Chapter 34

Zhao Pingjin got out of the car, slammed the door shut, and opened the door to Lu Xiaojiang’s car. He looked at Huang Xitang, his handsome, fair face clouded with anger. His voice, low and strained, was chilling as he said, “Get out. We’re going home.”

Xi Tang had no choice but to get out of the car.

The elevator, resplendent with gold and opulence, contained only the two of them.

Xi Tang lowered her head, remaining silent.

“Not happy?” A faint, mocking tone.

“No.” Xi Tang replied calmly, her face expressionless.

Zhao Pingjin glanced at the golden mirror in the elevator, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips. “What’s wrong? You hate that I ruined your good time with Lu Xiaojiang?”

Xi Tang took long strides, stepping out of the elevator and no longer acknowledging him.

Zhao Pingjin opened the door and stood in the living room, watching Huang Xitang, who still didn’t speak. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier that you liked Lu Xiaojiang? I could’ve stepped aside and let him have a chance.”

Xi Tang suddenly looked up, her voice cold as if it had been submerged in water: “Zhao Pingjin, wasn’t he just giving me a ride? Why do you have to make such a big deal out of it? You’re busy entertaining your future father-in-law, and you don’t even want me to catch a ride?”

Zhao Pingjin’s eyelids twitched slightly, but the smile at the corner of his mouth deepened: “What, you’re upset that I’m entertaining my future father-in-law?”

Xi Tang turned and walked away: “What does that have to do with me?”

Zhao Pingjin coldly replied: “Then why are you giving me that face? I give you so much money every month, and you still show me this attitude?”

Xi Tang stopped in front of the room door: “A thousand gold to buy a smile. Mr. Zhao is always so generous.”

Zhao Pingjin raised an eyebrow: “What, do you feel insulted?”

Xi Tang smiled faintly: “No, people like us only recognize money, not insults.”

Zhao Pingjin frowned slightly and walked slowly toward her, his usually clear expression turning cold and inscrutable: “I see. Miss Huang, the people you deal with in Hengdian are all dirty men, and yet you still enjoy it.”

Xi Tang’s heart sank, but her expression remained as calm as water: “Why does it matter who insults me? What’s the difference between you and those men?”

Zhao Pingjin’s face grew pale with anger, and he reached out, slamming his hand against the wall. He grabbed her coat and tore it off: “In your eyes, am I the same as all the men who want to sleep with you?”

Xi Tang stubbornly lifted her head: “Yes.”

Zhao Pingjin roughly pushed her head down, shoving her toward his room. His voice, laced with unspoken hatred, was chilling: “At this point, even Lu Xiaojiang has woken up, but I’m still so foolish. Tell me, how much did Lu Xiaojiang give you back then?”

Xi Tang’s hair was yanked, and a sharp pain shot through her scalp. She had reached her breaking point after enduring the whole night, and she desperately shoved him away, trying to run out: “Let go of me!”

Zhao Pingjin grabbed her arm and pressed her hard against the wall, his eyes bloodshot: “You’ll never learn, will you? No matter how I treat you, you’re always so heartless, aren’t you?”

Xi Tang used all her strength to pry his hands off and kicked him hard in the knee. Zhao Pingjin grunted in pain, but elbowed her shoulder, tearing at her expensive dress, which ripped with a loud sound. Xi Tang quickly tried to cover herself.

Zhao Pingjin, in a fit of rage, laughed coldly: “What are you hiding for? Isn’t this what you’re used to in your line of work?”

She clenched her teeth, striking him with her fists and feet, using every ounce of strength to break free. Zhao Pingjin remained unmoved, pressing his weight against her and violently overpowering her. He grabbed her throat, and Xi Tang struggled like a madwoman, sinking her teeth deeply into his neck. The pain made Zhao Pingjin shudder, and he tightened his grip on her. Xi Tang couldn’t breathe, her face turning blue, but she didn’t make a sound. Zhao Pingjin’s cold face was full of ice as he stared at her, unmoving. In that moment, he truly wanted to strangle her—if she died by his hands, he’d be freed from his obsession. Even if it meant suffering for the rest of his life, it would be better than enduring this slow torment from her.

The air seemed to freeze, and the person pinned to the wall felt as light as paper, slowly ceasing to struggle.

Xi Tang began to hallucinate—colors swirling and spinning, her body feeling weightless, as if she were floating.

She closed her eyes, and everything around her went silent.

Suddenly, there was a faint sound.

The diamond necklace around her neck snapped, its sparkling beads scattering, brushing past Zhao Pingjin’s hand, sliding down her body, and rolling across the carpet.

Her fair neck bore traces of blood.

Zhao Pingjin froze for a second, and then suddenly released his grip.

Xi Tang coughed violently, propping herself up against the wall, trembling, gasping for air.

Zhao Pingjin’s suppressed expression was filled with boundless darkness: “You’d better not anger me, or in this city, there are plenty of people who disappear without a trace.”

