You Owe Me, My Love

Chapter 403 Love

Wu Nian peered through the peephole and saw two men in suits standing in the doorway.

She flinched a little. Having a bad hunch, her hand froze an inch away from the door handle.

“We know you're inside there, Ms. Wu. Fret not, Mr. Shen sent us,” a voice rang from the other side. Her brows knitted into a deep furrow.

Mr. Shen?

They must be Shen Yiyan's men then.

There was no reason for her to hide. She straightened herself and swung the door open. “Is there anything Shen Yiyan wants my help with?”

“It's better if you ask him in person later,” one of them replied with a brisk nod. “He'd only sent us to pick you up.”

“I understand,” Wu Nian answered, locking the door behind her as she stepped out. As soon as she was escorted into the car, the men blindfolded her in one swift yet nonviolent motion. Her belongings were also confiscated.

Wu Nian sat quietly, completely unalarmed by what they did.

Shen Yiyan was never a pushover, to begin with. Beyond that, countless corpses had become his stepping stones in his quest to obtain his current throne. Of course, it'd be no surprise for that man to resort to such ruthless means.

She leaned back in her seat, feeling nothing but tranquil.

For someone who had a close brush with death and had forgone all attachments in this world, nothing could ever intimidate her anymore.

An hour later, the car began to make a handful of continuous swerves almost every minute. Wu Nian could tell that they were no longer on the city’s main roads. They had most likely entered a hidden base beneath ground level.

After another ten minutes, the car eventually came to a halt.

Her blindfold was then finally removed.

A man in a black military uniform opened the passenger door next to her seat. “My apologies for the inhospitable journey, Ms. Wu,” he greeted coldly. “Please follow me.”

“It's alright,” Wu Nian answered plainly as she got off the car. She trailed behind the uniformed man closely as they walked past multiple doors in the basement, then stopped in front of one that stood in the deepest end of the hallway.

Eight armed guards stood before them.

This is probably where he is.

After one of the guards knocked on the door, a familiar voice echoed from inside, “Come in.”

The guards then opened the door and gestured towards Wu Nian.

Shen Yiyan sat behind his desk, his eyes fixated on a document laid out before him as two uniformed figures stood quietly across him. Looking up at the sight of Wu Nian at the door, he placed the files aside and crossed his fingers. “Leave us.”

At his command, the man and the woman bowed respectfully and retreated out of the room, shutting the door behind them.

It was just the two of them left in the vast, luxurious office.

Shen Yiyan stood up. With a faint smile, he motioned towards his wine cabinet on the other side of the room. “Fancy a glass? Pick whatever you like.”

Wu Nian returned the greeting with an equally placid smile. “Any red will do.”

Shen Yiyan walked over to the cabinet and opened a bottle of Lafite. “It seems I've underestimated Liu Yan's friend,” he spoke as he poured the wine into two glasses in a flawless, elegant movement. Wu Nian sat herself down on the couch across his desk. “I didn't expect Yan to be able to provoke you either.”

“Strictly speaking, you owe me your life,” he replied while handing her a glass.

Wu Nian took it in her hand with a smirk. “I've never planned to stay alive from the beginning.” Shen Yiyan raised a brow. “I have to thank you still. Liu Yan wouldn't have stayed by my side and bore my child if it weren't to save you.”

"Surely you knew this, General. I'm trying my best to atone for my mistakes.” Wu Nian glanced at her deep scarlet drink as she swirled it briefly before she downed the entire glass of wine in one gulp.

A cold glint flickered in Shen Yiyan's eyes. “Aren't you afraid that I might go against Gu Mingchen?” "You've always wanted to, anyway,” Wu Nian muttered indifferently. She rested the glass on the table and continued, “That intention of yours won't change because of me.”

Shen Yiyan curled up a corner of his lips. “I've always thought Gu Mingchen was invincible, save for his one weakness, which is you. Now it seems like you're actually the truly invincible one. Why don't we make a deal?”

