Chapter 12

For several days in a row, Liu Ran didn’t dare look straight at Ming Siyu.

Even if Ming Siyu merely passed by or quietly sat at the table to eat, as soon as Ming Siyu entered her line of sight or she sensed Ming Siyu’s presence, she couldn’t help but recall that kiss.

The next second, her lips would start to burn. Ming Siyu’s light breath seemed to linger right by her face, teasing her cheeks and the tip of her nose until they itched, while a sour numbness spread from the base of her tail. She had to grab her tail and twist it hard to cover that strange sensation with pain.

When Ming Siyu wasn’t home, only she and Qi Zhen remained in the house. Taking care of a 700-square-meter duplex wasn’t easy, so Qi Zhen was busy most of the time and didn’t talk to her much.

Qi Zhen never mentioned anything about what she had seen that night. She only asked with concern when she noticed Liu Ran’s cheeks flushed red, “Miss Liu, are you sick?”

Liu Ran shook her head in panic, “N-No. Maybe it’s a bit hot.”

This was an indelible, long-lasting punishment. Ming Siyu’s attitude, as if that kiss had never happened, tormented Liu Ran even more.

She couldn’t stop wondering why Ming Siyu could act as if nothing had happened. Ming Siyu had been the one to initiate the kiss, yet she was the one left anxious and uneasy afterward.

Could that kiss, which hadn’t gone very deep, be just an ordinary tactic Ming Siyu used against people she disliked? Did Ming Siyu punish everyone she didn’t like with a kiss? Was Ming Siyu so casual about kissing because she frequently kissed different people, making it no different from a handshake in her eyes?

Liu Ran couldn’t stop her wild thoughts. By the end, they had escalated to the ultimate question of whether Ming Siyu had ever kissed anyone else—a question destined to have no answer.

She felt like her mind was going abnormal.

Before this, aside from her sick mother, no one had occupied Liu Ran’s brain for so long. Ming Siyu was an absolute villain; her methods of revenge were too advanced, completely unconventional, leaving no quick way to counter them.

While she obsessed frantically on her end, Ming Siyu treated her as usual: ignoring her like air when uninterested, not sparing her a glance all day; but when the mood struck, she would grab her and play with her tail and ears.

Liu Ran refused every time, of course. But when Ming Siyu approached with the irresistible scent of perfume like snow after a blizzard, the scene before her would overlap with the image of their lips touching that night. Her brain short-circuited repeatedly, her limbs refused to obey, and she even began to suspect that Ming Siyu was some kind of inhaled toxin turned spirit—otherwise, why did she feel dizzy just from her nearness?

Ming Siyu would wickedly pinch the tip of her tail, feeling the large tuft struggle futilely. “Mm, does Little Wolf still remember how she bullied her master last time? This is punishment for being naughty before.”

Liu Ran: …Who was bullying whom?

She was wrong. She was truly wrong.

She shouldn’t have made such humane demands of a heartless villain like Ming Siyu. She didn’t even dare bare her teeth at Ming Siyu anymore—not because she worried it would violate the first rule, but because she feared Ming Siyu would take advantage of her bared teeth to kiss her. That would be a nightmare.

Ming Siyu didn’t toy with her completely for free, though.

Besides sets of expensive clothes, Liu Ran received several new pairs of underwear from Ming Siyu. Like the previous ones that were a size too small, they came individually packed in transparent frosted bags, neatly placed in a logo-less paper bag. She tried one on; the size was perfect, stretchy and comfortable, with a separate hole in the back just right for her tail. Finally, she didn’t have to wear those small-sized underwear that chafed her skin painfully.

Liu Ran’s ears drooped as she muttered to herself that Ming Siyu was giving her a slap on the face followed by a sweet date.

The thought had barely surfaced when Liu Ran pinched herself. What kind of sweet date were essential underwear? Ming Siyu had truly driven her insane.

The only comfort for Liu Ran was that Ming Siyu no longer restricted her food and water. Qi Zhen’s cooking was exceptionally delicious. Previously, in the underground black-hearted research institute, she could only eat scraps or tasteless nutrition agents, and her weight had long deviated from normal. Now, she ate happily every day. Of course, when Ming Siyu didn’t eat at home, Qi Zhen wouldn’t cook just for her; she mostly ate Ming Siyu’s leftovers. Perhaps because she had eaten so poorly before, Liu Ran accepted eating Ming Siyu’s leftovers in just a few seconds. Ming Siyu barely touched her food anyway—the dishes were practically untouched. It would be wasteful not to eat them.

