Volume One, Chapter 44: Wouldn’t it be sweeter to leave me and bask in the tenderness of another man’s arms?

A young man approached Yu Mo.
"Yu Mo, are you single right now?"
His intentions were clear—he wanted to pursue her.
Fu Yanting shot the young man a glare and answered for Yu Mo without hesitation.
"She has a boyfriend."
The young man looked at him with displeasure.
"I wasn't asking you. And you are?"
"I am—"
Halfway through his sentence, Fu Yanting found himself at a loss for words, unable to define his relationship with Yu Mo.
"I have a boyfriend," Yu Mo said, cutting in.
The young man looked at Fu Yanting in disappointment, the meaning in his gaze obvious.
He assumed Fu Yanting was her boyfriend.
Resentment flickered in the young man's eyes; to him, Fu Yanting was nothing special.
Yu Mo’s voice sounded again.
"I don’t know him."
"Oh."
The young man drew out the syllable, giving Fu Yanting a meaningful look.
So, he thought, someone’s trying to play the big bad wolf here.
It seemed Fu Yanting wasn’t anything remarkable either—just another suitor after Yu Mo.
After the young man left, Fu Yanting grew agitated.
"Yu Mo, how could you say you don’t know me?"
They had known each other for more than six years; no one could be more familiar.
Yu Mo lifted her long lashes, casting him a cool, indifferent glance.
The fervent admiration that once filled her eyes had vanished, replaced by a cold, detached light.
A stabbing pain, sharp as a knife, seared through Fu Yanting’s heart.
Yu Mo spoke slowly.
"When I break up with someone, I consider them dead."
"Yu Mo..."
Fu Yanting nearly lost control, wanting to seize Yu Mo and demand an explanation.
Was her love for him really so cheap?
Could she discard it so easily?
A cold laugh echoed in Yu Mo’s heart.
Fu Yanting—
You were the one who pushed me away.
You told me to leave, and I left.
Now you want me back?
Sorry.
She was long gone.
Gone into another man’s arms, savoring warmth and tenderness.
Why return to her old ways, debasing herself?
Seeing Yu Mo’s indifference—her outright disdain—toward him, Fu Yanting grew desperate to prove himself, his words tumbling out in a rush.
"Mo Mo, I’ve already broken up with Lin Hua. In a few days, I’ll announce it publicly. The engagement with her will be canceled. Let’s get back together, all right?"
He took a step forward, trying to close the distance between them.

As if, by doing so, their hearts might be reunited.
Yu Mo stepped back, avoiding his approach.
A sharp slap cracked through the air.
Her tone was frosty.
"Fu Yanting, have I not made myself clear enough? Look at yourself—you only make me more disgusted."
Fu Yanting felt his face burn. His hands, hanging at his sides, clenched into fists.
He knew he had wronged Yu Mo. Her hatred for him now was only fitting.
"Yu Mo, I’ll wait for you—always."
"Sorry, I already have someone."
"It’s Mu Shaozhou, isn’t it? You’re still with him?"
If it had been anyone else, Fu Yanting wouldn’t have cared. But Mu Shaozhou...
"Mo Mo, you’ll never be happy with him. Your worlds are too far apart—"
Yu Mo let out a soft, mocking laugh.
"My life is none of your concern. And what if I want to be the Crown Princess?"
"Mo Mo—"
A cry from the next sofa interrupted them.
"Jiajia, where’s your diamond ring?"
Everyone’s attention snapped to Yan Kejia’s left hand.
Her fingers were bare; the massive blood-red diamond ring was nowhere to be seen.
"Oh no!"
Yan Kejia leapt to her feet.
"Damn, I must have taken it off in the restroom and left it on the sink."
A chorus of exclamations broke out.
People inwardly cursed her carelessness—leaving such a valuable ring on a public bathroom sink.
Yan Kejia dashed out.
A while later, she returned to the private room.
Her face was wild with panic, tears threatening to spill.
She had lost that enormous diamond ring.
It was Qin Xiang’s gift—worth tens of millions.
After a flurry of confusion, she finally collected herself.
She pointed at Yu Mo.
"Yu Mo, I ran into you in the restroom earlier, didn’t I? It was you! You stole my ring!"
Yu Mo felt the sudden weight of blame crash down on her.
She let out a light laugh, recalling that ostentatious diamond ring, and lifted the corners of her lips.
"I wouldn’t stoop to stealing something so gaudy. My taste isn’t that poor."
"You! What do you mean, Yu Mo? That was a gift from Qin Xiang. Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of the Qin family of the Magic City?"
Yan Kejia was frantic now. It was one thing to insult her, but to belittle Qin Xiang was truly arrogant.
Xie Mengqi and Lin Hua came over as well.
Xie Mengqi immediately took the stance that Yu Mo was guilty.
"Yu Mo, just hand over the ring, or we’ll call the police!"
Yu Mo was unmoved.
"Xie Mengqi, when Yan Kejia came out of the restroom, you’d already left. Unless you have eyes on your backside? If you can prove you saw something from there, I might believe you, just a little. Otherwise—

You’re just making baseless accusations."
Xie Mengqi nearly jumped in outrage. Eyes on her backside? Who would dare speak to her like that?
Lin Hua intervened, eyeing Yu Mo with meaning as she spoke.
"Yu Mo, if you didn’t take it, there’s a way to prove it. Let us search you. If we find nothing, we’ll believe you’re innocent."
She turned to Yan Kejia. "Right, Jiajia?"
Yan Kejia had no intention of letting Yu Mo off so easily.
"If she doesn’t have it on her, she might have hidden it somewhere else."
"Exactly!"
Wang Hui and Xie Mengqi agreed.
Unfortunately, there were no cameras outside the restroom; otherwise, they’d have sent Yu Mo straight to the police.
Wang Hui summoned a few girls, gesturing for them to search Yu Mo.
Yu Mo’s almond-shaped eyes were full of vigilance, a chilling light flashing in their depths.
Her voice was icy.
"You have no right."
No sooner had she spoken than several girls lunged toward her.
Lin Hua and Xie Mengqi waited eagerly to see Yu Mo make a fool of herself.
Fu Yanting stepped in front of Yu Mo, standing firm.
"Mo Mo didn’t take your ring! This must be a misunderstanding."
Yu Mo couldn’t help but glance up at Fu Yanting.
A deep ache twisted inside her.
If only he had stood up for her like this before.
She would surely have been moved to tears.
But now—
She felt nothing at all.
She no longer wished to remain at this reunion.
She turned to leave.
Xie Mengqi and Wang Hui quickly blocked the doorway, like two dutiful guardians.
Yu Mo pulled out her phone to call the police.
Yan Kejia snatched it from her at once.
"Who are you trying to call? You’re getting searched, whether you like it or not. Even if you summoned the king of heaven, no one could save you."
She turned to the group of men behind her, pointing at Fu Yanting.
"Get him away from her."
The men looked toward Qin Xiang, standing off to the side.
They dared not offend him, even if they didn’t want to obey Yan Kejia.
They pulled Fu Yanting away.
Three girls rolled up their sleeves, preparing to search Yu Mo.
Yu Mo braced herself for a showdown.
If she made enough of a scene, the hotel staff would come.
There was not a trace of fear in her eyes; in fact, the coldness she exuded made the three girls hesitate for a moment.
Yu Mo clenched her teeth, ready to fight back.
Just then, the door to the private room swung open from the outside.
A tall figure appeared. All eyes instinctively turned toward the newcomer.