"Wei Sianqi here is single. How about working things out with her?" Lu Mengjie didn't hold back when she suggested the girl behind her.

"I already have someone I love!" Wei Sianqi retorted. Her brows were knitted together as she frowned and glared at her.

"Have you forgotten? The man you love is already married to someone else so why don't you fall for someone else instead? My brother is handsome. You don't have to worry about money. He's also a genius. You're a student, correct? He will be able to help you with your homework. If you don't like him, I have another brother who is in college, closer to your age. If older men are your kink, both my brothers are older than you so you can just choose between them."

Xia Liqin scoffed in disgust. "I am not for sale, Jiejie. I don't like dating childish women too."

"See? You're perfect for each other!" Lu Mengjie exclaimed with a wide grin plastered on her face.

"No, we're not!" The youngsters said in unison.

Xia Liqin pursed his lips and drove when the traffic lights turned green. He could already tell what his sister was trying to do and he was not going to do it for free! If his beloved sister wanted him to seduce one of her love rivals, then she needed to pay him up.

…

Arriving at the apartment where Lu Mengjie would be meeting Tian Ruyi, she decided to have her brother and Wei Sianqi wait in the car. She wasn't planning on staying long at the place.

Ding! She rang the doorbell.

It took a few seconds before the door was opened for her, revealing her short-haired friend. "Mengmeng, you're here!" Tian Ruyi pounced on her.

Lu Mengjie chuckled. She hugged her back. "It's nice to see you too."

The other girl pulled back and grinned at her. "I heard what happened. You sneaky fox, you'll give that old man a heart attack!"

"That was my intention."

"Anyway, come in, come in." She invited Lu Mengjie to her place.

"How are you lately?" She asked while her eyes roamed around the minimalist-looking apartment. It was not what she expected, considering that Tian Ruyi was a known figure in the entertainment world.

"Busy. I have a commercial shoot tomorrow so I have to prepare for it." She walked into her room then after seconds, she went out, pulling out a small luggage. "As much as I want to spend the day with you, my flight to Dachang is this afternoon."

"It's fine. I don't plan on staying long here," Lu Mengjie said with a small smile. "I just wanted to visit a friend."

"And?" Tian Ruyi stood near her, crossing her arms as she waited for the other woman to continue.

Lu Mengjie chuckled. "Can't I just visit my friend without any agendas behind?"

"As much as I want to believe you, my instincts tell me that there's something else."

She sighed in defeat. "Fine, fine, I came here to contact Jingye through you."

"Of course you do." She chuckled. She took her sling bag and pulled out her phone from it. "From what you did yesterday, I could already tell that Bai Keran is already fuming mad at Jingye." She sighed and felt sorry for the man. She handed the phone to her. "I really hope he can leave that family."

"We both know that he would prefer to stay and have his grandfather leave instead," Lu Mengjie replied.

"I shouldn't say something so rude but I really hoped that the old man could kick the bucket already. He's the big thorn in the family."

"That's why we're working on it. Give him more heart attacks." When she found Bai Jingye's name on the list of contacts, she dialed his number.

It was ringing for a while before it went through. Instead of hearing Bai Jingye's voice through the other line, Lu Mengjie ended up hearing a woman's voice.

"Hello? Xiao Ruyi?"

It was Bai Jingye's mother, Xu Chen.

Lu Mengjie quickly handed the phone back to her friend and mouthed the woman's name.

Tian Ruyi was able to read her lips at once so she quickly replied, "hi mom! Is Bai Jingye there?" She also put the call on speaker so that Lu Mengjie could hear the conversation.

"He's…" The woman on the other side sounded so weary. "My son is not available right now."

"Eh? Why not? Is he busy?"

"No… it's just…" A sigh was heard. "He's in that room."

Upon hearing her reply, Tian Ruyi's face instantly turned white as if she had seen a ghost. "What? Why? Jingye is not a child anymore! How can grandpa still put him in that room?!"

Lu Mengjie was confused at what she was saying. What room was she talking about?

"Have you heard the news yet? I didn't expect that woman to be someone from the Lu family. And what's worse is that she's married to Yong Liwei. We all know that father hated the Lu family. I just found out that father was actually using my son to keep watch on that Lu girl. Jingye failed… and aside from that, when father found out that my son faked his marriage, he lost control." Xu Chen's sobs were heard after. "I-I tried to stop him… I tried… It's not my son's fault that Lu bitch outwitted him! It's her fault!"

Tian Ruyi lowered her head. She bit her lower lip and clenched her other hand. 

Lu Mengjie wanted to ask what was happening but she couldn't, not when the call was still on. The air in the room became heavy until the call finally ended.

"I should have known," Tian Ruyi mumbled.

"Know what?" Lu Mengjie asked. "What happened to Bai Jingye?"

"We won't be able to contact him for three weeks, Mengjie." She kept her phone. "I'm not even sure if it'll be for three weeks only."

"What do you mean?"