{“Impartially, she also gave Shen Qi a slap.” 3}

Qian Xu led the man in front of her, word by word, to recall the worst and longest winter night. Her voice betrayed no bitterness, nor did her expression hold any trace of ridicule or excess emotion. “He brought out an old ledger he had hidden for two years. Written clearly in the relationship column was your evaluation of our connection—‘maid.’”

“That’s how you defined my identity. No different from how you view this child’s mother. In this regard, I must admit, the two of you are quite the match.”

Her tone was detached, as if narrating something unrelated to herself. But anyone with a discerning eye could sense the heartache and helplessness she had endured.

While most people might vent their emotions recklessly in anger, Qian Xu didn’t. She remained calm—almost unnervingly so.

Qian Xu stared into his eyes. “Tell me, if you were in my shoes, do you think you could forgive yourself for such behavior?”

Compared to slapping Cheng Shuangyi, the force behind her slap to Shen Qi was even greater. Yet, Shen Qi remained unmoved, as if indifferent to her act of defiance. He responded to her tantrum with the same nonchalance: “As for Mr. Huang, it was a momentary lapse on my part. I’ll have him personally come and apologize to you.”

“As for others, I won’t let them bother you again.”

He made the promise with absolute conviction.

Qian Xu couldn’t understand how Shen Qi could speak so calmly and methodically, even after she had insulted his dignity in front of the woman he cared most about, Cheng Shuangyi. Yet, he showed no trace of anger.

“I will never forgive you,” she declared.

“No woman would like a man with such a messy past. I hope you understand that. The past was my foolishness,” Qian Xu said coldly, her expression frosty, without a hint of attachment. “But now that I’ve returned to the country, everything should return to the way it’s supposed to be.”

He completely ignored her words, as if something irresistible was pulling him forward. Perhaps it was his excessive confidence in the wealth under his name, or maybe he was just a self-centered person who never considered others’ feelings, only his own.

“Give me a little more time. I’ll resolve everything and ensure that nothing threatens our relationship,” he said, tightly holding her hand.

Ordinary tenderness was no longer enough for him. His eyes were bloodshot, filled with a ravenous desire as if he had been longing for something for ages.

Thus, when it came to the past between them—the way he had referred to her as a “maid”—he never felt any need to apologize. With a dismissive “That was my mistake,” he swept away the darkest chapter between them as though it had never existed.

He then turned and walked toward Cheng Shuangyi, whispering something in her ear. Whatever he said, it convinced Cheng Shuangyi to leave willingly shortly after.

When Shen Qi turned back, Qian Xu had already left.

She didn’t wait for him like she usually did.

—

“Shen Qi, what do you mean by this?”

“Are you hoping that if you give me some money, I won’t report her?” Cheng Shuangyi showed up as agreed, but today she had no interest in even pretending to care about her children. She was still seething over the humiliation she suffered, and what she couldn’t forget was the judgmental stares of others who didn’t understand the full story.
“Do you even know how arrogant she is? She didn’t just treat me like that—I saw with my own eyes how ruthless she was toward you! If you still defend her, I think you’ve lost your mind!”

But soon, Cheng Shuangyi noticed something peculiar and contradictory about Shen Qi.

Even when Qian Xu physically attacked him, he didn’t care, nor did he see it as a loss of dignity. Yet, when Cheng Shuangyi brought it up, Shen Qi’s reaction was entirely different.

He avoided the topic, refusing to acknowledge any fault on Qian Xu’s part.

Shen Qi invited her to his home, but it was only to take a stand by another woman’s side.
“The way Qian Xu and I interact is our business. It has nothing to do with you,” he declared.

“I don’t want to have anything to do with her either,” Cheng Shuangyi retorted, still unable to understand Shen Qi’s sudden change. “But how dare she refuse an invitation from my children? That really infuriates me!”

“Are your children really so special?”

Shen Qi’s tone deepened.
“Do regular people have to look up to them just because they’re walking down the street?”

Cheng Shuangyi immediately understood what he was implying. Having been around him for so many years, she knew Shen Qi wasn’t referring to the children but to her.
“I’m not trying to act superior. I just think they’re still children—”

“So because they’re children, they deserve special treatment from the whole world?”

Shen Qi coldly cut her off.
“Cheng Shuangyi, you’re unbelievably self-centered. You’re worthless, and your children are just as worthless as you.”

Cheng Shuangyi couldn’t believe her ears. She never imagined Shen Qi would abandon his usual composure and say something so harsh. Despite his worldliness, he had always maintained a refined, old-money demeanor. Yet now, he had shattered it with such a shocking statement.

“Maybe I’m worthless, but my children are different from me…” To an outsider, her words might have painted her as a devoted mother.

Shen Qi paused, then replied, “I see that.”

“Shen Qi, what are you even trying to say?”