Lu Man deliberately kept her secret, "This I cannot tell."

She smiled mysteriously, "So..."

"Do you want to learn?"

Seeing the mysterious and confident expression on Lu Man's face, Yu Qiao Qiao could not help but feel tempted.

She shyly agreed, "I want to learn."

After speaking, she tiptoed over to Lu Man, curious to see how Lu Man operated: after all, she remembered... Chen Yan apparently did not like sweets.

A type of chocolate that even Chen Yan, who disliked sweets, could fall for must be... quite magical and delicious, right?

Thinking thus, Yu Qiao Qiao found her attention completely focused

When Lu Man saw Yu Qiao Qiao "take the bait," a smile appeared on her face, and she picked up a small saucepan, placing the chocolate inside, and said, "This is the Dove chocolate I just bought. It's dark chocolate flavor."

"I know Chen Yan doesn't like sweets, so this is one of the few flavors he is willing to eat."

Yu Qiao Qiao silently nodded, then her gaze followed Lu Man's every move.

Lu Man poured one-third of the pot with distilled water, then turned on the burner, placed the saucepan on the stove, and began to simmer the chocolate.

Under the heat, the brown chocolate quickly melted completely, and Lu Man, holding a spoon, kept stirring in the saucepan.

Watching the pot of thick brown liquid, Yu Qiao Qiao cautiously glanced at Lu Man.

For some reason, seeing Lu Man stir so intently, Yu Qiao Qiao felt as if she were watching a witch brewing a potion in a fairy tale...

Sensing Yu Qiao Qiao's daydreams, Lu Man glanced at her while playfully elbowing Yu Qiao Qiao, "What's with the weird look?"

With Lu Man being taller and Yu Qiao Qiao being relatively shorter, Lu Man's elbow ended up striking right against Yu Qiao Qiao's chest.

In that instant, Lu Man felt her elbow sink into something soft and warm like cotton candy.

And she also heard Yu Qiao Qiao let out a shy cry.

Startled for a moment, Lu Man couldn't help but look at Yu Qiao Qiao next to her.

Yu Qiao Qiao was holding her chest, her face blushing as she looked at Lu Man, clearly embarrassed from the recent contact.

She was naturally beautiful, and over the years, nourished and pampered by Chen Yan, she had grown even more voluptuous, making her quite the "appetite stimulator."

Moreover, her shyness made her pale face blush, adorable and pink, instantly making Lu Man involuntarily swallow.

She couldn't help but stretch out a hand, wanting to comfort Yu Qiao Qiao.

However, who knew that Yu Qiao Qiao, reflexively and like a little quail, covered her chest and stepped back.

Wily Lu Man certainly wasn't someone to give up easily.

Seeing this, she quickly thought of a plan.

Pointing a finger towards the ceiling slightly behind Yu Qiao Qiao, she shouted, "Chen Yan! What are you doing there!"

"Ah?" Although Lu Man's tactic was very clumsily executed, upon hearing the name Chen Yan, Yu Qiao Qiao involuntarily relaxed her hands and half-turned to look.

So, seizing the opportunity, Lu Man's hands quickly lunged forward like springs and fiercely grabbed on.

"Umm~!" Feeling the soft, smooth, and ample sensation in her hands, Lu Man instantly felt revigorated.

At that moment, she even harbored a bizarre thought: no wonder Chen Yan liked this little girl so much. If I were Chen Yan, I'd like her too...

And then, an even stranger thought occurred: Hey, what's mine is mine and what's Chen Yan's is also mine, so isn't Qiao Qiao mine as well?

In that instant, Lu Man, who had always been somewhat resistant to Chen Yan's flirtatious nature, strangely felt... as if the future life wouldn't be too bad?

Although Lu Man thought a lot, in reality, all of it happened in a split second.

Feeling Lu Man's sudden contact with her chest, Yu Qiao Qiao cried out, and then quickly covered her chest again and ran outside.

Seeing this, Lu Man giggled and chased after her.

Thus, what was clearly a cooking lesson bizarrely turned into a barefoot chase between two women...

So, when Chen Yan opened the door of Lu Man's villa, what he saw was Lu Man pressing Yu Qiao Qiao onto the couch, laying atop her, both wrestling...

Looking at the two, Chen Yan:...

At that moment, Chen Yan inexplicably felt that something was off.

But then immediately after, he thought otherwise, thinking these two women are both his; this should not be considered an affair, right...?

