Chapter Sixty-Five: Take Money, Buy You

Watching the growing weight in Mai Xijun’s expression, Shen Yanlie’s lips curled with amused contempt. So it seemed she was all talk after all; there was no need to take her words to heart. He released his grip on her shoulders, his gaze as cold as winter. One hand buried in his pocket, he turned and strode away.

Mai Xijun pressed her lips together, her eyes trailing after Xie Yunting, who had not yet gone far. She took a bold step forward, seized Shen Yanlie’s wrist, her fingers cold and unyielding, grasping him with all her strength and resolve. She moved in front of him, blocking his path, meeting his eyes without flinching. “Very well. From today on, I’ll love you.”

Shen Yanlie was caught off guard, but he couldn’t suppress a sudden laugh, ignoring the strange looks from the others in the office. Then he snorted derisively, his eyes cold and untamed, lingering brazenly over her, scrutinizing her as if she were an object for his amusement. “But tell me—what do you have that could make me love you? Thirty-four D, perhaps…?”

He leaned in, his breath warm against her ear. “Do you?”

Mai Xijun was stunned, her face darkening as she lowered her head, glancing at the part of herself he’d just appraised.

Damn it. This man was insufferable—utterly shameless.

“If you don’t, then step aside,” Shen Yanlie said, his eyes filled with nothing but mockery and scorn. A dull, nameless ache gnawed at Mai Xijun’s heart. She began to wonder if her impulsive decision to turn back before boarding the plane had been a mistake. After all, he didn’t care for her feelings at all… She must have been out of her mind.

She caught up with Shen Yanlie’s stride. “Give me back my city.”

She thrust out her hand before him, her posture arrogant. Shen Yanlie glanced at Xie Yunting shrinking into the distance and suddenly lost all interest in pursuing her. Instead, he stopped, studying the woman before him with genuine curiosity. Going to study in France had been so important to her, and yet she’d come back so abruptly—just for him? He found it hard to believe, yet a faint thread of hope took root in his heart… Xie Yunting had hurt him too deeply once, and her reason for leaving had sounded so noble. Now that she wanted to return, what could he say? The truth was, he could never truly be ruthless with someone he loved.

Shen Yanlie kept guessing at Mai Xijun’s intentions. To be honest, she lived alone, strong and self-reliant, hardly needing much money and certainly not vain. Yet now she was asking him for a city. So, the lioness finally opened her mouth.

“Go ahead. How much do you want?” Shen Yanlie was composed and elegant as a panther. He pulled a pen and checkbook from his suit pocket. “Anything but Eurasia—you can have whatever you like.”

He lowered his head slightly, the check resting in his palm as he began to sign.

Mai Xijun glanced at the check and quietly swallowed. The card he’d given her before was enough to keep her comfortable for half her life. Now, on this check, so many zeros trailed after the number…

She hesitated, weighing her words, and ventured, “How much are you worth?”

Shen Yanlie’s pen stilled mid-signature, pressing a heavy mark at the end. After a moment, his long fingers lifted from the page. He looked up, his gaze calm and unruffled. “I’m worth nothing.”

He capped the pen, tore out the check, slipped it back into his pocket, and handed the signed slip to Mai Xijun. “If you’re smart, take it. I’ll make new arrangements for you to go to Paris.”

In that instant, it was as if Shen Yanlie’s conscience awoke and he even brought up her trip to Paris. Mai Xijun swallowed again. Just moments ago, she’d thought she’d made a rash, foolish decision, but now he was putting the opportunity back in her hands. It was almost too tempting…

She took the check, carefully counted the digits, and Shen Yanlie couldn’t help but laugh at her money-counting demeanor. So, she was that kind of woman after all. Gave up a chance to study in France just to come back and ask him for money.

So, she was no different from the rest.

As she counted, Mai Xijun suddenly caught Shen Yanlie’s sleeve as he passed. “This is… ten million, isn’t it?” She tilted her head, her eyes suspicious.

“If it’s not enough, add more zeros yourself. But… you’d best use it wisely.” Shen Yanlie’s playful expression faded completely. He was no fool, and her words only confirmed what he had already begun to suspect.

Yet, the thought that the woman he had shared his bed with might be just as mercenary as the others left him with a vague, unsettling irritation. All the women he’d been involved with before had some financial connection to him, but if this one turned out to be the same, he felt a sudden urge to throttle her.

“Oh…”

Shen Yanlie saw the disappointment in Mai Xijun’s eyes, but her hand still clung tightly to his clothes. He looked at her again, more seriously this time. “If you want a city, it’s not impossible. Tell me where you want to go. I’ll have someone arrange it now. But the capital is out of the question—it doesn’t suit you.”

Damn it. What did he mean, it didn’t suit her? Was he insulting her roundabout?

Shen Yanlie was already pulling out his phone, as if eager to be rid of her, to send her away as quickly as possible.

He knew well that malt candy sticks to the teeth… He’d changed bed partners several times for this very reason. Sharing a bed too long, and women become sentimental and dependent, even if only physically. He had always detested entanglements.

But perhaps Mai Xijun didn’t realize the limits of Shen Yanlie’s tolerance for her. One thing, however, she knew: if the person standing before him now was his rival, and dared to act so brazenly, they’d likely be dead by now.

Mai Xijun pressed down his hand, opened his other palm, and placed the check flat in it. Shen Yanlie’s brows drew together. Mai Xijun lifted her head, her lovely eyes bright and clear. “Then I’ll use this money to buy you.”

A stunned silence.

What? Had he heard her right? She wanted to buy him—for ten million? Was this some kind of joke? Shen Yanlie was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, certain it was the most outrageous, amusing thing he’d ever heard.

Did she really think he was a commodity? When he’d wanted her as his woman, she’d acted aloof, pretending not to care. Now, when he was in need of a woman to help him out of his predicament, she suddenly clung to him like malt candy. So she, too, knew how to take advantage of a vulnerable moment.