Is my roommate a caged bird? I'm stealing her away.

All eyes at the table immediately focused on Zhou Suisui's face.

Old Wu looked bewildered, while Cheng Fang raised an eyebrow, clearly watching the show. The man with glasses pushed up his glasses.

Chen Boxu finally turned his head. His gaze first fell on Su Wei, who was clutching her leg and looked pitiful. He paused for a second before slowly moving to Zhou Suisui's face, which had turned deathly pale and was filled with panic.

His face was expressionless, and his amber eyes, in the dim light, were as calm as a frozen lake.

Zhou Suisui opened her mouth, but her throat felt blocked, and she couldn't utter a single word.

She knew she couldn't tell the truth now; doing so would only make things worse. Besides, the culprit was acting like it was none of her business, and it would be even more troublesome if he turned around and accused her.

"I..." Her voice was hoarse, and her fingers were icy cold.

"Bo Xu," a tear slid down Su Wei's cheek at the opportune moment. She looked at Chen Bo Xu, her tone aggrieved yet restrained, "Perhaps Miss Zhou was careless... but the force was really strong, it hurts a lot." She breathed softly, appearing even more frail.

Everyone's eyes held the same question.

Zhou Suisui felt like she was sitting on pins and needles; those gazes felt like needles pricking her. She looked at Chen Boxu for help.

Chen Boxu looked at her for a few seconds. Then, he leaned forward slightly, took a cigarette from the cigarette case on the table, put it to his lips, and lit it.

The lighter clicked softly.

He took a drag and slowly exhaled a grayish-white cloud of smoke. The smoke blurred his expression for a moment.

Then, through the smoke, he looked at Su Wei, whose eyes were red from the pain, his voice calm, revealing no emotion:

"Where did you kick it?"

Su Wei gasped for breath, her voice trembling with grievance: "My calf... really hurts." As she spoke, she carefully pulled up her trouser leg a little, revealing a glaring red mark on her fair calf.

It was just red a moment ago, but now it's a bit swollen.

"My God..." Lily, sitting next to Cheng Fang, exclaimed softly, snuggling closer to Cheng Fang and glancing timidly at Zhou Suisui. Her voice was just loud enough for everyone to hear.

"That's scary...I hope she doesn't kick me?" she said, burying her face in Cheng Wang's chest as if she were truly frightened.

Cheng Fang held her close, offering no comment on the situation, only whispering to Lily, "Don't talk nonsense."

His gaze lingered on Zhou Suisui's face, then swept over Su Wei, and finally landed on Chen Boxu, a cryptic smile playing on his lips.

What a despicable couple! Luckily, I was smart enough not to fall for their temptations. Zhou Suisui thought to herself.

Xu Shao's face darkened the moment he saw the location of Su Wei's wound.

He didn't look at Su Wei, but slammed the lighter he was playing with onto the table, his jawline taut.

The bespectacled man frowned slightly, his gaze sweeping between Zhou Suisui, Su Wei, and the grim-faced Xu Shao before finally settling on Chen Boxu's calm and composed profile.

He didn't speak, but simply picked up his glass and took a sip, his eyes behind his glasses seeming thoughtful.

Wu Yang, on the other hand, appeared completely detached. He even leaned back slightly, crossed his arms, and still had that natural smile on his lips, looking innocently at the dispute that had arisen because of him.

Zhou Suisui watched this scene, her heart sinking deeper and deeper. Wu Yang had surpassed Claw Sister and the adulterous couple to become her number one most hated person of the day. Stop pretending to be innocent! It's all your fault!

No, Zhou Suisui felt she had to do something; she couldn't keep passively taking the beating. If it became a reality, not only would she lose face, but her image would be ruined, and she was just getting ready to begin her life of power.

She took a deep breath, turned her head sharply, and whispered in Chen Boxu's ear.

She was so close she could smell the faint scent of tobacco on him. She lowered her voice, spoke quickly, her tone tinged with grievance, her breath brushing against his ear:

"Someone kicked me first... kicked me several times, right under the table. I don't know who it was, it was dark, but I felt it was coming from that direction... so I... so I kicked it back."

She paused, her voice lower, tinged with a hint of coquettish pain, "My feet hurt so much... they must be all red."

As she spoke, she quickly lifted her skirt slightly, using the tablecloth as cover, and turned her lower leg slightly towards Chen Boxu. Although the light was dim and it wasn't very clear, her intention was obvious.

