Jiang Mian truly believed this was the car she had booked online.

After standing outside for just a moment, the cold made her shiver, and she was eager to get into the car for warmth.

However, when the car approached and Jiang Mian clearly saw the license plate, her heart felt as cold as the biting wind.

Wasn’t this the same license plate as the one on the car she had arrived in?

The driver stopped the car right in front of her, but Jiang Mian remained frozen, unable to move.

Shen Shiyan had originally been seething with anger, but seeing Jiang Mian shivering in the cold, his resolve began to soften.

He thought she was still a good person, and he could address the issue later.

He pushed open the car door, looked at Jiang Mian, and said coldly, “Get in the car.”

Jiang Mian was puzzled. Hadn’t the male lead already left? Why was he back now?

Wasn’t he the one who had doubted his own words and was ready to leave her behind? Why was he now inviting her to get into the car?

If she could, Jiang Mian would have turned around and left immediately.

She took a tentative step, but the familiar pain shot up from the bottom of her foot again. Even though she had mentally prepared herself, the pain was still unbearable.

Ah! This cursed OOC punishment!

Or maybe Shen Shiyan was offering her a breakup fee?

For a moment, Jiang Mian considered all sorts of possibilities.

Gritting her teeth and enduring the pain, she propped herself up against the car door with one hand, tears welling up in her eyes. Timidly, she called out to Mr. Shen, then quickly got into the car, feeling ungrateful.

Seeing her face, which now revealed its usual bright and lively appearance, Shen Shiyan felt slightly less irked.

On such a cold day, anyone standing outside for long would suffer.

Especially for her, still dressed so lightly, without makeup to hide it, her pale cheeks were flushed red from the cold, and her nose was a bit red as well. Shen Shiyan adjusted the air vent to warm her and softened his voice, asking, “How long have you been waiting outside?”

Jiang Mian was lost in her own thoughts when she suddenly heard his question. She turned to look at him, her eyes blank. “I…”

Was this insufferable man actually thinking she had waited by the door just to see him?

Instinctively wanting to deny it, but remembering the sharp pain in her foot, Jiang Mian quickly changed her response. “Oh, I—I didn’t wait too long!”

Though she said one thing, her eyes spoke a different truth. They clearly conveyed: I waited a long time and endured the cold—just look at my red face!

Shen Shiyan didn’t quite believe her. He suddenly took her small hand, which felt as cold as if it had come straight from an ice cellar and frowned. “Is that so?”

It was clear she had been outside for a long time; with hands this cold, it was hard to lie.

Jiang Mian was stunned. Not only had Shen Shiyan not brought up a breakup with his cold demeanor, but he was also holding her hand, seemingly trying to warm her up.

The word “warming” almost slipped out of her mouth, and she nearly bit her tongue in surprise before responding with a muffled voice.

Her mind raced as she tried to make sense of the situation.

The promised breakup scene had taken an unexpected turn, completely different from what she had imagined.

Jiang Mian stared at Shen Shiyan in disbelief, wondering if he had been influenced by someone else.

When Shen Shiyan realized what he had done, he wanted to withdraw his hand, but it was too late.

Frowning, Shen Shiyan, who had never acted like this before, noticed Jiang Mian’s small hands were freezing and red. In his moment of distraction, he had instinctively held her hand in his, trying to warm it up.

Forget it. Seeing as she had been out in the cold for so long, he would let it slide just this once.

Having reassured himself, Shen Shiyan was about to act as if nothing had happened when he noticed Jiang Mian staring at him intently.

He cleared his throat to mask his embarrassment and turned his gaze to her face. “You…”

The two were quite close, and Jiang Mian’s face reddened as she instinctively tried to move away.

However, the driver made a sharp turn with impeccable timing, causing Jiang Mian to be thrown into Shen Shiyan’s arms, pressing them together.

Jiang Mian gritted her teeth in frustration. The driver must have done that on purpose!

Jiang Mian couldn’t understand why Shen Shiyan, who had been so angry earlier, was now turning back to her.

Could it be that the male lead was simply unable to let go of his fascination with her?

Damn, sometimes being too beautiful felt like a curse!

After a moment of reflection, Jiang Mian looked up from Shen Shiyan’s embrace, her eyes already filled with tears.

“Why are you crying again?”

Shen Shiyan asked, gently wiping away her tears with a furrowed brow, clearly distressed.

However, that was just a fleeting thought. Shen Shiyan gently cupped her face and wiped away her tears with uncommon tenderness.

“Alright, no more crying!”

Jiang Mian bit her lip, unable to respond, and just continued to cry, feeling overwhelmed.

“Keep crying, and I’ll make you get out of the car!”

Damn it, just let her get out!

She really wanted to get out, but she couldn’t bring herself to say it.

Jiang Mian had to endure, or she’d faint from the pain once her persona collapsed.

Alas, being a supporting character was also so difficult.

Jiang Mian stopped crying but looked up at him with tearful eyes. “Mr. Shen, don’t you trust me?”

Although she had stopped crying, she still appeared very aggrieved.

Shen Shiyan furrowed his brows. “Who said I don’t believe you?”

“You didn’t even look at me before, you just turned away and left. I thought you didn’t believe my words! I really didn’t lock Secretary He up or take her things; she’s the one who lied and slandered me!”

When Jiang Mian said this, she genuinely felt like crying, realizing that she had gotten her hopes up for nothing.

“I just—I just thought Mr. Shen didn’t want me anymore!”

Shen Shiyan gently touched her face. “You’re so wonderful; how could I possibly not want you?”

