Chapter 672 - 233: Meeting Jing Si and Xiao Ge

"Is the Huang Family no longer interested in working with the Qiao Family?" Jie Jingchen asked coldly.

Second Young Master Huang froze for a moment. Faced with Jie Jingchen’s threat, he wisely shut his mouth.

While pretending to feed Jie Jingchen a bite of apple, Qin Xiang poked him on the cheek. It was a reminder not to offend Second Young Master Huang; the item they needed was still on the Huang Family’s ship.

"Come here," Jie Jingchen commanded coldly. ’If they want to keep the women here, then I’ll keep them by my side. Let’s see who dares to lay a hand on them with me protecting them.’

Xu Jiali wanted to run, but Qin Mei dragged her toward Jie Jingchen. ’No, please, I want to go home,’ Xu Jiali cried internally.

’What rotten luck. Why did I have to run into Jie Jingchen?’

’Why is Jie Jingchen in my regular private room?’ Xu Jiali suspected Jie Jingchen had taken over her Room 206; it never even occurred to her that she might have walked into the wrong one.

Qin Mei pulled Xu Jiali to a stop in front of Jie Jingchen. Qin Xiang watched his aunt, so embarrassed he wanted to dig a hole and crawl into it. His nerves were stretched taut.

Jie Jingchen watched her with his quiet, amber eyes, an unreadable emotion hidden in their depths. "Sit."

Xu Jiali grabbed Qin Mei’s arm, her eyes pleading. ’Don’t sit. Let’s just go home.’

"Don’t be afraid, sis. He’s not going to eat you." Qin Mei patted Xu Jiali’s cheek, her eyes so gentle they seemed to overflow.

’Don’t call me sis! I’m not your sister, I’m your aunt!’ Xu Jiali was genuinely terrified of Jie Jingchen.

’If my older sister and the others found out I brought Qin Mei here, I’d be dead, let alone running into Jie Jingchen.’

"What are you so afraid of? It’s not like he’s going to kill you." Qin Mei, enjoying the mischief, pushed Xu Jiali down onto the seat next to Jie Jingchen.

’If I piss off Jie Jingchen,’ Xu Jiali thought, ’he actually might kill me.’

The moment Qin Mei forced her onto the sofa, Xu Jiali nearly sprang back up. She looked at Jie Jingchen with a face on the verge of tears. ’Great-nephew, your aunt was wrong! Please, can you forgive me just this once?’

Jie Jingchen shoved Qin Xiang aside, grabbed Xu Jiali by the arm, and swapped places with her, essentially tossing her over to Qin Xiang. He then snatched the apple from Qin Xiang’s hand. "Stay away from me."

Qin Xiang caught her, making Xu Jiali sit securely between him and Jie Jingchen. He understood Jing Chen’s intention: he was supposed to protect her. But he was far more concerned with protecting his own little sister.

Jie Jingchen pulled Qin Mei into his arms and gave her waist a retaliatory pinch. Qin Mei glared at him and, not to be outdone, struck back.

The closest observer, Second Young Master Huang, watched their little exchange. ’If they claim they don’t know each other,’ he thought, ’I’ll eat my hat.’

"Well, well! Young Master Qiao, turning over a new leaf?" Second Young Master Huang teased.

Jie Jingchen ignored him. He tilted Qin Mei’s chin up, his voice slipping from his thin lips. "Meeting us in this vast sea of humanity... I’d say it’s their just deserts."

Second Young Master Huang sneered. ’Falling into the hands of anyone else here would be their just deserts. But falling into the hands of Young Master Qiao? That’s a stroke of luck, not a punishment.’

The others were dumbfounded. ’What is going on?’

’Rich people sure have their fun. Always looking for a new thrill.’

"Young Master Qiao, that’s not playing fair." The man in the flowery shirt viciously threw his half-smoked cigarette on the ground. The scar-faced man immediately stomped on it, grinding it under his heel as if it were Jie Jingchen’s head.

"Yeah, that’s low," someone else chimed in.

"Young Master Qiao..."

Just then, a commotion erupted outside. The man in the flowery shirt tensed, shooting a look at the scar-faced man beside him. The scar-faced man nodded in understanding and went out to investigate.

"Brother Xiong, losing your nerve? A little disturbance and you..."

"The cops have been watching us like hawks lately. When it’s time to lay low, you lay low." The man in the flowery shirt cut off Second Young Master Huang. He was a gangster; he had to be cautious.

A dark, inscrutable emotion flashed in Jie Jingchen’s eyes. He glanced at Qin Xiang out of the corner of his eye. ’Has the plan been moved up?’

Qin Xiang’s expression was grim. The two exchanged a silent look. ’I didn’t get any notice about a change.’

’What should we do?’ Qin Xiang asked with his eyes.

Jie Jingchen remained silent.

’Do we act now?’ Qin Xiang asked again, with just a look.

