The events of this evening brought a tremendous shock to both Chu Luyu and the system.
Especially the system—later, after Chu Luyu and Jiang Hezhou had both returned to the apartment, it kept muttering nonstop: [So terrifying, so terrifying! Oh my god, the male lead is way too scary! Those words he said while hugging you from behind—was he hinting at you too? If you dare to run, he’s going to go completely crazy!]
Chu Luyu couldn’t quite put her finger on what she was feeling right now.
She had just finished helping Jiang Hezhou take a bath, and as she came out of the bathroom, Zhang Jiting called him, probably to update him on the situation over at the Zhou family’s side.
The man stood by the window, wearing nothing but a black bathrobe, quietly holding his phone. Occasionally, he would let out an “mm” or say “okay” to the person on the other end, and nothing more.
He seemed to have reverted back to the aloof, untouchable, restrained heartthrob he used to be—but Chu Luyu knew very clearly that he was no longer that person at all…
Take what happened when they got back, for instance—when he asked her to help him bathe.
In the past, if she had acted shy and uncomfortable, he probably wouldn’t have pushed her too hard and would have found a way to manage on his own.
But today, after hearing his request, she pursed her lips and hesitated, stammering awkwardly as she tried to refuse—yet Jiang Hezhou shut down all her excuses with firm resolve.
Of course, his words remained calm and gentle, but his attitude was completely undeniable.
“Your hands bandaged me personally. You should know best how serious the wounds are. If large areas of injured skin stay in contact with water for too long, the wounds can easily get infected and fester, or worse—trigger a high fever or even more severe illness. Baby, I don’t want to get sick, so I’ll have to trouble you with this.”
He gave his reasons. His words were no longer a request. His attitude, though seemingly mild, left her no room to refuse.
So Chu Luyu could only steel herself and follow him into the bathroom, just as he wanted…
But once inside, he didn’t let her off easily. She kept deliberately averting her gaze, her small hand holding the bath sponge gliding over his body, instinctively dodging the more sensitive spots. Jiang Hezhou noticed this, grabbed her wrist with his uninjured hand, and even turned her face back toward him.
“Baby, we’re getting married soon. From now on, we’re only going to become more intimately close. I think you should start getting used to it now.”
With that, he took her hand directly—giving her no chance to refuse or resist—and guided it all the way to the very place she had been trying so hard to avoid…
Chu Luyu didn’t want to recall what happened after that.
She let out a heavy, powerless sigh inwardly, then asked the system: [Cuihua, I feel like if this keeps up, the male lead really might succeed in getting us to register our marriage. You’ve seen the state he’s in right now—I feel like I won’t be able to refuse any decision he makes from here on out…]
System Cuihua: [So we need to set things straight before everything goes completely off the rails!]
Chu Luyu: [You make it sound so easy! You think I don’t want to? But the male lead is with me every single day now—I don’t even have a chance to run away.]
Mentioning that, she suddenly thought of something and asked: [Wait, something’s off, Cuihua. I’ve felt it was off before. When I moved, I didn’t leak a single piece of information to the male lead. I even texted my mom and Chen Mian afterward, and they both said they never told him our address. So how did he find me so quickly without knowing where I’d moved? This doesn’t add up. Cuihua, can you find a way to check what’s really going on?]
The system agreed, and after about ten seconds, it suddenly shouted: [Holy crap! The male lead put a tracker on you! It’s in that bracelet he gave you!]
Chu Luyu froze, looking down at the bracelet she had worn on her wrist for so long. A mix of surprise and a sense of “I should have known” washed over her.
She paused, and strangely enough, she didn’t feel the anger one might expect from being surveilled for so long. Instead, after a moment of processing, she felt a belated pang of something else.
Chu Luyu: [So, Cuihua, does that mean the male lead has been guarding against me running away for a long time? But from his perspective back then, our relationship was supposed to be really, really good, right? So why would he do something like this?]
The system’s tone was hesitant: [Is it possible… that he didn’t feel secure in your relationship? That he liked you too much, valued you too much, and that’s why he was even more afraid of losing you?]
Hearing that, Chu Luyu felt an inexplicable heaviness in her chest. She looked over at the man still standing by the window and let out a long breath.
She had originally thought that maybe, when the chance came, she could sneak away. As long as she stayed away from the male lead, time would eventually make him forget her. Then the female lead would appear, and the storyline would probably return to its original course.
But now, realizing that this man might have feared her leaving from the very beginning… Chu Luyu’s heart ached all at once.
She didn’t even dare to think about how devastated the male lead would be if one day he truly couldn’t find her anymore.
After a moment, she suddenly asked the system: [Cuihua, is there any way to forcibly intervene in the plot and set it straight? I remember when reading novels or watching TV dramas before, I’ve seen plenty of settings where the system steps in forcefully, or makes the protagonist lose their memory, or something—basically, once the plot goes off track, there are ways to use certain means to put it back on course.]
