The three of them exchanged glances, the air suddenly going still. In this moment and scene, no one knew what to say.
"Miss, Mr. Li, dinner is ready. Shall we go downstairs now... to eat?"
Cheng Shi moved half a step to the right as he spoke, pretending he hadn’t seen anything. He didn’t want his young master to be embarrassed. Otherwise, he’d have to be caught in the middle, mediating conflict again—it was too suffocating.
His reaction was quick, and his reasoning reasonable.
Li Zishen swept a glance over and focused sharply on Cheng Shi’s clenched fist. "You go down first. Me and your miss... have something to discuss."
Fearless Cheng Shi shouted, "How long?"
Li Zishen suppressed his anger, speaking very low.
"Fine, 15 minutes. I’ll wait outside."
After speaking, Cheng Shi glanced at Tang Xiaowan and seeing her calm face, he quickly left but deliberately left the door ajar, about the width of a fist.
He knew what kind of person Li Zishen was very well.
But right now, intuition told him that even a man with good self-control has moments of losing it, and he might unintentionally hurt Tang Xiaowan.
He had to stay close by, ready to step in at any moment.
Inside the room, on the other hand.
Li Zishen paced back and forth, walking and stopping, unsure how to persuade her.
He didn’t want Tang Xiaowan to leave Li Garden.
Partly for safety, partly for private reasons.
At last, Tang Xiaowan broke the two-minute deadlock by speaking first.
"How much do you know about Leng Lingxiao? Do you have any idea what he’s done abroad? I’ve been paying attention to him for a long time. Do you know how many people hate him? They wish they could... "
Li Zishen’s gaze was keen, but he held back from speaking.
He didn’t want to involve Tang Xiaowan in the complexities of business affairs, to add to her concerns, especially since he and Leng Lingxiao had been at peace on the surface for years.
The two conglomerates even collaborated a few times in their fathers’ generation, and both sides profited considerably.
Since then, they had coexisted peacefully, with clear boundaries.
But now, Leng Lingxiao was secretly approaching Tang Xiaowan and even purchased property in the same neighborhood, which undoubtedly crossed Li Zishen’s bottom line.
He had experienced firsthand the treacherous nature of people’s hearts.
years? Just because someone says 15 years is 15 years?
You believe what others say, but you always take my words with a grain of salt. One of these days, you’re going to be the death of me.
"Why aren’t you saying anything? Are you scared?"
"Zishen, my issues have nothing to do with him. From the first day you kept me here against my will, I’ve wanted to leave. Really, it has nothing to do with him."
Li Zishen’s lips curved slightly, but he didn’t answer, just quietly watched her.
The term ’house arrest’ weighed heavy on him.
"Let me go, please. I beg you. I want to live a free life, not be watched all the time."
Li Zishen still didn’t respond.
"Zishen, I know you mean well, worried that the mastermind will strike again, but we can’t go on forever, having to hide from danger..."
Li Zishen suddenly asked, his eyes full of urgency.
Tang Xiaowan didn’t know how to respond. Saying she didn’t love him might anger Li Zishen, but saying she did seemed somehow wrong, quite against her heart.
"Are you unsure? Alright, then let me put it another way. Do you love... Leng Lingxiao?"
Tang Xiaowan remained silent, head bowed.
She truly didn’t know. She didn’t know what kind of person she was in the part of her memory that she lost, whether she had a romantic relationship with Leng Lingxiao.
years, a full 15 years!
He was so handsome and witty. Logically, over time, feelings should have developed, shouldn’t there have been a spark?
Forget it, it doesn’t matter. She felt nothing now.
Seeing Tang Xiaowan seem like she wanted to speak but hesitated, Li Zishen continued, "Or should we change it again. When you wake up in the morning, who do you most want to see, him or me?"
The man’s eyes were filled with expectation, making Tang Xiaowan inexplicably anxious, as if she had made a huge mistake. The source of thɪs content is NoveI-Fire.ɴet
"Zishen, the truth is... Right now I just want to find out who is trying to harm me. I really haven’t had the heart to think about matters of feelings, I’m sorry."
"No need to apologize. Since you don’t love anyone... it’s actually quite good. Let’s start over."
Tang Xiaowan frowned, "What do you mean?"
"Don’t worry about this place, I will furnish whatever you need in the new house. But you have to come back and stay here for two days every weekend. Only this one condition."
"Enough, no arguing. Let’s go, downstairs. Today we have pork trotters, specially braised for you."