America: I came here to study, not to show mercy.

Chapter 219 After Sophie temporarily left
The first thing that caught Victoria's eye was a corner of a red and white square tablecloth. She quickly lifted it up and was able to see what was under the table.

Li Xiaoen pulled his feet back, while Su Feier stretched one foot forward, stepping on the spot where the young man had originally placed his foot.

"..."

Victoria looked up, her expression unreadable, and kept her eyes lowered, saying nothing.

"Be glad I'm magnanimous. If I, a man, were to retaliate in a physical confrontation, you girls wouldn't be able to handle it."

Explaining this would be a sign of guilt, so Li Xiaoen took a deep breath and gave a helpless smile.

"I've noticed that you're really good at making excuses; you can shamelessly find a way to justify anything."

With his eyes slightly narrowed, Suffer noticed Victoria's emotions out of the corner of his eye. He hardened his heart and looked at the young man with a cold laugh.

Is it an excuse?

Li Xiaoen tilted his head back and pondered for a while, then turned back and smiled at the two girls, "I prefer to call it optimism."

As he spoke, he took a deep breath. "What's done is done. Dwelling on the past won't help. We might as well pick ourselves up and start afresh with a good attitude. Don't you think so?"

Li Xiaoen shrugged: "I can't really retaliate against you, can I?"

"Won't you retaliate when the first semester starts?"

Sophie's expression changed drastically, revealing a rare gentle and beautiful smile. "What has changed now? Are you afraid?"

"It's not that I'm afraid..."

Li Xiaoen rolled her eyes, which made Victoria look up at her. Under the starkly different gazes of the two girls, she shrugged and said, "Aren't we friends now?"

This time, it was Sophie's turn to roll her eyes.

"Okay, I'd be happy to help if you need it."

Li Xiaoen chuckled leisurely, then his expression suddenly darkened. "To avoid you turning against me later, I'll tell you in advance... I'm going to retaliate!"

After saying that, Li Xiaoen suddenly leaned forward, startling Su Feier, who quickly pulled her feet back and turned to hide him further away.

"Ha ha……"

Only after the girl had completed her series of stress responses did Li Xiaoen grin and laugh twice, leaning back in his chair. He seemed completely unconcerned about the suddenly cold gaze directed at him, and his smile only grew brighter.

Don't look at me like that.

Li Xiaoen shrugged. "You're already this upset after just a little scare? What would your reaction be if I really retaliated?"

The weak explanation did not relieve him; instead, Li Xiaoen felt that gaze grow even colder, and his heart skipped a beat.

Just then, a figure in a black uniform skirt walked out of the hotel; it was Jasper's secretary.

After greeting the three of them, the woman gestured for Suffer to return to the conference room.

"Does this require the business owner to sign any contract?"

Watching the two figures disappear from sight, Li Xiaoen turned around and nodded at Victoria.

"Probably, but I'm not too sure about these things."

Victoria shook her head, not very interested. "However, at least if everyone in the company signs the contract personally, it will give the other party the impression that they value it."

"Um……"

Li Xiaoen nodded repeatedly, "That makes a lot of sense, Victoria, you're so smart."

"You don't need to flatter me like that."

She rolled her eyes at him, then lowered them. Seeing the silence fall, she hesitated for a long time before looking up at the young man and tentatively speaking, "Sean, you..."

Finding it difficult to speak, Victoria took a deep breath and had to resort to a more tactful approach, "Did your relationship with Sophie really only begin during winter break?"

Wow, that's so clever!

Li Xiaoen was shocked inwardly, but on the surface, he remained calm and nodded in acknowledgment, "Yes, I started a semester later than you."

"When answering questions, answer them properly and don't say anything irrelevant."

Rolling her eyes, Victoria scolded him, pursing her red lips. Hearing the young man's words, she felt a strange sweetness in her heart, and quickly straightened her expression.

"Judging from the way Sophie acted when she first arrived, she must have sat on your lap?"

"Yes, it happened, but it was an accident."

