Seeing his arrogant demeanor, as if her presence didn’t surprise him in the least, Xia Liyang suspected he had anticipated her coming and had instructed his staff not to stop her.

Her anger only grew as she threw the contract at him, snapping, “Lu Huaicheng, you’ve gone too far!”

“How so?” Lu Huaicheng frowned, displeased as he picked up the contract she’d thrown at him, his deep voice saying, “I offered your Mr. Xu a very good price. His firm isn’t even worth what’s on this contract; selling to me would only benefit him.”

“But you don’t care whether he wants to sell! You even sent people to pressure him into signing!” Xia Liyang’s face turned red with anger, her chest heaving.

“I merely sent some people to discuss the acquisition with him. Any terms he’s unhappy with can be renegotiated. How is that pressuring him?” Lu Huaicheng scoffed, leaning back in his chair, casually flipping through the contract. “Besides, I’m not physically forcing him to sign. This is a law-abiding society.”

“…His main problem is with the acquisition itself!” Xia Liyang shot him an exasperated look, taking a deep breath to calm herself before saying as evenly as she could, “I understand you’re angry about my leaving. But if you need to vent, take it out on me. Don’t involve the people around me. Songnian hasn’t done anything wrong.”

Hearing her refer to Xu Songnian so intimately, Lu Huaicheng’s gaze darkened slightly, and he sneered, “Haven’t I tried reaching out to you? And how did you respond? Xia Liyang, I’ve been compromising for you, but have you shown any regard for me? If I didn’t resort to this, would you have come to see me today?”

“…” Xia Liyang opened her mouth to argue but realized he had a point.

Every time he’d tried to approach her, she’d either shut the door on him or sped off, leaving him behind in her car’s exhaust. He’d even humbled himself to re-add her on WeChat, only to be bluntly declined.

Though he’d initially used a mocking tone with her, she hadn’t given him a single chance since he’d come back.

After a few seconds, Xia Liyang paused, then tried a different approach. “But there’s nothing between us anymore. Isn’t it normal that I don’t want to deal with you?”

“So, I want to acquire your Mr. Xu’s firm and re-establish our relationship. Isn’t that normal?” He scoffed lightly, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

“…” Xia Liyang’s lips twitched; she really wanted to tell him he was a genius in logic.

“Or, I can give you another option,” Lu Huaicheng paused, tossing the contract onto the desk, his dark eyes narrowed as he looked at her, his voice low and hoarse, “Leave him and come back to me, and I won’t make any further moves on his firm.”

“Leaving him is fine, but isn’t that enough for you to give up on acquiring his firm?” Xia Liyang furrowed her brows, negotiating with him.

“And then what? Wait for you to find another man to irritate me?” Lu Huaicheng smirked.

Xia Liyang glanced at the unreasonable man in front of her and slowly responded with a question: “Mr. Lu, are you upset because the bird you raised flew away without a sound, hurting your pride, or is it because you really like this bird and are so obsessed with wanting it back?”

At her words, Lu Huaicheng was momentarily stunned.

After a long silence, he awkwardly replied, “If I didn’t like the bird, why would I be so obsessed?”

Although earlier, Song Jinhe said he must like her, she had scoffed and said she didn’t care for his affection.

But hearing him admit it made Xia Liyang’s heart flutter slightly faster.

But so what if he liked her?

Her identity with him was all fake.

He also never thought about having a future with her.

Eventually, they would part ways; why drag it out any longer?

Xia Liyang felt a bitter smile form inside her as she lightly said, “Haven’t you heard the saying, a forcibly twisted melon is not sweet?”

“…” Lu Huaicheng paused, slowly lifting his gaze, his dark eyes filled with depth, “What do you mean?”

“It means I don’t like you anymore. So I don’t want to come back to you,” Xia Liyang said, her clear eyes revealing no trace of emotional fluctuation.

Lu Huaicheng’s deep, dark gaze was like an unfathomable pool.

He quietly stared at her for a long time, then suddenly stood tall and walked toward the office door, locking it with a snap.

Xia Liyang was taken aback, her heart tightening, “Why did you suddenly lock the door?”

“Show me,” Lu Huaicheng’s voice was low, his tone unquestionable.

“Show you what?” Xia Liyang frowned in confusion.

It was only when he walked back with a deep intensity, grabbing her wrist and pulling her into his warm embrace that she suddenly remembered what he had said the last time he forcefully kissed her: the body does not lie.

So he wanted her to prove that she would not react to his intimate gestures.

Xia Liyang’s nerves tensed; her composure in this regard had already proven to be weak.

But as long as she kept her lips pressed together and didn’t open her mouth when he kissed her, she should be able to withstand it!

As she thought this, when his hot lips descended upon hers, she tightly pressed her lips together, turning her face desperately to the side.

However, he did not force her lips apart.

Instead, he pushed her lower back against the edge of the desk behind him, controlling her restless shoulders with one hand while supporting himself on the desk with the other.

