Chapter 8 – The Trap
"Hmph, stingy." Miao reluctantly pulled her hand away, gazing at the darkening sky. "Hey, Shu Xiaoguai, how do you have such a great body? Do you go to the gym a lot?"
Shu Mingyang steadied his breathing before replying, "No, but I do martial arts."
"Wow, that's so cool!" Miao propped her chin on her hand, eyes curious. "How long have you been practicing? What kind?"
"Since primary school… over ten years now," Mingyang said. "Mostly staff techniques, but I've dabbled in other things too."
"Really didn't see that coming. I thought you were just a bookworm who only knows how to study." Miao pinched his cheek. "You look so obedient—I thought you'd be easy to bully."
Mingyang smiled awkwardly. "That's just me now. When I was a kid, I was really naughty. I had this best buddy, we grew up together, and back then we were always getting into trouble. No idea how much grief we caused our families."
Miao made a sound of acknowledgment. "So why did you 'behave' later on?"
"Not sure… maybe I just grew up." Mingyang sighed. "Work keeps me busy—no energy left for messing around. But my buddy? He never grew up. Still loves stirring trouble, just like when we were kids."
Miao shook her head. "No—you haven't grown up. You just look like you have."
Mingyang blinked. "Why do you say that?"
"Because if you'd really grown up, you wouldn't be sitting here having dinner and watching the night view with a street performer." Miao gave him a playful smile, and he felt his face heat up all over again. Even with the heavy smoky eye makeup she had on today, she still looked stunning to him.
A cold wind swept along the riverbank, and Mingyang felt her shiver slightly in his arms. She was wearing a different outfit than before, but still a skirt. He sighed. "Let's get back to the car. It's getting colder—you'll catch a cold."
"Okay. Just drop me off at the tunnel."
He paused. "Wait, you… live in the tunnel?"
"Yep. Do I look like someone who owns a house?" she replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"But I gave you money before to buy clothes. You could use that to rent a place…"
"Oh, that 1,600? I treated everyone to dinner. Spent it all," she said, kicking a pebble.
Mingyang rubbed his temples. "Then let me give you some more money so you can at least get a hotel room. It's freezing out here—you'll freeze."
"Nope. I don't like hotels. People come and go—hotels can never keep anyone. How sad is that?"
He chuckled at her oddly cute reasoning, clenched his fists lightly, and after a two-second pause, finally voiced the thought he'd been holding back. "Then… why don't you stay at my place for now? I've got a guest room—"
"Sure! Decision made!" she cut him off before he could finish, dashing toward his Koenigsegg. "Hurry up and unlock the door, it's freezing!"
He laughed helplessly, pulling out his keys. "So you were just waiting for me to say that last part?"
She stuck her tongue out. "What else did you think?"
As he started the car, a thought popped into his head. "Does this count as me riding in on a white horse to find you?"
She ran a hand through his hair. "Maybe—if white princes really exist."
—
Back at the villa, Miao was like a kid in a theme park, wandering around in excitement. "I didn't get a good look around on Christmas Eve. Can I properly explore now?"
"Of course. Look wherever you want—you're going to be living here from now on."
She grinned. "So generous? There's no place I'm not allowed in?"
That actually made him think. "Well… the wine cellar's off limits. Everything else is fine—"
"Then let's start with Shu Xiaoguai's wine cellar!" she declared immediately. "Come on, show me your treasure stash!"
It was obviously a trap. Mingyang could only shake his head and lead her down. He was about to start explaining when she gasped, wandering along the racks. "Romanée-Conti, Lafite, Petrus… and all these rare vintages… You know, if the wine lovers in N City knew about this, they'd storm in and take everything."
He didn't care about the wine lovers—what caught him was, "You know wine too?"
"What, surprised a street performer knows about this stuff?" she teased.
He shook his head, smiling warmly. "Not surprised—just pleasantly surprised."
"Well, since you're so happy, why not give me one as a gift? I am your guest." She batted her lashes.
