Li Qiqi stood in front of Xu Nantian’s private office on the top floor of the clubhouse for a long time.
There was no one in the corridor, and you could hear a pin drop. Her right hand was on the doorknob, but she didn’t turn it for a long time.
Li Qiqi loved and relied on this office very much when she was a child. At that time, she often had nightmares at night and would pester Xu Nantian, not allowing him to go to work the night shift.
Xu Nantian had no choice but to bring her to the clubhouse with him.
She didn’t make noise or fuss, and like a glutinous rice ball, she would obediently shrink on the leather sofa in the office, waiting for Xu Nantian to finish his work in a half-dreaming state.
After work, the man would gently wake her up, stuffing her mouth with candy, soft cakes, and sometimes dried fruit before she could get cranky, and then take her home in his arms.
When did things start to change?
Li Qiqi’s palm tightened. “Click—” The doorknob made a very slight sound, and Xu Nantian’s textured voice came from the office.
“Qiqi?”
“Yeah.”
Li Qiqi pushed the door open and entered. Xu Nantian was sitting in the office chair in the center of the office, wearing a pair of half-rimless gold-rimmed glasses without lenses on his face, and holding a cigar in his hand.
A faint aroma of tobacco filled the air.
At thirty-two years old, Xu Nantian was the youngest nightclub owner in Kenaqin. He had a good-looking appearance, fair skin, and exuded the unique charm of a mature man in every gesture, with an elegant and refined temperament.
Before meeting Qi Xiaoye, Li Qiqi had always felt that the most handsome man in the world was probably like Xu Nantian.
She closed the door, quickly stepped forward, carefully placed the stack of US dollars in her hand on the desk in front of Xu Nantian, took out her small accounting notebook, and began to register on it.
“Uncle, this is my commission for this month, a total of 18,000 US dollars, plus the previous…”
Xu Nantian snorted coldly with an indistinguishable emotion, interrupting Li Qiqi’s words.
He reached out and took the money on the table, glanced at it with great contempt, and then threw it aside casually.
“Why did you move out?”
Li Qiqi clenched the signature pen in her hand and lowered her eyes.
“I’m eighteen years old and can support myself. I don’t need to trouble you anymore, Uncle.”
“Trouble? I never thought you were a trouble.”
Xu Nantian put down the cigar, got up and approached, “You don’t need to earn money to pay me back either. I’m willing to support you. As long as you want, you can live in Liyuan for the rest of your life.”
The man’s tall figure made it difficult for Li Qiqi to breathe, and she took half a step back uncomfortably.
“A lifetime is too long, Uncle, I… I don’t want to.”
Didn’t want to…
Xu Nantian’s fingertips trembled slightly, and the hand he had just raised to rub Li Qiqi’s hair suddenly stopped in mid-air.
He looked down at the slender and stubborn girl in front of him, and after running his eyes over her embarrassed and gaudy face, he stopped on her left shoulder—
There were obvious knife marks on the outer down jacket and the inner lining, and the entire shoulder was exposed, with a butterfly tattoo on the collarbone.
Was this the girl he had carefully cared for and raised for twelve years?
She couldn’t wait to declare her independence to him as soon as she turned eighteen, saying that she wanted to earn money to pay him back, so she could escape from him!
Tattoos, selling alcohol, and being taken advantage of by customers?
A cold light suddenly flashed in Xu Nantian’s already gloomy eyes. He raised his hand and pinched the back of Li Qiqi’s neck, slamming her hard against the desk.
“I told you a long time ago that I don’t need you to pay me back, and I won’t let you leave Liyuan! I’ve been too indulgent with you these years, so indulgent that you’re lawless, and you won’t even listen to me anymore?”
Bang—
With the huge impact and the dizziness of her skull cracking, Li Qiqi didn’t react, and a bruise appeared on her forehead from hitting the table.
She lay on the table with her upper body, and after being stunned for a long time, she turned her head and stared at Xu Nantian in disbelief.
