“You hadn’t anticipated that I would be the one to propose a breakup. Everything that followed fell outside of what you had planned, so you found yourself a new boyfriend. As for why you asked me to come today — you’re trying to trick me again into believing you are Yan Shiyao.”

“What exactly is your scheme? Is it that you hoped I would believe you, and then you could naturally become my close friend? One purpose being to have me support you financially, and the other being that when Xuan Yanyu eventually discovers the truth, my presence would prevent him from pursuing the matter further? Is that it?”

Only if Shiyao had gone to find Guo Si would she have come to know any of this — there was no other way.

Shiyao’s face went ashen as the truth was laid bare. “What are you talking about?”

Seeing the state Shiyao was in, Yan Yunning knew she had guessed correctly. She smiled brilliantly. “Shiyao, stop trying to be clever. Just think — would you be the wife of the Qi Group’s President by now?”

Shiyao trembled with fury. She let out a bitter laugh. “Ningning, believe it or not, deny it however you like — I am Yan Shiyao.”

Yan Yunning suddenly found the whole thing utterly tiresome. She regretted coming here to waste words on Shiyao.

“I can prove it.” Without warning, Shiyao seized Yan Yunning by the wrist. Before Yan Yunning could react, she gave her a hard shove, and said with an air of innocence, “Ningning, do you remember now? There was that one time — I pushed you.”

“Miss Yan.” Ye Jian reached out in time and steadied Yan Yunning before she could fall.

Shiyao lifted her chin slightly, a flicker of satisfaction crossing her eyes. Yan Yunning hadn’t actually fallen anyway, so even if Yan Yunning accused her of intentional harm, it would amount to nothing more than a reprimand and a warning.

Yan Yunning would just have to swallow the grievance in silence.

Contrary to what Shiyao had envisioned, after steadying herself, Yan Yunning curved her lips slightly in Shiyao’s direction. Under Shiyao’s bewildered gaze, she raised her hand and delivered a sharp, forceful slap across Shiyao’s face.

The crack rang out. Shiyao’s cheek went numb, and the pain filled her with humiliation and rage. She opened her mouth — but before she could speak, Yan Yunning shoved her straight to the ground.

Shiyao’s heels were higher than Yan Yunning’s, and with no one there to catch her, the sudden push sent her tumbling. With a sickening snap, white-hot pain shot up from her ankle.

Shiyao’s eyes welled with tears from the agony. She looked down at her twisted foot — her ankle was already flushing red and impossible to move.

Crack. Another heavy slap landed across her cheek. Shiyao’s eyes went wide, both cheeks burning from the blows. She bit her lip, her tear-filled eyes fixed unwaveringly on Yan Yunning.

Yan Yunning rubbed her own palm, which was red and faintly tingling, and blinked with a look of pure innocence. “Shiyao, do you remember now? There was that one time I accidentally hit you, and then accidentally shoved you. I was only showing you — I truly had no other intention.”

Shiyao choked back her tears and shouted, “Yan Yunning, you did that on purpose!”

Yan Yunning shook her head with total sincerity. “I didn’t. I never did it on purpose.”

Ye Jian: “……”

Shiyao shook with rage, the hatred in her eyes blazing openly at Yan Yunning.

Yan Yunning crouched down and lifted Shiyao’s chin, curving her lips in a thin, cold smile. “Shiyao, in the future, speak a little less nonsense, and stop stirring up trouble between Xuan Yanyu and me. If you keep picking fights with no good reason, then I’ll simply have to arrange for your mother and father to resign and stay home — to give you a proper lesson.”

Shiyao’s pupils contracted. “You…”

Yan Yunning gave Shiyao’s injured ankle a nudge with her foot and smiled serenely. “If you insist on making trouble, go ahead and try.”

“Ah—!” Shiyao cried out in pain. She looked up at Yan Yunning, wiped her tears with her sleeve, and shook her head. “I won’t anymore.”

Her parents were already displeased with her ever since she and Qi Qingchen had broken up.

