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The evening lights flickered on as the banquet hall shimmered with brilliance. Dazzling chandeliers sparkled above, casting a colorful glow.
Suddenly, a commotion arose in the backyard. Following the sound, he walked over.
“Splash!”
A girl in a red princess dress pushed another girl — also in a princess dress — into the water.
The girl who fell in screamed for help, her voice shrill and desperate. The girl on the bank simply stood and watched.
She turned her head as if sensing someone watching her. When she saw him, she suddenly smiled — her face delicate and radiant like a flower.
“Hi there,” the girl greeted him.
“Why did you push her?” he asked.
“Because she ruined my dress and led others in class to ostracize me,” the girl pouted.
Then she quickly recovered her sweet smile, looked at the girl in the water, and spread her hands: “The water only reaches her knees. I just wanted to scare her.”
“Aren’t you going to save her?” the girl asked, a little confused by his indifferent expression. She thought he was asking in concern and wanted to help — but he was truly just asking.
“Why would I?” he glanced at the girl struggling to climb out of the water.
The girl squinted her eyes into a smile. “Should we be friends? I’m Ji Xueli.”
He looked at her outstretched hand, hesitating whether to shake it. Suddenly, the scene before him shattered — and then shifted again.
Now in a lavish private room, bright and extravagant — but only two people were inside.
The next moment, the door suddenly burst open. A woman in white, clearly angry, walked in. The man standing near the door lit up at the sight of her.
But before greetings could be exchanged, the woman strode straight toward the man seated deeper inside.
“Slap!”
“Lili, what are you doing!” the man exclaimed in disbelief as he watched the woman charge over and slap the man in black sitting inside.
The man in black touched his face. A red mark rapidly bloomed on his fair skin. He raised his eyes to look at the woman and suddenly smiled, “Lili, what was that for?”
“Duan Qingyu, how petty can you be? Just because Yanzhou criticized you a little, you stole his business and ruined his project?” Ji Xueli — the woman — said furiously.
“Lili, it’s not what you think. It was Yanzhou who made a bet with Qingyu—”
“So, you hit me because of him?” the man in black interrupted coldly, his voice hoarse, a chilling aura settling over the room.
“You’re the one who sabotaged his project first. He’s the man I love. I won’t stand by and watch others target him,” she fired back, unyielding.
Something in her words clearly triggered him. His expression darkened further, and a mocking smile tugged at his lips: “Then I really will target him. In Shangjing District, if it’s mine, no one dares to take it.”
“Duan Qingyu! Don’t go too far!” she shouted his name in anger.
His eyes grew colder. He stepped closer to her. “Lili, you know what I’m capable of. I’ll make sure he can’t survive in Shangjing.”
Each word was spat out slowly and sharply, like knives to the heart.
“I’ll stand with Yanzhou and fight back! I won’t let you get away with this! Duan Qingyu — from now on, we’re no longer friends!”
No longer friends…
Yanzhou and I…
Yanzhou is the man I love…
That phrase echoed endlessly in his mind, deafening like a loudspeaker.
Duan Qingyu suddenly opened his eyes. A white ceiling, the sharp scent of disinfectant…
He panted softly, still disoriented.
Those weren’t dreams — they were memories.
His lips pressed into a tight line, his eyes deep with shadow. He tried to sit up — only to notice someone sleeping beside him.
Ji Xueli rested her head on her arms at his bedside, her pale face peaceful and still, breathing softly.
Duan Qingyu stared at her for a moment…
Ever since she returned to the country, he’d found something strange about her. She felt like someone from his past — and yet also like a stranger just passing through.
But now, he was even more certain — she meant something to him.
His gaze darkened. Just as he reached out to hold her hand—
“Qingyu! You’re finally awake.” Chengdu tiptoed into the room, delighted to see him awake.
Duan Qingyu quietly withdrew his hand.