Chapter 118: A Spineless Man

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Hua Jingjing placed her hand on the one holding the business card, her expression a mix of anger and sorrow as she said, “Tang Qian, since when did you get involved with Fan Yunting? You really are something.” I spread my hands in confusion. “Get involved? Don’t say nonsense. I just happened to meet Manager Fan by chance. We happened to be going the same way, so she gave me a ride, that’s all.”

Hua Jingjing snorted heavily, clearly not convinced. She took a few steps closer and looked closely at the bandages on my face and hands. Reaching out, she gently touched them, her voice full of pain and dissatisfaction. “You were in a car accident, yet you won’t just stay home and rest. Running out alone in the middle of the night—what were you thinking? And you say it was a coincidence? Then why does she have your personal business card?”

I was puzzled. “How do you know I was in a car accident? Who told you?” Hua Jingjing bit her lip, her voice sharp with frustration. “I knew you didn’t have me in your heart. Something this serious happened, and you didn’t even bother to inform me. If I hadn’t gone looking for you at the bookstore, how would I have known? Your phone was off, and you didn’t answer. Do you know how worried I was?”

Watching Hua Jingjing’s anger directed at me, mingled with her grievances and sorrow, I sighed deeply. I knew she truly cared about me. Knowing I was hurt must have made her anxious beyond measure. With my phone dead and unreachable, she must have been frantic. Seeing this woman who loved me deeply, I felt a pang of guilt and reluctance. I was about to apologize when, unexpectedly, Hua Jingjing suddenly opened her arms and hugged me tightly. She whispered softly, “Tang Qian, you’re so cruel! I’m here worrying myself sick for you, and you’re out there, hurt, yet still flirting with other women. It really breaks my heart. You’ve hurt me so much.”

Her grievances poured out, her voice trembling with tears. Although I was at a loss, in such a moment I couldn’t bear to push her away. I sighed and gently patted her back. “Alright, alright! Don’t be like this. I’m fine, it’s nothing serious. I’m just not used to people worrying about me. Since it’s nothing major, I don’t want to make a fuss. Now, please let me go. It wouldn’t look good if someone saw us like this.”

Hua Jingjing twisted her waist stubbornly and didn’t release her grip. Instead, she hugged me even tighter and buried her face in my chest, not moving an inch. I helplessly tapped her shoulder. “Jingjing!”

She raised her head, eyes blurred with tears, and said angrily, “Why? Am I really not even as good as Fan Yunting? I love you so much, but you remain indifferent. Why does she get your attention? Why was she the first one to see you after you were hurt?”

I said, “Please, I really have nothing going on with Manager Fan. Can you not jump to conclusions? I just came back from my girlfriend’s place. I ran into Manager Fan by chance. Is it wrong to catch a ride with someone?”

Hearing me mention Qiu Jieqin, Hua Jingjing’s heart broke further. Tears finally spilled over as she choked out, “It’s always about your girlfriend. What am I lacking? It’s only that she met you a little later! It’s not fair! I love you just as much as she does, yet you told her and not me! You’ve broken my heart into pieces!”

I was speechless. In truth, I hadn’t told Qiu Jieqin about the accident either, and I only went to see her to break up. But I dared not tell Hua Jingjing this; if she found out, how could she ever forgive me? She was holding me tight, and no matter how much I tried to push, I couldn’t break free. I had no choice but to say, “What’s wrong with me visiting my girlfriend? Jingjing, please let go, or I’ll get angry!”

Hua Jingjing’s resentment hadn’t eased, and in a fit of stubbornness, she said, “I won’t let go. If you’ve got the guts, come on, hit me. Even if you do, I won’t let go.”

I was truly at a loss. When a woman gets this clingy, there’s really nothing you can do. I couldn’t break free, yet I couldn’t hit her either. This was a truly awkward situation. I sighed helplessly, “Jingjing, you can’t hold me like this forever. Alright, alright, be good and let go.”

