Chapter 20: Too Hot to Handle

Sensing her intention, Wen Yanli moved ahead of her and took a bottle of mineral water from the mini-fridge. Song Mi watched his every move calmly and silently. Soon enough, he walked over to her, unscrewed the cap, and handed her the water. In that moment, a ripple seemed to pass through her honey-colored eyes—she had to admit, for an instant, she felt a certain warmth in her heart. "Thank you," she said.

Wen Yanli simply nodded, then picked up two beer bottles from the low side table and placed them near her. The bottles were full, but the caps seemed to have been opened before. Song Mi was puzzled for a moment. Wen Yanli offered no explanation; instead, he turned to Qiao Sansui and Pei Wusui. "You two have been arguing for ages and ended up forgetting the most important thing."

At these words, the two who had been bickering fiercely fell silent one after the other. "Brother Li, what thing are you talking about?" Qiao Weiwei, apparently now thoroughly drunk, grumbled, "It's all your fault—if you didn't have a girlfriend and still tried to flirt with my dear Mi'er, why would I have thought about stripping you naked and tossing you out for someone else to find?"

"The friends of scumbags must be scumbags too. So you, Pei, are just collateral damage, nothing more!"

"Besides, I—"

Song Mi's headache worsened, but she had also figured out what Wen Yanli had just done. There was no need to say it—the sleeping pills must be in those two bottles of beer.

By handing over the only crucial "evidence" to her, the meaning was clear—Attorney Wen had no intention of pursuing the matter. Since his scare tactics toward Qiao Weiwei were meant only as a minor warning, why ruin her good night’s sleep over it?

With this understanding, Song Mi reached out, removed the loosely placed caps, and poured both bottles of beer into the trash can beside her. "Attorney Wen, is this the thing you were referring to?"

It was only then that Pei Qiuyang finally realized what was happening. "Hey, hey... Mi'er!"

"Mi'er, don’t pour it out!"

A beat behind, Qiao Weiwei looked at Song Mi and then at Wen Yanli, finally catching on and, bursting into delighted giggles, flung herself toward Song Mi for a hug. Song Mi didn’t notice, but at the last moment, Wen Yanli reached out and pulled her away. The sudden movement left Song Mi dizzy, barely able to keep her balance, while Qiao Weiwei staggered and tumbled straight onto Pei Qiuyang. "Hey, hey, hey, you can’t just throw yourself into someone’s arms like that..."

"I only like Mi'er, not you..."

"Ugh... nothing good ever comes out of your mouth... go hug your sister..."

Once again, the two broke into another squabble.

On Song Mi’s side, a strong hand had caught her by the waist just in time to keep her from landing on her right foot. Yet the way they stood was rather strange—as if he had calculated the angle perfectly. Realizing it was he who had pulled her aside, Song Mi quickly understood his intention.

After confirming that she hadn’t put any weight on her right foot, Wen Yanli’s attention shifted to his own hand—her body felt unusually warm even through her clothes. It was almost hot to the touch.

"Once again, I must thank Attorney Wen for his timely help!" Song Mi said, extricating herself as if nothing had happened, and walked over to Qiao Weiwei.

Wen Yanli fell silent.

"Mi'er, dear Mi'er!" Qiao Weiwei, having missed her chance to hug before, now latched onto Song Mi as soon as she approached, clinging tightly. "All men are scumbags, every single one..."

Taking advantage of Qiao Weiwei’s rambling, Song Mi guided her to the sofa, and sure enough, in a moment, the woman quieted down. By Song Mi’s judgment, she had fallen asleep.

Dealing with Qiao Weiwei drunk wasn’t difficult—after the excitement wore off, she would pass out cold, so deeply asleep she wouldn’t even notice if she were sold off.

After waiting a while longer, Song Mi asked Pei Qiuyang to fetch the attendant waiting outside. Given the situation, she had no choice but to take Qiao Weiwei back to her apartment.

But going downstairs, Song Mi found herself faltering—not only did her foot hurt, but her vision was doubling. As she hesitated, she suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder, and then her whole body lost balance. His voice came close, "Once President Song is done playing nanny, I’ll take you to the hospital."