Lin Wannin's Answer

"I miss you, so much." Lin Wanning said bluntly.

She raised her hand to her chest: "Here, it's here that misses you."

"Don't say things like that." Long Aotian turned his head away.

"But I can't control myself." Lin Wanning stood up and hugged Long Aotian tightly.

"Brother, I suppose you wouldn’t want Ying to know about this, right?"

Hearing this, Long Aotian looked at Lin Wanning in surprise.

"You... you promised you wouldn’t tell Ying!"

His naive, bewildered expression made Lin Wanning laugh. This silly brother of hers—so trusting that he’d be chewed up and spit out without a trace.

She blinked innocently at him. "Brother, haven’t you heard? The more beautiful a woman is, the better she is at lying."

"Last night, Wanning became your woman, you know."

After saying this, even Lin Wanning found it amusing—and a little wicked. "After all, you wouldn’t want Ying to find out about our little secret, would you?"

"Wanning, this isn’t right." Long Aotian frowned.

"Then how about this? If you agree to one thing, I’ll never breathe a word. If we play our cards right, Ying will never know." Lin Wanning raised three fingers to the sky.

Long Aotian sensed she was serious this time—she’d even raised her fingers—so he asked, "What is it?"

"Come with me, brother."

"Wait." Just to be safe, Long Aotian pressed again, "Promise me you won’t lie."

"I won’t." She tugged at his sleeve and led him away.

For a moment, the throbbing pain in her legs eased, making her steps light again.

She, Yu Ying, and Qingxue were the closest of friends.

She knew exactly where Yu Ying would be at this hour—attending a lecture.

So this time belonged to Lin Wanning alone.

Soon, she brought Long Aotian to the small hotel where the three of them often stayed.

"Here?"

"Yes." Lin Wanning nodded casually, as if there was nothing unusual about it.

Long Aotian instinctively frowned and put some distance between them.

Seeing his reaction, Lin Wanning rolled her eyes. "Brother, what are you thinking?"

"This time, I don’t have handcuffs. My legs still hurt so much I can barely bend them, and my lower abdomen is swollen and aching..."

Though most of these symptoms were his doing, Long Aotian couldn’t fathom what Lin Wanning was planning.

Noticing his wariness, Lin Wanning pretended to be a little upset. "I see now—your mind is in the gutter. Do you really think I’m in any state for another round?"

"No, that’s not what I meant... I..." The bluntness left him at a loss for words.

"Then what are you afraid of? Scared a little woman like me will eat you alive?"

"Your massage yesterday felt amazing. You even warned me I’d be sore today, so you know exactly how wrecked my body feels right now..."

"I just want you to give me another massage. Seriously, unless you turn into a beast, what could I possibly do in this state? I can’t even squat properly."

Recalling Lin Wanning’s posture from the night before, Long Aotian fell silent. If this was all it took to keep her quiet...

Even if it was wrong, even if she was the one at a disadvantage... he had no other choice.

In his mind flashed the image of the girl pressing a bank card into his hand.

["This is all the money I have. I believe in you, Long-ge. I’ll stay by your side. Let’s work hard together, so please... don’t be sad anymore."]

It had to end here.

They entered the room.

Lin Wanning walked into the bathroom, unlocked her phone, and handed it to Long Aotian. "Brother, there’s a video on here. Watch it first. I’ll be quick."

Without waiting for a response, she disappeared into the bathroom.

Long Aotian glanced at the screen—and froze.

The video showed the courtyard of a traditional courtyard house.

Having lived there himself, he recognized it instantly.

He pressed play.

Moans filled the air as the figures on screen moved in unmistakable intimacy. His mind went blank.

Then—a sharp scream.

The sound shattered his thoughts. Thinking something had happened to Lin Wanning, he flung the bathroom door open.

The moment he did, pale skin filled his vision—and then she was clinging to him.

"You do care about me." Lin Wanning held him tightly. "Instincts don’t lie."

Water from the showerhead sprayed over them as Long Aotian stared down at her. "The video on your phone..."

"I recorded it. I told you before—if I ever did something bad and you wouldn’t forgive me, I’d blackmail you."

"You wouldn’t want Ying to see that video, would you?"

As she spoke, her body pressed down against him—

Rough. Brutally rough.

Tears welled in her eyes as she looked up at him, her lips smeared with blood.

Long Aotian stopped, the metallic tang of his bitten lip flooding his mouth.

Her eyes were red, but she refused to make a sound.

Gasping for breath, he fought to pull away—

But then her arms wrapped around his neck, her lips meeting his in clumsy, desperate kisses. Their breaths grew ragged.

Gradually, the tension eased.

Tears spilled over, but this time, she didn’t hold back her sobs—and then she laughed.

In this moment, at least, she had carved a place in Long Aotian’s heart.

"Not angry anymore?" Her voice was weak but relieved. "If you are, you can punish me on Ying’s behalf again..."

Seeing her pale, drained face, he murmured, "I’ve wronged her."

"It’s my fault. I did all of this. You’re the victim here—I’m the one who schemed against you."

From the start, Lin Wanning had been prepared to shoulder all the blame.

Truthfully, Long Aotian had known nothing until the handcuffs clicked into place.

And she had full confidence in her looks and figure. No man could resist her deliberate teasing.

"Ying is your first choice. She always will be."

"I’m content being the other woman."

Tears glistened in her eyes, but she smiled—pleading.

She would abandon all dignity.

That was Lin Wanning’s answer.

"Thank you for the gift... this vulture kneels in gratitude..."