Cheng Xi felt a shiver run down her spine as she struggled to stand up. She quickly thanked Lin Fan and then extricated herself from his embrace. She looked towards Lu Chenzhou. “My legs hurt. Can you carry me, Mr. Lu?”

She had called him Mr. Lu, which was technically a formal and polite form of address, but for some reason, it sounded particularly intimate coming from her.

But unexpectedly, Lu Chenzhou didn’t walk over. He continued to stand there, looking coolly at her. Cheng Xi sighed. “Alright. If you’re not going to come over here, then I’ll go to you.” But her legs were so numb that a sharp pain shot through her as soon as she tried to move. Even these few steps felt like a long and weary trek.

Cheng Xi grit her teeth and limped over, a smile still hanging on her face. She didn’t mind Lu Chenzhou’s callous behavior all that much: after all, she had low expectations...