Chapter 102: The Scene Needs to Be Pixelated

“Have you been acting this way ever since you met me? Is this abnormality something that brings you joy or sorrow?”

Mai Xijun’s calm words left Shen Yanlie silent for a long moment. Perhaps he had no answer, or perhaps the sudden question caught him off guard, causing all his thoughts to halt without explanation. He simply gazed at her, quietly peering into her dark pupils under the night’s veil.

Ambiguity—neither clear nor definable. When positive, it is a hazy love; when negative, it is mere indulgence—never lasting beyond obsession, fleeting as fickleness. Mai Xijun sought certainty. If Shen Yanlie could give her that certainty, she would love him with her life.

“I’ve said this many times before, but this time, I’ll only say it once more: stay by my side and love me well. As long as you take that first step forward with effort, I will take care of everything else.”

If she would come to him, she need not worry about anything else. He would handle it all, giving her the finest things in the world, allowing her to experience the most exquisite love, the best care and adoration. But now, even if she wished to turn back, that chance was gone. He would never let go—not ever. He was so possessive...

A light flickered in Mai Xijun’s eyes, like a lighthouse in the dark night, silently illuminating Shen Yanlie’s entire world.

“I believe in you.” Even if everyone said he was ruthless, she still believed that deep inside, he was tender. Because she had felt it herself...

Though everyone claimed his heart was as hard as steel, what she felt was a softness that wrapped around her like silk. She could doubt everything else, but the warmth and tenderness he gave her had touched her very soul, pure and unmistakable, utterly exquisite.

The next evening, Mai Xijun boarded a plane to another country. It was a beautiful journey. He taught her how to love, showing her that life was still full of beauty, with so many things waiting to be discovered, so much splendor waiting to be appreciated.

* * * * *

Back home.

Xie Yunting stood in the CEO’s office at the top floor of Eurasia Tower.

“Miss Xie, the CEO really isn’t here. Perhaps you should come back another time,” Han Xinyao said awkwardly. But this woman claimed to be the CEO’s fiancée, and it wasn’t her first visit. She had been seen arm-in-arm with the CEO before.

Yet in Han Xinyao’s understanding, Assistant Mai was the one the CEO favored. Moreover, the CEO had gone abroad recently—and he had taken Assistant Mai with him.

“You go and do your work. I’ll wait for him here.” Xie Yunting’s stubbornness brooked no further questions. She glanced briefly behind her, then returned her gaze to the blue-tinted tempered glass, looking toward a not-so-distant place.

Shen Yanlie—you left with Mai Xijun, didn’t you? Xie Yunting bitterly smiled inside. Six years had passed since her return, and he had told her clearly, “It’s over between us.”

But she still didn’t want to accept it—not like this, not so easily brushing aside what she once felt for him. At least once, she had truly loved him with all her heart, even if in the end she found reasons to leave him at the moment he needed her most.

Han Xinyao dared not speak further, sensing that pressing the matter would only reveal her own lack of tact. She nodded, bit her lip, and returned to her seat.

* * * * *

Days hurried past, yet Xie Yunting felt as though time dragged unbearably. In these recent days, she ate here and slept at his home at night. He hadn’t changed the locks on the room she once stayed in. The door code was still her birthday. Had he really stopped loving her? Xie Yunting refused to believe it.

No—he loved her. Everything in her room remained as it was. How could he no longer love her? Impossible... absolutely impossible.

Leaning against the wall, she slid down slowly, clutching her head in anguish. Memories long buried suddenly crashed down like a landslide, fragmenting and overwhelming her. The weight crushed her, forcing her to struggle on the verge of collapse.

Shen Yanlie was both cruel and tender. To those he didn’t care for, he was cold and proud, like a bloodthirsty wolf. But to her, because he loved her, he was so gentle—soft as jade, warm as spring...

Yet in the blink of an eye, six years had passed. Given enough time, everything fades into oblivion...

And she had been forgotten.

