*Chapter 20: A Dangerous Game*
The following evening, Zhao Liang's two closest friends joined them, filling the penthouse with their effortless banter. The three men teased each other mercilessly, laughter echoing in ways Li Xue had almost forgotten.
"You've grown softer," one of them mocked Zhao Liang. "Marriage suits you."
Zhao Liang smirked coldly. "Soft? Hardly. I'm merely entertained."
But Li Xue noticed the shift. The way his gaze lingered on her when his friends joked. The way he tensed when Mei Yan laughed too freely beside them.
It was a dangerous game, this push and pull between cruelty and something unspoken.
That night, when the guests were gone, Li Xue stood by the window, her reflection blurred against the glass. She whispered, almost to herself, "Why do you torment me?"
From the shadows, Zhao Liang's voice answered — low, almost broken.
"Because torment is all I have left."
Her heart stopped. She turned, but he was already gone, swallowed once more by silence.
And Li Xue realized — the game had only just begun.