C5 This Is the Reason Why You Are Banned!

As she called out "honey," Liang Han noticed the chill around Qisheng seemed to ease. The punishing kiss gradually ended, and his lips moved to her ear, whispering, "That's better."

His large hand moved to her back, zipping up her dress before stepping back and saying in a deep voice, "Wait for me in the car outside."

"But I—"

Liang Han wanted to say more, but his cold glare silenced her. She meekly turned, gathered her things, and left the restaurant to get into the car parked outside.

Ten minutes later, Qisheng emerged from the restaurant's main entrance, with Liang Anqi hurrying behind him, seemingly calling out to him. Yet, Qisheng walked toward the car with an expressionless face, as if he hadn't heard a thing.

"Ice block," Liang Han muttered under her breath, reflecting on their year of marriage. He always seemed to wear that same expression, like she owed him a fortune.

Well, she did owe him money. If her grandfather hadn't left a debt of fifty million with Gu's company, she wouldn't have been tricked into a blind date. If not for that date, she wouldn't have been fooled by Qisheng's "gentlemanly" facade. And if she hadn't been deceived, she wouldn't have ended up marrying him so impulsively.

Reflecting on her year of secret marriage, Liang Han could only describe it as "a lamb to the slaughter."

What was supposed to be a non-interfering contract marriage turned out differently. Gu Qisheng managed to scare off four of her suitors in just a year, including a senior she had secretly admired for a long time. They had agreed that their work lives would remain unchanged and supportive, but Gu Qisheng secretly warned all top design studios not to accept Liang Han's resume, denying her job opportunities. This led to a heated argument, and she left his home. Their next encounter was today.

Gu Qisheng's driver, seeing him approach from a distance, quickly got out to open the car door. Liang Anqi stood at the restaurant entrance, pondering whether Gu Qisheng's excuse of "business matters" was genuine or just a pretext. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed someone else in the car, someone vaguely familiar.

Before she could get a better look, the car drove away. Her mind raced with possibilities, but she quickly reassured herself not to overthink it. After all, a man like Gu Qisheng despised being constrained by women. If she wanted to continue with him, she needed to give him a sense of freedom from the start.

With that thought, Liang Anqi felt a bit more at ease and got into her own car.

In the car on the other side, Liang Han glanced sideways out the window, taking in Liang Anqi's actions with a smirk. "She's waiting for you with bated breath, and you're not even going to comfort her?"

This jerk. She had only been away from the Gu family for two months, and he was already caught up in rumors with someone else—her own cousin, no less? Unbelievable.

"You've been waiting with bated breath for a week yourself. By my count, I should comfort you first," Qisheng replied calmly, his face expressionless.

Liang Han snorted and fell silent, as did Qisheng. The car quickly grew quiet. Liang Han, who hadn't had a good night's sleep in days, dozed off in a haze. When she opened her eyes again, they were outside Qisheng's villa—the very place she had sworn two months ago she would never return to.

Feeling uneasy, Liang Han frowned and turned to Qisheng. "Why did you bring me here?"