Wu Nian stared straight into his eyes. “I don't think there's any business worth discussing between us."

Shen Yiyan placed his glass down on the desk. “I love Liu Yan,” he declared coldly.

Wu Nian’s heart skipped a beat at these words. Frowning, she gazed at him suspiciously.

"Why else do you think that I'd do anything to keep her by my side, even if it means putting my name at stake once her identity is exposed to the public?” he continued with a firm tone. “And who else would be spared like she was despite having insulted me thousand times over?”

“Then do you think Su Xuyan loves me?” Wu Nian refuted.

Shen Yiyan pursed his lips. He spoke again after a momentary silence, “You think he doesn't?”

“I don't. All I see in him are possessiveness and destruction. Likewise, these are the only things I see in you but love.”

With a sigh, Wu Nian continued berating, “Look around you. Everything here’s made of metals and bulletproof materials. Clearly, you're aware of the dangers lurking around you. Without a doubt, if Yan's identity is exposed, she would be the first to die instead of you. It's obvious who's that brilliant mastermind behind Stephen's murder case. Don't tell me it was one of your subordinates instead?” At this, Shen Yiyan narrowed his gaze. “I can guarantee you this. She will never be harmed, as long as I'm alive.”

“You should know her just as much as I do.” Wu Nian sneered before she said, “Yan is innocent but righteous, reckless at times but one of the kindest people I know. With that soft heart of hers, she'd never been cunning enough to set anyone up as you do.”

She then continued, “Besides, she's a free-spirited person who would never succumb herself to anybody's expectations. Look what you've done to her! You stripped away all the dignity she had and gave her a miserable life in return. Being restrained from day to day is already torture for her, let alone having to separate from her own child! The Yan I see now is no different from a helpless canary trapped in a cage, if not worse.”

Wu Nian glared daggers at the man as she ranted on, “On top of that, she has to carry the image of a mistress! It wouldn't have been so bad if you were a commoner, but you're the president of all people. If her name gets written in history alongside yours, she'd be painted as nothing more than a scandalous woman!"

“That's why Yan would rather lose everything else in exchange for her own freedom,” she stated firmly.

Shen Yiyan clenched his teeth as he listened, and a piercing glare burned in his eyes. “In that case, I shall break her wings! At least a canary's life is preserved so long as her master remains standing.” Trembling in anger, Wu Nian leaped from her seat. “She'll hate you for the rest of her life!”

Clank! Shen Yiyan smashed his wine glass onto the ground. As it shattered into pieces in a pool of dark red, he stormed towards Wu Nian and grabbed onto her shoulders. With a fierce glare, he said firmly, “I love her!”

Wu Nian wasn't in the least bit daunted. She glared back at him with just as much fury in her eyes. “You have no right to talk about loving her when you're another woman's husband! You're only destroying her!”

“I've never touched my own wife, not even once!” he growled. Loosening his grip on her shoulders slightly, he continued with a somewhat lowered voice, “Liu Yan is the only woman I ever gave my heart to. One day, I'll take her as my rightful wife. Now isn't the right time. Admittedly, I haven't stabilized my position completely at this point. With my responsibilities and family legacy, a careless mistake won't just ruin me. It could mean hundreds and thousands of lives going down together with me.”

Wu Nian's heart wrenched at the cruel destiny awaiting Liu Yan. “That's all the more reason for you to not drag Yan into your troubles! It's unfair to her.”

“That's why I'm trying to work out an agreement with you! I'll let Liu Yan go in the meantime, but you'll have to tell me where she is. I will go to her once these problems are settled. I believe there's no other man who'd love her more than I do...” Shen Yiyan glanced away. A layer of mist clouded his eyes for a moment. “And of course, how could I ever forget Bao? He's my son. Which other man would care for him if not his own father?”

Wu Nian observed him in silence. A conflicting mix of thoughts and emotions rushed through her mind at once, as memories from five years ago resurfaced...