Chapter 12: Should We Warm Up the Crowd with a Few Cries First?

Several seconds passed, yet the imagined scene of being pinned against the wall did not materialize. Lan Jin, puzzled, opened her eyes, only to find Qin Chuan’s nose nearly touching her own.

However, Qin Chuan’s face displayed not the slightest hint of desire, not a trace of surging hormones; if anything, it was written all over with disdain. This left Miss Lan, who was accustomed to being adored as the center of attention, thoroughly displeased.

“What... what’s with that expression?” Lan Jin’s anger simmered, but her words emerged barely above a whisper.

After all, they were so close that any emotional outburst might result in physical contact—and certainly a kiss. Miss Lan had no intention of offering up her first kiss under the shadow of contempt.

“You have body odor,” Qin Chuan declared with absolute certainty.

Lan Jin’s body trembled. This was her greatest secret: she suffered from a mild case of it, always masked by perfume, so well that even her closest friend Lin Wanyu had never noticed.

Beyond the shock, Lan Jin’s predominant feeling was mortification and rage. So all the elaborate pretense from Qin Chuan was merely to expose her embarrassing flaw? Did she possess not a shred of attraction in his eyes?

That thought ignited her fury.

“You must be part dog, right?” Lan Jin’s words carried a double meaning—mocking Qin Chuan’s acute sense of smell and ridiculing his underhanded tactic of leading her on only to reveal her secret.

Qin Chuan had no difficulty perceiving the sarcasm in Lan Jin’s voice.

“You really do have body odor!” He wasn’t one to suffer losses; he repeated his assertion, emphasizing the words with deliberate weight.

Then he stepped back two paces, waving his hand in front of his nose in a gesture of exaggerated, almost humiliating, distaste.

“You...” Lan Jin stamped her foot in frustration, suddenly feeling an urge to cry, but her fierce pride forced her to swallow back the tears threatening to spill.

Seeing this, Qin Chuan felt she had been punished enough. He smiled gently and said, “I never said I wouldn’t cure you. Why cry? Relax. With my miraculous hands, I’ll erase this little flaw entirely, so you can regain your confidence and never need those awful perfumes again.”

“Really?” Lan Jin’s large eyes widened with excitement, her delight impossible to conceal.

Everyone, man or woman, pursues perfection as much as possible—especially the cherished jewel of the Lan family, spoiled beyond measure. Because of her slight problem, she was always cautious, even around her closest friend. If it could be cured, she would wake from dreams laughing.

“Of course it’s true.” Qin Chuan paused, then shifted the topic, “If I cure you, how do you plan to thank me...?”

“As long as it doesn’t involve sharing a bed, you can ask for anything,” Lan Jin blurted out, her excitement making her speak before thinking.

Now Qin Chuan was excited: “Anything at all?”

“Except for showing off mouth skills,” Lan Jin quickly added.

“Then maybe—”

“Brother Chuan, these hands are for playing piano.”

“Maybe—”

“Feet aren’t hygienic.”

“How about—”

“When no one’s around, I can call you ‘Daddy.’”

“Deal!” Qin Chuan beamed, his face glowing with innocent, unadulterated joy.

Seeing his reaction, Lan Jin instantly realized she’d fallen into his trap. From the moment Qin Chuan had hinted at needing a grateful gesture involving intimacy, she’d been drawn into a web of clever setups.

“If you aim for the best, you settle for the middle; if you aim for the middle, you settle for the least; aiming for the least and getting nothing is his specialty,” Lan Jin thought, half amused, half helpless. Whether in banter or verbal sparring, she had always ended up on the losing side when facing Qin Chuan.

“If things keep going like this, am I really going to fall for him?” Lan Jin regretted her decision to help her friend and take such a risk—but who could have guessed the target would be so cunning?

“Since no one’s around, how about you warm up the scene with a couple of ‘Daddy’ calls?” Qin Chuan suggested, smiling.

Lan Jin’s cheeks flushed a vivid crimson, but she was not easily flustered. Even when faced with Qin Chuan’s teasing, she remained composed.

“No rush for that. By the way, earlier in the woods, I saw someone attack you. Was he sent by Guo Zikun for revenge?” Lan Jin’s face showed a complex mix of tension, concern, and worry—but not the awkwardness that comes from forcibly changing the subject.

Qin Chuan had no doubt that, even without her beautiful looks, Lan Jin’s acting skills alone would make her a star in the entertainment world.

“Your topic shift is a bit abrupt,” Qin Chuan observed, cutting straight to the point.

Lan Jin remained unruffled, putting on a show of aggrieved innocence, her expression so pitiful that any man would feel compelled to comfort her. She even spoke with a hint of a sob.

“I really am worried about you!”

“Mmm, I can feel it. If you could shed a few more tears, I’d believe you even more.”

Before Qin Chuan finished speaking, Lan Jin actually burst into tears, her sobs genuine and her tears flowing on command.

“Stop crying, I really believe you now.” Qin Chuan acted as if he’d been defeated.

Sure enough, Lan Jin’s tears dried instantly, her expression shifting to a charming smile.

Qin Chuan twitched his lips. He hadn’t expected his fiancée stand-in to be such an actress. He couldn’t help but look forward to seeing her in action among the other fiancées.

“Come on, tell me how you plan to punish Guo Zikun?” Lan Jin asked curiously.

Though she hadn’t spent much time with Qin Chuan, she knew he wasn’t the type to accept defeat. The fact that he’d tricked Guo Zikun out of money in a bet proved it.

Qin Chuan shrugged, adopting a noble air. “As the saying goes, a prime minister's pocket can hold a boat, but my stomach can hold a prime minister. How could I bother with someone so utterly useless?”

“I have a tiny bit of trouble believing that,” Lan Jin replied, suspecting Qin Chuan was bluffing, though she had no evidence.

Qin Chuan sighed. “It’s true, the world’s morals are decaying—no one believes honesty anymore.”

Perform! Keep performing!

Lan Jin prided herself on her acting, but after witnessing Qin Chuan’s understated performance, she felt herself outclassed.

“All right, enough joking. After breakfast, come with me to the seaside Liu family,” Qin Chuan changed the subject, feeling his method of shifting topics was much smoother than Lan Jin’s.

Lan Jin didn’t pursue it further. Since Qin Chuan didn’t wish to elaborate, she saw no reason to press, especially when she’d discovered something more intriguing.

“Are you going to call off the engagement with Liu Qingcheng?” Lan Jin probed.

Qin Chuan countered, “What, are you two close?”

“Yes, we’re very close!” Lan Jin replied, almost gritting her teeth.

Seeing her expression, Qin Chuan began to anticipate a fierce showdown.

“So, what does Liu Qingcheng look like?” Qin Chuan asked, changing the subject again.

Lan Jin snorted coldly. With utmost objectivity, she declared, “She’s just an ugly duckling.”