Chapter 1 Chapter 1 Strange Man

The night is long...

In the presidential suite, huge floor-to-ceiling windows were covered with heavy curtains, completely isolating the outside scene and leaving the room filled with spring light.

There is a floor lamp at the head of the bed, and the orange light shines on a pretty little face. Her hair is messy and her cheeks are flushed. The girl is huddled in a corner with a quilt wrapped around her body. The messy sheets hint at what happened here.

The bathroom door opened, and a man in a bathrobe emerged. Ruan Xiangyi clutched the quilt and instinctively looked up, her eyes filled with fear. Zhao Qingshi's dark gaze rested on the girl for a long moment. He walked to the bedside, picked up the scattered clothes, and pulled a card from his wallet, placing it on the table. "Here's one million, as compensation."

Ruan Xiangyi's eyes flushed red, and her voice trembled with fear. She shook her head and said timidly, "Can you please not tell anyone?"

Zhao Qingshi paused, looked up at her, and saw tears welling up in her eyes. He took out a business card from his wallet and put it next to the card. He nodded and said, "This is my business card. If you have any difficulties in the future, you can come to me."

After saying that, he picked up his clothes and walked into the dressing room, then walked straight out of the room.

——

Ruan family.

Ruan Xiangyi carefully pushed open the door and looked into the hall. Seeing that there was no one there, she breathed a sigh of relief, covered her chest, and bent over to go in. When she was about to go upstairs, Ruan Lingyu, who was supposed to be outside, suddenly appeared and stood in front of her.

"Ruan Xiangyi, where did you go fooling around last night?"

Ruan Lingyu stood at the stairs with her arms folded, looking down at her condescendingly.

"Sister, you didn't go out today." Ruan Xiangyi was so scared that she stood up straight, and the cold sweat soaked her inner clothes.

"Do I need to report to you before I go out? Look at how slovenly you look. I wonder who you were fooling around with last night. You've ruined my family's reputation." Ruan Lingyu looked down on her stepsister from the bottom of her heart. She had a savage, country-smelling air. "I'm going to dinner with the Zhao family tonight. If you embarrass me and delay my life's most important event, I'll show you how I'll deal with you. Get out of here."

Ruan Xiangyi listened calmly. Ever since she moved into this house with her mother, she had to hear such unpleasant words several times a day and had long been accustomed to it.

Once she was in her room, she finally had a moment to relax after a whole morning of tension. With the faucet running, she let herself sink into the tub, tears streaming down her face, afraid to make a sound.

The phone beside the bathtub rang. Ruan Xiangyi wiped away her tears, picked up the phone, and when she saw who was calling, her shoulders trembled again. It was not until the second call that she finally answered with a trembling hand.

When I put it to my ear, a voice as sweet as a clear spring came from the other side: "Xiangyi, I heard from my junior that you were drunk last night. How are you? Are you still dizzy? Are you coming to school today? If so, I'll take you somewhere."

Hearing the constant concern coming from the other end, Ruan Xiangyi was afraid that her crying would be noticed, so she held back her tears, bit her fingers and said, "I have something to do at home, so I won't come today."

It was the season of sweet osmanthus in October. Shen Huaimeng stood under the sweet osmanthus tree. The faint sweet osmanthus fragrance seemed to be surrounding her. He smiled: "Okay, I'll wait for you to come back."

At night, Ruan Xiangyi changed into a white dress and her black hair was scattered on both sides. Her face looked too pale under the light and haggard, like a gardenia wet by the rain. Compared with Ruan Lingyu, she looked much more miserable.

Ruan Lingyu went to a high-end membership store to get her hair done for several hours, and then picked out an expensive dress for herself. When she put it on, it perfectly outlined her figure, which she was proud of. Seeing her dressed like this, someone snorted coldly: "She is indeed a country girl."

When she walked into the box, she deliberately bumped into her in her high heels and said coquettishly, "Grandma, look at Ruan Xiangyi, dressed like this. When the Zhao family comes later, they will think our family is not well off."

