"Chun Fei actually has something else she wants to say to Young Master Sun, don't you?" Wei Yan prodded, a serene smile on his face. He looked every inch the supportive friend, but Jingwei knew that he was up to no good!

"Ah!" Chun Fei blushed redder as she gazed into Jingwei's eyes. He was so handsome, but why did his smile vanish when he looked in her direction? He suddenly seemed colder and more intimidating. She felt her courage fail her as her lip trembled.

"It's nothing!" She said, shaking her head. "I'm fine!"

"No, you came all this way, you should tell him what you told me. It can't be worse than your attempt yesterday." Wei Yan coaxed her encouragingly.

"I want to sleep with you!" Chun Fei burst out in a loud yell, and several heads from nosy neighbours popped out from the windows. Xue Ning and Jingwei had already attracted their attention by running around screaming earlier, but they had vanished from sight before anyone could come down and scold them for making a ruckus.

Now the two people were back, and there was Xiao Chun from the hostess bar propositioning Sun Jingwei! How could they miss this drama? People began exiting their houses and walking closer, just to better eavesdrop on the conversation.

"Excuse me?" Jingwei asked incredulously, blinking in shock. Sure, he had been propositioned before, but never in such a blatant manner! Most women tended to go for the seduction route.

"I mean - I'm in love with you! And I want to sleep with you!" Chun Fei elaborated, her face turning red with the incredulous gazes of everyone. Jingwei had looked confused, which was understandable.. but Chun Fei took a quick glance at Xue Ning and nearly recoiled.

She looked like she was ready to flay her alive!

"Xue Ning, why do you look so mad?" Chun Fei asked timidly, like a mouse squeaking in front of a cat.

"You shouldn't be angry," Wei Yan chided, giving Miss Li a much-needed reminder.

"Why not?" Xue Ning growled out. "Don't tell me what to do."

"Calm down, my dear," Wei Yan said as he tilted his head to the side. Xue Ning followed his eyeline, and her own eyes widened as she realised there was a crowd that was slowly forming to spy on the proceedings.

They weren't alone! Nosy neighbours were coming out one after the other, and even what's left of the Neighbourhood Association were watching with unconcealed interest.

Fuck. Xue Ning sweated. They weren't alone!

"After all, the both of you aren't dating, remember? You are dating me."

Jingwei clenched his hands into fists, a muscle twitching in his jaw. Oh, this man was good. Now with the presence of outsiders, he couldn't risk laying claim to Xue Ning and ruining her reputation!

"...Right." Xue Ning said, an eyebrow twitching. Chun Fei let out a tiny meep at the murderous look on her face. It didn't seem like Xue Ning liked this new boyfriend of hers!

"I'm not interested in you," Jingwei said, turning back to Xue Ning's old classmate. He felt slightly bad at crushing her hopes so quickly, but he couldn't lead her on - not when Xue Ning looked like she was going to burst a blood vessel.

"Go and find someone else to date. Or sleep with. Whatever floats your boat. I won't judge!"

"But.." Chun Fei's eyes welled up with tears at the heartless rejection. She pleaded. "Can we at least try? One date? Just for a while?"

"No. You tried to seduce me yesterday, and I refused. You asked me today, the answer is still no. Even if you ask me tomorrow, it'll still be no!"

"What?" Xue Ning asked, frowning as she registered Jingwei's words. There was an itchy sensation in her chest, as though ants were crawling all over her heart. Was it jealousy? "What happened yesterday? Why didn't you tell me this?"

"Oh, Young Master Sun, you didn't tell Miss Li?" Wei Yan had a wide-eyed look of false surprise. "I didn't expect that!"

Lies. He completely expected it. The confrontation he had planned hinged on this fact.

"Neither did I," Xue Ning mused, a little too bitterly for her own tastes. "What happened last night, Wei Yan?"

"Miss Chun Fei was escorting Boss Wang into the motel yesterday night, but she spotted Young Master Sun. With Young Master Sun's stunning good looks and incredible stature, she immediately decided to change course and hit on him instead. It was using the good old tactic of pretending to fall down."

"Ah," Xue Ning said, narrowing her eyes at both Jingwei and Chun Fei.historical

"Xue Ning! That's - " Jingwei began, feeling incredibly put upon.

