A minute ago, right after finishing the previous mission, Chu Luyu suddenly heard a new mission alert.
She hadn’t even processed it yet—still flustered under the covers from being caught red-handed stealing a kiss—when that familiar, irritating mechanical voice sounded in her mind—
[Ding! New mission! After kissing the male lead, seize the moment to grab his [——] and say the key line: “They say that [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——], Brother Hezhou—is that true?”]
Chu Luyu was stunned for one second, two seconds, several seconds, over ten seconds…
Finally, she snapped out of her brain-dead state and asked:
Chu Luyu: [What’s that blank?]
System Cuihua: […] You know.
Chu Luyu: […]
System Cuihua: […]
Chu Luyu: […]
The girl and the system were locked in a silent standoff for a long time before Chu Luyu finally exploded.
Chu Luyu: [Why are the missions coming back-to-back??? And in this scene, the villainess had just stolen a kiss from the male lead—shouldn’t he have angrily stormed off? How could she possibly do what comes next!]
System Cuihua: [Hehehe, look how mad my precious baby is—you’re even busting out idioms.]
Chu Luyu: [Don’t you joke around with me! I’m being serious here!]
System Cuihua: [Oh, I know this mission is pretty messed up, but in the original plot, it actually made sense logically… The trigger point today was you and the male lead lying on the same bed in his dormitory. In the original plot, the original owner wanted to get close to the male lead, but he deliberately hid out at the bureau dormitory to avoid going home during a case. The original owner saw that this wouldn’t do, so she turned on all the faucets at home—flooded the entire apartment below too—and tearfully called the male lead saying she couldn’t stay there anymore and begged him to come get her. The male lead didn’t want to bring her to the dorm at first—he wanted to book her a hotel room—but the original owner refused flat-out. With no other choice, he eventually registered her and let her stay in the dorm. And then, as you can see, the dorm conditions forced them to share a bed. The male lead had been tolerating her time and again. At first, when he felt her stealing a kiss, he wanted to just endure it, afraid that if the original owner knew he was awake, she’d do something even worse. But the original owner didn’t care whether he was awake or not—if she wanted to do it, she’d do it. So after that… ahem… she went for it again. Finally, the male lead couldn’t take it anymore and kicked her out.]
Chu Luyu felt completely drained, lying under the covers like a dead battery. She asked the system again: [How many points is this mission worth?]
System Cuihua: [Huh? You’re thinking of using your saved-up points to skip the mission?]
Chu Luyu: [No… I just want to see how many points it’s worth, to give myself some shameless courage.]
System Cuihua: [Ah! Okay then! This mission is worth a ton—23 points!]
Hearing that, Chu Luyu felt a little better.
Just a little, though.
There was still a time limit on the mission. Afraid she’d run out of time, the system urged her to start right away.
Whether from holding her breath or sheer embarrassment, Chu Luyu’s whole body was burning up. In the stuffy darkness, only a sliver of light came through the opening of the blanket. Facing that faint glow, she turned her head.
Sometimes, Chu Luyu couldn’t help but feel sorry for the male lead.
He’d even tucked himself in so tightly under the covers—such careful protection—but still, there was no stopping her from making a move on him.
As her hand made contact, she whispered “Sorry, sorry” under her breath while tremblingly reaching out.
When she touched something soft and warm, she instinctively flinched back—and at that exact moment, Jiang Hezhou finally moved—
The blanket was thrown up from above, the stifling air instantly mixing with fresh air. Breathing was easier now, but she was not okay.
Jiang Hezhou seemed to have already figured out what she was about to do. The moment he threw off the blanket, he grabbed her wrist.
“What are you trying to do?”
His voice was hoarse, as if he was holding back with great effort.
But Chu Luyu could no longer register any subtle changes. Her entire attention was fixed on her captured hand.
Hearing Jiang Hezhou’s question, she only mechanically replied: “Just wanted to see if it really gets bigger on its own.”
Above her head, there was only a dead silence.
Chu Luyu knew that at this moment, Jiang Hezhou probably wanted to kill her. But she also knew she couldn’t die, because…
She still hadn’t touched [it].
At that thought, Chu Luyu steeled herself again, gritted her teeth, and said: “They say that [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——] [——], Brother Hezhou—is that true?”
