do it right next to me, shamelessly, over and over again!"
"You were so caught up in it that I opened my eyes several times, and you never even noticed!"
The suspect shuddered violently and tried to panic-splutter a defense, but his words were feeble and only served to confirm the truth. He wanted to run but couldn’t, and could only whimper helplessly.
The scene cut. On the main screen, the camera slowly pushed in. The actor’s long, fox-like eyes narrowed, and the intense, oppressive feeling made Jiang Qingli’s scalp tingle.
’It was as if I was actually being intimate with other men under the watchful gaze of my first love...’
The sense of transgression was so strong that Jiang Qingli felt an inexplicable guilt, not daring to look up at the screen.
But with Xie Youchen on her left and Yuan Shimo on her right, looking at either of them felt wrong. In the end, Jiang Qingli just lowered her head.
She had barely lowered it when Yuan Shimo turned his head, his lips pressing against the base of her ear. "Why aren’t you focused on the movie?" he asked softly.
Jiang Qingli: "..."
Flustered, she turned her head away. "I want to drink my Coke," she said, giving her trapped hand a tug.
Yuan Shimo hadn’t bought any Coke. "I’ll go out and get one," he said softly.
"No need, I have one." Jiang Qingli turned to Xie Youchen, asking him to pass her the Coke.
The moment she loosened her grip, he tightened his, refusing to let her pull away.
At the same time, he whispered, stopping her. "Don’t move."
Jiang Qingli turned to look at him and wrinkled her nose in annoyance. "You’re holding my hand. How am I supposed to drink?"
With one hand, he popped the can’s tab, unwrapped a straw, put it in, and held it out to Jiang Qingli, silently telling her to drink.
Jiang Qingli: "..."
’Well, the service is impeccable. I’ll forgive him.’
Jiang Qingli took a couple of sips and said, "I feel like movie theater Coke is sweeter than what you get outside."
"Is that so?" Xie Youchen said. He took a sip from the same straw, paused for a few seconds, and commented, "It is very sweet."
His movements were so natural, as if he was completely unaware that this was an "indirect kiss." It was as if this was simply how things should be.
Jiang Qingli’s heart raced, and she couldn’t stop herself from squeezing his hand in return. Still, she mumbled a small complaint, "Could you be a little more careful?"
"Hm?" Xie Youchen seemed not to have heard her clearly. He leaned his ear toward her, motioning for her to repeat herself.
"Hey, is this any way for a secret lover to act?" Jiang Qingli huffed. "It’s too obvious! You can’t act like this in public!"
"Like what?" he countered, turning to look her in the eye.
Her reflection was captured in his dark eyes, his gaze so focused it was mesmerizing.
"You..." Jiang Qingli pinched his palm with her fingertips. After glancing left and right, she leaned closer and whispered, "Just... drinking after me and all that... If the media catches something like this, it’ll be hard to explain."
"I’m sorry, Ah Li." Xie Youchen lowered his gaze. "I’m just used to it."
Hearing that, Jiang Qingli felt a bit awkward.
She remembered how they used to hang out. Sometimes, she’d take a couple of bites of something she didn’t like and just leave it. Xie Youchen, who never wasted food, wouldn’t lecture her; he would just quietly take it and finish it for her...
’Sigh, how did I never notice anything was off back then!’
Jiang Qingli was at a loss for words for a moment. "Well, just be more careful from now on."
Xie Youchen looked at the red tips of her ears and her sparkling eyes. A smile touched his lips as he said softly, "Alright. I’ll listen to you."
Jiang Qingli nodded and went back to watching the movie.
The movie reached a scene where the suspect, after kneeling in repentance, suddenly lashed out, trying to kill everyone to silence them. A group of people fought using their Superpowers in a confined space. The special effects were incredible, and combined with the background score, the visuals were absolutely stunning.
Most importantly, Baili Jing looked incredibly cool.
Jiang Qingli was captivated all over again.
She was so absorbed that she didn’t notice Xie Youchen look to his right after she had turned away from him.
His gaze traveled past Jiang Qingli and met a pair of green, cat-like eyes.
The young man’s eyes were cold, simmering with intense disdain and condemnation, as if he were looking at some vile homewrecker shamelessly seducing an innocent girl.
Xie Youchen’s lips curled into a cold smirk, and he simply ignored him.
After the movie, there was an event where you could get merchandise for checking in.
Jiang Qingli was eager to participate. Knowing Xie Youchen wasn’t interested in such things, she didn’t insist, telling him to wait for her in the nearby lounge area.
Xie Youchen had intended to go with her, but his terminal suddenly rang with an incoming call. He had no choice but to get up and answer it, his eyes remaining fixed on Jiang Qingli the whole time.
No sooner had he sat down than Yuan Shimo suddenly walked over to Jiang Qingli, grabbed her hand, and pulled her straight toward the back of the lounge area.