Zhao Pingjin drove her back to the company hotel. The car slowly stopped on the road opposite the apartment hotel. Xi Tang was about to unbuckle her seatbelt.

Zhao Pingjin suddenly spoke, his voice so flat it contained almost no emotion as if addressing someone inconsequential: “Today Old Gao suddenly asked to meet me, but didn’t set a time or place. He told me to have my secretary listen to his call. You know I’ve been trying to find him recently, thinking he was willing to meet and discuss things—plus, I had previously arranged dinner with them. I was busy in meetings and couldn’t answer the phone. This happens occasionally; perhaps my secretary took his call and directly dispatched Old Liu. It was my oversight.”

Xi Tang knew these people played around freely, dispatching girls like a revolving lantern. She guessed that his secretarial office often handled such matters. She never expected to carelessly fall into this trap. She remained silent for a moment, then said softly, “I was careless.”

She moved to get out of the car but forgot that her seatbelt was still fastened. Her left arm was yanked painfully. Xi Tang quietly drew a breath and endured the pain.

Zhao Pingjin’s brow unconsciously furrowed, but he turned his face away and asked calmly, “Did he hit you?”

Xi Tang shook her head.

Zhao Pingjin showed no intention of probing further: “Go back and have your assistant treat your wound. I’m busy lately, so I won’t see you in.”

Xi Tang knew in her heart that Gao Jiyi had touched Zhao Pingjin’s most painful spot. What kind of person was Zhao Pingjin? Someone who had lived half his life walking on clouds, proud and arrogant, with extremely strong self-esteem. Usually, everyone could pretend nothing was wrong and get along harmoniously, allowing him to deceive himself. But today, Gao Jiyi’s words felt like a direct slap to his face. Xi Tang knew that seeing her made him uncomfortable. Enduring the greatest humiliation of his life, he could still drive her back. Most likely, he had already reached his limit of tolerance.

Xi Tang nodded: “Thank you for bringing me back.”

Ni Kailun was chatting with Xiao Ning in the hotel when she saw Xi Tang enter the room, and remove her scarf, revealing a dejected yet calm face.

Ni Kailun looked up: “What happened now?”

Xi Tang took off her outer coat, revealing bloodstains seeping through her sweater.

Xi Tang sat on the sofa while Xiao Ning applied fresh medicine to the wound on her arm.

Ni Kailun stood beside her, hands on hips, cursing furiously: “It was almost healed, ready for stitches to be removed in a couple of days. If the scar wasn’t too ugly, you could have shown it off, claiming it was an injury from filming to generate some buzz. Now it’s wrapped up again. What about your Christmas event? With your arm like this, what can you wear? You’re deliberately trying to anger me!”

Xiao Ning finished up and went to wash her hands.

Xi Tang leaned back, trembling slightly, and whispered to Ni Kailun: “I think I saw him.”

Ni Kailun, still furious, shouted, “Who?”

Xi Tang hesitated: “Sun.”

Ni Kailun’s expression froze, her voice immediately tense: “Last time you told me, I got busy and forgot to inquire. I’ll check immediately. Be careful yourself, don’t go out unnecessarily. After completing the Christmas work, return to Shanghai right away.”

Ni Kailun lowered her voice, grinding her teeth in anger: “Was it that Zhao fellow who hit you?”

Xi Tang shook her head.

Xiao Ning walked out of the room.

Ni Kailun raised her voice again: “Since signing you, how many problems have you caused me! You’re the biggest money-loser in the entire company!”

Xi Tang gave her a pained, grimacing smile.

This made Ni Kailun’s face twisted with anger.

On Christmas Eve night, Zhao Pingjin returned early from a social dinner.

Xi Tang had work today. Around five in the afternoon, Zhao Pingjin’s driver picked her up at Xinguang Tiandi. Driver Liu, upon seeing her, had a guilty expression on his honest face. Presumably, Zhao Pingjin had given him a hard time for picking up the wrong person a few days ago.

Xi Tang quickly said it didn’t matter.

The driver took her back to Zhao Pingjin’s residence.

On the fifty-second floor of Park Hyatt, the curtains were tightly closed as usual. The heating was on, yet the room still felt cool and deep.

Xi Tang removed her high heels and walked barefoot into the bathroom to remove her makeup. This morning, the stylist had her try several outfits, ultimately choosing a white shirt from the same French brand as today’s business partner, paired with a bright yellow skirt cinched at the waist. The top covered the wound on her arm. She had a stylist-approved twenty-one-inch waist. Three buttons of her shirt were undone, revealing a beautifully chiseled collarbone. Though not excessively revealing, this rising star’s beauty had already caused amazement from onlookers to entertainment reporters. Today was the opening ceremony of an international cosmetics brand’s new store in Beijing. Xi Tang, along with models, personally demonstrated how to use the merchant’s makeup products to create a perfect look. When she returned home, she noticed her clothes were covered with a layer of powder. She took them off immediately, and went back to the bedroom, only to find that Zhao Pingjin had thrown all her pajamas left in the room into the laundry basket in the bathroom.

