Chapter 57: A Decade of Unspoken Pain
Liang Xiaoluo slowly broke free from Ye Tianlin's grip, inch by inch, until she stood facing Nan Shaojie.
"What did you just say?" she asked, her voice trembling so much that even she could barely hear herself.
Fiancée?
Wasn't he already engaged to someone else?
Her emotions were a tangled mess. A warm sensation coursed through her heart, but it was quickly replaced by a sour sting, like an invisible dagger twisting within.
"Xiaoluo, stop being stubborn. Come with me, and I'll help you resolve whatever happened," Nan Shaojie said calmly.
Stubborn?
Was she being stubborn again? Did he even know what she had been through? Did he know how low she had stooped just to earn a single glance from him?
He knew nothing, yet with a mere word—"stubborn"—he dismissed all her efforts.
The warmth she had briefly felt vanished completely, leaving only a hollow void.
In his eyes, everything she did was "stubbornness." It was the excuse he always used to evade her, to avoid dealing with her feelings head-on. Even when he rejected her confessions of love, he cloaked it with excuses like, "We're not from the same world."
If only he had been more direct, she could have borne the rejection. But his indecisiveness, his unwillingness to provide clarity, had hurt her even more.
Did he not understand the toll of silently loving him for ten years? Did he not realize how painful it had been to love him, to wait for him, for an entire decade?
Tears welled up in her eyes, but instead of falling, she let out a bitter laugh.
"What do you mean by that?" she asked, her voice steadier now, though her heart was anything but.
Nan Shaojie pressed his lips together, refusing to answer.
His silence was like a dagger piercing through her chest. Even now, after seeing her in another man's arms, he refused to give her an answer.
Fiancée?
She scoffed internally. Was he only saying this to pull her out of Ye Tianlin's grasp? Was it just a desperate attempt to protect her from making a mistake?
That had to be it. Otherwise, why would Nan Shaojie say something so absurd?
Her heart turned cold as her mind spiraled into disappointment and despair. She felt as though her spirit had left her body, floating in a void where nothing mattered anymore.
Her soul, once filled with hope and longing, now felt empty and abandoned.
Nan Shaojie noticed her pale face and the desolation in her eyes. It made his own heart ache. He hadn't wanted to hurt her, but he didn't know how to handle her questions. Years of avoiding confrontation had left him unprepared for this moment.
But now, seeing her with someone else, he realized he could no longer stand idly by. If he didn't act, he would lose her forever.
"Xiaoluo, come back with me," Nan Shaojie said firmly, tightening his grip on her arm in an attempt to pull her away from Ye Tianlin.
Ye Tianlin, however, tightened his hold on her waist like a predator protecting his territory. His gaze was sharp, his entire demeanor radiating possessiveness.
The two men stood locked in a silent battle, each refusing to back down.
Caught between them, Liang Xiaoluo winced. The tugging hurt her arm, and Ye Tianlin's grip around her waist was nearly suffocating.
Finally, Nan Shaojie relented, releasing her arm out of concern for her pain. But Ye Tianlin only tightened his hold further, his possessiveness unrelenting.
Liang Xiaoluo belonged to him. No one would take her away—not even over his dead body.
"Ye Tianlin, let her go," Nan Shaojie demanded, his tone calm but steely.
"Let her go?" Ye Tianlin sneered, his eyes flashing with contempt. "And who are you to tell me what to do? Her fiancé?" He chuckled darkly. "Nan Shaojie, wasn't your fiancée last seen in England? Everyone knows that. As for this woman, she's mine."
"What are you implying?" Nan Shaojie's voice tightened.
"What I'm implying," Ye Tianlin said, his tone dripping with mockery, "is that you've already claimed someone else. So stop pretending you have any right to Xiaoluo."
The tension between the two men was palpable. Nan Shaojie clenched his fists, fighting the urge to lash out.
"Ye Tianlin," Nan Shaojie began, his voice measured but firm, "I don't care what misunderstandings you think we have. But I'm asking you one last time—let her go. Liang Xiaoluo is my fiancée, and I won't let you take her."
Hearing these words, Ye Tianlin smirked. He leaned down and pressed a deliberate kiss to Liang Xiaoluo's pale cheek.
The gesture was brazen, an unmistakable challenge.
"Your fiancée?" Ye Tianlin scoffed. "If she's really your fiancée, why did you wait until now to claim her? Were you too blind to see what was happening all this time?"
Liang Xiaoluo's face turned ashen at Ye Tianlin's words.
Nan Shaojie faltered for a moment before regaining his composure. His voice grew colder, sharper.
"Believe what you want," he said. "The truth is, Xiaoluo and I have been betrothed since childhood. Her parents and I have been waiting for the right time to tell her—after her graduation. But now, I see that waiting any longer is a mistake. If she agrees, I'll announce our engagement to the world today."
The weight of his declaration hung in the air.
Ye Tianlin's eyes narrowed, his lips curling into a sinister smile.
"Then why don't we ask her directly?" Ye Tianlin said, his voice low and challenging. "Liang Xiaoluo, are you ready to announce to the world that you're engaged to Nan Shaojie?"
Liang Xiaoluo froze, her heart pounding in her chest as the two men stared at her, each waiting for her answer.