"Wait, let me hear more from Wei Yan first," Xue Ning said. Wei Yan watched with smug satisfaction as Jingwei spluttered helplessly. Finally he was getting his comeuppance! He cleared his throat and continued to talk.

"Yes, and Jingwei caught her in his arms so she ended up dressed against him."

Xue Ning's face darkened.

"I pushed her away after that! Xue Ning! Believe me!" Jingwei argued. "I shoved her to Ming Guang, right Ming Guang?"

"Yes you did," Ming Guang agreed.

"That he did," Wei Yan continued smoothly, not letting Ming Guang's support of Sun Jingwei's events ruin his retelling. "So of course Boss Wang saw that blatant attempt at seduction and got mad that her eyes were wandering around even when he was so close to scoring. Not that I can blame Chun Fei here," he added, whispering conspiratorially.

"Boss Wang was a 50 year old with bad breath and yellowing teeth, and he had a huge pot belly and receding hairline! Young Master Sun would of course look like a godsend to her!"

Meanwhile Jingwei glared at him and wished that a lightning bolt would come and strike Wei Yan dead. Didn't he know the value of keeping his mouth shut?

"Wei Yan, you're fired!" Jingwei declared, having enough of his errant mouth.

Wei Yan blinked repeatedly. "Excuse me?"

"You can't fire him!" Xue Ning protested. "You need him as a bodyguard! And you can't fire people for no good reason! This is against the law!"

"I am the law!" Jingwei declared hotly. Xue Ning's eyebrow twitched at his statement.

"No, the law is the law," she argued. "And you can't unlawfully dismiss someone!"

"Xue Ning, why are you defending him? Don't tell me you actually like this guy more than me!" Jingwei exclaimed, jealousy coiling in his gut. Xue Ning's family already liked Wei Yan more than him - what if they spent the whole day telling her how useless Jingwei was, and no amount of hot sex could make Xue Ning keep him?

"That has nothing to do with it, stop being immature," Xue Ning scolded. "If you want to fire Wei Yan, you have to have a good reason!"

"Oh I have so many reasons alright," Jingwei said bitterly, "The first is how he's an utter snake, the second is how he apparently has the hots for my wife - "

"At least this 'utter snake' isn't keeping secrets from me," Xue Ning interrupted. "Were you never going to tell me about this?"

"There wasn't anything to tell!" Jingwei protested, giving Wei Yan another deadly look before giving Xue Ning pleading eyes. Xue Ning remained unmoved.

"I went into the motel, got my room at the receptionist counter, and then she and that Boss Wang came into the hotel lobby. She hit on me first! Then he hit her in the face and she fell on the floor. I couldn't just leave her there!"

Xue Ning scowled, conceding the point. Jingwei was right - if he had left Chun Fei on the floor after she had gotten struck, he wouldn't have been the man she fell in love with.

"That's all?"

"Yes! I swear!" Jingwei raised his hand again.

"Then why didn't you tell me?" Xue Ning asked. "If nothing happened, you should have still mentioned it! Did I not matter to you at all?"

"It didn't think it was worth mentioning, because you were all that mattered!" Jingwei argued. "But if it makes you feel better, I will do exactly as you ask in future."

The listening crowd was getting increasingly confused with every passing word. Oh, it sounded like an ordinary lovers spat, the problem was that it didn't match the information they were given!

Wasn't Li Xue Ning supposed to be dating that baby-faced Wei Yan boy? Why did the conversation sound like Sun Jingwei was her lover instead?

Meanwhile, Chun Fei also realised an astonishing, terrifying fact - Xue Ning, despite being attached, was also in love with Jingwei! Oh no, she had become love rivals with her childhood hero! She had to make sure.

"...Excuse me for asking, but are the two of you.. dating?" Chun Fei asked hesitantly, her head swivelling between the two of them while they bantered, as though she was watching a particularly riveting tennis match.

"I thought.. Isn't this man your boyfriend? He said he was. Everyone in town also said so."

Chun Fei pointed at Wei Yan who was standing next to her.

There was a pregnant pause as Jingwei and Xue Ning stared at each other. Should they let the cat out of the bag?