Liang Sijie wanted to say more but his eyes dimmed first.
He nodded, then was half-pulled and half-pushed away by the woman.
Soon, the entire deck emptied as everyone went downstairs to eat, drink, and dance. Li Yaru kicked off her high heels and sat cross-legged on the sofa like a proper lady.
Would Liang Sijie think this was a decent job? After all, last week the boss had grabbed his chest muscles, and just now asked him to accompany a socialite to dance. He didn’t know how much “oil” he would be rubbed with…
Li Yaru sighed deeply and resolved to find a chance to explain things and maybe give him a bonus.
The smell of alcohol and barbecue was carried by the wind, and the sound of waves pushing aside. She soon stopped thinking about Liang Sijie and drifted into other chaotic thoughts, unaware that someone had quietly stood beside her.
Her nose caught a familiar scent among the disorderly smells. She froze, then turned.
Zhuang Qiting held a cocktail, calmly watching her. Behind him, the city lights glittered brilliantly.
His jacket was off, leaving only his shirt and vest. He looked warm just like that. His gaze lowered, deep and slow like a dark current.
Li Yaru didn’t even realize when he had boarded. She had assumed he’d left after the banquet. A busy and serious man, he never liked flashy parties or drunken crowds.
“Miss Li.” Zhuang Qiting greeted quietly.
“Miss Li” again—the name sent an eerie chill down Li Yaru’s spine.
“Zhuang Sheng is here too.” She forced a big, natural smile. “Why don’t you both go downstairs? There’s barbecue and dancing; it’s livelier than here.”
“And you? Why aren’t you going? Not fond of fun?” Zhuang Qiting sat on another sofa, setting down his pale gold cocktail.
Li Yaru glanced at his hand. His wedding ring still remained on his ring finger—twenty years, and he had always worn it in public.
“Is my hand nice?” Zhuang Qiting raised an eyebrow.
Li Yaru withdrew her gaze, curling her lips. “I thought you would have taken it off.”
Zhuang Qiting touched the ring. The gold band was scratched, but the diamond was eternal and still dazzling. He lowered his voice. “I’m used to it by now. I’m still going to wear it.”
Li Yaru’s heart trembled inexplicably. Her own ring finger was adorned with a decorative gemstone ring, and her index finger wore a large South Sea pearl, all very glamorous.
“You actually could take it off.”
“Miss Li, that’s too cruel.”
“Cruel?”
The word felt heavy.
Zhuang Qiting looked at Li Yaru. His voice was husky with wine, soft but serious, like no other time on this floating world. “I know we’re divorced. I don’t expect you to come back. But you don’t even allow me to call you Ah Rou now, nor let me wear the ring. Don’t you have even one thought left for me?”
“……”
What was he saying? Li Yaru’s mind went blank as she stared at the man before her. She had seen many sides of Zhuang Qiting: the conqueror, the dominant, the ruthless, the bloodthirsty, the cold, the greedy, the tender, the man lost in desire…
But this was the first time she heard loss, sadness, and vulnerability in his words.
He looked like a defeated man, making her feel like she was bullying him. But she… she hadn’t! It was always him bullying her, oppressing and controlling her.
This old man was going crazy!
“Are you… possessed?” Li Yaru blinked and asked hesitantly.
Zhuang Qiting frowned, about to say nonsense. How could his wife accuse him of possession? He swallowed hard. “No.”
“I’m just rethinking our past, coming to understand some things.”
Li Yaru clutched her dress. The strange atmosphere stirred her naturally, even nervously, her heartbeat quickening. God, she had never dealt with this kind of Zhuang Qiting before.
He made her feel like a stranger! He was reconsidering! That word didn’t belong to him!
“…What things?” she asked.
Zhuang Qiting smiled faintly, lifted his cocktail, and took a slow sip. “Well—never mind. You wouldn’t want to hear it. I don’t want to bother you or make you hate me.”
Li Yaru frowned, her heart tingling with curiosity. “Say it. I’m not bothered.”
Actually, she was. She hated it when he controlled her so domineeringly and arrogantly for all these years.
