The pretty girl who plays with people's feelings is going to be severely punished.

Pei Shaoyuan was gone for nearly an hour, during which time his phone was constantly ringing, but he was busy talking to the doctors and nurses and didn't have time to say anything to Yu Lian.

When he returned, Yu Lian was already curled up in the back seat of the car, scrolling through Douyin (TikTok), and lying comfortably. She was too lazy to move when he opened the car door, and she stretched out her leg to kick him, acting bossy.

"Get to the passenger seat."

Pei Shaoyuan refused, grabbing her ankle and shamelessly sitting down inside, turning her over so she could rest her head on his lap, and watching with her.

He played with a strand of her hair with his fingers, speaking casually.

"Want to eat this? I'll make it for you when we get back, do you want some?"

"I do want to..." Yu Lian was genuinely tempted, and finally shifted her gaze from her phone to him, not really believing he could cook.

Looking at him, almost half of his body was wrapped in thick bandages, and even his finger bones were injured; he appeared to be seriously injured.

Thinking of what he overheard on the phone—him emphasizing to the nurse not to pester him too much, and how he shut down his microphone to argue after the nurse, who didn't tolerate his bad temper, forced him to keep pestering her—Yu Lian suppressed a laugh: "You'll cook? You can cook? Aren't you from H country?"

Ever since she learned that Pei Shaoyuan was from H country, she would bring it up from time to time, as if people from H country were some rare species. Pei Shaoyuan was amused by her naive and ignorant manner, and he pinched her cheeks and shook them back and forth, pretending to be troubled.

"Do people from H country not eat? Do they only drink iced Americano and eat kimchi? How much garbage would I have to stuff in my stomach to satisfy your stereotypes about people from H country?"

Yu Lian pouted and rebuked, "You've never spoken Korean to me. Last time at my house, when you saw me watching a Korean drama, you didn't say you were..."

"What are you talking about? Do you expect me to say while you're watching a Korean drama, 'Oh, speaking of which, I'm also from South Korea. Do I need a translator?'" Pei Shaoyuan scoffed, speaking with self-righteousness. "There are subtitles. Why would I need one? Besides, time was too tight back then. I just wanted to do what I needed to do."

He ran his index finger from her forehead to the tip of her nose and then to her lips, leaving a lingering smell of disinfectant. He tapped her lips.

"But I have plenty of time today, so what do you want me to say?"

Yu Lian dared not open her mouth, afraid that if she did, his fingers would poke inside. Her lips moved slightly: "Say whatever you want..."

He didn't refuse, but moved closer to her ear, his head getting lower and lower. Seeing her silly look as she held her breath in nervous anticipation, he opened his mouth and bit the tip of her ear.

Just as Yu Lian was covering her ears, about to lose her temper, he finally spoke, his tone flippant.

「우리아기, 오빠가밤새도록예뻐해줄게.」

After speaking, he straightened up and looked at her, completely at ease.

"Do you understand?"

Yu Lian shook her head, her eyes lighting up with curiosity. She subconsciously raised her head slightly, her bangs falling loose as she tilted her head back. Her hair, already disheveled by Pei Shaoyuan, made her face, nose, and eyes appear exceptionally round. "I don't understand. What are you saying?"

Pei Shaoyuan lowered his eyes and remained silent for a few seconds. From her perspective, she could clearly see the tip of his tongue pressing against his cheek and his Adam's apple bobbing, as if he was unhappy or suppressing something.

Instead of translating as she wished, he placed his palm directly on her upturned face, pushing her back onto his lap like an overly clingy kitten.

"Don't seduce people in the car."

You'll find out what I said.

He withdrew his hand, propped his head up, and looked out the car window, trying to cover up his actions. Yu Lian's head was also propped up from the back of her head.

Yu Lian: ?

She probably guessed it.

So this is what "faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance" mean.

Pei Shaoyuan stayed in a hotel that Yu Liancha wouldn't even bother to check the price per night. It was a top-floor suite with a high ceiling and large floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the shimmering river surface where a torrential rain was falling.

In the cool, understated luxury space, a few designer coats are casually piled on the sofa, and several empty sparkling water bottles are scattered on the island counter, revealing the casual and messy lifestyle of a twenty-year-old man living alone.

The satisfaction of having your favorite girl come to your private space is indescribable. Seeing Yu Lian looking around the room, Pei Shaoyuan felt a pang of sadness.

It turns out that you have to experience being abandoned, cheated on, and beaten by a mistress before you can find love. And those couples who seem to love effortlessly are definitely all putting on an act.

They are all fabricated rumors to increase the birth rate.

Unable to bear seeing her blocking the doorway as if she were just a guest visiting, he put his hands in his work pants pockets, took a long stride, and forced her to follow him into the living room.

Looking down, the corners of his eyes curled up in a playful arc, making it difficult for him to utter words of pure affection; what he said turned into...

"Why don't you go inside and take a look?"

"Speaking of which, this house has excellent soundproofing. No matter how much you shout here, no one outside can hear you."

Yu Lian's calves brushed against the edge of the sofa, leaving her nowhere to retreat. She plopped down on her bottom, looking up at him speechlessly. Her legs were pressed together, and the denim shorts that were stuck at the top of her thighs squeezed out round, plump curves of her legs.

"It seems like nobody's asking you."

"Then let me ask you." Pei Shaoyuan bent one knee and squeezed directly between her knees, his hands heavily supporting himself on the back of the sofa beside her, completely trapping her beneath him.

Their lips were so close, that every time they opened and closed, they would brush against each other, tickling the skin. Their eyelashes were lowered, their gaze fixed on only one spot.

It was less about intimacy and more like an unavoidable interrogation.

Did you kiss him?

Yu Lian glanced at him, her heart churning. Jiang Shaoheng had already said everything he could in the villa, and now he was asking this question again; the point was no longer whether they were related or not.

I just want her attitude.

Give her a chance to lie to him.

As long as she says she has no relatives—

Not hearing her reply immediately, his eyelashes trembled almost imperceptibly, yet he stubbornly refused to look at her. He dared not look at her.

If it's a literary game, then it's like deciding the final choice between a happy ending or a bad ending in the romance storyline.

Yu Lian didn't know what to choose.

She's been playing online games since she was little, and she always saves and reloads her game to go through all the storylines and romance routes before she feels like she's not wasting her time.

Now tell her she can't have it all.

"They kissed..."

He swallowed the last syllable.

He kissed her so urgently that the tongue piercing hurt her teeth. Rain shattered the glass, pouring down into his eyes. The sounds, muffled by their kisses, were indistinguishable as either a question or a sob.

For the first time, Yu Lian kept her eyes open while kissing him, watching his expression. The moment their eyes met, he was the one who closed his eyes first, sucking harder, and the wound on the corner of his lip that Jiang Shaoheng had hit reopened, staining her chin with blood.

She felt unusually guilty and dared not complain. When she couldn't catch her breath, she leaned back to try to get away, but he chased after her again.

This ruthless, predatory approach seemed to leave her no way out.

The feeling of suffocation rises from the lungs, tightens in the throat as it tries to draw in more oxygen, brings tears to the eyes, and makes the head feel lightheaded, the ears ring, and the external sounds become unclear, leaving only the sensation of suffocation.

Yu Lian slapped him on the cheek.

His lips finally parted, and he buried his face in her neck and shoulder, his voice trembling with barely suppressed gasps, yet his tone remained calm.

"Do you want to break up with me?"

I'm only giving you this one chance.