But to his surprise, after searching high and low, she actually came to him.
After Huo Jingsha resigned from his official post, he planned to move his whole family to Suzhou to settle down. However, because he still had some things to deal with, he planned to send his wife and children there first. Shu Yao asked him to escort them, and he naturally had no reason to refuse.
A few days before his departure, Huo Jingsha suddenly returned. His intention was obvious: he was trying to prevent him from getting too close to Shu Yao. But he was just wasting his time, because his heart was already filled with another woman and there was no room for anyone else.
But this man was relentless, still bothering him right before they set off. If it weren't for Shu Yao's sake, he would have... Wait, who is that? A woman standing hand in hand with Shu Yao in a dark alley, reluctantly saying goodbye.
Qi froze, not daring to blink. Was it her? Was it the woman he could no longer let go of?
She had become thin and her face looked haggard. And... her always bare feet were now wearing embroidered shoes, and her lower body seemed unsteady. This meant she had forgotten martial arts. Was it because of that palm strike? Had she not fully recovered after all this time?
Or was it that he missed her too much and mistook her for someone else? No, those slender eyebrows, those charming eyes, and that captivating allure—who else could possess that besides her?
Qiao'er?
Joel!
It really was her. An indescribable excitement surged like a tidal wave over his long-parched and decaying heart, overwhelming him. But…
A man suddenly appeared from the shadows beside her, and she gave him a sweet and gentle smile, which deeply stung his eyes. The intimate embrace between them destroyed all his self-control.
"Let her go!" he roared, his eyes practically spitting fire. This woman was his, and no one was allowed to touch her!
Her affectionate eyes finally turned to him, and just as he was overjoyed, she calmly shifted her gaze back to the man beside her, as if she had just seen an insignificant person.
That indifference was like a sharp blade, piercing his chest and causing him so much pain that he could barely breathe, yet he still couldn't take his eyes off her.
Hearing his shouts, the man showed no fear. Instead, he continued to laugh leisurely under Qi's icy gaze—a laugh of provocation and smugness, which Qi understood. However, when he looked down at the woman in yellow beside him, his smile turned tender, and his voice was full of doubt: "Do you still want to continue this entanglement with him?"
Qi shuddered. Did he mean she had to make a choice?
Her choice...
The woman in yellow returned the man's gentle smile and said, "You should know my thoughts better than anyone else. Do I need to explain? Let's not waste time, let's go."
Without looking at the contract, she turned to Shu Yao and said, "Sister Shu Yao, thank you for saving me before. I heard you were moving to another place, so I came here today to see you off. I wish you a lifetime of happiness and joy. If fate allows, we will surely meet again in the future..."
This was her choice—to treat him as a complete stranger! Qi closed his eyes in anguish, shutting out everything around him from his heart.
In a daze, he recalled every detail of their life together since they met, their joys and sorrows. The life he once loathed had become his most unforgettable memory after she left. Every time he woke up in the middle of the night, every scene of their time together would appear before his eyes again and again. Finally... he understood his own heart.
He had been searching for her relentlessly, traveling back and forth between the capital and Suzhou countless times. He was filled with both anticipation and fear, because he was afraid of receiving the news he least wanted to hear. After all, he had shown no mercy in that slap.
Now, he not only knows that she is still alive and well, but that she has also found another man.
Qi suddenly opened his eyes, the flames of jealousy burning fiercely in his deep phoenix eyes, as if he wanted to devour everything. Seeing that she and the man were about to leave together, he was filled with pain, anger and rage. He roared and leaped up to block their path. Then, he gathered all his strength and punched the man, intending to kill him on the spot.
Si Qiao, don't even think about it! From the moment he swore an oath to the Holy Spirit, she became his woman, for life. Whether he did it willingly or not, the words truly came from his mouth, and now he feels that one lifetime is not enough, the next, and the next... for all eternity, he is determined to have her, and she will never leave him again!
The man dared not underestimate the palm strike of this top assassin in the martial arts world, and hurriedly released Si Qiao to meet the attack.
Good that you dared to accept the challenge. A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips as he looked gloomily into the bewildered eyes beside him. Then, unexpectedly, he came to her side, tightened his arm around her slender waist, and said coldly, "Come with me!"
Before the man could react, she had already vanished.
Once a person is determined to have something, no one can take it away from them!
*** ***
On the calm lake, a luxurious two-story ship slowly drifts downstream.
Si Qiao sat at the tea table on the first floor, her gaze drifting absently to the fleeting beauty of flowers and willows outside the window, her mind filled with countless thoughts.
That man is a real freak. If he didn't want her, why did he kidnap her in the first place? Wouldn't it be just what he wanted if she never appeared before him again? She had already made up her mind to give up, so why did he... why did he have to turn back and provoke her, making her struggle again? Didn't he know that she had lost all her martial arts skills and could no longer use her lightness skill to chase after him? Getting rid of her was the best choice for both of them.
Si Qiao closed her eyes wearily, her head throbbing with worry at Qi's unusual behavior.
Just then, the cabin door was pushed open. Although she didn't turn around, she knew who it was. But what she didn't expect was that the next moment... she was picked up and carried to the bedside.
She was startled, her gaze instinctively falling on Qi's face, now dressed in a white robe. His face no longer held anger, but had returned to its usual expressionless state. However, his bright eyes remained fixed on her, leaving her somewhat bewildered.
Si Qiao forced herself to quickly regain her composure, and instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, reverting to her old, coquettish ways. "Brother Qi, tell me, what's the meaning behind you bringing me back like this?"
He used to despise her wanton manner, and might have even thrown her to the ground on the spot. Heh... but she didn't care anymore. She even missed his contemptuous look; at least that proved he still saw her.
Qi pursed his lips, not responding to her. He got up and gently placed her on the couch. Just as he was about to straighten up, he realized that her small hands were still wrapped around his neck, showing no intention of letting go. He could only look back at her in surprise.
"Ugh, don't expect me to let you go if you don't answer," Si Qiao said with a charming smile. She used to use this trick to force him to respond, but she didn't know if it would still work now.
A radiant smile, unlike anything he had ever seen before, appeared on his stern face. The next moment, he picked up Si Qiao, turned around, and sat down on the soft couch, while Si Qiao was placed on his lap.
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