This was the first time Xu Nantian had hit her…
In the past, even if she broke Xu Nantian’s favorite priceless Xia Dynasty porcelain vase, the man would just smile at her and then scold her a few times with a stern face.
He often scolded her, and would threaten her and scare her with a stern face, but he was never willing to hit her.
Now he was hitting her just because she wanted to move out of his house?
But clearly, he was the one who didn’t want her first…
Li Qiqi’s emotions surged, and tears broke through the defense line, rolling down her cheeks. She opened her mouth weakly, but didn’t say a word.
Perhaps realizing that his reaction was too extreme, after a few seconds of eye contact, Xu Nantian suppressed the surging anger in his heart and took the lead in breaking the silence.
“The clothes, what happened?”
If it had been Li Qiqi three months ago, she would have run up to Xu Nantian and cried at the first moment she entered the door, telling him that she had gotten into unnecessary trouble, and then waited for Xu Nantian to help her sort it out.
But now… she didn’t need it.
Li Qiqi lowered her eyelashes, “I fell while carrying the fruit platter, which made the customer angry, and they used this method to warn me.”
“Who? Qiao Xiao?”
Li Qiqi didn’t speak, and Xu Nantian frowned and continued to ask, “Did he touch you?”
“No,” Li Qiqi shook her head, “Qiao Xiao is a well-known face-con, and he thinks I’m too ugly to even look at me. How could he touch me?”
That was the truth, and Xu Nantian’s tightly furrowed brows relaxed a little.
“Then why the tattoo?”
“I thought it looked good.”
“Looks good?”
Xu Nantian sneered, loosened his hand pinching her neck, and instead pinched Li Qiqi’s chin, using force so hard that five finger marks appeared on Li Qiqi’s face in an instant.
The man’s sharp eyes hidden behind the frame penetrated Li Qiqi’s heavy makeup and quietly stared at the absolutely beautiful and delicate face below.
“Have you forgotten what I told you so quickly? In Kenaqin, you don’t need to be good-looking, and you can’t let anyone discover that you are good-looking!”
Eighteen years old was the age of flowers, and no girl didn’t love beauty, and Li Qiqi was the same.
But she didn’t dare.
From the time she was sixteen years old, Xu Nantian no longer allowed her to show her true face.
The man had warned her more than once—
Beautiful girls would be eaten by the demons of Kenaqin, leaving not even bone Scum!
Then he specially took her to some special occasions, forcing her to appreciate the whole process through one-way glass.
Li Qiqi was so frightened that she couldn’t stop vomiting, and had a high fever for several days and nights.
That was a nightmare she didn’t even dare to recall.
“I didn’t forget, I didn’t forget… I’m sorry, Uncle, there won’t be a next time, I don’t want to be good-looking, I don’t want to be good-looking…”
The intense fear tore open the sealed memories, spreading like a poisonous snake along Li Qiqi’s small heart, and her trembling voice implied obvious sobs.
Xu Nantian finally let go.
He lifted Li Qiqi from the table, carefully hugged her in his arms, and explained to her in a soft voice.
“Qiqi, I had some problems with my business abroad, and I’ve been dealing with it outside for the past three months. I know you’re angry with me about this, it’s my fault, I made you wait too long, I…”
The sudden hug, accompanied by the familiar aroma of tobacco, and the man’s hot breath when he coaxed her fell on Li Qiqi’s ear bones, stimulating Li Qiqi’s heart, and the accounting book and signature pen in her hand fell to the ground with a swoosh.
Without waiting for Xu Nantian to finish speaking, she raised her hand without hesitation, supported Xu Nantian’s waist, and pushed him away with all her strength.
“I’m not making a fuss.”
The current Li Qiqi was no longer the little girl who would throw tantrums with Xu Nantian if she didn’t get a piece of dessert or a soft cake.
She knew how to be grateful and how to repay.
Xu Nantian saved her, fed her well, and took good care of her. Not to mention going abroad and neglecting her, scolding her, scaring her, and hitting her… even if this man killed her, she would deserve it!
