Chapter 493 It's best to avoid making jokes like this.

A flicker of hesitation crossed Li Tingxi's unfathomable eyes, and in that brief moment, Su Youling had already turned and left.

He gazed at Su Youling's retreating figure with an inscrutable expression, feeling as if a heavy stone was pressing on his heart, once again plunging him into a prolonged emotional tug-of-war.

...

Following the press conference, Strange Kingdom successfully resolved the public opinion crisis, and the art exhibition proceeded as planned.

Su Youling went to Ding Muyan's invitation to celebrate overcoming this difficult time.

During the meal, Ding Muyan first praised Su Youling's skills: "Miss Rebecca did not disappoint me. Not only did she act decisively to find the traitor, but she also invited Grandpa Lu to personally support her. Tsk, it seems that I underestimated you. I really couldn't help you during my trip to China, and I can't help but feel a little ashamed."

Su Youling sensed the hidden meaning in his words and politely complimented him, "President Ding is too kind. I feel more confident with you personally overseeing things."

Ding Muyan smiled, then filled both her and his glasses, tilting his glass towards her. "Let's have a toast, as a celebration of the art exhibition's success. Don't call me President Ding anymore, just call me by my name. After all, we're friends."

Su Youling remained noncommittal, clinked glasses with him, took a small sip of her wine, and readily changed her form of address to "Young Master Ding".

Ding Muyan laughed out loud this time, his eyes filled with undisguised interest. He didn't pursue the matter further. "Old Master Lu was willing to step in this time, probably because of Lu Mingxuan's influence, right? Rebecca, Lu Mingxuan's feelings for you are obvious. You don't really have no interest at all, do you?"

Su Youling sensed the probing in his tone, lowered her eyelids to conceal the coldness in her eyes, and said calmly, "President Ding, I think I already said last time that I don't like others invading my privacy."

Ding Muyan clicked his tongue, quite dissatisfied: "You were calling me Young Master Ding just now, and now you're calling me President Ding. If you can't talk about Lu Mingxuan, then let's talk about me."

Su Youling looked up and met his meaningful gaze, and couldn't help but frown.

Ding Muyan sat up slightly, loosened his tie, and immediately exuded the air of a playboy. His narrow eyes were slightly upturned, and he said half-jokingly, "If you want to completely break up with Li Tingxi, why not turn to my arms?"

Su Youling paused for a moment, stared at him intently, shook her head and chuckled, "President Ding, it's best to avoid making these kinds of jokes."

Ding Muyan leaned slightly towards her, his expression becoming much more serious. "What? You think I'm joking? Compared to Li Tingxi, I consider myself more gentle and considerate. If you become my woman, I will not only pamper and love you, but also protect you. Are you really not going to consider it?"

Su Youling clearly saw the nonchalance in his eyes, so she naturally couldn't take his "confession" seriously. "President Ding, are you sure you said those words because you genuinely like me?"

Ding Muyan raised an eyebrow, gradually toning down his overt frivolity, and his gaze towards her deepened.

Su Youling looked at him with a half-smile, "President Ding is used to playing the field, but little does he know that not everyone is like you, keen on playing these kinds of emotional games. Anyway, I can't afford to play them, and I'm not willing to play along with your act."

"Acting?" Ding Muyan murmured the word, his expression slowly shifting from playful to serious.

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He stood up, a barely perceptible glint of annoyance flashing in his eyes, a subtle displeasure at being seen through.

But he quickly composed himself, letting out a sneer: "Rebecca, you don't actually think you know me that well, do you?"

He stood up, walked behind Su Youling, and placed his hands on either side of the back of the chair behind her. His tall figure brought a great sense of oppression as he leaned down.

Su Youling frowned uncomfortably, her whole body stiffening for a moment. Even though she knew it was Ding Muyan's perverse sense of humor, she still instinctively resisted it.

Her voice turned cold: "Mr. Ding, that's enough."

Feeling the tension in her body, Ding Muyan leaned close to her face and chuckled softly, his voice low and devilish: "Rebecca, it's no fun to take things too seriously when it comes to feelings. Look at Li Tingxi, once he turns his back on someone, he shows no mercy. He can easily walk away after a brief fling. And once you've tried a mutually beneficial fast-food relationship, you'll definitely like it."

Su Youling kept a safe distance from him, turned her head to look at him, and gave a forced smile: "I'm sorry, Mr. Ding, but I can't agree with your views on love. You should find someone like-minded to play this so-called fast-food love game."

...

Li Tingxi was still holding a grudge because of his unpleasant conversation with Su Youling last time, so he wanted to sit down with her again calmly to talk about the children, especially Yangyang's treatment plan.

He would never give up on his children, and he was equally unwilling to let Su Youling leave. Therefore, he was thinking that perhaps a compromise could be found.

Upon learning that Su Youling and Ding Muyan were holding a private celebration party, Li Tingxi came over without any qualms.

He didn't consider Ding Muyan a threat at all. At most, he was annoyed by Ding Muyan's closeness to Su Youling. He knew very well that Ding Muyan was not worthy of Su Youling's attention.

The moment Li Tingxi had the waiter open the door to the private room, his mind exploded when he saw Ding Muyan and Su Youling entwined around each other's necks as if they were kissing.

His previous blind confidence was shattered, and a storm raged in his dark eyes. Controlled by the rapidly rising rage in his chest, his body moved faster than his brain. He darted forward, grabbed Ding Muyan by the collar, slammed him against the wall, and simultaneously delivered a solid punch to Ding Muyan's face. "Ding Muyan, you dare touch my woman? You're asking for death!"

Ding Muyan was still in a daze. He had just tried to probe Su Youling but failed and felt disheartened. He was about to stop when this devil suddenly appeared and punched him.

Half of his face was slapped to the side, his bones ached, and he could clearly feel warm liquid flowing from his nostrils.

He came to his senses, raised his hand to touch the area below his nose, and sure enough, he felt a patch of scarlet blood, which immediately ignited his anger.

"Li Tingxi, you motherfucker..." He looked at Li Tingxi, who was like a mad dog, with a grim expression, and was about to retaliate with a punch.

In his rage, Li Tingxi reacted much faster, delivering another powerful punch to his abdomen, forcing back all the angry curses he was about to utter. "Ding Muyan, you surely know what happens when you fight me, don't you?"