Chapter Fifty-Four: Deadly Temptation

On the way back, Qin Luo was still immersed in the incident of being kissed by Chen Sixuan. Even when speaking with Li Qingcheng, he seemed absent-minded, and his reactions to her teasing were no longer as sharp. At times, when she tried to tempt him with her words, Qin Luo didn’t even understand what she meant.

Instead, it was the taxi driver who was so bewitched by this enchantress that he kept driving in an S-shaped pattern, as if playing some wild car game.

“Lost your soul? Maybe we should go back and buy you a ticket to Taiwan? If you chase after her now, you might still catch up,” Li Qingcheng remarked upon seeing Qin Luo’s dazed expression, pinching his thigh hard.

“Ouch. What?” Qin Luo finally came to his senses from the pain.

“I said, she’s already gone, so how long are you going to stay in this stupor?” Li Qingcheng said irritably.

“I’m not in a stupor,” Qin Luo replied. He felt he was thinking perfectly normally.

“I really should have taken a picture of how silly you looked just now.”

Qin Luo laughed awkwardly. Anyone who lost their “first time” would behave like this, wouldn’t they? He thought himself quite strong—look at the women in movies, any who stumbled into losing their virginity are always crying and desperate.

Seeing his expression, Li Qingcheng scooted her hips closer to him, half reclining against him, her soft breasts unintentionally pressing against his arm. She blew gently into his ear and whispered, “Being kissed by a woman feels good, doesn’t it?”

“Mm.” Qin Luo nodded. Suddenly, his eyes widened, “What did you say?”

When Chen Sixuan kissed him, she had already left. How could Li Qingcheng know about this? Did Chen Sixuan tell her? Impossible. She had no reason to share such a thing with Li Qingcheng. Besides, she had just boarded her flight, probably not even allowed to turn her phone on.

Claiming to leave, yet lurking nearby to spy—such behavior was truly contemptible.

No wonder the elders always said: better to believe there are ghosts in the world than trust a woman’s mouth.

“Stop pretending. I saw everything,” Li Qingcheng giggled. “Little brother, you’re really something. You only met Sixuan twice and already lured her into your arms, got her to offer you a kiss. I really couldn’t tell.”

“We were just saying goodbye as friends,” Qin Luo explained guiltily. “Like Americans, who greet each other with kisses.”

“Yes, yes, I understand. You have no relationship at all. Purely platonic,” Li Qingcheng replied with a serious face.

Then she changed the subject, “So, should your child call me sister or aunt? If he calls me sister, I’ll seem younger. Aunt would make me old.”

——

This woman always said the most outrageous things.

Back at Qingcheng International, most of the women had left. Only Ran Yu and Xiao Yi were sitting on the sofa chatting.

Seeing them come in, Ran Yu said, “Sent Sixuan off? I tried calling her but her phone was off. The verdict is out on her case. That woman was a hostess from Yi Jiangnan, hired to slander Sixuan.”

“Who hired her?” Li Qingcheng asked, frowning.

“Lin San.”

“Who’s that?” Li Qingcheng looked puzzled.

“A small-time thug. Apparently he tried to woo Sixuan and failed, so he wanted revenge,” Ran Yu sneered. “He should look in the mirror. He thinks he can court our queen of beautiful legs? Qin Luo might have a chance, but him? No way.”

Li Qingcheng shook her head, “Lin San was definitely pushed out as a scapegoat. The real culprit must be the one who arranged for Sixuan to entertain guests.”

“I thought so too. But Lin San is stubborn, no matter how we interrogate him, he won’t speak. So we have to treat him as the main offender and punish him,” Ran Yu said helplessly. “Even if we find out the mastermind, so what? An apology, some compensation? Sigh, it’s hard for women to get anything done in this world.”

“True,” Li Qingcheng nodded sympathetically.

“You don’t need to worry about that. You always take advantage of others, who would dare come courting death? Whoever provokes you—the Black Widow—won’t escape unscathed,” Ran Yu teased.

“I’m not skilled at flaying people. Undressing them, maybe. Right, little brother?” Without thinking, Li Qingcheng shifted the battle onto Qin Luo.

“I don’t know,” Qin Luo quickly shook his head.

He thought, if you really put a knife to my throat and forced me to undress, I’d give in.

Compared to life, chastity was insignificant.

“I can’t stand you two, you shameless pair. Xiao Yi and I are going shopping. You two can brew up your storm here,” Ran Yu laughed and cursed.

“Qingcheng sis, Qin Luo bro, you two have fun!” Xiao Yi jumped up from the sofa and made faces at them.

