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

The last trace of warmth in Chen Boxu's eyes also disappeared.

He straightened up, snatched her phone, earphones and all, and tossed it onto the sofa next to her.

The movements were swift and decisive, carrying an irresistible force.

"Work?" He repeated the word, a cold smile playing on his lips. "Okay."

He took a step back, scrutinizing her from top to bottom as if he were appraising a commodity waiting to be sold.

"Since you like talking about work so much," he said calmly, but each word was clear, "then tonight, let's get to work."

snort!

Zhou Suisui's smile remained unchanged, even becoming more pronounced. She looked up at him, her voice gentle:

"Well, Mr. Chen, what should I do? Please tell me, otherwise I might break your taboo again, and that wouldn't be good."

Looking at her stubborn and deliberately distorted expression, Chen Boxu felt the nameless anger in his chest burn even brighter.

He stared at her, remained silent for a few seconds, and then suddenly bent down, placing his hands on the armrests on either side of her body, trapping her in a small space.

"What are you going to do?" He leaned close to her ear, his voice low and undisguised, carrying an undisguised coldness and a hint of malice. "Pleasure me. That's your job tonight."

Yes, she'll definitely do a good job!

Zhou Suisui maintained her professional smile: "Okay, Mr. Chen."

She stood up, walked closer to him, her movements unhurried. She raised her hand and touched his shirt directly.

Her fingers deftly unbuttoned the buttons. One, two.

The rest of the process was conducted in a businesslike manner, revealing a perfunctory attitude, and he even avoided eye contact with him.

However, they maintained a smiling service attitude throughout.

"Mr. Chen," she even managed to ask in a calm tone, "is this pressure appropriate?"

Chen Boxu's body tensed the moment she approached. A feeling of being offended and anger rose within him.

He looked down at her eyes, which were filled with displeasure, and her utterly fake smile.

A few seconds later, he suddenly raised his hand and grabbed her wrist, which was moving, with such force that he almost crushed her bones.

"Enough." His voice was hoarse, filled with suppressed rage.

Zhou Suisui's wrist ached from his grip, and the fake smile on her face faltered for a moment, but she quickly recovered, obediently stopping her movements and replying softly:

"OK."

Chen Boxu stared at her displeasing appearance, and the anger in his chest almost overwhelmed his reason.

He abruptly released her wrist, but just as she thought he was about to back away, he bent down and scooped her up in his arms.

The movement was sudden and forceful, leaving no time to react.

Zhou Suisui gasped softly and instinctively grabbed his shirt at the chest.

Chen Boxu carried her and strode towards the bedroom, his voice cold and harsh:

"Since you enjoy your work so much," he kicked open the bedroom door, "I'll teach you what true pleasing is."

Damn! Disgusting, my head is full of yellow worms.

Zhou Suisui was unhappy with his behavior and no longer wanted to maintain that professional fake smile. She struggled and shouted, "What are you doing! Let go of me!"

Chen Boxu ignored her struggles, walked a few steps to the bedroom bedside, and threw her onto the soft bedding.

The movements were not gentle.

He loosened his collar with one hand, looking down at her with a dark and brooding gaze.

"Don't you have to work?" he said in a flat tone. "I'll personally demonstrate how to do it."

Zhou Suisui was thrown onto the bed by him. She quickly sat up, backed to the head of the bed, glared at him, and her voice was filled with obvious resistance:

"Don't touch me!"

Chen Boxu paused, stopping beside the bed.

He watched her cower at the head of the bed like a frightened cat, the damn fake smile finally gone from her face, replaced by genuine anger.

He remained silent for a few seconds, and then, surprisingly, he didn't go forward again.

He just stood there, quietly watching her, his eyes filled with a complex and unreadable expression, a lingering anger, and something else entirely.

"I won't touch you," he said, his voice lower and deeper than before. "Then tell me, how do you want to settle what happened tonight?"

Zhou Suisui hugged her knees, her eyes wide open, still glistening with tears, but her voice carried a defiant air:

"It's all your fault! You made me realize my place! I realized it, and I did as I was told, but you're still unhappy! Chen Boxu, what exactly do you want? Go find someone who can take good care of you and won't make you angry! I'm going home!"

Yes, she no longer wanted to serve this capricious emperor.

After saying that, Zhou Suisui tried to climb down from the other side of the bed.

The moment she moved, Chen Boxu reached out and pressed her shoulder, pulling her back onto the bed.

The force wasn't strong, but it was enough to stop her from leaving.

