Chapter 15: Does Miss Wen Often Give Gifts to Others?

“Alright.” Wen Jiu pressed out a pill and tilted her head back to swallow it. Afterward, she leaned back against the seat to rest.

As for whether Jiang Yanci was a meticulous person or not, they were just passing acquaintances — it didn’t matter much to her.

Time ticked by slowly. Qi Qin listened to the soft, soothing music playing and just felt unbearably uncomfortable all over.

He wanted heavy metal and deep bass!!!

At a time like this, gentle, relaxing music just didn’t match the vibe of his off-road vehicle!

When he tentatively reached out to change the music, a pair of sinister eyes from the back seat stared coldly at him.

After a few tries, Qi Qin gave up in defeat.

The car drove out of the bustling city, and the scenery on both sides of the road gradually opened up.

Wen Jiu’s breathing grew steadier, and her head began to tilt with the car’s motion, inching closer to the window.

Just as she was about to hit the glass, Jiang Yanci instinctively reached out.

His large hand slipped between her head and the window, and the next moment, her forehead landed steadily in his palm.

Only when he lowered his eyes and saw the fine, soft hairs on her fair cheek did Jiang Yanci realize how abrupt his action had been.

He Instinctively held his breath, afraid of disturbing the person still asleep.

Yet the faint woody scent lingering on Wen Jiu still slipped into his breath unnoticed, and Jiang Yanci felt his heartbeat was no longer under his control.

Thump after thump—it completely betrayed his nervous, flustered state.

When Wen Jiu opened her eyes, what she saw was Jiang Yanci frozen with tension.

They were very close—so close that not only could Jiang Yanci catch the scent on Wen Jiu, but Wen Jiu could also smell the cool cedar fragrance that belonged to him.

His arm was resting right in front of her, his forehead pressed against it—warm and burning.

Wen Jiu shifted slightly to move her head away, freeing Jiang Yanci’s arm.

“Sorry,” Jiang Yanci withdrew his hand, a flicker of inexplicable panic in his eyes. “Did I disturb your rest?”

Even he hadn’t expected his own actions—clearly, that wasn’t the best choice.

“No,” Wen Jiu shook her head, her still-drowsy eyes falling on him, tracing his features inch by inch. Then she gave a soft laugh:

“I like the scent of cedar too.”

Wen Jiu’s perfumes almost always contained cedarwood — she was obsessed with its scent.

Because of that, she used to give Jian Yue perfumes that included cedarwood as an ingredient, though he never actually used them.

But at this moment, Jiang Yanci in front of her reaffirmed her own sense of aesthetics.

Men really were suited to woody fragrances — mysterious and composed, with a hint of lingering warmth beneath the coolness, enough to attract any woman.

She flared her nostrils slightly, a faint dimple appearing at the corner of her lips as she smiled with a mix of delight and a touch of frustration.

“I have a bottle of perfume that would suit you perfectly, but I didn’t bring it with me. I’ll have someone send it over another day — would that be alright?”

Wen Jiu’s voice, when she spoke normally, carried a gentle softness typical of southern women. But perhaps because she had spent a long time in Jing City, her tone also held a certain casual indifference, lazy and unhurried.

Jiang Yanci stared fixedly into her eyes—and it was only then that he realized why Wen Jiu’s eyes were so beautiful.

Her irises were actually amber-colored.

As if a galaxy had been spread out within them, sparkling so brightly it was impossible to look away.

It took him a while before he could force himself to look away.

“Does Miss Wen often give gifts to people?” he asked.

But even Jiang Yanci himself didn’t know why he posed that question.

The words slipped out before he could stop them, and only afterward did he regret it.

Yet no matter what was stirring in his heart, not a trace of it showed on his face.

Wen Jiu tilted her head slightly, her gaze sweeping past the redness of his ears before she leaned in a little closer to him. “No, but with your looks and demeanor, Mr. Jiang, you really do suit that bottle of perfume I have. I had it custom-made—it’s one of a kind. Want it?”