Grandma Ruan was wearing a hand-sewn cheongsam with a silk scarf draped over it. She looked very elegant in her old age. She raised her eyes and looked at Lin Manshu: "What is the occasion tonight? Didn't you tell her?"

Lin Manshu was walking behind Ruan Lingyu. Upon hearing the sound, he looked at his biological daughter and frowned unhappily: "Why are you dressed like this? Didn't I give you money?"

"Isn't this good?" Ruan Fu walked closer and put his arm around Lin Manshu's shoulders. "Xiangyi is still a college student, she should dress like this."

Hearing Ruan Fu's words, Ruan Lingyu was unhappy: "Dad~"

"Okay, Nannan, you are dressed so beautifully today. You are the center of attention. Who would pay attention to your sister?" Grandma Ruan said, "Nannan, come sit over here. Grandma will give you something good."

The whole family coaxed Ruan Lingyu, and this episode was over. Ruan Xiangyi sat at the edge with her eyes downcast. When she looked up, she saw a pearl pendant on Ruan Lingyu's neck, which made her look shy and lovely.

A few minutes later, the heavy door was pushed open by the waiter and someone from the Zhao family came over.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting for so long. There was a traffic jam on the road." Zhao Wen was the first to speak.

"No, Mr. Zhao, you're too polite." Ruan Fu smiled and shook the other person's hand.

After some pleasantries, they sat down again.

“This is Qing Shi.

After hearing Ruan Fu's words, Ruan Xiangyi finally raised her head again and looked at the young man curiously. Ruan Lingyu had said that the man she was marrying was the only son of the Zhao family, a century-old family business. The Zhao family's position in Yitong was as solid as Mount Tai, a well-established family with a rich and powerful reputation. Even the daughters of wealthy families were trying their best to marry him.

Glancing over, the man was dressed in a well-tailored black vertical striped suit with a dark blue tie. As Ruan Fu spoke, he nodded slightly with a cold expression. His face was so outstanding that it didn't seem like something a human could produce.

There was a thud, the sound of a water glass knocking over. Ruan Xiangyi's face turned pale, and she didn't dare to look up to find a tissue to wipe it. But where could there be tissues at such a banquet? She wanted to die. Fortunately, the waiter came to help her deal with it in time.

Zhao Wen then asked, "Who is this?"

Ruan Fu quickly said, "Oh, she is my little daughter. She has been in school all these years and has rarely been seen in public."

As he spoke, the pair of deep eyes that had been fixed on Ruan Xiangyi withdrew. Zhao Wen smiled and said, "Boss Ruan is so lucky to have two beautiful daughters."

Just hearing the elders praising Ruan Xiangyi together made Ruan Lingyu furious, especially when she saw Zhao Qingshi looking at her, she wanted to strangle Ruan Xiangyi to death.

Vixen.

Zhao Qingshi never looked at her directly since he sat down.

She didn't know that Ruan Xiangyi was almost scared to death. Her whole face turned grayish white and her exposed skin was covered with tiny bumps. She didn't dare to pick up the water cup again, for fear that her trembling hands would knock it over again.

How could it be him...

How could it be him...

She couldn't help but suspect that she was hallucinating. How could it be such a coincidence...

Her spirit was really about to collapse.

During the break in the meal, she found an excuse to leave the box, and hurriedly found the bathroom, where she washed her face with clean water. She saw that her face looked as ugly as a ghost, and she was glad that she didn't wear makeup today and only put on lipstick, otherwise she would look even uglier.

She leaned against the sink, dejectedly wondering what she should do. The restroom here was for private rooms only, empty, and a burst of intermittent sobbing could be heard.

Ruan Xiangyi tried hard to control her crying and didn't notice that there was suddenly a pair of leather shoes behind her. After she finished crying and calmed down, she turned around and saw Zhao Qingshi's face, and she sat down directly on the sink.

The tears that had been held back burst out again.

When did this person come?

She opened her mouth, but was too frightened to say anything, and tears welled up in her eyes again.

Zhao Qingshi just stood in front of her and watched her cry without moving. His cold expression was not affected by her tears at all.

