They opened the truck doors and carefully unloaded the well-wrapped packages.
Each piece of haute couture was ironed and packed in fully sealed dust bags, hung on mobile racks without a single scratch or bump.
The dazzling array of intricate colors and materials was overwhelming— each item a treasure, the cheap ones worth over two hundred thousand, the expensive ones in the millions.
There were even one-of-a-kind vintage pieces that, if worn, could grace the Cannes red carpet.
“All these are my haute couture?” Li Yaru was pleasantly surprised. These were the treasures she had painfully left behind at the Zhuang Residence, the ones she might never see again in this lifetime.
Li Guanjia was pleased as well. Finally, the old master had done one right thing! No more spiraling into madness.
Look how happy Madam Li was! With a little more effort, winning Madam Li back was just a matter of time!
“Yes, all yours!” Li Guanjia beamed. “Excluding the 721 pieces you already have, there are 1,682 more. It’s just too many; even after today’s delivery, organizing them will take time and energy. Your dresses are treasures—we worry about any scratches or bumps.”
Li Yaru narrowed her eyes. So this was what Zhuang Qiting meant by pursuing her? She said nothing and let Li Guanjia ramble on.
“If you don’t trust these clumsy people to handle your dresses, you could always take a break and come back to the Zhuang Residence to personally oversee the process!”
Li Yaru caught his meaning and snorted, “Uncle Li, that’s what Zhuang Qiting told you to say, right? He wants to trick me into going back?”
Li Guanjia quickly shook his head, “No, no, the master didn’t mean that. Please don’t misunderstand. He’s truly reformed recently and definitely won’t do anything to upset you.”
“Reformed.” Li Yaru found the phrase amusing.
Zhuang Qiting sat inside one of the ordinary SUVs, holding a freshly bloomed Hongshan Camellia.
Through the tinted window, he saw Li Yaru laughing openly. Seeing her happy eased the rare tension in his heart like a receding tide.
Suddenly, Zhuang Qiting chuckled bitterly and rubbed his nose in frustration. What was wrong with him? Sending flowers to his own wife but having to sneak around to test her mood in advance?
He was really going backwards in life. Yes, backwards. When he was young and untouchable, no one dared speak ill of him openly. After a harsh investigation, they cowered and dared not come home for months.
Zhuang Qiting no longer dwelled on past happiness. He adjusted his tie, opened the car door, and stepped out holding the flowers.
Li Yaru’s mood was truly good. Listening to Li Guanjia say Ming had been well-behaved recently made her smile even more brightly. But the moment Zhuang Qiting appeared, her cheerful expression immediately paused.
“You came too?”
Not only did he come, but he hid in the back of the least conspicuous SUV, looking gloomy.
“Arou… um, Miss Li.” Zhuang Qiting greeted her politely.
They hadn’t seen each other for a week. He had almost gone mad missing her, only able to spray her perfume at night and wrap himself in her nightgown, imagining the musk on her tender chest to fall asleep.
Zhuang Qiting cleared his throat and handed her the flowers. “For you— your favorite Hongshan Camellia.” He remembered the sweet talk taught by the second son; such words were for weak men, and he felt ashamed saying them but went through with it.
His voice was low and husky: “Miss Li, you shine brighter today than the flowers.”
“……………”
Li Yaru’s bare face looked as if struck by lightning. Liang Sijie awkwardly frowned, and Li Guanjia wanted to cover his ears.
Li Yaru leaned over, tiptoed, and reached out to touch Zhuang Qiting’s forehead.
The woman’s hand brought a breath of fragrance mixed with her own scent, intensified by sweat into something even more intoxicating.
He hadn’t held her in months, hadn’t breathed her in, hadn’t touched her smooth curves. The restrained desire in Zhuang Qiting’s heart teetered on the edge of a cliff.
The scent invaded, suffocating him instantly like a teenage boy of seventeen or eighteen.
Li Yaru checked his temperature— no fever, just lust.
This man had been acting cold and hot lately— sometimes chasing her, sometimes sending flowers and whispering creepy sweet nothings. “Brighter than flowers” was something Kurt would say with perfect timing, Ming’s version was cute, A Zhou’s was not bad either, but when Zhuang Qiting said it…
Actually, it wasn’t that bad. His handsome face, deep voice, and mature elegance perfectly suited any romantic words. She just wasn’t used to it.
Li Yaru exhaled softly, “Zhuang Qiting, are you possessed? Or did our divorce shock you so badly it messed up your libido?”
