After sending Lou Fan away, Chu Xia finished her shower and collapsed onto the bed, yawning.
Ever since she got pregnant, she had become unusually sleepy.
Just as she was drifting off, a knock on the door jolted her awake.
She shuffled to the entrance in a daze. On the video doorbell screen, she saw Sheng Jingshi’s
handsome face pressed right up against the camera.
Rubbing her eyes, she opened the door.
The first thing she heard was his irritated voice.
“Don’t you check who it is before opening the door?”
Still half-asleep, she replied softly, “I knew it was you.”
That single sentence immediately extinguished his anger.
He pushed her inside. His expression softened slightly, though not completely.
Then he tossed a document bag into her arms.
“I looked into this Lou Fan. You should see for yourself.”
Chu Xia opened it and poured out a stack of photos.
Every single one showed Lou Fan—but the women beside him were different in each picture.
“You dumped me for someone like this?”
Sheng Jingshi’s voice turned cold.
When he saw her head lowered and silent, he assumed she was upset. But instead of the
satisfaction he expected, a faint discomfort rose in his chest.
He tugged at his collar irritably.
“Break up with him. I’ll pretend nothing happened.”
Chu Xia blinked in confusion.
“I already broke up with him. I even said it at the restaurant today. He’s just my ex.”
“Your ex?” Sheng Jingshi scoffed. “Then what was that—having candlelight dinner together?
Laughing and chatting? Holding his arm?”
He grabbed her shoulders and pinned her against the wall, his knee forcing its way between her
legs, trapping her in place.
“I told you to cut him off completely.”
There it was again.
That familiar feeling of being controlled.
Chu Xia was already irritated inside, but her face remained soft and helpless.
Her eyes widened slightly, voice trembling.
“President Sheng… didn’t you forget? We already broke up. You don’t have the right to interfere
with who I see.”
Those words struck him like a hammer.
His grip tightened unconsciously, his fingers digging into her pale skin, leaving deep
indentations.
“I don’t have the right?” he laughed bitterly. “Who was it that fed you, took care of you when
you were homeless? Who took you to the hospital? Who pulled your father out of jail?”
That last sentence hit a nerve.
Chu Xia suddenly slapped him hard across the face.
“Don’t talk about my dad!”
Sheng Jingshi’s anger flared instantly.
“Chu Xia, you have no heart.”
She lowered her gaze and said nothing.
Back then, she had fled overseas to escape Jiang Suizhou’s control. She stole her passport,
leaving alone—but the moment she landed in Canada, her bag was stolen.
Jiang Suizhou had frozen all her accounts. She had no money, wandering alone in the freezing
snow until she nearly collapsed.
If there was any “fate” between her and Sheng Jingshi, it was this—
Because at that exact moment, on that exact road, a car passed by.
No sooner, no later.
If it had been one day later, one hour later, even one minute later—they would have never met.
She collapsed in the snow in front of his car.
When she woke up again, she was already in a hospital bed back in the country.
Sheng Jingshi was not the type to stop for strangers. He didn’t even usually get out of the car.
But that day, his driver mentioned a girl lying in the snow, unsure if she had been hit.
He thought it was a child—maybe seven or eight years old.
Out of a rare trace of responsibility, he stepped out.
And saw her.
A girl frozen and unconscious in the snow.
From that moment on, she became his.
Or rather—he thought she did.
Sheng Jingshi felt like he had raised a dog that couldn’t even be tamed. Even a dog would show
affection after being fed. Yet Chu Xia… was like a wolf with no gratitude.
“Say something!” he snapped, grabbing her chin.
“Don’t go mute on me again!”
Chu Xia felt the situation spiral.
His grip tightened around her jaw, making it impossible to speak. Her vision blurred instantly
with physiological tears. His palm was large and strong, holding her so tightly she could barely
breathe.
She just wanted to scream at him to get his brain checked—because no one can speak when their
throat is being squeezed like that!
A tear slid down her cheek.
His hand froze slightly.
Then he loosened his grip—but didn’t fully let go.
Chu Xia gasped for air, eyes red, lashes wet. The tears made her gaze even more piercingly
beautiful.
“I… I’m grateful to you…” she whispered, voice trembling. “But every day I stayed by your
side, I felt miserable…”
“Because every time I saw you… every time I accepted your kindness… it reminded me that I
don’t deserve to stand beside you.”
“Lou Fan is a bad person… isn’t that better? I only deserve someone like that… so just leave me
alone…”
Inside, she thought:
None of you are worthy of me.
She already knew—Sheng Jingshi and Lou Fan would never marry her.
Her only capital was youth.
And the rich always held far too many cards.
It was never a fair game.
So why waste time playing love games?
She cried until she could barely breathe.
Through blurred vision, she felt Sheng Jingshi’s grip weaken completely. His arrogance and
dominance had faded, leaving only helplessness.
He pulled her into his arms.
The same hand that had just hurt her now gently stroked her hair.
“I won’t marry you,” he said hoarsely, “but I won’t marry anyone else either. Staying by my side
is the same.”
Is it the same?
Legally, it’s not even close.
But Chu Xia said nothing.
He tightened his hold slightly.
“Alright… don’t cry anymore.”
Then, softer:
“Tomorrow I have meetings all day. I’ll have the driver take you shopping, okay? Or do you
want a new car? I can even buy back the villa in Longwan for you.”