You're already divorced, why are you so anxious about him becoming a succubus?

The commotion that had been raging like a storm on the other side of the wooden wall suddenly stopped abruptly without warning after less than three minutes.

Immediately afterwards, a somewhat embarrassed man's voice came from next door: "Uh... well, I drank too much at the party tonight, I'm not feeling well..."

"Get off me! Don't touch me." The woman shoved him. "You're no fun. I'm leaving. My husband's probably getting off his night shift soon."

"Oh, honey, it's too late to go home today. Just say you slept at your best friend's house..."

……

Lu Ci slowly released Shen Nian from his arms.

By the faint moonlight, he looked at the pretty face so close to his.

The girl's cheeks were so red they looked like they could bleed, and she was breathing heavily, her chest rising and falling slightly, because of that breathless kiss.

Her long eyelashes trembled slightly, and then she slowly opened her misty eyes.

Eyes facing each other.

Shen Nian's mind was still blank, and her eyes even showed a hint of dazedness.

She just stared blankly at Lu Ci's bright eyes in the darkness.

After a moment of eye contact, Shen Nian lowered her eyes shyly.

"How was it?" Lu Ci looked at her adorable appearance, a mischievous smile playing on his lips as he teased, "Will you dare to sleepwalk into my bed again in the middle of the night?"

Shen Nian dared not answer!

She let out a soft moan and lowered her head even further, burying herself in Lu Ci's chest like an ostrich.

Lu Ci chuckled softly and stopped teasing her.

Listening to the steady, powerful heartbeat coming from Lu Ci's chest, Shen Nian didn't know when she had fallen asleep.

All she knew was that the embrace was incredibly warm, warm enough to dispel all her unease and panic.

Early the next morning.

Sunlight streamed into the room through the gaps in the curtains.

Lu Ci opened his eyes and tried to move his right arm, immediately feeling a tingling sensation.

Last night, this girl slept with her head on his arm, clinging to him like an octopus all night long.

Sensing the movement beside her, Shen Nian woke up and immediately buried most of her face under the covers, leaving only her big eyes showing as she timidly looked at Lu Ci.

She recalled how she had sneaked into Brother Lu's bed last night, only to be caught red-handed.

Shen Nian blushed so much that her neck turned pink, and she stayed in bed for a while, too embarrassed to get up.

Lu Ci said as he walked toward the bathroom:

"Get up quickly, get ready to leave. If there are no delays on the road, we should reach our destination tonight."

Only when she heard the sound of running water in the bathroom did Shen Nian crawl out of bed as if she had been granted a pardon.

She patted her burning cheeks and quickly ran to her room to get her clothes.

After Lu Ci finished washing up, he walked to the window, opened it, lit a cigarette, and waited for Shen Nian to finish tidying up.

"Bang bang bang!"

Suddenly, a series of banging sounds, like someone was about to demolish the building, came from the corridor.

Immediately afterwards, a rough, angry roar echoed throughout the hallway: "Open the door! You fucking open the door for me!"

Lu Ci paused slightly as he flicked his cigarette ash, raising an eyebrow.

At the same time, the sound of running water in the bathroom suddenly stopped.

A moment later, Shen Nian ran out, her hair still damp and draped over her shoulders, without even having had time to dry it. She was wearing pajamas.

She walked to Lu Ci's side in a panic, listening to the terrifying noise from next door.

"Bang!"

With a loud crash, the already flimsy wooden door next door was clearly violently smashed open from the outside.

The footsteps suddenly became chaotic.

"You fucking bitch! You said you were sleeping at your best friend's house, so you were cheating on me behind my back, weren't you?!"

The man's furious roar pierced the wooden wall: "You already have a son, and you're still cuckolding me here! Beat him up!"

Then, a fight clearly broke out in the room.

The man's pleas for mercy and the woman's screams mingled together.

Shen Nian dried her hair, and the two packed their things and left the room.