If, because of her, her parents lost their jobs and could no longer work, then…

She didn’t dare think about the consequences.

She regretted it so much…

Regretted it so much… regretted breaking up with Qi Qingchen so much.

All the days she had spent with President Xu had amounted to nothing.

The card Qi Qingchen had given her had been returned in full to Xuan Yanyu. If her parents then lost their jobs on top of that because of her failure to behave — she would never hear the end of it.

Yan Yunning studied her for a moment, saw no sign of deceit, and turned to walk out of the private room.

The moment Yan Yunning left, President Xu and the others filed back in.

Shiyao looked at President Xu with aggrieved eyes. “My ankle really hurts.”

President Xu narrowed his eyes. “How did you manage to offend Little President Xuan’s fiancée?”

While standing outside the room, he had been unable to figure out why Mr. Ye showed such deference to this Miss Yan — until a newly signed artist at his company revealed that she was Little President Xuan’s fiancée. He had looked her up right away online and confirmed it.

Shiyao denied it. “I didn’t.”

“All right, we’re through.” President Xu wrapped his arm around the young woman who had just outed Yan Yunning as Xuan Yanyu’s fiancée, and looked down at Shiyao with detached authority. “Leave quickly. Every time I look at you, my stomach turns.”

“What did you say?” Shiyao grabbed the back of a chair and forced herself upright through gritted teeth. “You’re breaking up with me?”

President Xu regarded her with disdain. “I never wanted to be with you in the first place. You don’t suit my taste.”

“But in bed, you—”

“Shiyao.” President Xu cut her off without a shred of courtesy and laughed loudly. “We met because you were the one who approached me first — who added me first. You had a very clear agenda. But as far as I was concerned, I had no reason to say no.”

Shiyao could no longer contain her anger. She snatched up the nearby vase and hurled it at President Xu. The dull thuds of it striking his body and shattering on the floor sent a jolt of alarm through her.

“President Xu… blood…” The young woman beside him frantically dabbed at the wound.

Shiyao swallowed hard, her hands trembling, standing helplessly in place.

——

Jue Ye parking lot.

Yan Yunning shook out her hand and looked up to see Xuan Yanyu, Ye An, Ye Chen — and Li Li beside them, along with a handsome young man standing near her.

Yan Yunning made the connection immediately. That good-looking young man was most likely the President Wu Ye Jian had mentioned.

President Wu waved goodbye to Xuan Yanyu, got into a car, and drove away. Li Li was still standing in place with a bright smile on her face.

Yan Yunning looked away and waited by the car for Ye Jian, who had stepped away to use the restroom.

“Ningning?” Li Li’s voice rang out nearby with a note of mild surprise.

Yan Yunning acted as though she hadn’t heard, and looked down at her palm, which appeared to have left a faint reddish impression like the color of cinnabar paste. The white skin was mottled with patches of red. Hardly worth the trouble.

Hearing the sound of footsteps drawing gradually closer, Yan Yunning let her hands fall to her sides.

“Ningning, it really is you! I’m Li Li — do you still remember me?” Li Li walked over to Yan Yunning’s side and said with a cheerful smile, “I still remember you. You, Wen Zhilu, Gu Jingye, and He Qingxia — back then you four were together every single day.”

“Back then, everyone assumed you and Wen Zhilu would end up together. Who would have thought… oh…” Li Li glanced over at Xuan Yanyu, who had walked over as well, and clapped a hand to her mouth with an apologetic expression. “I’m so sorry, Little President Xuan, I… I…”

Xuan Yanyu didn’t spare her a glance. He lowered his eyes to Yan Yunning. “Why are you here? What happened to your hand?”

He had noticed earlier that she kept staring at it.

Yan Yunning looked at him briefly and said nothing.

Li Li quietly curved the corners of her lips, then said sweetly, “Ningning, it’s such a coincidence running into each other — why don’t we get together today? It’s been so long. Come on.”

“Li Li.” Yan Yunning gave a cold laugh. “Since graduating, has something gone wrong with your head?”