Chapter 174: Chapter 171: Four Years—Haven’t You Missed Me? (1)
Inside the car, Ye Xiao was trapped within the firm and solid arms of the man, unable to break free.
Her heart felt like it was trampled by ten thousand horses, unable to find peace.
Ye Xiao closed her eyes, gasping for breath as she stared at the handsome, cold face above her. Her voice was tense, "Mr. Rong, this is our first meeting, and I don’t recall offending you."
First meeting?
Rong Mochen tightened his grip, his thin lips coldly approaching her soft ear, "Just by saying that, you’ve already offended me."
"..."
Ye Xiao, furious, laughed instead. Her peach blossom eyes shone bright under the dim car light, "Then can I take back what I said?"
"Words, once spoken, are like water spilled," Rong Mochen said indifferently.
Ye Xiao closed her eyes, still smiling, "Can I apologize?"
"I don’t accept it!" Rong Mochen lowered his gaze, his deep, dark eyes intensely locked onto her.
Ye Xiao’s eyes quivered, she slightly turned her eyes away, "Then what will it take for you to let me out of the car, Mr. Rong?"
Rong Mochen stared at her, then suddenly lowered his head. His slender nose brushed against her cheek, his voice hoarse as he suddenly asked, "Tell me, where do you live?"
Ye Xiao’s eyes widened, she looked at him without saying a word.
Rong Mochen’s adam’s apple bobbed, his dark eyes glancing at Ye Xiao’s somewhat dry yet rosy lips. His voice grew sandier, "Tell me, and I’ll let you go."
Ye Xiao blinked doubtfully, "If I tell you, will you really let me go?"
Rong Mochen’s soft black eyelashes drooped, "Mm."
"Yu Yang Apartment 508," said Ye Xiao calmly.
Rong Mochen’s lips curled, his dark eyes flashed with a streak of gold, "You’re not lying to me, are you?"
"What reason do I have to lie to you?" Ye Xiao looked at him steadily.
"Gu Yan, go to Yu Yang Apartment." Rong Mochen didn’t look at Gu Yan, his gaze remained locked on Ye Xiao as he spoke.
Ye Xiao’s expression remained unchanged, "Is Mr. Rong going to take me home?"
"Afraid you’ll lie to me."
Ye Xiao’s ears heated up, she frowned and leaned her head back slightly.
Rong Mochen furrowed his brow slightly and released Ye Xiao.
"..." Ye Xiao’s eyes flickered lightly; she glanced at him.
Rong Mochen lazily leaned back in the seat, his long legs slightly apart. His well-tailored pants hugged his strong build, exuding a powerful presence.
One hand was casually placed on his leg, and the other was dropped in the gap between the seats, with his curled index finger just centimeters away from her leg.
Half of his handsome face was shrouded in shadow, the remaining half unclear, only his thin lips lightly pressed as if displeased.
This man, even in a normal state, gave off a sharp and stern feeling, let alone now when he wasn’t even trying to suppress the shadowy aura about him; it made him seem even more intimidating and hard to get along with.
For him to release her from his leg was already quite a feat; asking him to let her off the car seemed impossible.
Ye Xiao pressed her lips together, slightly moving her body towards the car window.
As soon as she moved, Ye Xiao felt a piercingly cold gaze sweep over her.
Ye Xiao’s eyelashes fluttered gently; she ignored it, relaxing her body against the seat back, her head turned toward the car window, gazing at the fleeting street scenes outside. Yet in her mind, she thought of the two little ones at Ying Jingyao’s apartment and the car parked at Zhong Qin’s villa entrance.
It seemed, tomorrow she would have to waste time fetching her car again.
After nearly half an hour, the car stopped in front of the Yu Yang Apartment Building. Without thinking, Ye Xiao reached out to push open the car door and got out, striding toward the apartment building without looking back.
Arriving at the security booth in front of the apartment building, Ye Xiao stopped, turning back to look at the man with hands in his pockets, following her silently.
Clenching her hand, Ye Xiao could no longer smile, saying, "Mr. Rong doesn’t mean to go upstairs and verify whether I’m lying, does he?"
Rong Mochen slightly squinted his eyes, stepped forward, and naturally pulled Ye Xiao’s hand from his pocket, his dark eyes deeply fixated on her, "I won’t be at ease until I see you enter the door myself."
"..." Ye Xiao was at a loss whether he wasn’t at ease about her lying, or about her safety.
Coolness climbed over her pale face. Ye Xiao forcefully withdrew her hand and turned to continue walking into the apartment building.
Rong Mochen watched her indifferent back, his dark eyes dimmed, he paused, then followed after her.
Watching the two enter the apartment one after the other, Gu Yan pushed open the car door and got out, leaning against the car with a cigarette lit, he pulled out his phone and logged into WeChat.
He created a chat group on WeChat, into which a few friends they knew trickled in, including Xiao Nanqing, Lei Yicheng, Rong Mochen, Rong Sinan, and the two brothers from the Huo family, Huo Shaojun and Huo Chengjin.
But for some reason, Lei Yicheng and Rong Sinan never quite got along. Whenever Rong Sinan spoke in the group, Lei Yicheng either pretended not to be there or posted some taunting GIFs until Rong Sinan couldn’t be bothered to respond anymore.
