Before Liang Meng burst in, Jiang Han used his last available moment to send Lin Qing a message on WeChat: Liang Meng is here. Make an appearance.

Lin Qing replied immediately: Received.

“Jiang Han! What exactly are you playing at? Out of nowhere, you suddenly dump all of Longquan’s shares — why?!”

Once she was through the door, Liang Meng demanded answers with urgent impatience, her words tumbling out so fast she nearly bit her own tongue.

Jiang Han gave the secretary a meaningful look; the secretary read the room and discreetly withdrew, closing the door behind her.

“Why can’t I sell Longquan’s shares.”

Jiang Han was ice-cold.

“What am I to you?”

“You are…!” Liang Meng was cut off by his words.

But was this the time for affairs of the heart?

Liang Meng, furious and anxious, said, “From the day my sister took over Longquan, you’ve been pouring in money and effort, right up until the IPO…”

“I don’t want to do that anymore.”

Jiang Han cut her off with swift, toneless words, utterly without warmth.

Liang Meng was stunned. She couldn’t quite make sense of it — in the space of just one month, Jiang Han seemed like a completely different person.

The cold, dark edge to his voice now was as if their deep bond of past love and strife had been wiped out in a single stroke.

“No — Jiang Han… what we have is separate from all this. Don’t make a joke out of Longquan.”

Liang Meng’s pleading voice had the tremor of someone about to cry.

Jiang Han drifted over to the bar and poured himself a glass of whisky.

He wasn’t joking.

Some people would rather drink alone than engage with Liang Meng’s words.

“How could you dump all your shares — that means I’ll be left without…”

As Liang Meng pressed him harder, Jiang Han suddenly shot back at her: “Liang Xing could sell Longquan’s shares — so why can’t I?”

Liang Meng froze completely!

But immediately after, she fought to rein in her emotions and made one last desperate attempt: “My sister… my sister… she said she wanted to enjoy life.”

Knowing she was in the wrong, she still pushed to defend herself: “Jiang Han, you know this. My sister had it hard from the time she was little. To pull me up and raise me, she dropped out after a mediocre college and gave all her youth and time to Longquan and to me. Do you remember when I was studying in England? The tuition and living expenses alone were two million a year. My sister, she…”

Liang Meng’s seemingly heartfelt yet self-contradictory plea was deflected right back at her with just a few words from Jiang Han.

“Was it easy for me? Your sister at least shares blood with you. Me — Jiang Han — what relationship do we have? All these years working like a mule, what the hell was it all for? On what grounds.”

When he finished, Jiang Han’s razor-sharp gaze swept across Liang Meng’s helpless face.

On what grounds.

Three words.

They checked and mated the emotionally turbulent Liang Meng.

People always take what has always been there, and love that has been constant, for granted.

When people have something, they never ask themselves why or on what grounds — they simply feel that everything is what they deserve.

“Jiang Han, do you need me to beg you? Do I have to spell it out this plainly?”

All Liang Meng wanted now was for Jiang Han to give her one honest answer: why had he done this?

Tender feelings between lovers — in peaceful, joyful times, they are tenderness; in the chaos of conflict, they become weapons.

“Then speak.”

Jiang Han’s tone was light yet pressing with every word.

“Isn’t it because you like me?!”

Liang Meng raised her voice without realizing it.

She thought she had the upper hand.

In her view, Jiang Han selling her family’s legacy — Longquan — was a betrayal of the feelings between them!

Liang Meng had grown too inflated, too lost in Jiang Han’s love. When she said these words, her voice rang out with confidence.

Watching her self-righteous manner, Jiang Han’s heart sank. Tumultuous and twisting pain — that was what it felt like to have one’s heart cut by a knife.

He was also nursing his own anger inside. Wang Xiancheng’s whole series of moves had already cost him dearly.

And yet, right now, at this very moment, he was forced to confront another painful question in his life — which mattered more to Liang Meng: him, or Longquan?

The answer was plain as day.

From the moment Liang Meng walked through the door to the end of the argument, not a single word had been about Jiang Han.

She never once considered that perhaps Jiang Han was facing some difficulty that forced him to sell Longquan. She only cared about Longquan!

The falling blossom longs to follow the flowing water; the flowing water has no desire to hold onto the falling blossom.

The relationship between him and Liang Meng — never smooth from the very start — was now falling blossom and flowing water.

“I don’t like you anymore.”

Jiang Han’s expression was as though touched by frost; the light in his eyes gradually dimmed and went out.

“That’s impossible.”

Liang Meng still clung blindly to her confidence.

Until Jiang Han finally erupted.

He upended the glass. The amber-red liquid spilled across the marble countertop like shattered jade.

“Why is it impossible? On what grounds is it impossible?”

Jiang Han’s throat worked violently. The veins along his neck stood out, winding and taut. His heart held a thousand grievances and ten thousand frustrations.