Until the person in front of him was about to cry and couldn't breathe, he kindly handed her a piece of paper. His hands were clean and slender. Ruan Xiangyi remembered that these hands had covered her mouth last night.

"I'm sorry." Ruan Xiangyi cried and shook her head. The way she looked at him was as if he were a devil and scared her. "I... I... I don't know if you and my sister... can..."

The next second, her sobbing stopped because the owner of those hands was wiping her tears.

It was a simple and gentle action, but to her it felt like torture.

She stepped back, her back against the mirror, and looked at him warily. Her eyes were red, tears still hanging on her eyelashes, which reminded Zhao Qingshi of the lop-eared rabbits Zhao Yaozi raised, whose eyes were also red.

How come she cried twice after only meeting twice?

Zhao Qingshi withdrew his hand.

"What are you afraid of?" Zhao Qingshi looked at her, his tone as gentle as this morning. "If you don't tell me and I don't tell you, no one will know."

This passage is very similar to the one in the storybook, the conversation between two shameless dogs and bitches.

Ruan Xiangyi never knew that one day it would be used on her, and a wave of sadness flowed through her heart.

Hearing him say this, Ruan Xiangyi felt a little relieved. The tears hanging on her eyelashes finally fell and slid down her chin. "You...don't worry, I will move out of the Ruan family soon. I won't appear under your nose, and I won't disturb your marriage with your sister."

After she finished speaking, she heard a huffing sound from above her head.

Ruan Xiangyi didn't dare to speculate on the meaning behind it. She raised her head mechanically, her lips moving, "Can I?"

"Of course," he agreed happily and walked to the other side of the sink to wash his hands.

"Thank you." Ruan Xiangyi wiped away the tear, and her whole face looked as if it had just been washed with water. Although he had agreed to her request, Ruan Xiangyi still didn't dare to move. She felt that her butt was already wet, and this skirt would be transparent when it came into contact with water, thus falling into another dilemma.

She thought that after he left, she would go to the bathroom to deal with it.

I counted the sounds of the running water and waited until I heard the water stop and my legs hanging by my sides moved.

Zhao Qingshi dried his hands, threw the tissue into the trash can, and walked out. Hearing his footsteps receding, Ruan Xiangyi moved her hips and got off the sink. Her back was already wet. She was about to walk in with her skirt lifted, but she didn't expect the person who had left to come back.

Ruan Xiangyi held up her skirt and stared at him, her posture ready as if she would jump up immediately if he took another step forward.

Zhao Qingshi glanced at her, and seeing her awkward movements, he looked away and took off his coat and threw it to her. His voice was cold and cold: "If they come looking for me, just say I left first."

The author has something to say:

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Next book: A Girl's Prayer

1. At the end of his senior year of high school, Xu Tiao made a brave decision and sent an anonymous farewell email to the person he liked: I wish you all the best, I will slowly forget you.

She thought then that they would never meet again.

Later, he returned to his country.

She is a sophomore, and he is a rising tech elite with a beautiful woman by his side.

2. Jiang Jing has a group of bad friends around him. One time, they told Jiang Jing a secret.

Xu Tiao has a crush on him.

At the time, Jiang Jing was leaning on the sofa. She just found it funny after hearing this. Slightly tipsy from the alcohol, she opened her phone and saw the message that invited her to dinner but was politely declined. The tone was even colder: "Ha! Is this what you call having a crush on me?"

Later, the secret was confirmed.

It was raining heavily that day, and Jiang Jing sent Xu Tiao back.

"Do you usually contact each other by email?" It seemed like a casual question.

Xu Tiao's heart suddenly panicked for no reason, but he didn't respond.

Jiang Jing continued, "Except for work, I rarely use email. However, I replied to a private email yesterday and asked her, 'Have you forgotten it now?'"

He stopped with his umbrella, tilted his head to look at her, stared at her persistently and asked, "Do you think she has forgotten now?"

I pray that I will no longer like you, but I am always attracted to you.

——Diary of a Young Girl