The pretty little follower gets targeted by the crazy guys at the elite academy

This completely overturned Jiang Wu's perception of himself.

He never felt like he was lying.

He was simply pursuing and possessing beauty.

"No."

Jiang Wu denied it: "I didn't lie to you. I just thought you were beautiful for a moment just now. I wanted to capture it."

"beautiful?"

Li Ruo raised her tearful eyes: "Does beauty in your eyes, junior, mean something that can be touched and looked at at will, even without regard for other people's wishes?"

Jiang Wu was speechless again.

In his worldview, beauty is paramount; the means and process are unimportant in order to capture and possess beauty.

But faced with Li Ruoqing's clear yet heartbroken eyes, this theory seemed to encounter its first challenge.

"I just..."

He was at a loss for words. Looking at Li Ruose trembling and crying uncontrollably, the restless dark desire in his heart was suppressed by a more complex emotion.

Is it pity?

Is it because you can't bear it?

Or is it a fear that this beauty will be completely shattered and disappear because of one's own offense?

he does not know.

This unfamiliar feeling made him irritable, yet also vaguely curious.

Li Ruo caught the fleeting struggle and softening in his eyes.

She knew the time was almost right.

The incentive has been given.

Now, it's time to reel it in.

She sniffed and forcefully wiped away her tears. Although her eyes were still red, she tried her best to appear calm and aloof.

"I'm sorry, junior, I lost my composure."

Her voice was still choked with emotion, but she tried her best to straighten her back, as if to preserve her last shred of dignity:

"Perhaps... I misunderstood my junior. He is an artist, a star surrounded by admirers, and his perspective on things is different from that of ordinary people like us."

She took the first step back.

"Today... I think I'm not feeling well, and I can't continue modeling."

She lowered her eyes, looking at the pile of messy light apricot-colored fabric on the floor, and said in a low voice:

"My skirt is ruined... I have to go back."

As she spoke, she squatted down and, somewhat disheveled, picked up the torn dress, wrapping it haphazardly around herself in an attempt to cover herself.

Her movements were clumsy and pitiful; the fabric offered little protection and only added to her disheveled appearance.

Looking at her like this, Jiang Wu felt a slight pang in his heart.

He wanted to tell her not to leave, that he could find her some clothes, and even that he could apologize for his earlier outburst.

Although he never apologized to anyone.

But what came out of his mouth was: "Sister, I'll take you."

"No!"

Li Ruo immediately refused, her voice filled with the wariness of a frightened bird. She subconsciously took a step back and wrapped the tattered cloth around her body even tighter.

"I...I can go back by myself. Don't bother me, junior."

Jiang Wu watched as she tightly clutched the tattered hem of her dress, her eyes red-rimmed as she struggled to hold back her tears. For the first time, the urge to force her to stay was overwhelmed by an even stronger thought—

We can't scare her away.

Her beauty is alive; it has emotions.

A brutal takeover may destroy it completely, or shut it out from him forever.

This is not the outcome he wanted.

What he wants is beauty that is long-lasting and vibrant, that can constantly inspire and impact him.

"it is good."

Jiang Wu finally relented, his voice low and somber: "Be careful."

He didn't go forward again, but just stood there, watching her, like a frightened fawn, clutching her torn dress, head down, quickly and unsteadily walk towards the door.

In her panic, she almost tripped over her own footing again.

The studio fell silent once more after the heavy metal door closed gently, completely shutting her out.

Jiang Wu stood still for a long time.

The air seemed to still carry her faint, sweet scent, mixed with the salty taste of her tears.

The delicate touch of her skin still lingered on his fingertips, as did the shock of the fabric suddenly slipping off.

He looked down at his hands, then at the sketch on the easel, which was only a rough draft and far from finished.

The lines in the painting simply cannot capture even a fraction of the spirit and impact of what just happened.

He wanted more.

It's not just about the physical form, but also about the contradictory emotions, the resilience within fragility, the sadness after trust has been betrayed, and the pride that is forced into a false sense of security.

Also, the fleeting emotion that crossed her eyes when she pushed him away just now.

That emotion moved him more than mere vulnerability.

Jiang Wu slowly walked to the pile of torn light apricot-colored dresses, bent down, and picked up a small piece of cloth that remained.

The fabric was soft and carried her body heat and a faint fragrance.

The tear was jagged and uneven, like a scar.

He stroked the crack, his amber eyes churning with emotions even stronger than before.

It's not simply possessiveness, nor is it purely destructive.

"Li Ruo..."

He murmured the name, and his tongue seemed to taste a hint of sweetness mixed with a hint of bitterness.

Today, he seems to have gotten a little something out of it.

But it seems like something has been lost as well.

He found that what he wanted seemed to be more complicated and harder to control than he had imagined.

This feeling was unfamiliar, uncomfortable, yet damnably attractive.

He walked to the easel, picked up the charcoal pencil again, but couldn't bring himself to put it down for a long time.

What keeps replaying in my mind is no longer the visual impact of the moment her skirt slipped down, but her bright, tearful eyes when she finally pushed him away.

After Li Ruo rushed out of the art studio, the barrage of comments went into a brief silence before exploding again:

[My God... Li Ruo... she actually came out?!]

[She even cried? And accused Jiang Wu? Jiang Wu didn't lose her temper? She even let her go?!]

[What kind of plot twist is this?! I thought Li Ruo was going to die here today!]

[Her move just now... was it a strategic retreat? Offering a reward before setting rules?]

[Jiang Wu's last look! Absolutely stunning! I've never seen that kind of...helplessness and inner turmoil on his face before!]

[Li Ruo's move was brilliant! It completely disrupted the yandere's rhythm!]

Not only did she escape unscathed, but she also seemed to have planted a more complex seed in Jiang Wu's heart...

[This woman is amazing! I declare that Li Ruo has achieved a partial victory in the plan to tame the yandere!]

[But Jiang Wu seems even more interested now, what should I do...? I feel like next time will be even more dangerous!]

[Who cares! At least I survived this time! Li Ruo is awesome!]

In the corridor, Li Ruo, tightly wrapped in her tattered dress, almost ran into the public restroom in the annex building and locked the stall door.

Only then did she dare to truly relax, leaning against the cold door, panting heavily, her forehead covered in cold sweat, her legs so weak she could barely stand.

Just now, the dark desire in Jiang Wu's eyes almost devoured her.

She was gambling, gambling that perhaps a trace of preference for the living rather than the dead remained in his morbid aesthetics, gambling that her tears and accusations could touch the emotional areas of him that did not belong to normal people.

She won her bet.

But only this time.

She knew that after this incident, Jiang Wu's interest and obsession with her would only deepen and become more distorted.

Next time, it probably won't be so easy to get away.

She needs to grow faster, gain more leverage, or find someone else to keep her in check.

Even the power to protect her?

In this cannibalistic St. Lia Academy, going it alone will ultimately get you nowhere.

Li Ruo took a few deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down.

She took out her phone, and the screen lit up, showing several unread messages and missed calls, mostly from Xia Qinghe.

There was also a message from an unknown number without a signature.

The content consisted of only two words, carrying the arrogance and recklessness characteristic of that person:

[I don't want to wash your little trinkets. How much are they worth? I'll just pay you back.]

Sender: Zhou Si.

Li Ruo: ? ?

Then she gently curled the corners of her lips:

[Could it be that my senior has some kind of fetish, secretly keeping my underwear to satisfy his desires?]