CHAPTER 19 (PART 3)

Shen Jingyan was stunned. “What do you mean you can’t…?”

“I’m probably… infertile,” Shi Li admitted, feeling a bit awkward.

Shen Jingyan was silent for a long moment before pulling her back into his arms. “Then that’s perfect. I hate kids anyway. We won’t have any.”

Shi Li: “…” That’s not what you said just now.

She couldn’t hold back her laughter and cupped his face, giving him a kiss. “Even if we can’t have kids, we can still practice making them.”

Shen Jingyan’s lips curled into a faint smirk, and in the next second, he flipped her beneath him.

The leaves outside gradually turned yellow, and only then did Shi Li realize that summer had already passed. Yet, the hatred value still remained stubbornly at 1%. At first, she would think about ways to eliminate that last bit of resentment, but over time, she stopped worrying. Now, she only wished to spend as much time with Shen Jingyan as possible.

She had been behaving very well lately, which gave Shen Jingyan peace of mind to leave the house for work. As a reward, he brought back a bunch of delicious food every time he returned. Shi Li’s weight quickly crept up, and by the time she realized she had truly gained weight, a small belly had already formed.

“…What’s the point of fattening me up like this?” Shi Li pinched the flesh on her stomach, feeling utterly betrayed.

Shen Jingyan looked at her fair, soft belly and cleared his throat. “It’s… soft.”

Shi Li: “?”

She didn’t fully understand what he meant until he coaxed her back into bed.

After their moment of indulgence, Shi Li drank a few sips of water with Shen Jingyan’s help, then reached out to touch his arm. “Why are you getting thinner? Haven’t you had a good appetite lately?”

“I don’t know.” Shen Jingyan coughed a few times, his lips unusually red. “Maybe I’ve been too busy. Just a little tired.”

“You should have a doctor check on you.” Shi Li looked at him worriedly. Ever since he had tormented himself into illness, he had become even thinner. No matter how much he ate, he hadn’t been able to regain his lost weight.

A while ago, he had seemed to be doing better, so Shi Li hadn’t thought much of it. But lately, something felt off. She wouldn’t be at ease unless he got a proper examination.

Seeing the concern in her eyes, Shen Jingyan hesitated for a moment before nodding.

That afternoon, he went to the hospital where he had been receiving treatment. After a thorough examination, the doctor looked at him solemnly. “Mr. Shen, your condition is quite severe. It would be best if you went to the specialized wellness facility abroad that I mentioned last time for treatment. Otherwise, the next time you relapse, it could be extremely dangerous.”

“How long would I need to stay?” Shen Jingyan asked.

The doctor thought for a moment. “At least six months.”

Shen Jingyan lowered his gaze. “I’m not going.”

“Mr. Shen—”

“It’s decided. Just prescribe the medication. I’ll come in for regular check-ups.” Shen Jingyan stood up, showing no intention of discussing it further.

The doctor could only sigh and comply.

When Shen Jingyan returned home, Shi Li immediately went up to him. “How did it go?”

“The doctor prescribed some medicine and advised me to go for regular check-ups,” Shen Jingyan said, pulling her into his arms.

Shi Li frowned. “What else?”

“That’s all.” Shen Jingyan let go of her and met her eyes calmly.

Shi Li let out a breath of relief. “I guess it’s not too serious. Otherwise, the doctor would have told you to be hospitalized. That’s good, that’s good.”

Shen Jingyan gave a faint smile and took the medicine with some water.

The medicine did have some effect on him, but the weakness in his body did not subside. One morning, when Shen Jingyan noticed that his movements were becoming sluggish, he immediately increased the dosage. The higher dosage brought some color back to his face, and his limbs regained strength. Seeing this, Shi Li thought he had truly recovered and finally let out a sigh of relief.

On the morning of the incident, Shi Li was in the kitchen preparing a meal when she suddenly heard the sound of something heavy hitting the floor behind her. Her heart clenched as she turned around in alarm, only to see Shen Jingyan collapsed on the ground, unconscious.

“Jingyan! Jingyan!” Shi Li rushed over, performing CPR while applying chest compressions, but Shen Jingyan remained motionless, as if lifeless.

Panic surged through her, but she did not stop. This novel world existed because of the male supporting character. The fact that the world hadn’t collapsed meant that he wasn’t dead. She refused to give up on him.

Before long, sweat soaked through her clothes, and her hands began to tremble. However, Shen Jingyan’s phone had been professionally modified, making emergency calls impossible. Without the password, she couldn’t unlock it.

No phone. No elevator.

She was trapped in this tiny apartment, unable to do anything except keep Shen Jingyan breathing.

…I’ll probably collapse from exhaustion first.

Her vision blurred with sweat, and her mind grew hazy.

Despite her determination, her strength was slipping away. Shen Jingyan’s lips were turning an alarming shade of dark purple. Just as despair was setting in, the phone suddenly rang. She glanced at the screen and saw the butler’s name. That’s when it hit her—while she couldn’t make outgoing calls, she could still answer them.

Without hesitation, she picked up. “Butler! Hurry—hurry to the apartment! Jingyan has collapsed!”

“…Miss Shi?” The butler sounded startled.

Shi Li panted heavily. “Call an ambulance! And get the elevator service over here—it’s locked with a password. We need it unlocked now! Hurry!”

“O-okay, I’ll be right there!” Though still confused, the butler quickly followed her instructions and mobilized help.