Xi Tang thought of Zhong Qiao, her heart filled with a mix of grief and anger. She raised her head, her boiling hatred spilling out: “I know, the lesson is unforgettable.”

Zhao Pingjin sneered: “No one is innocent. When things don’t go as planned, they seek death.”

It felt like falling into an ice cave.

In that moment, Xi Tang wished her heart were made of stone so she wouldn’t feel the pain: “How are you any better, Mr. Zhao? On one hand, you keep the shiny, cheap little stars, and on the other, you’re marrying your well-matched fiancée. Do you think you’re some kind of noble gentleman?”

Zhao Pingjin replied coldly: “I’ve never considered myself a gentleman. And besides, didn’t you already know when you were with me that I was going to get married eventually?”

Xi Tang felt a chill run through her, her body trembling: “What does it matter to me if you get married or not?”

Zhao Pingjin turned around: “As long as you understand. You want money, I’ll give you money. You came to Beijing willingly. Let me warn you, this industry is small. You’ll see people coming and going. Don’t push me too far. I never indulge women who act all pure and untouchable.”

The degradation of it all, and most importantly, everything was self-inflicted. Xi Tang suddenly felt a pang of bitterness, unable to hold back the tears. She choked out: “Since you’re getting married, why are you still bothering me?”

She turned her face, tears welling up in her large eyes.

Zhao Pingjin suddenly felt a pang of unease. He kicked the chair aside, irritably tearing off his tie: “Get out.”

Xi Tang’s hair was in disarray as she futilely tugged at the torn half of her dress and ran out of his room.

The next morning, Zhao Pingjin walked out of his room. The house was silent. The curtains in the living room were halfway open, and no one was inside.

He glanced at Huang Xi Tang’s room door, which was slightly ajar. The kitchen was empty as well.

Walking into the living room, the floor-to-ceiling windows were tightly shut, but a figure stood outside on the balcony. Her slender, delicate body was dressed in a plain white satin shirt and a loose, red fringed coat. She was leaning against the balcony, smoking a cigarette.

The morning smog was thick.

Her shadow appeared hazy, as if it were drifting in the wind.

Zhao Pingjin stood there for a while, and only after some time did his vision clear. He looked for a long time, and Huang Xi Tang was still standing there, motionless.

Her right hand held the cigarette, occasionally bringing it to her lips, and faint wisps of blue smoke rose.

When Huang Xi Tang lowered her head to extinguish the cigarette, she saw him standing behind the glass window. She glanced at him for a moment, then immediately turned her head away.

Her hand held the cigarette pack, and she stubbornly kept her back to him, still standing motionless outside.

Behind a glass window, she seemed to be thousands of miles away.

Her phone was casually placed on the sofa.

Zhao Pingjin slowly sat on the sofa and unlocked her phone. He saw a red figure in the camera shot, a delicate profile with fair skin, and black hair flying in the wind.

Behind her, the heart of Beijing was waking up, with an entire cityscape of misty high-rise buildings—a dense forest of concrete and steel.

Since Huang Xi Tang came to Beijing, Zhao Pingjin had often felt this way: she lived with him, yet her world felt so distant from his.

She was by his side, seemingly obedient and low-key, but with an air of someone ready to leave at any moment.

It was frustrating, yet helpless.

Suddenly, some tiny white specks appeared in the camera lens. Zhao Pingjin steadied himself, looked away from the phone to see, and realized it was actually snow beginning to fall outside.

The snow was falling quickly, and from the window, it looked like soft cotton drifting through the air.

Zhao Pingjin raised his phone again and pressed the camera button.

It was Beijing’s first snow of the winter, falling like salt, landing in her black hair.

Huang Xi Tang still stood there, gently brushing the snowflakes off the tip of her nose, showing no intention of coming inside.

Zhao Pingjin glanced down at the photo he had just taken. He was about to turn off the phone screen when he suddenly remembered that when he had briefly looked through her photo album earlier, one photo seemed familiar.

He opened her photo album again.

Zhao Pingjin was momentarily stunned—how did Huang Xi Tang have this photo?

Zooming in and taking a closer look, it was a screenshot of a conversation with Ni Kailun. The screenshot showed Ni Kailun had sent her a photo, and in the photo was him—his back, his arm intimately linked with a woman. He recognized the background of the shopping mall. It was during his birthday period when Yu Xiaoying had come back from Los Angeles and stayed in Beijing for over ten days.

During that time, Yu Xiaoying had been pestering him to go shopping every day... Ni Kailun must have run into him at the mall.

Ni Kailun had typed a large, bold message: Wake up, it’s time.

He didn’t know how long she had been looking at this photo. She hadn’t mentioned it when she saw him earlier.

He slowly set her phone down.

In the morning fog and snow, Huang Xi Tang was still standing outside. Slowly, it dawned on him—maybe she knew that he would never come out, which is why she stayed outside. There, the wind howled, and it was free and unrestrained. It was the only place where she could be alone.