, "I don't know either."The servants have moved the flower pots and left one after another until there was no sound outside.Fu Yan took down her hairpin, and her long hair cascaded down like a waterfa...She longed for that man to appear, her voice hoarse and uncertain. But seeing Qi Ce slam the door shut behind him, a single tear escaped the corner of her eye, falling as she bit her lip, "A-Ce..."

"Xiao Qin!" Qi Ce strode over and hugged Li Qin, "What happened"

He was angry with her. She had lied to him, saying they were going to Paris for a friend's wedding, but she had actually gone to Zurich to look for Huo Mingzheng. However, when Huo Mingzheng returned from Zurich, he didn't bring Li Qin with him.

Nobody knows how much pain he was enduring by not seeking out Li Qin. He numbed himself with alcohol, afraid to stay sober.

He wanted to see if Li Qin would come looking for him first.

There are no results.

Even though she returned to her home country, she never called him once.

Seeing her covered in wounds, his heart shattered instantly. It hurt as if it were bleeding.

Li Qin nestled in his arms, quickly analyzing in her mind. Now, if she continued the lie about attending the wedding, how likely was it that Qi Ce would believe it

She gambled her body to earn Qice's trust, pretending to love him and manipulating him into killing her blood-related 'uncle', a beastly man. If things went sour between them, all of this would be exposed soon enough. She couldn't let it get that far.

So, she must stabilize Qi Ce.

She sobbed, "A-Ce, actually, I lied to you."

Qi Ce's arms tightened, silently questioning, "What's wrong"

"Actually, I wasn't in Paris for a friend's wedding, I went to Zurich." Li Qin spoke slowly.

Qi Ce's breath hitched, and she hurriedly said, "Don't be angry first. Listen to my explanation. I went to Zurich to keep an eye on Aze, to prevent him from having any more entanglement with Fu Yan."

Qi Ce finally couldn't hold back, "Then you can tell me, why did you lie to me Don't you know how worried I was when you went abroad alone"

Li Qin climbed up from his arms, looking at him with red eyes, "I was just afraid you'd worry, so I held it in and didn't tell you, I lied to you. I don't want the existence of Fu Yan to affect my wedding date with Aze, that way our time to settle in Santorini would be indefinitely postponed."

Tears fell drop by drop.

She lowered her head and said with a grievance, "I just want to leave this place with you sooner."

Qi Ce frowned, feeling angry at his previous suspicions. He held her close again, soothingly whispering, "I know, Xiao Qin. It's my fault. I shouldn't have thought irrationally. But why didn't you call me when you returned to the country"

Li Qin unbuttoned the patient's hospital gown, revealing a whip mark on his shoulder.

Qi Ce's face changed drastically, "What's going on"

"As soon as I arrived in Zurich, I was kidnapped. They whipped me several times..." Li Qin couldn't continue, the scene of being whipped by Kevin that day brought back memories of being abused by that man before.

Qi Ce's eyes turned red, his gaze filled with a bloodthirsty fierceness. "What about that person"

Li Qin shook her head. "It should have been resolved by Aze. I'm fine, I just didn't want to worry you so I didn't call. I was afraid that seeing my wound would make you feel sorry for me and make you blame yourself."

"Foolish." Qi Ce winced, tears welling up in his eyes. He didn't dare to hug her tightly, yet he felt a pang of pain so intense it tightened his chest.

He cupped Li Qin's face and gently kissed her forehead, "Little Qin, I won't let you suffer staying by Huo Mingzheng's side anymore. I've been transferring assets these past few days. When I'm ready, we'll leave Nancheng."

Li Qin's face changed, but she didn't dare to be too presumptuous, "But I..."

Qi Ce smiled softly, his forehead pressed against hers, and said in a sinister tone: "Your goal is to take revenge on Old Master Huo. You don't need to act all friendly towards Huo Mingzheng anymore. I'll help you kill him." out each syllable, “I didn’t expect a fishing boat nearby would have surveillance.”Li Qin finally felt where the pain was gathering.in her heart.Huo Mingzheng slowly scanned her face, lit a cigarette...