After five years of a cold marriage, I can no longer hide the child I secretly gave birth to.

This was the first time Zhou Yanci had ever been beaten.

Her cheeks were burning with pain; it seemed the woman had used all her strength.

But he wasn't angry, because he had just heard Xu Daikui crying in the bathroom, and her eyes were still red.

He leaned slightly closer to her, his long, slender hand reaching out to cup the back of Xu Daikui's head.

In her bewildered gaze, he gently wiped away her tears with his fingertips.

Such a cold person, showing such a concerned and gentle expression, even after being beaten.

Xu Daikui stared in disbelief, turned her head, and shoved him away, saying, "Stay away from me!"

The next second, she felt a sharp pain in her wrist as the man grabbed her and dragged her into a house.

By the time she realized what was happening, the door had already clicked shut and locked.

"What do you want to do?"

The dim light in the room made it difficult for her to see his face clearly, but the man's sharp and powerful aura still deeply enveloped her, and a sense of oppression descended from above, approaching her internal organs.

She stared at him helplessly.

Zhou Yanci's expression was indifferent. He propped his cheeks up and said, "I need an explanation for your behavior just now."

He looked down at her, his fingertips tracing her chin. "Xu Daikui, are you angry?"

Forced against the wall by him, Xu Daikui felt the icy temperature seeping into her body, and the air in front of her gradually thinned. She raised her hand and slapped him again.

This time, her wrist was gripped tightly by the man.

"In this situation, you're not leaving here today."

The man gave a warning look in his eyes, then released her, walked to the sofa, sat down, and lit a cigarette.

The room quickly filled with smoke, and Xu Daikui inhaled a large amount of secondhand nicotine, feeling nauseous.

At the same time, she realized that she seemed to have been locked up by a man.

The door was locked from the inside, and he had the key.

However, he locked the two of them together.

What exactly does he want to do?

Countless thoughts of men abusing and assaulting women flashed through her mind. A sliver of fear rose within her. She strode over and snapped, "Let me out, or I'll call the police right now!"

She took out her phone.

Zhou Yanci calmly stubbed out his cigarette, forcefully shoving it into the ashtray, and said nonchalantly, "Whatever. See if the police can do anything to me?"

"What exactly do you want?"

Xu Daikui asked, puzzled.

Just because she slapped him, he's going to retaliate against her in such a lawless way?

How is this any different from being a robber?

Zhou Yanci smiled faintly, his gaze sweeping over her. "If you have any complaints about me, you can tell me directly. I'll give you a chance."

Dissatisfied with him?

Xu Daikui smiled sarcastically before saying, word by word, "The contract with President Shi was negotiated between Wang Guangxian and me. There is a first-come, first-served principle in everything. If Xu Jiaojiao wants to cooperate, she must wait until I finish negotiating."

Zhou Yanci gave a cold smile. "The business world is like a battlefield. As long as he hasn't signed a contract, he has the right to choose someone else. I can't make decisions for him."

"But you clearly know that President Shi wants to curry favor with you. He's wary of you, and he only chose Xu Jiaojiao because he sees how good your relationship is with her. And why did you have to interfere at this crucial moment? You just can't stand to see me succeed, can you?"

Zhou Yanci stood up, his gaze falling on her fair face. "This is between the two of them; you can't blame me."

He neither obstructed Shi Pengtao nor instructed Xu Jiaojiao.

"Sometimes inaction also has a meaning."

Because he turned a blind eye, Xu Jiaojiao became increasingly brazen.

He wasn't the executioner, but the knife that hurt her was the one he handed to Xu Jiaojiao.

Zhou Yanci understood. "If that's the reason, and you're my wife, if you're not satisfied with their cooperation, I can compensate you in my own way."

"I don't need your pity."

It was clearly Xu Jiaojiao who deliberately stole her cooperation. In order to please Xu Jiaojiao, he secretly compensated himself. She's not that cheap.

