When I knocked and entered the office, Shen Mengqing was already leaning against the window, gazing blankly at the vibrant, colorful world outside, illuminated by the night lights.
Today, she was wearing a milky white long gauze dress. The moment she opened the door, through the overhead office lights, I vaguely saw a beam of light... gently passing through the gauze dress.
At this moment, a glimpse of spring light... was revealed from beneath Shen Mengqing's graceful figure!
Black! And with lace trim!
Ahem~ I've digressed! Let's get back to the main topic.
Although Shen Mengqing's face wasn't as perfect as Yu Shuang's or Yang Yuanyuan's, lacking that stunning, eye-catching beauty, ...
She always possessed an indescribable aura, especially when she smiled. Her smile was far more innocent than Yu Shuang's or Yang Yuanyuan's.
Of course, it's not impossible that she was just acting for me before.
Therefore, upon seeing Shen Mengqing's attire, after being slightly stunned by that fleeting glimpse of spring light, I quickly regained my composure.
Seeing me enter, Shen Mengqing quickly snapped back to attention and turned around, smiling at me, "Little brother, you're here?"
"Come in quickly! Sit here with your sister!"
If there's any woman among those I know who would immediately resort to suggestive talk if things weren't going her way, then undoubtedly, Shen Mengqing is the undisputed number one!
When conversing with Shen Mengqing, her words need to be interpreted in two ways.
The first way is the literal meaning.
As for the second way, it's derived from the homophones of certain words, requiring self-comprehension.
If it were any other time, I would likely have played along with her teasing. But with suspicion and a rift in my heart... that was no longer possible.
Seeing that I didn't respond, Shen Mengqing didn't seem to mind. She continued to smile charmingly, "I've been too busy these past couple of days, I haven't had a chance to ask how you're doing?"
Upon hearing this, I replied indifferently, "It's alright, just the usual!"
As if prepared for my lack of enthusiasm, Shen Mengqing then started making small talk.
I knew that Shen Mengqing's current small talk was most likely preparation for extracting information later.
A full three days had passed since we got off the gambling ship.
During these three days, apart from my normal work routine, I hadn't contacted Yang Yuanyuan again, nor had I run around trying to prove my innocence.
If Shen Mengqing was truly in cahoots with Yang Yuanyuan, a complete insider, then she would definitely try to get information from me on Yang Yuanyuan's behalf.
The "fish-killing" scheme couldn't be delayed any longer.
Once the rumors completely died down, Yang Yuanyuan would ultimately gain nothing.
Therefore, if Shen Mengqing steered the conversation back to the main topic, her true identity would be completely revealed!
And so, after about ten minutes of aimless chatter...
Changing the subject, Shen Mengqing suddenly said, "Little brother, do you remember when I told you that if you agreed to help me, I would grant you one request unconditionally?"
Hearing this, I was slightly taken aback, and then I quickly nodded in agreement, "I remember."
"It's like this! Can you sense that I've been deliberately avoiding you these past couple of days?"
Before I could even answer, Shen Mengqing immediately continued, "The reason for this is that I don't know how to face you!"
"I'm sorry, please forgive me for lying to you!"
Heh!
So, it was as I had predicted?
The moment I heard Shen Mengqing apologize, an indescribable anger and a deep sense of frustration surged through me.
How many more times do I have to be fooled before I finally remember what Zhang Wuji's mother said!
The more beautiful a woman is, the less you can trust her words!
Seeing that my expression had changed, and that I neither responded nor asked any questions, Shen Mengqing said cautiously, "I shouldn't have lied to you about being busy."
"Actually, Xiaoyuan didn't plan to find me at first! She told me to find a skilled male cheater for her, preferably someone new."
"The moment these two conditions were presented, your name popped into my mind."
"That's why I went to such lengths to trick you into agreeing."
"I originally thought that Xiaoyuan's intention was to specifically prepare to break the situation and catch cheaters."
"After all, it's not that easy for a gambling ship to guard against unfamiliar cheaters."
"But honestly, I never imagined that the Ying family's gambling ship would be so chaotic now!"
"The person in charge of the gambling ship colluding with the dealer, openly working together to make money through the 'fish-killing' scheme."
"If I had known it would cause you so much trouble in the end, I would never have pushed you into it!"
"After returning from Xiaoyuan, I've been thinking that you did this favor mainly for my sake."
"Now that such a big problem has arisen, no matter how it's resolved in the end, one side is definitely going to be put to a lot of effort without any reward."
"And I can't help at all, so I was afraid, afraid you would have negative thoughts about me, afraid you would blame me, so..."
"I haven't dared to face you these past few days! I've been thinking of excuses to avoid you."
"But can hiding solve any problems caused by mistakes made by adults?"
"Three days! A full three days! I've hidden enough, and I don't want to hide anymore!"
"So tonight, whether you want to hit me, scold me, or make any demands of me... I'll accept it all! I absolutely won't refuse!"
As she blurted all these words out, I saw a clear expression of relief on Shen Mengqing's face.
Judging by her demeanor, she didn't seem like an insider.
She called me over today purely because she felt guilty and wanted to make amends.
Regardless of how much truth there was in everything Shen Mengqing said from beginning to end, just by looking at her expression and demeanor, I could roughly confirm...
At least her last statement was definitely true!
Because with the pressure completely lifted from her, Shen Mengqing seemed ready to go all out.
With this in mind, the coldness that had subtly appeared in my eyes due to her apology diminished somewhat.
Shen Mengqing's ability to hold the position of "Lamp Lighter" at the young age of twenty-five or twenty-six was enough to prove her exceptional personal capabilities.
This included her ability to read people's expressions.
Seeing that although I remained silent, my expression seemed to have softened, Shen Mengqing immediately smiled and said, "Little brother, I've invited you here tonight with great sincerity to talk."
"Aren't you going to say anything?"
Upon hearing this, I looked up at her and asked pointedly, "Are you sure you'll agree to anything I say or do, or any request I make?"
Shen Mengqing didn't answer me. Instead, she played with her hair and gave me a charming smile.
It was clear she was hinting at me.
Tonight, whether it's her place, my place, or any other place, it's all fine!
After receiving Shen Mengqing's affirmative look, I directly said, "Alright then! I want you to..."