She kept her marriage a secret for three years, then divorced and was forcefully pampered by a power

Shao Yan felt that Huo Xiao was pressuring him. Was he afraid that she would ruin Meng Yu's good time with his niece, so he couldn't wait to make their relationship official?

It's absolutely impossible for her to give up what belongs to her mother.

She wouldn't agree, nor did she want to be Huo Xiao's kept woman.

Moreover, Huo Xiao probably still can't let go of his girlfriend.

There will always be a day when they make up after a fight, and then she will have to pick up the pieces of her broken heart and put them back together.

However, Shao Yan was not confident that she could escape unscathed from Huo Xiao's situation.

"very good."

Huo Xiao turned his gaze away from Shao Yan's face, and Shao Yan noticed that his legs seemed to have moved away from her as well.

The carriage fell into a deathly silence.

Huo Xiao's face was half hidden in the shadows, making his thoughts unfathomable.

Only he himself knew that he had seen Shao Yan long ago.

They also knew that Meng Yu and Pei Rongrong had arrived at the square long ago.

When Shao Yan appeared, most of the boys in the square focused their attention on her.

Meng Yu, meanwhile, never looked away from Shao Yan.

Huo Xiao suddenly understood why Shao Yan was a virgin before she was with him.

Meng Yu was completely unaware that he was embracing Phoenix, but when the real Shao Yan appeared in front of him, Meng Yu revealed his true male nature.

A woman like Shao Yan is someone who makes men want to possess her no matter where she goes.

Meng Yu's gaze towards Shao Yan made him very uncomfortable.

He couldn't imagine whether Meng Yu would immediately accept Shao Yan if she revealed her true colors to him.

Shao Yanruo still loves Meng Yu.

They'll probably get back together.

This idea made Huo Xiao's expression grow increasingly grim.

He didn't speak to Shao Yan again on the way.

Shao Yan didn't know what she had done to offend him.

But considering how heartbroken he was at noon because of his ex-girlfriend, I assumed it was just a side effect of excessive grief.

Huo Xiao was in a bad mood.

Back at the villa, he spoke coldly to Shao Yan.

"I'm sleeping in the study tonight."

Shao Yan was slightly taken aback.

It seems he's in a really bad mood because of his ex-girlfriend.

Has he become so bad that he misses that woman and doesn't even want to sleep with her anymore?

Shao Yan's heart sank slightly, her expression showing a hint of embarrassment and humiliation.

"it is good."

She went straight upstairs, ignoring Huo Xiao's cold, clenched teeth face behind her.

She once loved Meng Yu so much, but all she got in return was being abandoned.

Shao Yan decided she would never go through this again.

Her relationship with Huo Xiao was nothing more than a temporary transaction, each getting what they wanted.

Don't think she doesn't know that the reason Huo Xiao is so persistent with her, even taking her to the Civil Affairs Bureau to get their marriage certificate, is because he's afraid she'll ruin Pei Rongrong's plans.

Although reality is cruel, she has no choice but to accept it.

She needs Huo Xiao's background and connections to secure a place for herself in Beicheng.

Only when she is able to stand up to Old Master Meng will she have the confidence to say no to anyone.

Shao Yan returned to her room and tried her best to calm herself down, trying not to think about Huo Xiao and his ex-girlfriend.

She didn't care about Meng Yu anymore. How could Huo Xiao, whom she had only known for less than two months, so easily stir her heartstrings?

Shao Yan went into the bathroom, took a nice shower, and then snuggled into her warm bed.

The faint scent of cedar always lingered where Huo Xiao had slept.

Despite being furious with him, Shao Yan found herself feeling incredibly at ease when she smelled this scent.

"It's just work, each getting what they need—"

She murmured to herself before going to sleep, and soon she was fast asleep.

Huo Xiao sat in his study, took out a pack of cigarettes, and lit one with a slightly irritated expression.

The villa was especially quiet at night.

He thought of Shao Yan's longing gaze in the square, her graceful figure so beautiful under the neon lights that he almost forgot to breathe.

But the thought that the person she was waiting for was Meng Yu made Huo Xiao feel particularly bad.

His phone vibrated on his desk for a while. Looking at the unregistered number on the screen, Huo Xiao scoffed and dragged the number into his blacklist.

Later, when the screen flashed the character "胭" (Yan), he hesitated for a moment before answering.

"I knew you'd answer this call, Huo Xiao. You'll never forget me, you'll never forget me."

Huo Xiao listened to the almost frantic female voice on the other end of the phone and curled his lips in a rather sarcastic smile.

"Lan Yan, don't be so arrogant. I keep this number to constantly remind myself how foolish I was."

Lan Yan's fingernails scraped against the glass, making a piercing, maddening sound.

"You're talking nonsense, Huo Xiao. You still have feelings for me. You can't let me go, which is why you haven't found a girlfriend yet. You still love me."

I'm breaking up with him. I told him that the person I love is you, and I don't want money. Huo Xiao, I don't want money anymore. Please let me come back to you.

You know I only got together with him for your own good. You even took money from him to get where you are today. My contribution is half of your success. If you don't want me, you'll be ungrateful.

Lan Yan was acting like she was going crazy, and the veins on the back of Huo Xiao's hand, which was gripping the phone, were bulging, as if his emotions were about to collapse at any moment.

"Shut up. If I had known it was money from selling yourself, I would have rather died than take it. I gave you a chance. Even though you slept with him for two years without telling me, I still want you."

But do you remember what you did? Lan Yan, do you want me to remind you?

Huo Xiao's eyes were bloodshot, like a leopard trapped in a cage, roaring and in pain.

Those wounds returned with a vengeance, as if to tear him apart.

There was a sudden silence on Lan Yan's end, but soon she started laughing.

"That's just a game. It's normal for people to get drunk and sleep together. As for me and your godfather, he's old and useless. I contacted you, but you thought I was dirty. I'm a woman. Is it wrong for me to need to sleep with others?"

Huo Xiao loosened his clenched fist and squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth.

"That's right, but why did you have to sleep with my best friend?"

Lan Yan cursed at him over the phone: "I've been with you since I was a teenager, have you ever touched me?"

Huo Xiao, sometimes I really doubt if you're a man, or if you've never loved me at all.

Who do you truly love? If I find out, I will tear that woman to pieces.

After Lan Yan finished speaking, she suddenly gagged, and Huo Xiao's emotions finally calmed down.

He regained his composure.

"You're drunk. Let the maid take care of you. Don't call me from this number again, or I'll block it too."

"You won't, Huo Xiao. I love you very much, and I know you love me too. You cherish me, otherwise you wouldn't have never touched me. You said you would save your first time for marriage."

I know I was wrong, please forgive me—”

Lan Yan's sobs came through intermittently, and Huo Xiao hung up the phone without hesitation.

He kept calling him, relentlessly.

However, Huo Xiao was already annoyed, so he silenced his phone and left it in the study.

Unable to read a single file of the documents he brought back, Huo Xiao simply left the study and went to the master bedroom to see Shao Yan.

He felt sorry for his loss of control during the day, wondering if she was also so sad because of him that she couldn't sleep.

He pushed open the door and saw that Shao Yan's eyes were closed and her breathing was even.

And there was even a tiny bit of moisture on the corner of her lips.

When Huo Xiao saw her sleeping so soundly that she was almost drooling, the slight reluctance that had just arisen was instantly suppressed.

His eyes were so dark they seemed to drip water, and he stared at her sleeping face through the moonlight streaming through the window, gritting his teeth.

"Shao Yan, you did a great job."