’Hold your position,’ Jie Jingchen replied in the same silent manner.

Qin Xiang looked away. For now, all they could do was play it by ear.

If Qin Mei and Xu Jiali hadn’t burst in, they could have acted at any time. Now, considering the women’s safety, he couldn’t afford to be reckless.

Watching them exchange loaded glances, Qin Mei wondered, ’Aren’t they worried someone will get suspicious?’ She cupped Jie Jingchen’s face, leaned close to his ear, and whispered so only he could hear, "Need me to lend a hand?"

’What is Qin Xiang’s real identity? For him to show up in Xiangjiang... something big must be going on.’

Before Jie Jingchen could answer, the scar-faced man returned. He shut the door and said to the man in the flowery shirt, "Boss, it’s not them. It’s the Qiao Family."

Hearing it wasn’t the cops, the man in the flowery shirt breathed a sigh of relief. But when he heard it was the Qiao Family, his anger flared right back up. His fierce gaze fell on Jie Jingchen. "Young Master Qiao, what’s the meaning of this?"

"Boss, it’s a misunderstanding! A misunderstanding! It’s got nothing to do with Young Master Qiao. Well, actually, it’s a little related to him," the scar-faced man hastily explained.

The man in the flowery shirt froze, then frowned at his subordinate. "Explain."

The scar-faced man let out a breath and explained to the man in the flowery shirt, "The Qiao Family is looking for someone. I overheard them saying that the Young Miss of the Qiao Family snuck their Eldest Young Madam here."

"The Eldest Young Madam," the scar-faced man repeated, looking pointedly at Jie Jingchen.

"Young Master Qiao, looks like the Qiao Family is here for your wife," Second Young Master Huang said, gloating. As for why the young miss of the family would bring the Eldest Young Madam to a place like this, his peculiar gaze landed on Qin Xiang.

Everyone in the room was sharp; they all got the implication and burst out laughing. Jie Jingchen’s icy gaze swept over them like a razor’s edge, and the laughter died instantly.

"Is something funny?" The ice-cold words slipped from Jie Jingchen’s lips.

"Young Master Qiao, for the sake of domestic tranquility, I suggest you slip out of here. I’d guess your wife will be finding her way to this room any minute now," the man in the flowery shirt advised, a hint of false kindness in his tone.

The man’s words made Jie Jingchen pause for a second. He exchanged a look with Qin Xiang and made an instant decision to change their plan on the fly.

"Brother Xiong, thanks for the heads-up. Do me a favor and look after him for a few days." Before the man in the flowery shirt could refuse, Jie Jingchen grabbed Qin Mei with one hand and Xu Jiali with the other and bolted from the room.

The man in the flowery shirt was speechless. "..."

He could have kicked himself.

Everyone else was also speechless. "..."

The man in the flowery shirt was dumbfounded. ’Wait, why am I supposed to be taking care of *him*?’

"Brother Xiong, I guess I’ll be troubling you for a few days," Qin Xiang said in a deliberately shy and coy voice. When the man in the flowery shirt looked over, he even fluttered his eyelashes at him.

The man in the flowery shirt was so disgusted he nearly threw up.

"Boss, he’s Young Master Qiao’s man," the scar-faced man interjected, afraid his boss would offend Young Master Qiao.

"Get lost!" the man in the flowery shirt snarled.

The scar-faced man fell silent.

Qin Xiang’s mood was excellent. He picked up an apple and took a bite. ’Infiltrated the enemy’s ranks without firing a single shot. Perfect.’

Jie Jingchen was helping him go undercover in Brother Xiong’s territory. The original plan had been to send people to start a riot here. He and Jie Jingchen would get separated in the chaos, and he would then latch onto Brother Xiong, shamelessly pestering the man until he took him along.

"Boss, Young Master Qiao is gone," reported a subordinate who had been tailing Jie Jingchen.

"What about the two broads?" The man in the flowery shirt still hadn’t forgotten about them.

"Young Master Qiao took them with him," the subordinate answered.

"How dare he?" The man in the flowery shirt was furious. Young Master Qiao had taken both of them, not leaving a single one for him. Instead, he’d been saddled with... this thing... for who knows how long.

He said a few days, but God only knew how long he’d actually be stuck with him.

"Young Master Qiao is handsome, and his family background is impeccable. The women who want to marry him are a dime a dozen," the scar-faced man said with an envious expression.

Everyone looked at Qin Xiang, who was still munching on the apple, with sympathetic eyes. ’The poor guy has to be kept in the shadows.’

Qin Xiang just shrugged. "I don’t mind," he said nonchalantly. "Who he marries is his business. How many he marries is also his business. In any case, it’s not like he could ever marry me."

’Marry you? The Qiao Family would probably disown Young Master Qiao and kick him to the curb.’

"Your feelings for Young Master Qiao don’t seem that genuine, either," Second Young Master Huang remarked, his tone dripping with insinuation.