Feeling somewhat guilty, Li Xiaoen looked up at the wooden ribs of the umbrellas on the table and gave an ambiguous answer.

"He's stammering; it can't possibly be as easy as you make it sound!"

Knowing the young man's reaction perfectly, Victoria glared at him, her breath catching in her throat, a sour feeling spreading through her entire body.

"Okay, Sophie did have that."

Li Xiaoen took a deep breath and decided to admit it frankly, finally feeling a sense of relief at having lied to Victoria.

"Did your relationship develop so quickly in just one winter break?"

Victoria looked up and sighed softly, then stood up angrily, only then regaining some of her senses.

Noticing the young man's questioning gaze, she felt a pang of panic. Her mind raced, but she ultimately made the decisive move to stand in front of him.

"Victoria, what's wrong?"

Li Xiaoen looked up and met the girl's indignant gaze. He was stunned for a moment, and then he saw her turn around and sit on his lap, which startled him so much that his body tensed up.

Li Xiaoen held his breath, trying to get a good look at the girl's pretty face, but she dodged him. All he could see was the delicate back of her head and her fair ears, which were quickly becoming bloodshot, visible through her long, flowing hair.

“Much profit… … ”

After clearing his throat, Li Xiaoen could only manage a hoarse call.

The girl sitting on his lap did not respond, seemingly as turbulent as he was. She twisted her head to hide it from him, her body trembling slightly, her hands clenched tightly until they turned white.

Li Xiaoen couldn't help but swallow, but felt a burning dryness in his mouth and throat. He couldn't help but reach out and slowly and gently hug Victoria's slender waist.

With his arms wrapped around her, he had just felt the girl's slender waist and the alluring softness beneath her sweater, and his heart was pounding with excitement when a sudden snap rang out.

"Let go of your hand..."

Victoria's voice was barely audible, yet it couldn't conceal the turmoil within her. "Hehe..."

He couldn't help but chuckle twice. He couldn't let the duck that was already in his mouth fly away again. Li Xiaoen pretended not to hear and hugged the girl's slender waist even tighter, but he didn't dare to use too much force. He could only feel the suppleness on his fingertips.

"You..."

With a resentful shout, Victoria tried to struggle but couldn't, so she grabbed the young man's arms and pinched them hard.

"If you pinch me again, I'll pick you up and take you away."

Li Xiaoen chuckled, feeling the pain in his arm subside immediately, and found it somewhat amusing.

Seemingly noticing the young man's smugness, Victoria finally turned around, glared at him with embarrassment and anger, and began to slap his arm with both hands.

"Let go, I want to get up."

"Why? It's only been a short while."

The girl's mood took a sharp turn for the worse, and Li Xiaoen subconsciously let go of her arm and quickly asked.

"How much longer do you want to last?"

Victoria couldn't help but glare at the young man again. She quickly got up and sat back down in her chair, raising her hands to block his view of her burning gaze. "I felt terrible. I must have been possessed by a demon just now. How could I have done something like that..."

Even as she said this, she took a deep breath, clenched her teeth, and was so ashamed that she wished she could dig a hole and crawl into it. She quickly pulled her arms, which were supporting her on the table, together and hid her face behind them.

What have I done to deserve the affection of such a lovely girl?

Seeing Victoria's reaction, Li Xiaoen sighed inwardly, choosing not to disturb her, silently watching her, and taking a sip of his coffee.

Beneath her gentle exterior lies a resolute and indomitable spirit, just as Li Xiaoen had imagined. After all, what he had seen before was that, in addition to adhering to strict aristocratic etiquette, Victoria would occasionally reveal a playful and lively side.

With his thoughts racing, Li Xiaoen's gaze softened as he looked at the girl, and a smile appeared on his lips.

He finally realized that some girls are like that; when you get close to them, you start to become gentler. Is it because you are influenced by the girl's gentleness, or is it because the girl is gentle by nature?

Li Xiaoen didn't know about the other girls, but he was very certain of his answer to the girl in front of him.