Perhaps, it's a "prelude to certain events"?

While pondering absently, Chen Yan coughed and asked, "What are you doing?"

Perhaps because he was lost in thought, his voice unavoidably loudened a bit, which startled the two women.

Hearing Chen Yan's voice, the two women looked up in surprise at the doorway.

Then, they saw Chen Yan standing there, looking at them strangely.

Caught "in the act" by Chen Yan, Lu Man quickly got up, straightening her clothes.

Yu Qiao Qiao also sat up with a face of embarrassment and grievance.

It must be said, perhaps because he had never witnessed such a scene before, seeing the two women with their faces flushed adjusting their clothes, Chen Yan's heart inexplicably began to race.

It was just... the only problem was, he always felt like something was missing from this scene.

What was missing?

He pondered...

Was it himself...?

If he were sitting between the two women, the scene seemed like it would be perfect.

*Cough cough cough*...

Though Chen Yan was looking at them imagining, the two women were not aware of it.

Feeling Chen Yan's intense gaze, the pressure was quite significant for them.

Maybe it was indeed as if with a settled disposition accompanies faster career growth, as every move has greater influence, Chen Yan's formidable presence had grown stronger.

Even though he was usually very amiable towards those around him, when he wasn't speaking and merely observing others, that terrifying aura was palpable.

So, when they saw Chen Yan standing before them, silently, both women suddenly felt their surroundings darken considerably.

They felt like Chen Yan was a terrifying beast, sitting not far away, cold, mysterious, and intimidating.

Faced with this situation, the different characters of the two women were revealed.

Lu Man, who usually thrived in chaos, swallowed and immediately started acting:

She fanned her heated face, pretending she could not see Chen Yan, while muttering, "Oh. I think I forgot to turn off the stove in the kitchen." And with that, she twisted her slender waist and headed towards the kitchen.

Yu Qiao Qiao seemed much more pitiful. Under Chen Yan's intense gaze, she pressed her legs together and put her hands on her thighs, clutching at her trousers nervously, head bowed, tears already whirling in her eyes.

By the time Chen Yan snapped out of it, the disloyal Lu Man had already taken off without a trace, leaving Yu Qiao Qiao sitting on the sofa like a little quail.

Chen Yan glanced at her and realized that the girl was about to cry, so he quickly coughed to find some remedy, "Alright, stop crying. I didn't say anything."

After that, he walked over to the sofa and gently embraced Yu Qiao Qiao in his arms.

He shouldn't have mentioned it, for as soon as he did, Yu Qiao Qiao's tears started falling down clattering like big beads.

Chen Yan was caught between laughter and tears. While wiping her tears, he asked, "What's the matter? Did I scare you?"

Yu Qiao Qiao sobbed and nodded, "Mm... mm…"

Trying to remedy the situation, Chen Yan added, "I was just surprised to see you all for the first time..."

Seeing the "misunderstanding", Yu Qiao Qiao hastily scrambled to explain, "I, we didn't, no. It was, was..."

Chen Yan knew Yu Qiao Qiao's character well, so he inquired, "It was what?"

Yu Qiao Qiao was gentle and kind-hearted.

Though it was Lu Man who had taken the initiative to tease her, because she and Lu Man were very close, Yu Qiao Qiao didn't want to "betray" Lu Man. Thus, words caught in her throat, she hesitated for a long while but couldn't bring herself to say it.

Then... the tears began falling down clattering again.

Seeing this, Chen Yan didn't dare to tease her anymore, he quickly pulled her into his arms, patting her back gently while softly comforting, "Okay, okay. I understand it was a misunderstanding just now. Don't cry, don't cry, okay?"

That way, Chen Yan both soothed and teased Yu Qiao Qiao, making her heart flutter ceaselessly for Chen Yan...

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, the mischievous Lu Man peeked out.

Upon seeing Chen Yan embracing Yu Qiao Qiao on the sofa, the two cozily nestled together, she pouted jealously and huffed, "Humph! Not a good guy!"

After saying that, she ducked back into the kitchen and returned to the stove, beginning to make chocolate again...

After comforting Yu Qiao Qiao for a while, Chen Yan asked what Yu Qiao Qiao was doing at Lu Man's place.

Yu Qiao Qiao explained that Chen's Charity Fund was Chen Yan's private charity, not requiring any show, and since the Lunar New Year was approaching, they had already sent out various materials and donations early, allowing those in need to have a satisfying New Year.