Despite being bullied to the point of half-dead with anger every day, curling up by the sofa or locked in the little black room, Liu Ran’s complexion gradually grew rosy.

One time, after Ming Siyu finished playing with her tail, she even pinched her cheek.

“Not bad. Only with enough nutrition can your fur grow even softer.”

Such days passed in a daze for about a week. Liu Ran had nothing to threaten Ming Siyu with and was easily controlled by her instead, so their interactions surprisingly became much more harmonious.

A week later, on an overcast afternoon, Liu Ran sat on the carpet flipping through an art book. Ming Siyu’s home had a massive study. A couple of days earlier, Liu Ran had watched Ming Siyu take this art book from the study. The world behind the door flashed by in her view before being shut off again by the heavy solid wood door.

Ming Siyu flipped through a few pages by the floor-to-ceiling window and casually set it on the coffee table. Liu Ran leaned in to touch the cover, and Ming Siyu silently permitted it. The price was a quick rub of her ear while she lowered her head to look at the book. Before she could react, Ming Siyu leisurely withdrew her hand.

As Liu Ran browsed the art book, she pondered how to find a chance to visit the sanatorium to see her mother. It had been months since she’d seen her mom, and though they were in the same city, meeting was harder than ascending to heaven.

Beg Ming Siyu? What if Ming Siyu learned of her mother’s existence and used her to coerce compliance later? Then she’d have no room to resist at all.

Her mother was her only treasure in the world—the fewer people who knew, the better.

Perhaps when she could go out, she could use some other excuse and sneak off to the sanatorium for a quick visit…

The sound of the door unlocking pulled Liu Ran’s thoughts back to reality. Qi Zhen, who had gone out to buy groceries, returned early and hurried over to snatch the art book from her hands. “Miss Liu, the young lady wants you to go to her office at Group Headquarters. Hurry up and head out now.”

Liu Ran froze.

Had she heard right? Ming Siyu’s office?

What was she supposed to do there?

“How do I… go…”

“The driver’s already here to pick you up.” Qi Zhen smoothed the wrinkles on Liu Ran’s clothes, then grabbed the bite inhibitor and fastened it on her face. “Sorry, put this on first. Otherwise, the driver will be scared, and it might cause an accident on the road.”

Liu Ran was pushed out the door. She hadn’t worn the bite inhibitor for days, so putting it back on felt uncomfortable.

With the crossbar in her mouth, she mumbled indistinctly, “Hat, hat…”

Qi Zhen grabbed a hat and plopped it on her head, then escorted her to the underground parking garage. The driver was the same one who had brought her on the first day. Once Liu Ran buckled in, the driver floored the accelerator and sped off, the tires screeching against the garage floor in a teeth-gritting sound.

Liu Ran kept her head down, hiding the lower half of her face below the car window, observing the outside with just her eyes.

Counting the time, this was her first proper glimpse of the outside world in months. A City, the empire’s capital, was so prosperous it dazzled the eyes. The skyline had been redefined by eco-smart buildings, their glass walls reflecting the dense clouds. New brand stores lined the streets, ones Liu Ran had never seen before. Every time she emerged after isolation, she felt like Liu Sister Feng entering the Grand View Garden. The city’s development was gradual for most residents, but to her, it leaped forward.

Ming Entertainment Group was located on the South Second Ring Road, consisting of three buildings connected by unique skybridges. Surrounded by other office towers and commercial skyscrapers, they formed a thriving business district together.

Before Liu Ran could take in the district’s layout, the car plunged underground. Secretary Wen waited by the parking spot and motioned for Liu Ran to follow her. Liu Ran kept her head low, terrified someone would spot her bite inhibitor.

She wanted to ask Secretary Wen why Ming Siyu had summoned her to the company, but speaking was too difficult, so she couldn’t.

Along the way, aside from Secretary Wen, they encountered no one else. Liu Ran’s taut nerves slowly relaxed.

At the end of the corridor, Secretary Wen pushed open one side of the black double doors. “Miss Liu, President Ming is waiting for you inside.”

The light suddenly dimmed. Liu Ran squinted to adjust, but before she could see clearly, a pair of hands reached out, gripped her shoulders, and pulled her backward.

In the darkness, Ming Siyu’s voice was low and husky, laced with eager impatience.

The crisp, icy perfume scent now mingled with ragged breaths, like shoveling aside a corner of snow to reveal the muddy depths beneath.

“Don’t move…”