Chapter 329: Chapter 329

He knew he couldn’t let go of her, but what could he do about it? She hadn’t accepted him yet. What would it take for her to finally accept him?

He had tried so many times, but all to no avail. However, he knew he would never give up. He would keep trying until he moved her heart and she truly fell in love with him.

Truly fall in love with him. At that thought, Qi Longbing mocked himself again in his heart. Had she never truly loved him? Impossible. He felt she had; it was just that this woman was too stubborn to show her feelings for him!

Soon, Hua Xiaomo and Qi Longbing reached the top of the tower. When Hua Xiaomo arrived at the summit, she was stunned by the changes there.

The summit had become a solo art exhibition. Follow current novels on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮•𝘯𝘦𝘵

All over were paintings from Hua Xiaomo’s college days. She had painted many pictures: some of animals, some of people, and also landscapes. Among these, the eye-catching nude paintings made hearts race.

They stood out amidst so many others.

Hua Xiaomo looked carefully. Many were original paintings, while copies had been made, framed, and hung on the tower walls.

"You..." Hua Xiaomo looked at Qi Longbing, struggling to find words. She felt as if she had entered an ocean of flowers, or as if she had returned to her college days.

"Do you like them? These are all your paintings; I’ve collected every single one," Qi Longbing said, glancing at her face to catch the surprise hidden deep within her eyes.

"How did you find so many of my paintings?" Hua Xiaomo looked at her creations, instinctively reaching out to touch them. These were all once drawn by her own hand, stroke by stroke.

There were splash-ink landscape paintings and those evocative figure paintings that stirred the soul.

"If one is determined, what can’t be found?" Qi Longbing said, slowly gazing at the paintings. "After you left, I went to your university. I obtained these from your classmates, your friends, and even from the school’s archives."

"I felt I should collect them, so I did," Qi Longbing said softly, yet his gaze held a deep sense of satisfaction.

Yes, Hua Xiaomo had been gone for five whole years. During those five years, only these paintings had kept him company.

"These paintings aren’t valuable; why would you collect them?" Hua Xiaomo said with a laugh, but the shock in her heart was immense. She couldn’t remain calm.

At that moment, her heart truly raced for this man; she couldn’t keep her composure. He had done so much for her! He had even gone to such lengths to find so many paintings she had done—some of which she herself had forgotten—yet he had found them.

What kind of dedication was that? Probably only the person directly involved could truly understand!

"Who says they’re worthless? To me, Qi Longbing, each painting is worth tens of millions," Qi Longbing said with a smile. He then walked over to Hua Xiaomo, his hand involuntarily resting on her shoulder.

But at the moment of contact, Hua Xiaomo flinched, and he withdrew his hand.

Qi Longbing looked at the shadow on her face. He knew she had suffered a great deal. He truly wanted to help her, to take on her burdens so that her future life could be better and less difficult.

"President Qi, you really don’t have to do this," Hua Xiaomo said, her eyes brimming with a faint sadness. Her smile stiffened for a moment, but in her heart, she would forever cherish this feeling.

"You can run away once, you can run away a second time, but you can’t change my feelings for you. You can’t deny that, can you?" Qi Longbing looked at Hua Xiaomo.

He didn’t approach her again. Yet, he had a deep sense of what she must be feeling at that moment—perhaps she, too, was ensnared by love, just like him!

Not sure whether to cry or laugh, Hua Xiaomo looked at him and finally asked the question that had lingered in her heart for so long. "Why didn’t you get married during these five years?"

"You ask me why I didn’t get married?" Qi Longbing looked at Hua Xiaomo, his eyes shining.

"I don’t know!" Hua Xiaomo answered, her expression quickly changing. She knew her answer sounded unconvincing. In fact, she had always known why he hadn’t married—he was waiting for her; he was waiting for her to come back. But she was destined to disappoint him.

"Then let me ask you. Why didn’t *you* get married?" Qi Longbing looked at her face, a faint sorrow on his own.

Before she could answer, Qi Longbing continued, "If, as you say, you and that Zi Yunsui are boyfriend and girlfriend, then why haven’t you married him in the five years you’ve supposedly been together? What you said is a lie, isn’t it?"

Hua Xiaomo looked at him in shock, unable to respond. But at this very moment, her heart was pounding wildly. She felt as though she could no longer speak; emotions seemed to overwhelm her in that instant.

Qi Longbing looked at her and reached out, resting a hand on her shoulder. This time, Hua Xiaomo didn’t pull away. She looked at him, her eyes gleaming softly.

"You still love me so much, so why insist on denying your true feelings?" Qi Longbing looked into her eyes and asked directly.

However, the next second, Hua Xiaomo tried to pull away. He immediately reached out, lightly grasping her hand, preventing her from escaping his gaze. His eyes bore into hers; he wanted to see more evidence of her feelings for him within them.

He saw it. He saw that deep and indescribable emotion, much like his own—he couldn’t bring himself to stop loving her.

Hua Xiaomo looked at him. It was as if that gaze had traversed a very long time. During these five years, she had wondered countless times: would they ever meet again? And if they did, what would it be like? Perhaps she would still cherish the time they had spent together in the past, but could it all only become memories now?

But seeing him again, all those feelings came rushing back. She still loved him so earnestly, yet at the same time, he felt so domineering.

"Qi Longbing, stop it. What’s the point of saying these things? Let’s just talk about the cooperation," Hua Xiaomo said, pulling herself away and avoiding his touch. In an instant, her eyes dimmed.

What’s past is past. The present shouldn’t be entangled with what’s gone.