Xi Tang went to the closet and pulled out one of Zhao Pingjin’s shirts to wear. Coming out of the room, she checked the time: just past seven in the evening.

Around eight o’clock, Zhao Pingjin returned. He had social engagements tonight, and Xi Tang was puzzled by his early return. She watched as Zhao Pingjin entered, removed his suit jacket in the living room, and lay directly on the sofa.

Xi Tang came out and touched his face: “What’s wrong?”

Zhao Pingjin bit his lip without speaking, pulled her to sit on the sofa, shifted his body to rest his head on her legs, turned to his side, curled up, and pressed his hand against his stomach.

Xi Tang smelled the strong scent of alcohol on him.

Xi Tang loosened his tie and bent down to undo his belt. Zhao Pingjin was clearly in pain. As Xi Tang leaned down, her elbow accidentally bumped his upper abdomen, causing Zhao Pingjin to involuntarily flinch.

Xi Tang immediately stopped.

Zhao Pingjin, however, kept his eyes closed, his face pressed against her leg, gritting his teeth and enduring silently.

Xi Tang carefully observed the man in her arms. His snow-white shirt was neat and crisp, his silver-gray trousers with razor-sharp creases. The shirt around his waist was loosened, with slight wrinkles in the fabric. The luxurious, exquisite material of his clothes didn’t overwhelm him; his tall, lean figure, with bones that seemed particularly hard, only accentuated his arrogance and nobility.

In public, he was dignified and reserved, but underneath was a disagreeable temperament. Yet whenever they were alone, he showed extreme dependence on her. Xi Tang knew she could never be acknowledged publicly, but she truly hated herself for still having a soft heart.

Xi Tang cradled his face and laid him back on the sofa. She returned to the bedroom to get a blanket to cover his abdomen, then opened a drawer and handed him some medicine.

Zhao Pingjin propped himself up to drink half a glass of warm water, his face still very pale.

Seeing Xi Tang just standing in front of him, Zhao Pingjin said nothing, only tugging at her hand.

Xi Tang reluctantly sat back down on the sofa. Zhao Pingjin had no strength to move, only saying: “Hold me.”

Xi Tang had no choice but to take him back into her arms.

Xi Tang silently thought to herself, he always gets clingy when he’s unwell. After all these years, he’s still the same. Today she was the one attending to him, so he clung to her, acting spoiled. When the day came that she was no longer by his side, would he be equally clingy to someone else?

As Xi Tang was lost in thought, Zhao Pingjin took her hand and brought it to his lips for a gentle kiss.

“You know you get stomach pains, yet you still drink?” Xi Tang gently massaged his temples.

“Couldn’t help it,” Zhao Pingjin replied in a hoarse voice.

“Aren’t you the leader? Who would dare make you drink?”

Zhao Pingjin nuzzled against her and said softly: “Xiao Min isn’t around these days, I had no one to cover for me. My grand-uncle’s subordinates are all old officials. My assistant doesn’t have the seniority to block drinks. They’re all uncle-level figures who have been allocated to me. If I’m too fussy, I won’t be able to manage people.”

Xi Tang lowered her head and kissed his hair.

Zhao Pingjin rubbed against her face, and looked up at her shirt collar, where her clean, round neck was exposed, smooth skin extending down her chest. The oversized white shirt was buttoned only to the second button, leaving much to the imagination: “You look good in my clothes.”

Xi Tang saw that he still had the energy to comment on this: “Oh? You’re not in pain anymore?”

Zhao Pingjin, still slightly breathless, smiled: “It hurts, but when a girl dresses up, you’ve got to compliment her, right?”

Xi Tang was truly speechless. She raised her hand to pinch his cheek: “Keep talking nonsense, and you’ll hurt even more.”

Zhao Pingjin looked at her with an aggrieved expression, then turned to nestle deeper into her embrace.

After taking medicine, Zhao Pingjin’s pain eased, and he fell asleep on the sofa for a while.

When he woke up, Huang Xi Tang was no longer beside him.

The living room curtains were parted slightly. Zhao Pingjin walked over and looked out, seeing Huang Xi Tang building a snowman alone on the balcony outside the window. She had gathered all the snow particles covering the balcony, forming a small doll with round eyes. She was bending down, placing a carrot nose on the snowman’s face.

Perhaps his vision was blurry, but Zhao Pingjin thought the doll resembled Huang Xi Tang.

Sometimes when he looked at her face now, he felt it was quite different from before. Maybe it was her aura that had changed. When she wore makeup, her snow-white face, not smiling, appeared very otherworldly, with the air of a big star. But in private, when she smiled, she seemed childish and adorable.

A smile that could melt one’s heart.

He could no longer keep her.

Today was Christmas Eve. When he had returned from outside earlier, the streets were quite lively.

Zhao Pingjin watched for a while, felt dizzy, pressed his temples, and retreated from the window.