This meant that, after a busy period, the foundation was having a quiet spell.

So, the bored Lu Man, upon learning this, called Yu Qiao Qiao to her home, saying she wanted to teach Yu Qiao Qiao some things...

"Teach some things", this phrasing was very unlike Yu Qiao Qiao.

Thus, Chen Yan looked at Yu Qiao Qiao suspiciously, waiting for Yu Qiao Qiao to explain.

But the usually obedient Yu Qiao Qiao was blushing and shaking her head fiercely this time, absolutely refusing to tell Chen Yan what "some things" were.

This only made Chen Yan even more curious about what Lu Man was up to.

Ever since Lu Man had enhanced her acting talent, it seemed like she had activated a cheat code, always managing to come up with various new tricks.

At the last countdown gathering, she had mysteriously convinced the other three women to keep secrets and even successfully made them all withhold from Chen Yan what had happened that night. Now, she had managed to handle the well-behaved Yu Qiao Qiao.

Thus, Chen Yan for a moment even wondered: could the Professional Talent Potion also have an effect on intelligence increase?

He felt that Lu Man's intelligence level had risen quite a bit lately.

Thinking this, Chen Yan grew even more keen to figure out what Lu Man was plotting.

But he was not in a hurry, since he had come today, he hadn't planned on leaving.

So, he let Yu Qiao Qiao go back to learning from Lu Man, while he himself settled on the sofa to watch TV.

After a while, the clanging sounds of pots and pans came from the kitchen, vaguely accompanied by Lu Man instructing Yu Qiao Qiao, with a few meows of Cotton Candy in between.

It was unclear whether this little creature was trying to help its current master or its previous one.

A while later, as Chen Yan was gradually drawn into the TV show, Lu Man swayed elegantly from the kitchen.

She came over to Chen Yan, sitting down beside him, and then gave Chen Yan a glance.

Upon seeing her come out, Chen Yan had noticed her, so he said, "You're back?"

Lu Man hummed an acknowledgment.

Chen Yan asked, "What were you teaching Qiao Qiao in the kitchen?"

Lu Man glanced at Chen Yan and said, "It's a secret between women."

Secrets again...

Truth be told, Chen Yan was nearly driven mad by the secrets Lu Man and several women kept.

He shifted his gaze from the TV to Lu Man, then wrapped an arm around her smooth shoulder, leaning in close to whisper, "What exactly is the secret? Just tell me."

"I promise not to tell anyone else."

Lu Man rolled her beautiful eyes at him, "Do you think we keep secrets just to not tell someone?"

Chen Yan: .....

"It's not me, is it?"

"Congratulations, you guessed right. No prize though," Lu Man said, swatting Chen Yan's hand away while playfully chiding, "Stop pawing at me, in case Qiao Qiao sees."

Though Chen Yan's hand was swatted away, his curiosity lingered. He couldn't help asking further, "Then I won't ask about you and Qiao Qiao. How about you tell me what happened at the gathering that night?"

Upon hearing Chen Yan's words, Lu Man raised an eyebrow, her attractive face taking on a mischievous expression, "Curious?"

Chen Yan nodded vigorously.

Lu Man chuckled and said, "Then just stay curious!"

With that, she haughtily tossed her head and called out toward the kitchen, "Qiao Qiao, how's it going? I'll come help you!"

Saying this, she moved past Chen Yan's attempt to embrace her again and strutted off to the kitchen.

On the way to the kitchen, thinking of Chen Yan's anxious demeanor just then, Lu Man's face couldn't help but break into a smug smile.

Then, the events of that night with He Mengxue, Yang Rou, and Zhao Ying surfaced in her heart...

...…

Party night.

Twin Towers Hotel, Presidential Suite.

As the host, Lu Man was the earliest to arrive here.

For tonight, she had prepared for a long time, and, additionally, she had familiarized herself with the three women she was to face.

Yang Rou, needless to say, the right-hand of Chen Yan, the backbone of the company, a strongwoman, with a daughter in name only who was much younger than Chen Yan.

Zhao Ying. The only daughter of Zhao Xuan, the head of the Zhao Family's Qin Island branch, a carefree and somewhat naive girl without much cunning.

Only He Mengxue...

Lu Man recalled He Mengxue's information in her mind, feeling that this woman would be her main opponent tonight...

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