America: I came here to study, not to show mercy.

The next day.

After leaving the hotel, the two were escorted by Benhamid to a nearby airfield.

“Mr. Li, Miss Hearst, Mr. Hobart has already boarded a cruise ship in Las Vegas to the West Coast of America. This flight will take you directly to that cruise ship…”

Standing in front of an airplane, Benhamid looked at the two men and carefully said, "Have a pleasant journey."

"Yes, thank you for seeing me off."

Regardless of whether Al Thani knew about Catherine's previous harassment, he actually had a good impression of Ben Hamid. Lee Sean nodded in agreement and boarded the plane with Catherine under Ben Hamid's gaze.

As the aircraft's engines whirred rapidly, emitting a continuous, noisy sound, the plane slowly accelerated forward, took off, and flew away into the distance.

The last time he flew on a private plane was during his first hike when he encountered a suspicious and unidentified danger in the forest. Now, less than a year later, it feels like an eternity.

Looking down through the doors and windows at the buildings and people that were gradually becoming smaller, Li Xiaoen, who had already put on noise-canceling headphones, couldn't help but feel a sense of感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a complex emotion encompassing feelings, thoughts, and reflections).

Looking back, in less than half a year, compared to other freshmen who were leisurely spending their time on coursework and study, he became increasingly busy.

Suddenly, his arm was patted. Li Xiaoen turned around and saw Catherine looking up at him and speaking—he couldn't hear her voice, but he could see her red lips opening and closing.

"I can't hear you."

Li Xiaoen shook his head and answered loudly, but his voice was still drowned out by the noise of the plane.

Catherine rolled her eyes, fiddled with the young man's headphones for a bit, and then spoke, her voice coming through Li Xiaoen's headphones.

"What were you thinking about just now?"

"I didn't think about anything."

Li Xiaoen shook his head. Seeing that Catherine hesitated for a moment and didn't speak again, he couldn't help but smile and raise his chin at her. "Catherine, are you bored and came to chat with me?"

"Oh, yes."

Catherine's eyes widened slightly upon hearing this, and she nodded her head calmly. "Come on, say a few nice things for me to hear."

"..."

"Actually, at this time, you should pretend to be shy, which will make the man feel a sense of accomplishment."

After a moment of silence, Li Xiaoen helplessly suggested to Catherine, "You can't only be gentle with me when you need something from me, right?"

It was yesterday when Catherine begged him to carry her bag. Li Xiaoen still finds it unbelievable when he thinks back to that sweet, coquettish voice, and it gives him goosebumps.

In America, it seems really difficult to find a gentle and tender girl—the culture and atmosphere of this society seem unable to produce delicate and beautiful flowers.

"sure."

Catherine gave a gentle smile, but her hands didn't stop moving as she picked up the bag that was on her other side and placed it on Sean Lee's lap. "You'll be carrying this bag from now on."

"Hmm... how about we change the agreement?"

Li Xiaoen glanced down, took the bag off, and placed it on the other side of her.

"What agreement?"

"It means... we will fulfill this agreement on the plane, and then temporarily suspend it once we disembark."

Li Xiaoen carefully chose his words, "In this way, we can do it long-term, intermittently..."

Halfway through his sentence, Sean Lee was slapped on the shoulder by Catherine.

"Speak properly, why are you resorting to physical violence again?"

Sean Lee sighed, and seeing Catherine slapping him repeatedly, he couldn't help but raise one hand.

With just one movement, Catherine, like a frightened bird, quickly withdrew her hands and pressed down on her thighs, her body tensing up.

"Humph……"

Receiving a glare of embarrassment and indignation from Catherine, Lee Shawn chuckled and leisurely leaned back in his chair.

To be honest, while the journey was boring, it was quite interesting to make that beautiful young lady angry.

Just as he was thinking this, his thigh was slapped down again, startling him so much that he suddenly opened his eyes...

They were entangled together, and by the time the plane landed on that behemoth, which was about the size of three or four football fields and twenty stories high, it was already past midnight.

Looking down through the doors and windows, Li Xiaoen saw the bright, fiery light of the cruise ship sailing on the vast, dark sea. Even from mid-air, he was still amazed by the sheer size of the vessel.

Just like the Titanic in the movie, it is equipped with a variety of amusement facilities, restaurants, and even water parks, parks and theaters. These are the most basic facilities of every cruise ship, earning it the nickname of a floating city.

