18

"She looks at me like I'm the other woman. Both times we've met, I've felt like she caught me in bed with someone."

In Jake Thompson's office, He Ziping sought answers to unravel this mystery. He simply couldn't figure out what that young woman had mistaken him for.

Jake Thompson listened while laughing so hard he nearly fell out of his chair. This situation kept getting better!

"Jake?" He Ziping hadn't rushed here first thing in the morning to watch Jake lose his mind.

"You're gay," Jake managed to gasp between laughs, pointing at Ziping after processing his description.

He Ziping grabbed Jake's outstretched hand, checking his wrist pulse. Normal. Maybe he should take him to a psychiatric hospital for proper evaluation before drawing conclusions.

"I'm perfectly sane," Jake insisted, struggling to control his laughter.

(In Ziping's experience, people who declared themselves sane usually weren't.) He resolved to take Jake for evaluation - early detection meant better treatment outcomes.

"I told Chloe that Ryan was gay. She must think you're his secret lover!" Jake quickly explained upon seeing Ziping's determined expression, hoping to avoid an unnecessary trip to the mental ward.

But the image of Ziping as Ryan's clandestine partner sent him into another fit of laughter, leaving him wheezing across his desk.

So that was it—He Ziping had been mistaken for a gay man, and worse, as the secret lover of the famously charming Ryan Carter? The absurdity finally struck him, and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Jake Thompson," a deep voice suddenly cut through the room as Ryan Carter entered, "seems you have too much free time. Perhaps I should assign you to expand our African market operations."

Now everything became clear. The mastermind behind all his recent torment was none other than Jake himself.

When had Ryan arrived? How had neither of them noticed? Judging by Ryan's calm smile, Jake wondered—could they pretend he hadn't heard their earlier conversation?

"You know how it is," Jake laughed nervously, playing dumb, "gotta entertain old classmates when they visit."

Ziping studied Ryan. Though undeniably handsome, the mere thought of romantic entanglement with another man turned his stomach. He preferred petite beauties—men held zero appeal.

"Don't look at me like that," Ryan said, glancing at Ziping. "You're not my type."

"Thank God for that," Ziping drawled, lazily averting his gaze.

"Ryan, you must understand—everything I did was for your own good!" Jake realized too late that Ryan had heard everything.

He wanted to kick himself. Why had he confessed everything? And why here, of all places, on Ryan's turf?

Watching Ryan's eerily calm expression, Jake felt dread creep up his spine. This was that ominous stillness before the storm...

"What the hell else did you tell her?" Ryan growled.

"Nothing..." Under Ryan's glare, Jake stammered, "Just that women's bodies are more attractive than men's... I was giving her pointers on using her natural feminine advantages."

Ryan's recent sexual frustration had left him with a temper ready to ignite. Seeing Jake's cowering demeanor now, he nearly lunged at him.

He Ziping quickly intercepted, wrapping his arms around Ryan before he could throw a punch. He feared this might damage their brotherly bond.

He couldn't understand why Ryan was so furious. It was just a joke, wasn't it? No real harm done. In their decade-long friendship, he'd never seen Ryan lose control like this.

"Why are you so worked up?" Ziping said. He'd been misunderstood too, yet he wasn't angry. People shouldn't take things so seriously!

"Maybe he's just sexually frustrated—that's why he's so pissed," Jake taunted while dodging another swing.

"RYAN CARTER!" A roar came from the doorway. The little lioness of Hedong stood trembling with rage at the sight of the three men tangled together.

Ziping instinctively jerked his hands away. Damn—she'd seen them again? Facing the furious woman, he inexplicably felt guilty.

Wait—he hadn't done anything wrong! Did she seriously believe he was gay?

Ryan studied Chloe's furious reaction. If her anger about the "gay rumor" ran this deep, did that mean she'd finally acknowledged his place in her heart?

Meanwhile, Chloe glared at the two stunned men before spinning on her heels and storming out.

This was beyond unacceptable! They couldn't even wait to get home—carrying on right in Jake's office with the door wide open! All her efforts had been wasted.

That bastard Jake! Why hadn't he stopped them? Why had he given them the office for their "private time"? Chloe fumed internally as she marched away.

But the real villain was Ryan Carter. That damned Ryan! After all the trouble she'd gone through to help him, after baring her heart—this was her reward?

If she'd known she'd fall for a man like this, she never should have allowed herself to accept his kindness in the first place.

The cruelest joke? Her romantic rival wasn't even another woman—but a man! She couldn't even fight for him properly.

With Alex, she'd known hardship—but that was mere exhaustion. Now, loving someone she couldn't have? This wasn't exhaustion. This was agony.

Chloe Johnson decided to visit Chu Lin.

She needed someone to tell her exactly what to do.

Arriving at Chu Lin's apartment, Chloe leaned on the doorbell, refusing to lift her finger.

She knew Chu Lin was still "playing chess with the Duke of Zhou" (sleeping soundly), and the other reason she dared be so bold was that Chu Lin lived alone.

"What the hell's wrong with you?!" Chu Lin yanked open the door in her pajamas, hair sticking up like a bird's nest, and immediately started yelling.

Whoever it was, disturbing her beauty sleep was bad enough—but to be this obnoxious about it?

Chu Lin was ready to beat the crap out of the intruder when she froze at the sight of twin tear tracks running down Chloe's face.

Chloe Johnson—always so cheerful and carefree—was actually crying? This had to be serious.

She stepped aside wordlessly, letting Chloe enter.

Chloe collapsed onto the living room couch.

"Tea," Chu Lin offered, handing her a cup.

"Thanks," Chloe accepted quietly.

"Now, are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" Chu Lin settled onto the couch across from Chloe.

"Ryan's gay... and I just realized I've fallen in love with him. What should I do?" Chloe cradled the teacup in both hands, watching the tea leaves drift aimlessly—just like her unanchored emotions.

Had she heard that right? Ryan Carter—gay? She'd never believe that even if her life depended on it. Whenever Ryan looked at Chloe, his eyes overflowed with tenderness and affection. How could he possibly be gay?

"Who told you that?" Chu Lin pressed.

Had someone fed her this nonsense that she'd swallowed whole? These days, naive people were so easily fooled. Someone as hopelessly innocent as Chloe should be left for Ryan to handle—save her the trouble of dealing with this drama.

"Jake Thompson said so."

That idiot who'd brought two million in cash to the restaurant? What was his angle? Badmouthing Ryan like this—unless he had designs on Chloe himself?

No way. She wouldn't let that fool sabotage whatever was growing between Ryan and Chloe.

"You just believed him without question?"

"He had no reason to lie to me... and I even tested Ryan myself."

Truthfully, she'd initially suspected Jake might be deceiving her. But after all her efforts yielded zero results, what room was left for doubt? Time to give up.

"How exactly did you test him?" Chu Lin doubted Chloe could've conceived such tests herself—that idiot man must have planted the idea.

Chloe recounted every detail of her "experiments."

As she listened, Chu Lin silently mourned for Ryan's suffering.

What kind of man was he? Resisting such obvious temptation? The torment Chloe had unwittingly put him through must have been pure hell.

He's truly a good man, Chu Lin decided, giving him full marks.

"Chu Lin, come shopping with me?" Chloe didn't expect profound advice—they were the same age, equally inexperienced in matters of love.

"Chloe," Chu Lin said while heading to change clothes, "sometimes what you hear and see isn't the whole truth."

Did that mean... she could still hope? The thought lingered in Chloe's mind.