A trace of amusement flickered in Jiang Luo’s heart, but his brows furrowed as he stepped around Chi You, intending to leave.
But in the blink of an eye, Chi You slammed him hard against the wall.
The handsome malicious ghost pressed in close, casting his shadow over Jiang Luo. He hooked his finger around the hair tie holding Jiang Luo’s hair and gave it a slight tug. With a snap, the tie broke, and black hair spilled over Jiang Luo’s shoulders.
Strands of hair fell across the corners of Jiang Luo’s eyes, flushed from heat, brushed against his ears and collarbone.
The malicious ghost said, “You haven’t answered me yet.”
Jiang Luo replied coldly, “When have I ever been hot and cold with you?”
To Chi You, every movement Jiang Luo made was magnified—impatience, restraint, indifference—playing out like a slow-motion film. He casually lifted a lock of Jiang Luo’s hair, and Jiang Luo suddenly frowned and hissed lightly, “You’re pulling too hard.”
It was a scolding, full of irritation. But the way he said it was wrapped in something sticky-sweet, like candy. Chi You didn’t let go; instead, he twisted the strand around his finger two more times.
“Did you cut your hair?” he asked lazily. “Or am I imagining things?”
But he already knew for sure—Jiang Luo’s hair had indeed gotten shorter.
Jiang Luo held back his response, unusually silent. Chi You wasn’t discouraged—on the contrary, he seemed even more energized. He released Jiang Luo’s hair, and just as Jiang Luo’s expression relaxed a bit, Chi You wrapped an arm around his waist and lifted him completely off the ground.
Jiang Luo instinctively wrapped his legs around Chi You’s waist, his hands gripping Chi You’s shoulders. It wasn’t until after he reacted that he realized what he’d done—he looked like a toddler clinging on for support, not the least bit dignified.
Chi You’s hands were like branding irons, pressing hard against his bones, pain pulsing in waves. Jiang Luo had no choice but to cling to him to ease the ache of Chi You’s claw-like grip. His eyes narrowed with a hint of slyness, a fleeting smirk flashing across his face.
“Let go,” Jiang Luo said.
Chi You replied, “Tell me why you’re hot and cold with me, and I’ll put you down.”
He held Jiang Luo’s thighs, pinning him against the wall. Jiang Luo’s long legs dangled out from under Chi You’s arms, hanging awkwardly in the air.
Jiang Luo’s expression darkened. “You’re really not letting go?”
Chi You simply smiled without saying a word.
Jiang Luo’s expression slowly changed. His lips curved suddenly, revealing a striking charm. He cupped Chi You’s face, pressing their foreheads together. His long phoenix eyes tilted seductively, filled with sweetness and allure—like a temptress luring souls.
“Was I ever warm to you before?” Jiang Luo’s lips parted, warm breath brushing out, “Was I ever this warm?”
Chi You held him tightly, staring at him without blinking.
Jiang Luo’s lips were damp with sweat. When their lips brushed, they briefly stuck together before parting again. That fleeting contact brought back every sensation Chi You had felt when kissing Jiang Luo—the texture, the heat, the taste.
Chi You’s grip tightened, fingers nearly leaving bruises on Jiang Luo’s skin.
Jiang Luo didn’t even need to do anything to provoke Chi You, let alone when he did. Jiang Luo understood Chi You’s reactions all too well. That knowledge made him secretly pleased—excited, even. He had long been aware of the twisted shift in his own mindset, but he didn’t care to examine what it meant.
Jiang Luo was selfish. He didn’t want to explore the meaning behind his changes, but he did want to be the most important person in Chi You’s heart. So he had straightforwardly agreed to Ge Wuchen’s plan—because he wanted to see Chi You consumed by desire, and he also wanted to know just how much power he held over him.
And the answer was: a lot.
Jiang Luo could feel Chi You’s hand kneading his thigh with growing heat. The malicious ghost’s gaze was invasive and dangerous. Even through their clothes, Jiang Luo could clearly sense Chi You’s body tensing, muscles hardening.
But he pretended not to notice, like he had no idea how much he affected Chi You. He shifted his waist, his back against the wall, trying to break free. “This is what you call hot, Chi You. I was never hot toward you before, so it wasn’t hot-and-cold. There’s your answer. Now put me down.”
