Xie Yan set out the buns and rice porridge on the table, and said to Shen Ruoxi, who was still standing there in a daze, “Time to eat. What are you standing around for?”

Shen Ruoxi put down the towel and casually tied up her damp hair. She glanced at the dining table and couldn’t help but swallow.

Crab-stuffed soup dumplings, beef and egg flower porridge, an eight-treasure cold dish platter, pan-fried fish fillet… she had to admit, this spread was genuinely appetizing.

After Shen Ruoxi sat down, Xie Yan passed her the chopsticks. “Eat.”

She took the chopsticks and for a moment didn’t know where to begin.

“Why aren’t you eating? Afraid I poisoned it?” Xie Yan looked at her coldly. “Don’t worry. If I wanted to poison you to death, I’d have to have my way with you first.”

Shen Ruoxi glared at him. “Can you not speak properly?”

“That’s what’s in my heart.”

“Keep what’s in your heart inside your heart.”

“I can’t keep it in—it needs to come out.”

Shen Ruoxi lifted her chopsticks and made as if to hurl them at him. Xie Yan hastily raised his hands to shield himself. “Hey, hey—a gentleman doesn’t use hands at the table!”

Shen Ruoxi burst out laughing. “What do you mean, ‘a gentleman doesn’t use hands at the table?’ If you don’t use hands, do you eat with your mouth like a pig rooting through the dirt?”

“Pigs root with their mouths.” Xie Yan narrowed his eyes. “Shen Ruoxi, why don’t you show me your rooting technique.”

“You’re the pig. You root with your mouth.”

“You’re the pig.”

“Are you going to eat or not?”

Xie Yan picked up his chopsticks. “A real man doesn’t fight with a woman. I’ll just eat.”

The two stopped their bickering and ate breakfast in peace.

“There’s a social engagement today—you’ll accompany me.” Xie Yan set down his bowl and gave the order as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

Shen Ruoxi frowned. “Why should I accompany you to your social engagement?”

“Have you paid this month’s rent?”

“I haven’t.”

“Consider it rent. What do you say?”

Shen Ruoxi thought it over carefully. “Alright then—remember to let Sister Hong know.”

“You really are a woman who would do anything for money…”

“Then I won’t go.”

“Alright, alright, fine—I’ll say no more. Won’t two months’ rent be enough?”

Shen Ruoxi gave a soft “Hmph.” “Now we’re getting somewhere.”

~

The social engagement Xie Yan had mentioned turned out to be a mahjong game.

In a private room at a high-end club sat several men of standing and influence, each accompanied by a beautiful woman.

These women were dressed in satin qipaos or fashionable Western-style gowns, elaborately made up and done up with great flair.

By comparison, Shen Ruoxi—wearing only light makeup, a woolen top, and wide-legged trousers—looked quite plain and understated.

“Mr. Xie has arrived.”

“Mr. Xie, what a rare pleasure—we practically had to move heaven and earth to get you here.”

When those present saw Xie Yan walk in, they all stood to welcome him.

Xie Yan exchanged a few pleasantries and took a seat at the table. Someone immediately offered him a cigarette and lit it for him.

The women in the room were openly sizing up Shen Ruoxi, curious to see what kind of woman could stand beside Xie Yan.

“How should we address this young lady?” A woman in a dark red qipao asked with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

Shen Ruoxi looked at her. Before she could speak, the woman let out a soft “Oh” and said, “I recognize you—aren’t you the top songstress at the Crimson Gate Dance Hall? Shen… Shen Ruoxi.”

Hearing she was a songstress that any man could have, the women’s gazes instantly became contemptuous.

The worst among them was still a young lady from a wealthy family. They naturally found Shen Ruoxi’s profession utterly distasteful.

In their eyes, songstresses only knew how to flaunt their charms and ensnare men. They relied on their bodies to advance in life and had no shame whatsoever.

Shen Ruoxi was accustomed to such looks and paid them no mind.

“Miss Shen, someone like you who has known so many men—I have a question I’d love to ask.” One of the women asked, half in jest and half in earnest: “Among your kind, has anyone ever managed to marry into a prominent family?”

Before Shen Ruoxi could answer, she heard Xie Yan’s languid voice cut in: “Is there a fly in here? It’s so noisy. I came here to win money—let’s get started.”

The others immediately jumped in and began setting up the mahjong tiles. The women, sensibly, closed their mouths.

“Shen Ruoxi, sit here.” Xie Yan patted the seat beside him.

Shen Ruoxi said, “I don’t know how to play mahjong.”

“Then this is perfect—I’ll teach you.” Xie Yan rose and let Shen Ruoxi take his seat, then sat down to her right.

Everyone looked on with some surprise at Xie Yan having swapped seats with Shen Ruoxi.

“Mahjong is actually quite simple.” Xie Yan ignored their gazes and picked up a tile to show Shen Ruoxi. “In a moment, I’ll teach you the tiles first.”

“I know them.” Shen Ruoxi’s claim of not knowing how to play wasn’t entirely true—she just wasn’t very proficient.

“Even better then.” Xie Yan set the tile back. “Use your eyes to watch and your mind to remember—keep track of every tile everyone plays.”

Shen Ruoxi looked at him and shook her head.

She could barely keep track of her own tiles, let alone remember every tile everyone had discarded.

“I’ll remember for you.” Xie Yan said. “You just focus on drawing tiles.”