After delivering the key line, she tried to make her move again, but the man didn’t loosen his grip even a fraction. Her hand was trapped there, unable to move an inch.
Chu Luyu was on the verge of tears. The mission was stuck halfway—neither completed nor failed—which was even more agonizing than outright failure!
Finally summoning her courage, she looked up at Jiang Hezhou, her eyes glistening with involuntary moisture from shame and frustration.
She pleaded in a small, tearful voice: “Jiang Hezhou, just let me finish. Please.”
There it was again!
That same look that made him want to ruin her!
Jiang Hezhou could feel every fiber of his flesh trembling with excitement. His grip on her hand tightened unconsciously—so tight that he could clearly trace the outline of her wrist bone.
After two or three seconds, he finally spoke.
Following up on what she’d just said, he asked in a hoarse voice: “Are you sure? If we’re going to continue, we’re going all the way.”
“What do you mean—”
Jiang Hezhou gave her no time to question or hesitate. His large palm covered her small hand and, just as he’d done countless times before in private, slowly pressed it down firmly.
Above her head, the mission notification board finally displayed the “Mission Complete” indicator.
Chu Luyu was already on the verge of tears. “Okay, okay, that’s enough…”
Jiang Hezhou didn’t release her even an inch. His demeanor was uncharacteristically indulgent yet relentless: “It’s not enough.”
For the next three-plus hours, Chu Luyu was forced to absorb knowledge she’d never learned before.
…………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………
…
If it weren’t for the urgent knocking at the dormitory door, Chu Luyu felt the man probably wouldn’t have stopped.
There seemed to be some new development in the case—the team was calling a meeting. Jiang Hezhou replied in a hoarse voice, “Coming,” and finally let go of her.
“Get some sleep. I’m going to the meeting.”
Chu Luyu was in a state of both numbness and overstimulation. It wasn’t until the man had gotten dressed and left, the door lock clicking shut behind him, that she gradually began to feel grounded in reality.
The system above her head had long since turned away—not seeing, not hearing. Chu Luyu dazedly said to it: [Cuihua, he’s gone. You can turn around now.]
Cuihua quickly turned back, looking at Chu Luyu with some sympathy: [Baby, are you okay?]
Chu Luyu: [I’m fine. It’s just that this night’s physiology lesson has overloaded my brain. I feel like my head’s all fuzzy and I can’t think straight.]
After a moment, she looked at her palm, which had turned bright red. Although someone had carefully cleaned it, the lingering sensation of what had been there still felt present.
Chu Luyu: [Cuihua, has the male lead gone crazy?]
The system coughed lightly: [I was freaked out at first too. But later, during your… uh, during your busy time, I thought about it carefully. I think he was suppressing his disgust and trying to get used to you.]
Chu Luyu: [What do you mean ‘suppressing his disgust to get used to me’??? If he’s disgusted, why would he need to get used to me! I clearly said “okay, okay” later on—he was the one who wouldn’t stop! Normally, shouldn’t he have kicked me out like in the original plot when he couldn’t take it anymore?!]
System Cuihua: [The key is that this development is already different from the original plot. In the original, the original owner kept pushing the male lead’s limits—she flooded the house, insisted on staying in his dorm, and wouldn’t behave once she was there… But your situation is different—he brought you here himself. The starting point was different, so the development and his mindset are different too. My guess is that he saw you making the first move, and his good character wouldn’t let him be cold and indifferent toward you. After all, you’re his fiancée, and he hasn’t thought about breaking the engagement yet. Seeing you humble yourself to get close to him probably made him feel a bit sorry for you. So even though he’s still disgusted by you, he figured he’d cooperate and try to get used to you.]
Chu Luyu: [So his ‘cooperation’ meant four times?]
System Cuihua: [Ahem, the later part—I think he wanted to show off a bit. Men, you know.]
Chu Luyu felt like she was truly losing her mind. She stared blankly at her palm for a while longer, when suddenly her phone buzzed by the pillow.
It was a WeChat message from Jiang Hezhou.
[New leads at the scene. I’m heading out with the team. You go to sleep first. If I’m not back by the time you wake up, call Sister Yao and ask her to take you to get something to eat.]
He’d also sent a string of numbers afterward—presumably Yao Meng’s phone number.
Chu Luyu’s mind cleared up a bit. She stopped dwelling on what had just happened and stared at the WeChat message, lost in thought for a moment.
