As their kiss grew increasingly fervent, Li Yifei lifted Qian Fei and rolled with her onto the sofa. Pinning her beneath him without leaving an inch of space, his lips and tongue ravaged hers in a tempestuous dance. His hands roamed wildly over her body, kneading everywhere they touched. The more they kissed, the more uncontrollable his passion became. His hand slipped under the hem of her skirt, traveling up her thigh until it reached her panties, which he unhesitatingly tugged downward.
Qian Fei struggled slightly in panic, but he restrained her legs, holding her in place. She yielded half-heartedly, letting him have his way.
Suddenly, his phone rang from his shirt pocket.
●︶3︶●
Li Yifei’s phone kept ringing, but he ignored it, his entire focus devoted to preparing to claim Qian Fei’s body. The incessant ringing annoyed Qian Fei, so she pushed him away, demanding he either answer or hang up.
He finally broke away from her lips for a moment, propping himself up slightly. Through the thin fabric, Qian Fei vaguely glimpsed the illuminated phone screen displaying a girl’s name.
"Gina?" she read aloud, noticing Li Yifei’s expression darken instantly. A flicker of tension and wariness seeped through the thick haze of desire in his eyes.
Her heart skipped a beat. Pushing him away more forcefully, she reached into his pocket, snatched the phone, and answered it on speaker before he could react.
Li Yifei’s attempt to stop her was too late. He could only stare at her as they both listened to the coquettish female voice emanating from the phone.
"Aubrey, didn’t we agree to have dinner together tonight? Where are you now?"
Qian Fei held up the phone, eyes locked on Li Yifei.
He snatched it back, hung up without a word, and turned it off.
The two stared at each other, neither backing down.
After a long silence, Qian Fei spoke first, her face grim. "Aubrey? Nice. That’s a pretty solid foreign name you’ve got there."
Li Yifei met her gaze, his eyes flickering with unease. His voice lacked its usual confidence as he stammered, "I didn’t know you’d break up so soon! I thought I’d never have a chance with you! I was feeling down, so Dajun introduced me to this girl… But I swear on my honor, nothing happened between us! You have to believe me, Qian Fei!"
Qian Fei looked at him and let out a dry laugh. "How novel. I didn’t know you had any honor left when it came to women." Her smile vanished as she shoved him away completely, sitting up to pull her panties back on. Standing from the sofa, she looked down at him like a queen, patting his shoulder with composed indifference before glancing pointedly at the tent in his pants. "Li Yifei, a tomboy like me probably can’t handle a young master like you who still has some ‘honor’ left. I think we should just stay friends. Maybe once you’ve shed that playboy and philandering streak of yours, we can reconsider whether we’re fit to sleep together. I’m going to bed now. You can stay and sleep on the sofa if you want, or leave—just close the door behind you."
With that, she strode back to her room, leaving Li Yifei staring miserably at his throbbing lower half.
●︶3︶●
Back in her room, Qian Fei flopped onto the bed, burying her face in the pillow as she savored the storm of emotions swirling inside her.
These past few days, her life had been more turbulent than a rollercoaster ride.Her body was still damp, like parched earth after a long drought finally blessed with rain, yearning to indulge in pleasure without restraint. But the thought of that phone call earlier gradually calmed the lingering arousal within her.
She couldn’t tell if she resented Li Yifei. But what right did she have to resent him? She was the one who had said she was getting back together with Wang Ruohai—it was only natural for him to find another girlfriend.
Yet, she felt unhappy—deeply, sourly, exceptionally unhappy.
Outside, Li Yifei was knocking on her door, whining an explanation that since she had reined herself in just in time regarding her ex-boyfriend, he and that girl truly hadn’t had the chance to explore topics beyond life’s philosophies.
Qian Fei was left speechless by his shameless justification. Gritting her teeth, she raised her head and called out toward the door, mimicking his tone, “Young master, just hurry up and leave! Since you already promised her yesterday, at least give her some closure. Stop clinging to me—you’re making me feel like the other woman!”
Li Yifei fell silent for a moment before speaking through the door, “Then I’ll go.”
A moment later, she heard the front door close. He had really left.
An inexplicable sense of loss suddenly washed over her. His role as a free-spirited man was played to perfection—coming and going as he pleased, his temperament so infuriating it made her want to kick him.
Lying on the bed, her thoughts wandered aimlessly when her phone suddenly pinged.
A message from Li Yifei: I’ll try to change myself. And starting tomorrow, I’m going to seriously pursue you.
Qian Fei stared at her phone and took a deep, shuddering breath.
●︶3︶●
The next day, Li Yifei indeed boldly (and shamelessly) embarked on what he called his “official pursuit.” Qian Fei deliberately played hard to get, refusing to respond immediately.
