Chapter 77: The Shelf Life of Freshness

  Tong Mai stared at the newspaper in her hand for a long time, and it took her more than half a day to come back to her senses! No wonder Huo Yize would say some strange things to her, now she finally understood...

  The time and place published in the newspaper coincided with their kiss near the center of the square that day! The hand holding the newspaper trembled for a while, fortunately... she was not photographed!

  If I were caught on camera... the consequences would be unthinkable.

  Tong Mai swallowed hard, and even now, without Huo Yize in the space, her body couldn't help but feel a double dose of fear and panic. She had indeed stirred up trouble! Whether it was in London or domestically, she shouldn't have gotten involved with him at all.

  "He once gave me a chance to start over..." Tong Mai thought of this sentence, but she had doubts about it and didn't dare confirm whether Huo Yize would let her off so easily.

  Tong Mai's mind was in a state of turmoil, "What to do? What to do?" If she continued to entangle herself like this, sooner or later she would be caught on camera with He Yi Ze.

  Tong Mai's heart was racing wildly as she stared at the clock, which was almost nine o'clock...

  Lost and confused, completely unsure of what to do, is actually the best!

  As she walked out of the room, when passing by Yinyuqi's bedroom, a faint sobbing sound came from inside. Tong Mai stopped in her tracks. Her door wasn't fully closed, and through the gap, she could see Yinyuqi crying with tears streaming down her face, still clutching that newspaper...

  It's obvious that Huo Yize is upset about the scandal, even if he acknowledges her as his fiancée. Men are like this from ancient times to now: a wife is not as good as a concubine, a concubine is not as good as a mistress, and a mistress is not as good as one that you can't get...

  Tong Mai's lips involuntarily curled up with a hint of joy, and indeed, as long as she saw them in distress, the hatred in her heart would decrease by one degree.

  At the same time, a sinister idea flashed through his mind, Tong Mai hesitated and furrowed his brow...

  From the beginning, she really didn't know He Yi Ze and hadn't thought of using him to harm and strike at Yin Yu Qi and Chen Yu Hua. However, now this idea was forming more and more strongly. Perhaps, He Yi Ze was indeed a tool for her revenge against the Yin family.

  Thinking of this, Tong Mai couldn't help but deliberate, wondering if doing so was really suitable. After all, Yin Yuqi did seem to be treating her well; was she being a bit too extreme?

  These messy and contradictory things forced Tong Mai into a dilemma.

  But as soon as I think of Mother's death, and her hard life in London from such a young age, this strong hatred seeps out from my bones...

  "Where should I meet you?" After walking out of the villa, Tong Mai was very decisive in giving He Yi Ze a phone call, her tone was quite calm, without a hint of fear.

  What's there to be afraid of after all the pain she has been through? No matter how scared she is, it can't compare to her fear when she was five years old. Back then, her mother had passed away and she was left with no one to rely on, living a life where people looked down on her. Even now, thinking back, it feels like it wasn't real, just a nightmare...

  Now, when facing Huo Yize, she also regards it as a nightmare. However, the difference lies in that while experiencing this nightmare, she also has to let the Yin family go through it together...

  At 9 o'clock in the middle of the night, almost without a minute's difference, Huo Yize received a phone call.

  Putting down his phone, a faint smile appeared on Huo Yize's face, with an air of arrogance and majesty in his expression. He looked at Tong Mai's compromise, seemingly very satisfied...

  ****

  "Miss Tong, please get off the bus."

  Huo Yize sent someone to pick her up, who made a polite "please" gesture with his hands.

  Through the car window, Tong Mai gazed out at the European-style villas, which looked like castles, shining brightly under the lights, dazzling and resplendent, with an area so vast that it almost occupied a whole hillside, comparable to a royal palace.

  Exquisite design, majestic momentum, everywhere showing the protagonist's grandeur and dignity...

  Tong Mai swallowed his saliva and tensed up his voice, "This is... " Should be the place where Huo Yize lives? But still couldn't help but ask.

  Actually, she had been here once when she was in a daze and had a high fever, but at that time she didn't have any consciousness and didn't remember ever having been here.

  "Miss Tong, this is Mr. Huo's private residence, Mr. Huo is waiting for you inside." Mr. Huo's subordinate replied respectfully.

  Awesome! Separate living quarters!

  Can he alone occupy such a large place? It's called his residence, but isn't it actually his den of beauty? Tong Mai fantasized in her heart that Huo Yize changed women as quickly as changing clothes. Here, she didn't know how many women had come and gone, and how many women had lived here...

  "Miss Tong, please..." The other party reminded again.

  Tong Mai gave him a glance, as if rebuking his endless chatter. Didn't she know it was time to get off the bus? Hurry up! Hurry up your soul!

