Chapter 97

arms as if she had survived a disaster. For an instant, his mind wandered; since childhood, he had been spoiled and indulged, always getting his way—how could he ever have endured such neglectSeeing Y...Chapter 97

Ni Xuanyi felt at a loss for words to describe her current mood.

In the past, Ni Xuanyi had always hoped that one day she could live with Li Yi on equal terms. However, now she realized that even if she stood on her tiptoes and added two bricks, she still couldn't look at Li Yi eye-to-eye as equals.

Even if she were foolish, she knew that an unequal love was unacceptable.

Li Yi tried to approach Ni Xuanyi several times, but each time either her colleagues dragged her away to pick wildflowers or she went off with them to take pictures. As a result, he didn't have the chance to speak to her, and there was an eerie feeling that she seemed to be avoiding him, causing him a sense of severe disappointment.

Mr. Tang's family had long been close friends with the Li family; their parents had once collaborated in business. The Tang family only had this one daughter who was treated like a princess, and Jasmine had always liked clinging to Li Yi since childhood. When she grew up, she used her internship as an excuse to work for Li Yi instead of taking over her own company.

Li Yi naturally couldn't treat Miss Tang casually; in many things, he tended to indulge her somewhat, adhering to his usual principle of being diplomatic and considerate. He was skilled at business but not so much at understanding women's hearts, hence he hadn't realized that what he had done had already hurt Ni Xuanyi.

Li Yi felt a bit lost due to Ni Xuanyi’s sudden avoidance. He couldn't blame her for dodging him or her colleagues for dragging her around; whom could he blame then Only himself, for not having talked properly with Ni Xuanyi yesterday and for provoking her anger.

As it was the last day at the resort villa, in the evening, the overall commander of this event organized a bonfire party outside. With delicious barbecues and three-in-one beverages, the starry night sky illuminated the red fire, creating an enchanting atmosphere as everyone sat around eating and drinking.

To allow everyone to enjoy themselves fully, the overall commander announced that the departure time for the next day would be at 11 am, so there was no need to rush in the morning. This meant they could have a good time until then.

The guests followed suit and began their final revelry, chatting and laughing heartily.

Later on, someone came up with an idea: each team would compete by singing songs; those who didn't want to sing had to drink one cup of alcohol. Although this was a rather conventional rule, a group of adults played along enthusiastically.

In their daily lives in office buildings, everyone adhered strictly to the image of being elite professionals with serious demeanors. Through such competitions, they finally discovered some talented singers among them.

Ni Xuanyi could sing too, but compared to those who sang well, she felt inferior. She didn't want to embarrass herself again and opted to drink a cup of alcohol instead when it was her turn. The slightly bitter taste of the liquor sliding down her throat brought with it a mild burning sensation that made Ni Xuanyi feel incredibly comfortable.

In the subsequent activities, Ni Xuanyi chose drinking over singing. After two cups of alcohol, she noticed how beautiful the moon looked tonight and found everyone around her to be quite lovable.

The chirping insects echoed in the surroundings as cool breezes blew from outside. The myriad stars above resembled scattered diamonds against the dark sky. The flickering orange-yellow flames crackled warmly. All faces seemed to blur and sway, making Ni Xuanyi giggle foolishly while drinking beer and eating meat skewers, feeling exceptionally content.

Dong Mali was having a great time; as soon as it was her turn, she would either sing or drag people to dance with her. She wasn’t at all shy or pretentious. If the mood struck her, she even drank while dancing and quickly mingled with everyone.

Ni Xuanyi sat by the side, secretly thinking that only a woman skilled in social interactions like this would suit Li Yi. She could get along well with everyone around Li Yi.

As Ni Xuanyi watched Tang Mali dancing and singing at the center of the crowd, she couldn’t help but turn to look for Li Yi. He was sitting opposite her team, quite far away and there was a campfire in between them, making it almost impossible for Ni Xuanyi to see his face clearly.

Ni Xuanyi felt melancholic; perhaps she had never truly seen through Li Yi.

It was Ni Xuanyi’s turn to sing again. At this moment, she seemed determined and drank another cup of alcohol. Her head began to feel dizzy. She found it strange since her usual tolerance for alcohol would not make her drunk with just these drinks. Was this what they meant by sorrowful wine She then felt ridiculous for being so sentimental and gave a silent laugh.

Ni Xuanyi sat there for a while; her head became increasingly dizzy until she wanted to vomit. She couldn’t possibly throw up here, though. Taking advantage of the fact that she was still somewhat conscious, Ni Xuanyi forced herself to stand up and told her colleagues that she needed to go to the restroom, then staggered back with blurry eyes.

The road in the hot spring villa was winding and twisting; everything before Ni Xuanyi’s eyes appeared hazy, making it impossible for her to see anything clearly. Everything seemed to be spinning around her. Gradually, she didn’t even know where she had ended up.

Ni Xuanyi felt that she must truly have been drunk. She wanted to return to the room immediately but was cursed with losing her way.

Her ears were ringing, and her mind was sluggish as she muttered to herself, "Where am I Where is my room..."

Somewhere around the same time, a familiar sigh came from behind her, tinged with concern, if not a little anger: "Xuanxuan, are you drunk! Don't you know your own limit Why did you drink so much"

Ni Xuanyi started to come back to herself when she heard this voice—it sounded like Li Yi's. She slowly turned around and saw that it was indeed Li Yi standing behind her. She murmured in a mix of joy and sorrow:

"Brother Li Yi, is it really you..."

“Who else could it be!” Li Yi couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of Ni Xuanyi. He reached out to hold her steady so that she wouldn’t fall, and motioned for his driver who was nearby to bring over a car.

When he saw Ni Xuanyi staggering away earlier, Li Yi had guessed that she must have drunk too much, and felt an urgent worry in his heart. However, it wasn't appropriate for him to immediately follow her, so instead, he instructed one of the bodyguards by his side to keep track of her. He then found a pretext to leave the gathering.

The bodyguard had informed Li Yi that Ni Xuanyi seemed lost, prompting him to hurry over. Given his cautious nature, such an environment was too risky for any interaction with Ni Xuanyi; there were too many people around who could see them.

Seeing the young lady clearly drunk, however, Li Yi worried about her safety and had one of the bodyguards stand by to watch over her. He instructed his secretary to bring a car near so that he could temporarily take Ni Xuanyi there.n.She wanted to check her location through the GPS or call nearby traffic stations for help in sending a taxi.By this time, she was completely drenched. Shivering, she opened her phone, where messages...