Their current vessel, according to Benhamid, departed from Hawaii and is primarily equipped with various casino facilities.

Sailing on the vast Pacific Ocean, not under the direct jurisdiction of any national organization, the cruise ship was mainly equipped with a casino. Li Xiaoen felt a piece of music suddenly playing in his mind.

After signing the contract with Hobart, he also wanted to slick his hair back, wear a black suit, and walk to the casino with his hands in his pockets.

Amused, Li Xiaoen shook Catherine, who was sleeping soundly in his arms, as the plane was about to land.

"Get up, the sun's already high in the sky..."

"Um……"

Startled awake, Catherine frowned, took a deep breath, rubbed her eyes, sat up straight, looked around blankly, and slowly regained consciousness.

Meanwhile, the plane had landed safely, and Li Xiaoen got off first, reaching out his hand.

"Thank you."

With her hand in the young man's, Catherine stepped off the plane.

"It's so lively on the ship at this hour."

As a young man in a suit walked towards him from a short distance away, Li Xiaoen looked around at the frolicking crowds on the ship.

"Free food and drinks, free travel, and on a cruise ship in the vast ocean, many people would do the same."

Catherine replied leisurely, "After all, internet access on a ship is very expensive, and it cuts you off from all outside information. It's a consensus among everyone that it's better to indulge in a few days of debauchery here."

"That makes sense."

Li Xiaoen nodded, shook hands with the young man walking towards him, and was taken aback when he heard the man's apologetic words.

"It's alright. It's getting late, and it's not appropriate to discuss cooperation at this time, is it?"

Li Xiaoen smiled reassuringly and said, "It would be better if we talked tomorrow morning when we're well-rested, clear-headed, and full of energy."

"That's great, thank you for your understanding!"

Upon hearing this, the young man breathed a sigh of relief and led the way, saying, "Come, Mr. Hobart has already prepared the best rooms on the cruise ship for you two. This way, please."

"..."

They were led to the top floor of the cruise ship's cabins, to a corner room. With a crisp knock on the door, the two turned their gaze from the large double bed in the spacious room and subconsciously exchanged a glance.

"Perhaps, the impression we left on them in Doha led Ben Hamid to admit that we were indeed a couple."

Li Xiaoen shook his head, both amused and exasperated. "How about I go ask them for another room?"

"Let's not even talk about whether there are any rooms left like this. If we ask for another one, they might start to suspect our relationship." Catherine lowered her eyes, sighed, and walked to the soft double bed in the middle of the room, sitting down. "Especially since the chairman of the Adil Group doesn't seem to like us."

As the sole host here, Hobart, the chairman of the Adil Group, who was traveling here, should have come to greet them upon arrival, according to the most basic etiquette. Unfortunately, he did not show up.

"Perhaps, he has something special going on."

Li Xiaoen shook his head helplessly and offered a word of comfort.

What he couldn't say was that he used the Eye of Insight to check the room and, along the way, glanced around the casino. Hobart was engrossed in the casino, seemingly on the verge of madness.

The girl doesn't mind at all, but he, a man, insists on putting on a righteous and awe-inspiring act, which makes him look rather inferior.

"So...would you like to shower first, or should I?"

Catherine gripped her suitcase tightly and turned her head to look at her.

"..."

Why does this sentence sound so ambiguous?

Li Xiaoen felt as if pink smoke had suddenly filled his vision. He quickly coughed twice and waved his hand, "You go wash up first. I'm going to the bar on the ship. I heard that this cruise ship has a bar with robot bartenders."

“Oh…oh.”

Catherine paused for a moment, then quickly nodded.

"Would you like something to drink?"

Li Xiaoen asked again.

"Hmm... Take a look, do you have anything mild and delicious? Just bring me a cup back."

"it is good."

Li Xiaoen nodded, turned and left, closing the door behind him. Only then did Catherine finally breathe a sigh of relief and relax.

Shaking her head and patting her face, Catherine took her pajamas out of her suitcase and went into the bathroom.

On the other side, Li Xiaoen came out of the room, also relieved. With a subtle thought in mind, he walked towards the robot bar three floors below, following the route mapped into his mind by the [Eye of Insight].

To be honest, if he really came here for a vacation and didn't have to worry about anything, he might as well relax and have a few days of fun on the cruise ship. He could eat when he was hungry, sleep when he was tired, and play when he was awake. Living a few days without a care in the world would be one of the wonderful experiences in life.

