Chapter 39: Looking at Qin Ye with Vigilance

"I never expected you to dig up news from eight years ago; you really should have been a paparazzo," Dongfang She remarked teasingly, his tone giving nothing away regarding his true emotions.

Yu Jin's heart skipped a beat. Unsure of how to respond, she suddenly asked with stubborn directness, "What happened eight years ago? Why did you end up in prison?"

A flash of dark, humiliated malice crossed Dongfang She's eyes. He shrugged dismissively and replied with feigned nonchalance, "The internet states it clearly enough: I acted out of rage for a woman. Everyone has a period of youthful impulsivity!"

He spoke with such lightness, yet Yu Jin had an inexplicable intuition that something must have occurred eight years ago to warp his personality and turn him into such a womanizer.

"I’m just curious—which young lady was so charming that she could make our President Dongfang lose his composure and resort to violence in public?" Yu Jin smiled, though she felt a vague sense of unease.

"An ex-girlfriend, of course!"

"President Dongfang has so many ex-girlfriends; this one seems different, doesn't she?" Yu Jin glanced at him sideways, momentarily despising herself—since when had she become the type to pry into such things?

"Oh? Is that jealousy I hear? Why does it smell so sour in here?" Dongfang She reached out and pinched the tip of her nose. The intimacy of the gesture made Yu Jin instinctively recoil.

"Forget it. I’m not masochistic enough to be jealous of you; that would be suffocating."

Yu Jin’s gaze swept over the photo on the computer screen. She frowned slightly, and seeing that he had no intention of answering, she stopped pressing. Regardless, she had a little genius at home whose computer skills were growing by the day; if she couldn't get an answer here, she would just go home and ask her little treasure.

***

Dongfang She knit his brows. He hadn't realized eight years had already passed; even the face of that woman in his memories seemed to have blurred.

Eight years, and still no word from her...

"She was just an ex-girlfriend, Assistant Yu. Don't go getting hung up on it. I’m still waiting to conquer you!"

Dongfang She reverted to his frivolous self, reaching out to take advantage of her, but a knock at the door interrupted him.

Qin Ye walked in carrying a takeout container. Seeing the two of them squeezed into one chair, appearing perfectly intimate, he gave a strange, knowing smile.

"Sir, the food is here."

Qin Ye’s sharp gaze fell on Yu Jin. Seeing her rosy complexion and flushed earlobes, she looked every bit the woman nourished by love.

*Tsk, tsk...* The boss was truly something. All that talk about not "eating the grass beside his own nest" was just fluff! When such beautiful grass was growing right at his doorstep, even a monk would have a hard time resisting.

Yu Jin closed the computer interface and walked over, smiling obligingly. "Thank you for your hard work, Special Assistant Qin."

That smile on her face was absolutely stunning.

***

However, Dongfang She found that dazzling smile deeply irritating. He yanked Yu Jin toward him, pulling her into his arms with a possessive grip, and shot a wary look at Qin Ye.

Qin Ye: "..."

*Sir, you are being far too small-minded. There is no way I would ever try to steal your woman!*

Qin Ye and Dongfang She had grown up together, thick as thieves, and were practically inseparable. Qin Ye knew a great deal about Dongfang She’s past, but he kept his mouth shut, never speaking out of turn.

Yu Jin glared at Dongfang She with an unfamiliar sharpness. She took the initiative to clear the table, helping Qin Ye set out the meal.

Dongfang She stood to the side, feeling momentarily abandoned. He wiped his face, then walked over with a haughty air and sat down with a swagger.

"That’s enough, Special Assistant Qin. You may leave now."

Qin Ye froze, looking pitiful. "But I haven't eaten yet."