Goodbye, Scumbag! The Powerful CEO Is My New Devoted Lover - Chapter 8

Behind him, Xia Zhi was slumped on the floor, her beige dress wrinkled and disheveled. There was a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth, but her gaze was like that of a venomous snake, fixed deathly on Su Xiao. The air was thick with the heavy scent of roses mixed with the familiar cedarwood scent from Yan Mingshen, creating a bizarre and suggestive atmosphere.

Su Xiao’s gaze swept across Yan Mingshen’s messy collar before landing on Xia Zhi behind him. Her eyes lingered for half a second on Xia Zhi’s rumpled hem. Then, her eyelashes curved as she offered a smile that was as faint as morning mist, yet carried a needle-like coldness as it fell upon Xia Zhi.

“Why is Miss Xia sitting on the floor?”

Her voice was as light as a sigh. She even moved half a step forward, reaching out as if to help. Just as her fingertips were about to touch Xia Zhi’s arm, she pulled back as if remembering something. She turned to look at Yan Mingshen instead, her eyes filled with a perfectly measured amount of worry.

“Did you accidentally fall? The guest room floor is cold; it would be bad if you caught a chill.”

Xia Zhi was so stifled by this facade of oblivious docility that her chest felt tight. Just as she was about to snap back, she saw that Su Xiao had already turned toward the stairs. Halfway up, Su Xiao looked back, her eyes landing on Yan Mingshen’s slightly open collar.

Her tone was one of considerate softness. “Mingshen, remember to button your shirt. The night wind is strong; don’t let it blow on you.”

She paused, her gaze sweeping over the messy bedding in the guest room before finally returning to Xia Zhi. Her smile deepened, like a blade dipped in honey.

“If Miss Xia feels unwell anywhere, just let me know. We have a first-aid kit in the house. Since you are staying here, we certainly can’t let you suffer any grievances.”

The final lilt in her tone carried an innocent warmth, but it caused Xia Zhi to slam her fist shut. Su Xiao clearly saw everything, yet she insisted on playing the part of the pure, kind wife. With the poise of the mistress of the house, she made Xia Zhi’s pathetic state look like a total joke.

Yan Mingshen watched the flutter of Su Xiao’s clothes as she turned away, then looked at Xia Zhi’s ashen face on the floor. His throat suddenly felt tight. Su Xiao’s phrase “staying here” felt like a fine needle, pricking the suggestive bubbles in the air to reveal the embarrassing truth beneath.

Xia Zhi’s fingertips trembled with rage. She wanted to denounce Su Xiao for being a hypocrite, but meeting Yan Mingshen’s suddenly darkened gaze, the words died in her throat. For the first time, she realized that Su Xiao’s gentle and sensible act was more stifling than any hysterical crying or screaming.

The sound of high heels clicking against the floor tiles was crisp, sounding like the final drumbeats of this farce. Yan Mingshen watched Su Xiao’s back, his heart feeling as though it were being gripped by something fierce. The pain made it almost impossible to breathe. He wanted to chase after her to explain, but his feet remained nailed to the spot.

Xia Zhi scrambled up from the floor, walked to his side, and gently grabbed his arm. Yan Mingshen violently threw her hand off.

“Xia Xia, you really went too far this time.”

Xia Zhi froze at his shout, her eyes instantly reddening with grievance. “Mingshen…”

Yan Mingshen stood there, his chest heaving. He looked toward the stairs where Su Xiao had disappeared. His heart felt as if a piece had been hollowed out, leaving a hole for the cold wind to whistle through. He knew that this time, he might have truly gone too far.

In the master bedroom, Su Xiao leaned against the freezing wall. She tightly clutched the recording pen in her hand. Tears struck the polished floor tiles, blooming into small wet marks.

So, this was the man she had loved for five years. This was the home she had given everything to protect. It was… truly laughable.

The night was dreamless. The next morning, Su Xiao got up very early and left while the two people downstairs were still sleeping. She had to return to the site to continue salvaging the remaining paintings.

Yesterday, Qin Yu had already arranged for the studio to take over security for the gallery ruins. When Su Xiao arrived, two of Qin Yu’s apprentices were squatting by the second floor balcony, using small brushes to carefully sweep debris off the paintings.

“Is your master not coming today?” Su Xiao set her bag aside and expertly donned her work clothes as she greeted the two.

“Master was called away by Sister Xu An as soon as he reached the studio this morning. He probably won’t be back until the afternoon.” Seeing Su Xiao approach, one of the boys wearing glasses stood up and handed her a small iron box. “We found this in the second floor workroom. It doesn’t look like calligraphy or a painting. Take a look.”

The iron box was blackened by smoke, but the patterns on it were faintly visible.

“It’s nothing important,” Su Xiao said, but she reflexively wrapped it in a paper bag and tucked it into her purse. It was a coming-of-age gift given to her by that person, and she had never opened it. She hadn’t expected that even with the gallery gone, this item could be recovered.

The three of them worked all morning but managed to clear less than a third of the second floor. Yesterday, Qin Yu had taken all the paintings with less severe damage back to the studio. What remained now required slow, painstaking extraction.

Su Xiao’s back ached with fatigue, but these paintings had to be sent to the studio for processing as soon as possible. The longer they waited, the greater the loss.

“Senior Sister!” Qin Yu, carrying several bottles of ice water, waved to Su Xiao from downstairs. “I brought the rest of the studio staff to take over the shift. Tell the guys to come down; let’s go get something to eat.”

“Okay.” Su Xiao hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded. Although she could have pushed through, she didn’t want the other two to work on empty stomachs because of her.

“Let’s go. Your master is treating,” Su Xiao said with a smile. Watching the two boys take off their work clothes while joking about how they were going to scam their master for an expensive meal, her mood lightened slightly.

As soon as they got into the car, Qin Yu pressed a bottle of ice water into Su Xiao’s lap. “You must be exhausted and hot, Senior Sister. Cool down quickly.”

“Thank you.” It had been hot in the city lately, and the ruined building had no air conditioning. Su Xiao’s face was flushed from the heat. She had her hair in a high ponytail today, and sitting with these recently graduated university students, she looked like their peer. One could not tell at all that she was married.

Su Xiao placed the water bottle against her neck to cool down. As she raised her hand, a section of her fair wrist was exposed, and condensation from the bottle trickled down her wrist bone into her sleeve. Qin Yu took one look and quickly averted his eyes, heading toward a famous local stir-fry restaurant as the apprentices requested.

Just as they walked through the door, they saw Xia Zhi holding Yan Mingshen’s arm as they walked toward a private room. With their backs to the entrance, the two were chatting and laughing. They looked like a perfect, talented couple.

Su Xiao’s footsteps faltered but did not stop. She gripped the strap of her canvas bag so tightly it dug into her palm. It felt as if her heart had been struck by a blunt instrument, leaving her feeling suffocated.

Qin Yu, on the other hand, looked at her several times as if he wanted to say something.

“Oh? Isn’t this Miss Su?”