Into the Night, Jiao Jiao Gets Kissed by a Business Tycoon

Hearing the sound of the door closing, Xinan finally dared to cry out. Grievance, confusion, and exhaustion—all emotions burst out at once.

Not knowing how long she had cried, the tear stains on her face had dried. Xinan slowly sat up.

Her clothes were torn to shreds and no longer wearable. Although she knew there was no one at home, she still put them on; of course, they did not cover anything.

Her body felt like it had been run over by a car. As soon as she stood up, her legs trembled uncontrollably, yet Xinan bit her lip and took steps toward the stairs.

Because her body was in such discomfort, she simply took a quick shower. Cheng Yi had been unusually rough with her, but when she saw the bruises on her body, she still gasped.

Xinan laughed mockingly at herself. She and Cheng Yi were only in a contract marriage—did she really fantasize that Cheng Yi had fallen for her?

Three days later, Xinan formally began filming with the crew. Since that day, she hadn't seen Cheng Yi again, so she sent him a message before leaving. As expected, she received no reply.

Xinan's male co-star was the new movie emperor of the year. With his handsome appearance and outstanding acting skills, he captivated a large fanbase, and his recent surge was formidable.

To have achieved so much in his early thirties, his future was immeasurable.

Xinan found acting opposite him to be relatively easy. She had assumed that actors of their caliber would be difficult to get along with, but surprisingly, he had no airs and was very approachable. He often took the initiative to discuss acting with Xinan and had been a great help to her in the early stages.

Almost a month into filming, Xinan still hadn't received any calls or even a text from Cheng Yi.

Looking at the chat history on her phone, Xinan smiled faintly, her eyes filled with bitterness. What was she expecting? She and Cheng Yi were never meant to be together; their families had just tied them together.

No, to be precise, it was only her wishful thinking.

When Meng Qiu returned with takeout, she saw Xinan sitting in a chair, holding a script on her lap and clutching her phone, but her eyes were somewhat vacant.

"Sister Xinan?" Meng Qiu waved her hand in front of Xinan's eyes.

"Sister Xinan, what are you thinking about? You didn't respond when I called you." Meng Qiu took the takeout from the bag.

"It's nothing," Xinan responded lightly.

"Right, I've booked the ticket to return to Jing City tomorrow."

"Okay."

Tomorrow was the engagement day for Brother Ji Bai and Ran Shasha. She needed to go back. Cheng Yi would probably attend too.

Thinking of this, Xinan couldn't help feeling heartache. Since that night, she hadn't seen Cheng Yi again. She didn't even know how to face him now.

Cheng Yi had been in the UK recently for a business deal. He had spent three years there and was too familiar with everything, which was precisely why nothing interested him anymore.

A few friends from the UK had invited him out several times, but each time he was listless, leaving soon after he arrived.

In the UK, it rained continuously for several days. After finishing his work, he holed up in the hotel sleeping. When he woke up bored, he turned to old movies for entertainment.

This was the first time he felt empty. For some reason, he suddenly missed Xinan a lot—the sound of her voice, her breath, her smile.

He desperately wanted to see her, but whenever he thought of her cold gaze that night, his heart immediately cooled.

Cheng Yi looked down with a wry smile. That night, he smoked one cigarette after another.

After that, Cheng Yi lost even more interest in staying in the UK, so he wrapped up his affairs early and flew back to his country the next day.

As the plane landed, Ye Rui followed Cheng Yi out of the airport, "Mr. Yi, are you going back to the company or home now?"

"Back to the company."

Upon arriving at the company, Cheng Yi convened another meeting, which lasted until 9 o'clock in the evening. Since disembarking the plane, he hadn't even had a sip of water.

After the meeting, Cheng Yi perused some documents for a while, by which time most of the company's staff had already left.

Cheng Yi lit a cigarette and then walked to the window. Below, the streets buzzed with traffic and the lights shimmered faintly. He took a deep drag, holding the smoke in his mouth for a long time before slowly exhaling.

He stood there for quite some time before finally picking up his car keys and leaving the company.

He didn't know where he wanted to go, just drove aimlessly through the streets, until his car came to a gentle stop. That's when he realized he had driven to Luming Academy.

Cheng Yi was stunned, then let out a self-mocking laugh.

He parked the car, opened the door, and the villa was in complete darkness—she hadn't come back.

Turning on the lights, the glaring brightness forced him to squint, and it took a while before he could finally adjust. Cheng Yi took off his suit jacket and carelessly hung it on the coat rack by the door, then walked step by step into the living room.

He had endured a long flight followed by an afternoon of meetings and hadn't eaten a thing until now. Lying on the sofa, he suddenly felt utterly exhausted and didn't want to move at all.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed, and Cheng Yi immediately opened his eyes, locking gazes with Xinan, who stood at the top of the stairs.

Surprise first appeared in Cheng Yi's eyes, but it slowly turned calm. Right, Han Jibai was getting engaged—how could she not go?

Xinan stood still for a long while. She had actually planned to come down to cook some late-night food and had not expected to run into Cheng Yi like this.

She spoke up, "I felt a little hungry, so I came down to make some late-night food."

"Mhm."

Xinan went into the kitchen, poured herself a glass of lukewarm water, and then started to boil water for noodles.

But when she began to add the seasonings, Xinan seemed to remember something and called out to the living room, "Do you want some?"

Expecting a cold response from Cheng Yi, she instead heard him utter a soft "mhm," although faint, Xinan still caught it.

There wasn't much pasta left at home, so Xinan decided to cook all of it, and before long, two steaming bowls of egg noodles were ready.

Cheng Yi ate quickly, finishing his meal in no time and then elegantly wiping his mouth. Xinan had deliberately served him an extra portion, not expecting him to finish it all. Had he not eaten anything since coming back tonight?

After finishing the late-night meal, of course, it was Xinan who ended up washing the dishes. The big shot, well-fed and satisfied, then went upstairs without looking back.

Cheng Yi didn't rush to the bathroom to shower after going upstairs, but instead went to the study next door.

The room was usually locked and no one but him could enter. Step by step, he approached the desk, pulled open a drawer, and casually placed a black box inside.

There were already many more gift boxes, large and small, inside the drawer.

Cheng Yi stared at the box for a while, then slowly closed the drawer.