Chapter 55: Two-Faced Phoenix Man 14 Part 1

Jiang Rang had never imagined that one day he would witness such an overwhelming display of elite opulence.

In the past, Lu Xiang had frequently taken him to racetracks, golf courses, and other high-end venues, but once the man fully immersed himself in the honeymoon phase of their relationship, he stopped attending clubs and street races altogether. Instead, he devoted himself entirely to accompanying the young man.

Most of their dates took place in venues cleared out in advance, so Jiang Rang naturally had few opportunities to mingle with those wealthy heirs.

Deep down, Jiang Rang relished the sensation of being the center of attention, surrounded by admirers.

The young man had delicate, refined features, and his custom-designed white suit made him look like a serene pool of spring water—peaceful, gentle, and pure white.

It was as if every beautiful word in the dictionary could apply to him.

He stood gracefully at Lu Xiang’s side, his expression carrying a warm smile, perfectly embodying the poise of the master’s partner.

Jiang Rang could hear the subtle murmurs of discussion from the arrogant young lords and ladies around them. A towering champagne pyramid, pale and crystalline like a shimmering curtain, softly partitioned off their private space. Elegant lights played across its surface, refracting into myriad tiny, rippling sparkles.

Amid that sea of light, the haughty scions of privilege eyed him with newfound appraisal, curiosity, wariness—even a touch of dazed fascination.

Jiang Rang remained utterly composed, a faint smile playing on his lips as a soft blush crept across his brow and eyes. His deep, downturned gaze reflected the varied lights and faces around him, flickering like candle flames.

He appeared so distant yet so affable. Of course, no one could guess at the exhilarating thrill, the profound satisfaction, and the fiercely ambitious fire blazing in his heart.

This moment marked, for Jiang Rang, the dawn of a bold new chapter in his life.

After tonight, everyone would know that he, Jiang Rang, was the lover openly acknowledged by the Huajing Lu Family.

In these elite social circles, news traveled faster than lightning. From now on—at the very least in S City—with Lu Xiang as his backing, he could pursue anything he desired.

All he had to do was extend a casual olive branch, and countless sycophants would flock to him, ready for him to choose from.

Jiang Rang was clever and ambitious, but without proper guidance, his intelligence and drive often led him down crooked paths.

He craved overnight success far too desperately.

Back in his school days, due to his family’s poverty, teenage Jiang Rang had started running errands between classes for other students, pocketing kickbacks.

With his sweet tongue and good looks, even when he charged high fees, he always managed to keep repeat customers coming back.

Later, with a gullible mark like Zhou Yichun footing the bills, he naturally stopped putting in the effort himself.

Human laziness and greed were forces too vast to measure.

In middle school, as puberty stirred his first romantic urges, Jiang Rang’s money-making schemes took a darker turn. He grew dissatisfied with the meager handouts from Zhou Yichun and began leveraging his handsome face to scam cash.

On top of that, he teamed up with local thugs to collect protection money.

Of course, it was undeniable—even Jiang Rang himself might not have realized it—that his worldview had long been warped by his environment and upbringing. In his eyes, his own interests reigned supreme above all else.

And so, like a rotten seed taking root, the boy began collaborating with off-campus delinquents to shake down students.

Jiang Rang never dirtied his own hands, though. Usually, he would cozy up to the richer kids at school, earn their trust, then sell out their whereabouts to the thugs for a fifty-fifty split of the profits.

That was how he met his first love.

But that boy had unusually high defenses and turned out to be an especially plump sheep. In the end, the teenager took matters into his own hands.

Yet it was this same first love—driven to near-suicidal madness by his schemes—who taught the young Jiang Rang a harsh lesson, making him swear off recklessly toying with emotions ever again.

He was just after the money, after all. He had no intention of carrying a body on his conscience.

The man he was today was worlds apart from that boy.

Or rather, everything had changed the moment he hooked Lu Xiang.

Here was a golden goose that could sustain him for life, marrow-deep. All the young man had to do was cling tightly, and he’d never need to seduce anyone else.

Look at their very first day together: Jiang Rang had received a fortune no one else could dream of matching.

One billion.

Even now, recalling that scene made his entire body tremble with excitement.

With startup capital in hand and the Lu Family at his back, after tonight, S City’s power elite would treat him like royalty. He could toss out a million or two on a whim, and others would scramble to turn it into overflowing riches for him.

Just days ago, drawing on memories from his previous life, Jiang Rang had set his sights on investing in cutting-edge technology.

He already had investment targets in mind. Lu Xiang knew of his plans and dismissed them as mere playthings. After all, the Lu Family Main Branch had built its empire on that very path, with endless funds and connections at their disposal. Indulging his little boyfriend’s tech dreams was child’s play.

The studio had already been set up. Just a few days ago, Jiang Rang had gone to check it out himself. With plenty of money to grease the wheels—and borrowing Lu Xiang’s name into the bargain—everything had gone off without a hitch.

Thinking of this, Jiang Rang turned a warm, affectionate gaze toward his dutiful boyfriend, who was fetching him some snacks from not far away. As for Zhou Yichun, he’d long since been forgotten.

