Chapter 252: Chapter 252

The space was too quiet, making it quite uncomfortable.

"It’s okay," Hua Xiaomo answered succinctly. Then, as if remembering something, she quickly added, "President Qi, I will abide by our agreement. You don’t need to worry. Regarding your compromising photos, I won’t show them to anyone."

Qi Longbing’s eyes flashed with a dangerous gleam, but he soon smiled faintly. "If that’s the case, I have nothing to worry about. Given our relationship, letting you keep those photos is not a problem at all. The issue is... having been with me, how can you so calmly say you want to marry someone else?"

Hua Xiaomo was taken aback. She hadn’t looked him directly in the eye since getting into the car. Now, she merely glanced at him disdainfully before turning her gaze back out the window. The relentless downpour once again made her nerves twinge with pain.

"..." Hua Xiaomo didn’t answer him, and her face grew more silent. A hint of melancholy flickered in her amber eyes.

"Xiao Mo... I know your willingness to be with me isn’t just a one-sided thing from my end; you do have feelings for me... Why don’t you... come back? We can still be like we were before..." Qi Longbing hadn’t finished speaking when—

"No..." Hua Xiaomo looked at him and flatly rejected him with that single word. "President Qi, I thank you for valuing me so much. That you still say these things even now truly surprises me and, at the same time, makes me feel at a loss. I admit..."

"What happened between us was indeed a bit unusual. Whether it was thrilling or something else, I don’t want to deceive you anymore. I’m truly sorry... I really don’t have those kinds of feelings for you," Hua Xiaomo finished slowly.

The less emotional entanglement now, the better. This wasn’t just about freeing herself, but also about freeing others.

Hearing this, Qi Longbing laughed sarcastically. "What do you mean, ’don’t have those kinds of feelings’? If you didn’t have those feelings, how could we have been together? If men act out of desire, don’t women act out of emotion? Out of liking, out of love?"

Hua Xiaomo looked at him, her eyelids drooping slightly before she quickly averted her gaze. "President Qi, let’s not talk about this anymore. I think it’s meaningless... We have an agreement, and I hope you can also abide by it, President Qi."

"So this agreement means you disappear from my world? Hua Xiaomo, you can manage yourself, that’s fine. But by what right do you interfere with and limit my, Qi Longbing’s, thoughts and actions?" Qi Longbing retorted with a cold laugh.

Ridiculous! Was he, the mighty President of the Qi Family, to be constrained and threatened by this young woman? Was he really sinking lower and lower?

"..." Hua Xiaomo was silent for a while before finally saying, "I don’t want to interfere with you, but for the sake of this agreement, you’ll also restrain yourself, won’t you?"

"Good... Very good." Qi Longbing smiled again, his handsome face suddenly breaking into a brilliant smile.

Then, he said no more. The car fell into a long silence, with only the relentless PITTER-PATTER of the heavy rain on the windows, drumming against the vehicle.

"So, when are you planning to marry your beloved? I should prepare a generous gift for your wedding!" Qi Longbing said, a tinge of indifference in his voice.

"There’s no need. I appreciate the sentiment," Hua Xiaomo said flatly. Yet, in that moment, emotions surged within her.

What a longed-for and sacred thing it was. Yet, why did it hurt a bit to even talk about it now? She had always dreamt of wearing a pure white wedding gown, walking hand-in-hand with her beloved into the sacred halls of matrimony. But once this purity was tainted by various defilements and schemes, could it still remain so pure and flawless?

Hearing this, Qi Longbing’s heart tightened. "Will you really marry that Long Shangxuan?"

Why did he still have to ask this? Weren’t her words and actions clear enough already? There was absolutely no place for him, Qi Longbing, in her eyes or her heart! Not even taking her first night, not even being with her countless times, could change this fact. She was dead set on dumping him!

"President Qi, even if I were to marry, it would be quite normal," Hua Xiaomo murmured, leaning back in her seat, her lips curled into a bitter smile. "Eventually, you’ll marry Miss Pan and won’t remember all your past female companions. Because only the person who stays by your side in the end is important." Get full chapters from 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦•𝘯𝘦𝘵

"Heh..." Qi Longbing laughed again upon hearing this, his gaze fixed on her profile. "’They say a woman never forgets her first man for her entire life. I refuse to believe you can truly forget me."

He paused, resting a hand on the shoulder of her seat, and continued, "If you ever need comfort in the future, just call me... my phone number will never change."

"...There won’t be a day like that," Hua Xiaomo answered with a low laugh.

"Don’t be so certain. Even those who are married... might get divorced!" A flawless smile touched Qi Longbing’s lips, but a faint, cold chill emanated from the depths of his heart.

What was this? A farewell speech?

Qi Longbing laughed self-deprecatingly in his heart. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he asked, "The butterfly... did you receive it?"

At the thought of last night, Hua Xiaomo’s eyes dimmed. It took her a long moment to respond with a low, "...Mm."

"Good that you received it." Qi Longbing smiled, then, as if trying to find something to say, continued, "I won’t be by your side in the future. You must take good care of yourself. Apart from tea made by your mother or yourself, don’t just drink anything given to you by others, understand?"

"..." Hua Xiaomo fell silent for a moment, unable to say anything more.

Why? Why was he still saying these things to her? Hadn’t she already betrayed him? Hadn’t she already chosen someone else? Why did he still care about her? She wasn’t worth it. Not worth his concern at all!

"Thank you for the reminder. I know," Hua Xiaomo said with a faint smile, watching the rain outside gradually subside. "I want to go back to the villa."

Qi Longbing glanced at her, then looked away.

"’Heh... a thunderstorm is just a thunderstorm. It’s as if a gust of wind can blow all the rain away.’"

Suddenly, he had a strong urge to say again whose place Yuehu Residence No. 81 was. But then he felt it would be pointless. Saying it would be saying it for nothing. For Hua Xiaomo, who was truly important to her? Who did she really care about in her heart?

Qi Longbing laughed self-deprecatingly again, a smile on his incomparably handsome face. Indistinct emotions and feelings enveloped his heart, weighing it down, lost in thought.

Soon, the car started. Qi Longbing drove her to the lakeside chair where she had been sitting earlier. Without another word of farewell, he simply unlocked the car and opened her door.