She had no right to make a fuss with Xu Nantian…
This push was decisive and forceful, causing Xu Nantian’s figure to sway and sway, and his glasses to slide down to the tip of his nose. The man didn’t reach out to help them, and with a Composed gaze, he pressed closer step by step.
“Not making a fuss, then why did you move out, and run to the eastern suburbs? Do you know how chaotic the eastern suburbs are? The two major forces in Kenaqin are fighting for it now. Living there, you could lose your life if you’re not careful! Li Qiqi, what exactly do you want?”
“You’re getting engaged.”
Li Qiqi choked and responded, gently wiping away the tears suspended on her chin with the back of her right hand.
“Miss Qiao will become your wife. Liyuan is your home. You will have your own children in the future. I just… want to stay away from you.”
Xu Nantian was stunned, “I and her…”
The man stopped talking.
Li Qiqi raised her eyes, stared into Xu Nantian’s eyes, and said word by word, lightly, but like a heavy hammer, hitting Xu Nantian’s heart hard.
“Uncle, I’m all grown up.”
The four eyes met, and the office fell silent.
The year he saved Li Qiqi, Xu Nantian was twenty years old, and he had made a name for himself in Kenaqin with his own strength. In addition, with his good-looking appearance, he was not short of beauties pursuing him.
In just three years, Li Qiqi had seen eight lovers come and go, but none of these lovers could stay with Xu Nantian for more than three months.
And the reason why they were dumped by Xu Nantian was also very simple—
Li Qiqi didn’t like them.
Xu Nantian had a bad temper, but he was also really fond of her, treating her like a walking little pendant, putting her first in everything.
This made Xu Nantian’s ninth lover, Min Mo, particularly good to Li Qiqi, calling her “little niece is so cute” and sending her many fluffy little toys to make her happy.
But Li Qiqi knew clearly that Min Mo was good to her because Min Mo wanted to marry Xu Nantian.
Nine-year-old Li Qiqi didn’t quite understand the emotional entanglements between men and women. She only knew that if Xu Nantian got married and had his own family, he might not be able to take care of her.
She was born abandoned by her biological parents, and then sold by her adoptive father…
She couldn’t imagine how cruel hell-level torture she would face alone in Kenaqin if she lost Xu Nantian’s protection again.
So Li Qiqi pushed open the door of Xu Nantian’s study again and asked carefully.
“Uncle, will you marry Sister Min Mo?”
Knowing Li Qiqi’s little thoughts, Xu Nantian turned around and took a storybook from the bookshelf, hugged her and sat on the sofa, and opened his mouth indifferently while reading with her.
“I won’t if you don’t like it.”
But Xu Nantian was always going to get married. If there was no Min Mo, there would be another…
The naive Li Qiqi thought of a good way to solve the problem once and for all. She closed the book and blinked her ignorant big eyes at Xu Nantian.
“Can you marry me?”
Then Xu Nantian laughed. He laughed extremely happily, raised his hand and pinched Li Qiqi’s nose hard, hurting Li Qiqi so much that she almost flee ed out of his arms.
“Little brat, what nonsense are you talking about!”
“Then you wait for me, wait for me to grow up.”
Li Qiqi said seriously. When she was a child, she didn’t understand what this sentence meant. She just wanted to firmly grasp Xu Nantian’s big umbrella and live safely.
Xu Nantian restrained his smile, did not answer, and after reading a story with Li Qiqi, he sent her back to her room.
Life continued as usual after that, and Xu Nantian’s love for her was as always. The only change was—
Xu Nantian never looked for a lover again.
This continued until Li Qiqi’s eighteenth birthday, when Xu Nantian put his arm around a woman’s waist and gave Li Qiqi, who was happily preparing to welcome her coming-of-age ceremony, a heavy blow with a slight smile.
“Qiqi, her name is Qiao Lina, my girlfriend. We plan to get engaged in half a year. This necklace is a gift from her to you. Happy birthday!”
Li Qiqi was not happy at all.