CHAPTER 12

The awkwardness was overwhelming—so much so that Shi Li briefly considered just smothering the male supporting character with the blanket and ending it all.

Shen Jingyan firmly held her hands, leaving her with no support. As a result, she had no choice but to lean against him. Seeing that he had no intention of letting go, Shi Li chuckled awkwardly. “My wrist is injured. How about… you let go first?”

“I didn’t touch your wrist,” Shen Jingyan said flatly.

Shi Li had just made up an excuse, but hearing this, she immediately looked at her wrist and was momentarily speechless. Oh. He really hadn’t touched her wrist—he had simply wrapped his hands completely around hers.

“Bad temper, foul personality, and so difficult?” Shen Jingyan narrowed his eyes.

Shi Li reacted instantly. “…I was talking about myself.”

Shen Jingyan sneered. “If you were talking about yourself, why were you cupping my face?”

“Uh… I just think you look really good, so I wanted to sneak in a little touch,” Shi Li coughed and shamelessly made up nonsense. “I was reflecting on myself, and I happened to see your stunning sleeping face, so I admired it while contemplating my mistakes.”

Shen Jingyan’s tone carried a warning. “You sure about that?”

Shi Li opened her mouth but quickly closed it again. Three seconds later, she pitifully admitted defeat. “I’m sorry, I was wrong. Can you let me go?”

Shen Jingyan: “…”

“Jingyan, I won’t dare to do it again,” Shi Li gazed at him with puppy-dog eyes.

Shen Jingyan let go of her with a dark expression. Once she stood properly, he warned coldly, “Remember your place. Don’t speak to me like that again.”

Male Lead Hatred Value: 59%

Shi Li looked innocent. “You don’t like it?”

“Mm. I don’t like it,” Shen Jingyan cast her a glance.

Male Lead Hatred Value: 57%

“But I can’t help it. Can you not blame me?” Shi Li said earnestly.

Male Lead Hatred Value: 56%

“I don’t know why, but whenever I see you, I just can’t stop talking to you like this,” Shi Li emphasized her words.

Male Lead Hatred Value: 55%

“Jingyan…”

“Shut up!” Shen Jingyan interrupted impatiently. “Get away from me and stop bothering me.”

Male Lead Hatred Value: 55%

Seeing that the hatred value wasn’t decreasing anymore, Shi Li worried she might actually annoy him. So, she obediently moved to another sofa. However, just as she was about to sit down, she keenly noticed the slight downward curve of Shen Jingyan’s lips. Without hesitation, she immediately sat back beside him.

Shen Jingyan frowned. “Why are you still here?”

“I’ll just sit for a little while,” Shi Li tested.

Male Lead Hatred Value: 54%

…Could he be any more difficult? Shi Li sighed internally and leaned toward him, stretching her neck to peek at the book in his hands. Shen Jingyan still looked impatient, but he didn’t tell her to leave. For once, they coexisted in peace.

But the harmony didn’t last long before the male lead and the second female lead showed up. Shi Li glanced at the time and immediately felt a headache coming on—

Were these two doing this on purpose? Of all times, they chose to come right before the banquet ended?

The male lead and second female lead didn’t think that much. As soon as they entered the room, they started apologizing profusely, clearly having figured everything out.

“Fortunately, this young lady helped us. Otherwise, something terrible would have happened today,” the male lead said gratefully.

Shi Li forced a polite smile.

The male lead then looked at the second female lead. Under his urging, she reluctantly stepped forward. “I’m sorry. I misunderstood you.”

Shi Li, preoccupied with the upcoming plot, wasn’t in the mood to make things difficult for her. “It’s fine, I don’t min—” Before she could finish her sentence, she noticed Shen Jingyan’s icy expression and immediately shut her mouth, not daring to say she didn’t mind.

The temperature around Shen Jingyan seemed to plummet. His eyes carried a frigid chill, making the air around him feel suffocating. His presence was so overwhelming that it stole all attention from the other three people in the room.

The male lead was the first to react, quickly expressing his stance. “It was our fault for offending this young lady earlier. Mr. Shen, you may punish us however you see fit.”

Shen Jingyan ignored him completely, treating him as if he were invisible. Instead, he turned to Shi Li with a deep gaze. “What did they do to you?”

Shi Li met his eyes for a second before hesitantly replying, “They… cuffed me, I guess?”

“You heard that?” Shen Jingyan finally spared the male lead a glance.

The male lead was momentarily stunned but then frowned slightly and nodded. “Alright. I will give you a proper explanation… but Ningning is still young. Can I take her punishment instead?”

“Do as you wish,” Shen Jingyan said indifferently. He wanted them to pay the price, but he didn’t care who bore the consequences.

The male lead, having received Shen Jingyan’s permission, pressed his lips together before leading the second female lead out of the room.

Once they left, Shi Li looked at Shen Jingyan in confusion. “What kind of explanation is he supposed to give you?”

