In that instant, the world fell silent, leaving only the sound of his heartbeat.
The polished floor, the bright corridor—everything seemed to spin. Dozens of eyes around them were fixed on the two of them.
Thump. Thump-thump-thump…
In the end, it was that woman who curled her lips first.
Her black eyes locked calmly onto him, not shifting in the slightest. She gave him a friendly nod.
“Hello, I’m An Qing.”
It was an extremely simple self-introduction.
Because she had spoken, everyone gathered around her—and the subordinates at his side—turned their attention to her and to the man she had addressed.
At this point, there was no longer any room to retreat.
The directors and employees of the Shen Group were all elites. Any hint of unnatural behavior would be noticed by the people watching them.
Shen Jiyuan could only force himself to stay composed and squeeze out his name.
“Shen Jiyuan.”
His voice sounded too cold—made distant and unapproachable by his effort to suppress the tremor.
Why… why was she here?
No one around them noticed anything amiss. After all, Shen Jiyuan was usually icy and unapproachable. And the person opposite him was clearly someone not to be ignored either. A Shen Group director beside Shi Qing immediately stepped forward to smooth things over.
“President Shen, this is Ms. An Qing, the boss of An Group—the new CEO of the An Group. The construction project for the West Suburbs land this quarter, valued at seven billion, is being carried out in cooperation with President An’s company…”
The chairman of An Group?
It was her. It was actually her?!
Shen Jiyuan had heard the name An Qing and knew of her existence, but they had never met. When she began to make a name for herself in the business world, he had been abroad.
He even knew about the cooperation with An Group—but at the time, he had been hospitalized as soon as he returned from H City, and the matter had been handed over to others to negotiate…
So he had already had so many chances to meet her. And yet fate had played its tricks, causing them to miss each other with uncanny precision every single time.
Until this year—when she suddenly appeared before him like this.
Shen Jiyuan was utterly shocked and at a complete loss, able only to maintain a façade of calm.
Shi Qing smiled, her brows and eyes curving gently. After the Shen Group director finished introducing her, she took a few steps forward and extended her hand toward Shen Jiyuan.
“President Shen, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Her hand was long and fair, her fingers slender, her nails neatly and beautifully trimmed.
With so many people watching, Shen Jiyuan had no choice but to extend his hand as well.
The warmth of Shi Qing’s palm met his, hot enough that he instinctively wanted to pull away. The sensation of skin against skin was subtle. He wasn’t familiar with Shi Qing as a person—but his body had once fit with hers, been intimately intertwined, inseparable. That awareness and familiarity made Shen Jiyuan shudder unconsciously.
He felt the shirt against his back plastered to his skin, soaked through with sweat, unbearable.
After a perfunctory handshake, he wanted to withdraw his hand immediately—but Shi Qing applied a bit of pressure, holding onto his fingers. Her fingertips lightly brushed the sensitive skin on the inside of his wrist.
The moment he realized this, Shen Jiyuan’s heart began pounding violently.
He looked up in a panic. Shi Qing was smiling into his eyes, her gaze unhurriedly drifting downward—across his lips, over his Adam’s apple—sweeping over him as if it had tangible weight.
Under her stare, Shen Jiyuan felt as though he were bristling with needles. His Adam’s apple bobbed.
When Shi Qing finally released his hand, he withdrew it at once, turning his gaze aside and forcing down the unbearable numbness and ache brought on by his racing heart.
His subordinates nearby and the people opposite them were still exchanging polite small talk. Shen Jiyuan didn’t like to talk, so his subordinates naturally stepped in to carry the conversation, at least keeping things from becoming awkward. After a few rounds, Shen Jiyuan felt it was enough. Just as he was about to speak and lead his team away, Shi Qing suddenly spoke.
“It’s already this late.” Her tone was unhurried as she looked straight at Shen Jiyuan. “We’ve pretty much finished the tour. Why don’t we have a meal together? My treat.”
Unlike him, who was doing his utmost to conceal himself, her gaze was frank and undisguised.
As the CEO of a partner company, she received immediate agreement from the subordinates on both sides. The question sounded more like a notification—they were already beginning to prepare to change venues.
Shen Jiyuan truly couldn’t endure it any longer.
“…I won’t be joining.”
He was already at his limit; even the composure and dignity he valued most were hard to maintain.
“I’ll go to the lounge… to rest for a bit.”
If he stayed here any longer, he would go mad. All he wanted was to escape this woman’s line of sight and calm himself down.
Using physical discomfort as an excuse, Shen Jiyuan refused his subordinates’ company, telling them all to accompany Shi Qing to dinner. He himself hid away in the lounge, instructing his assistant to bring him a change of clothes.
The lounge was at the far end of the corridor on this floor, separated by glass partitions. Shen Jiyuan pulled down the blinds and didn’t turn on the lights. The room immediately became a dim, enclosed space.
The room wasn’t large, and it was quiet. Only after hiding here and closing the door did Shen Jiyuan feel the nerves stretched to their breaking point finally ease a little.
The shirt on his back was completely soaked with sweat, clinging to his skin, cold and uncomfortable. He loosened his tie and slumped into a chair.
Why had they reunited so suddenly, in a place like this?
