Xu Ruowei trembled all over, biting her lip. These words, indeed, came from her. She had only said them to appease Huo Yunshen, to make him willing to do things for her.
She never expected Huo Yunshen to say them directly in front of Shen Xizhou.
Even less did she expect these words to be spoken under such circumstances.
She had always been confident. She would handle everything meticulously. She wouldn't let such a situation arise. But now? It seemed too late.
The current situation left her in a dilemma.
Xu Ruowei's hands trembled, but her expression remained remarkably calm.
At this moment, calmness was precisely what she needed most. She had to find a way to resolve the current issue.
Xu Ruowei looked at Huo Yunshen with an innocent expression, sobbing, "Huo Yunshen, why would you say such things to frame me? Why defame me? I've never done such a thing, nor have I said it?"
"You say that, do you have any evidence? You can't just casually say something and expect me to accept such a charge."
"Huo Yunshen, An Nuan, what benefits did she give you to make you speak such words against me with a clear conscience?"
"Yunshen, you said we were very good friends. I truly considered you my friend. But you, for the sake of An Nuan, have framed me like this. Huo Yunshen, I truly regret being friends with you."
"Huo Yunshen, from now on, you are no longer my friend, Xu Ruowei."
"All the sincere feelings I invested over the years were ultimately misplaced."
"Sincere feelings? Misplaced? Xu Ruowei, how can you say those words without blushing?" Huo Yunshen sneered. If he hadn't known Xu Ruowei's true colors, he might have believed everything she said based on her words alone.
But now, listening to her, he felt utterly disgusted.
"Xu Ruowei, put away that pitiful act. Your attempts to evoke sympathy are truly unsightly. Every word you utter now makes me sick. Every sentence you speak makes me feel how foolish I was before, to believe someone who was full of lies."
"In fact, An Nuan is the most innocent. Because you like Shen Xizhou and want to snatch him away, you've done so many things."
"And Shen Xizhou is also incredibly foolish. He claims to love An Nuan deeply, yet because of a few incidents, he believes Xu Ruowei's words. Heh, Shen Xizhou, your love is truly cheap."
"Huo Yunshen..." Xu Ruowei clenched her fists, her heart already in agony. She desperately wanted to lash out, but with Shen Xizhou present, she couldn't.
She bit her lip tightly and sobbed, "Huo Yunshen, Ruowei is not the person you describe. Even for An Nuan, you shouldn't slander Ruowei like this."
"I have investigated everything thoroughly."
"Ruowei is innocent. An Nuan is the instigator of all of this, from beginning to end."
"Huo Yunshen, you are willing to do anything for An Nuan."
"But, I am telling you, I will not believe a single word you say."
"Do you understand?"
"I will not believe it."
Huo Yunshen laughed loudly, his eyes filled with mockery as he looked at Shen Xizhou.
"Huo Yunshen, you are truly pathetic."
"To be so thoroughly deceived by Xu Ruowei, and at this point, you still think she's been wronged. It's laughable."
"Shen Xizhou, what exactly did Xu Ruowei tell you that made you trust her so completely, without a shred of doubt?"
"Shen Xizhou, you are truly pathetic."
"Huo Yunshen, that is my business, and it has nothing to do with you."
"Are you afraid of being deceived? Then I am willing to be deceived. Even if Xu Ruowei deceives me, it means I still hold something that makes Xu Ruowei remember me, something that makes her invest her thoughts in me. But you? What do you have? You seem to have nothing."
Shen Xizhou said coldly, "Huo Yunshen, one day, you will pay the price for what you have said today."
"Heh."
Upon hearing Shen Xizhou's words, Huo Yunshen let out a soft, cold snort. "The price?"
"I trusted Xu Ruowei, I did everything for Xu Ruowei, and now? Now I am like this. That is my price."
"Shen Xizhou, you will regret it. You will regret treating An Nuan like that for Xu Ruowei's sake. But there is no antidote for regret in this world; even if you regret it, you cannot go back to the past."
"I said, I am willing to be deceived."
"In this lifetime, I will never regret it."
"Shen Xizhou, remember what you are saying now."
Huo Yunshen's gaze fell on Xu Ruowei, filled with icy coldness. "Xu Ruowei, I must say, you are truly remarkable, to have made Shen Xizhou trust you so much. Even in the face of evidence, he still chose to believe you."
"You are truly formidable."
"However, it's understandable that Shen Xizhou isn't firm enough. After all, wasn't I also completely captivated by you back then?"
Huo Yunshen finally looked at Shen Xizhou, his voice tinged with a hint of helplessness. "Shen Xizhou, I've said what I needed to say. Whether you choose to listen is your own concern."
Huo Yunshen ultimately threw the evidence in front of Shen Xizhou. Seeing it, Xu Ruowei's face drastically changed.
These were videos and photos of her with him.
Xu Ruowei hadn't expected Huo Yunshen to have these photos and videos. However, luckily, the videos had no audio, so even if Huo Yunshen presented them, she still had a fallback.
Her eyes welled up with tears.
Xu Ruowei pointed at Huo Yunshen, her voice filled with indignant grief. "Huo Yunshen, you forced me to do this. You said you had information detrimental to Xizhou. You told me to meet you alone."
"And then you assaulted me."
"Huo Yunshen, you threatened me into everything."
By this point, Xu Ruowei was weeping uncontrollably.
She looked at Shen Xizhou, her voice choked with tears, "Xizhou, do you think I am dirty?"
"But, Xizhou, I was threatened by Huo Yunshen."
"I know how important that collaboration is to you. How much effort you've put into it."
"I didn't want your hard work to be ruined by someone like Huo Yunshen."
After speaking, Xu Ruowei stopped crying and looked at Shen Xizhou with a serious expression, as if making a significant decision. "Xizhou, from now on, you and I will have nothing to do with each other."
"I know I am not worthy of you."
"Let's end things between us here," Xu Ruowei said sadly.
After saying these words, she turned and ran out immediately, showing no intention of stopping.