Chapter 16

Bu Chen opened the door to find Ruan Ning decanting red wine in the living room. When she saw him, a coquettish smile bloomed in her eyes. "You're out. What took you so long? I've been waiting forever."

Bu Chen's gaze flickered with disappointment. The girl stood gracefully by the wine cabinet, pouring the crimson liquid, and when she looked up, her smile was alluring and seductive.

He had seen plenty of women play hard to get—refusing him coyly at first to catch his attention, only to come crawling back later to make amends. That night, he had taken a second look at the only girl who had publicly turned him down, yet here she was, no different from the other pretentious women. He lost interest at once.

Taking her hand, he led her to the sofa. "Since you're awake, you should head back. It's late; I won't see you out."

Ruan Ning's smile stiffened, but she grew even more docile, wrapping her arms around his chest. "Didn't we agree to drink together? Why the change of heart..."

Her eyes shimmered with rippling light, and beneath her thick lashes, she cast a playful, reproachful glance.

Bu Chen repeated himself. "You're welcome to rest in this room until tomorrow. No one will disturb you."

As he tried to rise, Ruan Ning quickly hooked onto him, tracing her hand slowly up his chest, pressing against his neck with a soft giggle. "Young Master Bu, it's just the two of us here. The wine is already decanted—why waste such a rare and lovely moment?"

The empty room amplified her soft, syrupy voice. The warm glow of the amber chandelier fell across her face, casting a seductive sheen that made her look utterly entangled in desire.

A shadow crossed Bu Chen's eyes, but suddenly he curled his lips into a smile. "If you don't want to rest, you can leave right now."

Ruan Ning leaned limply against his shoulder, parting his collar to point at a faint lipstick mark—one she had deliberately left just moments ago. Her finger traced slow circles around the mark, and her voice softened into a coo. "Young Master Bu, it seems I've accidentally gotten you dirty."

Bu Chen lowered his head, and Ruan Ning suddenly pressed her lips to his in a deep kiss. He moved to push her away, but her faint, delicate fragrance washed over him as she sucked on his lips without allowing refusal—tentative at first, then growing fierce as they tumbled into a tangle of lips and tongues.

As they kissed, her arms climbed up his back, sending tingling, numbing sensations shooting up his spine and into his brain. She kept stroking his back, craving more response, while her fair skin flushed a faint pink. Her face grew even more striking in the throes of passion.

Bu Chen cracked his eyes open. The girl's slightly reddened gaze was hazy with moisture—half longing, half contempt—and the lipstick had blurred into a smudged mess.

For a moment, the silent living room was filled only with the urgent rustle of fabric and wet, smacking kisses, the air thick with an intimate, ambiguous atmosphere.

Ruan Ning tried to pull back for a breath, but Bu Chen leaned over her, pressing against the back of her head so she couldn't retreat. With eyes shut, they tumbled onto the sofa. Ruan Ning's hair spilled loose, catching on her bag nearby, which thudded to the floor. A medicine bottle she had prepared for Bu Chen rolled out.

Ruan Ning squinted and moved to grab it, but Bu Chen steadied her face and sucked at her soft lips, murmuring, "Leave it. Focus." His fingertips pinched red marks into her waist.

Ruan Ning's heart raced wildly. She felt the scorching heat on her lips and quietly groped toward where the bottle had rolled.

She fumbled around, when suddenly her phone emitted an AI voice: "This year's ball theme is art and environmental protection. Is it appropriate to include controversial luxury items?"

In an instant, the whole world went silent.

Ruan Ning's body felt like it had plunged into an ice cellar. Bu Chen slowly released her, sat up straight, and stared at her with a strange expression. A dark shadow lurked in his amber pupils, like a long, boundless night.

"Who exactly are you, and why are you by my side?"

Ruan Ning gave a charming smile and leaned into him. "Young Master Bu, what's wrong? Why has your face turned so awful all of a sudden?"

Bu Chen sidestepped her, picked up his phone, and scrolled through it. The voice recording Ruan Ning had secretly made now played back in a mechanical tone, word for word, from the app.

Ruan Ning's hands trembled imperceptibly. Her fingers dug until they beaded with blood, and cold sweat began to form at her temples.

All the desire in Bu Chen's eyes had faded, replaced by a gaze as deep as an abyss, waiting for her to offer an explanation. The man and woman who had just been locked in tender embraces now stared at each other like tense adversaries.

Ruan Ning's hands had nowhere to rest. Voices screamed and howled in her head, and she clamped her mouth shut, not daring to speak.

Bu Chen wasn't about to waste time with her. He dialed a number to call someone in.

"Wait," Ruan Ning called out urgently. Perhaps the intimacy of a moment ago had stripped away the politeness and distance between strangers, and now, backed to the edge of a cliff, she dared to ask, "Are you the real mastermind behind the legitimate debutante ball?"

Bu Chen raised an eyebrow slightly but said nothing.

Ruan Ning seized the brief reprieve to press on. "Why did you do this? You already have the prestigious, well-known legitimate ball. Why use the vulgar, filthy Dark Dance to smear it? What's in it for you?"