She was actually the president of An Group… the An Group that had grown over these past few years into a behemoth, powerful enough to rival the Shen Group.
And that reaction of hers just now—that casual self-introduction—what was that about?
Putting on an act as though she hadn’t recognized him—was she planning to let the matter simply pass like this?
After all, both he and she were adults with status and position. If things truly escalated into a life-and-death struggle, it would only end in mutual destruction.
But… was it really over just like that?
Shen Jiyuan clenched his fist, his nails digging into his palm.
He resisted it deeply, had no expectation whatsoever of meeting Shi Qing again. Yet when they truly collided, Shi Qing’s attitude—far more calm and composed than he had imagined—left him confused, faintly agitated, a nameless fire burning in his chest.
Did she really think nothing had happened?
Then all these years of his—what were they supposed to mean?
No. There was no way she had forgotten him, or intended to pretend that nothing had happened.
Shen Jiyuan recalled how Shi Qing had tightly held his hand just now, how her fingertips had brushed lightly over the inside of his wrist. He clenched his teeth hard, unable to stop himself from rubbing that same spot with his other hand.
She was clearly still just as reckless…even in broad daylight, in public…
Yet all he wanted was to avoid her. But there were many collaborations between the Shen Group and the An Group. Sooner or later, he would be forced to interface with her again. When that time came—what was he supposed to do?
He truly did not want to have any further entanglement with Shi Qing.
He raised his hand, tilted his head back, and covered his eyes with the back of his hand. Heat welled up in his eye sockets.
Suddenly, a creak sounded behind him as the door was pushed open.
Light from the corridor spilled into the room, illuminating the edges of his suit trousers and leather shoes. Already irritable, Shen Jiyuan assumed it was his assistant and frowned, speaking coldly,“Didn’t I say just leave it by the door?”
“Don’t blame anyone,” a smiling voice came from behind him. “It was properly left by the door.”
The moment Shen Jiyuan heard that familiar voice, it was as if he had been struck by lightning. He stiffened and slowly turned his head.
Just before the door closed, he saw Shi Qing leaning against it, smiling as she looked at him.
Shi Qing closed the door.
The person he had been obsessively thinking about just moments ago suddenly appeared before his eyes. Before the light completely vanished, he caught the curve of her lips—carelessly lifting, carrying the certainty of a predator.
That expression was one he knew all too well.
Shen Jiyuan’s throat kept tightening with tension. Forget crying out for help—he could barely even breathe. His chest heaved rapidly, and his vision doubled from excessive panic.
He wanted to call for help, but no sound came out. He could only watch as Shi Qing slowly, step by step, drew closer.
“You’re sweating so much. Are you feeling unwell?”
Shi Qing’s concern was gentle and soft; as she spoke, her ambiguous breath already brushed against his ear.
She came up behind him without a sound, bracing herself on the armrests of the chair he was sitting in, leaning in from behind in an almost embracing posture. Cool strands of hair fell near the loosened knot of his tie, grazing the skin of his neck.
Shen Jiyuan’s lips parted slightly, his lashes trembling. The small patch of skin touched by her breath bristled with goosebumps.
This invasion of his personal space—this closeness far beyond social distance—made him acutely uncomfortable, especially given his severe aversion to physical contact. What was worse was the sense of threat—
A threat coming from Shi Qing.
This was the lounge. What was she trying to do?
At that moment, Shen Jiyuan felt like a rabbit frozen under the gaze of a hawk. The instant he saw Shi Qing, he had completely lost the courage to resist. The reflexes he once took pride in had utterly shut down, offering him no help at all.
Before he could even process it, he sprang up and staggered toward the door.
He didn’t even care that his tie wasn’t done properly—he just wanted to escape—but Shi Qing grabbed him in one swift motion and slammed him against the door.
His cheek was pressed flat against the cold surface, hair scraping against the doorframe as he struggled desperately.
Shi Qing raised her index finger to her lips, lowering her voice.“Shh. Hear that? Your subordinates are right outside.”
Dizzy and lightheaded, Shen Jiyuan’s lashes were damp with sweat. He blinked hard, pressed tightly against the doorframe, and through the gap in the blinds at the side, he could glimpse faint light beyond the glass window.
The subsidiary’s lounge was nothing like his own office. He could even vaguely hear his subordinates talking outside.
“You don’t want them to see you like this, do you?”
Shi Qing’s voice clung to the curve of his ear. Her warm breath seemed to burrow straight into his brain, the tingling sensation making his whole body tremble. He could barely support himself, his scalp prickling in waves.
Shen Jiyuan gasped softly, his voice already carrying a sob as he pushed weakly at her hand.“…No.”
Perhaps at twenty-four, he would have relied on pride and stubbornness to force himself into a confrontation. But it was precisely that refusal to give in that had landed him on the bed back then. This time, no matter what, he had to escape.
His sweat-slicked hand pressed against the door. Hearing the voices outside drawing closer, he weakly tried to knock.
“Do you know?” Shi Qing pinned him firmly to the door and laughed softly. “Last week, I saw your son.”
“He looks just like you. What’s his name?”
Shen Jiyuan froze completely, unable to move at all.