Chapter 146: Chapter 146

She took a deep breath and spoke again, "Where exactly have I—Hua Xiaomo—offended you? If there were misunderstandings in the past, shouldn’t my attentive service over these days have earned some of your sympathy by now?"

"Heh heh..." Qi Longbing laughed once more upon hearing her words, a chill flashing through the depths of his eyes where deep resentment and hatred brewed.

Indeed, the hatred felt at this moment was blatantly clear.

Qi Longbing crossed his arms, walked closer, and looked down at her. His voice, laced with obvious danger, said, "From your tone, you think it’s me—Qi Longbing—who is deliberately doing this, framing you and Mo Rutian, or perhaps... your Brother Long?"

"President Qi..." Hua Xiaomo’s pale, lovely face contorted in pain. As she gazed at him, her eyes, full of anguish, welled with tears. "I don’t know, but... but is it really necessary to go this far? Hate me if you must, but why involve other innocent people?"

Qi Longbing’s hands clenched slightly. His handsome face turned dark and formidable, and he himself didn’t know how he managed to keep listening.

This foolish woman! If she continues to be so deluded, then teaching her a lesson might be for the best!

"Yu Bao, call the police!" Qi Longbing commanded icily, not bothering with her anymore, and quickly walked out of the villa.

Hua Xiaomo watched his retreating figure, feeling for the first time what it was like for the sky to fall.

She had never felt such terror!

She, Hua Xiaomo, had stolen treasures and possessions over a hundred times, always departing and returning with equanimity. Yet this time, was she really going to meet her demise over this?

Immediately, her reflexive thought was to escape!

However, if she ran, she would be admitting to the crime. But how could she escape when the frame-up was so obvious?

Moreover, now that Brother Long was involved, he couldn’t escape either...

Tears fell silently once again, until a pair of strong arms lifted her up.

Hua Xiaomo looked at him, her voice choked with sobs. "Mr. Yu..."

She knew it was useless to beg him not to call the police. If that man didn’t give the nod, he wouldn’t dare disobey.

Yu Bao looked at her steadily and said, "Hua Xiaomo, you truly misunderstand President Qi. After your purse got soaked, your phone broke too. President Qi had me take it for repair and specifically requested it be fixed flawlessly. And that card... it was found during the repair."

"This... this really wasn’t his doing?" Hua Xiaomo muttered. Her vision blurred, tears welling in her eyes, threatening to spill at any moment.

Sniffling, she fought back her tears. "But doesn’t he hate me? Why would he pass up such a perfect opportunity? He could take down... everyone."

Hearing this, Yu Bao shook his head repeatedly. "Miss Hua, I swear by heaven for what I say. Besides, that so-called ’ZH’ data package isn’t something just anyone can manipulate. Even with all his capabilities, President Qi couldn’t have forged it."

After pondering for a moment, Yu Bao added, "Moreover, you saw President Qi’s attitude just now. He insisted on calling the police. If he faked it, tell me, would he be so foolish?"

Hearing this, Hua Xiaomo’s face alternated between pale and ashen. According to Yu Bao, she had been used, manipulated into becoming an unwitting pawn.

"And you said President Qi hates you..." Yu Bao couldn’t help shaking his head again, then looked at Aunt Wang. "Even we outsiders can see that President Qi cares about you! Where is the hate in that?"

Aunt Wang also approached her, taking Hua Xiaomo’s hand and sighing. "Yes, child, don’t be so stubborn and miss out on the person who treasures you the most!"

"When he comes back, apologize to him properly, do as he wishes, and satisfy whatever he wants. That’s how men are..." Aunt Wang advised.

Looking at Hua Xiaomo’s haggard face, Aunt Wang offered more counsel, "Isn’t there a saying, ’Love begets hate’? If he can’t have you, who knows, he might even destroy you! Child, by then, you’ll be the one regretting it."

Yes, he would ruin her; he would definitely do so.

But why was there still such trepidation deep in her heart?

Was it because of the debt owed to another person? Like her, he would lose the dignity of standing in this world.

Fine, if that’s the case, why should two people suffer together? Any sin could be borne by her alone...

Hua Xiaomo’s amber eyes grew misty again. Suddenly, she laughed. "So that’s how it is. I understand now... I understand... I know what I need to do."

"Mm-hmm." Yu Bao nodded, looked at Aunt Wang, then fixed his gaze back on Hua Xiaomo’s face and said solemnly, "I won’t report this to the police for now, but you must find a way to persuade President Qi to change his decision. Otherwise, the consequences... Hua Xiaomo, you can’t even imagine."

Hua Xiaomo nodded lightly, saying no more.

What hate was this? Qi Longbing actually cared for her? And what was that about ’love turning into extreme hate’?

Heh... Heh heh... Heh heh heh... Heh heh heh heh...

Was there anything more ridiculous than this?

A profound sense of irony pierced her heart, sharp as a thorn.

Hua Xiaomo didn’t leave that night. She remained in the villa’s living room, waiting for him. She waited for a long, long time, watching the clock hands move past eleven-thirty, but he still hadn’t returned.

This was the first night since their contract began that he hadn’t asked her to accompany him.

Such nights were much quieter, and one’s mind was much clearer.

Sitting in the living room, Hua Xiaomo felt somewhat numb, one thought repeating endlessly in her mind.

How had she ended up ? Why?

The world was too unfair to her, Hua Xiaomo.

She had always lived under someone else’s roof, forcing smiles, trying to please everyone, keeping a low profile... but what had it gotten her?

Yu Bao, who had been waiting outside, came in and saw Hua Xiaomo sitting there. He wanted to say something, but he held back. Read complete versıon only at 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡•𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚•𝙣𝙚𝙩

This matter certainly couldn’t wait.

If President Qi didn’t return tonight... would that indirectly prove there was no room left for negotiation?

Was he really going to harden his heart and send her to prison?

But what was the point of such torment?

Yu Bao sighed, then turned and left the room again.

Time crawled by, and the waiting was agonizing.

Hua Xiaomo appeared calm on the surface, but inside she was frantic.

The ridiculous part was, the power was no longer in her hands. She was like a criminal awaiting the final verdict!

Whether it would be a fixed-term sentence or life imprisonment, it was completely out of her control now.