novelraw Chapter 0114 If you don't love, why?
Chapter 0114 If you don't love, why?
The morning light pierced the darkness of the study.
Jiang Ci woke up.
But he didn't move.
He leaned back in the leather chair, covered with the wool blanket that still carried her warmth.
The severe stomach pain has subsided, leaving only a faint soreness.
Instead, a growing cloud of doubt filled my mind, growing wildly like weeds.
He tilted his head slightly.
My gaze fell.
Wen Ning lay down on the carpet beside his legs and fell asleep.
One of her hands was still on his knee, and the other was under her cheek.
The sleeping position is awkward and must be very uncomfortable.
But she was sleeping soundly, with dried tear stains still clinging to her eyelashes.
Jiang Ci looked at her.
Looking at her pale face, looking at her defenseless sleeping face.
Memories of last night flooded my mind vividly.
She ran in barefoot.
She skillfully mixed the warm water.
The sensation of her warm palm against his stomach.
And there was that one hot tear that fell onto his shirt.
"If you don't love..."
Jiang Ci asked himself this question over and over again in his heart.
"If you don't love someone, why would you cry?"
"If it's acting, why are even the subtle, instinctive reactions so realistic?"
Would a vain woman go to such lengths when her sugar daddy is sick?
Perhaps.
But that look in his eyes... that look as if he was in pain, but she was in even more pain than him.
It can't be acted out.
Jiang Ci's heart began to pound uncontrollably.
Something called "hope," which he had forcibly suppressed in his heart for three years, is now breaking through the soil.
is not it……
Actually, she wasn't that cruel.
Is it possible that... she still has feelings for him?
Just then.
Wen Ning moved slightly.
She opened her eyes groggily.
My first reaction wasn't to stretch or complain about not sleeping well.
Instead, she suddenly raised her head and looked at the man in the chair.
"Jiang Ci?"
Her voice was hoarse from just waking up, but it was filled with deep anxiety.
She reached out her hand.
Naturally, I reached out to touch his forehead and then his palm.
"Are you awake? Does it still hurt?"
"Is there anything that hurts?"
That kind of concern.
That's too direct.
There was simply no time to disguise it.
Jiang Ci looked at her.
Looking into her eyes, which were filled with worry.
He suddenly turned his hand back.
He grabbed her outstretched hand.
Hold it tightly in your palm.
"Wen Ning".
His voice was deep, carrying a scrutinizing quality, as well as an almost pleading probing tone.
Why are you so nervous?
Wen Ning was stunned.
Her hand was gripped so tightly it hurt.
"I……"
"last night."
Jiang Ci stared intently at her, giving her no chance to escape.
"You cried."
"You cried because my stomach hurt."
He moved closer to her.
That oppressive feeling returned, but this time it was no longer cold; instead, it was scorching hot.
"If you don't love me."
"If we're not together."
Why are you crying?
"Why are you taking such good care of me?"
Tell me the truth.
His eyes trembled slightly, and his voice was low and hoarse.
"Do you... still have feelings for me?"
Wen Ning's heart clenched.
It felt like being gripped tightly.
He discovered it.
Her disguise was exposed as fatally flawed during last night's chaos.
Do you admit it?
Tell him, "Yes, I still love you, and I can never forget you."
Wen Ning looked at the crazy hope in Jiang Ci's eyes.
What welled up in my heart was not sweetness, but a chilling coldness and guilt.
No.
She hurt him so badly back then.
Now, she is a prisoner burdened with debt.
And he has become like this—obsessive, gloomy, and even somewhat morbid.
If he knew she still loved him.
He will absolutely not let go.
He would lock her tightly in this cage and "love" her in a suffocating way.
They will be like two trapped beasts, torturing each other until they perish together.
She doesn't deserve it.
I don't want him to continue going crazy.
Wen Ning bit her lip.
Use pain to force yourself to wake up.
She looked at Jiang Ci.
His eyes gradually cleared, and then slowly turned cold.
Wen Ning took a deep breath.
She used a lot of strength to slowly pull her hand out of his palm.
The action was resolute.
Leave no room.
then.
She lowered her head, avoiding his gaze.
I tidied up my somewhat messy hair.
The voice returned to its chilling indifference.
"President Jiang, you're overthinking it."
Jiang Ci's hand froze in mid-air.
The light in his eyes flickered.
"Are you overthinking it?"
He asked in a hoarse voice.
"Yes."
Wen Ning stood up.
She rubbed her numb knees, her tone as calm as if she were giving a work report.
"That's why I was nervous, that's why I cried."
"It's because I'm very scared."
"Fear?"
"right."
Wen Ning looked up at him.
The warmth from before was gone from his eyes, replaced by a calculating, utilitarian look.
"General Manager Jiang."
"You are now the Zhou family's only lifeline."
"He is also my only creditor."
"If you fall ill, if anything happens to you."
"The Zhou family is finished."
"I'm finished too."
She forced a standard, professional fake smile.
That was a mask she developed while working abroad and dealing with difficult customers.
"I'm doing this for my job, for the rest of my life."
"Just like a nanny takes care of her employer, just like a doctor takes care of a patient."
"That's my duty."
"Moreover... it's to protect my interests."
"after all."
She paused, then added:
"You are now worth hundreds of billions."
"If you collapse, who will I ask for that huge 'service fee'?"
Every single word.
They were all like a bucket of ice water.
This completely extinguished the little hope that Jiang Ci had just begun to have, leaving not even ashes.
interest.
rice bowl.
Labor costs.
It turned out to be the case.
In her eyes, his life was merely a tool to sustain the Zhou family's survival.
Her tears were only to protect her cash cow.
Jiang Ci looked at her.
Looked for a long time.
At last.
He smiled.
It was a very short, very cold laugh.
It is full of self-deprecation and irony.
"it is good."
"very good."
He turned around.
I stopped looking at her.
He picked up the documents from the table and opened them again.
His expression returned to its usual coldness, keeping people at arm's length.
"Miss Wen is indeed dedicated."
"For money, they can really act any role convincingly."
"Since you're so dedicated..."
"Then go get me a glass of water."
"remember."
He said coldly.
"Don't add sugar."
Wen Ning looked at his cold, hard profile.
A sharp pain shot through my heart.
"Yes."
She responded softly.
He turned and walked out of the study.
The moment the door closed, she leaned against the wall and slid down helplessly.
I'm sorry, Aci.
So... stop hoping for me.
Let me go, and let yourself go too.