CHAPTER 25 (PART 2)

Shi Li’s fingers trembled slightly. She steadied herself and asked, “How so?”

“I can’t quite put it into words, but I feel like we’re not as close as we used to be.” Shen Jingyan was direct. “There’s a distance between us now.”

Shi Li forced a smile, stiffly lifting the corners of her lips. She had intended to dismiss his concerns, but when she opened her mouth, she ended up saying, “Alright, I admit it. I do feel like there’s some distance between us lately.”

Shen Jingyan stopped walking and quietly looked at her.

Shi Li let out an awkward chuckle. “I always thought of us as friends—equals. But as my weight increases, and the date for the experiment approaches, I’ve started feeling uneasy. It’s like I’m a lamb waiting for slaughter, and you’re the butcher who decides my fate. That feeling makes me uncomfortable. Every time I see you, I can’t help but feel anxious.”

As her investigation into him deepened, she knew it was impossible to hide everything from Shen Jingyan forever. Instead of outright denying it, she might as well use a half-truth to explain herself.

Sure enough, after hearing her words, Shen Jingyan’s expression softened slightly. “You don’t need to overthink it. No matter what, you are always my priority, not the experiment. If that weren’t the case, I wouldn’t have waited this long or kept you by my side to take care of you, would I?”

“I know my thoughts are irrational. I’ll work on adjusting my mindset.” Shi Li sighed.

Shen Jingyan nodded. “I also bear some responsibility. I shouldn’t have been pressuring you so much.”

They exchanged a glance and then smiled at each other. Just like that, the tension seemed to dissolve in an instant.

After their walk, they returned home. It was already past 8 PM, so they watched a movie together before going back to their respective rooms to sleep.

Shi Li set an alarm for 2 AM, planning to get some rest beforehand. However, when she truly needed to sleep, she found herself wide awake. She ended up lying there, staring at the ceiling until her alarm finally rang. The moment it did, she immediately silenced it.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped out of her room barefoot.

The living room was dark. Shi Li took a moment to adjust to the darkness before moving forward. When she reached the study door, she pulled out the key she had secretly prepared. Just as she was about to unlock it, the next second—the living room lights suddenly switched on.

Startled, she instinctively withdrew her hand, and the key slipped into the pocket of her pajama pants.

“Shi Li? Why aren’t you asleep?” Shen Jingyan’s voice came from behind her.

A cold sweat broke out on her back, and goosebumps rose on her arms. She stiffly turned around to face him, hesitated for a second, then feigned a sleepy yawn. “Jingyan? Why are you still up? I was really thirsty, so I got up for a drink.”

“If you were thirsty, why did you end up in front of my study?” Shen Jingyan walked toward her, frowning.

Shi Li forced herself to remain calm. She glanced back at the door, pretending to just realize where she was, and suddenly looked enlightened. “Oh, this is the study?”

“What else would it be?” Shen Jingyan sounded helpless.

Shi Li gave him an apologetic smile. “I was half-asleep and mistook it for my room.” The study and her bedroom weren’t far apart, so it wasn’t a completely unbelievable excuse.

“If you went to get water, you should be more awake by now. Why are you still so out of it?” Shen Jingyan asked good-naturedly.

Shi Li continued her act. “Oh, I actually didn’t drink any yet. I was so thirsty that I got up, but before I even reached the kitchen, I got sleepy again and turned around. I must’ve ended up at the wrong door by mistake.”

Shen Jingyan glanced at the study door before reminding her, “It’s not that I don’t trust you, but there are a lot of confidential materials inside. I can’t let you see them. So in the future, be more careful and stay away from here, alright?”

“…You always lock the door anyway. It’s not like I can get in.” Shi Li gave an awkward laugh.

Shen Jingyan ruffled her hair. “I didn’t say you could go in. I’m just reminding you to be careful.”

“Got it.” Shi Li had no choice but to agree.

Shen Jingyan glanced toward the kitchen. “Wait in the living room. I’ll get you some water.”

“Okay.” Shi Li obediently sat down on the couch. When Shen Jingyan returned with a glass of water, she smiled and thanked him—despite not being thirsty at all.

Shen Jingyan sat across from her at the coffee table. Dressed in light-colored pajamas, he looked exceptionally gentle and at ease. Watching him in this domestic setting, Shi Li felt a complicated mix of emotions.

“The water is a bit hot. Drink it slowly,” Shen Jingyan reminded her.

