Good heavens! Si Qiao was really startled and even had the urge to rub her eyes. Was she seeing things? She actually saw him smiling.
Qi looked at her, then suddenly hugged her tightly and burst into laughter. Although his voice was low and unpleasant, it was full of joy, as if her reaction was the happiest thing in the world for him.
Has he really gone mad? Or did Shu Yao's departure provoke him, causing him to use her as a substitute to fill the emptiness in his heart?
She was about to reach out and push him away when he beat her to it...
Qi's laughter gradually subsided, and he suddenly reached out to take off Si Qiao's shoes and socks. Under her suspicious gaze, he gently held her plump and smooth feet in his large, fan-like hands, and lovingly caressed them in his palms. "I still prefer you with your feet bare."
Startled by him, Si Qiao was stunned for a long time. She had never seen such an abnormal Qi before and couldn't help but feel a little wary. She thought he was just making fun of her for no reason, but she was no longer willing to be the object of his amusement.
"I don't need to change because of your preferences. You are you, and I am me. What does it matter to you whether I'm barefoot or not?" With a smile, Si Qiao built a thick wall around her heart while struggling to break free from his embrace. This was no longer a place for her to linger.
Qi's face darkened, and he tightened his arms around her, holding her tightly in his embrace, preventing her from pulling away. "Have you forgotten? You are my woman, how can you be unrelated?"
The tense tone sounded like a warning, but Si Qiao keenly sensed a deep pain in it, and couldn't help but furrow her brows slightly. Why did he admit it himself?
"That doesn't count. You said it yourself. It was a vow you were forced to make, not one you made willingly." With a stern face, Si Qiao suppressed the excruciating pain of her inner wounds being torn open again, and spoke the truth that they both knew in their hearts. Before, she kept quiet because she was running away and still had hope in her heart, but now she dared not hope anymore and could only admit it.
"Let me go. I want to leave this place, leave you, and I swear I'll never bother you again." Finally, she decided to drop her pretense, her beautiful face even paler than before.
"Letting go is impossible!" Qi closed his eyes and roared out these words in pain, the force in his hands making Si Qiao almost unable to breathe. "And as long as I live, I will never let go... You can be angry with me, resent me, no matter how angry you are, I will endure it until you calm down, but don't even think about leaving me again."
He was used to being taciturn and not good with words. Even at this moment, he still couldn't clearly express his feelings. He could only hold her tightly in his arms, as if by holding her, he could hold onto everything he had lost.
"You...you let me go first..." Si Qiao was bewildered. He had just mentioned "forever," a word she never dared to think of, yet it came out of his mouth so easily. "You're so strong, I can't breathe." Did he see her as another woman again? His unusual behavior made her have no choice but to have this suspicion.
Qi loosened his grip slightly, looked down at her, and his gaze softened with an indescribable tenderness. Even the usually cold and rigid features of his face softened as a result.
Si Qiao forced herself to harden her heart. After all, the hurt and harsh words from the past still lingered in her mind. She knew that he must have mistaken her for another woman. She was unwilling to be someone else's substitute forever. Moreover, he wouldn't mistake her for someone else for long. It was all just a fleeting moment.
As if to verify, she reached out and hooked her arm around Qi's neck, kissing his lips. Unlike before, Qi immediately gave the most passionate response, his tongue eagerly pushing open her teeth and licking every inch of her mouth, completely different from his previous passive attitude.
She tried to escape, but he wouldn't let her. He nibbled and sucked on her tender lips, over and over again, as if he could never get enough of kissing her. Si Qiao's whole body went limp in his arms because he had never reacted so intensely to her before. It was as if... as if she were the woman he had longed for for so long.
"Qiao'er... Qiao'er..." Between breaths, Qi hoarsely uttered the name that had lingered in his mind for a year. He had never cherished or cared about it, yet it had unknowingly been placed in the deepest part of his heart, a name he would never forget for the rest of his life.
"What?" Si Qiao leaned back in astonishment. "Say it again!" she commanded domineeringly, wondering if she had misheard. She had heard that pronunciation more than once; he would call her that every time they were passionate in bed.
"Qiao'er," Qi murmured repeatedly, reluctantly kissing her still furrowed brows. He couldn't bear to see her unhappy at all now; he would do anything she asked, as long as she was happy. "Qiao'er... Qiao'er..."
Was he calling Qiao'er? Heavens, Qiao'er… Yao'er… So every single time, he was calling her name. Si Qiao dared not think further. She had been mishearing all along; the two words sounded very similar, and he was always busy with other things, speaking unclearly. It was no wonder she misunderstood!
But……
"Qi, look closely... I'm Si Qiao, the... woman you hate the most, um..." Si Qiao mustered up her courage to confirm, but Qi gently kissed away the rest of her words. She stared wide-eyed, unable to believe that the Qi in front of her was the one she used to know.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry, please don't say it anymore..." No one would have expected to hear such a self-reproachful tone from Qi. "I apologize for what I said, Qiao'er, forgive me, I know I was wrong."
He slowly raised his head, looking at her with slightly reddened eyes. But at this moment, no! From the moment he learned of the loss of Si Qiao, even if he didn't admit it in his heart, he was already blaming himself and feeling remorse. He shouldn't have, shouldn't have said such vicious words to her.
“I shouldn’t have said you weren’t good enough, I shouldn’t have looked down on you, or treated you like a cat or dog. You’re not a promiscuous woman, I know. I… I’m your first man.” As he said this, a tear rolled down his blurry eyes and landed on their clasped hands. “I’m sorry, Qiao’er, I’m worse than an animal. Please forgive me. I… I’ve really fallen for you, I can’t live without you! During the time you were gone, I searched for you every day, I missed you every moment. I was so stupid before, always clinging to things that weren’t mine, and I hurt you deeply who loved me with all your heart. I’m sorry, it’s all my fault, but now I truly love you. From now on, I will cherish you. Please… don’t leave me again, okay? Please.”
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