“Liang Meng, am I in debt to you?” Jiang Han pressed his voice low in extreme restraint. “You’ve been clinging to me since we were children. Then your parents died, and you and your sister latched onto me. Liang Meng, did I dig up your ancestors’ graves? Did I slaughter your whole family? What responsibility or obligation do I have that means I must treat you well? That I must accompany you, run wild with you, make a scene with you, and keep covering for you non-stop? Come on — give me one reason. Go ahead!”

“I like you. That’s right, I do like you.” Jiang Han admitted it in a low, resigned voice. “But so what? Can we even be together? What can you, Liang Meng, give me? Can you give me emotional fulfilment? Can we go out together as a couple? Or at night — can you sleep by my side? Come on — I’ve spent 1.4 billion. Can you spend one uninhibited night with me? Tell me the truth! Can you.”

Faced with Jiang Han’s sudden barrage of questions, Liang Meng first turned to stone, then trembled.

She turned to stone because these were words Jiang Han had never said before.

She trembled because Liang Meng fought desperately to argue back — to use her forceful temperament to overwhelm Jiang Han as she always had before — yet found herself in the wrong, with a thousand unspoken words choking in her chest.

Liang Meng finally understood the difference.

The difference between the Jiang Han of today and the Jiang Han of the past was this:

Before, as long as Liang Meng acted up and made a fuss, Jiang Han would yield to her, indulge her, place her on a pedestal, and let her have control of him.

But today, once a man turns rational, no amount of emotion alone could unsettle or persuade Jiang Han.

According to the conservation of energy, love does not disappear — it only transfers.

As the song by Eason Chan goes: moving one person’s warmth to another person’s chest, letting the mistakes of last time reflect into something like a dream.

Faced with Jiang Han’s coldness and transformation, ripples stirred in the depths of Liang Meng’s heart.

Knock, knock, knock.

At that moment, the door was knocked open.

Lin Qing’s appearance broke the frozen standoff between Liang Meng and Jiang Han.

“Lin Qing?!”

Liang Meng found it strange — why would her little assistant appear at the villa at this hour?

Before she could process it, she saw Jiang Han shift into a relaxed posture, brush past Liang Meng’s shoulder, and walk straight over.

When Jiang Han’s arm draped around Lin Qing’s slender shoulders, Liang Meng could hardly believe her own eyes!

“President Liang.”

Lin Qing greeted Liang Meng.

“President Liang?!”

Liang Meng couldn’t understand why Lin Qing would suddenly address her so formally, and they weren’t even at the company.

It was Jiang Han who opened his mouth to explain: “Liang Meng, I’m tired. I want to live a bit of an ordinary, normal, simple life. Lin Qing is gentle and easygoing — she suits me better than you do. I want to live a stretch of ordinary life without having to think too hard.”

Lin Qing blushed and shyly snuggled into his arms.

Liang Meng’s brow knitted tight!

Everything before her tangled her brain into knots. She felt she was going to lose her mind!

“What do you mean — ‘an ordinary, normal, simple life’???” Liang Meng couldn’t process it; she reminded Jiang Han, “You’re nominally my brother-in-law! You’re still married to my sister! And now you’re holding… holding… my little assistant?! Jiang Han, are you cheating on her? Having an affair?”

Very quickly, Liang Meng sorted through her thoughts, then shook her head forcefully.

“No! You’ve already had an affair!” She stared in disbelief at the two people standing close before her. “Jiang Han? Lin Qing? The two of you?! When? How is this possible?! What is going on.”

Liang Meng could not accept it.

Still not giving up, she walked over and pulled Lin Qing aside by the arm, as if questioning her, yet also as if reassuring herself: “Lin Qing! Stop messing around! April Fools’ Day is still more than a month away. You and Jiang Han? Impossible! Even if the earth was destroyed, even if the galaxy exploded, you two would never end up together. Lin Qing, stop playing around! Tell me the truth.”

Lin Qing kept her gaze fixed on Liang Meng the entire time, letting her shake her arm without resistance.

She was perfectly composed.

The more Liang Meng behaved this way, the more hollow she felt inside.

After a long moment of silence, Lin Qing finally spoke, curling the corner of her mouth into a provocative smile.

“Why not.”

The teasing, playful tone of Lin Qing’s voice made Liang Meng’s already ice-cold heart feel even more desolate.

She wound her arm around Jiang Han’s in a captivating, intimate manner, raised an eyebrow, and looked down at Liang Meng with contempt. “Having met such a fine gentleman, how could I not be delighted? Jiang Han and I have genuine feelings for each other and admire one another — what’s wrong with being together?”

“Lin Qing, have you lost your mind? Jiang Han is married. You want to be the other woman — have you cleared that with your mother?”

Liang Meng was so furious she could barely speak coherently.

“Your mother said she was worried you’d latch onto a rich man — and look! How could you be so shameless.”

“I like who I like — no one has any say in that.”

Lin Qing had the expression of someone whose heart had turned to iron, utterly unmoved.

“As for being shameless — that’s a matter of perspective.”