  "Where is Huo Yize?" She called out his name directly, her voice sounding a bit impatient.

  Although this villa is indeed luxurious and spacious enough to make one's jaw drop in amazement, she now has no mind to look at these things...

  If one day she has money, she absolutely won't spend so much building a villa, but instead will take the money and travel around every corner of the world, making the four seas her home, and enjoying herself.

  "Miss Tong, Mr. Huo is in the master bedroom on the second floor, I'll take you to see him. Also, please mind your address, Miss Tong, Mr. Huo won't be too pleased if he hears it!" The subordinate reminded her kindly.

  "He's unhappy, I have to be careful. Now I'm unhappy, who should be careful?"

  Tong Mai muttered to herself, extremely dissatisfied. However, dissatisfaction is one thing, but who let her be controlled by others? If she had money and such great power, she would probably be as unscrupulous as Huo Yize.

  All the way through the villa's living room, she didn't appreciate the extreme luxury inside, following behind him to his bedroom door:

  "Mr. Huo, Miss Tong has arrived." A very respectful response, showing respect for Huo Yize.

  "Let her in." A low voice came from inside.

  At this moment, Tong Mai felt as if she was a humble slave in ancient times, and she had to be extremely careful in her actions, as if she were facing her master.

  As soon as she walked in and raised her eyes, she happened to meet Ho Yize's gaze. From his eyes, she saw Ho Yize's thick sarcasm and contempt for her. Anyway, she had already arrived here.

  He held a high-footed cup in his hand, the golden liquid inside swaying gently, emitting a bright and lustrous glow. It seemed as if the entire room could sense the fragrance of the wine. A slight sniff would be enough to roughly guess the preciousness of this wine.

  Originally, Tong Mai wanted to wait for him to speak first, but it seemed that he didn't intend to break the silence. Tong Mai's patience wasn't as strong as his, so he spoke up, "Speak, what do I need to do to avoid going to prison?"

  On the surface, she came for this, but in reality, she was planning something...

  Huo Yize still had that hint of playfulness, his fierce eyes gazing at her, finally putting down the wine glass slowly and standing up straight from the sofa, approaching her. "This question of yours is quite interesting, since you're here to ask for my help, you should bring out your best skills to persuade me, instead of... pretending to be arrogant, but actually just hiding your nervousness and inferiority."

  He spoke directly to her mind, and his disdainful eyes did not hide his contempt for her at all.

  It is said that Tong Mai was very angry, but what he said wasn't wrong either. She's now in a position where she needs to ask for favors, so it's not right for her to be so arrogant...

  Tong Mai bit her lip, and the words she was about to say still made her a little embarrassed. She looked at Huo Yize and asked, "If I give it to you, will we not have any more dealings with each other in the future?"

  After saying this, Tong Mai was also struggling fiercely in her heart. Did she really want to be so despicable and ruin Yin Yuqi's happiness? Thinking of this, Tong Mai's hands couldn't help but clench tightly, trembling desperately, her face gradually turning pale and looking a bit unsightly.

  Huo Yize obviously didn't intend to let her off easy, "What are you giving me? 10 million?" His low voice was filled with his arrogance, his gaze was unscrupulously sizing her up, and just by looking at her, he couldn't help but feel a strong urge surging inside him, throbbing, itching to immediately entwine himself with her fiercely...

  What was it about her that attracted him? Even now, Huo Yize still didn't know the reason!

  Is it because she is beautiful? There are many women who are more beautiful than her.

  Is it because of her innate boldness and tomboyish stubbornness?

  Huo Yize furrowed his brow slightly, was there a reason for this, or perhaps just a little?

  This was a type of woman who had never appeared in his life before, giving him a fresh and conquering feeling, provoking the man's power to the extreme!

  No matter how fresh it is, it will eventually expire!

  You're looking for death? You actually pity her, but now Tong Mai is also helpless against his evilness. With a wave of her hand, she continues, "Give you my body, and we'll settle the score later, okay?" As she says this, Huo Yize can hear her reluctance.

  "You seem reluctant, if you're not willing, I won't force you."

  He leaned in close, his slender fingers hooked under her delicate chin, this face, without the embellishment of makeup, had a fresh flavor that was tantalizing.

  Tong Mai was very clear that he was playing with her, she endured. Since she came here, she would endure no matter what. "I'm more than willing, but you must promise me that afterwards, we won't have any further entanglements. You said it yourself, you wanted to give me a chance to start anew."

  Alright, let her have her way for now.

  Since she wants to continue fighting with the Yin family, why doesn't she make good use of He Yi Ze? Men like what they can't get, the more they can't get it, the more they want it...

  However, her heart was still uneasy. Although she was willful and stubborn, and very resentful of all the people in the Yin family, she had never done anything to "hurt" anyone before...