Instead, the malicious ghost moved even closer, squeezing out the remaining space between them. Jiang Luo had no choice but to rest his hands on Chi You’s shoulders—he could no longer push against his chest.
“Never?” Chi You said in a low voice. “Then who was it on the phone that had a reaction? Who kissed me in their dreams?”
He slapped Jiang Luo’s thigh lightly, tone suggestive. “Was it the little puppy?”
“That was just instinct,” Jiang Luo snorted coldly, the seduction wiped clean from his face. “It had nothing to do with you.”
Just like that, he went cold again.
One moment intimate, the next utterly indifferent—Chi You couldn’t make sense of him. The look in Chi You’s eyes turned deadly, like he might rip Jiang Luo apart on the spot.
It was terrifying—enough to make even Jiang Luo’s heart tremble. He cleared his throat, but the more dangerous Chi You looked, the more daring Jiang Luo became. “What kind of face is that? Chi You, you’re the one who called, you were the one who came after me. You even followed me to the bathroom—like some stalking pervert. The one who’s been burning hot this whole time is you. So tell me, do you want to hook up or not?”
“Do I even need to answer that?” the malicious ghost replied coolly.
Outside, faint voices echoed—someone was coming into the restroom.
Jiang Luo frowned, his calm shattered. “Someone’s here. Let me down.”
In his panic, Chi You only grew more composed. “Your answer?”
Jiang Luo glared at him, eyes filled with fury.
Chi You didn’t rush. Instead, he chuckled, intrigued. “They’ll be in here any second. If you don’t give me a satisfying answer now, they’ll see the top racer of the night pinned in another man’s arms. So… are we hooking up or not?”
The voices outside were drawing closer.
He was still counting down for Jiang Luo, “Ten meters, nine, eight…”
At the final moment, Jiang Luo’s face turned red with fury. He turned his head to the side, exposing his pale profile to the malicious ghost, and gritted out, “Fine.”
His brows and eyes were laced with a decadent, burning anger—clearly furious, yet for some reason, he looked all the more provocative, like a seductive devil.
The malicious ghost laughed. “I called you, sought you out again and again—shouldn’t you return the favor, at least once?”
He leaned in, tempted, and kissed Jiang Luo’s cheek.
“…I’ll contact you first. I’ll call you,” Jiang Luo said.
The malicious ghost buried his face down into Jiang Luo’s neck. Jiang Luo seemed to lose control for a second and squeezed the back of Chi You’s neck, letting out a low, deliberate moan.
He caught his reflection in the mirror—his face flushing deeper—and the black-haired young man in the mirror curved his lips into a wide, radiant smile.
The malicious ghost finally let him go.
…
When the person outside pushed the door open, Jiang Luo just happened to stride out quickly with a cold expression, ignoring the burning gaze behind him.
Once outside, he immediately found Wenren Lian. Their eyes met briefly, and the two disappeared together into the night.
On the way out, after making sure the surroundings were safe, Jiang Luo burst out laughing. He told Wenren Lian about the last look on Chi You’s face. “He’s definitely expecting me to contact him.”
It was like tossing the malicious ghost into a bonfire, only to forcefully snuff it out. From now on, Chi You would probably be waiting at every moment for Jiang Luo’s call.
Wenren Lian imagined Chi You’s face and couldn’t help laughing too. “What are you going to do next?”
Jiang Luo’s eyes flashed. “Ignore him.”
“From now on, I’ll ignore him completely,” Jiang Luo said, smirking. “He’ll go from anticipation to disappointment, then to the rage of being toyed with. When he finally can’t hold back and comes looking for me, he won’t be able to find me. That craving will go through twists and turns—peaking, then plunging into fury. And when he sees me again, that anger will ignite again and rise even higher.”
Just imagining Chi You reaching the height of his desire only to be met with silence—it was easy to guess what kind of expression he’d wear.
Wenren Lian sighed, “You’ve graduated.”
Jiang Luo was born with a seductive edge. If he kept going like this, he’d only become more and more dangerously alluring.
By the time they returned to Lu Youyi’s apartment, it was already ten at night. The neighborhood was quiet and empty. After parking the car, Jiang Luo and Wenren Lian had just approached the building when three men stepped out of a car parked below—blocking Jiang Luo’s way.
“Junior Brother, Master wants to see you.”
It was Shen Ruma and the other two senior brothers, who had been anxiously waiting since dinner.