Shi Li nodded, gently blowing on the cup as she took small sips. Watching her careful actions, Shen Jingyan couldn’t help but tease, “Why do you look like you’re struggling so much? Don’t tell me you weren’t actually thirsty?”

“…Who’s struggling? It’s just too hot,” Shi Li hurriedly defended herself.

Shen Jingyan paused. “I was only joking. Why are you so nervous?”

Shi Li: “…”

His expression was too sincere—she couldn’t tell if he was just toying with her or if he was genuinely suspicious.

Rather than overanalyzing it, Shi Li decided not to respond. She lowered her head and drank in silence. As she did, she caught sight of his fingers and suddenly recalled what his former prison mate had told her—how Shen Jingyan had carved his own name onto the walls every day in the labor camp.

…Back then, he had gone in because of her. Before he left, he had even told her to wait for him. But she hadn’t kept that promise. She had abandoned him when he needed her the most.

She wondered what he had been thinking as he wrote his name, stroke by stroke.

He must have hated her. Hated her for breaking her promise, for leaving when he was at his lowest. If the roles were reversed, she knew she could never forgive such a betrayal.

And yet, before they even reunited, his hatred value had already dropped to 20%.

“Shi Li?”

Shi Li’s thoughts were wandering when she suddenly heard Shen Jingyan call her name. She snapped back to reality in a panic, completely forgetting that she was still holding a cup of hot water. Her hand trembled, and the entire cup of water spilled onto her.

“Mm…” The water wasn’t scalding, but the sudden splash still felt uncomfortably hot against her skin. Shi Li let out a muffled groan and abruptly stood up, only to find herself completely soaked—especially her pajama pants, which were drenched to the point that it almost looked like she had wet the bed.

Shen Jingyan pulled out some tissues to help her wipe off the water, sighing helplessly as he did. “How are you like a little kid? Even drinking water can make you space out?”

Shi Li let out an awkward laugh, grabbed a few tissues, and started wiping herself as well. She focused on drying her shirt while Shen Jingyan helped her with her pants. Though the area he was wiping was somewhat inconvenient, his actions remained proper, so Shi Li didn’t think much of it and let him continue.

But when he reached her pocket, both of them froze for a moment. Shi Li immediately scrambled onto the sofa, nearly falling backward over the backrest.

Shen Jingyan quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her back, frowning as he asked, “Why are you so jumpy?”

“N-Nothing,” Shi Li forced out a dry laugh. “It was just a little ticklish.”

Shen Jingyan chuckled. “Oh? And it wasn’t ticklish just now?”

“It just suddenly started itching,” Shi Li replied while carefully studying his expression. Seeing no sign that he had noticed the study room key in her pocket, she finally let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Shen Jingyan gave her a calm look before turning toward the kitchen to pour another cup of water. This time, it was cold. Shi Li awkwardly accepted it and forced herself to drink.

Once she finished, Shen Jingyan said gently, “It’s late. Get some sleep.”

“Mm,” Shi Li responded and, under his gaze, walked toward her room. Just as she reached the doorway, his voice rang out behind her—

“Shi Li.”

“Hm?” She turned back.

Shen Jingyan looked at her intently for a long moment before letting out a soft chuckle. “Be good. Even if you sleepwalk, don’t go into my study again, understand?”

His eyes were deep and dark, and when she met his gaze, it felt as if he could see straight into her soul. Shi Li fell silent for a second, then curled her lips into a smile. “Got it. I just mistook your study for my bedroom, that’s all. Why are you so petty? You’ve been nagging me about it nonstop.”

“I’m just reminding you so you don’t forget,” Shen Jingyan said with a smirk.

Shi Li rolled her eyes at him. “Who needs your reminder? I’ll remember it myself.” With that, she turned and stepped into her room, shutting the door with a decisive click.

The moment the door closed, Shi Li slumped to the floor. Her heart, which had felt nothing just moments ago, suddenly started pounding violently in her chest. She took a deep breath and sat there, listening for any movement outside. Only when she finally heard the sound of another door closing did she truly calm down.

Time passed unknowingly. By the time Shi Li snapped out of her thoughts, half an hour had already gone by.

She felt that tonight wasn’t the best time to go back to the study. But at the same time, she had a strong feeling—if she did go, she could uncover all the answers she was looking for. More importantly, after tonight, Shen Jingyan would likely erase all the evidence.

That thought left her no choice but to take the risk.

She was wide awake, her mind buzzing with adrenaline. Her eyes locked onto her phone screen, burning with determination. After enduring for more than an hour, she appeared in the living room once again.