Hua Jingjing pouted, “Why not? I’ve decided to hold you forever and never let go.”

Her blatant stubbornness made me anxious. I was really afraid someone would see us like this and misunderstand everything. Thinking quickly, I said, “Jingjing, how about we talk inside your car? It’s not appropriate out here.”

Her eyes gleamed mischievously. “The car? Alright!” She finally let go of me, grabbed my hand, and dragged me toward the Ferrari parked nearby. “Get in! Tonight we’re talking until dawn, or this anger won’t go away.”

I wiped the cold sweat off my forehead, thinking how difficult Hua Jingjing was. At least I had passed this hurdle, but judging by this, I wasn’t escaping her tonight. What a headache! Well, I’d just take it one step at a time and play it by ear.

But things weren’t as simple as I thought. I intended to sit on opposite sides with her, but the small space in the car made it hard for her to avoid hugging me. Unexpectedly, she opened the door for me, letting me get in first. After I sat down, she climbed in and, without hesitation, sat on my lap.

Now I was truly trapped. In such a cramped space, there was nowhere to escape. I exclaimed, “Hey! What are you doing? Go sit beside me!”

Hua Jingjing smiled slyly and reached over to close the door. “You said come into the car, not to hug outside, so of course I’m hugging you inside! No matter how long you want to hold me tonight, this is my way of making up for worrying about you all day.” Then she spread her arms and wrapped them around my neck.

Cold sweat broke out again as I realized I’d fallen into my own trap. Without thinking, I stretched out my right arm—unluckily, it landed right against her firm, soft chest.

Hua Jingjing froze for a moment, then stopped her movement. Her eyes shimmered, cheeks flushed, and with a bold thrust of her chest, she pressed harder against my arm. It felt like an electric shock, and I quickly pulled away, shouting, “Jingjing!”

It was too late. Her neck tightened around mine as she hugged me tightly, her entire upper body pressed against me. I struggled for breath and was utterly helpless. This passionate embrace was too much; she hadn’t considered how such intimacy could throw a man off balance. I wasn’t a saint—what if I lost control and gave in to my instincts? While I still had some clarity, I said earnestly, “Jingjing, don’t do this! I have a girlfriend. I can’t betray her. It’s not appropriate for you to hold me like this. If I can’t control myself, it’d be terrible. Please, get down.”

Hua Jingjing rested her chin on my shoulder and laughed softly. “You can’t control yourself? I always thought you were a fool! Don’t mention your girlfriend. I don’t believe you’ve never wronged her. If you were truly faithful, why would you flirt with Fan Yunting, looking so reluctant to part?”

I was speechless. She was right—I wasn’t a good man. I had already wronged Qiu Jieqin. Not only had I kissed Xu Shu, but also her sister. And there was Gu Ruoyan—I’d been intimate with her too. Thinking about it, I really wasn’t a decent man. Call it a womanizer if you like; call it rotten if you must. I felt ashamed and had nothing to say. I realized my supposed upright behavior had been self-deception all along. I was soft-hearted toward every woman, unclear in my intentions. What right did I have to claim I couldn’t betray my girlfriend? Had I ever truly regarded her as my girlfriend?

Disheartened, I stopped resisting Hua Jingjing, sighed, and leaned back in the seat. My hands rested on either side, motionless as she clung to me. My mind had drifted away from her; I was thinking about what Qiu Jieqin had said. Although she’d been with other men, I didn’t blame her at all. At least she wasn’t my woman then, and she had the right to choose her own life. Strictly speaking, her misfortune was caused by me. The one to blame was only me. I was a scoundrel—eight years ago, I rejected her and hurt her. Now I wanted to be with her, yet my heart belonged to another woman, and I was entangled with several others. Tang Qian, what right do you have to pretend to be noble and decent? You are heartless and ungrateful! You’ve long wronged Qiu Jieqin! You don’t deserve to mention your girlfriend to anyone, because you never truly treated her as one. And now you say you can’t betray her? You’re shameless.

