When Will It Be My Turn

“What are you all doing here?” Jiang Yi stepped out of the restroom and noticed the kitchen was empty, with everyone gathered together.

The group turned to look at him, and Su Ran immediately said, “Qiao Qiao hurt his hand, I’m helping him bandage it.”

Su Ran breathed a sigh of relief, his heart had been racing, fearing Ye Qiao had discovered something, but thankfully Jiang Yi came out just in time to divert attention.

Jiang Yi stepped forward to inspect, “It’s okay, just a scrape.”

Su Ran didn’t say anything further and focused on bandaging Ye Qiao’s hand. Despite the little incident during cooking, the meal was successfully prepared, looking and smelling delicious.

As Su Ran sat down, Lu Jin took a seat next to him, leaving Jiang Yi and Ye Qiao sitting opposite them. Su Ran felt it odd, but seeing Jiang Yi’s lack of reaction, he didn’t dwell on it. However, the next moment, Su Ran jumped as his heart rate increased—he glanced at Lu Jin beside him, who appeared normal and even managed to converse calmly with Jiang Yi.

Su Ran’s gaze drifted below the table to find Lu Jin holding his hand. He tried to pull away, but Lu Jin gripped it tighter, unmovable.

“What is Lu Jin doing? Is this intentional?”

System 555 commented, “I think it’s intentional, the excitement index is shooting up.”

“He shouldn’t be doing this with Jiang Yi, should he? To flirt under his nose… how did it become him!” Su Ran was confused, recently feeling as if the plot was veering off course.

“Maybe it’s more thrilling this way, the excitement index certainly suggests so,” said System 555.

Su Ran couldn’t comprehend Lu Jin’s reasoning. Did he have some peculiar fetish, or was this some new kind of play? Or perhaps… was it a roundabout tactic? To win him over first, then have him leave Jiang Yi, and after that, pair up with Jiang Yi!

Thinking back on how Lu Jin usually treated him, it seemed possible… If that was indeed the case, it was utterly sinister! Exciting, yes, but disastrous if discovered!

Su Ran’s expression tensed as he looked across the table at the other two, fearing they might notice something was off.

“Brother Ran Ran, are you feeling okay?” Ye Qiao asked with concern.

Hearing his name made Su Ran’s heart skip a beat, then he quickly lowered his head to eat, “No, it’s nothing… maybe I got a bit tired from cooking.”

As he said this, he felt a scratch on his palm. He sneakily looked to the side to see Lu Jin, the corners of his mouth faintly curling up in a smile.

Annoyed, Su Ran wanted to scratch back, but instead grasped Lu Jin’s hand and playfully manipulated it on his lap. The clear lines of Lu Jin’s fingertips glided over his palm, squeezing and kneading his fingers and joints. Su Ran’s palms sweated, the stickiness mingling with Lu Jin’s dry palms, which Lu Jin seemed to not mind, even tightly meshing their hands together, mischievously kneading.

This made Su Ran’s skin flush and his fingertips tremble; the more Lu Jin fiddled, the itchier and hotter his face felt.

Suddenly, Jiang Yi spoke up, “The project is going through the approval process, it should start next month.”

“Good, I’ve already spoken to President Wang, we’ll connect directly then,” Lu Jin said seriously, his actions beneath the table belying his composed speech.

Jiang Yi picked up the decanter, stood, and bent over to pour wine for Lu Jin, “President Lu, we owe a lot to you for this project.”

Su Ran almost thought they were about to be discovered, scared stiff until Jiang Yi looked his way, “What’s wrong? Why is your face starting to turn red? Are you feverish?”

Su Ran’s heart almost leaped out of his chest, his shoulders tensing, but just then Lu Jin’s grip loosened, allowing him to withdraw his hand. He felt certain Lu Jin was doing this on purpose, indulging his mischievous side.

“No… it’s nothing,” Su Ran managed.

Today, Jiang Yi was particularly attentive to Su Ran, setting down the decanter and walking around the table to him. Su Ran slightly lowered his head, his skin taut, dreading Jiang Yi might discover something.