Having determined the route to the bar, Li Xiaoen turned off [Eye of Insight], finally avoiding the "coincidental" sightings of men and women exercising intensely in rooms, swimming pools, or even secluded corners of deserted parks.

There seems to be an experiment that suggests that when material resources are plentiful, the reproductive desire of organisms increases, leading to a rapid increase in the number of species.

In other words, it's a case of "when people are well-fed and clothed, they start thinking about sex."

Lost in thought, Li Xiaoen arrived at the bar counter of the robot bar.

Despite being called a robot, it only has two robotic arms that hold a cocktail shaker. It automatically recognizes his words, takes various materials from the feed inlet, closes the handle, and starts shaking.

Unable to witness the robot-like body interacting and adjusting during bartending, and unable to glean any information through dialogue, Li Xiaoen quickly lost interest.

He finally understood why this bar was so empty; everyone had gone to lively, normal bars, and dancing bars.

The few figures that were there were couples embracing and kissing each other.

Not knowing Catherine's preferences, and having brought a few different drinks from the bar, Sean Lee went to the still-available buffet restaurant at this time to get some food, packed it up, and headed back to his room.

Using his meal card to open the room, the first thing Li Xiaoen saw was Catherine sitting on the bed drying her hair. He shuddered slightly and held up the food in his hand.

"Are you hungry? I brought some food back with me."

"Oh, okay, thank you."

Catherine nodded obediently, and this rare gentle and docile appearance made Sean Lee raise an eyebrow.

Sitting at the table near the small private balcony of the room, enjoying the cool night breeze, Li Xiaoen silently looked at Catherine for a while, then reached out and touched her forehead.

"what are you doing?"

Without even swallowing the food she was chewing, Catherine quickly raised her hand and slapped away Sean Lee's hand.

"You've suddenly become so gentle, you don't want me to do anything else, do you?"

Li Xiaoen looked at Catherine suspiciously, his brows furrowed as he asked.

"Yes."

Rolling her eyes in annoyance, Catherine muttered, "I'm sleeping in the bed tonight. You can go to the sofa."

The room was very large, with a private bathroom, a small sofa, and even a TV, almost like a room in a luxury hotel.

"I can't lie down on that sofa, can I?"

Li Xiaoen glanced at the sofa, guessing that if he lay down on it, his legs would be dangling in mid-air. "I'll sleep on the bed too. Don't worry, I won't bother you."

These words made Catherine frown slightly. She silently looked at Li Xiaoen for a while, but didn't press the matter further. She lowered her head and silently took another bite of broccoli.

It was already late at night, and they still had to discuss cooperation with Hobart the next day. After a quick bite to eat, they packed up and left. By the time Li Xiaoen finished showering and came out of the bathroom, it was already 1:30 a.m.

He glanced at the bed first, then paused in his tracks.

At this moment, Catherine was sitting on the bed, stretching in various poses, probably doing yoga. Her originally loose and fitted pajamas clung tightly to her alluring figure due to her movements, and the full, round outline made Li Xiaoen's mouth go dry.

"It's so late, do you still do yoga before bed?"

As Li Xiaoen turned on the hairdryer to dry his hair, he asked Catherine.

"I'm used to it; I do a simple stretch before and after bed."

Catherine took a deep breath and sat up straight. Her face was flushed and her eyes were glazed over. It was hard to tell whether it was from the exercise or the aftereffects of the alcohol.

Li Xiaoen glanced at the table and realized that all the cocktails on it had been emptied.

"What the hell..."

Li Xiaoen exclaimed in disbelief, "You finished all the wine in such a short time?"

"I don't speak Arabic, so I'll leave the cooperation to you. Consider this a vacation for me, can't I get drunk a little?"

Catherine chuckled to herself, her face flushed, her hair slightly disheveled, looking rather adorable.

"You don't want to get drunk so I'll take care of you, do you?"

Sean Lee narrowed his eyes and saw Catherine's smug smile, his face darkening.

"Fine, fine, I guess I owe you one."

Li Xiaoen waved his hand, went back and forth to the bathroom, took out a hot towel and smeared it on Catherine's face, which immediately caused her to struggle...

After quickly wrapping things up, Li Xiaoen covered Catherine, who was lying on the other side of the bed, with a blanket and turned off the light.

Exhausted from a day's journey, just as he was losing consciousness, a considerable weight suddenly pressed down on him, immediately waking him up.

"Catherine?" (End of Chapter)