And the Huo family brothers were even more peculiar. Typically, Huo Chengjin remained silent as gold, but as soon as Huo Shaojun appeared, he would surely show up, and they would spar back and forth with words, thoroughly enjoying it. Typical of the love-hate relationship... No, love has yet to be seen; the sense of hostility is quite strong!
"I have a shocking revelation that will blow your minds; does anyone want to know?"
Gu Yan finished typing and sent it out, also attaching a smug picture.
"Don’t want to!"
"Don’t want to!"
"Don’t want to!"
"Don’t want to!"
"?"
Seeing the four adamant "Don’t want to" responses, Gu Yan felt an instant urge to snap!?
Gu Yan, upon seeing the end, felt a warmth even from a simple question mark.
"Si Nan Oppa, I knew I didn’t misjudge you, you are like a pure lily among all the mud." Gu Yan sent out with tears streaming.
Gu Yan held his forehead, angrily shouting, "You will all regret treating me like this today!"
"Haha."
"Haha."
"Haha."
"Haha."
"..."
Gu Yan’s face turned red in exasperation, "A bunch of crappy friends!"
"I want to know, you say." Rong Sinan’s profile picture popped up.
Gu Yan immediately rubbed his hands, his fingers swiping quickly across the screen, "Boss Rong is with a woman now, guess who?"
Xiao Nanqing: "Woman?"
Lei Yicheng: "What woman?"
Huo Shaojun: "Tell me, you’re not blind!"
Huo Chengjin: "The one above is blind! I bet a pack of spicy strips, there’s no woman!"
Rong Sinan: "Don’t keep us in suspense!"
Upon seeing everyone’s changing expressions, Gu Yan hadn’t even spoken, yet they were already fiercely discussing it.
Gu Yan was thoroughly enjoying it and feeling so smug!
As the discussion went on to the point of threats and intimidation, he finally replied slowly, "I’m sleepy, goodbye."
Xiao Nanqing: "Gu Yan, how do you want to die?"
Lei Yicheng: "I have a hundred ways to let you choose from!"
Huo Shaojun: "Did you get brain surgery last year when you went to South Korea?"
Huo Chengjin: "Going to South Korea is the above’s patent, Gu Yan, come back, I promise not to beat you to death!"
Rong Sinan: "Don’t scare him, you guys. Gu Yan, hurry up and tell us, who exactly is Mo Chen with?"
In recent years, if anyone was most concerned about Rong Mochen, it was Rong Sinan.
Seeing Rong Sinan so anxious, Gu Yan couldn’t bear to keep them in suspense any longer. He took a deep breath and said in a voice message, "When I tell you, you have to keep calm. Mmm, mmm."
Gu Yan cleared his throat and said all at once, "Boss Rong is with Little Mo Mo now!"
After speaking, Gu Yan watched as the voice message successfully sent, holding his breath to see their shocked reactions. But in the next second, under his eager gaze, the phone... turned off by itself!
Gu Yan was dumbfounded for two seconds, regretfully pounded his chest, jumped into the car, and quickly searched for the charger.
The people in the group were all smart, normally acting all proper in front of others, when had he ever seen their uncontrolled shocked expressions? This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, how could he miss it?!
At Yu Yang Apartment 508, Ye Xiao skillfully took out the spare key from under the potted plant mat by the door, unlocking the door under someone’s gaze.
The door only opened a crack, and Ye Xiao coldly turned her head to look at Rong Mochen, "Mr. Rong, can you believe it now?"
Rong Mochen stared at Ye Xiao, "Suddenly thirsty, mind if I come in for a glass of water?"
Ye Xiao pursed her lips, "There’s a 24-hour convenience store downstairs, Mr. Rong, you can get water there."
"Isn’t it possible?" Rong Mochen hid his black eyelashes, his cool voice tinged with a sigh.
Ye Xiao didn’t speak.
For a moment, the two were enveloped in a silent stillness.
Ye Xiao gripped the doorknob, her fingers showing some stiffness at the knuckles.
Suddenly, the man in front of her lifted his head sharply, his proud long legs suddenly stepping towards her.
Ye Xiao’s face changed repeatedly, in a panic, she was about to push the door open and enter.
But he was faster, his long arm swept across her body, pressing her heavily against the wall beside the door.
His solid chest pressed close to hers, making it almost hard for her to breathe.
With her hands pinned behind her back by him, Ye Xiao was forced to lift her chest, fitting seamlessly against him.
The beats of their hearts seemed to blend together, both beating quickly!
Ye Xiao’s lashes were slightly moist, her lips parted for rapid breathing, her fluttering lashes unable to hide her panic as she looked at him.
"It’s been four years, haven’t you thought about me at all?"
Rong Mochen lowered his voice, his cold tone buzzing like electric sparks, every word leaving his lips seemed to be wrapped in a thick layer of emotion and resentment.
Think of him...
Ye Xiao’s heart ached for a moment, but it quickly vanished, as if the pain never existed, her peach blossom eyes calmly looked at him, "Mr. Rong, I’m not the person you should be asking this question, so I’m sorry, I can’t answer for her."
She paused and continued, "Also, people pass by this floor all the time, they’re all neighbors, and they know each other. If they see us like this... it’s nothing for Mr. Rong, but it’s different for me, I still have to live here."
Rong Mochen stared into Jin Jumo’s cold, expressionless eyes, his throat moved slightly, then he released her wrists, only holding onto her thin wrist, guiding it towards his left chest.