CHAPTER 396: CHAPTER 394: FORCING HER TO BEG HIM

Two rows of bodyguards stood outside the coffee shop.

「Inside the coffee shop.」

Jian Xi and Si Yuhuan sat opposite each other. It was as if they were strangers meeting for the first time, with an invisible wall between them. Si Yuhuan’s slender fingers tapped on the table; he always seemed to be in control at times like this. Jian Xi didn’t want to meet his gaze, not wanting to weaken her own aura.

"There’s nothing to discuss between us, Si Yuhuan. You’d better hand over the child immediately, otherwise..."

"So, you had Xinxin betray me, hand the child over to you, and sneak around behind my back?" Si Yuhuan suddenly interjected.

Jian Xi was taken aback at first, then immediately bristled. "How can she be so despicable and shameless!"

She hadn’t expected Xinxin to take such an unconventional route. A rush of anger surged to Jian Xi’s head, her whole body going cold as she glared at Si Yuhuan.

Si Yuhuan sneered, "It seems you two really did conspire behind my back, intending to act in secret."

"You’re tricking me?" She realized then; she should have known Xinxin wouldn’t be so foolish as to give up her position as Lady Si so easily. How could she believe Si Yuhuan’s nonsense!

The frustration of not being able to outmaneuver him drove Jian Xi into a rage. "You scoundrel!"

Her raised hand was caught firmly by Si Yuhuan’s wrist. "Don’t even think about hitting me again, Jian Xi. Your child is missing, and I’m helping. I don’t owe you anything."

The sharp, imposing chill in his eyes gradually brought Jian Xi back to her senses.

"Speak. What do you want?" She smoothed the stray hairs at her temple, calming down and regaining her poised, noble demeanor.

Si Yuhuan pinched her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze. "Even if it means continuing to use me, shouldn’t we prioritize getting the child back? Getting angry with me now might lead to lifelong regrets. You need to consider what’s more important."

"How do you know I can’t get the child back if I cooperate with someone else?" Jian Xi gritted her teeth, infuriated by the feeling of being completely under his control.

Why was this bastard suddenly so set on remarrying her? She was so angry she could kill.

"Relying on Zhang Yaxuan and that ambiguous friend of his?" Si Yuhuan scoffed coldly. "Who knew your judgment could be that poor!"

Jian Xi’s heart pounded. Just one meal, and he had already picked up on the slightest clues! Could this man’s mind be any more acute? Such a freak!

"Fu Shengyuan is even less likely to fight for you as I would. Most importantly, his resources are too limited for you to even discuss cooperation," Si Yuhuan continued. "Moreover, in the Fu Family, it’s not his turn to call all the shots, not unless Fu Wenxin is dead."

Jian Xi was speechless.

"He won’t eliminate Fu Wenxin completely. Leaving such a dangerous loose end will only mean future trouble for you; you probably won’t rest easy for the rest of your life. I have ways to deal with Fu Wenxin and Xinxin. Secret Gate won’t bother you anymore, and you can live in the open."

It was as if Jian Xi’s heart had been laid bare and meticulously scrutinized by him. He knew everything. Even her desire not to go abroad, wishing instead to stay by her parents’ side and be a filial daughter, was something he had a firm grasp on.

She glared at Si Yuhuan with deep resentment.

Eventually, Jian Mingcheng left with his bodyguards.

Jian Xi decided to "give it a try" with Si Yuhuan.

Zhang Yaxuan called.

"Xixi? My art exhibition is ready. Would you like to come?"

As a "partner," she ought to be there. But the timing... She hesitated.

Unexpectedly, Si Yuhuan snatched the phone. "She’ll be there on time," he said before hanging up and turning off the phone.

"Si Yuhuan, what are you doing!" She had only agreed to "give it a try," and he was already starting to restrict her personal freedom!

"Jian Xi, remember, I’m doing this for your own good," he said, his own anger flaring. "Three days from now, Spring Town. Go there and break up with him."

"Impossible." Jian Xi’s face was taut with anger.

Si Yuhuan turned her to face him. "Jian Xi, Zhang Yaxuan isn’t right for you. His heart and eyes are only for art; his paintings don’t have you in them! If you want to take revenge on me, you can choose someone else. Anyone but him or Fu Shengyuan."

"You might as well just say that no one is suitable to marry me except you." Jian Xi was so incensed by his absurd reasoning that she laughed.

"You can interpret it that way. Of course, remarrying me is the best choice."

Jian Xi felt he had truly gone mad.

The two couldn’t find common ground. Completely at odds, she nonetheless returned to the villa with him.

Jian Xi immediately turned on her phone and saw that Zhang Yaxuan had made several calls.

She thought about it and decided there was no need to return them. The situation had escalated beyond her control. Should she seize this opportunity, in line with Si Yuhuan’s wishes, to break up with Zhang Yaxuan? He was no longer suitable to be her shield. She felt quite sorry about it.

Lying in bed, she tossed and turned, half-asleep, her mind filled with the image of the tiny baby on oxygen.

Mingming, hold on. With Mom and your Fourth Uncle here, you’ll definitely be safe.

She hadn’t been able to ask Si Yuhuan proactively; she had been forced to beg. She was about to become her own laughingstock. She didn’t dare tell Wan Yu about it; she was afraid of being laughed to death.

「Three days later, Spring Town.」

The art exhibition covered thousands of square feet. It was indeed impressive. It also gave Jian Xi an unprecedented, shocking realization of Zhang Yaxuan’s influence in the art world.

Si Yuhuan wore a well-fitted suit, his long legs encased in trousers. Each step he took exuded an innate nobility, and his arrival immediately made him the center of attention. He looked at Jian Xi beside him, the corners of his lips curved in a half-smile.

Today, she wore a simple champagne-colored long dress, yet she was breathtakingly beautiful. Heavy makeup concealed her dark circles and fatigue. Her fiery red lips were bewitchingly, ethereally beautiful, instantly eclipsing all the socialites present.

"Xixi, you’re here," Zhang Yaxuan said happily upon seeing Jian Xi. But when his gaze fell on Si Yuhuan beside her, his brow furrowed immediately. "Director Si, I don’t believe I invited you?" He didn’t show Si Yuhuan any warmth.

Jian Xi didn’t want Si Yuhuan to ruin such a wonderful exhibition, so she quickly intervened, "I brought him. Actually, there’s something I need to tell you today..."

Hilda shouted from the small garden, "Zhang, come quickly! Meet this person."

It was likely a mutual friend of theirs.

Zhang Yaxuan excused himself and hurried off to socialize.

Jian Xi’s intended words remained unspoken.

"Deliberate?" Si Yuhuan pinched the soft flesh on her waist punishingly. Jian Xi turned and glared at him fiercely. "Not everyone is as unfeeling as you, Director Si! When you speak, it’s always in the form of an order. We need some emotional groundwork to seem like normal people."

"Hm? What? Does being asked to break up with him aggrieve you?" Ignoring the bosses and beautiful women who came over to offer him toasts, he pulled Jian Xi straight to a small private room upstairs.

"I’m not going." Who knew what kind of outrageous thing he might do?

"Director Si, for such a grand event, you didn’t even think to call me!" Xinxin looked at Gu Wan, her own face practically frosting over. "Miss Jian is here too!" She snorted coldly.

Jian Xi didn’t give her a pleasant look either.

Xinxin’s eyes flickered; she sensed something was amiss. Is Si Yuhuan treating me so badly because he already knows something? A chill shot through her heart, and she immediately straightened her posture. "Director Si, I came here today because there’s something I need to discuss with you."