Liu Yunlong did not touch Li Yi during the period they were together.
This was primarily so for two reasons: firstly, he had been taught not to and secondly, he had always been a traditional man. They weren’t married, so it wouldn’t have been appropriate to touch her, no matter how difficult it was to control himself not to.
When he had been drugged, he had hugged her tightly and desired to have her. However, she pushed him away forcefully and ran away. A woman came in then and he thought she’d come back for him. He called out her name throughout the night – he had been so happy! He thought Ning Qing had acknowledged the bright future he had ahead of him. He wanted to marry her.
Alas, the woman he’d been with that night was not her.
During the seven years that Li Yi had been absent from his life, Liu Yunlong did not once think about the events of that night. Now that she was back again, he found his mind drifting towards it.
He looked at the door shut tightly in front of him and closed his eyes. He imagined her changing inside, taking off her clothes. He snapped himself out of his reverie – he was being really ungentlemanly.
Liu Yunlong panted for a moment, then turned around to leave.
“Ah!” a soft cry came from the other side of the door and broke the silence.
“Xiao Yi!” Liu Yunlong pushed the door open immediately, “What’s wrong, are you okay?”
Li Yi stood by the sink with her back towards him. The long dress outlined her willowy frame. His eyes zeroed in on the small part of the zipper on the dress that was caught in her hair. This must have been why she let out the soft cry.
Their eyes met in the mirror. Realising just then that he had barged in, Li Yi panicked and quickly used both her arms to cover herself as she moved swiftly to the side.
“Why did you barge in here? Get out!”
“Xiao Yi, Ah Long, what are both of you doing?” Madam Liu, who had been in the room and heard the commotion, asked with concern.
Liu Yunlong reached forward and covered Li Yi’s small cherry coloured lips that were just about to part. He called out, “Mom, let’s chat for a while.”
Madam Liu agreed happily, “Okay.”
Liu Yunlong pressed his body against his, covering her mouth with one hand and holding her slender waist with the other. Li Yi felt a clean, unfamiliar masculine scent engulf her senses.
Her face turned pale and she immediately reached out to push him away, “Let go! I won’t scream anymore!”
Liu Yunlong looked down at her, cradled in his arms. Her clear, watery eyes held his gaze with unmatched fear and resistance, showing him how much she disliked his touch.
Liu Yunlong let go of her slowly and zipped up her dress.
“I’ll be returning to China with Darren in two days. You can’t keep lying to Auntie like this. I’m already married and I’m very happy with my life. This is a fact that can’t be changed, so stop waiting around for me. I heard that you’ve been getting by pretty well these few years. You’re already in your thirties and you should be finding a good girl to fall in love with. I’m sure Auntie will like her if it’s someone you love. She will slowly change her mind about who you should have as your marriage partner. Finally, I hope you’ll continue to be happy in the future.”
Li Yi straightened her dress and reached out to open the door.
“Xiao Yi, don’t leave me!” Liu Yunlong hugged her tightly from behind.
His body radiated heat, making Li Yi shudder. Her body suddenly tensed up like a rock.
“Tell me this isn’t true!” Liu Yunlong hugged her tightly and pressed his face against her hair.
“You’re not married and you couldn’t possibly have forgotten about us! You’ve loved me as much as I’ve loved you even though we haven’t been together these past seven years! This is merely a joke you’re playing on me. Are you trying to punish me for the mistakes I made seven years ago?”
“That’s quite enough!” Li Yi pried his fingers off her one by one, “I’ve forgotten about what happened in the past. Please don’t mention it anymore!”
“You couldn’t possibly have forgotten about us!” Liu Yunlong grimaced in pain and suppressed his anger. He then turned her around to face him and held her small beautiful face in his two big hands.
“I will help you remember the past now!” he smiled with bloodshot eyes and leaned over, kissing her soft red lips.
Li Yi’s eyes widened instantly as their lips touched. Her breath stopped. Memories of the events from seven years ago flooded into her mind all at once. She was in that dark room again, the sanctimonious man forcing her into a corner, her clothes torn in a pile, the man panting into her ear like a beast and her feeling so much pain she felt she was about to die.
Disgusting! It felt so disgusting!
Li Yi pressed firmly against Liu Yunlong’s chest and pushed him away.
Liu Yunlong had been taken by surprise. When their lips touched, his entire body went limp and numb. Her lips smelled so good, its fragrance seeped into his skin and sent his mind into a frenzy.
He wanted her!
The next thing he knew, he was pushed away mercilessly. He glanced sideways and saw Li Yi standing over the sink vomiting uncontrollably. As she hurled her insides out into the sink, Liu Yunlong stood frozen on the spot and clenched his fists tightly. His gaze was gloomy and desperate.
“I kissed you and you couldn’t stand it so much so that you had to vomit?” he asked dejectedly.
Li Yi’s small face was as white as a sheet. She finally forced herself to stop heaving but she did not lift her gaze to face him.
“Yes, I couldn’t stand your touch because ever since you’ve slept with other women you’re no longer the man I knew, you’re filthy!”
The veins on Liu Yunlong’s forehead throbbed with ferocious intensity. Her reaction was just as he’d expected.
“Please don’t bother me anymore and maintain some dignity for yourself. Whenever I see you now, I get so uncomfortable I feel like vomiting,” Li Yi straightened her dress and left the bathroom swiftly.
Liu Yunlong was the only one left in the empty bathroom. Li Yi’s last sentence echoed in his ears. As it’d turned out, her disgust towards him had seeped deep into her bones. This was the complete opposite of how they were like in the past.
Liu Yunlong felt weak and leaned against the cold wall. The corners of his eyes warmed and he felt his eyes fill up with tears. The men who lived in the mountains where he’d come from stood tall and strong despite adversity. They only shed blood, not tears. He couldn’t be like those men – he felt himself lose control and his shoulders tremble. He lowered his head and wept until his voice became so weak he could no longer make a sound.
In a bar, Liu Yunlong poured the contents of several wine bottles into glasses in front of him. Xiao Tian, his assistant, looked at him with grave concern.
“Uncle Liu, please stop drinking. You’ve been here for two days. You must be careful not to damage your voice.”
“Ha!” Liu Yunlong cocked his head towards Xiao Tian and smiled, “What’s the big deal? If I damage my voice, I just won’t sing anymore.”
Xiao Tian sucked in a breath of cold air.
“Yunlong, are you sure about this? Do you even know what the consequences are of damaging your voice? God, how could you even have such thoughts?” Xiao Tian asked in exasperation.
Liu Yunlong remained silent and continued drinking.
“Liu Yunlong, why are you drinking here alone?” Qian Qian exclaimed and ran over to him with a sweet smile on her face.
Liu Yunlong glanced at her and sneered, “Who are you?”
Qian Qian asked in disbelief, “You don’t remember me?”
“Get lost!” Liu Yunlong spat out coldly.
Qian Qian was furious. What was wrong with this man?
“I’m not leaving! Why should I listen to you?”
Liu Yunlong pursed his lips shut, grabbed the wine bottle in front of him, stood up and left.
At this moment, the front doors of the bar swung open. Darren and Li Yi stood in the doorway.