Zhuang Qiting turned his gaze toward the opposite shore. A magnificent golden building towered proudly—Senghui Tower—his realm. He always stood at the top, looking down on the world, never thought about how it felt to look up at the tower from below.
“Because if I say it, you’ll hate me.”
Li Yaru was fed up. When did this man become so whiny? “If you say it, I really will hate you. Zhuang Qiting, you know I hate people who dangle things in front of me.”
Zhuang Qiting’s dark eyes softened further, smiling. “So you don’t hate me now.”
Li Yaru wasn’t falling for it. She scowled. “Stop interrupting. Continue telling me what you figured out.”
Zhuang Qiting smiled and stood up, slowly walking over to sit beside her. His strong presence overwhelmed her as he neared. Li Yaru watched him cautiously. “Mr. Zhuang, if you have something to say, say it. We’re already divorced—”
“Ah Rou, everything before was my fault.”
“……”
Li Yaru fell silent, watching Zhuang Qiting with wariness, tension, and coldness. They were divorced; what was the point of saying this?
“I was too stubborn, too forceful, too overbearing.” His voice was heavy with regret.
“……”
“If you’re willing, I want to try a different way of being with you.”
“I—” Li Yaru felt uneasy. He sounded like a cunning old fox trying to deceive her. She was about to say no when—
“I’m determined to pursue you, Miss Li.” Zhuang Qiting said calmly, without hesitation.
“………………”
Li Yaru looked at Zhuang Qiting in horror, her red lips slightly parted.
What did he say? Pursue her? Zhuang Qiting pursuing her? At twenty-four, he never chased her; he only coerced and blackmailed her into marrying him as his mistress. Now, almost forty-nine, he wanted to pursue her?
Zhuang Qiting pursuing a woman… it made Li Yaru think of the terrifying monster from her dreams with two dark red humanoid snake tails, making her body burn with fever and sweat.
“You’re pursuing me?”
“Yes, I’m pursuing you, Ah Rou.”
Li Yaru took a deep breath, dizzy. “Zhuang Qiting! Is this the ridiculous idea you’ve been hiding for a month? Or did your brothers and nephews come up with it?”
No wonder this old man had been acting strange lately. She thought he had some dark secret, but it was just rotten black water!
Seeing his wife’s disgusted and even terrified face, Zhuang Qiting’s expression darkened like a thunderstorm.
He worked hard to create a calm and romantic atmosphere, hoping to ease their tense memories, only to be ruined in an instant by this little thing.
He pursued her, showed weakness, humbled himself, yet she gave him no face and even mocked him. No matter what, he was her only man in her life— her husband.
For a moment, he truly wanted to beat her— make her scream and suffer— then maybe she’d finally settle down.
“May I pursue you, Miss Li? A graceful lady and a worthy gentleman, both unmarried, in the prime of life.” His Adam’s apple moved as he spoke gently, restraining the terrifying, sinister aura he sometimes radiated.
Li Yaru almost laughed in anger. Prime of life? Did he think he was still twenty?
She’d been through enough years not to be fooled by men. She’d seen all kinds of demons and monsters.
“Do you really want to pursue me, or do you want to kill me?” Li Yaru asked coolly, her beautiful eyes sharp and bright as she stared at him.
The little thing spoke crudely, but it didn’t matter. She wanted to be a lady.
If he forced her from now on, she could be as crude, wild, and unruly as she liked, and he would gladly indulge her.
Suddenly, he realized he liked her just like that.
Zhuang Qiting’s dark eyes sparkled as he leaned in slowly. His ringed hand gently slid onto her smooth shoulder.
Li Yaru shivered all over.
“Miss Li, these two things don’t conflict. You know I’ve always enjoyed those pleasures with you, but pursuing you is serious.”
Zhuang Qiting looked at the woman before him with devotion. How could she get even more beautiful and seductive after their divorce? Was this even fair?
Only he had gotten thinner, weaker, distracted in work and life.
It had been almost half a year since he touched her. Seeing her was fine, but now he couldn’t hold back.
At this moment, he even wanted to have her right here on the ship, all night long.