Chapter 3

After the banquet ended, Jiang Zhinan returned to her room, her heart in turmoil. She didn’t know how to face Jiang Xingzhi, nor how to deal with the complex emotions within her.

While she was feeling agitated and confused, the door suddenly swung open without warning. Startled, she looked up, locking eyes with Jiang Xingzhi. He stepped into the room with a grim expression and, without hesitation, locked the door behind him—as if to shut out the rest of the world.

Zhinan was alarmed and stood up. “Xingzhi, what are you doing here?”

Jiang Xingzhi walked slowly toward her, his gaze intense. “Zhinan-jie, I’ve come to take you away.”

“Take me away?” she asked in surprise. “Where are you taking me?”

He pulled her into his arms. “Somewhere where it’s just the two of us. Zhinan-jie, I don’t want to be apart from you anymore.”

Before she could react, he scooped her into his arms and carried her out of the room. When she tried to cry out, he covered her mouth tightly.

After an unknown amount of time, they arrived at a luxurious villa. Jiang Xingzhi carried her inside and placed her on the bed.

“Xingzhi, what are you doing? Let me go back,” she said, fear rising in her voice.

But Jiang Xingzhi shook his head. “Zhinan-jie, this is our home now. You don’t need to go anywhere. Just stay here with me.”

It was then that Zhinan realized—she had been imprisoned by him. Panic flooded her as she tried to get up and escape, only to be pinned down by him.

“Zhinan-jie, stop struggling. Just accept me,” he said softly, his voice gentle but undeniably forceful.

She shook her head, tears brimming in her eyes. “No, Xingzhi, this isn’t right. We’re like siblings—we can’t do this.”

But he no longer listened. He lowered his head and kissed her lips. This time, his kiss was fiercer and more unrestrained, as if he were determined to crush her final resistance.

Zhinan felt dizzy, her emotional defenses collapsing. She didn’t know whether to keep resisting or to give in. Between his tenderness and his forcefulness, she felt like a bird trapped in thorns, unable to escape.

After an unknown amount of time, Jiang Xingzhi finally let her go. Seeing the confusion and helplessness in her eyes, he felt a pang of pain. “Zhinan-jie, I love you. This love burns like fire—it will never go out.”

Zhinan looked at the man before her, her emotions tangled and heavy. She knew she could no longer escape his grasp. Maybe, from the very beginning, their fates had been entangled—regardless of right or wrong, no matter how it would end.

“Xingzhi, promise me… never do this to me again, okay?” she whispered, her voice tinged with reluctant compromise.

Jiang Xingzhi smiled faintly, then gently kissed her forehead. “Zhinan-jie, I promise. From now on, I will love you well and never let you get hurt again.”

With that, he held her tightly in his arms, as if trying to fuse her into his very being. In the depth of night, two people tormented by fate clung to each other, seeking warmth and solace in each other’s embrace.