Just now, Jiang Yanci hadn’t given her a clear answer, so she asked again.

As the seconds ticked by, Qi Qin, driving in the front seat, could feel a subtle tension in the air—an indescribable sense of intimacy. But at this moment, he wisely chose to stay silent and not interrupt.

After a while, Jiang Yanci finally restrained the urge to smile and nodded. “Yes.”

“Then it’s settled,” Wen Jiu said, her eyes curved in a smile as she leaned back against the seat and rolled down the window to look at the scenery outside.

Perhaps it was the medicine taking effect—she wasn’t feeling as unwell anymore.

Qi Qin drove a bit further, then reminded the two in the back, “That ancestor of yours has arrived.”

With that, he stopped the car at a fork in the road.

Over there, two cars were already parked.

As soon as they saw them, a girl in denim overalls came running over and jumped up to wrap her arms around Qi Qin’s neck.

“Qi Qin, you jerk! You didn’t come pick me up!!!

Being pinned down by her, Qi Qin immediately exaggerated his reaction and shouted, “Yan-ge, help me~”

The moment the words “Yan-ge” came out, the girl hugging Qi Qin’s neck immediately stood up straight.

And when she saw that it really was the “King of Hell” from the Jiang family getting out of the car, she quickly plastered on a fawning smile:

“Yan-ge, long time no see.”

Jiang Yanci cast her a faint glance, saying nothing.

But even that one glance made Mu Ling shudder.

Since childhood, Mu Ling had feared nothing—not even her own father, with whom she could go a few rounds. But Jiang Yanci was the one person she feared down to her very bones.

If she had known he’d be at today’s gathering, she definitely would’ve come up with an excuse to skip it.

It’s just… didn’t they say earlier that Jiang Yanci wasn’t coming? Why is he suddenly here now?

She shrank her neck in and tried to retreat behind the others, but just as she was about to move, she saw someone else getting out of the car.

Mu Ling looked at her curiously and asked Qi Qin, “Someone I don’t know?”

Qi Qin nodded. “She’s not from Gangcheng.”

“Oh?” Mu Ling dragged out the sound, then immediately asked, “Then why is she here?”

Normally, everyone at these gatherings were childhood friends who had grown up playing together. So what was a complete stranger doing here?

Mu Ling’s tone carried a clear hint of displeasure. Qi Qin glanced at her and explained, “I like her personality. She’ll probably be a regular at our gatherings from now on.”

“Your type?” Mu Ling crossed her arms and gave Wen Jiu a once-over, then chuckled. “That face is definitely my type too, but are you sure it’s the temper you like and not the face?”

“Tsk!” Qi Qin grinned. “Both, both.”

“Shameless,” Mu Ling snorted, but didn’t press further.

When Wen Jiu walked closer, Mu Ling was the first to reach out her hand. “Hi, I’m Mu Ling.”

The girl in front of her had a head full of thick hair tied into a bun at the back of her head. Her deer-like eyes were wide and lively. She wore denim overalls and had a quirky knitted cross body bag shaped like a sad-face doll slung at her waist, radiating a youthful energy.

Wen Jiu looked at the hand extended toward her and took it with a soft smile.

“Hello, I’m Wen Jiu.”

“Wow!” Mu Ling exclaimed when she saw Wen Jiu’s smile, as if discovering a new world. “You actually have dimples!!!”

“Does everyone in your family have dimples? Is it hereditary? They’re just so pretty!”

She was so excited that she even squeezed Wen Jiu’s hand tightly, but Wen Jiu’s expression remained unchanged. Still, she could tell that Mu Ling meant no harm.

“My mom has dimples, and so does my grandma, so I guess it’s probably hereditary.”

She patiently answered Mu Ling’s question, her gentle tone like a breeze brushing by—very soothing and pleasant.