---
Lin Yue tilted her head as she looked at Mo Yuwei. "Hm?"
Mo Yuwei hesitated. "Lin Yue, I hope you won't be angry," she began, her tone soft. "I… I asked someone to retrieve the camera footage from the hotel that day. The day you fainted."
Lin Yue stiffened. She didn't look at Mo Yuwei, just stared at her reflection in the glass of water before her.
"I saw that you fainted when you saw the news broadcast about Liang Yexuan," Mo Yuwei said gently, watching her. "That can't be a coincidence, right?"
Lin Yue blinked, her throat suddenly dry.
She tried to force a laugh, brushing her hair behind her ear.
"That doesn't mean anything. Everyone faints for all sorts of reasons. I probably didn't eat that morning."
Mo Yuwei gave her a long look. "Do you know him?"
Lin Yue stiffened.
That name...
Mo Yuwei didn't press further when she saw she wasn't saying anything.
She simply gave her a knowing look and said, "If there's ever anything you want to talk about, I'll be here. We're friends, right?"
Lin Yue lowered her eyes. "Right," she murmured.
She didn't want to hide anything from her.
But how could she begin to explain this?
She'd saved a man.
She'd named him Ah Yan because he didn't know his name.
How could she tell her that the man who had stayed with her in her tiny home was actually Liang Yexuan?
That he was the heir to the largest conglomerate in the country?
That he was engaged to someone else?
How could she tell Mo Yuwei she was carrying his child?
The silence stretched for a few seconds longer until the waiter returned with their food, breaking the tension.
The aroma of freshly cooked dishes filled the space between them.
They shifted the conversation to the store's opening, hiring staff, and future exhibits.
---
Somewhere in a hidden villa
The air was thick with the scent of burning tobacco.
An old man, his face obscured by shadows in a hat showing strands of silver hair and a cloud of smoke, sat rigidly in a leather chair, his hand gripping an ebony cane.
"Sir," a man in a suit bowed as he entered the room, "we've confirmed it. Liang Yexuan has returned. He's healthy. He's resumed his position at the company."
The old man's grip on the cane tightened.
Crack.
He slammed the cane against the floor, the sound echoing through the room.
"Very good," he growled, "even after all the planning, he still survived. He's really lucky."
His eyes, sharp and calculating, turned toward the window.
The moonlight spilled across the polished floor like a silver omen.
"Keep watching him," he ordered without turning back. "If he makes a single wrong move, I want to know about it. Immediately."
"Yes, Sir," the man in the suit said, bowing again before disappearing into the shadows.
The old man inhaled deeply, smoke curling from his lips.
---
Later that night
The night was quiet.
The Liang estate bathed in a soft, luxurious glow. Within the master bedroom, silk sheets rustled as Liang Yexuan shifted in his sleep.
His features, cold and unreadable by day, were relaxed now.
He looked peaceful, more human.
Beside him, a woman stirred.
His hand reached out instinctively, fingers brushing against her bare shoulder.
His lips followed, pressing softly against the curve of her neck.
She inhaled sharply, her body arching toward his touch.
Liang Yexuan moved slowly, deliberately, climbing on top of her.
Their bodies aligned, their breaths synchronised.
She reached up, cupping his face.
Her touch was gentle, reverent.
He responded with a kiss, deep and consuming.
His hands explored her body, tracing her smooth skin.
The air around them grew heavy, warm.
The silk sheets slipped down, revealing bare skin glistening in the soft light.
They moved together, slowly at first, their bodies entwined in a rhythm both urgent and tender.
Their hearts beat faster, breaths mingled, names whispered into the darkness.
And just as their passion reached its peak—
---