He froze. Every bottle here had been painstakingly collected. Even his best friend Gu Leng had to wait days for an answer when he asked for one. And now this girl wanted one of his most prized possessions…
After a second, he nodded. "Sure. Pick whatever you like."
She blinked, then grinned mischievously. "Anything? Don't mind if I do… Hmm… Lafite? Nah. Mouton? Bad year… Ohhh, is that a '76 Romanée-Conti?! I'll take this one!"
And she hugged it to her chest.
Of course, it had to be his favorite bottle. He almost coughed up blood. But seeing the sparkle in her eyes, he swallowed his pain. "Alright… it's yours."
"Let's drink it now!" She grabbed a corkscrew, but he yelped, "Wait, no—!"
She froze mid-motion, then burst out laughing. "Do you know how pitiful your face looked just now? Like a puppy that just lost its toy. Hahaha!"
Shoving the bottle back into his hands, she pinched his cheek. "Just kidding. I wouldn't actually take your favorite wine, silly."
He sighed in relief—then immediately felt a wave of frustration. "You're so—"
"—bad? Too late to find that out now." She laughed as she ran off. "I'm stuck to you now, don't think you can shake me off!"
He shook his head and carefully put the wine back. When he returned to the living room, she was sprawled on the sofa watching TV, with his three dogs sitting around her like guards. It was almost like Christmas Eve all over again.
Annoyed as he still was, it felt… nice, having someone in the house again.
He smiled. "I'm going to the study to work. You do your thing."
"Yeah, yeah, go on." She waved lazily without looking away from the screen.
Mingyang got to work, but barely half an hour later, his phone rang. "Shu Xiaoguai, I'm hungry."
"There's plenty in the kitchen. Heat it up in the microwave."
"Nooo, I don't wanna move. Bring me something?"
Seriously? Was he her landlord and her butler? Mingyang sighed, went downstairs. "What do you want?"
"Yogurt and apple pie."
"No apple pie. Pineapple pie okay?"
"Yep, perfect."
He handed her the food and was about to go upstairs when she grabbed him. "Stay and watch TV with me. This horror movie is scary."
"I have work—"
"Work later. Movies aren't long. Please? I'm so scared." She tugged at his shirt with big, pleading eyes.
He was done for. Sitting down, he found his thigh becoming her pillow. But honestly? She didn't look scared at all.
When a side character got killed, she rolled her eyes. "Idiot. Why walk into a dark room? Just turn on the light—you'd see the boss right there."
When the final boss went down, she nodded knowingly. "Finish him off! Always finish him off! See? Didn't, and now he's up again."
Mingyang chuckled. "So this is you being scared?"
She took his hand and placed it over her heart. "I was scared. But with you here, I'm not anymore."
His palm burned at the contact. Clearing his throat, he stood. "Alright, movie's over. I really need to work now."
"Hmph, fine."
Work kept him busy till eleven. After a quick wash, he told her goodnight and went to bed.
About ten minutes later, Miao quietly pushed open his door and slipped in. He wasn't fully asleep, so he opened his eyes to see her crouching by his bed. With a sigh, rubbing his eyes, he said, "I really should remember to lock the door. What is it now?"
Her eyes sparkled. "Nothing. I just realized—you don't know my name yet."
He turned to her, more awake. "Oh? What is it?"
Leaning close to his ear, she whispered each word with teasing breath. "Liang. Xiao. Miao."
Blood rushed straight to his ears. Trying to stay calm, he said, "Mm… pretty name. Suits you—like a cat."
She grinned in the dark, eyes glinting slyly. "Do you know how cats catch prey?"
He thought. "Wait quietly, then pounce when the prey isn't looking?"
"That's wild cats. I mean pet cats," she said. "I set traps without them noticing, so they walk right in willingly."
He smiled. "You're talking about me? You've set a trap for me to fall into?"
"Silly Xiaoguai." She stroked his cheek. "You've already fallen in."
The author says: The heroine's flirting is w she does—poor Shu Mingyang never stood a chance, lol.