Shen Jingyan glanced at her but didn’t respond. Instead, he lowered his gaze and made a call to the butler.

Ten minutes later, the butler arrived at the lounge. He wasn’t surprised to see Shi Li there, clearly already aware of the situation.

“Replace the entire kitchen staff with our people. No one is allowed to enter or leave for the next twenty-four hours,” Shen Jingyan said calmly.

The butler respectfully responded, “Understood, Mr. Shen.”

Shi Li froze for a moment before suddenly realizing what Shen Jingyan and the male lead meant by “giving an explanation”—

So, the male lead was going to be restrained just like she had been? Except unlike her, who had only been detained for a short while, the male lead would be held for a full twenty-four hours.

…That was ruthless. Absolutely ruthless. It was a good thing the male lead in this novel didn’t have a strong sense of revenge. Otherwise, with Shen Jingyan humiliating him like this, if he ever became powerful in the future, wouldn’t he go all out for revenge?

Shi Li silently counted her blessings and stood quietly to the side, as obedient as could be.

Shen Jingyan sat gracefully on the sofa, exuding the composure of someone in a position of power. “Also, take back the project proposal. From now on, there will be no further cooperation.”

Shi Li blinked in surprise. She hadn’t expected Shen Jingyan to completely abandon his collaboration with the male lead because of her… Why did she suddenly feel a little touched?

While Shi Li was lost in thought, the butler had already left. Shen Jingyan frowned and looked at her. “What are you spacing out for?”

“I’m thinking about you,” Shi Li blurted out.

Shen Jingyan visibly paused for a moment, his gaze flickering slightly before he turned away with a stern face and walked towards the door. “Stop thinking about me.”

Amused, Shi Li nodded. She watched as he walked past her, and only when he was nearly at the door did she suddenly react. Rushing forward, she blocked his way. “Where are you going?”

“Home.”

Shi Li: “…” Of all times to leave, he just had to pick right when the celebration banquet ended?!

“Do you need something?” Shen Jingyan frowned.

Shi Li forced a laugh. “N-no, not really… It’s just that it’s so late, and I don’t want it to affect your rest. Why not stay here for the night?”

Shen Jingyan’s fingers twitched slightly as he gazed at her thoughtfully.

Shi Li felt guilty under his stare. “What?”

“You’re acting strange,” Shen Jingyan said bluntly.

Shi Li’s throat went dry. “What do you mean?”

“You kept insisting on leaving earlier, so why are you suddenly unwilling to go now?” His deep eyes seemed to pull her in, as if seeing right through her.

Shi Li clenched her palms to steady herself. “Didn’t I just say? It’s late, and I don’t want to disrupt your rest… Earlier, I wanted you to leave so you could get some sleep at home, but since we didn’t leave earlier, now that it’s your bedtime, I just thought—”

“Lies.” Shen Jingyan exposed her without hesitation.

Shi Li instantly fell silent, lowering her head as she racked her brain for a way out. At this hour, if she left, she would inevitably run into that group of people.

While she was rapidly thinking, she didn’t notice Shen Jingyan staring at her intently the entire time.

After a long while, his calm voice suddenly broke the silence above her head. “You have to go back tonight.”

Shi Li looked up in confusion.

“I didn’t know you planned to stay at a hotel, so I didn’t bring my medicine,” Shen Jingyan explained, a rare occurrence. But as he spoke, he avoided her gaze.

…He had just recently recovered from a serious illness. He had to take his medication every night before bed; otherwise, there was a risk of a relapse, which would be even more dangerous.

Shi Li met his eyes for a moment, then sighed in defeat and opened the door to the lounge.

However, instead of heading to the underground parking lot, she pulled Shen Jingyan into the restaurant next to the hotel for a late-night snack. She dragged things out for another hour before finally getting up under Shen Jingyan’s emotionless gaze. Then, she made another excuse to visit the restroom.

By the time she had exhausted all possible ways to stall, nearly two hours had passed. In the end, Shen Jingyan wordlessly shoved her into the car.

“Sorry, I didn’t expect to be such a hassle,” Shi Li said cheerfully, completely devoid of any actual remorse.

Shen Jingyan leaned back against the seat, his eyes closed in a fake nap. He didn’t respond.

“Are you mad?” Seeing his reaction, Shi Li sighed to herself, scooted closer, and tugged at his sleeve. When he still didn’t react, she obediently sat back down beside him.

The car moved through the dark night, and Shi Li sat quietly beside Shen Jingyan. The glow of streetlights filtered through the windows, casting flickering shadows on their faces.

After a long silence, Shen Jingyan suddenly asked, “Do you like hotels that much?”

Shi Li looked at him in confusion.

Shen Jingyan slowly opened his eyes, his expression indifferent. Yet, the words he spoke carried an unexpected hint of compromise.

“Tomorrow, after I have my medicine, I’ll come stay with you.”