Chapter Twenty: The Moment We Met, I Had Already Gone Mad

The commotion stirred up by Dreamway was quickly calmed, with the person in charge soothing the crowd’s nerves. Yan Yuchen watched regretfully as the ring was removed from the runway; he truly liked its design. It was strikingly novel yet not excessive, sharp in its lines yet tinged with a dreamlike, enigmatic quality.

To be honest, he wanted to bid again—ten million. For him, that was merely the price of a business deal. Whether or not the ring was worth that much was immaterial; anything beloved is beyond price.

However, the man who’d bid ten million was not someone he could afford to provoke—nor did he dare try.

More and more people began to whisper, their voices rife with speculation. All of this was clearly visible to Luo Youcong, the absent executive president of LOV, who watched from his office as though it were a live broadcast.

With a bang, the ceramic cup in his hand shattered against the LED display, scattering fragments across the floor.

“Shen Yanlie, you were lucky in Italy! Hmph. Such a thing—no, it won’t happen again…” The man’s angular brow and deeply set eyes, half-shadowed by long lashes, concealed a cold arrogance and a chilling menace.

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Mai Xijun was dragged out of the exhibition hall, and by now it was nine at night. Darkness had long since fallen, and under the glow of streetlights, the city looked both hazy and enticing. Neon lights from the busy traffic shimmered with a dreamy allure.

“You lunatic!” Mai Xijun growled, trying to open the car door, only to find it had been locked by Shen Yanlie.

“Yes, I’m mad—mad from the moment I first laid eyes on you. Is that what you wanted to hear?” Shen Yanlie’s expression was cold as ever, his striking features made all the more ruthless by his lack of emotion. His words left Mai Xijun speechless, her lips tightening as she struggled to find a retort.

“I suggest you let me out now, or else—”

“Or else what?” Shen Yanlie interrupted with a mocking sneer, glancing back at her in the passenger seat. “You’ll call someone? Shout for the police? Report me?”

Shen Yanlie shook his head in exasperation. Mai Xijun felt a surge of disdain, but then her tone softened. “What do you want?”

She was grateful for the times he’d come to her aid, yet aside from his vaguely familiar name, she knew nothing of him. And now, here she was, spirited away in his car.

Bored, Shen Yanlie leaned his elbow on the window, his long fingers supporting his forehead, the other hand resting on the steering wheel, ignoring her.

The plane trees lining the road sped by, their leaves dappled in the shifting light. Reflections danced across the car windows. Mai Xijun gazed at him, her beautiful eyes clear and deep, studying the man in the night’s embrace.

“Have you looked your fill?” Shen Yanlie asked suddenly. Flustered, Mai Xijun turned away, a strange sensation flickering through her mind—a current that swept through her heart, both soothing and electric.

She felt embarrassed into silence. Instead of returning to her empty apartment and facing Xue Lizan’s betrayal, perhaps it was better to let this man take her wandering through the night. Maybe, in time, her wounds would heal, and on the tender shoots of her heart, pure lilies would bloom again, untouched and untainted.