“Xiao Yi, stay away from Ran Yu, or you’ll be corrupted sooner or later,” Li Qingcheng called after them as they left.

Once they were gone, the always lively hall upstairs was left with only Li Qingcheng and Qin Luo.

Li Qingcheng walked slowly toward him, her chest heaving, seductive eyes shimmering, she nudged Qin Luo with her arm and asked, “Little brother, it’s just the two of us now. Don’t you want to do something?”

“Uh?” Qin Luo felt his throat dry, his words stumbling. “What do you want to do?”

“Naughty. I’m a woman, what could I possibly do?”

——

Li Qingcheng’s hands snaked around Qin Luo’s neck, her body pressing against his, separated only by a thin layer of clothing. They were practically touching skin to skin.

Qin Luo’s heart was racing at seventy miles an hour, as if it might leap out if he opened his mouth.

Sweat beaded on his forehead, his fingers trembled in subtle arcs. Step by step, he was forced back by Li Qingcheng, until he lost his balance and fell onto the sofa.

Li Qingcheng leaned forward, her voluptuous body plunging heavily into Qin Luo’s arms.

Her slender, black-polished fingers stroked his thigh, her face—exquisite and sultry—drawing ever closer.

Qin Luo felt her lips brush his ear.

Li Qingcheng’s voice was sweet and soft, whispering into his ear, “How about we—”

Qin Luo was nearly in tears.

Was there ever anyone so tempting? He was a man, after all. “Little brother” could function perfectly well.

Inside, he was waging a fierce internal battle. What if she made that request?

Should he agree? But his conscience couldn’t bear it.

He was a traditional man, above base pleasures, full of innocent fantasies about love.

He always hoped to find a woman he truly loved, and on their wedding night, when she lifted the red veil—not, when he lifted her red veil—and she unbuckled his belt, only then would he give his first time wholeheartedly to her. What a beautiful and sacred moment that would be!

Refuse? He couldn’t bear to.

——

To reject a woman is to wound her. He was a doctor, inheritor of traditional medical ethics. His duty was to heal women, not harm them. To choose otherwise was an insult to his profession.

More importantly, Li Qingcheng was a genuine temptress. Look at her: such full breasts, such round hips, such moist lips, such a beautiful face—

If he refused her now, what if she got angry and never gave him another chance?

Blushing, Qin Luo murmured, “Let’s go up to the third floor.”

He knew the third floor was Li Qingcheng’s private kingdom. There was a sofa, a bed, even a desk large enough for two to lie on. Wherever she wanted to torment him, she could.

“What for?” Li Qingcheng asked.

“I just feel this place isn’t right. Someone could come in and see us.”

“So what if they do?” Li Qingcheng’s voice was sticky-sweet.

“But—it would be embarrassing.” Qin Luo thought, does this woman like doing things in front of others? What a peculiar taste.

“Embarrassing? We’re just chatting. What’s embarrassing about that?” Li Qingcheng smiled slyly.

“Chatting?” Qin Luo’s eyes widened.

“Of course. What did you think?”

“This—” Sweat poured from Qin Luo’s forehead. He realized he’d been played by this woman. “I just meant, we could go upstairs for tea.”

Li Qingcheng considered it. “You’re right. Let’s go upstairs then.”

“No, no,” Qin Luo waved his hands. “I suddenly remembered something I need to do. I’ll head out now.”

God, let me disappear quickly.

Or, just make this woman vanish.

“Don’t rush off,” Li Qingcheng said, releasing his neck and returning to her normal self. She spoke seriously, “I have something to discuss with you.”

“What is it? Can’t we talk next time?” Qin Luo asked.

“No. It has to be now,” Li Qingcheng refused.

“All right,” Qin Luo agreed.

“I’ve already taken your prescription and started product development. Once it’s ready and we have the relevant approvals, we can begin production. I discussed it with Sixuan—she said, to thank you for treating her, she’ll be our brand ambassador for free. Then we can launch Golden Silkworm Skin Powder directly onto the market.

“But before that, I plan to set up a beauty company to manage the product brand—production, promotion, and distribution channels. Since you’ve been expelled from the school, you might as well give up teaching. Let’s partner up. I’ll handle management, you handle product development.”

“As soon as you agree, you’ll be the company’s second-in-command. You’ll have the best food, the hottest cars, and the most beautiful women.”

Li Qingcheng waited, seeing that Qin Luo remained unmoved, and continued to tempt him, “If—if one day I’m in a really good mood, or a really bad mood, maybe I’d actually go with you to the third floor. Then, you can do whatever you like. How does that sound?”