Chapter 25: Following

Xu Yu didn't dare provoke Shen Liangyan, who was still fuming.

“Hurry up, keep up,” he snapped.

He’d only helped her with her luggage earlier because he was so angry on the way here; now, Xu Yu had to haul her own suitcase as she followed him upstairs.

The man was tall, with long legs, and strode ahead in great steps.

Xu Yu trailed far behind him.

She hadn't even reached the elevator when its doors began to close. She rushed to press the button, and the doors slid open again, revealing an utterly indifferent face.

“Legs gone weak? Why are you so slow?” His words were laced with sarcasm.

Xu Yu didn't dare offend her benefactor; after all, he was footing the bill tonight.

Once inside, she leaned against the elevator wall, gazing at the polished surface.

Shen Liangyan’s crisp figure and sharp features were starkly outlined, and even the faint bite mark hidden beneath his collar was visible.

“Not speaking now? Cat got your tongue?”

“Silence is golden.”

“Your silence isn’t worth a cent.”

“Your words are worth a thousand gold pieces.”

“They're not that expensive, but still worth more than yours.”

Xu Yu now somewhat regretted not biting him harder.

Had she broken Shen Liangyan’s artery, by now he’d probably be in the hospital, unable to utter a word.

She rolled her eyes at the elevator wall, only for Shen Liangyan to catch her at it. “Cursing me in your head?”

Xu Yu replied, “I wouldn't dare. I can curse myself, but never you.”

“Then don’t even think about sleeping in the bed tonight. You’re on the floor,” he said coldly, lips curling into a humorless smile. “Show some self-awareness.”

The elevator chimed and the doors slid open.

Xu Yu shook her fist fiercely at his retreating back.

The new hotel was far too refined—leagues better than the homestay she’d chosen. And it was the presidential suite.

“How much is it per night?” she asked.

The man, standing by the floor-to-ceiling window with a cigarette, turned around. Through the drifting smoke, his brows arched in mocking amusement.

“For you?”

Xu Yu rolled her eyes again. “How much is this place per night?”

“Six hundred thousand,” Shen Liangyan said, looking at her like she was a fool.

Xu Yu thought she really was a fool.

She wasn’t worth that kind of money for a single night. If not for Shen Liangyan, she might never have set foot in such a place in her entire life.

“Um… can I ask you something?” Xu Yu hesitated, meeting his skeptical gaze. “Can I sleep on the sofa? I’ve got cramps—too cold on the floor.”

The bed was off-limits.

But the genuine leather sofa here looked soft enough. She could give it a try.

“Pathetic,” Shen Liangyan sneered, glancing at her in disdain.

Xu Yu didn’t respond. After a long, exhausting day and with her period already making her weary, she washed up briefly, didn’t even bother changing, and curled up on the sofa.

She pulled the blanket over her head and tucked herself into a ball, sleeping like a squirrel.

That small, hunched lump looked exactly like someone instinctively defending herself, lacking any sense of security.

Shen Liangyan finished his cigarette, swept a glance at her with narrowed, dark eyes, then quickly showered. Before bed, he took two phone calls.

One was from his assistant, the other from Shen Yue.

Shen Yue asked, “Uncle, why did you leave so early?”

Shen Liangyan replied, “Stomach ache. Went to the hospital to get it checked.”

There was silence on the other end.

Shen Liangyan made another call. When his female assistant heard his request for necessities for a woman’s period, her fingers paused on the keyboard. After a brief hesitation, she agreed. “Understood, Mr. Shen.”

“And pick up a couple of women’s outfits—36C, size small.”

The assistant froze again, but before she could say more, Shen Liangyan had already hung up.

Xu Yu was woken in the middle of the night by pain.

The lights in the room were off, and everything was pitch black.

The blanket she’d wrapped herself in was too tight; she had to unwrap herself to get up for a glass of hot water.

Careless, she rolled right off the sofa.

The pain she braced herself for didn’t come. Instead, a muffled grunt sounded nearby.

She reached under herself and her hand landed on something firm and raised.