Su Ding saw Jiang Chu's reaction and knew he had misunderstood. However, both she and Jin Ye were wearing bathrobes, clearly having just done something intimate…
She felt a surge of impatience, as if her words were being slapped back.
In Jiang Chu's eyes, she had claimed to leave Jin Ye but had not.
"What business do our marital affairs have with Mr. Jiang?"
Jin Ye glared coldly at Jiang Chu, his low voice laced with malice.
Jiang Chu seemed struck, refusing to believe the truth before him. He looked at Su Ding, "You..."
"Don't listen to his nonsense. Let's go."
Su Ding pushed Jin Ye away and was the first to open the door, rushing out.
Her mind was in chaos, unsure how to face the current situation, she just wanted to get away from Jin Ye as quickly as possible.
Jiang Chu ignored Jin Ye and quickly followed her.
"Su Ding," he called out to her, taking off his suit jacket and draping it over her shoulders. "Come with me. It's less crowded this way."
Su Ding was touched by his thoughtfulness and nodded.
Accompanied by Jiang Chu, she skirted around the back of the manor and got into the car at the parking lot.
Their retreating figures, leaning on each other, were all captured by Jin Ye's eyes.
He clenched his fists tightly.
Very well, it seemed Jiang Chu was the one who suggested Su Ding leave him and Jiang City.
If he wanted to snatch his woman, then it would depend on who was more capable!
…
Jiang Chu took Su Ding home and immediately called for a doctor.
The doctor said she had caught a chill and needed to rest in bed for a few days, prescribing some cold medicine.
"Thank you. If it wasn't for you today..."
Su Ding lay in bed, her face still pale, her nose blocked and throat hoarse; she was indeed ill.
Jiang Chu was silent for a few seconds, then sighed, "I shouldn't have brought you to the party. If you hadn't come here, you wouldn't have met him."
Su Ding remembered the terrifying look Jin Ye gave her when she left, and felt a pang of anxiety.
"No one could have predicted this."
She bit her lip, her expression growing grim. "We'll just have to take it one step at a time."
Jiang Chu said solemnly, "Mm."
He hesitated for a long time but couldn't help himself and asked, "Just now in the room, did he… to you?"
"No," Su Ding looked somewhat embarrassed. "It wasn't what you saw."
She carefully chose her words, "I was waiting for you by the river when I met Jin Miaomiao and Tang Yiyi. They found me familiar and insisted on removing my veil. I lost my footing and fell into the lake, getting tangled in the water weeds. Jin Ye saved me."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Chu's brow furrowed deeply. "It's my fault for not protecting you properly."
If he had been by her side the entire time, Jin Ye wouldn't have had the chance to save her, and they wouldn't have been in the room in such close proximity…
Thinking of this, he felt even more resentful and distressed.
"I'm an adult. I shouldn't hold you responsible for my accidental misfortunes," Su Ding explained earnestly. "It has nothing to do with you."
"…" Jiang Chu's face was filled with guilt and regret, leaving him speechless for a moment.
Su Ding glanced at the time. "It's getting late. Don't let this delay your important matters."
She vaguely sensed Jiang Chu's unusual feelings for her, but since he hadn't explicitly stated them, she didn't want to presume and reject him.
However, she would maintain a clear boundary between them.
Jiang Chu understood Su Ding's words but was still unwilling to leave, sitting steadily. "It's alright, I'll stay with you a while longer."
This was the first time he had feigned ignorance of implied meanings.
In the past, he had always been too considerate and gentlemanly, missing many opportunities for further development due to his so-called demeanor.
Su Ding found it difficult to ask him to leave now, so she nodded. "Mm."
Jiang Chu recalled the entire incident, still finding the coincidence too strange. They had secretly flown to the southern region by helicopter; no one else should have known.
But how could it be such a coincidence to meet at such an event?
Even more so, Jin Ye happened to be there to save her just as Su Ding fell into the water…
"Perhaps Jin Ye was already in the southern region."
Jiang Chu analyzed with a serious expression, "The events today are too coincidental. Not only did he attend the party, but he also happened to be by the lake and saved you precisely when you fell in."
"…"
Su Ding was silent for a moment. "I've thought about that, but if he was already here, why didn't he appear sooner? Given his personality…"
Jin Ye had a calm demeanor, but when it came to her, there was no reason for him to remain passive.
Jiang Chu looked intently at Su Ding. "Haven't you considered why Jin Miaomiao would unprovokedly try to snatch your veil, and Tang Yiyi, have you met her before?"
These series of questions made Su Ding's already hazy head spin even more.
"Jin Miaomiao is a bit scatterbrained. As for Tang Yiyi, I haven't met her, but…!"
Su Ding then recalled the scene in the lake. "She wanted to kill me."
Thinking of this, her expression became very grim.
Tang Yiyi harbored a secret crush on Jin Ye, thus harboring murderous intent towards her.
Tang Yiyi pretended to save her, but in reality, she led her towards the area with dense water weeds. After confirming she was entangled, she slipped away.
"I think someone deliberately staged a hero-saves-the-damsel scenario."
Jiang Chu said in a low voice, anger rising on his face. Jin Ye attacked Su Ding verbally with indifference, but it was clear to anyone with eyes that he hadn't given up!
Su Ding glanced at Jiang Chu's sullen expression, knowing his displeasure towards Jin Ye, and instinctively retorted.
"He's not that bored."