Zhuang Qiting smiled slightly, his tone gentle, “Miss Li, why say that?”
“Please… stop it.”
“The flowers are for you. If you don’t accept them, the flowers will be very sad.”
“……………”
Li Yaru was screaming inside. She wanted to call her three sons to bring their old father home quickly.
“Miss Li.” Zhuang Qiting gazed deeply at her, still smiling faintly.
Li Yaru hastily pulled the flowers toward herself, her toes curling in shame. She didn’t have the heart to admire the bouquet’s beauty and quickly handed it to Liang Sijie.
The moment Zhuang Qiting saw the flowers fall into Liang Sijie’s hands, a flicker of coldness flashed deep in his eyes.
“All right, your flowers have been delivered. You may go now.” Li Yaru wanted to rush off for a shower; Zhuang Qiting’s teasing gave her goosebumps.
“These haute couture pieces are yours too. They’ve always been.”
Li Yaru was annoyed at this. Thinking back to when he had forced her with those words and that humiliating divorce agreement, she showed no warmth. “Aren’t you only giving me one-third? Why not leave these for your precious wife and children?”
Zhuang Qiting’s eyes darkened. He had been foolish enough to say that at the time. Why did Li Yaru always love to bring it up? The “precious wife and children”—just thinking of other women made him sick, let alone having more children with them. That was the ultimate losing investment.
“I only have one wife in my life.”
Li Yaru bit her lip and muttered, “You’re crazy.”
“Your jewels still need packaging. More bodyguards will be sent gradually. If it’s too much trouble, you can always come back to the Zhuang Residence to choose. I was wrong before to threaten you with things you liked.”
Li Yaru said nothing, staring coldly at him.
“I’ll come again tomorrow.”
“Not allowed to come again!”
“Arou, I told you, I sincerely want to pursue you.”
Li Yaru glared fiercely at Zhuang Qiting, both angry and amused, with a strange sense of pride. Seeing him like this, she was indeed happy.
Whether a snake whose venom had been removed, a beast forced to retract its claws, or a wolf in fox’s clothing— he was finally restrained, no longer daring to threaten her. That made her feel good.
“Can you stop already? Do you work in the afternoon? Is the Group not managing itself? Has Shenghui collapsed? Are you not supposed to be posing with a fountain pen for magazines?”
She was really giving him no face. Zhuang Qiting restrained his urge to drag her over and spank her, whispering, “Our sons run the Group; I’m very confident. Besides, everything I own belongs to you and the children. As for the magazine cover… I didn’t expect you to have noticed.”
That made Zhuang Qiting smile knowingly, feeling much better. He had recently done an interview, and it turned out his beloved wife had been paying attention to him all along.
He had a place in her heart.
Li Yaru regretted mentioning the magazine cover. That old man enjoyed it too much. She wanted to straddle him and pull his hair.
Over the years, he was willing to bend down to lick her feet but never allowed her to ride his face to vent.
She called it nonsense; he called himself her husband and the man of the house— he had to have authority.
Authority my foot — it was just his way of controlling her and refusing to let her control him. He was a high and mighty pervert.
Li Yaru pursed her lips and suddenly told Liang Sijie to bring paper and pen.
Liang Sijie took out the pen and notebook he carried and offered them to Li Yaru, extending his hand to support her as she wrote.
Li Yaru opened the pen cap and, resting the notebook on his steady hand, carefully wrote down a string of chaotic numbers.
Zhuang Qiting watched the two exchange glances before his eyes, the recent easy mood vanished in an instant, replaced by a mix of anger and possessiveness.
Li Yaru tore off the paper, her slender fingers elegantly holding the note as if holding a check. “Here. Keep it.”
Zhuang Qiting saw the numbers: 100000
“What’s this…” He thought, then understood immediately. “You want 100,000 flowers tomorrow? Fine. Sorry, the flowers today really didn’t match you; I wasn’t thoughtful enough.”
Li Yaru was furious, lightly tapping his chest with a teasing finger. “Zhuang Xiansheng, do you want to chase me? This is your waiting number. Keep it. There are 99,999,999 suitors ahead of you. When I have time or miss you, I’ll notify you.”
“Sijie, see them out. Without my permission, no suitors beyond number 50,000 are allowed in.”
Li Yaru turned sharply and left without looking back.
Liang Sijie bowed politely to Zhuang Qiting, adopting the stance of seeing off a guest. “Mr. Zhuang, Madam says you may leave.”
Zhuang Qiting clenched the note in his palm, crushing it. His deep eyes fixed on Li Yaru’s enchanting back.
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