Once the call ended, Shi Li resumed performing CPR. By the time the butler and his men arrived, she collapsed onto the floor from sheer exhaustion.

The butler looked at her with complicated emotions. There was no longer any doubt in his mind—he finally understood everything. He never expected that Mr. Shen would go so far as to lock Miss Shi in here… This was truly…

But there was no time to dwell on that. Time was critical. Without saying anything, he and the others lifted Shen Jingyan and rushed him out.

Shi Li lay sprawled on the floor for a long time, staring blankly at the now-broken elevator lock.

It was only at this moment that she realized, even though she enjoyed staying by Shen Jingyan’s side… she also longed for freedom.

—

Three days passed, and Shen Jingyan was finally transferred from the ICU to a regular hospital room.

The moment he opened his eyes, he saw the butler’s tired face.

“Mr. Shen, you’re awake?” The butler looked at him in surprise and quickly called for a doctor.

Shen Jingyan stared at him as memories of what happened before he passed out surged back. He didn’t remember anything after collapsing, but seeing himself in the hospital, he could guess what had happened—the butler and his people must have broken into the apartment and taken him out.

He closed his eyes briefly, then spoke in a hoarse voice, “She’s gone, isn’t she?”

“Who? Miss Shi?” The butler asked, then sighed when he saw Shen Jingyan’s expression. “Mr. Shen, as your employee, it’s not my place to say this, but how could you lock Miss Shi up like that? And for several months, no less? You do realize that’s illegal, don’t you?”

Shen Jingyan remained silent, his face looking utterly drained.

“It’s only because Miss Shi cares about you and spoils you that she didn’t call the police after gaining her freedom. Even after everything, she still took care of you. You really need to treat her better from now on—don’t ever lock her up again, understand?” The butler knew he shouldn’t say too much, but he still couldn’t help but give a reminder.

Shen Jingyan’s eyes flickered with light at the last part. “What did you just say?”

“I said you should treat her—”

“The last part!” Shen Jingyan’s emotions suddenly flared, triggering a beeping alert from the monitoring equipment. “She’s still taking care of me?! She didn’t leave?!”

“She didn’t leave. She’s been here the whole time. She was exhausted these past two days, so I was worried about her health and told her to rest in the room next door. Do you want me to call her—”

Before the butler could finish, Shen Jingyan forcefully yanked out his IV and all the monitoring devices before staggering out of bed, charging straight toward the next room.

The butler gasped and hurried after him, but as he watched Shen Jingyan disappear into the next room, he wisely chose to stop at the doorway.

The moment Shen Jingyan saw Shi Li’s peaceful sleeping face, the turmoil in his heart suddenly calmed. He approached in disbelief, reaching out to gently touch her face, murmuring, “I thought you would leave…”

Shi Li was startled awake by his voice. When she opened her eyes and saw him, she immediately sat up. “You’re awake?”

Shen Jingyan pulled her into a tight embrace, as if trying to merge her into his very being. “You didn’t leave… you didn’t leave…”

He kept repeating those three words. Shi Li was momentarily stunned, then chuckled when she realized what was happening. “Where would I go? I already said I would stay by your side. Of course, I’ll always be here.”

After speaking, she paused for a moment before wrapping her arms around him in return. Having gone days without food or water while unconscious, he seemed even thinner than before—she could clearly feel the ridges of his spine beneath her fingertips.

“When you’re discharged, let’s go abroad for treatment,” she said softly, clearly already aware of what the doctors had previously told Shen Jingyan. “Even if it’s just for me, you have to take care of yourself, alright?”

Shen Jingyan didn’t respond. Shi Li didn’t push him, simply waiting in silence. After a long while, his arms tightened around her slightly, and he spoke in a muffled voice. “You’ll go with me?”

A smile curled at Shi Li’s lips. “Mhm, I’ll go with you.”

Shen Jingyan loosened his embrace and looked directly into her eyes. “Thank you for not leaving.”

“There’s no need to thank me. This is how it should be,” Shi Li replied, smiling as she held his hand.

Male Lead Hatred Value: 0

Shi Li’s expression stiffened, and the smile on her face faded slightly. In that instant, she suddenly understood—so that final 1% represented trust. At this moment, Shen Jingyan finally believed that she would never leave him. Even without a cage, without coercion, she willingly chose to stay by his side, drawing her own boundaries of captivity.

The walls of the hospital room began to crumble into dust, vanishing into nothingness as the entire world collapsed.

Shi Li looked at Shen Jingyan, her eyes turning slightly red. “I’m sorry.”

There was a rare clarity in Shen Jingyan’s gaze, as if his soul had finally broken free from the constraints of this novel’s world. He gently ruffled her hair in reassurance. “We’ll meet again.”

With that, he closed his eyes. Starting from the hand resting on Shi Li’s hair, his body gradually faded into the air.

A sharp pain clenched at Shi Li’s heart. She shut her eyes tightly, her face pale, and when she reopened them, everything around her had dissolved into emptiness.

All that remained before her was a single, tiny point of light.

She froze, realizing with certainty that this had never appeared in any of her previous world transitions. Slowly, she reached out and pressed her fingertip against the light.

A sudden sense of familiarity washed over her.

The light swirled around her fingertip before settling onto her wrist, transforming into a mark that resembled the delicate petals of a flower.

Shi Li touched the mark, a flicker of confusion rising in her mind. But before she could dwell on it, darkness swallowed her vision entirely.

When she opened her eyes again, she was already in a new world.