Chapter 10: The Real Woman

Xi Yan looked worriedly at the tightly closed door, not knowing what was happening inside.

A loud slap echoed in the suffocating air, followed by a silence that was eerily bone-chilling.

Although Huo Jingtang had not expected Qin Yucen to lose control and slap him, his reaction was quick, and he shielded his face with his hand. Yucen's slap landed harshly on the back of his hand. His hand, with its long fingers and beautifully jointed bones, now bore a large red mark, burning with pain.

One could imagine if that slap had landed on his face, his left cheek would definitely swell up and turn red.

Qin Yucen had used all her strength; despite being the one who had hit him, she felt as if her hand was about to break, her palm numb and constantly trembling.

"What exactly have I deceived you about? Emotions or body, money or people?" Huo Jingtang held his hand in front of his eyes, staring at the shocking red mark.

That a woman dared to slap him like that, he ought to admire her!

She looked weak and delicately beautiful, yet she struck so fiercely, so violently! It seemed she hadn't been taught properly!

"I..." Qin Yucen was rendered speechless by his question, this man was too cunning.

"Since you can't say, how dare you hit someone at random?" He turned his chair around slightly, raising his eyebrows at her.

Even though he was sitting and looking up at the standing Qin Yucen, his imposing aura remained strong, making her feel somewhat inferior. She straightened her spine stubbornly, refusing to buckle under the pressure.

It was clear that he was at fault first, yet she still had to endure being suppressed by him!

"Yes, you haven't deceived me about anything, but you've deceived me about your trust!" Qin Yucen bit her lip, her chin raised defiantly, that stubbornness... it was heart-wrenching.

"What is our relationship? Talking about trust with someone you barely know? How smart is that?" Huo Jingtang rose from his chair, his height half a head taller than hers, which felt quite oppressive to her.

Each step he took closer made her instinctively step back, until her retreat led her back against the corner of the wall, her entire back pressing firmly against the hard surface.

He placed his arms on either side of her, trapping her within the narrow space between him and the wall. His strong masculine scent enveloped her tightly, suddenly making her mouth feel dry and tongue tied.

She swallowed hard, "No matter what you say, it won't change the fact that you've deceived me! So don't twist the truth anymore! I'm not so weak and easily bullied! I'm not afraid of you!"

"If you're not afraid, then why are you trembling?" he raised his eyebrows, taking in her disheveled state.

"I'm not! I'm just a bit cold." She wrapped her arms around herself, "I'm cold because my heart feels cold, how can someone like you exist? Nothing happened, yet you misled me into thinking I had a relationship with you... You have no idea how important that is to me! Just because you are Huo Jingtang, high and mighty, you think you can treat others like fools? You're despicable!"

As she spoke, her eyes involuntarily reddened, filling with a profound sense of grievance.

Huo Jingtang's expression darkened because of her accusation, like the darkness before a storm, cold and pitch-black at the bottom of a pond, making one shiver uncontrollably.

He glanced at the tear in the corner of her eye, furrowing his brows displeased, as he couldn't stand to see a woman cry, "Miss Qin, the highlight of what I said this morning was, 'so you think I'd just let you go without doing anything?' Except for not making love, everything else that should have happened last night did happen. If I hadn't dragged you into the cold water to sober you up, I think I would have been the one taken advantage of! Clearly, I was the one you hugged, touched, and kissed—taking advantage of me—and yet you still come here accusing me of exploiting the situation. What sense does that make?"

"Miss Qin, the one drugged and fiery with passion last night was you! Your anger, it shouldn't be because I didn't fulfill your urgent needs, right?" The man's rogue demeanor was infuriating.

"You're talking nonsense!" Qin Yucen's face flushed red.

It seems that was indeed the scenario last night, it was all initiated by her. She had been drugged, needing a man as the antidote. But he did not truly take advantage of her, she should be thankful to him for that. But this man was so vile, his words so poisonous! She had to admit she was the one who started it, how embarrassing!

"Five years of marriage, still a virgin, do you feel particularly empty?" He hit Qin Yucen right where it hurt, also reminding her that everything last night was initiated by her, nothing to do with him.

She was like a cat that had its tongue bitten off, only able to glower at him.

What exactly had she said to him last night? He even knew she was a virgin, that her husband had never touched her! This was a secret she found difficult to disclose, yet he had easily seen through it. She felt as exposed as if she were naked in front of him!

"Do you really wish to be a true woman once?"

Huo Jingtang's gaze trailed down her slender, beautiful legs to see dried blood on the top of her foot. He then squatted down—Qin Yucen was wearing a skirt, one that he had sent her.

Thinking he wanted to see what was beneath her skirt, she, flushed with embarrassment and without a second thought, lifted her foot to kick at him, cursing, "Pervert!"

But Huo Jingtang captured her ankle as it moved smooth and delicate, and it felt good in his palm. "You have a wound on the top of your foot, did you not know? And still wearing such high heels?"

No wonder her steps were unsteady.

A wound?

Qin Yucen was startled, remembering this morning in Guan Haoyang's office, when he smashed a cup near her foot, and its shards had cut her. She hadn't paid it any mind and hadn't treated it. So he was actually looking at her wound just now? And here she thought he was taking advantage to be improper?

Thinking she had misunderstood him made her feel quite uncomfortable.

In her daze, he had already picked her up and was walking toward the armchair, where he gently set her down. "Sit tight, wait for me."

She was beginning to not understand Huo Jingtang. She clearly came to confront him, and she was almost about to slap him, yet he didn't hold it against her? Or was he too cunning, and she couldn't see through his schemes?

She watched Huo Jingtang walk towards the conference room door, open it and see Xi Yan: "Secretary Xi, go get the first aid kit."

Xi Yan tried to see inside through Huo Jingtang, but the door was barely ajar and blocked by his frame, she couldn't see anything. She had no choice but to bring the first aid kit over. "President, who's injured?"