"You don’t have to talk, you go ahead and busy yourself."
Shen Jiangli said, stood up from the chair, and walked out of the office door.
Shen Heyu stared at his back, unsure what he was planning to do next. But with her many years of understanding him, she could tell the expression he bore earlier was a sign of anger.
When he got angry, he was no easier to deal with than Pei Yansi; in fact, having been educated abroad, his methods and ideas were always more open and bold. His ways of tormenting people were bizarre.
Compared to Pei Yansi’s disguised gentleness, Shen Jiangli was actually more frightening.
He returned to his own territory and had his assistant contact Han Manyin.
Han Manyin had just submitted her resignation that morning, and she had not yet left the company, sitting at her own workstation handing over responsibilities.
Just as she was preparing to leave, she heard that Shen Jiangli wanted to see her. Startled, thinking there might still be a chance, she hurried to find him.
Pushing open the door to Shen Jiangli’s office, she immediately saw him sitting on the black leather sofa with his legs naturally crossed, his body leaning slightly backward. When he heard her enter, he slightly lifted his gaze to look at Han Manyin.
"You’ve come quite quickly," Shen Jiangli said.
Han Manyin, uncertain of why he called for her but aware of last night’s events that made her wary of offending him, said,
"I haven’t left the company yet, you are still President Shen. If you call for me, of course, I’ll come immediately."
"Is that so?" Shen Jiangli asked with a smile that was not quite a smile, his gaze toward Han Manyin becoming sharper, his cold eyes brewing a deep storm.
"You only obey me at times like these."
Shen Jiangli patted the sofa beside him, indicating for Han Manyin to come sit and said, "Yesterday, you were intimate with me; how come you are so strange with me now? Come and sit beside me."
Upon hearing his words, Han Manyin thought she still had a chance with him, but when she met his gaze, she sensed he was not looking to reconcile, but rather to harshly teach her a lesson.
Nevertheless, she hesitated and shuffled over to sit beside him.
Shen Jiangli was pleased with her actions; as she came to sit beside him, he stretched out an arm and pulled her into his embrace.
He softly asked, "What did you say to Shen Heyu this morning?"
Han Manyin’s voice suddenly turned cold, her expression becoming indifferent; she had thought it was something important, only to realize it was again about Shen Heyu.
Was Shen Jiangli not looking to reconcile but instead, because of this morning’s talk, intending to seek justice for Shen Heyu and to trouble her?
Realizing this, Han Manyin grew increasingly angry, and her hatred toward Shen Heyu deepened.
Shen Jiangli quietly watched her expression, missing nothing. Suddenly, he moved swiftly, grasping Han Manyin’s neck in a lightning-fast motion.
His actions were so quick that Han Manyin didn’t even have time to react; her breathing was immediately constricted.
Gasping for air, her face turned pale as she struggled to speak, "What do you want to do, cough..."
Due to her constricted breathing, she had begun to cough and tremble under Shen Jiangli’s grip.
Shen Jiangli’s face, once gentle, now collected all warmth within himself; he looked coldly at the woman who worked for him. Even though they had once been intimate in bed, there was no trace of mercy left in him now.
His grip gradually tightened, feeling the pulse throbbing in Han Manyin’s artery. A sick excitement flickered in his eyes as he stared at her and said,
"Didn’t I tell you yesterday not to aim for Shen Heyu, let alone try to make your presence felt around her..."
He shoved her onto the sofa, his body forming an absolute suppression over hers.
Han Manyin struggled helplessly, meeting Shen Jiangli’s sick, bloodshot eyes, and felt increasingly that he was insane.
Yet wasn’t she the same kind of person?
She couldn’t speak, being choked; she couldn’t answer him, so Shen Jiangli continued, talking to himself, "Not only did you not listen, but you also ran to her side babbling nonsense. Who told you to do that? Do you really think I’m dead?"
Shen Jiangli’s words were through clenched teeth, filled with intense anger.
Han Manyin felt her breathing becoming weaker, fearing he might actually strangle her in anger. In desperation, she reached out to grasp his wrist, attempting to push him away and ease the pressure on her neck.
"Don’t want me just because you say so? Filthy in your own heart, having such thoughts about a friend for so many years, and fearful she’d find out?"
Seeing that he still favored Shen Heyu, hatred rekindled in Han Manyin. She didn’t care about his current status as President Shen.
Since there was no chance left between them, she thought, her reason now completely overtaken by anger, she blurted out, "What, I just told her the truth, and it upset you?"
"It’s your own unrequited love, your own inferiority complex that’s making you anxious, making you furious. How are you above me here, yet nothing before Shen Heyu?"
Her words infuriated Shen Jiangli deeply.
His reddened eyes glared at her, his voice tight with anger as he said,
"Have the guts to say that again?"
"Why, you think I’m still afraid of you? Before Shen Heyu, you’re nothing," retorted Han Manyin, her anger giving her strength. She grabbed his hand, choking her, loosening the grip enough that she could breathe and speak.
"You’ve been by her side for six years, but look what you’ve got?"
Each of her words painfully punctured Shen Jiangli’s heart.
A heart already fragile and shattered was now torn asunder by her words. His breathing tightened, no longer controllable, the last strand of his sanity snapping.
Shen Jiangli grabbed Han Manyin by the hair and flung her forcefully from the sofa.
He was very strong, and Han Manyin had no time to react. She hadn’t any strength to struggle against him; the disparity between male and female strength natural, and she was thrown to the edge of the coffee table.
A loud crash sounded through the office, followed by Han Manyin’s agonized scream as her head brutally struck the sharp corner of the coffee table.
A cry of pain lodged in her throat; she felt darkness envelop her vision, her consciousness muddled, fading into oblivion.
The world plunged into darkness.
Shen Jiangli watched the woman lying on the ground, saw the blood gradually spreading beneath her head.
He suddenly panicked. This was not like being overseas, where anything could be done at will.
Just then, the door to the office was pushed open from the outside.