Because I Cannot Hurt You

Ah Cy burst into tears and said, "Aiyaaa, where is Chyou? Let this beautiful aunty hug her!"

She went towards the children's group and hugged Chyou hard. Caihong couldn't help but laugh. 

Leina and Siying were confused. "Why are you hugging Chyou?"

"Because she is a darling. I cannot believe she is so mature already!"

Little Chyou didn't understand the source of Ah Cy's sudden affection, but she surely loved it as she giggled. Siying threw his arms towards her. "I want Aunty to hug me too!"

Leina copied him. "Me too!"

So, Ah Cy was squished by three chubby children, and she felt herself float in heaven.

Shuang's eyes twinkled. "Aren't you jealous, Liang?"

He coughed. "Why would I be jealous? I am not! But yes, I am angry for sure. Is Siying trying to take advantage of the situation!? Why is his hand at Leina's back? What is he trying to do!?" His face turned red in anger.

"..."

Xinyi shook her head. "They are just hugging."

"But he is still touching her!"

Shuang glared at him. "Does that even count when both are just four?"

Liang clenched his jaw. "Why does everyone always try to gang up on me like that? I am just trying to protect my innocent daughter!"

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah sure. Let me know when you catch the invisible enemy."

"Pfft…" Jack Si choked while sipping the juice and laughed hard.

Their fun time was interrupted when a maid came in and bowed. "Madam. Young master Liao is at the entrance."

Xinyi was surprised. "Yuan?"

She hurried towards the hall and found Liao Yuan waiting for her with a bouquet in his hand.

"Yuan."

He smiled. "Hey. This is for you," he offered the bouquet to her. "Happy Birthday."

"Oh. Thank you. But why did you take the trouble?"

"It's no trouble at all. We are friends. At first, I thought I should just send someone on my behalf. But I decided against it. The least I could do was personally give it to you. Plus, I never got the chance to congratulate you for winning the deal. It is a double celebration."

She looked embarrassed. "Ah, thank you."

Xinyi cleared her throat and took a scan. She hoped Han Huizhong wouldn't come and see him or…

But since he knew that Caihong was going to visit for Xinyi's birthday, Han Huizhong decided to seclude himself in his room until the gang left. He still didn't know how to face her, so for now, he could only think of not crossing any paths with her.

Liao Yuan seemed to hesitate a bit. He then took out a small gift box. "This is for you too."

Xinyi widened her eyes. "A gift?"

"Yeah. I hope you don't mind."

Xinyi didn't know what to say. As a friend, she had no qualms accepting his gift. But if Zhiyuan saw it, she knew he would flip out seeing this gift. He might even throw it in the garbage.

The gang curiously craned their necks. Shuang touched her chin. "Some guts this young master Liao has hoho...He is trying to woo her in Han's territory. This is interesting. Where is the popcorn?"

Caihong smacked on her head. "What popcorn? Can't you see Xinyi is troubled?"

Shuang glared at her. "Which is why this is so exciting!"

Xinyi deliberated for a while but helplessly accepted. "Thank you."

He cleared his throat. "Why don't you open it?"

Liang then said, "I want some popcorn too."

Caihong simply grimaced. "I hope we don't see any bloodshed if Zhiyuan…"

Shuang giggled.

"S-Sure…" Xinyi quickly unwrapped it and was shocked to see a beautiful and delicate diamond bracelet.

"This... You really didn't have to buy such an expensive gift."

He waved his hand in dismissal. "It doesn't matter as long as you like it. It will look pretty on your wrist."

Shuang whistled in mischief. "Nice line. I need to learn some flirting tricks from young master Liao."

Jack Si raised his brow in amusement. "And whom will you use it on?"

"I have many admirers if I may say so!" She proudly snorted. "Especially all the female coworkers in my office. They have a crush on me. They even want me to disguise myself as a guy and act as their boyfriend."

His mouth twitched.

"Ever thought of using flirting tricks on a guy?"

"Like who?"

"Like yours truly."

"You want me to flirt with you?"

"I won't mind if you insist on that."

"What if you fall for my charms?" She innocently asked.

"What if I want to fall for your charms?" He smiled.

Caihong coughed. 

Aren't they already flirting? 

Xinyi, on the other side, could only thank him once again. She was about to put the bracelet back in the box when a hand corner caught her.

Startled, she looked up to see Zhiyuan standing before her, with a frosty expression as she stared at Liao Yuan.

Liang munched on his actual popcorn that the maid brought for him. "Oh, oh! It's getting more exciting now! The hero is here! What will he do? Beat the hell out of Liao Yuan? Or kill the hell out of Liao Yuan? Oooo the tension is high in the air and-"

Ah Cy hit his head. "Stop your commentary!"

"Hey!"

Zhiyuan glanced at the gift box in Xinyi's hands. He snatched it from her and stared at Liao Yuan. He held his hand and put the box on top of his palm. "Some lines shouldn't be crossed, Mr. Liao. So before I order the guards to throw you out of here, it would be wise you leave yourself."

Xinyi gulped.

This is bad...

Liao Yuan narrowed his eyes. "This gift is for Xinyi."

"Which she doesn't need from a man who holds feelings for her."

He froze. "Mr. Han Zhiyuan. Can you please stop being so petty by bringing my feelings into this? I am only here as her friend."

"Can you stop lying to yourself by thinking that you have actually moved on from her when you really haven't?"

His gaze was extremely cold. "I don't need to prove myself. I just want to wish her birthday and see her happy."

"If you really want to see her happy, then you wouldn't have bought this expensive bracelet for her in the first place.. If you couldn't understand that she would be troubled by this gift, then Liao Yuan, you are really ignorant."