“Jiang Rang.”

A slightly hoarse voice sounded right by his ear.

The young man instinctively looked up. What met his eyes was a head of slightly yellowed short hair, the roots gradually darkening back to black, which lent the other man a cooler, more subdued air than before.

It was Chen Ming.

Jiang Rang knew that Chen Ming had feelings for him.

Of course, that was the result of his own deliberate encouragement back then.

But this Little Young Master of the Chen Family hadn’t reached out to him in ages. For one thing, Lu Xiang and he had gotten together. For another, it was probably a matter of the other’s pride getting in the way.

Jiang Rang had only ever used him as a mouthpiece anyway. Since the other man was avoiding him, he had no reason to chase after him.

Seeing him today was something of a surprise.

“Classmate Chen, long time no see.”

The young man’s eyes softened as he looked at him, his gaze like limpid spring waters.

Chen Ming’s throat bobbed. He glanced sideways at Lu Xiang before slowly tilting his head back to take a sip of his drink. Resuming his usual languid drawl, he said, “Long time no see? Don’t we see each other every day at school?”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than he paused. He suddenly realized that it was he who watched the young man every day—not the other way around. Jiang Rang’s eyes were always fixed on Lu Xiang. How could he possibly have noticed Chen Ming?

To cover his slip, he took another swig of alcohol. His lips tasted bitter.

Chen Ming’s fingers tightened slightly. After a long moment, he blurted out of nowhere, “Jiang Rang, do you really like Brother Lu?”

Jiang Rang’s expression flickered, but he smiled flawlessly. “Of course. A-Xiang and I have always had a stable relationship. There might have been some misunderstandings at the start, but we cleared them all up later.”

Chen Ming suddenly didn’t know what to say. He wanted to tell the young man the truth—that what he saw as love was, to Lu Xiang and the rest of them, nothing more than a ridiculous game, a mere bet.

His throat tightened, a knife-like pain suddenly twisting in his chest.

Gritting his teeth, he met the young man’s bewildered, innocent smile and said softly, “Jiang Rang, do you think Brother Lu likes you?”

“He’s the sole heir to the Huajing Lu Family. There are countless people dying to throw themselves at him. Why would he pick you out of everyone? Jiang Rang, have you ever really thought about the reason?”

As his words hung in the air, he saw the young man staring at him in a daze. After a moment, those pale, soft-rimmed eyes began to redden.

Chen Ming panicked for a second, wondering if he’d been too blunt and hurt him. He was just about to offer some comfort when an urgent voice sounded from nearby.

Lu Xiang strode over, a white porcelain plate patterned with flowers in hand. The man was dressed in a matching couple’s suit with Jiang Rang—crisp white that softened the vicious edge in his brows and lent this Eldest Young Master an air of unexpected refinement.

“Jiang Jiang, what’s wrong?”

The man’s brows were tightly furrowed, his peach-blossom eyes brimming with worry. There wasn’t a hint of fakery about it.

Just then, a new guest arrived fashionably late at the door. The man wore a misty blue overcoat that fell a bit long, his features elegantly refined. A classical feather earring in his right ear swayed gently in the cold breeze.

Jiang Rang had been playing it up with a slight shake of his head, staying silent. But when he spotted Ji Mingyu at the entrance, smiling with a meaningful glint in his blue eyes as he slowly made his way over, a surge of inexplicable dread welled up in his heart.

Truth be told, Ji Mingyu was impossible to read—like a light mist drifting through a winter pine forest, intangible and untouchable. He was always smiling, the arc of that smile on his exquisite, elegant face unchanging, giving off an eerie sense of being programmed.

Especially those blue eyes, shimmering like rippling water. Beautiful, yes—but beneath the gentle waves lurked a sharp, icy edge.

It was as if, in those eyes, all schemes and dirty machinations lay bare.

More importantly, whenever Jiang Rang looked into those blue eyes, he couldn’t help recalling the school windowsill from years past—those scarlet eyes, mad with obsessive love.

The memory never failed to send a shiver of fear through his heart.

Fortunately, Ji Mingyu couldn’t possibly be that boy. Aside from the blue eyes, their names were different, their looks were different, and even their backgrounds didn’t match.

“What’s going on here? Little Young Master Chen, did you make someone cry? Young Master Lu won’t take kindly to that.”

Ji Mingyu chuckled, his tone mild, as if he were stepping in to defuse the situation.

Jiang Rang lowered his eyes, his face deathly pale.

He now saw Ji Mingyu like a mouse spotting a cat, desperately wishing he could immediately escape the other’s line of sight.

Seeing this, the young man hurriedly explained, “It’s nothing. Classmate Chen didn’t say anything; it’s just that my eyes feel a bit uncomfortable.”

As Jiang Rang spoke, he paid no mind to whether the others believed him or not. His slightly cool hand tightly gripped Lu Xiang’s arm, and in a distracted tone, he said he wanted to go to the window for some fresh air.

Lu Xiang naturally went with him.

When the time was about right, Lu Xiang asked about Jiang Rang’s condition and confirmed that the young man felt fine before leading him into a smaller private room inside the banquet hall.