Chu Luyu: [Cuihua, since the main plot revolves around the romance arc, can’t there be any changes to the parts outside of that? I still think someone like the male lead shouldn’t be turned into what the plot makes him become for no reason. He’s supposed to be rigorous and meticulous in his work—he takes his profession seriously. I don’t think someone like that would make such a huge mistake…]
Cuihua was silent for a couple of seconds before saying: [Why do you care so much about the male lead, baby? Are you starting to like him?]
Chu Luyu froze. She didn’t even think twice—almost like a reflex—she immediately denied it: [How could that be! I know he’s the male lead and I’m the villainess. We’re destined to part ways. How could I possibly like him!]
System Cuihua: [Good. That’s for the best. Your ending is already set. If you fell for him, I’d be worried you’d end up heartbroken later.]
Chu Luyu: [I know. I… I admit I have a good opinion of him, but I think it’s just normal appreciation for someone of the opposite sex. It’s hard for anyone not to like someone like the male lead, right? But there are different kinds of liking, and I can tell them apart!]
Chu Luyu: [The reason I asked you all that earlier is because I genuinely feel it’s such a shame. Before I was living through this part of the plot, this was just a simple character backstory for me. But now that I’m experiencing it day by day, seeing how the male lead treats his work, it really pains me that such a good person has to go through all that absurd stuff later. More importantly, now that I know how it ends, watching him and his colleagues bustle around every day searching for the truth—knowing they could have found the culprit if not for the plot sending them on wild goose chases time and again… it feels absolutely terrible.]
System Cuihua: [But this is his plot. In real-world terms, this is his fate. A person’s fate isn’t easily changed.]
Chu Luyu fell silent again.
She knew the system was right, but she couldn’t help feeling upset.
Later, Chu Luyu slept for a few hours. When she woke up again, it was almost noon.
The room was still quiet—she was still alone. After collecting herself for a moment, she picked up her phone and called Yao Meng.
Yao Meng answered quickly on the other end: “Xiao Chu, you’re awake?”
“Yeah, Sister Yao. Jiang Hezhou said to call you when I wake up so you could take me to eat…”
“Let’s hold off on eating for now—the cafeteria won’t be ready at this hour anyway. Wait for me at the dormitory. I’ll bring some supplies over and change your bandages for you.”
Chu Luyu was a bit surprised. “There’s no need to go through the trouble, my injury is…”
Before she could finish, Yao Meng cut her off: “No can do—this was specially arranged by Xiao Jiang. He mentioned it when we talked on the phone just now.”
Chu Luyu pursed her lips and conceded: “Alright then.”
Yao Meng moved quickly. A few minutes later, she arrived with iodine and other supplies. Whether Jiang Hezhou had specifically mentioned that the little girl was afraid of pain, Yao Meng was extremely careful when changing her dressing, as if afraid of hurting her.
“Xiao Jiang’s been thinking about you. He calls me whenever he has a moment at the scene—called twice this morning already, asking if you were awake yet, and gave me all sorts of instructions about you, asking me to take good care of you.”
Chu Luyu felt a bit embarrassed and replied sheepishly: “I’m not a child—I don’t need someone to take care of me. He’s so over the top.”
“Hey, being over the top is a good thing! When a man is over the top like that, it means he truly cares about you and has you in his heart!”
Chu Luyu thought to herself, Of course he has me in his heart—his aversion value for me is seventy or eighty…
But there was no way she could say that out loud, so she just gave Yao Meng an uncomfortable smile.
When mealtime came, Yao Meng took Chu Luyu to the cafeteria.
There weren’t many people in the cafeteria that morning—just a few officers who’d pulled all-nighters and hadn’t gone home. With Jiang Hezhou not around, Chu Luyu felt too shy to be the helpless little thing who sat around waiting to be served. She grabbed a tray and went to the serving window with Yao Meng.
The system had been quiet all this time, but now it suddenly let out a series of “Holy crap, holy crap.”
Chu Luyu was bewildered: [Don’t tell me there’s another mission—the male lead isn’t even here!]
System Cuihua: [No, no—it’s the female lead! The female lead!]
Chu Luyu’s heart skipped a beat: [The female lead is here?]
System Cuihua: [Yeah! That young girl at the window helping the auntie serve food—that’s the female lead!]
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