Guide to Rising to Power as a Wife in Beijing's Elite Circle

The car drove out of the film set and proceeded smoothly through the night in the desolate wilderness.

The heating in the carriage was on full blast, but the atmosphere was subtly tense. Chen Nuo secretly glanced at Fang Jingxiu.

He remained with his eyes closed, his profile flickering in the sparse light passing by the window, his expression so calm that no emotion could be discerned.

But she just felt that he was unhappy.

Was it because of that cup of milk tea Jiang asked about?

Chen Nuo clutched the hem of her clothes, her fingertips unconsciously tracing her name on the rough fabric. The cup of milk tea was still at her feet, the water droplets on the plastic cup condensing into a fine mist that slowly slid down under the warmth of the heater.

She was hesitating whether to break the silence with a topic when Fang Jingxiu suddenly opened his eyes.

He didn't look at her, but stared straight ahead, his voice low, but every word clear:

"From now on, don't accept favors from men indiscriminately."

Chen Nuo was taken aback, and his heart skipped a beat.

coming.

It really was that milk tea.

"You think a cup of milk tea can buy you off?" Fang Jingxiu turned his head, his gaze landing on her face, his eyes deep, carrying a kind of elder's scrutiny and... displeasure. "Chen Nuo, are you that easy to fool?"

His tone wasn't harsh, but the slow, disappointed murmur made Chen Nuo more uneasy than a direct rebuke.

"I...I didn't," she whispered in protest. "It was just a cup of milk tea. Dr. Jiang said he bought an extra one..."

"Want to buy another cup?" Fang Jingxiu interrupted her, a faint, cold smile curving his lips. "You believe me?"

Chen Nuo bit her lip and remained silent.

"I understand men's minds better than you do." Fang Jingxiu leaned back in his seat and turned his gaze to the window. "The look in his eyes isn't the look you'd expect from a simple colleague."

He spoke calmly, as if stating a perfectly obvious fact.

But Chen Nuo could hear the subtext in it.

He's jealous.

He was unhappy because other men were showing interest in her.

Her father's words echoed in her ears again: "Men like him are possessive of you, but they express it through education. They'll discipline you like a father disciplines his daughter, telling you what you should and shouldn't do. That's how they show they care."

So now, Fang Jingxiu is expressing his concern in his own way.

Chen Nuo's heart, on the contrary, calmed down.

"Brother Xiu," she said softly, her voice gentle, "I know I was wrong."

Fang Jingxiu turned to look at her: "What did you do wrong?"

"You shouldn't just accept things from other people." Chen Nuo lowered his eyes, twisting the hem of his clothes with his fingers. "Especially... things from the opposite sex."

She spoke very obediently, like a primary school student admitting her mistake.

Seeing her like this, Fang Jingxiu's displeasure gradually dissipated.

But he kept a straight face and continued to lecture: "Not all men are like me, principled and discreet."

He said this with an air of self-assured confidence.

It's not about showing off, it's about stating the facts.

"Some people give you a cup of milk tea because they want to treat you to a meal. Treating you to a meal means they want to meet you again. Meeting you again means they want to take things further."

He paused, then looked at her: "Do you understand?"

Chen Nuo nodded: "I understand."

"Jiang Wen, that kind of young PhD, has good qualifications, but his intentions are impure." Fang Jingxiu's tone became more serious. "I could see the way he looked at you from ten meters away."

He recalled the focused, appreciative, and admiring look in Jiang Wen's eyes when he stood in front of Chen Nuo in the studio earlier.

As a man himself, he understood all too well what that look meant.

That's the look in a hunter's eyes when he sees his prey.

It was a look of wanting to possess and conquer.

"He wants to pursue you." Fang Jingxiu bluntly stated, his tone flat, but Chen Nuo could detect the displeasure in his voice. "He uses his professional knowledge to get close to you, he uses small favors to please you, and he uses his status as a peer to lower your guard."

He analyzed each point clearly and logically, as if he were analyzing a project plan.

"Once you think he's nice and start accepting his kindness, he should ask you out alone. Have dinner, watch a movie, take a walk. Step by step, let you get used to his presence."

Fang Jingxiu looked at Chen Nuo, his gaze deep: "And then?"

Chen Nuo was stumped by the question and stared at him blankly.

"Then he'll find an opportunity to confess his feelings," Fang Jingxiu answered for her. "He'll say you're innocent, that you're cute, that he likes you. And then..."

He paused, his tone turning colder:

"I'll just want to sleep with you."

He spoke the last three words very softly, but Chen Nuo's heart trembled violently.

She remembered when Jiang Wen handed her milk tea earlier that day, his fingers accidentally brushing against hers. She remembered the closer he got as he spoke about his professional knowledge. She remembered the gentle yet intense look in his eyes when he looked at her.

So... that's how it is?

"I..." Chen Nuo's voice was a little hoarse, "I didn't think that much about it."

"Of course you wouldn't think that." Fang Jingxiu's tone softened a bit, carrying a sense of helplessness that you're too young to understand. "You're only twenty-two, just out of school, and everyone seems like a good person to you."

He looked at her with the worry of an elder for a younger person: "But this world is not as simple as you think."

Chen Nuo lowered his head, a mix of emotions welling up inside him.

Half of it was grievance.

She really didn't think that much about it; she just thought Jiang Wen was a good person, with strong professional skills, and he was good to her.

Half of it is...sweet.

Because Fang Jingxiu is jealous.

Because he cares.

Because he was protecting her in his own way.

"Brother Xiu," she looked up at him, her eyes sparkling, "and what about you?"

Fang Jingxiu was taken aback: "What about me?"

"You give me benefits, treat me to meals, and take me home," Chen Nuo looked at him, her eyes clear and earnest, "Is it also to... gradually let me get used to your presence?"

The carriage fell silent instantly.

Even Secretary Qin, who was driving in the front seat, subconsciously slowed his breathing.

Fang Jingxiu looked at Chen Nuo, at her amber eyes—clean, pure, but now gleaming with a cunning light.

She's putting him in a difficult position.

Use the same words he just used to lecture her to ask him the same question.

Fang Jingxiu remained silent for a few seconds.