“Really?” Jiang Mian’s eyes widened, struggling to believe him.

“Really!” Shen Shiyan replied with conviction.

Jiang Mian appeared moved to tears on the outside, but inside, she was cursing him.

No, she wished he would just hurry up and abandon her so she could cry alone through this endless night!

For a moment, Jiang Mian didn’t know what to say. This insufferable man was completely unpredictable, not following the script at all.

It was truly unsettling.

The atmosphere grew tense as they stared at each other in silence for over a minute, the awkwardness becoming almost unbearable.

“Mr. Shen, since you trust me, what are you going to do about Secretary He?”

“You have a good relationship with Ji Zishen?”

Their words overlapped almost perfectly, leaving Jiang Mian stunned. Why was Ji Zishen being brought up again?

What does this have to do with him?

Could he be trying to protect He Lai by deliberately shifting the conversation to Ji Zishen?

Jiang Mian shook her head. “This is the first time I’ve met Mr. Ji!”

“Is that so?”

Seriously, don’t you already know that, big brother?

Jiang Mian was at a loss for words. He clearly knew everything, yet not only did he listen to her lie, but he also didn’t call her out on it.

After the original owner first met Shen Shiyan, he had someone investigate her identity and background. At that time, he learned that Ji Zishen had deliberately arranged it so that he could meet her.

Suddenly, a realization struck her, and everything became clear.

According to the plot, Shen Shiyan should have left her behind, but tonight’s unexpected encounter with Ji Zishen must have changed things.

Shen Shiyan, being naturally suspicious, likely assumed they were plotting something together after seeing her with Ji Zishen.

Jiang Mian looked at him warily, thinking that Shen Shiyan had decided she was someone sent by Ji Zishen. He probably wanted to keep her close, waiting for her to slip up and reveal her true intentions, just to see what Ji Zishen was really up to!

To prove she was on Ji Zishen’s side, Jiang Mian feigned being touched. “Mr. Ji is really a good person…”

“Good person?”

Shen Shiyan’s expression, which had started to soften, immediately hardened again. Jiang Mian stole a glance at him, nodded, and pretended not to notice his darkening mood. She continued to praise Ji Zishen. “Not only is Mr. Ji a good person, but he’s also very gentle. After helping me get rid of those three women, he even checked to see if I was injured…”

Anyway, Ji Zishen wasn’t around, so she could embellish as much as she wanted. Besides, compared to Ji Zishen’s antics, hers were just small fry.

Jiang Mian had just finished crying, so her voice was still soft and hoarse. When she mentioned Ji Zishen, her eyes were full of admiration, which only reminded Shen Shiyan of the moment Ji Zishen had held her wrist.

Listening to Jiang Mian praise Ji Zishen made him feel uneasy.

He was checking her wounds?

“Really, he must be an amazing person. I’ll have to treat him to a meal someday to thank him properly!”

Shen Shiyan’s tone was dark as he said this, and Jiang Mian wasn’t foolish—she could clearly tell he was angry!

But she pretended not to notice, instead flashing a bright smile. “Yes, we should properly thank Mr. Ji!”

Shen Shiyan: ……

After a brief, tense silence and just as she was scrambling to find something else to talk about, her phone suddenly rang.

The call was from the driver of the online car service she had booked. As soon as she answered, the driver’s loud voice boomed through the phone, “Hello, are you Miss Jiang? I’ve arrived, but I can’t see you anywhere! Where are you?”

Jiang Mian instinctively moved the phone away from her ear. Distracted by Shen Shiyan’s sudden appearance, she had forgotten about the car she had ordered.

Now, sitting in Shen Shiyan’s car and realizing he wasn’t planning to break up with her, she apologized softly, “I’m sorry, sir. I don’t need the ride anymore.”

The driver, clearly a local and a bit irritable, snapped back, “If you don’t need it, you should cancel the order! I’ve driven all this way and waited here for nothing!”

“I’m really sorry, I’ll compensate you for the trouble!”

Jiang Mian glanced at Shen Shiyan’s face and, after apologizing repeatedly, ended the call.

Just as she let out a sigh of relief, Shen Shiyan’s sharp voice cut through the silence. “You called a car?”

The driver’s loud voice had been so clear that Shen Shiyan must have heard it, leaving Jiang Mian no way to deny it.

Under Shen Shiyan’s dark, intense gaze, Jiang Mian nodded nervously. “Yes!”

Shen Shiyan studied her for a moment before suddenly laughing, a sinister smile spreading across his face. His dark eyes seemed to pierce her heart.

“So, you weren’t waiting specifically for me?”

Although he was smiling, his voice was cold and cutting, like a chill wind sweeping across Jiang Mian’s heart, making her shiver.

She desperately wanted to get out of the car!

Hearing the dangerous tone in Shen Shiyan’s voice, Jiang Mian wanted to deny it, but his cold, penetrating gaze made it clear he saw through her lies.

Wait, wouldn’t this be just right?

If Shen Shiyan realized she was lying, he might kick her out of the car in his anger.

Suddenly, a glimmer of hope appeared amid the chaos.

“I wanted to find you, but I couldn’t get in touch, so I had to take a taxi back to the hotel first. I’ll explain everything to you clearly then!”

She believed that with Shen Shiyan’s skills, if he really wanted to investigate, he would easily find out that she had booked a room at another hotel.

Shen Shiyan looked at her with a smile. “Is that so?”

Jiang Mian nodded vigorously, like a chicken pecking at grains. But then she heard Shen Shiyan’s probing question, “Is it that you couldn’t contact me, or you didn’t want to?”

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