Until Jiang Yi reached him, lifting a hand to touch his forehead, “No fever,” then touched his cheek, “Why does it feel a bit hot though…”

Su Ran couldn’t explain, but Lu Jin beside him, seeing their close contact, his expression darkened. He couldn’t bear others touching Su Ran, especially Jiang Yi, his husband in name only.

He even felt an urge to confront Jiang Yi, to tell him that Su Ran was his now, and to stay far away.

But he feared Su Ran couldn’t handle it, nor could he, despite not wanting to admit it. After being rejected by Su Ran last time, he hadn’t heard from him for a long while…

“It’s nothing…” Su Ran pushed Jiang Yi’s hand away. If it had been before, he might have welcomed Jiang Yi’s concern, but now he didn’t want Jiang Yi touching him.

Jiang Yi awkwardly withdrew his hand and returned to his seat. Lu Jin watched Su Ran’s reaction, a slight smile curling at his lips.

Su Ran’s heartbeat finally normalized, and he quietly breathed a sigh of relief. But as he looked up, he caught Ye Qiao’s deep, penetrating gaze, feeling as if everything was seen through.

This made him immediately avert his eyes, and just then, Lu Jin suddenly said, “Today, I brought something for you all to see.”

Su Ran looked to the side, previously thinking of Lu Jin as a stern and authoritative president, yet here he was, seemingly up to some mischief. He stood up and went to the sofa in the living room, picking up a small bag. He had been carrying it when he arrived, not explaining its purpose, and no one had asked.

Returning to his seat without sitting, Lu Jin pulled an elegantly packaged box from the bag. When opened, it revealed a beautifully designed bottle of perfume.

Su Ran felt a chill, this…

Lu Jin looked at Ye Qiao and Jiang Yi across the table, his eyes gleaming with triumph as he opened the perfume and said, “This is a new perfume I’ve developed, called ‘Lover,’ not yet on the market. I’m letting you have a first sniff.”

Of course, this perfume would never hit the market. It was his exclusive creation, given out of pity for them to smell.

If people had tails, Lu Jin’s would be wagging in the air by now.

“Really? What an honor,” Jiang Yi said, smiling, although he didn’t understand why a bottle of perfume was being shown, but he was definitely going to support it.

Ye Qiao stared coldly at the bottle, also finding today’s display by Lu Jin and Su Ran very odd.

The next second, a delicate mist was sprayed into the air, the tiny particles shimmering with rainbow hues, making the scene at the dinner table somewhat magical.

As the mist dispersed, a sweet, enchanting scent lingered, intoxicatingly pleasant.

Ye Qiao sniffed lightly, then frowned, deep in thought, before looking at Su Ran in astonishment.

“Smells great! This scent is amazing,” Jiang Yi was very supportive.

Su Ran watched all this, his heart racing. Without thinking, he knew this new perfume was inspired by him, and it was the first time he realized what his own scent was like… Was it really that wonderful?

After a while, Jiang Yi also seemed to notice something different, smiling and saying, “This scent feels familiar…”

Su Ran’s heart skipped a beat, looking at Jiang Yi, hoping he hadn’t guessed…

Moments later, Jiang Yi continued, “Really familiar… but I can’t quite remember right now.”

Su Ran immediately chimed in, “Yeah, it does seem familiar, maybe it’s a common scent.”

At that moment, Su Ran patted himself on the back for his quick thinking.

But to Jiang Yi, such a comment sounded foolish; Lu Jin wouldn’t showcase something to them unless it was a proud creation, and being described as common made it seem mediocre.

Jiang Yi quickly added, “No, no, it’s not common. Upon closer smell, it’s different from what I’m familiar with, this scent is nicer, very unique, very layered, amazing.”

Lu Jin’s lips curled into a cold smile. This scent was nothing compared to what Su Ran naturally smelled like, Jiang Yi’s unrefined nose obviously couldn’t tell.

But he didn’t give any hints, only smiling and saying, “This is the first perfume I’ve personally created since resigning as a perfumer, my most heartfelt work, and I’m glad to receive your praise.”

Lu Jin seldom smiled, and his smile now was particularly noticeable, clearly showing how pleased he was.