Bu Chen didn't answer. He rose and walked to the table to pour a glass of red wine. The crimson liquid swirled in the glass, refracting a sinister, ghostly gleam.

Ruan Ning's eyes filled with disbelief. "You did this on purpose?"

When she had eavesdropped, she'd boldly guessed that Bu Chen was the hidden owner of the legitimate debutante ball, but such a major secret was something she only dared to imagine—she had no way to confirm it and didn't dare spread rumors. Had she not been cornered with no way out, she would never have asked so bluntly and brazenly. Having played games for years, Ruan Ning believed deeply that when you're at a disadvantage, the best defense is a good offense. Rather than passively explain where the recording came from, it was better to strike directly at Bu Chen's secret.

Bu Chen didn't seem angered by her audacity. Instead, he sat back on the sofa, smiled, and beckoned Ruan Ning over.

Ruan Ning approached cautiously, but to her surprise, the man suddenly reached out, spun her around, and pulled her onto his lap, a faint, teasing smile curling at his lips.

"Let me go." Ruan Ning struggled fiercely against Bu Chen's long legs. His breath, tinged with the fruity aroma of wine, sprayed onto her face, and her skin immediately flushed a light pink.

Bu Chen's seductive eyes studied her with amusement, yet his grip was anything but gentle. Ruan Ning was locked firmly in his arms, unable to break free even an inch.

Bu Chen leaned in to kiss her, his voice soft and indulgent. "Didn't you say you'd keep me company drinking?"

Ruan Ning dodged away from Bu Chen's broad chest. The kiss earlier had been part of the main plot—a scene where the supporting female lead seduces the male lead—but this was entirely outside the original script. She had no desire whatsoever for more intimate contact with Bu Chen.

Ruan Ning tried to steer the conversation elsewhere, creating distance between them. "Your Dark Dance is a product differentiation strategy, isn't it? Whether it's the legitimate or the Dark Dance, both are carefully crafted products of yours. Because the unsightly Dark Dance exists, the target customers of the legitimate version become even more loyal to it, and keep supporting the original. So the Dark Dance is just a supporting product meant to highlight the elegance and nobility of the original ball, right?"

Bu Chen laughed, open and unashamed. "Correct. They all want a prestigious social calling card and are willing to pay for it. Why would I refuse to grant their wishes?"

It turned out that the debutante ball had originally been held for marginalized royal members and impoverished aristocrats—a perfect replica of old high-society social events, crafting a utopia of past glory for the fallen elite. Later, more and more nouveaux riches joined in, hoping to use the ball's prestige to elevate their status and pry open the doors of traditional high society. The Duke of Bantine spotted the business opportunity and turned it into a moneymaking venture.

By the time Bu Chen took over, the ball had been criticized for inviting parvenus year after year—if you had money, you were in—and its reputation had declined steadily. Though no new ball had yet replaced it, guests gradually lost interest, and sponsors began pulling out. So Bu Chen came up with this clever scheme and miraculously turned the losses around.

Ruan Ning was stunned by his ruthlessness. "Aren't you afraid they'll find out the truth and come after you for fleecing the rich like this?"

"'Fleecing' is such an ugly word." Bu Chen smiled. "Call it mutual benefit. I give them global attention and a symbol of status. Do you really think they care about the truth?"

He swirled his wine glass, his profile half-hidden in the shadows.

"But, but..." Ruan Ning felt that deceiving people like this was wrong, yet she couldn't quite articulate why.

"Funny thing is, before the Dark Dance, hardly anyone wanted to come. After the Dark Dance appeared, they became the most united and most supportive group of the original." Bu Chen took an elegant sip, as if telling a story that had nothing to do with him. "Once another similar competitor emerges, people develop a profound sense of honor crisis. They band together to defend orthodoxy, flaunt their pedigrees, and restore purity. Isn't that amusing?"

Ruan Ning muttered in dissatisfaction. "What if a new ball emerges to challenge your position?"

"Want to know?" Bu Chen smiled and tilted his cheek. "Give me a kiss, and I'll tell you."

Pervert! Ruan Ning shot him a glare, a flash of annoyance coloring her face.

Bu Chen's smile deepened as he traced the lines of Ruan Ning in his arms. Her black, neatly pinned hair had loosened into a few stray strands, draping over her fair, delicate neck. Her black-and-white eyes were pure, tinged with no impurity at all. Her gaze sparkled with a rawness and righteousness rarely seen in dim venues.

He had seen countless people in the nightlife scene, and he'd closed deals at Seductive Summer more than once, but few could piece together the truth from mere fragments of words. Today, he had encountered something truly different.

Bu Chen's unreadable light gaze gradually deepened—which, to Ruan Ning, looked like an abyss of utter terror. Why was he staring at her in silence? What did he plan to do?

"May I ask what you're thinking? Is there a problem?"

Bu Chen brought the wine glass to her lips, his seductive light eyes concealing a hint of playfulness. "You even know about differentiation positioning. I'm starting to look forward to tonight."

He glanced toward the bathroom with a smile. "You shower first... or together?"