Border Prisoner: The Mad Boss Seduces Her Every Night

When Shi Luyu walked out of the Blackwater Temple, her lips were swollen and her legs were weak.

Just now, Jiaye told her to go back, and that he would let Jiajia go back safely later.

The path through the woods was even more difficult to traverse than when she had come; tree roots intertwined, and the mud was slippery and wet. She shuffled forward, her mind filled with only one thought: go back and wait for Jiajia to come home.

She didn't know how long she had been walking. Her phone was dead; the screen was black, like a piece of scrap metal.

When she came to her senses, she found herself having stumbled upon an abandoned gas station. The rusty oil pump lay askew on the concrete floor, the words on the sign had peeled off, leaving only the character for "oil," and the convenience store's lightbox was half-lit, emitting a buzzing electrical sound.

Car headlights pierced the darkness in the distance.

She waved instinctively. The car slowed down, pulled over, and stopped in front of her. The window rolled down, and Xu Chenglin, a cigarette dangling from his lips, half his face illuminated by the cold light from inside the car, grinned smugly.

"Hey. Isn't this my brother's pet rabbit?"

Shi Luyu's weariness was instantly replaced by alertness: "What are you doing here? What are you doing here?"

Xu Chenglin scratched his short, prickly hair and exhaled a puff of smoke: "What else can we do but ambush and assassinate my brother?"

She turned to leave.

Xu Chenglin got out of the car and looked her over. His gaze fell on her swollen lips, and his smile deepened: "You managed to run this far after leaving his territory. You're pretty tough."

Shi Luyu took a step back: "Hmph, you're lucky you didn't die."

Xu Chenglin didn't reply. He was wearing that filthy floral shirt, fiddling with a silver lighter in his hand, lighting a cigarette with a brisk motion: "Get in the car, I'll take you back to the city."

She declined, saying, "No need."

"Weren't you the one who stopped the car just now?"

"I didn't know it was you."

Xu Chenglin laughed fiercely and roguishly: "Now that you know, are you still going to get on? Let me tell you, there are no other passing cars here."

It was pitch black all around. Shi Luyu gripped the backpack strap tightly, opened the car door, and sat in the back seat.

Neither of them spoke the rest of the way. Xu Chenglin drove as wildly as he was, steering with one hand and pressing the brake and accelerator very aggressively.

Shi Luyu leaned against the car window, watching her reflection sway back and forth on the glass; the swelling on her lips had not yet subsided.

Xu Chenglin looked at her in the rearview mirror.

She didn't know. Her gaze was fixed on the window, her eyelashes drooping, her face expressionless, but the weariness and resilience emanating from her bones were mixed together, like a bent branch that refused to break.

He turned his gaze back to the road and stepped on the gas.

As they approached the apartment building, Shi Luyu finally couldn't help but ask, "Is there something you want to tell me? About Xu Yuanjia?"

Xu Chenglin remained silent.

"Xu Chenglin".

"I used to." He parked the car downstairs at her apartment building, turned off the engine, and turned halfway to look at her. "But now, I'm not going to say anything."

Shi Luyu frowned: "What do you mean?"

Xu Chenglin stared at her for a few seconds, then suddenly became manic and violent, "I originally wanted to kill Xu Yuanjia!"

He then returned to normal: "But I discovered he cares about you more than I thought."

"To destroy someone's spirit is far more painful than to kill them. I want to wait until Xu Yuanjia falls from grace, to see you two entangled and tormenting each other. I want to see him suffer worse than death!"

A strong sense of unease welled up in Shi Luyu's heart: "What are you talking about? What happened to Xu Yuanjia?"

Xu Chenglin refused to answer again: "We've arrived, get off the bus."

"Xu Chenglin—"

"Get out of the car! Don't force me to kick you out!" His tone left no room for negotiation.

Shi Luyu bit her lip, got out of the car, and walked into the apartment building without looking back.

She went upstairs with a heavy heart, opened the door, but no one was home. Her brother Jiajia hadn't returned yet.

The sound of running water filled the bathroom. She showered for a long time, washing away the dust and sweat, and changed into clean pajamas. Her hair was still damp when she sat at the dining table, biting into a dry piece of bread. She didn't have much of an appetite, but her stomach was growling, so she had to eat.

Doorbell rang.

Shi Luyu practically sprang to her feet. She rushed to the door and flung it open: "Brother Jiajia!"

The person standing outside the door was not Xu Yuanjia.

Xu Jia was wearing a light gray thin jacket and carrying a bag, standing under the corridor lights.

The man's hair was slightly disheveled by the night wind, and his face was covered with a thin layer of sweat from his journey, but his smile remained gentle and serene.

He heard Shi Luyu call him "Brother Jiajia".

His eyes flickered. Like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, the ripples spread and then disappeared.

"Teaching Assistant Xu? What brings you here?" Shi Luyu was stunned.

Xu Jia picked up the bag in her hand: "The initial sample footage for the project has been edited out, and I wanted to confirm it with you, but I couldn't get in touch with you no matter what I did."

He paused for a moment, then said, "It's not a safe place in Southeast Asia. I was worried something might happen to you, so I checked the address on your registration form without permission. I hope you don't think it's inappropriate."

Shi Luyu quickly thanked him and stepped aside, saying, "No, no, thank you, Assistant Professor Xu."

Xu Jia didn't come in. He handed her the bag and said, "It's getting late, and it's not appropriate for me to bother a woman living alone. Now that I see you're alright, I'm relieved."

He turned to leave. Shi Luyu felt bad and reached out to grab his sleeve, then quickly let go: "Assistant Xu, please come in and sit down. I'll make you a cup of tea. How much is the late-night snack? I'll transfer it to you."

"No."

"Yes, yes, it's kind of you to make such a special trip so late at night."

As the two were arguing at the door, a knocking sound suddenly came from outside the window.

Shi Luyu was startled, and Xu Jia immediately became alert, instinctively shielding her.

She turned her head and looked—

Outside the window on the 20th floor, Xu Chenglin clung to the windowsill, half his body hanging outside, one hand tapping on the glass.

Without thinking, Shi Luyu rushed over and opened the window: "What are you doing outside my window?! This is the twentieth floor!"

Xu Chenglin jumped in, dusted himself off, and his gaze met Xu Jia's. The two looked each other over, neither speaking first.

"Don't worry, Assistant Xu, I know him," Shi Luyu said to Xu Jia.

Xu Chenglin glanced at Xu Jia, then at the freshly poured cup of hot tea on the coffee table, kicked the coffee table aside with a swagger, plopped down on the sofa, and drank the cup of tea in one gulp.

"I don't know which floor you live on, so I'll just climb up and down to find you." He wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "I've thought about it, and I'll tell you the truth."

Shi Luyu frowned: "What truth?"

Xu Chenglin put the cup down on the coffee table, crossed his legs, and said, "The truth is that Xu Yuanjia..."

The sound of fingerprint unlocking came from the door.

"Beep—click."

The door was pushed open.

Xu Yuanjia stood at the door, holding the door with one hand and the car keys in the other.

His gaze swept over Xu Jia, then over Xu Chenglin, and finally landed on Shi Luyu's face.

There were three people in the living room, six eyes, all staring at him.

Xu Yuanjia casually tossed his car keys into the storage basket in the entryway, his movements unhurried.

"What day is it tonight?" His voice was laced with a casual coolness that sent chills down one's spine.

"When did it become so easy to cross my threshold?"