Amnesia Trap (GL) - Chapter 44

“Jiao Jiao, are you done talking?”

The next second their gazes locked, Ji Qingfan spoke in a gentle voice.

As her eyes curved, the cool aloofness about her person was instantly diluted.

The gloominess hidden deep in her obsidian pupils, yet to be detected, dispersed entirely along the lines of her light smile, transforming into a highly deceptive, tender expression.

She asked naturally, full of patience.

Sheng Zhi snapped back to reality. Feeling a bit self-conscious due to her recent fantasies, she gave a slight nod as a reply.

“Then, are there any other people Jiao Jiao needs to contact or matters to resolve?”

Hearing Ji Qingfan ask this, although there were none, Sheng Zhi didn’t answer directly. Instead, she asked: “Why?”

“It’s nothing,” Ji Qingfan put down the documents and propped her chin on her hand to look at her, her gaze intense and focused. “After all, we have business matters to discuss next… I hope Jiao Jiao’s attention can be entirely on me.”

—Discussing business matters likely referred to the trip to Rao Hai.

However, seeing Ji Qingfan’s incredibly indulgent attitude toward her, Sheng Zhi felt a sudden urge to test her, or rather, to deliberately be difficult… to see where the baseline was for her “amnesiac” self.

She knew very well that Ji Qingfan had a strong sense of time and disliked anything that affected her efficiency.

Thus, even though there was nothing else to do, Sheng Zhi intentionally claimed she had matters to attend to. Once she said that, however, she merely scrolled aimlessly through her phone. It was an obvious provocation, done specifically in Ji Qingfan’s office, right under her nose, to kill time on purpose.

At first, Sheng Zhi was quite composed, waiting for Ji Qingfan to show signs of impatience.

But as she watched herself jump from app to app for over half an hour with nothing to show for it, Ji Qingfan showed no reaction or change. It was as if she would wait forever until Sheng Zhi declared she was ready.

Sheng Zhi couldn’t understand what Ji Qingfan was thinking. She tried to steal a glance covertly, only to collide directly with the woman’s affectionate, gentle, and smiling eyes.

…How strange.

She hurriedly looked away and clicked into a random game as if to prove a point.

Something was very off.

Could Ji Qingfan have seen through her intentional stalling?

But that didn’t make sense. If she saw through it, shouldn’t she just say so?

She was certain she hadn’t misread it, and that made her even more confused.

Why did Ji Qingfan look… so happy?

And, she was only looking at her…

The atmosphere was too strange.

She wanted to start a game to kill more time, but under that lingering, affectionate gaze, she couldn’t even focus on playing.

Sheng Zhi couldn’t help but bite her lip irritably. “What are you looking at?”

—In fact, it was exactly as Sheng Zhi guessed. Ji Qingfan had seen through Sheng Zhi’s thoughts; she knew she was trying to annoy her by wasting time on purpose.

But how… could she possibly feel annoyed by such an action?

With Sheng Zhi so obediently by her side, it looked as if she actively wanted to spend time with her—as if she needed her as much as Ji Qingfan needed her—even though she knew very well that the real reason was quite the opposite.

If she told the truth now, Sheng Zhi would probably stop trying to “annoy” her this way, wouldn’t she?

Thus, the second their eyes met, Ji Qingfan lowered her gaze and said: “…Because I didn’t know when Jiao Jiao would be finished.”

Hearing Ji Qingfan say this, Sheng Zhi paused for a beat. Once she processed it, she couldn’t help but let the corners of her lips curl up.

If she had a tail right now, it would definitely be held high and wagging back and forth with her joyful mood.

Her sparkling, cat-like eyes blinked once, then twice, full of triumphant pride.

She thought: Ji Qingfan is only so-so, after all; she couldn’t even hold out for that long.

The words were somewhat tactful, but the meaning conveyed was still very clear: she thought the time wasted was too long, but because of her self-imposed “doting wife” persona, she couldn’t be too obvious about it.

After understanding what her words meant, Sheng Zhi looked at Ji Qingfan’s still-affectionate expression, and her mood grew even better.

—As expected, this method worked on Ji Qingfan.

“Actually, I didn’t have anything to do. I did it on purpose,” she huffed, suddenly becoming arrogant, completely forgetting how she had been biting her lip in frustration just a moment ago. “Are you really desperate for me to be good and talk business with you?”

Ji Qingfan hummed with her eyes downcast, looking a bit conflicted, seemingly afraid of her persona cracking.

Seeing this, Sheng Zhi’s eyes filled with interest.

“How about this…” She intentionally drew out her words, crafty and spirited. “I find it quite fun when you beg people. Why don’t you beg me?”

Seeing the person in front of her freeze at those words, she simply stood up, ignoring all rules of decorum, and sat down quite casually right on Ji Qingfan’s office desk.

After all, only here was she closest to Ji Qingfan, and she could look at her face-to-face.

The office chair Ji Qingfan sat in had wheels. After sitting down, Sheng Zhi extended her leg and, without a word, hooked the chair toward herself. Her red lips parted slightly, and she gave a lazy, pampered urge: “Hurry up.”

“Beg me, and I’ll listen to you talk about the Rao Hai trip. I promise not to cause trouble.”

It was too unreasonable.

This was clearly something she was supposed to do.

Ji Qingfan was technically her superior right now.

Yet she spoke with such utter confidence, looking at Ji Qingfan with total focus, as if not wanting to miss a single shift in her expression.

She was being endlessly mischievous, clearly up to no good.

Ji Qingfan’s expression shifted subtly, but it was quickly suppressed. She even turned her head away. “…Jiao Jiao, can we change the request?”

