However, one trouble was replaced by another, which was really annoying.

At the auction, as soon as I sat down, a shadow fell beside me.

Qi Yanjin turned his head slightly and politely smiled at me.

I responded with a perfunctory smile and ignored him.

This was a private auction, and most of the people present were familiar with each other, including those who didn't get along.

Maybe it was because I had been in the midst of a storm recently, or maybe it was because I hadn't shown up for a long time.

In any case, I suddenly became the center of attention somehow.

The voices of a few people were not loud, but they could be heard clearly in the quiet hall.

"I heard she was rejected by the Qi family. Who knows what she's been up to?"

"Didn't they say they had an amicable breakup?"

"Do you really believe that? It was just the Qi family saving face. Otherwise, which respectable family would willingly break off the engagement with the Qi family?"

"Really? I heard that after she broke off the engagement, that Qi guy went to her immediately."

There was silence in the hall for a moment, and someone sneered and spoke, "Nephew is done using her, so uncle takes over. It's really shameless..."

"Lower your voice..."

"What are you afraid of? You know who my dad is. Do I need to worry about someone's face when I speak?"

After hearing this, I deliberately turned my head to look at her. Oh, her dad has been promoted recently.

Qi Yanjin beside me didn't look too good, and his gaze was icy.

When he saw that I didn't react, he asked, "Shen Shuyi, can you always endure like this?"

"What?" After realizing what he was asking, I said, "It's better to let things go than to make a big deal out of them."

Qi Yanjin didn't reply, and I thought that this incident would pass.

However, after the auction started...

Qi Yanjin raised his paddle from the first item and didn't even blink.

Whether it was a brooch, a necklace, or earrings, regardless of whether he needed them or not, he would bid on each one, driving the price up until no one dared to bid higher, and then he would win the item.

From the first item to the last, Qi Yanjin won every single item at the auction.

Those who had come specifically for a certain item could only look on with resentment, unable to speak their grievances.

I was a little slow to react and asked him, "Are you venting your anger on me? I don't care, a few words won't hurt me."

He said, "It's not for you."

Oh, I sat up straight and leaned back against the chair, feeling embarrassed, and I had misunderstood.

"They were talking about you, and it angered me," Qi Yanjin turned his head to look at me and said sincerely, "So, I'm venting on myself."

Warm yellow light spilled down, illuminating his handsome features. I tilted my head and looked at him, watching for a while before suddenly bursting into laughter.

"What's so funny?" He reached out and pinched my palm, tickling me.

Darkness, silence, and ambiguity... intertwined.

Qi Yanjin suddenly got closer, his voice low, husky, restrained, "Shen Shuyi, I'm almost forgetting... what it feels like when you kiss me. So, shall we kiss?"

My fingers clenched the chair with force, and my heart beat uncontrollably.

When did Qi Yanjin also know how to use his appearance to seduce and tempt... a woman?

It was soft, it was familiar, as if returning to that afternoon years ago.