I dragged my aching body up to the third floor. At the door of the study in the far corner, I smelled a faint smell of smoke. I pushed open the half-closed door, and sure enough, he was inside.

"Okay, you can arrange it. I'll do as you say."

Standing by the arched floor-to-ceiling window, Fu Yanshen, dressed in a suit and tie, stood tall and elegant, gazing out the window.

He held his phone to his ear with his right hand, making a call, while his left hand hung down by his trouser seam, a cigarette between his fingers.

Grayish-blue smoke rose slowly.

I took a deep breath, suppressing my anxiety, and approached him after he hung up the phone.

"Fu Yanshen, was it your idea that the bank suddenly stopped lending to Shengshi?"

I watched his retreating figure and asked as calmly as possible.

"Yes, that's what I mean." Fu Yanshen turned around calmly and said to me indifferently.

His expression returned to its usual indifference.

My heart sank. "Why? They promised to lend the money, and we even signed the contract. Why did they stop lending for the second batch?"

The bank's loan agreement disbursed funds to Shengshi's account in three installments. The first installment had just been disbursed before I arrived.

"Sheng Qiaoqiao, don't you understand?" The man's lips curled into a sneer. He took a drag of his cigarette, slowly exhaled the smoke, and continued:

"A trap to lure you in!"

His words struck me like a thunderbolt, leaving me staring at him in astonishment and confusion.

I didn't quite understand what he meant at first.

Fu Yanshen raised an eyebrow, looking at me with disdain. "Without using loans as bait, why would you so easily agree to offer yourself up for a few days?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he let out a cold sneer.

“No bank was willing to lend to Shengshi, which was barely surviving. It was my scheme to get them to agree first, then renege, forcing you to come to me.”

As he spoke, he walked up to me, lifted my chin, and blew cigarette smoke in my face.

He was acting extremely badly, a stark contrast to his attitude towards me just two days ago.

It was only then that I belatedly realized what he meant.

After I refused to be his mistress for a few days, he deliberately set this trap to force me to take the initiative to contact him!

"Why?!" I asked excitedly.

Fu Yanshen was visibly taken aback, then instantly adopted amusement, his dark eyes narrowing with a mocking gaze. "Young Miss, why? Do I need to repeat myself? Don't you already know perfectly well?"

He gently patted my cheek, his tone full of sarcasm.

I understand what he means.

Shi Jin has psychological trauma and doesn't want to sleep with him, so he asked me to be his substitute for a few days.

Looking at him, my heart clenched, but I didn't believe it.

He's definitely lying, he's deliberately being dishonest.

"Fu Yanshen, if you consider me a substitute for Shi Jin, then why did you injure Shi Jin when you had your depression attack that day? Why did you let me get close? I asked you, who am I!"

I set aside my pride, looked up, and stared directly into his dark eyes, questioning him.

That bastard! He clearly cares about me, but he doesn't treat me as a substitute. Yet he still insists that I am Shi Jin's substitute!

Fu Yanshen froze, his dark eyes fixed on me, staring at me as if trying to see right through me.

Did he also realize my feelings for him?

My heart pounded, I held my breath, my lips moved, wanting to tell him how I felt about him...

“I was faking it,” he said first, with a cold laugh.

I shook my head. "You're saying you're faking your illness? I've seen sleeping pills in the bedside table at home!"

Fu Yanshen pinched the bridge of his nose, looking at me with great impatience. "My illness is not fake. I woke up after smashing Jin'er that day. After I recognized her, I calmed down quickly. Then, you overestimated yourself and came in."

"Since you've always been cold towards me, I decided to put on an act and wait for you to throw yourself into my arms."

Hearing his words, I was incredulous and slowly shook my head.

“From childhood to adulthood, whenever I had an attack, only Jin’er could comfort me. She was as gentle and patient as my mother, accepting and embracing me. But you…”

As Fu Yanshen spoke, his dark eyes seemed to be lost in distant memories, and when he said the last two words, a sarcastic smile appeared on his lips.

"If it weren't for this face and the passion in bed, Sheng Qiaoqiao, I really wouldn't bother to look at you twice."

He looked down at me, his gaze as if he were looking at the most insignificant creature at my feet.

"I don't believe it, Fu Yanshen... You're lying to me, aren't you? I'm not anyone's substitute!" I took a step forward, grabbed his sleeves tightly with both hands, looked up at him, and tears of grievance welled up in my eyes.

My voice was hoarse, and trembling with sobs.

My fingertips dug deep into his arm, as if I were clutching at the last straw.

He is the man I loved but could not have in my past life, and the man I still cannot let go of after being reborn. These past few days, we have been like a sweet couple. He gave me the tenderness and gentleness that I had longed for but could not get before, which rekindled my hope and made me feel like I saw hope in life again.

I also had a vague feeling that he had feelings for me.

I don't want to believe what he's saying; he must have some unspeakable secret!

"Sheng Qiaoqiao, how shameless are you? I've already said all this, and you're still clinging to me? Let go!" Fu Yanshen stared at me with cold, terrifying eyes, his voice both sarcastic and rebuking.

I was so frightened that I took a step back and let go of him. His appearance at that moment was exactly the same as when he forced me to divorce him in my past life.

I felt like I'd been doused with a bucket of ice water, and I snapped back to reality.

I found myself, just like in my past life, blinded by love, and actually thought he had some hidden reason for not admitting his feelings for me.

How could Fu Yanshen possibly have feelings for me?

In his eyes, I am an ignorant and incompetent fool, and now I am a fake rich girl. He looked down on me before, and now he despises me even more.

I was just being delusional again, and I never learn my lesson.

He gave me a little something sweet, and I got all love-struck.

Last night, he took me to see that movie, and all I really remember is the explicit content...

I gave a bitter smile.

“Third time…” I murmured to myself as I slowly turned around.

The first time, after he forced me to divorce him in my past life, I couldn't bear the blow and went insane.

The second time, in northern Myanmar, he saved me, and I fell for him again.

And this time too...

That's enough.

I walked towards the door, but when I got to the door, I turned back.

He was turned to the side, trying to light a cigarette, repeatedly pressing the lighter, which wouldn't ignite, looking very impatient.

“Fu Yanshen, no matter what, the Sheng family has done nothing wrong to you. There must be some misunderstanding about Shi Jin. Bei Chen and my mother would never treat her like that. Can you have a conscience and give up on revenge?”

I want to ask him, I've never wronged you, why are you so cruel to me?

But I couldn't bring myself to ask.

In that case, if he could see right through me, I would have no self-respect left in front of him.