Chapter 334 Can you blame me? Of course not...

Li Xue walked up to Jiang Jing, leaned in close to his ear, her tone laced with jealousy and a hint of reproach.

She said in a low voice, "Brother Jiang Jing, you wore us girls out yesterday, yet you still had enough energy to mess with that young girl? You are just... too amazing!"

Upon hearing this, far from feeling any shame, Jiang Jing just chuckled, his face full of smug satisfaction.

He lowered his voice and replied, "Of course! This proves that your husband has abundant energy and outstanding ability!"

"Besides, you are wronging me here. It wasn't me who actively sought her out last night; she came to me herself."

Jiang Jing's reply practically had the words 'righteous indignation' written all over his face.

"When meat is delivered to your mouth, how could you not eat it? If I didn't eat it, that would mean there's something wrong with me!"

Li Xue rolled her eyes at his shameless sophistry, feeling helpless.

She could only give his arm a light pinch to express her dissatisfaction.

The other women watched Li Xue and Jiang Jing whispering to each other, and seeing Li Xue's shy yet angry expression, they asked curiously:

"Sister Xue'er, what's actually wrong with Lee Ji-yeon? Is she really not feeling well?"

Li Xue glared at Jiang Jing, then said to the other women, "Her? She was ravaged too hard by some lecher who doesn't know when to stop. She's currently bedridden with 'severe injuries,' unable to get up, and fast asleep!"

"Huh?"

Hearing this, the women were stunned for a moment, then simultaneously turned their gazes toward the innocent-looking Jiang Jing.

Facing the accusatory gazes of the women, Jiang Jing spread his hands and put on an 'I'm very innocent' expression.

He retorted, "You really can't blame it all on me. You all know that sometimes my self-control isn't quite enough."

"Besides, the situation was special at the time, and the atmosphere was just right, so I was... unable to help myself."

Although Jiang Jing said this, his expression showed no embarrassment; instead, he looked quite proud.

He paused, swept his gaze over the women, and started to shift the blame: "Besides, you all 'fell in battle' too quickly last night, and no one helped share the burden, right? Can you blame me for that?"

"Pah!"

"Brother, you're so bad!"

"You're just making excuses!"

The women were amused and annoyed by his shameless behavior of twisting facts and acting innocent after getting what he wanted, and they all rolled their eyes or scolded him coquettishly.

However, after his banter, the initial awkwardness and jealousy had mostly dissipated.

They were also very sensible and didn't make a scene, handling the situation with great tact. One wonders which little genius taught them so well...

Jiang Jing smiled and stopped arguing, simply continuing to eat his breakfast at a leisurely pace.

He knew clearly in his heart that this girl Lee Ji-yeon really had some skills. Not only was her acting on point, but it seemed she had also put in effort into how to please and integrate with the other women; otherwise, Li Xue and the others wouldn't be caring for her so naturally.

However, it didn't matter.

As for the sugar-coating, he had already eaten it without hesitation, and it did taste quite good.

As for whether there was a cannonball hidden behind the sugar-coating...

A glint of amusement flashed deep in Jiang Jing's eyes.

If there was, he wasn't afraid.

It would just add a bit of exciting seasoning to this dull life.

He was actually looking forward to seeing what moves Lee Ji-yeon would make next.

It wasn't until late afternoon that Lee Ji-yeon slowly woke up.

Her body was as sore as if it had fallen apart.

She endured the discomfort, slowly dressed herself, and walked out of the room, leaning against the wall with somewhat unsteady steps.

When she arrived in the living room, the women who were chatting immediately surrounded her, their faces filled with genuine concern.

"Lee Ji-yeon, you're awake? How do you feel? Are you feeling better?" Li Xue stepped forward to support her swaying body, her tone full of worry.

"Yeah, Lee Ji-yeon, do you want to rest a bit more? We had the kitchen stew some nourishing soup for you," Su Xiaoxiao also said softly.

Xinxin even thoughtfully handed over a cup of warm water.

Looking at these faces filled with concern, a warm current inexplicably flowed into Lee Ji-yeon's cold and tense heart.

Although her initial approach to them was with the purpose of pleasing and winning them over.

But after day-after-day of interaction, the kindness these women showed her and their genuine care at this moment could not be fake.

This caused a ripple in her originally firm heart.

She managed to squeeze out a smile and nodded at Li Xue: "Thank you, Sister Li Xue, I'm much better."

Li Xue helped her sit on the sofa and couldn't help but complain about Jiang Jing: "It's all that guy Jiang Jing's fault! He doesn't know how to cherish the fairer sex at all, like an untiring bull! We have to have a serious talk with him later!"

Lee Ji-yeon thought Li Xue was blaming her for "seducing" Jiang Jing, so she immediately put the excuse she had prepared in her heart to use.

She lowered her head slightly, a blush appearing on her face at the right moment, her voice soft but with a hint of firmness:

"No... it's not Oppa Jiang Jing's fault, Sister Li Xue. It was my own choice." She looked up, her eyes filled with sincerity.

"I like him, and I wanted to give myself to him; I didn't want to have any regrets."

These words were half-true and half-false.

The 80-point Favorability rating on the system panel proved that she had indeed developed a considerable degree of affection for Jiang Jing, so saying she liked him wasn't an exaggeration.

It was just that this liking was mixed with too many other complex factors.

Hearing this, Li Xue asked curiously: "Oh? When did you start liking him? I've never heard you mention it before."

Upon hearing this, Lee Ji-yeon's blush deepened. She shyly lowered her head, pursed her lips, and said nothing.

This wasn't entirely acting, because she herself was a bit confused.

Before this, her feelings for Jiang Jing were more about the frustration and struggle brought by the mission target, as well as a sense of humiliation at having her fate manipulated; there was no liking at all.

But last night...

When Jiang Jing completely possessed her in that domineering and forceful way, and it felt as if both her body and soul had been branded by him, a strange feeling of heartbeat did indeed uncontrollably emerge.

She couldn't very well tell the truth—that she was seemingly 'slept into submission' by him yesterday, right?

That would be too shameful.

Seeing her shy and uncontrollable appearance, Li Xue just assumed the young girl was thin-skinned and too embarrassed to talk about her feelings.

She smiled, didn't pursue the questioning further, and just patted the back of her hand to show understanding.

Lee Ji-yeon chatted with the women for a while, feeling this rare warmth.

Estimating that the timing was about right, she took a deep breath, revealed a hint of sorrow and reluctance on her face, and said softly: "Actually... I might have to return to South Korea in a while."

"What?"

"Return to South Korea? Why?"

"Are you not happy living here?"

Hearing this, the women were all very surprised and asked one after another, their tones full of reluctance and confusion.

Lee Ji-yeon shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes, and recounted the story about "saving her sister" that she had told Jiang Jing earlier, this time with great emotion to the women.

Her performance was impeccable, vividly portraying the image of a sister worried about her sibling and willing to risk herself.

"...I cannot just watch her be pushed into the fire pit. I must go back and try to see if I can save her." Lee Ji-yeon concluded, her tone carrying the determination of someone making a final stand.

Women are naturally prone to empathy, especially with stories of "sisterly love."

After listening, the women's sympathy instantly overflowed. They angrily condemned the shamelessness of Yixing Group while simultaneously worrying about Lee Ji-yeon's situation.

"That's too despicable! How can they be like that!"

"Lee Ji-yeon, don't be afraid, we'll help you!"

"What about Brother Jiang Jing? He's so capable, he must have a way!"