As you pass by the open door next door, the scene inside is completely visible.

There was a man, shirtless and wearing only underwear, crouching in the corner with his hands behind his head.

He was surrounded by several burly men who were punching and kicking him.

On that messy bed, the woman was wrapped in a blanket, covering her face and wailing.

A man with bloodshot eyes was pointing at her nose and yelling and cursing, while raising his hand to slap her hard.

"Slap! Slap!" The crisp sound of slaps echoed in the corridor.

Shen Nian had never seen such a scene before. She involuntarily stopped and looked at it a few more times in horror.

Lu Ci glanced at the farce inside the room, then reached out, grabbed Shen Nian's wrist, and led her forward: "Let's go, there's nothing to see."

Shen Nian then seemed to wake from a dream and quickly followed Lu Ci away from the inn.

The two had breakfast at a roadside steamed bun shop and then embarked on their journey to the grasslands once again.

However, since getting on the bus, Shen Nian, who was chattering and lively yesterday, has become unusually quiet today.

She stared blankly at the scenery rushing past the window, lost in thought.

Lu Ci drove for a while and noticed that something was wrong with Shen Nian.

"What's wrong?" Lu Ci slowed down the car, turned his head to look at her and asked.

Shen Nian snapped out of her daze: "It's nothing."

Lu Ci didn't ask any further questions, keeping one hand on the steering wheel and looking at the straight highway ahead:

"Xiao Nian, if you have any worries, you can talk to me. Even if I can't help, I can still be a good listener."

Shen Nian secretly glanced at Lu Ci's profile.

After a long while, she finally took a deep breath and slowly spoke:

"Brother Lu... what I saw next door this morning... suddenly reminded me of my mother."

Lu Ci was taken aback.

Shen Nian lowered her eyes, her fingers unconsciously fiddling with the edge of the seatbelt: "When I was little, my dad rarely came to see us. Every time I asked where he went, my mom would smile and pat my head, saying that my dad's company was very big and he had many important things to take care of."

"But later, when I grew up and recalled the expression on my mother's face every time she talked about my father, I suddenly realized... that my mother had always known that my father had his own family..."

Lu Ci's grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly.

He knew Shen Nian was a very thoughtful girl, but he never expected her to be this sensitive.

She had only witnessed a farcical affair between a man and a woman that morning, yet it somehow led her to this place.

Lu Ci was organizing his thoughts, trying to say something, but Shen Nian kept her head down and continued speaking:

"Later, my mother got sick and told me her story with my father."

"They were actually high school classmates and secretly started dating back then. However, my dad was smart and did well in his studies, so he was able to get into university."

My mother didn't pass the exam, so she had to come to the city to work. We thought we'd never cross paths again, but then we unexpectedly reunited in Jiangcheng... and that's how I came to be.

Shen Nian's voice grew lower and lower, with an extremely heavy nasal tone:

"After my mother passed away, my father took me back to the Shen family."

"My aunt just vented all her anger on my father, but she never scolded me or deprived me of food or clothing. My sister was also very good to me, but..."

Shen Nian's eyes reddened as she spoke, tears welling up in her eyes: "But those relatives... they said I was a bastard..."

Shen Nian raised her tear-streaked, pitiful face and looked at Lu Ci:

"Brother Lu... When I was little, I didn't understand what it meant. When I heard them talking about me, I would run over to apologize to them in fear..."

"But... coming into this world wasn't my own choice..."

Seeing the other person's helpless appearance, Lu Ci was taken aback.

Why is Shen Nian so well-behaved and sensible?

Because she has carried this original sin since childhood, she never wants to trouble others. She tries to be invisible at home and outside, so that others can't see her or notice her, in order to gain a meager sense of security.

Lu Ci raised his hand and touched the top of her head: "I'll be here for you in the future, I'll protect you."

Shen Nian froze, staring blankly at Lu Ci's profile.