"Fake." She could sleep if she had nothing to do.
Meng Shang let out a soft snort, thinking she was at least a relatively honest little liar.
"So, Mom... I mean, is your mother still coming?"
"My mom?" Jiang Ruoqi paused, a flicker of confusion crossing her face before she smiled. "She had something come up, so she's not coming."
That was from a couple of days ago. During her lunch break, Jiang Yun called. The gist was that she'd already bought a ticket to Xinhai, but her boyfriend had a relative in Yuanjing who'd fallen and needed care.
She let Jiang Ruoqi decide: should she come to Xinhai first and then fly to Yuanjing, or stop by Xinhai on the way back from Yuanjing?
As always, Jiang Yun gave Jiang Ruoqi the choice. But putting these two things together like that, Jiang Ruoqi understood her intention.
So she played along, hypocritically expressing understanding, saying that she and Meng Shang were always in Xinhai, and the patient came first. Jiang Yun could come whenever she had time.
Jiang Yun repeatedly confirmed Jiang Ruoqi's answer, then relieved, canceled the ticket to Xinhai. Her voice even brightened on the other end.
After hanging up, Jiang Ruoqi let out a long sigh. Amid the tangled emotions, she could only extract a sense of absurdity.
Did she really have a choice?
Or was she really making the choice for Jiang Yun?
No. If Jiang Yun had chosen her from the start, she would never have told her about the scheduling conflict.
By letting Jiang Ruoqi choose, Jiang Yun was betting that Jiang Ruoqi would be considerate and give in. And since the disappointing words didn't come from her own mouth, she naturally eliminated the guilt of making her sad.
As if that kind of abandonment didn't exist.
She forced Jiang Ruoqi to accept her choices, in the name of freedom, making her daughter bear the disappointment of being abandoned in countless second choices, all alone.
It had been like this for years. Every single time.
Jiang Ruoqi knew it all.
But what could she do?
Because they were family, she always thought there'd be plenty of time to make up for it.
Anyway, she was used to it. She could even hide her disappointment perfectly.
But this time, in front of Meng Shang, she seemed to have slipped up.
Streetlights flashed past the car window. In the flickering light, Jiang Ruoqi lowered her head, her lashes fluttering like newly emerged butterfly wings.
Meng Shang understood. Who didn't want to be favored? Even he, as a child, had pressed his face against the window, waiting for his parents to pick him up.
"Then go ahead. You'll have company for the trip there and back. I'll give the car to Su Yansheng and have him drive you. Tell me what you want to eat, and I'll let Mom know so she can prepare."
"That's great, but if I trouble Mom like this, will I be helping or causing chaos when I go back?" Jiang Ruoqi tilted her head and stared at Meng Shang.
She wasn't a foodie, but she understood that the meaning behind asking the elders to prepare a home-cooked meal lay in the family's respect and recognition of her. She just... couldn't help picking a fight with Meng Shang.
"Grandma has Mom and Uncle. You don't need to do anything. Just sitting by her bedside will make her happy for a long time." Meng Shang knew what she wanted to hear. "As for being trouble... I'd say President Jiang is doing me a huge favor. I'm so grateful I can hardly express it."
Meng Shang was exaggerating, but Jiang Ruoqi took it seriously. She crossed one arm over her chest and rubbed her chin with the other hand. "You can express it. Since Dr. Meng wants to show gratitude, I think you should take some practical action to prove your sincerity."
She was casting a hook into the water again—and a straight one at that.
"Whatever President Jiang says. What action?" Meng Shang gave up resisting.
Jiang Ruoqi's eyes curved in a smile. She deliberately asked again: "Whatever I say?"
"Mm, whatever you say."
She was waiting for that.
Satisfied, Jiang Ruoqi patted her bag. "Sophia gave me a perfume I really like as our wedding gift. I'd like to trouble Dr. Meng to help me test it. Is that okay?"
"Of course."
Meng Shang didn't really understand why she'd want him to test a perfume that her friend gave her and that she liked.
Not until after he'd washed up and put on the pajamas that Jiang Ruoqi had "modified." The wine note in the perfume's middle had faded to a final trace, and the woody, herbal base was in full bloom. The first thing that came to Meng Shang's mind was the scent on Jiang Ruoqi.
Jiang Ruoqi was already in bed, hugging the covers, waiting for him. She sniffed at him like a little animal. Deciding the scent wasn't strong enough, she complained about its poor longevity and reached for the glass bottle with a golden deer head on the nightstand.
Meng Shang was ready to let her do whatever she wanted, but her every move brushed right against his limits. She sprayed the perfume on her fingertips, then applied it to his earlobes, his chest, and finally stopped at his lower abdomen.
The fragrance dispersed into the air—a spicy, rich aroma of Cognac, even more aggressive than the unopened bottle itself.
Meng Shang grabbed her hand to stop her, but Jiang Ruoqi said nothing. Instead, she held his hand and brought it to her lips—soft lips against slightly rough fingertips, then a wet sensation and a gentle bite of protest.
Then came a brief moment of eye contact, and they both sank into the soft bedding.
The perfume, in contact with skin, evaporated faster as body heat rose. The more intense the movement, the stronger the scent became—so strong it stole the oxygen and filled every breath.
In the air wrapped with vetiver and musk, Jiang Ruoqi's whimper was trapped in her throat. She could hardly breathe. Meng Shang coaxed and praised her, but he didn't stop.
By the end, she was limp, barely able to lift her arm. But compared to the pure numbness of alcohol, this brought a deeper satisfaction.
Meng Shang adjusted her into a comfortable position and couldn't help kissing her earlobe. At this moment, even he—slow as he was—finally understood why Jiang Ruoqi insisted on having him test the perfume.
Using the scent you love to mark everything that is yours—that's animal instinct. In humans, it manifests as deliberate seduction.
She had so many little tricks to use on him, always more than he expected.
Seeing how exhausted she looked, Meng Shang got up to run a bath. But as soon as he moved, Jiang Ruoqi tightened her arms around him and refused to let him go.
"I'm not leaving."
She was still drowsy, but she never let go of what she wanted.
"I'll run the bath. Then you can sleep after washing up." Meng Shang gently patted her hand, but she ignored him—neither loosening her grip nor speaking.
Fine, he could wait.
With no other choice, Meng Shang lay back down.
The perfume on him had almost faded, but occasionally, a faint scent would waft from the fabric.
Jiang Ruoqi wasn't asleep—he knew.
So he pulled her closer and asked in a husky voice, "The perfume's been tested. Do you like it? Do you like this scent?"
"Emm... I don't think I like it as much anymore."
Jiang Ruoqi rested her head on Meng Shang's heartbeat and answered slowly, "Compared to that, I think I prefer your original scent."
The clean, sunny smell of soap, mixed with a hint of disinfectant—it made her feel safer than anything.
Meng Shang didn't catch her murmur-like reply, so he asked again, "Like what?"
"Like you."
This time, he heard it clearly.
Meng Shang suppressed his smile and warned himself.
This little liar just knew how to fool him.