After Breaking Up, I Married the Dying Tycoon in a Flash
Chapter 41: The Top Socialite

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: The Top Socialite

Just like this moment, he sat in front of her, the light in the hall casting deep shadows on his face, indifferent as ever.

He said, "Shi An’an, if you can behave yourself and stop provoking Bian Yue, I can at least ensure your safety."

It was then that Shi An’an had an awakening and stared at the Li Sihe in front of her.

"Ensure my safety? What then?" Shi An’an asked softly and then let out a low laugh, mocking herself, "Li Sihe, I suddenly remembered something."

The man slightly lifted his eyes, signaling her to continue.

Shi An’an’s smile grew deeper.

Her eyebrows were curved, and she looked very pleasant while smiling.

"I suddenly remembered, that day we made love, you called out Bian Yue’s name."

Shi An’an raised her hand, lightly touching her face, "Mr. Li, do I look very much like your Bian Yue?"

Li Sihe’s expression, usually unfazed, shattered in an instant. A slight hostility tinged his warm eyes.

Shi An’an couldn’t help it, laughing out loud.

So why pretend? He clearly likes her so much.

"Shi An’an," Li Sihe’s voice was icy cold, "have you gone mad?"

"I’m not mad at all, I’m doing very well, and if I weren’t, how could I finally admit that you are so in love with Bian Yue."

Shi An’an sighed softly, a look of utter despair in her eyes, "What do you plan to do with me now? Do you also want to kill me?"

"You don’t need to be aggressive with me, I don’t wish for your death," Li Sihe said, pinching the bridge of his nose, his voice deep, "You didn’t know about Bian Yue’s claustrophobia; you were just a pawn. I do blame you, but you’re not the main culprit."

Tears fell from Shi An’an’s eyes.

She really didn’t know if Li Sihe’s rationality at this moment was another form of cruelty.

"Are you saying this because you feel guilty? Li Sihe! You also know you’ve been... too harsh on me?"

Tears welled up in Shi An’an’s eyes as her voice choked up, "I admit that I entered your room that day hoping to make my life easier by relying on you, but I... I truly love you."

"Your love means nothing to me. All I can offer you are resources," Li Sihe frowned, the last bit of warmth disappearing from his eyes.

He said, "Shi An’an, I’m not feeling guilty, I just pity you for being used by my father."

Shi An’an’s shoulders slumped as she stared blankly at Li Sihe.

Footsteps approached from the doorway.

Shi An’an suddenly turned her head and saw Li Tingmo walking briskly toward them with a stern expression.

Shi An’an’s heart skipped a beat, her face growing even paler.

Gone was Li Tingmo’s usual gentle facade, as he walked up to Shi An’an and, without a word, slapped her across the face.

"Slut!" Li Tingmo hissed through clenched teeth, a vein throbbing on his forehead, "Look at what you’ve done! Are you trying to drag everyone down with you?"

Shi An’an, still reeling from the slap, looked dumbly at Li Tingmo, her tears welling up, "Didn’t I do it just as you asked?"

"I told you to take Bian Yue away, why didn’t you act? You caused Shen Jinci to arrive and rescue Bian Yue!" Li Tingmo said, angrily turning to Li Sihe, "And you, you went to tip off Shen Jinci, have you lost your mind?"

"Is it you who has lost your mind?" Li Sihe replied calmly and coldly, he stood up—a bit taller than Li Tingmo—towering over the now aged man, his presence overwhelming him, "In your quest to obtain the Bian Family inheritance, you’ve stopped caring about everything else, daring to do anything at all."

"What did I do wrong!" Li Tingmo doesn’t feel he is at fault, he slowly says: "Bian Yue has been with the Li Family for so many years, have I not treated her well? It was she who ran off to marry Shen Jinci, betraying the Li Family!"

"It was I who fell out of love with Bian Yue first." Li Sihe speaks word by word with cold detachment, "Dad, it was I who stopped loving her first. She is practically someone you watched grow up, you can’t be so cruel to her, forcing her to marry me when I no longer love her."

"Cruel?" Li Tingmo laughs as he listens, "I don’t want to listen to your explanations of why your engagement with Bian Yue happened, nor do I want to keep telling you why you should marry her. Li Sihe, you are too emotional, it’s truly disappointing!"

Li Tingmo looks again at Shi An’an standing to the side, this time his gaze colder.

"Xiangjiang is no longer suitable for you; in consideration of the past services you rendered for me, I will give you a new identity and send you away."

Shi An’an’s eyes constrict, with great reluctance she says: "I’m a public figure! You want me to hide my identity and live in obscurity for life?"

"You could also live underground for life," Li Tingmo says impatiently: "I could even have someone burn offerings for you every year, how about that?"

He is not joking.

Shi An’an goes pale and falls silent in an instant.

Until the sound of footsteps is heard once more at the door.

"Uncle, Shiheng?" The woman’s voice is crisp and pleasant, carrying a smile, slow and gentle, she says: "Have I come at an inconvenient time?"

Shi An’an follows the sound and sees a face that fits all her imaginations of a young lady of high society.

Tall and poised, graceful and generous, bright and noble, dressed in a long black gown exuding an air of luxury.

She is like a top-tier luxury item placed in a velvet box.

Compared to the pampered and haughty coldness of Bian Yue, the woman before her seems much more approachable and of higher social standing.

She uses luxurious clothes and accessories to cover an inscrutable heart.

At this moment, the woman slowly walks towards the three, her gaze falling on Shi An’an, speckled with curious scrutiny.

She says: "I have not met this lady before, who is this?"

"She’s not important! Jie Ning, why have you suddenly returned?" Li Tingmo’s face turns affable, he looks at Zhuang Jie Ning tenderly, and softly says: "You should have let your uncle know, so he could have sent someone to pick you up."

Jie Ning, Zhuang Jie Ning.

Of course, Shi An’an knows this name.

It belongs to the young lady of the Zhuang Family, the family just next to the Shen and Li Families in Xiangjiang.

Shi An’an has heard from other socialites that Zhuang Jie Ning keeps to herself, studying medicine abroad, a proponent of freedom, a Doctors Without Borders volunteer.

Even those ladies who love to gossip behind people’s backs would secretly admire her when Zhuang Jie Ning’s name is brought up, whispering praises, "Jie Ning, ah, she is the foremost young lady in Xiangjiang, not like that..."

The second half of the sentence, unspoken, refers to Bian Yue with her annoying pampered airs.

"Why bother with such formalities? Isn’t our relationship beyond that?" Zhuang Jie Ning’s voice arises, gentle yet proper as if puzzled, she says: "Uncle, where is Bian Yue? Where did she go?"

The question renders the room deathly quiet.

Zhuang Jie Ning turns her gaze to the silently standing Li Sihe, blinks her eyes innocently, and gently presses, "Shiheng, where is Bian Yue? Where did she go?"

Only then does Shi An’an remember, it seems Bian Yue is a good friend of Zhuang Jie Ning.

"Jie Ning, Bian Yue got married," says Li Sihe with a frigid voice, "If you want to find her, you can go to the Shen Family."

"The Shen Family?" Zhuang Jie Ning’s beautiful eyes fill with shock: "Bian Yue married Shen Jinci?"