The sensation of an electric shock swept through her body in an instant. Su Qingning's fair cheeks flushed a deep crimson, and even her pale neck turned pink.

Her heart was racing. She felt as if it was about to leap out of her chest.

She quickly shook off Lin Xiao's hand. "You scoundrel, what—what do you think you're doing!" she stammered, flushed with a mixture of shame and anger.

"Eh? Wifey, you held out your hand. Wasn't that for me to hold?"

"Hmph, you're talking nonsense!" Su Qingning retorted, utterly mortified.

"Oh, I just thought your hand was cold and wanted to warm it up for you!"

Although he said that, the grin in his eyes was impossible to hide. Su Qingning was so angry she didn't want to speak anymore.

That shameless rogue had touched her hand on purpose. But then again... while the scoundrel was shameless, the moment he had held her hand, aside from the feeling of being electrocuted, she had felt an overwhelming sense of security. A completely inexplicable sense of reassurance. It was as if holding his hand meant she owned the entire world. It was a marvelous feeling.

"Alright, wifey, don't be angry. Seriously, if you need money, I can give it to you," Lin Xiao said earnestly.

"Stop bragging, will you?" Su Qingning snapped.

Seeing that she didn't believe him, Lin Xiao didn't waste any more words and simply pulled out the supreme black card. "Take it. It's enough to buy all of Jinling City!"

Su Qingning almost laughed in exasperation as she looked at the plain black card, which bore no bank logo. He thought he could buy the entire city with such a worthless-looking piece of plastic?

This scoundrel is getting bolder and bolder with his lies.

But despite her disbelief, she snatched the card from him.

Of course, she didn't believe it held any money, much less that it could buy the whole of Jinling City. But since Lin Xiao insisted on bragging, she decided to teach him a lesson.

"Buy the entire city, right? Fine! After dinner tonight, I'll use this card to pay the bill. We'll see who's embarrassed then!" she declared huffily.

"No problem," Lin Xiao laughed. "Go ahead, spend as much as you want. You'll see whether I'm bluffing or not!"

Su Qingning grew even angrier. Give him an inch, and he'd take a mile. Infuriated, she threw the card back at Lin Xiao.

He stared at her, completely baffled. "Wifey, what's wrong?"

"Hmph! I can't afford that kind of embarrassment!" Su Qingning snapped.

Lin Xiao was speechless. Why won't she just give it a try? If she tried it, the truth would be revealed. But no, she wouldn't give him the chance.

Soon, they arrived at Chunyu Pavilion. Just as Lin Xiao and Su Qingning got out of the car, Xue Jingdong walked over to greet them. The three of them entered the restaurant together and were led by a waiter straight to the ninth floor.

As they walked, Xue Jingdong remarked, "I heard that Chunyu Pavilion is owned by the Shao Family, the most prominent family in Jinling City. It's the classiest restaurant in town. And this ninth floor... ordinary people can't even get up here!" As he spoke, he glanced at Lin Xiao, the boastful implication impossible to miss.

Lin Xiao just smiled. And here I thought Xue Jingdong was a man of some refinement. Turns out he's just another pretentious fool.

Su Qingning also felt a sense of aversion to his words. The overwhelming feeling of superiority radiating from him made her cringe with secondhand embarrassment. Her gaze inadvertently fell on Lin Xiao. Suddenly, she felt that Lin Xiao was much better. He never put on such airs.

They soon stopped at the door of a private room. Xue Jingdong dismissed the waiter before pushing the door open.

Inside the large private room sat one person—an acquaintance of Lin Xiao's, no less. It was Xue Wenbing, the very same man who had been dealt with just last night. But that wasn't the main issue. The moment the door opened, a pungent cloud of cigarette smoke billowed out. Su Qingning's brow furrowed instantly.

Lin Xiao noticed her subtle reaction. "Wifey, maybe we should change rooms? The smoke in here is too strong."

A warmth spread through Su Qingning's heart. It's true, I can't stand the smell of smoke. I can't believe he noticed. However, she figured that since they were already at the door, asking to change rooms would seem a bit dramatic. "It's fine," she said, shaking her head.

Her words had barely faded when a vicious voice cut through the air. "Fuck! You stinking beggar, who the hell let you in? Get the hell out!"

The speaker was, of course, Xue Wenbing. Lin Xiao was about to retort, but Su Qingning's expression turned glacial. "Lin Xiao, let's go," she said coldly.

In her mind, she could tolerate the cigarette smoke, but she could not tolerate someone calling Lin Xiao a stinking beggar. She had even once sworn to herself that she would work hard so that no one would ever dare call him that again.

Lin Xiao had been about to teach the punk a lesson, but since Su Qingning had spoken, he could only nod.

Xue Jingdong, however, instantly grew furious. He knew exactly why his cousin despised Lin Xiao. "Apologize!" he barked at Xue Wenbing.

Xue Wenbing just sneered. After the beating he took from Lin Xiao the previous night, he was seething with rage. He had been dreaming of his cousin putting this stinking beggar in his place. Seeing his cousin demand an apology on his behalf, he couldn't have been more delighted.

"Cousin, an apology isn't enough to quell my hatred. Make the stinking beggar kneel! Besides, cousin, haven't you always had a thing for Su Qingning? Now's your chance! Just have this stinking beggar..." Xue Wenbing's mouth ran like a machine gun, spewing one idiotic comment after another.

"Shut your damn mouth!" Xue Jingdong roared. He was tempted to slap his idiotic cousin right then and there. This good-for-nothing was more of a hindrance than a help. He hadn't even had a drink yet and was already spouting nonsense.

Xue Wenbing stared at his cousin, indignant. "Cousin, why are you telling me to shut up? This stinking beggar has no power or connections, while our family is one of the top three in Jinling City. What's there to be afraid of?"

At these words, Xue Jingdong transformed into a raging beast. He lunged forward and, without another word, delivered two hard slaps across Xue Wenbing's face.

Clutching his stinging cheeks, Xue Wenbing stared at his cousin, utterly baffled. "Cousin... wh-why did you hit me?"

"Hit you? If you say one more stupid thing, I'll cripple you!" Xue Jingdong snarled. "Now get the hell home! I'll deal with you later!" He glared fiercely at Xue Wenbing. If their families weren't related, Xue Jingdong would have already disabled this fool for nearly ruining his plans.

A flash of fear crossed Xue Wenbing's face. He clutched his burning cheeks and scurried away.

Xue Jingdong turned back to Su Qingning, his face wreathed in smiles. "Qing Ning, I'm so sorry. I haven't disciplined him properly. I apologize to you and Brother Lin on his behalf. Brother Lin, you're a magnanimous man. Surely you won't be offended by this, right?"

"You said it yourself, he's just trash. Why would I get angry over trash?" Lin Xiao replied with a lazy smile.

Just as Su Qingning was about to speak, a jeering voice cut in. "Yo, isn't this the famous campus belle from Jing University? The dream girl of countless wealthy heirs, now married to a stinking beggar?"

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