The word "no" lingered in his throat for several moments, but in the end, he failed to utter it.
"I..." His gaze fell on Qi Ruixi again. He opened his mouth with some difficulty. "I..."
Unable to bear seeing him so embarrassed, Qi Ruixi tiptoed and planted a kiss on him.
"I know everything, Zou Yu. You may be afraid of the hardships ahead, but it's okay. As long as you're willing to hold my hand."
It was only after she met him that she understood that loving someone could truly make one lose their mind and do many things that were unimaginable before.
But what could she do? She just liked him so much.
She liked him so much that it didn't matter if she became the "love - struck fool" she once despised the most.
Zou Yu didn't push her away, nor did he dare to respond to her boldly.
He just lowered his head to accommodate her height, then closed his eyes, hiding his surging love in the darkness.
He thought he was really despicable. He clearly should have made things clear and forced her to end the pain quickly.
But somehow, when he looked into her slightly red eyes, he couldn't say a word.
Then he would just go along with her.
Even if there was no future, even if she would find out later that he was actually not good at all.
It didn't matter. At least she was happy at this moment.
He was willing to take all the uncertain risks and bet on his own future to make her happier.
He would also be very careful and cautious, not letting anyone find out.
Qi Ruixi didn't know what he was thinking.
Just knowing that he had feelings for her already made her extremely happy.
But people are always insatiable. After kissing him, she was still not satisfied. She grabbed his hand and wanted to leave.
"Come home with me. Explain to me clearly what you did with Cui Yin today."
Zou Yu knew she was drunk, but he was willing to indulge her. When they reached the door, he still asked, "What about President Qi and the others?"
"They naturally have their own feelings to express and love to share. We won't be the third wheel. You'd better think about how you're going to explain yourself to me later."
Qi Ruixi had returned to her usual arrogant and willful self.
However, Zou Yu knew how nervous and excited she was now.
Because the palm of her hand that was holding his was sweaty.
He couldn't help but feel sorry for his young lady. Without saying another word, he tidied up her clothes and was obediently pulled out of the bar by her.
In the next private room, Qi Shifeng blinked his deep - set eyes and tempted Xu Tingyu to make a promise.
"You kissed me主动, which means you still have feelings for me."
He almost crushed her in his arms, speaking the toughest words in the softest tone.
Xu Tingyu was drunk, not crazy.
Hearing this, she smiled slightly and said, "Kissing you means I still have feelings for you? Otherwise, should I kiss someone else to prove it to you?"
The slightly smug look on Qi Shifeng's face froze. Then he gritted his teeth and forced a smile. "That's not necessary."
"Okay, let's go. Let's find Ruixi. Why aren't you worried about your sister's safety?"
Xu Tingyu didn't want to entangle with him. She propped herself up on his shoulders, stood up, straightened her clothes, and was about to go out.
But as soon as she turned around, her wrist was grabbed, and she fell back into his arms.
"Don't worry about her. If she dares to come here and cause trouble, she should be prepared to bear the consequences."
Qi Shifeng still thought it was Qi Ruixi's idea for them to come here.
Xu Tingyu thought for a while and didn't rush to stand up. Instead, she hooked his neck and asked him, "So you allow them to be together?"
"I'm not the one dating Zou Yu. Whether I allow it or not doesn't matter."
Qi Shifeng didn't hesitate at all.
The words he said to Zou Yu were just to make them figure out their own feelings as soon as possible. Dragging things out vaguely would only make the situation worse.
Just like his relationship with Xu Tingyu.
If two people were out of sync, no matter how attracted they were to each other, there would eventually be many problems, which would accumulate into a huge mine buried in the relationship.
Xu Tingyu tilted her head and looked at him. Hearing this, she paused for a moment and then smiled. "You're quite open - minded."
Before he could speak, she continued, "If Jiajia were still alive, she would be old enough to date. I definitely wouldn't be as magnanimous as you."
When she mentioned Xu Jiajia, she always looked on the verge of crying.
Qi Shifeng's heart tightened as well, but he couldn't say any words of comfort.
Because any words were pale and powerless in the face of life and death.
Xu Tingyu didn't need his comfort either. She just wanted to see if he would feel guilty or scared when he heard Xu Jiajia's name.
However, there was no such thing.
There was only frankness in his eyes and unconcealable heartache.
It was really boring.
"It's a pity about our Jiajia."
She averted her eyes. Knowing that she couldn't get any useful information from him, she simply stood up again.
"I'm going back. President Qi, you were the one who drove the others away, so you should pay for today's consumption."
She swept away her previous dejection and returned to her usual smiling self.
This time, Qi Shifeng also stood up. "Okay, I'll take you back."
He casually put his arm around her waist and led her out.
Xu Tingyu's alcohol tolerance wasn't so bad that she couldn't walk properly, so she pushed him a few times. Coincidentally, her hand landed on his pectoral muscles.
"Walk properly. You can touch me after we get in the car."
Qi Shifeng remained calm. He caught her hand and held it.
At first, Xu Tingyu just perfunctorily said "oh". When she realized what he meant, she immediately got angry. "Hey, who wants to touch you?"
They had already left the private room, and her shout was quite loud.
Just then, a group of people passed by the door of the private room and immediately looked over.
Xu Tingyu's ears turned red when she felt their gazes.
It was all this damned man's fault. He always set traps for her, and now she must have become a promiscuous woman in the eyes of passers - by.
Thinking of this, she shook off his hand and was about to show her "upright gentleman" attitude.
However, her repeated actions of pushing the man away had already annoyed him.
He let out a low laugh and directly picked her up in a princess carry. "This way you can hide your face in my arms, and no one will see you."
Humph, he was really being nice.
In the end, Xu Tingyu chose to "yield". After all, there were too many people, and she couldn't afford to lose face.
Qi Shifeng was very satisfied with her performance. He carried her all the way to the car and placed her in the passenger seat.
Since he had come in a hurry, he hadn't even called the driver. Zou Yu had driven the car here.
Zou Yu had just sent him a message saying that he would take Qi Ruixi home first.
Now that he was going to take Xu Tingyu home, he would naturally drive.
"You can do whatever you want now, as long as you don't distract me too much while I'm driving."
He got into the driver's seat and then leaned over to fasten her seat - belt.
Xu Tingyu couldn't help but glare at him. "Qi Shifeng, could you please be normal? What could I possibly want to do to you?"
"What if you want to kiss me or touch me? I'm just telling you that I'll accept it. You don't have to be shy."
Qi Shifeng went with the flow, looking kind - hearted.
Xu Tingyu was still led astray. She roared angrily, "What do I have to be shy about? It's not like we haven't done it before!"