"Of course I wish the best for my brother!"
"But why do I feel like you’re actually hoping he gets sick? You don’t want to be with him, so you hope he’ll fall ill and scare off?"
An Yan leaned forward slightly, "The illness he just had, that was your doing, wasn’t it?"
An Yan recalled Ling Xiao’s strange behavior when he arrived; clearly, the information Ling Xiao had received was not the sa as what she knew.
"Ling Xiao was called over by you, right?"
An Yan stared at her.
Li Qingqing’s expression remained calm, but her fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her clothes, "I don’t even know him, how could I call him?"
An Yan didn’t dwell on this question; instead, she reached out and pushed Li Qingqing against the railing.
"Li Qingqing, you like Li Tianyao!"
"You, you..."
Li Qingqing’s upper body was pressed by her, bent backward against the railing. The solid wood railing made her back ache.
Her eyes were filled with shock.
She liked Tianyao!
She had hidden it so well; whenever she was with Tianyao and there were others around, she wouldn’t even dare to let her gaze fall on him.
How could An Yan know?
"You want to know how I found out? It’s because I’ve done nothing to you, and yet, from the mont you first saw , you’ve been showing hostility!"
An Yan pressed her down a bit further, "Tell , what did you say to Ling Xiao to make him co over this late at night to bring flowers?"
"I didn’t!"
Li Qingqing’s back ached terribly, but she still refused to admit anything.
An Yan imdiately took out her phone and called Ling Xiao, "Tell why you really ca tonight?"
After picking up the call, Ling Xiao paused for a few seconds before responding, "What’s up?"
"I want to know why you ca over! Tell the truth!"
Only then did Ling Xiao say, "I received your ssage, saying you wanted to discuss sothing in person. It also said I should stop by a flower shop and pick up a bouquet for you on my way."
"Was the flower shop a random choice?"
"Not really. From my place to yours, there was only one flower shop open along the entire route. So, I went in."
"Are you sure it was my cell phone number that sent you the ssage?"
"Yes!"
"Why didn’t you just say so in front of Li Tianyao just now?"
Ling Xiao said, "I figured since you ntioned discussing sothing in person—normally we handle big issues through email and small ones through text—when you said et in person, I thought it must be sothing even more important than the usual big issues!"
"Since it was such a big deal, of course, I had to take it seriously. But when I arrived, I sensed the atmosphere between you and Li Tianyao was very strange."
"So, naturally, I assud Li Tianyao didn’t know about it! And if he didn’t know, then we definitely needed to talk privately, right?"
"What’s wrong? Did I misunderstand sothing?"
An Yan sighed, "You’ve been tricked. I never sent you a ssage."
"What?"
Ling Xiao was stunned for a mont. He quickly opened his chat history, and after so checking, he said angrily, "Damn it, the number that sent the ssage was spoofing yours! This is insane. Who would be so disgusting as to impersonate you and send ssages?"
An Yan looked at Li Qingqing, "It is pretty disgusting! She probably thinks she’s quite clever too, believing that if she doesn’t admit to it, it’ll have nothing to do with her."
An Yan’s gaze was fixed on Li Qingqing.
Li Qingqing’s face was tense.
Yes, she felt that as long as she didn’t admit it, An Yan wouldn’t be able to do anything to her.
But An Yan didn’t play by the usual rules and skipped over that topic, saying, "Li Qingqing, you’ve hated the wrong person."
An Yan took half a step back, releasing her. "I have no intention of monopolizing Li Tianyao. If you can help Li Tianyao let go of without hurting , then I would be eternally grateful!"
"What do you an? Are you saying that it was Tianyao who pursued you?" Li Qingqing said angrily.
An Yan nodded, "Yes. He even forced to get the marriage certificate. What could I do? I’m desperate too."
Li Qingqing’s face twisted with anger, "Nonsense! If you really wanted to leave my brother, there are plenty of ways!"
"What ways? You know Li Tianyao’s capabilities as well as I do. Even if I fled to the ends of the earth, he would find ."
"Who told you to run away? If you truly want to leave, just get together with another man, wouldn’t that solve it? How could my brother possibly want a woman who’s already given herself to soone else!"
"What if he gets consud by hatred and decides to kill ?"
"I’ll protect you! An Yan, since it has co to this, why don’t you just admit to the affair with Ling Xiao? I guarantee Tianyao won’t kill you both. And I’ll even give you a sum of money to send you abroad to live your little life!"
"But I don’t like Ling Xiao!"
"Who asked you to like him? You just have to pretend you’re with Ling Xiao, that’s all! Can you pretend or not?"
"So, everything tonight... you deliberately designed it to help pretend?"
Anyone would have found An Yan’s attempt to bait her rather clumsy!
But Li Qingqing showed no sign of noticing and straightforwardly admitted, "Yes, so if you really want to leave my brother, just go along with the act. I’ll handle the rest as the situation demands."
"..."
「In the room.」
Li Tianyao, lying on the bed, his face as dark as a stormy sea.
He had thought that after all they had been through, she had accepted him. He never expected that wasn’t the case at all.
She was still thinking of leaving him.
SMACK!
Overwheld by a surge of anger, he swept the water glass from the bedside table to the floor.
Outside the door, both girls simultaneously turned their heads towards the bedroom door.
After a mont, An Yan gestured to Li Qingqing with her head, "You go?"
Just as Li Qingqing was about to go, she heard Tianyao’s voice from inside the room, "Lu Feng, lock Li Qingqing up!"
Li Qingqing’s face was filled with shock, "Tianyao? Why are you locking up? Didn’t you hear her? An Yan doesn’t like you at all! She’d rather put on an act with Ling Xiao than stay with you. Why would you..."
An Yan watched Li Qingqing quietly, her expression calm, showing no surprise, displeasure, or anger at being sched against.
"Gag her!"
Lu Feng acted imdiately. Li Qingqing couldn’t utter another word as she was dragged out by Lu Feng, her eyes glaring daggers at An Yan!
This vile woman!
She had used those words to lure An Yan into admitting it was her own wish to leave Tianyao.
But An Yan had also used words to trick her into admitting that Ling Xiao’s appearance was her doing!
And Tianyao, clearly, believed An Yan!
It was this vile woman who had bewitched her Tianyao!
She wouldn’t let her get away with this. One day, she would make Tianyao realize that the only person in this world qualified to be by his side was herself!
Only herself!
After watching Li Qingqing being dragged away by Lu Feng, An Yan hesitated for a mont, then took a deep breath and pushed open the door to Li Tianyao’s room.
The main light was off; only a bedside reading lamp cast a dim, cold glow.
The glass from the bedside table lay shattered on the floor.
Their gazes t in the cold light.
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