"Go home?" He leaned down, getting closer to her, his gaze locking onto her moist eyes. "Zhou Suisui, where do you have a home? Yunlan Mansion?"

He paused, his voice growing deeper: "That was given to me."

Zhou Suisui was being held down by his shoulders. She tried to break free but couldn't. Hearing this, she became even angrier and retorted with her head tilted back:

"My name is on the property certificate! Legally, it's mine!"

Have you no shame? So what if you gave it to her? It's hers now, don't expect her to give it back.

"Yes, the house is yours." Chen Boxu looked at her, his tone flat, "But from the day you approached me—"

He paused, his gaze slowly sweeping over her face.

"You are mine now."

Huh? What nonsense is he talking about?

Zhou Suisui looked up at him, her voice mocking: "Boss Chen, there is no law against buying and selling slaves."

She paused, then added with a smile, "The Qing Dynasty is over."

Upon hearing this, Chen Boxu was not angry; he merely gave a faint, cold smile.

"The law?" His voice was calm, yet carried a condescending indifference. "Who's talking to you about the law?"

He reached out and pinched her chin with his fingertips, the pressure light but with a sense of control that left her no room to break free.

"What I'm talking to you about," he lowered his head slightly, his gaze locking onto her eyes, each word clear and distinct, "is about the rules."

"My rules."

Rules? She really wanted to kill him! If it wasn't illegal, it would infuriate her.

Zhou Suisui's chin was being held down, rendering her unable to move, but she still stubbornly thrust her neck back:

"Well, Mr. Chen, you can take your time and discuss your rules with Lin Xiao, or any other woman you like. I'm leaving now, no need to see me off."

Chen Boxu's fingers, which were gripping her chin, tightened almost imperceptibly for a moment.

He stared at her, her expression determined to draw a clear line, and the last trace of warmth in his eyes vanished.

"Leave?" His voice was low and slow, carrying a calm that seemed to foreshadow a storm. "Zhou Suisui, did I give you permission to leave?"

Zhou Suisui's chin was being held by him, her face tilted back, meeting his icy gaze. Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried a stubbornness that seemed determined to go all out:

"If you don't want me to leave, that's fine too." She paused, staring into his eyes, "Then admit that you were wrong just now."

Chen Boxu looked at the almost childish persistence in her eyes and remained silent for a moment.

The fingers that were pinching her chin slowly loosened.

He straightened up, took a step back, and created some distance.

"I was wrong?" He repeated these three words in a flat tone, revealing no emotion.

He turned and walked towards the bedroom door, stopping at the doorway.

Without turning around, he simply uttered two words: "Whatever."

After saying that, he opened the door and went out.

Zhou Suisui watched as he turned and left so decisively, without the slightest hesitation. The door slammed shut behind him with a loud bang.

That "I'll go with you" was light and airy, yet it felt like a dull knife, stabbing her heart and making her feel suffocated.

Tears welled up unexpectedly, blurring her vision. She raised her hand and wiped them away forcefully, but the more she wiped, the more tears streamed down her face.

She sniffed, got out of bed, her legs feeling a little weak on the carpet. She walked out of the bedroom, picked up the earphones and phone he had tossed on the sofa, and left the apartment with her handbag.

The elevator descended, the numbers flashing. She looked at her reddened eyes reflected in the mirror and bit her lip hard.

No need to cry, I've already made quite a bit of money anyway. Zhou Suisui told herself.

Upon reaching the first floor, she strode out of the lobby without looking back and walked straight into the night.

As night deepened, the streets became deserted. Zhou Suisui wandered aimlessly, the sound of her high heels clicking on the ground sounding particularly lonely in the silence.

The wind had dried the tears on her face, but her eyes were still red. She was waiting, trying to compose herself; otherwise, she felt embarrassed if a kind taxi driver asked her why she was crying.

Her phone suddenly vibrated in her handbag, and she quickly took it out and looked at it expectantly.

It's not that person.

Zhou Suisui looked at Liu Weiwei's name on the phone screen, hesitated for a moment, then unlocked the phone and put it to her ear.

"Feed?" She tried to make her voice sound normal.

"Sui Sui! You finally answered the phone! Are you alright? I haven't received your reply to your message yet, I was worried about you..." Liu Weiwei's anxious voice came through the receiver, filled with obvious concern.

Hearing her best friend's caring words, Zhou Suisui's emotional dam, which she had been holding up for so long, instantly collapsed.

"Weiwei..." She only managed to call out her name once before her throat was choked by a surge of sobs, and tears welled up in her eyes again as she sobbed uncontrollably.