Under the silent gaze, Victoria seemed to slowly realize what was happening. She slightly opened her arms, which were blocking her face, and through a small gap, she could see the young man's smiling face. When she met his gaze, she was so frightened that she quickly closed her arms and lowered her head again.

“Much profit… … ”

Cute things always make people want to tease them; it seems to be a subconscious self-defense mechanism. Li Xiaoen looked over with amusement and couldn't help but call out.

“Don’t hide, Miss Victoria. You should know that your panic is itself a confession that I am honored to receive.”

Victoria was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, and the embarrassment in her heart vanished without a trace. She lowered the arm that was blocking her face and glared at her.

"This is a crime you fabricated against me out of vanity, and I'm sorry I can't accept it."

Victoria retorted with a soft snort, picked up her coffee and took a sip. "I'm not as shameless as some people. It would take me a long time to recover from doing something like that."

"Actually, in this situation, to avoid being refuted, the explanation should mainly focus on oneself and not involve others or drag them down."

Li Xiaoen nodded and offered his suggestion in a sincere tone.

"Oh, you mean don't involve other people?"

Victoria raised an eyebrow, and after a while, a faint blush still lingered on her fair face, which was now beaming with amusement. "Do you perhaps think of yourself as someone who's being dragged into this?"

"Yes, Miss Victoria."

Li Xiaoen readily agreed, which surprised Victoria for a moment. He smiled and shrugged, "You've all been right all along, I do have a thick skin."

"But you must understand one thing: being thick-skinned is not a flaw."

Li Xiaoen smiled knowingly and raised his chin at the girl. "I now feel that using my research results on skin for tank armor is a waste. It must be a new type of robust defensive material to be worthy of my efforts."

Anyway, it was all just to amuse the other person, so Li Xiaoen was talking big and boasting to Victoria when a cold laugh suddenly came from behind him, which made the smile on his face freeze abruptly.

"Alright, since you're so confident in your shamelessness, come with me to Serafina's weapons research center tomorrow."

As soon as Yu You finished speaking, Su Feier had already walked to the opposite side of Li Xiaoen, sat down with her arms crossed in front of her chest, and stared at him with a cold gaze. "Thank you for your contributions to modern materials science. I believe that this will be a new technological revolution that will lead modern mankind to another leap forward."

"..."

"what happened?"

Seeing the young man's strange expression and lack of response, Sufi raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, I will give you sufficient compensation."

After saying that, Suffer lowered her head, took out her phone from her bag, and started pressing buttons.

"Sophie, Sophie..."

She quickly raised her hand to stop her, and Victoria was both amused and exasperated. "It was all a joke, don't take it seriously..."

"Was it a joke? He sounded quite confident."

Suffer pursed her lips, then obediently put down her phone. She looked up at the young man who had suddenly become silent and gritted her teeth. "Why aren't you saying anything? Aren't you usually so talkative?"

As she said this, she felt very frustrated. She had only been gone for a short while, and this jerk had managed to make Victoria so happy. All her previous hints and efforts had been in vain, and she didn't even know what the two of them had done while she was away.

Can this be the same?

Slumping his shoulders in frustration, Li Xiaoen picked up his coffee, took a sip, and mentally complained.

He may be invincible in solo matches, but that doesn't mean he can take on two opponents at once, withstand pressure, or even turn the tide.

"Please wait a moment, I need to think about it."

Muttering a sentence, Li Xiaoen leaned back in his chair, holding his coffee, and fell into deep thought.

Sufi opened her mouth, but temporarily stopped talking to the young man. She watched him silently, waiting for a while. After seeing that he still didn't look up, she couldn't help but narrow her eyes with suspicion.

At a certain moment, a shout came from the direction of the hotel. Li Xiaoen suddenly stood up, put the coffee on the table, and turned around to walk quickly towards the source of the sound.

"..."

The young man's movements were swift and decisive. Before Su Feier could react, all she could see was his retreating figure. Her pretty face quickly darkened, and she clenched her fists, biting her teeth as she took deep breaths, uttering each word through gritted teeth.

"This bastard..."

(End of this chapter)