The silence in Lu Yichen's office was thick enough to slice.
He watched the livestream again. The one where Shen Yue exited Bai Lin's office without even glancing back.
The press had gone wild:
#ShenYue #CEOFiancée #OldFlameReturns"That was Bai Lin, right?""I swear she looked at him like she owned him.""Lu Yichen's got competition, lol."
Lu Yichen's jaw clenched.
He hadn't expected her to move this fast.
Or this flawlessly.
The Shen Yue he remembered had always chased his approval, dressed to please him, smiled too much, and forgave too easily. She wasn't like this.
This woman was precise.
Cold. Unbothered.
Dangerous.
[System: Regret Score – Lu Yichen: 18%]Warning: Target's emotions are becoming unstable. Prepare for deviation.
[Later, Office Parking Lot]
Shen Yue exited the building, black umbrella unfurled against the steady drizzle.
A black Bentley pulled up beside her. Tinted window lowered.
Lu Yichen.
"Get in."
She looked at him.
"I have a driver."
"I'm not asking."
A pause.
Then she opened the door, sliding into the leather interior like it was a throne she was reclaiming.
He didn't speak immediately. Just drove. Rain tapped against the windows like static.
"You're getting too close to Bai Lin," he finally said, voice clipped.
She smirked. "Didn't realize that was part of our contract."
His grip on the steering wheel tightened.
"You're supposed to act like my fiancée," he said. "That includes optics."
"Then clarify it in the next version of the agreement," she said coolly. "Unless this is jealousy, in which case"
He slammed the brakes.
The car jerked to a stop beside the river.
He turned to her, eyes dark. "You think this is a game?"
"I know it is."
They stared at each other in silence, the tension simmering.
He leaned closer. Too close.
"I don't know what you're planning, Shen Yue," he said, voice low. "But remember this world doesn't forgive women who pretend to be powerful."
She didn't move an inch.
"Good thing I'm not pretending."
[System: Regret Score – Lu Yichen: 26%Emotion: Confusion, possessiveness, instability]Trigger Unlocked: First Memory Fragment Incoming]
Shen Yue blinked as something flickered behind her eyes—
A memory.
Not hers. His.
Lu Yichen, watching her die in a hospital bed, whispering her name with shaking hands.
But that hadn't happened… not yet.
Her heart skipped a beat.
Was the system showing her... the future?