Xie Yunting buried her face in her knees, finally breaking down in tears.

* * * * *

[Dream the dreams you want, go where you wish, become who you want to be—because you only live once...]

On a pristine sheet of A4 paper lay a clear sentence, written with a carbon ink pen in elegant handwriting, quietly resting on Mo Shaoxing’s desk. He had wanted to say this to Mai Xijun long ago, but to this day, the words remained unspoken.

Mo Shaoxing felt a heavy weight in his chest but remained composed. Agitation would change nothing now. His greatest challenge wasn’t this—it was the lost opportunity of studying abroad in France with Mai Xijun... the chance he had fought for her was gone forever.

“Assistant Mo, there’s a meeting this afternoon. Do you want to...” Han Xinyao approached respectfully, handing him a stack of documents, tentatively asking.

This was already her second attempt to speak to him without response. Han Xinyao felt conflicted, wondering if her requests for guidance had annoyed him so much that he no longer wished to see her.

At this moment, Mo Shaoxing sat with one leg crossed, his eyes half-closed, one hand propping up his forehead. His long fingers shadowed half his face, giving him a melancholic, almost sorrowful air.

Biting her rosy lips softly, Han Xinyao felt an inexplicable sadness stirring in her heart.

“Assistant Mo, if there’s nothing urgent, I’ll go print the meeting materials,” she said, nodding politely. Seeing no reply, she assumed he was fine and headed toward the door.

Mo Shaoxing was a man of few words, offering little guidance. Though he answered her questions clearly, his replies were always concise and sharp, with no wasted words—much like the day she mistook him for being away and tried to enter his office, only to find him freshly showered and standing naked before her...

His physique was slender but muscular, just like his speech—precise and meaningful, with no excess fat, but rich in substance. Reflecting on that moment, the image of his naked muscular form—and the undeniable fact of his manhood—flushed Han Xinyao’s cheeks a vivid, cherry blossom pink.

“Wait.” Suddenly alert, Mo Shaoxing opened his eyes, sat upright, and placed both hands on the desk. “Secretary Han, don’t we have a major cooperation deal coming up? I think it’s with Mexico.”

He asked uncertainly. Han Xinyao thought hard, quickly recalling, “We don’t have anything with Mexico, but there is a deal with Russia.”

She answered truthfully, and only after finishing did her furrowed brow finally relax. Her delicate, doll-like face, framed by long eyelashes and flawless skin, rivaled Mai Xijun’s beauty. At a glance, one might mistake her for underage if not for knowing her actual age.

“Oh, good. After the meeting, let’s prepare the proposal,” Mo Shaoxing said calmly, though beneath the surface, a surge of masculine drive stirred fiercely.

“We...” he began, then took the documents to read. Looking up at the shy, blushing Han Xinyao—her cheeks like cherry blossoms in March—he smiled faintly, a fleeting image flashing through his mind. “Is there anything else, Secretary Han?”

“Oh, no, nothing else. You go ahead and work,” Han Xinyao replied shyly, scratching her head, her slender figure exquisitely outlined by her black business suit.

The small figure caught Mo Shaoxing’s eye, prompting a helpless shake of his head, though the smile on his lips was warmly genuine.

“By the way, Assistant Mo, do you take your coffee with sugar or without?” Han Xinyao suddenly turned at the door, her eyes bright and clear, revealing the emotions she could not conceal. She was still just a young girl, unable to hide her feelings.

But this silly girl—he hadn’t said or done anything to encourage this excitement; she was just amusing herself.

“Hmm...” Mo Shaoxing rested his chin on his hand, brows lightly furrowed as if pondering deeply. “Let’s go with the usual. Strawberry-flavored Youlemei, please.”

“Yes, I’ll prepare it right away. Hehe...” Han Xinyao’s lively cheerfulness was like a little rabbit’s, her spirits lifted as she left the office.

Mo Shaoxing shook his head again, laughing softly to himself.