Liang Meng could not accept any of what was before her. She pressed Lin Qing further: “Lin Qing, when did all this start? Lu Zhou — right, and Lu Zhou — don’t you like Lu Zhou? What you’re doing now — what does this make you? Aren’t you afraid… afraid Lu Zhou will find out?”

Lin Qing lowered her head with an indifferent little smile, then looked back up to sneer at Liang Meng: “Between Jiang Han and Lu Zhou — any person with a brain would know how to choose, wouldn’t they? All Lu Zhou can offer me is an apartment with a mortgage, hotel-style. And Jiang Han? His net worth — you of all people should know that better than I do, President Liang. As for when this started…”

Lin Qing cast an ambiguous glance at Jiang Han. Jiang Han released her, walked back to the bar to pour another drink, leaving Liang Meng with a back that said I have nothing to explain.

“Speaking of that — I should actually thank you, President Liang.” Lin Qing stood face to face with Liang Meng. “Without you, I never would have met ‘Master Jiang.’ I won’t hide it from you — the truth is, I had these thoughts quite early on. Maybe it was that time alone with Master Jiang at the police station… or maybe even earlier.”

“Impossible!” Liang Meng refused to believe it, fighting back with all she had. “Lin Qing, stop pretending! I’ve known you this long — you’re not that kind of person!”

“How long have you known me?!” Lin Qing suddenly raised her voice, her face cold as she turned to look back. “All told, we’ve known each other for barely three months and a bit. Just over a hundred days! Liang Meng, my goodness — you really are a sheltered, innocent little white flower, aren’t you! A hundred days — can you truly understand a person in a hundred days? It takes ten months to carry a baby! If you’re going to blame anyone, blame yourself for being too naive! Trusting someone who’s neither kin nor kith so quickly!”

“No, no, this can’t be…”

Liang Meng kept stepping backward. Everything in front of her was too overwhelming to bear.

Lin Qing stepped forward, pressing closer. “Since we’ve gone this far, I might as well lay more cards on the table. Liang Meng, you’re not just naive — you’re also stupid!”

“How am I stupid?” Liang Meng’s eyes shimmered with tears, defiant.

“President Liang, you’ve never been knocked around by the harshness of the world, so you don’t know how brutal it can be. You’ve always been a pure idealist — don’t you know that about yourself?” Lin Qing said. “The reason so many of us were willing to run wild with you, play along with you, and obediently follow along as your supporting cast — is because of money! Money! You pay us! You pay!”

Liang Meng stared at her as if looking at a creature she had never encountered before!

Lin Qing jabbed at Liang Meng’s collarbone: “You poured your heart into Longquan! You, Liang Meng, have your professional ideals, your business ideals, your life ideals. You want everyone to follow you, to grind alongside you! We did it — not because it was also our ideal! But because you are Longquan’s little princess! Your family has money to burn! Only by pretending to follow you, pretending we also have ideals, can people like us — ordinary workers — get paid! Maybe you think making Longquan great was also my ideal. All I can say is — I acted the part well enough!”

“Acted?”

Liang Meng retreated step by step.

“Yes, acted! Don’t tell me you actually thought I, Lin Qing, took you as some spiritual leader and was so devoted to working for you that I lost my mind — that the boss’s goals were my own ideals? That would be truly laughable. Longquan isn’t mine! Whether it livestreams or not, the traffic isn’t mine either! What does Longquan’s share price have to do with me?! Do I have stock options? Do I receive dividends? No matter how much money Longquan makes, it just adds another zero to your bank account balance, so you can continue your comfortable, indulgent life. But President Liang — have you ever thought about this? While you were issuing orders from on high, looking down on everyone — do you know how I’ve lived all these years? What grounds do I have to bow down before you?!”

The more Lin Qing said, the more agitated she became, and she couldn’t help it — hot tears welled in her eyes.

“Nine years of compulsory education, ten years of burning the midnight oil — I’ve lived every day with tremendous effort! I studied hard, I pushed myself to improve, I carefully cultivated every relationship that could benefit me. I fought tooth and nail to seize every opportunity I could grab — squeezed my way into a top university, earned a degree as my foot in the door, sent out applications, found a job, worked myself to the bone… and then in the end, I discovered that the finish line of my frantic, desperate race didn’t even measure up to the starting point of your lazy, comfortable days! On what grounds — why should I provide you with ‘kneeling service’ and be a little assistant at your beck and call? Why should it be that because you raise your arms and call people to chase your dreams, I have to get fired up alongside you and fight as one? Why should it be that because you feel something has value, I should automatically feel it has value too?! Liang Meng! All of this — every single bit of it — it is completely and utterly unfair! So unfair!”

Every word Lin Qing spoke, every syllable — it was her indictment and cry from the depths of her heart, written in blood!

At last, she wiped away tears that had fallen without her noticing, then turned back to Liang Meng with a calm she had reclaimed. “I’ve had enough of all of this, long before I ever met Jiang Han. Before I met Jiang Han, perhaps 1.4 million could have purchased the body and dignity of Lin Qing. But after meeting Jiang Han, he gives more — and that price is no longer enough. It needs to go up. Up to more than what he gives.”