His passionate kisses traveled down her slender, pale neck.

They were gentle, patient, and full of skill.

A tingling and itching sensation felt like a feather brushing against her heart continuously.

It made her want to escape yet was subtly addictive.

When her tense body finally experienced an involuntary shiver, Xia Liyang realized she was doomed.

Her little bit of composure couldn’t fight against the overwhelming desire he stirred within her.

As night fell, the large floor-to-ceiling windows reflected the two entangled bodies.

The surging desires and yearnings blended with the bustling city lights outside in their uneven breaths.

When everything was over, Xia Liyang slumped onto the desk, her face flushed as she leaned against his broad shoulder, catching her breath.

Her long hair was messy, her collar askew, and her snow-white skin was covered in the marks he had left.

“Someone’s proof has failed,” Lu Huaicheng chuckled softly, his voice slightly hoarse.

He wasn’t as neatly dressed as usual; his shirt buttons were mostly undone and wrinkled.

The pale skin exposed bore the red marks from her fingertips.

His short black hair was tousled from her grip.

He looked even more disheveled than she was.

“So what if I failed…” Xia Liyang panted lightly, originally intending to say that it didn’t matter if she failed; she still wouldn’t be with him.

But since she hadn’t regained her composure yet, her soft voice came out sounding like she was cautiously inquiring about his feelings instead.

“Since you failed, wouldn’t it be better to obediently return to my side?” Lu Huaicheng smiled, gently stroking her silky hair.

“No.” Xia Liyang shook her head.

Lu Huaicheng’s hand paused, his brows furrowing again as he suppressed his voice, “You clearly have feelings for me; why do you insist on leaving me to be with that Mr. Xu? I can give you everything he can, and I can even double it.”

“…You hadn’t messaged me in a month.” With her mind still slightly hazy, Xia Liyang could only deflect him with her previous excuse.

“You want my company, right?” Lu Huaicheng paused, his tone compromising, “Fine, in the future, when I go on business trips, I’ll take you with me. I can actively message you on WeChat; if you don’t want to live on the top floor, you can move into my villa.”

Unexpectedly, Xia Liyang was taken aback when he began to back down, momentarily unsure of what to say.

Seeing that she seemed to agree, Lu Huaicheng relaxed his brows and gently patted her back. “Alright, tidy up your clothes and come home with me.”

“…” Xia Liyang’s body stiffened slightly as she struggled to engage her sluggish brain and finally found the most reasonable excuse.

She glanced at Lu Huaicheng, who was already buttoning his shirt, adjusted her clothes and hair, and her voice regained its cold tone. “Mr. Lu.”

“Hmm?” Lu Huaicheng’s long fingers paused momentarily as he raised his eyelids.

“There’s something that Mr. Xu can give me that you can’t, which is why I chose to leave you,” she said, looking at him.

“What?” Lu Huaicheng frowned, his expression darkening.

He seemed unable to believe that there was something in which he couldn’t compare to that Mr. Xu.

“A proper title and future,” she replied.

Those light words struck him like a thunderclap.

This was indeed something he had not considered.

Seeing her with another man, he had assumed she had merely changed her financial backer.

Suddenly, Lu Huaicheng recalled the warm scene he had witnessed at the airport in Beicheng with the three people.

At that time, he had thought the older man helping Xia Liyang with her luggage was just a driver.

But upon reflection, that person actually resembled Xu Songnian quite a bit.

And if he remembered correctly, Xu Songnian was indeed from Beicheng.

So he hadn’t taken her on a trip during the National Day holiday; he had taken her home to meet his parents.

Noticing that Lu Huaicheng had been silent for a long time, Xia Liyang felt that her reason was definitely convincing.

She further embellished, saying, “Moreover, Mr. Xu already took me home to meet his parents during the National Day holiday, so he wouldn’t be lying to me.”

Her statement completely confirmed Lu Huaicheng’s suspicions.

His gaze became complicated, swirling with emotions as if he wanted to say something, but couldn’t find the words.

“Can you marry me in the future? Isn’t this something you’ve always warned me not to fantasize about?” Xia Liyang lightly fluttered her long eyelashes, her voice soft, but her words were sharp.

“…” Lu Huaicheng slowly lowered his eyes.

“But he can give me such a real promise. So please let me go, if you really like me.” Xia Liyang looked at him with clear and bright eyes, stabbing him in the heart again.

Lu Huaicheng still didn’t respond.

After a long silence, he walked to the office door and unlocked it.

It was as if he was going along with her request.

Xia Liyang instantly felt relieved, quickly walking to the door and taking one last look at Lu Huaicheng, who stood to the side.

With a mix of politeness and sincerity, she said, “Then goodbye, Mr. Lu. I wish you happiness too.”

“…” Lu Huaicheng’s thin lips moved slightly, but he couldn’t utter a word.

Only his Adam’s apple involuntarily rolled, his gaze following her slender figure until she disappeared around the corner.

She also disappeared from his life.