Being rejected only made Sheng Zhi more excited.

“No,” the more Ji Qingfan was unwilling, the more Sheng Zhi pressed on, tapping her knuckles twice on the desk beside her. “I just want to hear you beg me. Weren’t you quite good at it before? Why can’t you open your mouth now? Or do you think I’m being unreasonable?”

She asked it as a question, but in truth, if Ji Qingfan really said she was being “unreasonable,” Sheng Zhi would immediately admit she was doing exactly that, and then ask why she still hadn’t started begging.

However, after a while, Ji Qingfan said nothing about her being unreasonable, nor did she say anything else. She gripped the armrests of her chair as if she couldn’t adjust her expression properly, unable to continue her act, and kept avoiding her gaze.

Can’t keep the act up anymore?

“Speak up.”

Sheng Zhi’s posture on the desk was very superior.

Seeing Ji Qingfan’s silence, she rolled her eyes slightly, thought of an idea, and leaned down naturally.

“Sister,” her voice was very sweet, like a strawberry candy unwrapped from colorful foil. “Why are you mute?”

Regarding calling her “Sister,” Sheng Zhi didn’t actually feel that reluctant; she called others that frequently in her daily life. It was just that she had never thought of calling Ji Qingfan that before, and even more so, didn’t want to call her that—if she didn’t want to in the past, how could she willingly do it now? Calling her that was merely to spite Ji Qingfan.

It must be said, calling Ji Qingfan that was indeed more awkward than she imagined…

But it didn’t matter.

If it felt this way for her to say it, it definitely felt no better for Ji Qingfan to hear it.

As long as Ji Qingfan was spited by her, her goal was achieved.

After all, Ji Qingfan had previously told her “amnesiac” self that she loved calling her “Sister” the most, likely plotting to make it hard for her to actually say it.

Now that she was hearing it, wasn’t her heart probably aching to death?

At this thought, Sheng Zhi’s invisible tail wagged even higher. She called out “Sister” again, extra sweetly.

This second call seemed to have even more power. Ji Qingfan trembled all over and actually turned her gaze back to look at her.

The next second, Sheng Zhi felt the woman’s fingertip press against her lips.

“Stop calling me that.”

Her strained expression couldn’t be hidden. She seemed as frustrated as Sheng Zhi was earlier, biting her own lip until it turned a deep red, her voice kept low and soft.

“How do you want me to beg you?”

Sheng Zhi looked at her posture and thought: Ji Qingfan really does dote on her “amnesiac” self, granting every request.

It looked as if she loved her very, very much.

But it was only “looking like it.”

Sheng Zhi had a very clear understanding of her own personality; she didn’t even like it herself. Of the people who said they liked her, how many actually did?

Even Jiang Wanyin had once blurted out that no one could stand her personality.

But it didn’t matter.

She would never change her personality for anyone, and she would absolutely never do such a thing.

Sheng Zhi looked at the choker around Ji Qingfan’s neck. After a tiny pause, she extended her fingertip to hook the choker and answered: “Think about it. That title you used when you pretended to be drunk…”

She spoke, not actually expecting Ji Qingfan to answer, and recited that title along with her words.

The last time, Ji Qingfan had done it on purpose—a calculated tactic.

But this time, the situation was completely different. Would Ji Qingfan… really use that title for her again?

She probably would, Sheng Zhi thought with certainty, since Ji Qingfan was being so submissive now.

Ji Qingfan seemed a bit uncomfortable being pulled by her. Her eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings due to the movement, though perhaps the larger reason was the request itself.

This was truly a passive stance. The decorative choker Sheng Zhi held became like a collar restraining her. “Why aren’t you answering?”

As her voice fell, Ji Qingfan’s breathing rhythm changed, and she turned her gaze away once more.

Staying silent seemed to be her answer.

—She didn’t want to use that title for her under the current circumstances.

Sheng Zhi was a bit surprised, and a bit disappointed.

Avoiding her gaze again—did she find her annoying? Did she feel humiliated? Or was she so cornered by the intentional difficulty that… she didn’t know how to face her?

Sheng Zhi savored her expression.

Could such a word even apply to Ji Qingfan?

At first glance, it seemed unlikely.

But perhaps it wasn’t that impossible.

Thinking carefully, it had been like this almost every time. Once Sheng Zhi became passive due to Ji Qingfan’s actions, Ji Qingfan would become more proactive. Conversely, once she became assertive, Ji Qingfan would look as if she were in full retreat, unable to resist.

Just like now.

Images of Ji Qingfan easily kissing her at the drop of a hat flashed before her eyes, contrasting sharply with Ji Qingfan’s current helpless state.

Only in “times like this” and “times like that” could she see Ji Qingfan show such a side.

Her movements unconsciously became more assertive and mischievous.

She felt that even if she didn’t hear Ji Qingfan call her that today, seeing her like this meant she had won—completely and utterly—instead of being led by the nose and manipulated by Ji Qingfan as before.

Ji Qingfan indeed looked cornered and helpless by her, like a vulnerable prey. Under Sheng Zhi’s movements, her porcelain-delicate, soft neck was exposed—a vivid contrast to the black she wore.

Every image and posture stimulated Sheng Zhi, intentionally or not, magnifying her senses and enticing her to do something even more excessive.

The well-disguised trap was hard to guard against. Sheng Zhi had fallen in, and she was even proactively walking further into it without realizing.

She added a bit of force to the fingertip hooking the choker, pulling Ji Qingfan closer to her.

“Sister,” she called her, provoking her.

She didn’t want her to call her that? Then she would insist on it.

Relentlessly, she pressed until her lips were against hers, heavily.

“Look at me. Answer me.”