Hard work after winning the lottery

Her voice was like a withered leaf dried by the wind, making a fragile rustling sound in the quiet night.

Zhou Yanjin did not answer immediately.

In the frozen air, Zhou Yanjin put down her teacup.

The porcelain made a soft clinking sound against the table, yet it was so clear it seemed to strike everyone's heart.

He stood up.

Her movements were elegant and composed, without a trace of worldliness.

His tall figure instantly enveloped Hua Yun in his shadow, bringing an invisible, mountain-like sense of oppression.

He strode towards her, his long legs moving slowly and deliberately.

Every step felt like stepping on Hua Yun's taut nerves.

despair.

despair.

despair.

The sound of leather shoes stepping on the bluestone slabs was dull and rhythmic, each step striking her fragile heart.

Hua Yun's back instantly tensed into a rigid, unyielding plate.

She could even feel the crisp, snowy scent emanating from him, gradually encroaching on the air around her as he drew closer, leaving her nowhere to escape.

Finally, the footsteps stopped.

He stopped behind her, about two steps away.

A distance that is both perfectly measured and yet exudes absolute control.

He didn't come any closer, nor did he speak.

He just stood there quietly.

Silence, at this moment, became the sharpest knife.

Inch by inch, it slowly tortures Hua Yun's will.

Her clenched fists were already damp with cold sweat.

My mind went blank, and all coping strategies vanished under this extreme pressure.

Just when she was about to give up and wanted to escape at all costs, his deep, melodious voice, as pleasant as a cello, finally rang out again.

"Excuse me, where is my room?"

His voice remained cold and indifferent, revealing no emotional fluctuations.

It was as if he were asking a perfectly ordinary question.

"..."

Hua Yun was suddenly taken aback.

She had imagined countless possibilities.

Questioning, coercion, confrontation, even mockery.

She never expected that he would call her over just to ask this question.

The immense fear and tension that had been building up in his chest deflated like a balloon that had been punctured in an instant.

The huge sense of disparity caused her brain to freeze for a moment.

"East... East wing room."

She answered almost subconsciously, her voice trembling slightly as she relaxed from her previous tension.

"Please lead the way."

Zhou Yanjin's tone was impeccably polite.

Hua Yun let out a long, silent breath.

That aura was scalding and oppressive.

She felt as if she had just fought a tough battle, and her whole body was exhausted.

"...Okay, Mr. Zhou, please follow me."

She dared not hesitate any longer, immediately turned around, and stiffly took a step.

She still didn't dare to look up at him, her gaze only falling on the bluestone slab illuminated by the moonlight beneath her feet.

She led him through the courtyard and onto the corridor.

One in front of the other.

Her steps were unsteady, as if she were walking on cotton.

His steps were steady and powerful, always maintaining a distance that was neither too close nor too far, like a shadow following him.

The lanterns under the eaves emitted a warm orange light, casting long shadows of the two people that briefly overlapped before quickly separating again.

The east wing is the quietest room in the entire courtyard.

Hua Yun had cleaned the bed in the morning, changed the sheets and duvet covers, and lit some calming incense.

She pushed open the carved wooden door.

"Mr. Zhou, this is it."

She turned to the side, lowered her eyes, and moved aside from the doorway.

"Everything inside has been newly replaced. Please see if there's anything missing, and I... I'll go get it."

She spoke very quickly, as if she were reciting lines she had prepared in advance.

After saying that, she prepared to turn around and escape from this suffocating space.

The heel has just turned.

"Miss Hua."

That incantation-like voice rang out once again.

Hua Yun's body seemed to be frozen in place, as if struck by a spell.

Her hand was still in the position of preparing to leave, her fingertips less than a centimeter away from the cold door frame.

She slowly, very slowly, turned her head back.

Zhou Yanjin did not enter the house.

He stood at the doorway, half of his body hidden in the shadows outside, and the other half bathed in the warm light from inside.

The interplay of light and shadow divided his face into two distinct areas, and his deep eyes were fixed intently on her.

That gaze was no longer as distant and polite as it had been in the courtyard before.

Instead, it carried an undisguised curiosity and scrutiny, like an invisible net that firmly locked her in place.

Hua Yun's heart was once again in her throat.

Zhou Yanjin's gaze lingered on her pale face for a few seconds before his thin lips parted slightly.

"Your three children are adorable."

He wasn't referring to "those children" or "those three little guys."

Instead, it's "your three children".

Each word was like a small pebble, precisely thrown into Hua Yun's heart, which had just barely calmed down, stirring up ripples of fear.

He got it!

He really knew everything!

This realization struck her like a thunderbolt.

Hua Yun's fingernails dug unconsciously into the soft flesh of her palm, the sharp pain barely keeping her sanity intact.

She forced herself to twitch the corners of her mouth, squeezing out a smile that looked worse than crying.

"Thank you... thank you for the compliment, Mr. Zhou."

Her voice was extremely dry.

Zhou Yanjin ignored her stiff reaction.

He simply gazed at her silently, his eyes unfathomable, like a bottomless, icy pool.

He took another small step forward.

This tiny movement made Hua Yun instinctively shrink back.

This seemingly defensive detail clearly caught his eye.

He stopped and his gaze lingered on her face, as if searching for something.

a long time.

Just when Hua Yun was about to be driven crazy by the suffocating silence, he finally spoke again.

The voice was even softer and calmer than before.

But it was like a sharp blade tempered with ice, piercing straight into her most vulnerable spot.

Where is the child's father?

boom--

At this moment, Hua Yun's entire world completely collapsed.

The color drained from her face in an instant, leaving only a horrifying pale white.

She opened her mouth, but it felt like something was blocking her throat, and she couldn't make a sound.

My mind is a complete mess.

What should I do?

How should I answer?

Is he dead?

To say he was an irresponsible bastard who disappeared long ago?

No, no.

With Zhou Yanjin's abilities, any lie could be easily exposed if he wanted to investigate.

In that case, it will only make her look more embarrassed and miserable.

Her lips trembled violently, and the terror in her eyes could no longer be concealed, like a fawn cornered in a desperate situation, fragile and helpless.

Seeing her on the verge of collapse, Zhou Yanjin's eyes seemed to darken even further.

But he neither urged nor pressured him.

He waited patiently for her answer.

It felt like there was endless time.

Finally, as if she had used up all her strength, Hua Yun squeezed out a sentence, one word at a time, through gritted teeth.

"them……"

Her voice was broken, like wisps of smoke in the wind.

"I don't have a father."

After saying those five words, she seemed to have all her energy drained away.

She could no longer bear his gaze, which seemed to see right through her.

She turned around abruptly.

This time, she didn't give herself any more chances to hesitate.

Almost staggering, she rushed past him in a panic.

It looked like they were hiding from some kind of flood or ferocious beast.

Zhou Yanjin did not stop her.

He simply turned slightly to the side, letting the slender figure escape from him with a flurry of wind.

He stood quietly at the door of the guest room, his gaze following the disheveled figure that disappeared at the end of the corridor.

for a long time.

He slowly withdrew his gaze and looked down at his empty palms.

A night breeze blew by, carrying a hint of coolness.

His handsome face remained expressionless.

But a complex and unfathomable emotion flashed across those unfathomable black eyes.

In the end, all fell silent.

He slowly raised a cryptic smile.

No father?

Oh.