It was nearly 4 a.m. now. Summer nights were always shorter, and the living room was no longer as dark as before. Shi Li tiptoed to the study door, glancing around like a thief. After making sure Shen Jingyan wouldn’t come out, she swiftly opened the door and slipped inside.

Although she knew that since she was the only one in the room, turning on the light wouldn’t be a problem, she still didn’t dare to. Feeling her way in the dark, she reached the desk and immediately spotted the brown paper envelope Shen Jingyan had been carrying around recently.

She crouched under the desk nervously, carefully untying the string on the envelope. Swallowing hard, she pulled out the contents—it was information about a loan shark company.

Shi Li frowned and flipped through a few pages before suddenly noticing a name among the employees. It was identical to the recipient’s name from the last time she transferred money to the debt collection company.

She froze for a moment before continuing to flip through the pages. As she confirmed that Shen Jingyan had been in contact with the debt collection company all along, a chilling sensation spread through her body.

Based on the system’s previous hints, her character had been living in fear and hiding ever since her parents’ suicide. Though the life was tough, she had endured it for ten years without reaching a breaking point. But why, all of a sudden, had the debt collectors found her? And why had she coincidentally ended up at Shen Jingyan’s company?

She kept questioning the system in her mind, but after a long pause, the system only gave her one answer—

“The tasker has no right to know the plot. The system cannot answer.”

Shi Li let out a cold laugh and responded in her mind: You don’t need to say it, I already guessed it. The current debt collection company must be the same loan shark company Shen Jingyan owed money to before. I was discovered by the debt collectors and forced to sign a voluntary contract with the biotech company—wasn’t this all part of Shen Jingyan’s carefully orchestrated plan?

The system remained silent. After pressing it a few more times, it finally responded with a single word—

“Yes.”

Shi Li’s brows furrowed instantly, a trace of fear creeping into her heart.

If all of this was true, then why did Shen Jingyan sign her? For some kind of female-targeted health supplement research? Even an eight-year-old wouldn’t believe that.

The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became. A sudden urge to escape surged within her, but then she remembered that his Hatred Value wasn’t fake—it was indeed at 20%. Though it hadn’t dropped, it also hadn’t increased to the point where he would want her dead.

Shi Li hesitated. After struggling for a moment, she grabbed his laptop from the desk, placed it on the ground, and opened it. Most people hid their biggest secrets on their computers. Last time, she hadn’t searched thoroughly, but this time, she was determined to find something useful.

As the screen lit up with a faint blue glow, her face took on an eerie hue. The room was completely silent, except for the faint clicking of the mouse and keyboard.

Shi Li combed through every folder, leaving nothing unchecked. Finally, she found something useful—

A volunteer contract.

But it wasn’t hers. It was Shen Jingyan’s.

Shi Li stared at his signed name, a trace of shock flashing in her eyes. Then, when she looked at the contract date, she was stunned—it was from the time right after his release from the labor reform camp. In that instant, everything clicked.

No wonder he was able to pay off his debt so smoothly and still afford to attend university.

She had looked up information before—years ago, the volunteer program wasn’t as common, so the payment for signing up was much higher. Unlike now, where people who had nothing to lose signed up in droves, back then, Shen Jingyan would have received a substantial sum—enough to cover both his debts and his education.

…She just never expected that he, too, had been a volunteer.

Shi Li’s fingers trembled as she closed the document. Then, her gaze shifted to another file next to the contract. An unshakable feeling told her that this file might contain the answers to all her remaining questions.

She stared at it for a long time before finally double-clicking to open it.

It was an addendum to the volunteer contract, detailing Shen Jingyan’s specific experimental procedure. The document was filled with technical jargon, making it difficult to read. She struggled through it, taking a long time to fully comprehend—

Shen Jingyan had undergone an experiment designed to freely control emotions. If successful, he would be able to regulate his feelings at will. It was a medical procedure meant for treating psychological disorders.

But the experiment had failed.

As a result, Shen Jingyan had lost all emotions and feelings.

In other words, the person standing before her had no normal human emotions—no joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness. He was completely devoid of deeper, more complex emotions…

No wonder his roommate had said that all of his expressions were mere imitations.

Shi Li stared at the screen, unable to say a single word.

…So all this time, every reaction and emotion he displayed in front of her was nothing but an act? His heart had been empty all along?

Just as she was reeling from the revelation, a soft sigh echoed above her—

“I already told you… not to go into my study.”