Lin Xi gasped, startling Duan Yiheng. A fleeting glance revealed a figure, and without thinking, he instinctively steadied her.
Lin Xiaoying blushed from her neck to her cheeks, clinging to Duan Yiheng's shoulder and thanking him. Duan Yiheng's body reacted before his mind. He frowned, pushed Lin Xiaoying away, and met Lin Xi's gaze from a short distance away.
Lin Xi knew Lin Xiaoying hadn't meant it; the pool table was hard, and a fall would certainly cause injury. But reason was one thing, and emotion was another.
Regardless of the presence of many people or the constraints of private matters, she could only suppress her bitter emotions. Duan Yiheng threw down his cue stick, which slammed heavily onto the pool table with a loud bang.
Lin Xiaoying sensed the oppressive atmosphere around him and hesitated to speak. "I took the time to do your filming and interviews, and this is your work ethic? Even a newcomer wouldn't make such a basic mistake!"
The room fell silent. You couldn't even hear the anger in Duan Yiheng's voice; his two seemingly casual words weighed heavily on their shoulders. "I'm sorry, Mr. Duan, it was our negligence."
As the leader of the group, Lin Xiaoying naturally couldn't shirk responsibility. "Why don't you take a break? I'll have someone adjust things immediately, and I'll definitely give you the perfect filming result."
Duan Yiheng didn't listen to a word. He walked towards Lin Xi, then stopped in front of her, saying, "Come out with me." Lin Xi looked up, meeting his unyielding gaze. She calmly turned around and left the billiard room with Duan Yiheng.
As soon as they reached the first-floor corridor, Duan Yiheng cornered her against the wall, saying, "I thought you'd fallen over here." Lin Xi lowered her gaze: "I was standing eighteen miles away, how could I have fallen over to your side, somersaulting through the air?" Duan Yiheng chuckled: "So you're admitting you're jealous?"
"No." Lin Xi silently half-turned her body, "I'm just giving you a reasonable explanation for why I couldn't have fallen over to your side based on your statement." "Fine, next time I'll be the hero." Duan Yiheng said. Lin Xi: "...Nobody falls into your arms all the time."
Duan Yiheng: "Oh, that's a pity." Lin Xi pushed him away and started to walk away, but Duan Yiheng caught up in two steps, his arm sweeping across her waist, pulling her up in a tight grip. Lin Xi was suddenly airborne, stunned for a few seconds before fluttering like a bird in mid-air. "What are you doing?"
She tried to get down using her hands and feet, but Duan Yiheng's strength was simply too much to resist. After passing through the living room and entering the corridor again, Duan Yiheng pushed open the door to the tea room, letting in sunlight streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
Duan Yiheng put her down and pulled her to the window, looking at the well-maintained plants outside. Lin Xi's gaze flickered; the snowman was gone from under the ornamental trees. "It melted under the shade of the trees for three days, turning into a puddle of water."
Duan Yiheng's breath brushed against Lin Xi's ear, "They're like me, built up by your own hands, and then shattered because of you." Lin Xi's breath trembled slightly, and she could only say, "I'm sorry." "I told you, I initially blamed you, but then I felt sorry for you."
Duan Yiheng paused, his tone full of helplessness. "I can't bear to see you in a difficult position more than anyone else. I can understand your choices, but I can't understand why you're not giving me a clear answer yet." Lin Xi clenched her fists, glancing sideways slightly:
"Uncle Duan and Ke Yu's matter hasn't been resolved yet. They're still a ticking time bomb on your path to power. And you're talking to me about this now?" Duan Yiheng turned her to face him, saying, "What I want is an answer, not a title."
Lin Xi didn't understand his meaning, her eyes filled with confusion: "What's the difference?" "What I mean is, I'm not forcing you to be with me right now."
Duan Yiheng pursed his lips, his heart racing uncontrollably. "I just want to know if you like me or not. Even if I have feelings for you, you've never said it." When he asked this question, he didn't use the qualifier "in the past."
He was asking about the past, and also about the present. Lin Xi opened and closed her lips, remaining silent for a long while. Duan Yiheng pushed her against the French windows, pressing her against them: "Lin Xi, would saying 'I like you' kill you? What does saying 'I like you' even mean?"
It only means affirming the feelings she has for him. Lin Xi lowered her gaze, and Duan Yiheng laughed self-deprecatingly. He released her, intending to return to the billiards room to continue filming. "If I didn't like you, would I have gotten together with you in the first place?"
Duan Yiheng paused, abruptly turning around. "If I didn't like you, would I have let you hug and kiss me?" "If I didn't like you, would I have told you to break up? Would I have distanced myself from you in front of so many people?
Would I have worried about you, cried for you, laughed for you, and—" Her grievances stopped abruptly as she was pulled into a warm and safe embrace. Duan Yiheng was tall and could completely envelop her in his arms.
Lin Xi closed her eyes, tears soaking his shirt and touching the skin of his chest. "I don't like you..." Lin Xi could no longer hold back her sobs, which gradually grew louder. Duan Yiheng pressed the back of her head and said, "You like me." "No."
Lin Xi pouted. "Okay, okay, I don't like you." Duan Yiheng coaxed her. After a while, she wiped her tears on his clothes and said, "I do." Duan Yiheng froze, wondering if he had misheard. Lin Xi pushed him away, wiped her tears, sniffed, and said,
"I like you, I've liked you for a long time, don't ask again." Duan Yiheng touched her face: "Why can't I ask?" Lin Xi looked at him: "Because no matter if we can be together or not, I will always like you, even if I already know the answer."
Duan Yiheng leaned down to kiss her, but Lin Xi pressed her face and pushed him back: "There's still filming, your clothes are dirty, you need to change." Duan Yiheng: "..." This calm tone made him wonder if he had just imagined it. "Saying you like something doesn't mean anything, you said it yourself." Lin Xi met his gaze. "Unless you don't want Yin Fan anymore." Duan Yiheng's eyes were deep and bright as he said to her:
"I'm determined to have Yin Fan. In this world, money and power will help you protect the people you want to protect. I understood this principle when I was very young, and I only want to protect you." Lin Xi bit her lip:
"It's not good for me to appear in front of Editor-in-Chief Lin looking like this. You go by yourself. Anyway, it'll be finished filming soon." Duan Yiheng ruffled her hair: "Go upstairs and wait for me. We'll stay here tonight." Lin Xi suddenly looked up:
"You didn't say you were going to stay here tonight." "Didn't I say that?" Duan Yiheng frowned. "I remember saying I was busy before. I'm going to the South District to see the ginkgo trees tomorrow. Don't you want to see them?" Lin Xi: "…" "It's settled then."
Duan Yiheng didn't give her a chance to refuse and turned to leave the room.