By the end of a round, Shen Ruoxi was astounded by Xie Yan’s memory. He truly could remember every tile that had been discarded and even analyze from the discards what his opponents needed.

After watching closely for a while, Shen Ruoxi finally spotted a tile she thought was useless and was about to discard it, when Xie Yan pressed her hand down.

“Don’t—if you play that, Boss Du will win.” Xie Yan’s hand remained over hers, his knuckles brushing against her fingers with a subtle, unhurried motion, while his eyes stayed focused on the tiles in front of her.

“Play this one.” His arm reached around her shoulder and pulled a tile from the other side.

Shen Ruoxi was entirely absorbed in the tiles and didn’t notice how intimate his gesture was. Her eyes remained fixed on the tile he had just discarded.

Boss Du, sitting to her left, shook his head. “Mr. Xie has even figured out that I was about to win. I’ll never play mahjong with Mr. Xie again—it’s like handing money straight to him.”

Boss Du duly ignored the tile and drew one himself. Whatever he drew was clearly no use to him, and he discarded it without hesitation.

“I’ve won!” Shen Ruoxi, who had been watching Boss Du’s tile closely the moment it landed, happily picked it up. “Xie Yan, look—did I win?”

She smiled, her eyes curving like crescents, revealing her bright, even teeth.

Xie Yan watched her face rather than the tiles. “Yes, you won.”

Shen Ruoxi was delighted over her winning hand, while the others at the table were rather dumbfounded.

This woman had not only addressed Xie Yan by his full name without any honorific, but Xie Yan’s attitude toward her also seemed distinctly different from how he treated others.

The men exchanged thoughtful glances; the women seethed with envy.

What gave a songstress the right to receive such special treatment from Mr. Xie?

Business naturally came up during the course of the mahjong game.

Those present were all major local military arms dealers, and getting their goods into Shun Cheng required going through Xie Yan’s hands.

So on the surface, they were playing mahjong—but in reality, they were delivering money in a more pleasant guise.

At first, Shen Ruoxi thought she was winning out of luck. Only later did she realize that these men were only winning token amounts here and there, and never much—while whenever it came to her turn, she consistently won big.

She did a rough estimate: the sum won in this single session was enough to buy a small estate.

“We’ve let Mr. Xie win again today.”

“Indeed, indeed. I won’t play mahjong with Mr. Xie from now on—the losses are devastating.”

Despite losing money, the men wore broad smiles.

Because they could see that Xie Yan seemed genuinely happy—a kind of happiness that, no matter how much he had won before, had never shown on his face.

This unexpected reaction was clearly because a certain beautiful woman was pleased.

“Alright, let’s stop here.” Xie Yan said. “Gentlemen, I’ll take my leave first.”

“Please take care, Mr. Xie.”

The group saw Xie Yan and Shen Ruoxi to the door.

Watching the two of them walk away, the women let out a collective scoff.

“What’s so special about her? She’s nothing but a lowly songstress. Does she think attaching herself to Mr. Xie will get her somewhere? She’s nothing but a plaything to him.”

“Mr. Xie really does seem to favor her—it looks like all the winnings went to her.”

“So what if he gave them to her? She’s still the same low, wretched creature, probably been with more men than anyone could count.”

The women’s murmuring never reached Shen Ruoxi’s ears. She and Xie Yan had already reached the elevator.

This club had imported an elevator from overseas—one of the few in Shun Cheng.

The elevator had six floors in total, and they were on the fifth.

Xie Yan pressed the elevator button, then turned to look at Shen Ruoxi. “Did you enjoy yourself?”

“It was fun at first. Then it lost its appeal.”

“Why?”

Shen Ruoxi raised an eyebrow slightly: “Those people were clearly just handing money to you. There was no real contest.”

Xie Yan smiled. “You noticed?”

Shen Ruoxi rolled her eyes. Only a fool wouldn’t notice.

Xie Yan said, “Just business dealings—only with a more enjoyable approach.”

While they were talking, the elevator arrived at the fifth floor. With a soft ding, the doors opened before them.

Xie Yan stepped in first. He turned around to pull Shen Ruoxi in—but the moment both his feet were fully inside, the elevator suddenly plummeted downward, while Shen Ruoxi was still in the act of stepping in.

“Get back!” Xie Yan shoved Shen Ruoxi forcefully outward, and then he was gone from sight.

Shen Ruoxi had not expected anything like this to happen. She scrambled to her feet and rushed back. Seeing the elevator doors about to close, she immediately used her body to block them.

“Xie Yan!” Shen Ruoxi stared anxiously into the elevator. The bottom had completely broken away, forming a dark pit. Just as she feared Xie Yan had already fallen, a hand suddenly appeared at the top of the elevator shaft—gripping the edge with all its strength.

“Xie Yan!” Shen Ruoxi immediately dropped to her knees and reached both hands down to grab his arm.

When the elevator floor had given way, Xie Yan had reacted quickly and seized the edge of the elevator shaft. But the surface was too smooth, and he could barely hold on.

Shen Ruoxi knelt there, gripping his wrist tightly, crying out for help at the top of her voice.

At that moment, the elevator doors tried to close again—the frames on either side slammed hard against Shen Ruoxi’s body.

The doors, meeting an obstruction, opened once more, and then moments later drove inward again.

“Shen Ruoxi.” Xie Yan looked up at her through gritted teeth, then suddenly gave a small smile. “The elevator is about to flatten you into a crepe.”