Falling into it

“Does the Professor usually treat Ning Rou with this same icy expression? That can’t be right…”

Xiao Yuehua leaned close to Jiang Li’s ear, her voice soft and winding its way into his mind like a serpent.

“Whenever I’ve peeked in the past, the Professor was clearly smiling at her quite often…”

Jiang Li shuddered violently.

“So why is it that I’m the only one you keep at a distance?”

“You were the one who originally took the initiative to invite me to be your teaching assistant… saying I had talent, saying I was still young and there was still time for everything…”

“You broke into my heart, muttering those strange, self-righteous words, yet now that you’ve hooked up with Ning Rou, you want to push me far away…”

“Professor, behaving like this… aren’t you just toying with my feelings?”

Xiao Yuehua knew Jiang Li very well. She understood that he had always harbored a sense of guilt toward her. She had sensed this the moment she suffered another crushing defeat to Ning Rou during the Acting Student Competition.

Back then, when the Professor had severed ties with her… what she saw in his eyes was a wordless sense of indebtedness.

And for her—having now resolved to reclaim the Professor—this guilt was her most powerful weapon.

Under this targeted psychological assault, Jiang Li felt utterly powerless, stripped of all strength and means to resist. He could only stare at Xiao Yuehua with a clouded mind, his lips parted slightly, unable to utter a single word.

【So cute… Professor, this fragile look of yours…】

Watching this scene unfold, Xiao Yuehua suddenly felt a surge of laughter. It wasn’t her usual polite smile, but a distorted, villainous cackle—something completely unlike her usual self, devoid of any ladylike grace.

【I truly can’t see this enough… This pathetic, baby-like Professor belongs only to me…】

Suppressing her greedy desires, Xiao Yuehua struggled to maintain a semblance of decorum, her voice trembling slightly:

“So, does the Professor understand now? You shouldn’t, and you cannot, leave me. Because…”

She paused, her voice turning even more fervent in the next breath:

“Because this is what you owe me… You understand that yourself, don’t you? You owe me too much, Professor. You can never pay it back… Your entire being is a debt that belongs to me.”

“Yuehua…”

His “Poker Face” had finally reached its limit. Jiang Li’s expression was crumbling; his pupils shook incessantly, nearly shattering under the weight of Xiao Yuehua’s increasingly naked desire.

Seeing this, a flash of fleeting heartache crossed Xiao Yuehua’s face. She quietly dialed back the circulation of her 【Forbidden Spiritual Art】 and pulled Jiang Li into her embrace, speaking with the tenderness one might use to soothe an infant:

“Professor, don’t hesitate anymore.”

“We are two of a kind. We’ve long since become inseparable.”

“No matter what, I want to stand by your side…”

“Accept me. By my side, you won’t have to feel hesitation or pain anymore.”

Though his body continued to tremble from the external pressure and mental chaos, Xiao Yuehua’s embrace felt sufficiently soft and warm to Jiang Li.

“Rest a while, Professor. Just sleep. When you wake up, you won’t feel this conflicted or pained anymore…”

“Sleep…”

Xiao Yuehua’s voice was gentle as one hand wrapped around the back of Jiang Li’s neck and the other lightly stroked his hair. She gazed deeply at the Jiang Li in her arms, her eyes brimming with a joy so thick and eerie it felt tangible—as if it might drip onto Jiang Li’s scarred, bruised lips.

Amidst this bizarre atmosphere of turmoil and tranquility, Jiang Li actually drifted into a deep sleep.

【Hehehehehehe…】

In the chaotic, disordered realm of dreams, the blurred sound of a woman’s charming laughter seemed to echo.

By the time he woke up, drenched in cold sweat, it was already dusk. Xiao Yuehua was nowhere to be found. The silent, empty room felt chillingly desolate, making Jiang Li’s skin crawl.

Gasping for air, he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, desperately wanting to lie to himself and say it had all been a nightmare. But the lingering scent of orchids at the tip of his nose and the stinging pain from his lips served as constant reminders.

The current Xiao Yuehua had drifted far beyond his control. Or rather—

He had fallen firmly into the palm of her hand, with nowhere left to run.

. . . . . . . . . . .

“Over here, over here!”

It was Saturday morning, the time of his promised meeting with Ning Rou. Before Jiang Li could even get close, he was spotted by the sharp-eyed girl from a distance.

Forcing a faint smile, Jiang Li walked up to her.

“Student Ning Rou, your outfit suits you very well today.”

“Right? I spent ages trying them on in front of the mir—I… I mean, I’m a natural beauty! I look good in anything!”

Ning Rou chirped happily, but she stopped herself halfway through, her face flushing red. To avoid embarrassment, her eyes darted around as she tried to change the subject:

“But your outfit is way too stiff, Professor! Clothes like these… it’s not like we’re going to a lecture. You should have worn something more casual… Eek! Professor, your lip is…”

Ning Rou’s startled cry gave Jiang Li a sudden fright. His face froze, and he instinctively reached up to cover his mouth.

“This… I bit it in my sleep last night during a dream.”

Jiang Li’s makeshift lie was incredibly clumsy, but fortunately, Ning Rou was a young girl who hadn’t been exposed to things like kissing or romantic intimacy, making her easy to fool.

She simply nodded without a second thought, instead breaking into a mischievous grin:

“Grinding your teeth in your sleep… heehee, Professor, you’re so old, yet you’re still like a little kid.”

“It’s because I thought of you, Student Ning Rou, and my teeth started itching with resentment…”

“Professor, you’re bullying me again!”

. . . . . . . . .

The two of them talked and laughed as they walked out of the campus.

It had to be said that Ning Rou possessed a certain magical quality; her bright, optimistic nature easily influenced the moods of those around her. For a brief moment, even the heavy gloom in Jiang Li’s heart from yesterday’s incident began to lift.

However, the girl’s energy seemed a bit too abundant.

“Heigh-ho!”

Even walking on the sidewalk, Ning Rou couldn’t stay still. She extended her arms to her sides to keep her balance, trying her best to walk in a straight line along the edge of the paving stones.

A light breeze blew, causing the hem of her dress to flutter gently. Whenever she lost her balance and stepped out of line, she would let out a small pout of complaint.

“Aww.”

Then, she would resume her light, quick steps, arms outstretched as she continued.

Jiang Li’s gaze quickly softened. In this moment, Ning Rou reminded him of Jiang Yun when they were children.

Back then, because of his memories from a past life, his speech, actions, and thoughts were no different from an adult’s. He had lived every day in fear within the dark, dangerous, and sick society of the Main World.

Only his sister, Jiang Yun, possessed an innocence rarely seen even in children her age. She spent her days doing all sorts of childish, silly things, yet she always managed to make Jiang Li smile and clear the shadows from his heart.

The Jiang Yun of those years was Jiang Li’s salvation during his period of powerlessness and terror.

Just like Ning Rou now, who brought him a gospel-like reprieve.

Following her lead, Jiang Li began to step forward, matching her pace one footfall at a time.