Chapter 8

Assistant Fan held onto my elbow, not with much force.

My body swayed.

Afraid that Xu Qingye wouldn’t notice, I steadied myself.

I walked a few more steps forward, hand braced on the doorknob.

This time, the sway was even greater.

My steps felt unsteady.

Finally, I took several abrupt steps back in my high heels.

The heels struck the floor, the sound loud enough.

I silently counted down in my heart.

Then, my whole body fell straight backward.

Three…

Two…

One…

Eyes tightly shut, waiting for an ending.

Xu Qingye, please, look at me.

When I landed in a familiar embrace, I opened my eyes just a sliver.

What I saw was a navy blue tie.

A bit of relief welled up inside me, but even more was bitterness.

Xu Qingye, we agreed to go our separate ways, yet you still can’t change your habit of being soft-hearted toward me.

I won the bet.

Cheng Qianyi, this is what a real trick looks like.

Xu Qingye scooped me up in his arms. In his embrace, I could feel even more clearly his tension and the anger he couldn’t suppress.

I relaxed, closed my eyes, and listened to the sounds around me.

Xu Qingye kicked over tables and chairs, glasses shattered all over the floor.

And then there was the sound of Cheng Qianyi crying in fright.

Finally, Xu Qingye’s questioning.

His voice was filled with the fury of a beast whose prey had been bitten by some reckless rival.

He asked:

“The wild man Miss Cheng mentioned is me.”

“So? Do you have a problem with me?”