Chapter 931: Battered

"Just leave me right here. I'll walk the rest of the way."

The taxi slowly parked by the side, and Qi Lei got out of the car. Beside the driver's window, he reached into his pocket, but his wallet was nowhere to be found.

Stunned, he searched through every pocket he had under the driver's disgruntled gaze, and he still could not find any money. Finally, he was about to tell the driver to get him to Imperial Sky Entertainment City directly.

Suddenly, he felt a gust of wind go past him, and he heard the sound of brakes as he came back to his senses. He turned around and saw a slender hand going towards the driver's window with cash as a familiar voice filled his ears.

"Keep the change."

"Xiaye? Why are you here?" Qi Lei was surprised to see the woman inside the Porsche.

Xi Xiaye glanced at him and noticed his swollen cheek. With a sigh, she opened the door to the front passenger seat. "Get in."

Qi Lei shrugged and got into the car.

"Why do you look so battered up?" Xi Xiaye pointed at the seatbelt, signaling him to buckle up. At the same time, she grabbed some tissues and handed them to him. "Clean yourself up."

Qi Lei did not put on his seatbelt. Instead, he took the tissues and wiped his mouth. "I accidentally walked into a lamp post."

"Why does this lamp post look like the shape of a human palm? I have to visit it myself one day." Xi Xiaye did not point out his lie right away and just glanced at him. "Tell them to get you some ice once you get there. Your assistant, Yang Sheng, called Mu Yuchen. We knew you were forced back home right after you landed."

"No wonder Mu Yuchen called me. Now, I see why." Qi Lei put on a bitter smile.

Xi Xiaye took a deep breath and started driving. "You have a great assistant. Gu Lingsha slapped you, didn't she?"

It was pretty obvious that it was a woman's hand. Qi Lei's cheek was very swollen, and there was also some blood near his mouth. She must have slapped him really hard.

"I can't hide anything from you, can I?" Qi Lei admitted.

"Qi Lei..." Xi Xiaye's eyes were focused on the road as she called out to him gently. He turned his head and looked at her.

"It's not a good thing to be too stubborn sometimes. Protecting yourself is always your priority, especially in your current condition. Do you understand?" Xi Xiaye did not look at him as she spoke, but Qi Lei noticed that her grip on the steering tightened.

Qi Lei's expression softened as he replied, "I don't."

"I don't know if you're going to listen, but I'm still going to say it. I've told Mu Yuchen several times that I can see my past self in you, so I understand very well how you feel. I used to think that belittling myself to help others could give me a sense of purpose and achievement, but I realized I was wrong. I was wrong to underestimate myself, and it seems like you've been doing the same as my past self," Xi Xiaye said.

Qi Lei grinned before she even finished her sentence. He threw her a gentle glance when he looked at her. "You're not the only one who feels that way. I've met a lot of people, but I only feel particularly relatable to you. I was impressed by your charisma at our first meeting, and I've been looking forward to getting to know more about you since then."

'You have an aura that gives me warmth. You make me feel like I have found my lost strength.' Alas, Qi Lei did not voice out the second half of his sentence.

Xi Xiaye smiled. "It's my pleasure. As your friend, as well as on your mother's behalf, I hope you can live a better life. I might not understand the conflict within your family, but I understand very well what kind of pain you're going through."

"Mu Yuchen told me about CEO Li and you. Let me know if there's anything you need help with. I understand you like architecture. The Movie City development in City B will be handled by Fuhua Property, so do consider it if you're interested." Xi Xiaye gave him a concerned glance.

"Are you pitying me?" Qi Lei's smile froze.

Xi Xiaye shook her head. "I won't let Fuhua take the risk just because of pity. I just want to give you a chance, but whether you can utilize it or not depends on your ability. It's also to compensate for not being able to take on South River Project No. 2."

"As expected of Mu Yuchen's wife, you're speaking more and more like him or is this his intention?" Qi Lei's expression softened.

"He rarely objects to my decision. Plus, he had similar thoughts as well."

"Aren't you afraid that he might get jealous about it?" Qi Lei was really grateful, but he just had to tease Xi Xiaye when she looked so calm about it.

Xi Xiaye raised her eyebrows. "We've just discussed this earlier. It'd be great if he actually got jealous since he's too secure and has zero sense of urgency at all."

Qi Lei captured the happiness between her eyes as well as the smile on her face. It just showed how tight their bond was.

At that moment, he felt some warmth rise within him.