Savage Kiss - Chapter 76

Ma Xu said that even his girlfriend didn’t take care of him like this.

Her initiative and lack of concealment made him think that she had truly acquiesced to, or even confirmed, their relationship.

Xu Qingyi leaned against the wall and asked him, “Do you know the calm before the storm?”

“What if it’s because I want to end things, so I’m unusually enthusiastic?”

Shen Yanzhou’s thin lips curled slightly.

He wasn’t a block of wood; he could tell whether there was a difference in how she acted with him recently compared to before.

“Didn’t we agree that you’d tell me in advance if you wanted to switch to someone else?” Shen Yanzhou didn’t believe her.

If she suddenly went to a bar to drown her sorrows without a word, it couldn’t possibly mean she wanted to replace him, it was more likely she didn’t.

Xu Qingyi took the opportunity to respond to his words.

“I’d forgotten about that if you hadn’t mentioned it. Let’s just clear things up tonight.”

The basement was already dimly lit, and the corner was even darker.

Shen Yanzhou stood with his back to the only light source outside, the gloom between his brows so thick it seemed almost tangible.

After a long while, he asked knowingly, “Clear what up?”

Xu Qingyi raised her head, looked directly into his eyes, and spoke plainly, “Let’s stop here. It’s over.”

“Is that clear enough?”

Xu Qingyi strained to keep her head raised, not wanting to lose the staring contest and let him notice anything amiss.

She needed him to think she was just a fickle, heartless woman.

But Shen Yanzhou was unusually quiet.

He took a small step forward, suddenly bent down, and picked up her hand, which hung at her side, clenched so tightly her nails were almost digging into her palm.

She had no idea how he’d noticed.

He lowered his head and gently pried her fingers open. “Why are you gripping so hard? If something’s wrong, just tell me directly. Don’t take it out on yourself.”

Xu Qingyi tried to pull her hand back, but Shen Yanzhou refused to let go.

His voice even softened. “Is it because I’ve been too busy these past few days and you feel neglected?”

He had indeed been busy lately, making several trips to the company, dealing with one document after another.

A nonexistent director position, and several board members were taking it more seriously than he was.

He just wanted to see what madness Shen Yuqiao was up to this time.

On top of that, due to the previous workplace injury at the factory, some orders had been delayed significantly. He was so busy he barely had time to eat, and she had brought him meals several times.

He had been so absorbed in it all that he had overlooked the possibility that she might have complaints.

Xu Qingyi never expected that, after turning it over and over in his mind, he would only find reasons within himself.

Why couldn’t he consider that she might be tired of it, done with it, or no longer interested?

It suddenly reminded her of what Mi Lian had told her when she first experienced workplace bullying:

“Don’t always look for reasons in yourself. Always believe you’re not at fault, it’s others who are wrong. If that doesn’t work, then it’s society’s problem.”

She knew all too well that the more someone lacked love, the more they’d think this way.

It made her even more reluctant.

But she had to do this. Xu Qingyi decided to make it quick. “No,” she said. “I’m just tired of it.”

Xu Qingyi wanted to come up with solid reasons for being tired of it but found there were none.

She could only laugh lightly. “Haven’t you noticed? Every time, it’s the same old tricks from you. Aside from being strong and fast, what other variations do you have?”

After saying this quickly and emotionlessly, Xu Qingyi turned and left, not waiting to see his reaction.

When she entered the elevator, Shen Yanzhou did not follow.

Xu Qingyi thought that since she had spoken so harshly, given his temperament, it was impossible for him to come looking for her again.

Leaning against the elevator wall, she finally felt as if she were suffocating.

It was an unfamiliar sensation, one she had never experienced before.

It must have been the alcohol she drank tonight causing the problem. She had no choice but to clutch her chest and slowly crouch down, trying to ease the discomfort a little.

When the elevator doors opened, Xu Qingyi didn’t get up immediately. She wondered if she could ask Shen Yuqiao for the surveillance footage of Xu Chen abroad.

But out of the corner of her eye, she glanced upward.

She saw a pair of shoes outside the elevator doors. Frowning, she lifted her gaze further and saw Shen Yanzhou holding the elevator door open with one hand, watching her.

Xu Qingyi froze, unsure how to react.

Shen Yanzhou bent down, pulled her out of the elevator.

She tried to struggle, but his grip was firm. He stopped in front of a door, directly unlocked it with the passcode, then pulled her inside, turned around, and pinned her against the door.

Xu Qingyi snapped back to her senses, a wave of unwarranted anger rising within her. “Who gave you permission to register your fingerprint on my door?”

After he had learned the passcode last time, she hadn’t changed it, but she certainly hadn’t allowed him to register his fingerprint either.

Shen Yanzhou cupped the back of her head with one hand, his palm so large that his thumb could still tilt her chin upward.

He answered irrelevantly, “Didn’t you complain that I lacked variety? Then let’s try something different tonight, alright?”

It sounded as if he were humbly trying to satisfy her, but his tone was filled with arrogance and wickedness.

Clearly, her harsh words from earlier had truly pierced deep into his flesh and blood.

Just as Xu Qingyi was about to curse at him again, Shen Yanzhou casually switched on a strip of warm-toned lights inside.

The soft glow wasn’t blinding, just enough to illuminate the space.

Xu Qingyi glanced around and froze.

This wasn’t her room, it was the one next door?

Her door was adjacent to the one next door, so she had mistaken it earlier.

But the two rooms were vastly different.

Her apartment was exquisitely decorated but felt empty.

This room, however, had ordinary decor but was incredibly eye-catching because it was filled with all sorts of equipment and tools.

It seemed like a dedicated gym or a space for other apparatus, but the shapes of some of the equipment made someone in her profession immediately think of lewd and twisted ideas.

Especially that strange-looking chair.

Shen Yanzhou followed her gaze. “You like that spot, don’t you?”

Xu Qingyi frowned as she realized what he intended to do.

But the next second, he pressed his thumb against her chin and kissed her, not allowing her to evade.

He pulled her into his embrace, kissing her with all the skill he possessed. “You’ll like it, I swear.”

Xu Qingyi had no way to resist. No matter how hard she pushed, she couldn’t budge Shen Yanzhou.

She didn’t know how many things he switched to or how many tricks he employed. All she felt was her soul floating, drifting, on the verge of shattering.

In the end, all she remembered was that strip of lights flickering incessantly, the nearby bench and the octopus-like chair toppled haphazardly.

And unlike before, she didn’t succumb to fragility. She stubbornly fought off exhaustion, refusing to let him touch her, and made her way back to her own apartment next door.

Only when she reached her own bed did she bury herself completely under the covers.

The knocking outside sounded several times, but Xu Qingyi paid it no mind. Her eyes stung with moisture.

All she wanted was to sleep.

She didn’t know if Shen Yanzhou had eventually entered by inputting the passcode himself.

In her dreams, it seemed as though she saw him bowing his head, carefully applying medicine for her.