Yao Jingjing warned, “Hey, don’t push it too far. If you play too hard to get, you might just chase him away!”
Qian Fei retorted, “If he’s that easy to scare off, then he was never meant to be mine.”
She laid down three rules for Li Yifei:
No one at their companies could know about their flirtation—they had to maintain a dignified, professional facade.
He was forbidden from picking her up at work.
If he went to bars or other questionable venues, he couldn’t hide it from her. And if he flirted with girls from film academies, dance schools, or any other artsy institutions, he’d better make sure she never found out—or she might not be able to resist scratching him on principle.
From his past relationship, she had seen too many of his bad habits. When he was someone else’s boyfriend, those things didn’t concern her, and she could laugh them off. But if he were to become her boyfriend, she absolutely wouldn’t tolerate such behavior.
Li Yifei agreed to her rules—though very reluctantly."Why can't people know about us? Why can't I pick you up from your office? I've lived my whole life shining brightly in the sunlight—how did I suddenly become something to hide? And since when are bars considered shady establishments? They have legitimate business licenses! Besides, what can I do if those college girls think I'm cool, handsome, and adorable and want to look at me? Can natural good looks really be erased by effort?"
His shameless objections were all ruthlessly dismissed by Qian Fei, and his struggles ultimately proved futile.
Dajun watched as the once-smooth Casanova, who had never spared a thought for any girl, now found himself constantly thwarted. He couldn't resist sneering: "Serves you right, you bastard! You wouldn’t let me meet that tough girl—admit it, you were hoarding her for yourself! Karma’s a bitch, and now it’s your turn!"
Of course, none of Qian Fei’s rules could stop Li Yifei, whose mind was always brimming with mischief.
●︶3︶●
One day during lunch, Xiaoyuan gossiped excitedly to Qian Fei, her eyes sparkling: "I’ve noticed that super handsome guy from the partner company has been coming to our office a lot lately! Every time I lead him to the meeting room, he smiles and thanks me. Oh my god, that dazzling smile—it makes my heart flutter! If there weren’t so many people around, I’d totally strip him down and pounce!"
Qian Fei choked on her rice.
Sister Jin chimed in: "Oh, absolutely! How can a guy be that handsome and charming? Even someone like me, with a kid about to start elementary school, can’t help but feel hot under the collar!"
Qian Fei choked again.
Sister Jin patted her back. "Feifei, what’s wrong with your throat today? You keep choking!" Then she turned back to Xiaoyuan and continued, "But come to think of it, he didn’t show up for the earlier meetings." She glanced at Qian Fei. "Feifei, is there some issue with your project lately? Why does he keep coming over to discuss things? Though I heard he’s already registered as a sponsor representative! So young, so good-looking, and a sponsor rep—oh my god, his future is limitless!" Sister Jin’s eyes lit up as she stared at Qian Fei. "I wonder if he has a girlfriend. If not, you should go for it, Feifei! Snatch him up! What a perfect marriage candidate!!!"
Qian Fei felt like she was about to die from rice inhalation.
There was no problem with the project—he was just making up excuses to drop by every few days, always arriving after 3 p.m. First, he’d charm every woman in the office, young and old. Then, he’d have a serious-looking discussion with the project lead before casually requesting that Qian Fei be called into the meeting room. He’d dismiss the project lead, saying the minor follow-up issues could be handled between the two of them.
So the meeting room would be left to just the two of them. Xiaoyuan occasionally came in to serve tea, winking suggestively at Qian Fei as if to encourage her: "Great opportunity—go get him!"
Qian Fei, a decent person at heart, felt she was barely holding her own in this debauched society.On the surface, they were discussing the project with all due propriety, but beneath the table, he was shamelessly rubbing his foot against her leg. This beastly meeting style continued until 5:30 PM, after which he conveniently left work with her. Once they were far enough from the company, he started getting handsy, fully intending to act like a rogue in public.
Qian Fei felt like she had nearly perfected her own "Qian-style Tai Chi" in fending off this shameless scoundrel's advances.
She had once sternly protested, "Can't your so-called 'formal pursuit' be a bit more normal, decent, and proper like everyone else's?"
Li Yifei asked, "What's everyone else like? What counts as normal, decent, and proper?"
Qian Fei replied, "Others go on dinner dates, watch movies, or take walks together! Normal, decent, and proper means not abusing your position to come to our company and tease me!"
Li Yifei retorted, "How am I teasing you? Haven't I always been restrained and proper?"
Qian Fei nearly sneered, "Pfft! Can you even have any shame left? Restrained and proper? More like unrestrained and outright indecent!"
