Chapter 3: Wanna See My Abs?

Jiang Wan stared at the face on her screen, her heart skipping a beat for no reason.

Silver-black tousled crop. Narrow phoenix eyes. Smoky gray irises.

Features deep and sculpted, radiating a lazy yet deeply aggressive allure.

The mixed heritage was perfectly balanced — any more would be too heavy, any less too faint.

She had to admit —

Her target was very much her type.

...Wait.

Jiang Wan quickly yanked herself back from the edge of "bewitched by beauty."

This guy suddenly posting a photo — he was showing off, right?

Flexing his looks to put her down in a roundabout way.

She hadn't forgotten — Shang Shixu called her a toad.

Had anyone ever seen such a gorgeous toad?

Jiang Wan tapped into her own feed. A few selfies of Gu Manning's lay there —

Refined features, long straight black hair, a nice figure. Not jaw-dropping, but definitely a beauty.

If he ever saw what she actually looked like, he'd probably call her a toad too.

Then again, in the eyes of a cocky jerk like Shang Shixu, everyone was a toad.

Jiang Wan snorted and closed the page.

...

Haicheng, 8 PM. Boston, 8 AM.

Jiang Wan sent over the peach blossom photos she'd taken that afternoon.

Nice2MeetYou: [The peach blossoms at school bloomed just as beautifully as you]

Compliment mode — better late than never.

Harvard Business School. A classroom.

Six or seven students. An older professor had just begun his lecture.

Shang Shixu's phone screen lit up.

He glanced down and opened it. The corner of his mouth ticked up — barely perceptible.

Then he looked back at the lecturer, expressionless.

An hour later, the bell rang.

Pei Heyun grabbed his backpack and stood, clapping Shang Shixu on the shoulder. "Let's go, Xu-ge. They're already at the basketball court."

He headed out first.

Shang Shixu took his time sliding his laptop into his bag, slung it over one shoulder, and headed for the door with one hand in his pocket.

A burst of birdsong drifted in through the window.

He paused. His gaze swept sideways.

A lush oak tree. A crow had landed on a branch, flapping its wings, cawing away.

On some inexplicable impulse, he pulled out his phone and snapped a photo.

Opened Facebook. Sent it to someone.

Lie: [You're as ugly as this bird]

Jiang Wan had just stepped out of the shower, hair still dripping, when she saw the message. She rolled her eyes so hard they nearly got stuck.

What a mouth. Smeared with arsenic, probably.

She compliments him. He calls her ugly.

Not just her — he's insulting the crow too.

What did the bird ever do to him?

Jiang Wan was about to fire back a random sticker when she stopped.

For the past month, she had always been the one to initiate. She never let his messages hit the floor.

Even if he sent a period, she'd come back with a sticker to keep things going.

This time... what if she ran a little experiment?

No reply. No goodnight. See if he'd reach out on his own?

It would also be a good way to gauge how her mission was progressing.

With that thought, Jiang Wan set her phone down.

Boston. Indoor basketball court.

Both teams were warmed up and raring to go, the atmosphere electric.

On the sidelines, Shang Shixu stood in his basketball jersey, phone in hand.

He opened Facebook.

The last message in the chat was still his: "You're as ugly as this bird."

Over half an hour had passed since he'd sent it.

It was past nine at night in China.

Asleep before ten?

And what about that goodnight message she never missed a single day?

So she had to be upset. Deliberately not replying.

Shang Shixu shoved his phone into his bag with a cold expression and strode onto the court.

The game began.

He didn't hold back at all.

Three-pointers rained down like they cost nothing. The big guy guarding him was turning purple with rage.

The moment the game ended, the big guy charged over and grabbed his collar.

Spewing trash talk like he was freestyling a rap.

Pei Heyun shot forward like a rocket, seizing the big guy's wrist and firing back a string of colorful insults that would make a sailor blush.

Both teams' players rushed in to break it up — a chaotic chorus of shouting and shoving.

Shang Shixu, collar still in the big guy's grip, stood in the center of the melee. He calmly pushed Pei Heyun's hand away.

"Stand back."

Pei Heyun had barely gotten out a "Xu—" when—

"—ge" died in his throat. A vicious gust of wind whipped past his side.

"Boom—!"

A heavy thud.

The big guy who'd been so cocky a moment ago now lay flat on his back, groaning in pain.

Shang Shixu walked over, lifted his foot, aimed at the hand still clutching his collar, and stomped down hard.

A crisp snap. Then a scream — gut-wrenching and raw — echoed through the entire basketball court.

"Aaargh—!"

No one dared step forward, no matter how the man writhed and howled.

Shang Shixu looked down at him coldly. His voice wasn't loud, but it sent chills down every spine in the room.

"My lawyer will be in touch."

"Feel free to sue."

He turned and walked away.

Pei Heyun scrambled after him, pausing only to throw a warning at the big guy. "You got off easy. Be smart and keep your head down."

"Got a problem with that? Sue us. We're ready anytime."

Locker room.

Shang Shixu pulled off his rumpled jersey and tossed it into his locker.

He changed into clean clothes without expression, fished out a cigarette and lighter from his bag.

Slam. The locker door shut.

He leaned back against it and lit up.

Pei Heyun followed him in, practically vibrating with excitement. "Xu-ge, that move — the instant escape? Absolutely insane!"

"Teach me sometime?"

Shang Shixu ignored him.

Pei Heyun had grown up with him. He picked up on the wrongness immediately.

He dropped the grin and leaned in. "What's wrong? Not satisfied?"

That didn't make sense.

With his personality, if he wasn't satisfied, he'd keep going. He wouldn't go quiet.

Pei Heyun tried a careful smile. "Tell your bro — who pissed you off? I'll handle them for you."

Shang Shixu took a drag, was silent for two seconds, then spoke.

"Let me ask you something."

"A woman. She comes after you for your wealth and status — but she still dares to get mad at you. What's that about?"

Pei Heyun raised an eyebrow. He knew exactly who this was about.

He thought for a moment, choosing his words carefully.

"Didn't we have Di Wenjun look into her before?"

"Word came back that Gu Manning is definitely not the love-brained type."

"She's ambitious. She wants full control of the family business, but her father has an illegitimate son waiting in the wings."

"She needs to lock down the inheritance, so she keeps clinging to you."

"But you know what they say —"

"I spend ten hours a day pretending to love you. How do you know not one of those moments was real?"

Pei Heyun paused, gauging Shang Shixu's expression, then added carefully:

"My guess... she's developed real feelings for you. So sometimes her emotions slip through, genuine and unscripted."

His core logic was simple.

His brother was this outstanding. It wouldn't be strange for any girl to fall for him.

Shang Shixu listened without a word.

Took another drag.

That knot in his chest — the one he couldn't name or explain — seemed to loosen, just a fraction.

He stubbed out the cigarette, opened his locker, and pulled out his phone.

Almost noon.

In China, just before midnight.

Shang Shixu stared at the chat window for two seconds.

The "little toad" still hadn't replied.

He pressed his lips together. Typed a line.

Deleted it.

Typed again.

Deleted again.

Finally, he closed his eyes — as if something had just occurred to him.

He typed. Sent.

Lie: [Want to see my abs?]