"Are you upset because of this... jealous?"
"Jealous? How could I be jealous?" Yan Xia sneered. "I just can't stand you flirting with several women at the same time without making things clear and pretending to be a gentleman."
Lu Qianzhou frowned. "She's my childhood friend."
Yan Xia was furious. "I know she's your childhood sweetheart. You don't need to remind me again."
"I deny your claim that I'm flirting with several women at the same time." His deep gaze fixed on her face. "Who have I been flirting with? How have I been pretending to be a gentleman? Hmm?"
Yan Xia was speechless. He could even ask such a question seriously. A flood of emotions suddenly welled up in her. She felt like a clown, performing a one - man show, not knowing how ridiculous she must look in others' eyes.
Her eyes were a bit moist, and her chest heaved rapidly. "Sorry. I was wrong."
She had no mood to argue with him.
Suddenly, Lu Qianzhou stood up and trapped her between the dining table and his arms.
"Here you go again..." She finally lost control of her emotions. Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. She sobbed and choked. "Lu Qianzhou, please stop flirting with me. I know you may not mean it, but in my world, everything you do to me is a kind of hint. It makes me overthink."
He finally understood and said in a low voice, "So you're talking about yourself."
She repeated, "Stop flirting with me. Let's be normal, just like when we first met."
He suddenly asked, "How have I been flirting with you?"
Yan Xia suddenly looked up and met his eyes that were so close. Did he mean to deny it? Did he think what he had done was just normal behavior?
How could he be like this!
Her sensitivity and self - esteem were greatly challenged. She even had the urge to slap Lu Qianzhou, but in the end, reason prevailed.
She sobbed, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably. "How could you do this? You've invited me out again and again, said those misleading words, and always held my hand. Were they all just for fun?"
Lu Qianzhou frowned and reached out to wipe away her tears, but Yan Xia slapped his hand away.
She pushed him away and said in a low, angry voice, "Get away. I don't want to see you. I really don't want to see you. Please stop teasing me. Let me go, okay?"
He suddenly laughed and said, "You look so ugly when you cry."
"None of your business!" Yan Xia shouted at him. "You can flirt with me whenever you're in a good mood, but why can't I cry when I'm in a bad mood?"
Just as she was crying, he suddenly lowered his head and got closer to her. His whole face was right in front of hers, almost touching.
Yan Xia held her breath and stopped sobbing. She even held back her breathing. She stared at him in astonishment with tear - filled eyes, her fingers gripping the edge of the table tightly.
He kept this distance and looked at her. After a long time, he laughed. His hot breath sprayed on her cheeks. He whispered, "So this is flirting with you. You can't stand it like this."
She tried to focus her eyes, not wanting to lose her momentum.
"What if I do this?"
He glanced at her, then turned his head, inserted his fingers into her hair, and put his other hand around her waist.
Suddenly, he got closer and kissed her lips. He kissed her gently at first, then gradually more forcefully, teasing her lips and tongue.
Yan Xia's whole body tensed up. Her eyes widened, her toes curled tightly, and her breath disappeared in an instant. Her whole body went numb as if she had been electrocuted.
He deepened the kiss, exerting more and more force on her lips.
"Um..." She couldn't breathe, and a soft sound escaped from the corner of her lips.
Lu Qianzhou let go of her. Their noses touched, sending a tingling sensation through her body.
His breath was right in front of her. There was a faint trace of moisture on his lips. Lu Qianzhou ran his thumb across the corner of her lips. Seeing her blushing and with moist eyes, as if her soul had left her body.
"You were so sharp - tongued just now. Why are you so dazed now?" He took a step back, sized her up, and laughed. "Silly girl, breathe."
Only then did she seem to be released from a spell. She took a deep breath, her heart pounding wildly. She didn't even dare to look at him. The tears on her eyelashes were cold.
She secretly looked up at him and found that Lu Qianzhou had been watching her reaction.
"Lu Qianzhou, you..." She didn't know what to say.
Just now, she had been so aggressive, stinging him like a needle, but now she was speechless. After all, it was the first time in her life that she had experienced such a thing. She was really at a loss.
He got closer to her again as if giving a warning, scaring her into shrinking her shoulders.
"Don't provoke me again. Remember?"
Yan Xia nodded.
He reached out and ruffled her hair, as if stroking a pet.
"Go to bed early. I'll ask Wen Liang to take you to the company tomorrow."
Yan Xia hid back in the guest room and sank into the soft quilt. Thinking of the passionate kiss just now, she suddenly realized, and her ears and cheeks became hotter and hotter. She closed her eyes and rolled around on the bed twice, trying to recall every word he had said tonight.
"She's my childhood friend."
"So this is flirting with you. You can't stand it like this."
"What if I do this?"
"Silly girl, breathe."
Thinking that he was just next door, Yan Xia got up again. She stood on the bed and pressed her ear against the wall, trying to distinguish the sounds next door, but it was completely quiet. There was no sound at all.
Next door.
Lu Qianzhou stood in front of the floor - to - ceiling window, a cigarette between his fingers. He looked at the faint bamboo shadows outside the window, as if thinking of something. Suddenly, he frowned and put out the cigarette in his hand.
When Yan Xia woke up in the morning, the first thing she saw was a ray of bright sunlight shining through the crack in the curtain.
She hugged the quilt and turned over. It felt like hugging a soft cotton ball, and the corner of her lips involuntarily curled up into a smile.
The sunlight in early winter was thin and cool.
She held her breath and listened for a while. The mansion was so quiet that there was no sound at all.
She looked at the time. It was only 7:30 in the morning.
She dawdled for a long time before going downstairs. The servant greeted her with a big smile and invited her to the dining room for breakfast.
Seeing her looking around the house as if looking for someone, the servant said, "Mr. Lu left early in the morning. He told us not to wake you up and wanted you to sleep well."
She gathered her thoughts and went to the company. Fang Jiangyi wasn't there. Maybe there was some work transfer.
She thought carefully about the current situation. With both Fang Jiangyi and Lu Qianzhou competing actively for the reclamation approval, Lu Qianzhou had a high chance of success.
If she wanted to think about her own future, she could only start with Changling's plan. However... it was unlikely that she would have the chance to access such important confidential documents. But usually, such documents had an original and a backup. There should be a backup with Lu Qianzhou's personal assistant.
Yan Xia had originally made up her mind to obtain this document at all costs and give it to Fang Jiangyi. But what Lu Qianzhou had done last night suddenly made her waver.
But since Master Lu had spoken, did it mean that she had an extra layer of protection?