At this moment, Lu Jin also felt a sense of superiority, as if he could tell the whole world that Su Ran belonged to him, that Su Ran and he were truly in love, that Su Ran was his lover.

This perfume, called ‘Lover,’ symbolized the two of them!

“Amazing, President Lu, this perfume is wonderful,” Jiang Yi praised repeatedly, clapping his hands.

And Su Ran, who had been watching all this unfold from the start, felt it all to be absurd, experiencing a sense of spinning like a dazzling, magical plot twist.

After dinner, Su Ran escorted Lu Jin downstairs, as Jiang Yi had drunk a bit too much, and Su Ran took on the task.

Lu Jin and Jiang Yi both seemed pleased, neither skimping on their drinks. Lu Jin’s face was slightly flushed, but he didn’t forget to pick up the small bag containing the perfume, holding it carefully in front of him.

Su Ran closed the door and then entered the elevator. It was late at night, and only the two of them were inside. Su Ran stood by the door, silent.

Lu Jin looked at Su Ran, noticing his serious expression, then glanced again to find he was still rejecting him, not even looking his way.

Lu Jin turned towards Su Ran and leaned in, lowering his head, “Can I kiss you?”

Su Ran moved aside, although he was angry, his tone still lacked force, “The perfume is done, no kisses.”

Lu Jin looked at Su Ran, his emotions amplified by the alcohol, appearing somewhat pitiful. But if Su Ran were to call him pitiful, there probably wouldn’t be a pitiful person in the world.

Lu Jin had guessed why Su Ran was angry—it was because of his boldness at the dinner table and his perfume, his attempt to covertly reveal their relationship had been detected.

Su Ran didn’t want others to know.

Thinking this, Lu Jin’s eyes reddened more, and he said, “Su Ran, can’t you leave Jiang Yi? I could give you a house ten times bigger than this one, I can give it to you right now, just afraid you wouldn’t want it…”

Hearing Lu Jin’s words, it dawned on Su Ran, it was indeed as he had thought! A roundabout tactic!

No wonder he had felt something odd about it; looking back, it had always been Lu Jin’s intention!

Su Ran was momentarily dazed, then organized his thoughts and said, “Jiang Yi and I have an agreement.”

“What?” Lu Jin asked.

“It’s that between Jiang Yi and me, if we truly can’t be together, if he really can’t accept me, only then will we part ways, and it’s not time yet,” Su Ran said, his gaze lowered, not looking at Lu Jin’s expression.

Lu Jin’s long eyelashes quivered slightly as he said, “So, it’s only then that it will be my turn.”

“Of course,” Su Ran said.

Lu Jin’s eyes overly reddened, his hand holding the small bag trembling, hating that Su Ran wouldn’t even lie to him!

He turned away, looking towards the door, took a deep breath, then pulled out his phone.

Just then, Su Ran received a text alert. He pulled out his phone to see a notification for a transfer of twenty million.

Su Ran was stunned, turning to look at Lu Jin.

Lu Jin said, “Can I kiss you now.”

•

After sending Lu Jin out of the residential complex, Su Ran headed back. He summoned System 555, “555! Are you sure the plot is running normally!?”

System 555 immediately came online, then very firmly said, “Yes, of course!”

“Really? No deviations? Why do I feel something’s not right… Is Lu Jin really just infatuated with the scent? Is it really that kind of fetish? Or is he constantly refining the perfume…” Su Ran wondered.

System 555 confidently said, “As far as I can tell, that’s exactly it. I’ve been following many rich family melodramas recently, and those wealthy people have all sorts of strange fetishes. Don’t worry, Ran Ran, there’s no problem with the plot!”

Su Ran quietly reassured himself, the system was the ultimate authority. As long as the system said it was fine, then it was fine.

Su Ran clenched his teeth, realizing Lu Jin was indeed planning to use a roundabout tactic. How despicable!

Having been outside for a while, Su Ran tightened his clothes and hurried back.

As he opened the door to his home, he saw Ye Qiao sitting on the sofa, looking as if he had been waiting for a long time, “Brother Ran Ran, why are your lips so red again?”