Chapter 436: Silent Seduction

She was caught red-handed by her two main husbands while secretly holding hands with her "underground lover."

According to the plot of a cheesy TV drama, Jiang Qingli, as the female lead, should have been panicking and guiltily looking away.

But aside from her eyes widening for a moment when she saw the two of them, Jiang Qingli quickly maintained her calm facade.

’Maybe... I’ve been caught so many times that I’m used to it now.’

Jiang Qingli gestured toward the two of them, indicating that she was still in a meeting, then turned to watch a researcher thrust data in a military officer’s face, putting on an air of being extremely busy and serious.

But the two gazes lingered on her, and the fingers of her captive hand began to grow warm.

She coughed softly, trying to pull her hand away.

However, Xie Youchen, who could usually understand her with a single glance, now acted as if he hadn’t noticed her discomfort.

He just kept smiling at her, his expression perfectly normal.

Jiang Qingli started coughing louder. "COUGH COUGH, COUGH COUGH COUGH!"

She added some frantic blinking for good measure.

The young man slid his hand from hers up to her shoulder, patting her back gently as he asked in a concerned tone, "What’s wrong? Tell me."

Standing behind him, Chen Mi perked up and was about to step forward, but another figure moved faster.

The Gray Wolf Butler, who a moment ago had been standing silently and unnoticed diagonal to Chen Mi, wove through the crowd to the girl’s side. He leaned one hand on the conference table, bending over to study her expression.

A shadow fell over her. Yi Nuo’s voice was a low whisper in her ear. "Is your throat bothering you? Shall I go make you a cup of soothing tea?"

Jiang Qingli tilted her head back, meeting the young man’s concerned gaze.

She was a little embarrassed. "It’s nothing, really. I just get a little cough sometimes."

"Your schedule has been packed lately. Even small things can’t be ignored," Yi Nuo urged in a low voice.

"Really, I’m fine."

Jiang Qingli leaned back in her chair to talk to him.

The movement inadvertently closed the distance between them.

Yi Nuo was caught off guard, and the tips of his ears grew hot as he instinctively tried to pull back.

But at such a close distance, her breath was a whisper away. He could see his own reflection in her sparkling eyes, could count every single one of her eyelashes.

Just one look, and he found he couldn’t tear his gaze away.

The arm propped by her side bent slightly. Yi Nuo’s back arched as he subconsciously leaned in, wanting to be closer.

But just as he leaned in a few inches, a large, well-defined hand cupped the back of Jiang Qingli’s head and guided her upright.

Xie Youchen raised his hand and squeezed the back of her neck and her shoulder, making it look as though he were giving her a relaxing massage.

The look he gave Yi Nuo, however, was full of cold dismissal. "I’m here."

"Marshal, the meeting must continue, and you can’t be in two places at once. It would be more appropriate for me to take care of the lady," Yi Nuo said, his eyes lowered but never leaving Jiang Qingli’s profile. His tone was neither servile nor overbearing. "Besides, I am the one you assigned to her."

Xie Youchen didn’t speak, but his knuckles tightened.

He glanced at Chen Mi, who was standing nearby, and tapped the table.

Seeing this, Chen Mi quickly came forward. He took a box of throat lozenges from his pocket, placed it by Xie Youchen’s hand, and explained to Jiang Qingli,

"Advisor Jiang, these are throat lozenges specially made for the Marshal by the Research Department. They’re mild and have no side effects. You can try one."

Xie Youchen picked one up, methodically tore open the wrapper, and handed the lozenge to Jiang Qingli.

Jiang Qingli popped it in her mouth and blinked in pleasant surprise. "Strawberry."

’My favorite flavor.’

’Xie Youchen must have prepared these in advance.’

Jiang Qingli thanked Chen Mi, then looked at Yi Nuo. "You’re not worried anymore, are you?"

Yi Nuo nodded and took a step back.

Seeing Yuan Liang pick up another report, Chen Mi pulled Yi Nuo back with him to continue taking notes.

As he jotted down notes, he joked with Yi Nuo, "Some sharp eyes you’ve got there, kid. Didn’t you see the Marshal and your lady were having a secret little moment?"

Yi Nuo glanced at him. "I saw."

Chen Mi said, "You saw, and you still went over? I didn’t realize you enjoyed being a third wheel."

Yi Nuo: "..."

He closed his eyes and stopped speaking to Chen Mi.

-

Another revised report was handed over. As Jiang Qingli flipped through it, Xie Youchen’s hand came from behind her and once again rested on hers.

Jiang Qingli caught Xie Youchen glance out the window from the corner of her eye and couldn’t help but ask, "You knew they were outside this whole time, didn’t you?"

’He was deliberately putting on a show for them.’

’Marshal Xie could be so petty sometimes.’

Xie Youchen didn’t answer, only reminding her in a low voice, "Ah Li, they’ve reached a conclusion."

As he spoke, he withdrew his hand. His gaze fell on the group nearby that had just finished their argument, and he resumed his usual air of authority.

Yuan Liang, having mediated the disagreement between the researchers and officers, sat down next to Xie Youchen and gave Jiang Qingli an apologetic smile. "My apologies, Advisor Jiang. These young males can get a bit rowdy. Sorry to have made a scene."

"It’s fine," Jiang Qingli said with a smile. "Actually, it just gave me an idea."

Yuan Liang’s eyes lit up. "Please, go on."

Jiang Qingli briefly explained her thoughts.

Besides Ye Linyuan, five other test subjects had survived.

But unlike Ye Linyuan, they were originally normal Beastmen. They had been targeted by Lü Xin, who kidnapped them just as he had Sheng Langhuai, faked their disappearances, and secretly experimented on them with gene injections.

Among them, three of the Beastmen were minor nobles from the Central District, one was a commoner, and another was a high-ranking noble.

The military had not yet decided what to do with them.

Some officers had proposed their forced elimination, but the plan was not approved.

On one hand, they were extremely powerful; capturing and eliminating them would consume significant manpower and resources. On the other, they were victims. If the military were to forcibly eliminate them, their families would not let the matter rest, and public opinion would turn against the military district.

Jiang Qingli’s idea was to have them enlisted in the military.

The Mutant Beasts of the Roaring Forest were generally on friendly terms with the test subjects, so the subjects could mediate between the two sides and help them achieve a state of harmonious coexistence.

However, considering the military’s concerns, they would also need to be fitted with new wristbands to enhance control.

Yuan Liang had been thinking along the same lines, so he nodded in approval.

Marshal Sun had no objections.

Yuan Liang looked at Xie Youchen. "Youchen, what are your thoughts?"

"Advisor Jiang has indeed been very thorough. Building on her proposal, I have a few suggestions of my own."

Xie Youchen had been in the military for many years, after all. He added a few simple, clear points that perfected the plan.

The room was quiet. The young man, dressed in a sharp suit, was meticulous in his posture and movements, like a picture-perfect example from a textbook.

One would never guess he had been doing something so amorous just moments before.

Except—

Under the table, the tip of a polished leather shoe lifted the hem of her long skirt, sliding with the faintest pressure up her calf before discreetly pulling back, all before she could react, as if it had been nothing but an accident.

But during the lulls in the meeting, whenever Jiang Qingli’s gaze flickered toward him, she would find his eyes already waiting to meet hers.

A silent message, telling her he was always watching.

Coveting her.