Unaware of my intense self-reproach, Hua Jingjing noticed my sudden silence and looked up at me curiously. “What’s wrong? Are you mad?” I shook my head. “Nothing.” At that moment, my heart was heavy with disappointment in myself. Hua Jingjing was sitting on me, and I couldn’t be bothered to explain. I was a heartless, ungrateful man—she could sit as long as she wanted. I didn’t want her to see there was something on my mind, so I casually said, “By the way, since you couldn’t reach me, how did you end up waiting downstairs at my place? You knew I wasn’t home?”

Hua Jingjing smiled. “Yeah! I went to the bookstore but couldn’t find you. So I pretended to chat with the owner, then casually asked why you weren’t there yesterday. Unexpectedly, the owner told me you had a car accident and would be resting for a while. That scared me to death. I quickly bought a few books and called your phone, but it was off. I was frantic! I didn’t dare come straight to your house because I didn’t even know if you were hospitalized or which hospital. So I went back to the company and looked through the staff records to find your home number. When I called, I found out you were okay but had gone out. Worried, I came to wait downstairs for you. Humph! I never thought you’d still be so flirtatious after the accident, first visiting your girlfriend, then cozying up to Fan Yunting. Busy, aren’t you?”

I could only smile bitterly. “I really have nothing going on with Fan Yunting. How many times do I have to say it before you believe me?”

Hua Jingjing stuck out her tongue playfully. “If there’s nothing, then there’s nothing. Why so serious? You care what I believe, don’t you?”

I didn’t respond and asked, “You even called my home? Who answered? What did you say?”

“Nothing much! I just said I was your former colleague and wanted to ask if you were home. I think your mother answered.” I sighed, unable to blame her. Hua Jingjing was truly worried about me. With my phone off, calling home was understandable.

After a pause, I said, “You’d better get down. You’re so heavy, my legs are going numb!”

Hua Jingjing pouted. “Heavy? I weigh less than a hundred pounds! My parents always say I’m too skinny and tell me to eat more. But you, you say I’m fat?”

I rolled my eyes. “Come on, even if you’re skinny, a hundred pounds pressing on your legs would make you numb, wouldn’t it?”

She laughed. “I don’t care! You don’t know me! I get down easily, but climbing back up will be tough. Don’t try to trick me; I’m not falling for it!”

Since being gentle didn’t work, I decided to be firm. She was still a young woman—though bold now, if I got serious, she’d probably run away. I tried to scare her. “Hua Jingjing, if you don’t get down soon, I really can’t control myself. If I do something reckless, don’t blame me!”

Hua Jingjing froze, then said indifferently, “You would?”

I gritted my teeth, pretending to be fierce, and suddenly hugged her. One hand slowly moved over her body as I growled, “Since that’s the case, don’t blame me for being ruthless!”

A flicker of surprise appeared on her face, mixed with joy and anticipation. She closed her eyes and gave in completely.

I immediately lost my nerve and let her go. Smiling bitterly, I said, “Alright, lady, what exactly do you want before you get down?”

Hua Jingjing giggled and opened her eyes. Her look was full of mockery, and beneath it, a trace of disappointment. She shook her head lightly and sighed, “Tang Qian, Tang Qian, I know you too well. If you really were capable of that, how could I have fallen in love with you?”

I was both frustrated and helpless. Hua Jingjing was formidable—daring to tempt fate like this. Yet I truly couldn’t bring myself to do anything to her. It was maddening. Thinking I had no choice, I prepared to toughen up and scold her, but Hua Jingjing said, “You coward, do you really expect the woman to make the first move for something like this?”

Her eyes glittered as her cheeks flushed, and she lowered her head, kissing me.

I was dumbfounded, anger flames roaring inside. Coward? I hated more than anything being called a coward—especially by a woman! Hua Jingjing, you brought this on yourself!