Chapter 1: She Actually Slept with the Boss

Damn it! Twenty-six years of innocence, gone in a single night!

Qiao Xi’s eyes flew open, wide with shock.

Scattered haphazardly across the floor lay shredded garments, every torn scrap a stark testament to the wild, uncontrollable passion of the previous night.

A man’s searing palm trailed slowly up her waist, igniting her skin with smoldering flames of desire at every touch.

She had slept with—her boss, Fu Yancheng.

As the newly promoted cosmetics engineer at Fu Corporation, Qiao Xi had attended her very first celebration banquet the night before. Her debut product had just launched and, within a single month, seized the top spot among its competitors.

The company had thrown a party in her honor. Surrounded by colleagues and glowing with pride, her spirits soared—until a message from an unfamiliar number shattered her joy.

The photo showed her boyfriend of five years, Gu Heng’an, locked in a kiss with another woman.

She’d been cheated on.

Five years of love, crushed to dust in an instant.

Alcohol became her sole consolation—and her undoing. It fueled her recklessness, burned away her restraint.

After that... fragments of memory: a man’s low, ragged breaths, sweat mingling with skin, limbs entwined in utter abandon...

Qiao Xi’s mind was blank.

She sat bolt upright, ignoring the pounding ache of a hangover, and surveyed the unfamiliar, luxurious room.

The décor was elegant and understated—nothing like a hotel. Could it be...?

As she pondered, the bathroom door suddenly swung open.

Qiao Xi’s body froze.

A tall figure emerged—it was Fu Yancheng.

He was shirtless, a loosely tied towel slung around his waist. Beads of water slid down broad shoulders, gliding over sculpted abs before disappearing into the deep shadows of his hips.

He casually dried his damp hair with a towel, his every movement unhurried.

Yet the air in the room grew inexplicably taut.

He lifted his gaze, eyes sweeping over her with a probing intensity so oppressive it stole the very breath from her lungs.

The entire space had become his absolute domain.

Three months ago, when she first entered the interview room at Fu Corporation, he had recognized her at once.

Now, after a night of unchecked passion, she was his in every sense—and this time, he had no intention of letting go.

Standing in the doorway, Fu Yancheng’s gaze lingered over the battlefield of the night—the ruined garments on the floor—before finally settling on Qiao Xi’s chest, heaving with fear.

She was a natural beauty—delicate features, luminous eyes that now brimmed with panic.

On her neck and collarbone, faint marks bloomed starkly against pale skin, traces of last night’s intimacy.

And on the sheets, a dried stain of dark red—a sight that filled Fu Yancheng with wild elation.

Who would have thought? She had a boyfriend of five years, yet last night had been her first time.

“Engineer Qiao, you’re awake?”

After a moment’s silence, Fu Yancheng’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he spoke in a low, hoarse voice.

Qiao Xi’s entire body tensed.

Mortified, she bundled herself tightly in the quilt, leaving only her wide, tear-bright eyes exposed.

Before she could speak, Fu Yancheng poured a glass of water and strode to the bedside.

He offered it to her, his tone gentle yet firm, containing a subtle tenderness: “Have some water.”

He set the glass on the nightstand.

“President Fu…” Qiao Xi couldn’t bring herself to meet his gaze. Her voice was raw—perhaps from last night’s cries. “I’m… I’m sorry, I drank too much last night… I…”

She vaguely remembered getting into the wrong car after drinking too much—and then… forcing herself on President Fu?

Under the haze of alcohol, she’d yanked his tie, seized that handsome face, and pressed frantic kisses upon him, leaving her mark with reckless abandon.

Heavens…

Qiao Xi squeezed her eyes shut in despair.

That wasn’t just a kiss—it was practically an assault. She’d all but mauled him!

As the memories replayed, she wished she could launch herself off the planet.

What a beast.

She cursed herself inwardly.

“No need to apologize,” Fu Yancheng interrupted, his gaze lingering on her mortified expression. “After all, you were very enthusiastic last night. Everything that could or couldn’t happen, happened—no need for apologies between us.”

Qiao Xi: …

He was far too calm, a stark contrast to her present disarray.

She simply couldn’t comprehend how such an untouchable figure had ended up in her bed.

Qiao Xi’s family life had been hard. Her parents divorced when she was young, and her mother had struggled to put her through college, only to fall ill herself. Now, monthly hospital visits and medical bills weighed heavily on them.

To care for her mother, Qiao Xi had turned down a lucrative overseas offer and joined Fu Corporation instead.

Fu Corporation, among the world’s thirty largest enterprises, boasted immense resources and a state-of-the-art cosmetics lab—a perfect place for her to pursue her dreams. She truly loved her job.

Never did she expect to provoke the attention of the company’s top executive…

But now, all Qiao Xi wanted was to escape as quickly as possible.

She clutched the bedsheet and scrambled to get up, only to collapse as her legs gave out beneath her.

A sharp ache radiated through her body, draining the color from her face.

This man—last night he’d been like a starving wolf, insatiable and relentless.

Fu Yancheng reached for her instantly, his large, burning palm gripping her arm with unyielding strength.

Qiao Xi jerked her head up, meeting his deep, inscrutable gaze.

She felt utterly humiliated and dropped her eyes at once.

He must have claimed her countless times last night—no wonder her legs were so weak.

Beast!

Fu Yancheng’s eyes lingered on her flushed cheeks, then drifted down to her trembling legs, a knowing amusement in his gaze.

A slow, wicked smile tugged at his lips as he leaned in, drawing close. “Engineer Qiao, now that you’ve slept with me, you want to run?”

“President Fu, I…”

Fu Yancheng took her hand, guiding it over his chest and down the defined lines of his abdomen, where angry red scratches marked his skin.

Qiao Xi blushed furiously, hardly able to believe she’d left such marks.

“Forget about my own virtue—I’m seriously injured. And…” His gaze flicked meaningfully to the shredded white shirt on the floor. “You did quite a number on my things too. Don’t you think you should compensate me?”

Qiao Xi’s heart skipped a beat. She blurted out, “I’ll pay! How much? I’ll pay!”

Fu Yancheng straightened. “Good. It’s not expensive—FBN bespoke, 1.28 million.”

“How… how much?!”

Qiao Xi reeled as if struck by lightning, her face turning ashen.

1.28 million? For a shirt?

She stared in horror at her own hands.

Clinging to a desperate hope, she swallowed hard and stammered, “Could it… maybe be repaired?”

Fu Yancheng shot her a sharp, wordless look, his eyes brimming with authority.

Frightened, Qiao Xi shrank back and quickly amended, “I’ll pay for a new one! I’ll pay!”

“Can you give me a discount?”

A slow, sly smile curved Fu Yancheng’s lips as he drawled, “If you think the price is too steep, there is another form of compensation…”

He tilted her chin up, forcing her to meet his gaze, and spoke each word clearly: “Be my Mrs. Fu.”

Then, releasing her, he said, “The choice is yours.”