Chapter 5: Subtle Seduction

Yan Feng gazed at Jiang Zhi-You’s face for a moment, a mocking smile tugging at his lips.
“Found yourself a boyfriend?”
“That’s right. Didn’t you say that when you feel lonely, you should get a boyfriend? I’ve guarded an empty room alone for three years. Isn’t it reasonable for me to find one?”
A faint smile played on Jiang Zhi-You’s lips.
“What, so only the magistrate’s allowed to set fires, but the common folk can’t even light a lantern?”
Yan Feng shrugged indifferently. “Even better if you’ve found a boyfriend. If he can keep you from bothering me ever again, I’ll prepare a grand gift and thank him in person.”
Yan Feng didn’t believe for a moment that Jiang Zhi-You had a boyfriend.
He knew her thoughts all too well.
She must have seen him talking on the phone with Xia Ling.
Clearly, she was staging a scene with someone on purpose.
And she played her part quite convincingly.
When she hung up, the man’s jealous, furious tone was so vivid, Yan Feng could feel it even through the phone.
She’d surely wanted him to hear just that.
Naturally, the two of them didn’t share a bed that night.
Jiang Zhi-You slept in the bed.
Yan Feng made up a spot on the floor.
He still had that much gentlemanly decorum.
Before sleeping, Jiang Zhi-You deliberately set the air conditioner to its lowest setting and hid the remote.
Waking in the middle of the night to see Yan Feng curled up on the floor, shivering with his pillow, she felt an undeniable satisfaction.
By morning, Yan Feng had caught a cold.
Jiang Zhi-You paid him no mind and went straight to the television station.
She was a news anchor there, mainly hosting the midday news, with a special segment called “Midday News Eye.”
She was somewhat well-known in the industry.
Recently, though, Sister Lin from the prime time slot had moved on, and Jiang Zhi-You was vying for the position of lead anchor in the golden hour.
After her regular midday broadcast, her time was her own.
At four in the afternoon, she returned to the Yan family home.
Yan Feng had just come back as well, likely from seeing Xia Ling.
As Yan Feng entered, Jiang Zhi-You had just changed and touched up her makeup.
Today, she wore a Xiangyun gauze cheongsam.
The collar and waist were adorned with intricate embroidery—subtle, as it was all in the same shade, barely visible from afar but, up close, a marvel of craftsmanship.
As Yan Feng walked in, Jiang Zhi-You stood and spun elegantly before him, on purpose. “Well? How do I look?”

Even if Yan Feng deeply loathed Jiang Zhi-You,
He had to admit, she was stunning—breathtakingly so.
She had an exquisite figure, stood at one-seventy in heels, making her seem even more striking.
The cheongsam was bespoke and fit her perfectly.
The skirt brushed her ankles, and her delicate, snow-white ankles made one want to reach out and hold them. Her waist was slender, almost too fragile to grasp, yet she wasn’t thin to the point of emaciation—her curves were in all the right places.
Yan Feng’s gaze drifted from her chest to that flawless face.
The dress was understated, but paired with her radiant beauty, it created an entirely unique allure.
She was like a fox spirit from a thousand-year legend, newly transformed into human form—seductive, yet tinged with innocence, tempting yet with a note of helplessness.
Yan Feng’s throat bobbed involuntarily.
Still, he kept his face cold. “It’s hideous. White doesn’t suit you at all.”
Jiang Zhi-You rolled her eyes, turned away, and leaned to the mirror to apply lipstick.
“Of course, in your eyes, only Xia Ling looks good in white.”
Finishing her lipstick, she straightened and flashed Yan Feng a brilliant, defiant smile in the mirror. “I’ll wear white just because you say I shouldn’t.”
At that moment, Yan Feng found her more vivid, more captivating than ever.
Her imperious tone sounded almost coquettish, stirring something in his chest.
But he quickly realized—
She was deliberately trying to seduce him.
Yan Feng frowned. “Jiang Zhi-You, stop playing games in front of me. You could be wearing nothing at all and I still wouldn’t look at you.”
With that, he snapped, “I’ll wait for you in the car,”
And left the room.
Ten minutes later,
Jiang Zhi-You joined him in the car.
Yan Feng reclined in the back seat, eyes closed. “Old Chen, to Lushan Villa.”
An hour later, the car finally reached the foot of Lushan.
Winding their way up the mountain road, they were flanked by towering plane trees whose leaves formed a canopy, blocking out the sun and plunging the road into a tunnel of green and shadow.
It was impossible to tell how long they drove before, all at once, the scene ahead burst into light.
A grand, imposing building—like a castle—slowly came into view.
The area was abuzz with activity.
Luxury cars were already parked across the vast lawn.
Countless waiters in white shirts and black vests attended to the guests.
Under a waiter’s guidance, their car found a spot in the open-air lot.

The waiter then led them into the “castle.”
Massive, ancient doors stood open, and a red carpet, hundreds of meters long, unfurled from inside to outside, guiding guests to the festivities.
As Jiang Zhi-You took in the complex patterns underfoot, she was truly astonished.
This was a pure handmade Persian carpet from Isfahan, woven from wool, cotton, silk, gold and silver threads—a riot of color and intricate craft.
The one beneath their feet was, by all measures, a masterpiece.
Ordinarily, a single square meter would cost two hundred thousand dollars.
Staring at the endless expanse of red carpet, Jiang Zhi-You couldn’t help but draw a sharp breath.
Everyone knew the Bo family was the richest in the land, but now she grasped the scale of their wealth.
Inside the mansion was even more astonishing:
Walls lined with precious blue-and-white porcelain antiques,
A massive English antique clock,
Medieval European chandeliers—
Antiques everywhere.
And this was only the first-floor banquet hall; one could only imagine what other treasures the “castle” concealed.
Old Madam Bo’s entertaining style was quite traditional—today there were one hundred tables for guests.
Round tables lined either side of the carpet, each seat bearing a name card as indicated in the invitations.
The Yan family’s seats were at table ninety-nine.
“Look over there—the one in the black Zhongshan suit is the Director of the Land Bureau. And the one in white—could that be the Mayor of Rong City?”
“Not just Rong’s mayor. Even the mayor from the capital is here, and several high-ranking officials from the central government. Old Madam Bo’s connections are truly astonishing.”
“That’s why, out of all one hundred tables, Rong City only got two. And we’re assigned to tables ninety-nine and one hundred.”
“Compared to these dignitaries, being seated at ninety-nine or one hundred is already a privilege for us.”
The conversation was between Mrs. Zhang and Mrs. Qin, both from elite families in Rong City.
They were friends with Jiang Zhi-You’s mother, Yao Shu-Lan, so naturally Jiang Zhi-You knew them.
Meeting them head-on,
Jiang Zhi-You had no choice but to greet them. “Aunt Zhang, Aunt Qin, good evening.”
Seeing Jiang Zhi-You, a trace of pity and regret flashed in their eyes.
“It’s you, dear. You’re here too.”
“Your mother and Xiao Xiao are giving gifts to Madam Bo. Go and say hello, quickly.”