"Xu Daikui, Shi Pengtao's money isn't so easy to earn."

That man is greedy and lustful. Cooperating with him is like inviting a wolf into the house. His thoughts about Xu Daikui are extremely filthy.

He has zero tolerance.

"I heard you're selling that villa in Royal Water Bay?"

Seeing that she had a stern face and was determined not to compromise, Zhou Yanci smiled and sat down on the sofa, crossing his legs and looking at her with a nonchalant gaze.

"Yes, that's my marital property, and I have the right to dispose of it as I see fit."

Xu Daikui spoke coldly, her gaze not falling on the man's face.

She thought she had done a very discreet job selling that property, so how did he find out?

Despite having someone else he loves, he repeatedly interferes in her life.

"A friend of mine has always loved that area and wants to buy it at a high price. If you're interested, I can introduce you to it."

"How much?"

For some reason, that property just wouldn't sell, so she would be overjoyed if someone wanted it.

"Twenty million."

It quadrupled?

Xu Daikui couldn't believe it.

I really wanted to agree immediately, but I didn't want to owe Zhou Yanci a favor.

Seeing her hesitation, Zhou Yanci said calmly, "If you don't need it, I won't force you, but I guess Shi Pengtao won't cooperate with you."

Xu Daikui thought that if the pet hospital couldn't be opened, all her and Wang Guang's efforts over the past few months would be in vain. Moreover, they had already hired employees and signed agreements, so they were definitely responsible for the end.

This hospital cannot be on the verge of bankruptcy before it even opens.

"Give me your friend's contact number."

Her contract with President Shi was ruined by Xu Jiaojiao's greed. He and Xu Jiaojiao are birds of a feather, and they might as well use his connections.

Before she could finish speaking, the man handed her his phone with a QR code. "Add me on WeChat, I'll send it to you later."

Xu Daikui frowned, but still took out her phone, scanned the QR code, and sent the application.

After the divorce, she blocked and deleted him completely.

"Can you open the door now?"

After the meeting was settled, she looked towards the front door with annoyance.

Zhou Yanci's expression was indifferent. "Take care of the injuries on my face first."

He turned his face to the side, showing her the wound.

Xu Daikui looked closely and saw five bright red finger marks on the man's left cheek.

The mark was particularly noticeable on his fair face.

She was furious at the time and used all her strength, holding nothing back.

It seems that unless she resolves the situation properly, the man won't let her leave.

She took a deep breath and glanced around; it didn't look like there were any eggs...

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Zhou Yanci got up, went over and opened the door with his key, took the ointment from the maid, and then turned to walk towards her.

I handed the ointment to her.

"Spread it evenly," he instructed.

Xu Daikui frowned as she took the cotton swab, found it, and roughly applied some ointment to his skin before coldly saying, "That's enough."

Having said that, she didn't want to have any more contact with him, so she threw down the ointment and turned to leave.

But she hadn't expected that as she bent down to apply the ointment, a strand of her long hair would get tangled in the man's shirt button. The moment she turned around, a searing pain shot through her scalp...

"what!"

Her legs gave way, and she fell onto the man's lap without warning, her body completely nestled in his arms.

The muscular physique instantly made her leg skin stiffen, her mind went blank, her face flushed red, and her eyes were filled with panic.

Noticing her embarrassment, Zhou Yanci looked at her with his deep black eyes.

Her cheeks were rosy, and she bit her lower lip tightly with her pearly teeth, looking somewhat similar to that night five years ago.

That night, she was just as shy and charming as a flower, exuding alluring charm from the inside out, like a ripe peach that had just been picked.

He went madly into depravity.

A night of intoxication...

But who would have thought that physiological reactions could be deceiving?

He gently curved his lips into a smile, his cool hand caressing her slender waist, his deep breath close to her ear.

"Mrs. Zhou, are you trying to seduce me by being so forward?"