After doing this, before Chen Boxu could react, she suddenly reached out and hugged his arm tightly, pressing her face against his shoulder affectionately.

Zhou Suisui was smug. "You think you're the only ones who know this trick!" She'd never liked to suffer in silence since childhood, and often got into conflicts with others. When she got into trouble, she always relied on acting cute to get forgiveness. Her skill in acting cute was already a masterclass.

Chen Boxu's fingers, holding the cigarette, froze in mid-air. He glanced down at Zhou Suisui, who was clinging tightly to his arm and burying her face in his shoulder, then looked up at Su Wei, whose expression had changed slightly.

Smoke curled up between his fingers.

He was silent for a few seconds, then gently patted the back of Zhou Suisui's hand, which was tightly wrapped around his arm, with his free hand.

The actions weren't gentle, even somewhat perfunctory, but at this critical juncture, they were a clear signal.

"Alright." Chen Boxu finally spoke, his voice not loud, but carrying a sense of ending the conversation.

He looked at Su Wei and said calmly, "She didn't do it on purpose. It's a misunderstanding."

Then, he gently stubbed out the half-smoked cigarette in the ashtray in front of him.

"despair."

A soft sound.

The entire card table area was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

"Young Master Xu," Chen Boxu said, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching everyone's ears, "take your men and go check out the lounge next door."

He paused, his gaze calmly sweeping over Su Wei's face, which froze instantly.

"If it really turns blue," he said calmly, as if stating something perfectly ordinary, "I'll pay for the medical expenses."

Xu Shao's face was gloomy. He didn't look at Chen Boxu or Su Wei, but just stared at the lighter that he had just pressed on the table.

A few seconds of deathly silence.

Then, he suddenly stood up.

The chair legs scraped against the floor, making a screeching sound. He reached out and grabbed Su Wei's wrist, the force so strong that she hissed in pain and her face turned even paler.

"Young Master Xu..." Su Wei's voice was filled with panic.

Xu Shao didn't respond to her, nor did he look at her. He grabbed her, almost dragged her, and turned to walk towards the door of the private room. His steps were heavy and hurried.

Su Wei stumbled as he dragged her, her high heels clicking erratically on the floor. She tried to keep up with him, muttering something under her breath, but Xu Shao silenced her with a deep "Shut up."

The two quickly disappeared outside the door, leaving behind an awkward silence.

Cheng Fang watched them leave, then whistled, his meaning ambiguous. Lily nestled against him, muttering softly, "Young Master Xu seems really angry..."

The man with the gold-rimmed glasses pushed up his lenses, said nothing, and simply took another sip of his drink.

Wu Yang maintained his posture with his arms crossed, and the smile on his lips seemed to have deepened.

His gaze swept between Zhou Suisui and Chen Boxu, finally settling on Zhou Suisui's hand that was tightly holding Chen Boxu's arm, and he raised an eyebrow.

Old Wu coughed lightly, trying to smooth things over: "Um...it's nothing, it's just a small misunderstanding, let's continue, let's continue playing cards."

Chen Boxu neither moved nor spoke.

Zhou Suisui was still clinging tightly to his arm, her face buried in his shoulder, and she could smell the faint scent of cedar on his suit fabric.

Chen Boxu lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on her fingers that were tightly gripping his arm. After a few seconds of pause, he raised his other hand and pinched her chin with considerable force, forcing her to lift her head.

Zhou Suisui was forced to look up and meet his gaze. Her eyes were a little red, and she looked uneasy.

Damn, what's he trying to do? Did he figure something out?

Chen Boxu looked at her, his amber eyes unfathomable, reflecting her somewhat bewildered face. He didn't ask if her foot still hurt, nor did he ask whether Su Wei had actually kicked her.

I just looked at her for a few seconds.

Then, he released his grip on her chin and instead placed his hand on the back of her hand that was wrapped around his arm.

His palm was warm, yet carried an undeniable strength, slowly and firmly prying open her fingers, one by one, which were tightly gripping his fabric.

He pried Zhou Suisui's fingers apart, leaving her palms empty, and she felt a strange emptiness in her heart as well.

Chen Boxu removed her hand and placed it back on her knee. The movement wasn't gentle; it was even somewhat distant.

"Sit still," he said, his voice calm and devoid of emotion.

Zhou Suisui pursed her lips, sat up straight as instructed, and placed her hands properly back on her knees, without looking at him again.

This unpredictable man! So hard to understand!