Li Yifei put on a sanctimonious expression and argued, "Qian Fei, let's start from the beginning. I think your logic is flawed. Have you ever seen a man and woman 'normally, decently, and properly' chatting under the covers and ending up with a child? Humanity would go extinct that way! Is that the future you want? You don't strike me as someone so heartless!"
Qian Fei was nearly knocked over by his absurd reasoning. Refusing to engage further with someone whose shamelessness was truly peerless, she simply slapped a hand over his face and pushed away his annoying, brazen mug.
●︶3︶●
Li Yifei now lived near Siqing Bridge, in a villa within an upscale residential area. When Qian Fei asked if he rented or owned it, he slowly raised an eyebrow and said, "Rented! Some silly girl toyed with my feelings a while back, so in a fit of anger, I rented this big villa to drown my sorrows. With a place this huge and fancy, throwing parties every day is just too convenient!"
Qian Fei snorted coldly, expressionless.
She knew he had signed several projects and earned some bonuses, and Yao Jingjing had mentioned he and Dajun had started an import-export business that was doing well. Still, she couldn't help feeling he was being extravagantly wasteful.
"You'd be better off saving that money! Why waste it on renting a villa? With a year or so of that rent, you could buy a place in any decent neighborhood!"
Seizing the opportunity, Li Yifei countered, "Then kick out that other tenant, and I'll move back into your place!"
Qian Fei said she'd consider it.
But before she could even begin to think it over, Li Yifei did something else that made her slam the table in frustration.
He bought a car—a Cadillac.
Qian Fei nearly lost it. "Renting a villa, driving a luxury car, but not buying a home—what kind of lifestyle is this, Young Master Li?! Is this how proper adults behave?!" she fumed, even as she promptly climbed into the passenger seat.Li Yifei helped her fasten the seatbelt while smoothing her ruffled feathers: "It's so hot these days, and your skirt is so thin. You get jostled around in the subway every day—do you really think someone as pure-hearted as me could stand that?"
Qian Fei nearly regurgitated her lunch all over him.
Seeing her pout with suppressed anger, Li Yifei chuckled smugly. "Alright, I won’t splurge recklessly anymore. From now on, I’ll leave my money with you—you can manage it for me, okay?"
Qian Fei shot him a skeptical glance. "I doubt you even have any money left now!"
Li Yifei raised an eyebrow. "Nope. I might even struggle with next month’s rent. What should I do? How about you support me?"
Qian Fei rolled her eyes, her expression a mix of pity and exasperation. "Serves you right! You’re like a sieve when it comes to money—can’t hold onto a single penny! You spend like there’s no tomorrow without even thinking about survival!" She shifted in the seat, grudgingly admitting that the car was far more comfortable than the subway—millions of times more humane.
"Maybe you should find a cheaper place for now to cut expenses. As for me, I’ll talk to my roommate next month when her lease is up and see if she can find another place."
Li Yifei beamed like a blooming flower, so pleased with himself it was borderline punchable. "With this face of mine, rent is nothing! I’ll just wait by Siqing Bridge until your freeloading roommate moves out, then I’ll move right back in!"
Qian Fei seriously considered slapping that shameless face of his.
Freeloading? As if her place was his own home.
Author’s Note:
In the last chapter, someone left a long comment under someone else’s post dissecting all the supposed legal inaccuracies in the court case. Well, let me tell you, dear reader—this case is based on a real one, and all the details are factual, except for how the lawyer’s suspicions were resolved. Life itself is full of loopholes, and overly meticulous scrutiny can only go so far.
Then there was another comment (I don’t remember the exact wording) saying something like, "The moment the heroine falls for him, it’s not fun anymore—dropping this, goodbye." Honestly, reading that left me feeling pretty down. Maybe it was the tone of "dropping this, goodbye" that got to me. But hey, you can’t please everyone, and I can’t guarantee everyone will like this story.
When I first started writing this, I thought—after two and a half years of not writing, my readership was long gone. If this story even reached 3,000-4,000 collections, I’d be thrilled. Making it to the quarterly rankings would’ve been a bonus, and the yearly rankings? I didn’t even dare dream of it. But thanks to all your support, it’s achieved way beyond what I imagined! I’m truly grateful—bows of thanks! That said, the pressure’s been mounting lately because, honestly, the comments are full of so many differing opinions, and I just can’t satisfy everyone. Sorry, crying face!
As stories progress, it’s natural for readers to lose interest. If you want to drop it, just do so quietly—no need to announce it. Facing such blunt reality makes even tea eggs lose their joy. TT
Also, Jinjiang’s being glitchy—can’t even send out points.
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