Chapter 1 Can You Still Choose?

Late at night, the hotel corridor was quiet. Outside the presidential suite, Pei Nian stood there holding her breath with her room card, her eyes flashing a complex expression. In her mind, she recalled what her agent Fen Jie had told her an hour ago, "Pei Nian, your father's medical expenses are all dependent on that benefactor. You must seize this opportunity..."

Pei Nian came back to her senses and realized that this might be her last chance. She took a deep breath, stepped forward, swiped her card, and walked in. Inside the suite, there was no one but the sound of running water coming from the bathroom. The benefactor should be taking a shower.

After hesitating for a moment, she decided to wait on the sofa. She didn't know if her decision today was right, but she had no other choice for her father's sake.

Just as she sat uneasily on the sofa, the sound of water from the bathroom suddenly stopped. Pei Nian quickly collected herself and looked up. The bathroom door opened, revealing a muscular chest dripping with water. Above it was a sharply defined face, deep eyes, a high nose bridge, and thin lips...

When she saw the familiar face, Pei Nian was stunned at first, then a mocking expression appeared in her eyes. The man in front of her, Fu Yanchen, was someone she would never forget, the one who had sent her plummeting from heaven to hell in an instant.

Pei Nian saw him and her fingers, hanging at her side, could hardly restrain themselves from clenching tightly. She burst out with a sneer, "I never thought it would be you."

In contrast, Fu Yanchen seemed much calmer. He walked over to the sofa in his bathrobe and casually said, "You're here."

Pei Nian kept her gaze on him, trying hard to suppress her anger and hatred, and asked him affirmatively, "Did you know it was me coming today?"

Fu Yanchen leaned back on the sofa and calmly turned to her, "So what if I did?"

Pei Nian sarcastically pulled the corners of her mouth, as if she suddenly understood something. She stood up, said nothing, and walked out.

Fu Yanchen watched her back and asked, "What, don't you want your father's medical expenses anymore?"

Pei Nian paused in her steps. She restrained herself and turned to him with a mocking tone, "Don't forget who sent my father to the hospital in the first place?"

Fu Yanchen tugged at the corner of his mouth and walked towards her, looking down at her from above: "Looks like you've learned your lesson."

Pei Nian clenched her fingers tightly and glared at him with suppressed emotions.

He met her hateful gaze and approached her slowly, whispering, "But, do you think you have any other choice now, besides me?"

Pei Nian tightened her grip on her fingers and glared at him with hatred. Once she loved this man deeply, but now she hated him to the bone.

"Fu Yanchen, you will pay for your arrogance, believe me or not?" she said.

He responded casually, "Is that so? Then I'll wait for it."

This man was simply impenetrable.

Pei Nian closed her eyes and took a deep breath before speaking again, her voice now tinged with a hint of sadness. "Fu Yanchen, you have already ruined my family. What else do you want?"

He stared at her delicate face and replied, "I came to you tonight for a simple reason."

"What reason?" she asked.

"I just want you to come back, and be obediently by my side, like you used to," he said.

Pei Nian sneered and tugged at the corner of her mouth. She didn't expect him to have the nerve to make such a request after destroying her family.

"On what grounds?" she asked mockingly.

"Don't you have the right to choose?" he asked, knowing exactly how to press her buttons.

Suddenly, Pei Nian flashed a grin at him and, before he could react, pushed him hard and grabbed a fruit knife from the nearby table. She resolutely stabbed at him and said, "Then you can dream on!"

At this moment, she just wanted to end it all and go down with him.

Fu Yanchen stumbled back a few steps, apparently not expecting her to do this. His eyes showed a hint of surprise, but he reacted quickly. He grabbed her wrist with a strong grip, causing her to release the knife in pain.

Fu Yanchen looked at her with anger in his deep gaze and said, "Pei Nian, it seems that you really have learned some skills?"

Pei Nian endured the pain in her wrist and stared defiantly at him, saying, "That's right, Fu Yanchen. Let me tell you, if you have the guts, you can kill me today. Otherwise, I will never return to you again in my life." Upon hearing this, Fu Yanchen raised his eyebrows and sneered, "Good, very good. It seems that your experiences over the past six months haven't taught you a lesson. But that's alright, I have ways to make you obedient." With that, he shrugged off her and picked up his phone from the nearby table, leaving without a glance back.

Left alone, Pei Nian slumped in her seat and tears fell from her eyes. At this moment, she truly regretted why she had provoked this man in the first place... If she had not provoked him, her family's company would not have gone bankrupt, her father would not be lying in the hospital, and she would not have fallen to the point of selling her body for a mere few hundred thousand.

Late at night, Pei Nian stumbled out of the hotel alone and hailed a car to go home. She sat in the back seat, looking dazed.

After half a year, she never thought she would see Fu Yanchen again... Since her family's company had been ruined by him, they had not seen each other for six months. She thought she might never have any dealings with him again in her life, but he suddenly reappeared and wanted her to return to his side. She didn't know what he was up to, but she wouldn't let him succeed...