The male lead was like this now—Chu Luyu couldn’t bear to let him suffer any more harm. But the way this world was developing made it completely impossible for him to end up with her, a supporting female character. The only option was to make him forget this period of time and automatically return to the original storyline.
The system on the other end sounded a bit reluctant after hearing her: [There is a way, but… ahh…]
Chu Luyu noticed it hesitating, thought for a moment, and asked: [What are you struggling with? Is it because it costs points? Do I not have enough points left?]
After all, she had previously used “Wish Fulfillment” once for Jiang Hezhou, and there really wasn’t much left in terms of points.
But the system quickly denied that: [No… ahh, forget it, don’t worry about it. I’ll figure something out for you later! For now, just keep the male lead stabilized!]
Jiang Hezhou finished his call and came over, finding Chu Luyu still sitting blankly by the bed. He calmly bent down and kissed her forehead.
“What are you thinking about?”
Chu Luyu snapped back to attention and looked up at him. “Nothing much. What did Zhang Jiting say? That man—his body isn’t in any serious trouble, is it?”
Jiang Hezhou shook his head. “No, nothing serious. Didn’t even need the ICU.”
Hearing that, Chu Luyu’s eyes went wide.
“What do you mean ‘didn’t even need the ICU’? That line of thinking is dangerous, you know that?!” Chu Luyu suddenly recalled the way the male lead had gone berserk at the club that night. She grew deeply worried about his state of mind going forward, and when she spoke again, her tone was exceptionally serious and earnest. “Jiang Hezhou, nothing in this world is more important than you yourself. If today—for my sake—you had beaten that person to death or caused him severe injury, have you thought about what consequences you’d face? I don’t want you to ever act so impulsively again. Your life should be brilliant and happy. You shouldn’t ruin a future that ought to be bright—for anyone. Do you understand?”
As the girl spoke, her apricot-shaped eyes sparkled brightly. Even though her expression was dead serious, with her looks, she somehow gave off the vibe of a child playing at being an adult.
Jiang Hezhou gazed at her with infatuation for a long while. He loved how her eyes held only him, and he loved how she cared for him with her whole heart.
Unable to help himself, he leaned down to kiss her. Her lips were as soft and delicate as always, like sweet pudding. The moment their lips and tongues intertwined, the urge inside Jiang Hezhou to bite her apart and melt her into his very bones surged forth again. He couldn’t hold back as he fiercely sucked on her lips and tongue. She seemed unable to take it and let out a soft whimper, but he didn’t care.
At this moment, Jiang Hezhou only wanted her to belong to him a little more, to leave more of his marks, his scent, on her body.
When he finally released her, both of them were breathing heavily.
Jiang Hezhou pressed his forehead against Chu Luyu’s, his voice carrying an especially sexy, husky rasp that vibrated low by her ear: “If you’re so worried about me, then never leave me from now on. Always stay by my side, watch over me, and remind me in crucial moments not to go crazy and make mistakes.”
Chu Luyu felt choked up inside. It took her a long while before she managed to reply with a simple “Oh.”
Jiang Hezhou clearly didn’t mind—he still looked very pleased. He brushed his lips against the corner of her mouth again. “I also talked about something else with Zhang Jiting on the phone. Tomorrow we’re going to go see a feng shui master—the one Zhang Jiting recommended. He said the man is very accurate with picking dates and matching birth charts. We’ll visit him tomorrow and have him calculate an auspicious day for us to register and get married.”
What could Chu Luyu possibly say? Whatever she said now, he would have a retort ready—and although he seemed gentle about it, he gave her no room to resist.
So at that moment, hearing his words, she just obediently nodded.
The feng shui master lived in an old residential building in the older part of town. That day, as Chu Luyu followed behind Jiang Hezhou to find him, her mind was filled with the saying, “True masters hide in plain sight among the people.” That thought only deepened when Jiang Hezhou received the specific date for registration and transferred 30,000 yuan over.
The date the feng shui master set was the twelfth day of the first lunar month, after the Spring Festival. He also said that the two of them were a match made in heaven when it came to their birth charts, though there would be some trials and tribulations along the way that they’d need to overcome together. Chu Luyu didn’t even have the heart to say that the birth date she’d given him was her real one—the one from her actual life—and using that to match with the male lead’s fate and getting a result like this… it was clearly unreliable!
Later, as they walked out of the residential building, Jiang Hezhou was noticeably in much higher spirits. He held the red paper with their matched birth charts that the feng shui master had given him, stared at it for a long moment, then turned to look at Chu Luyu.
“Baby, since the date for registering is set, we should start preparing for the wedding too. Since we don’t have much else to do today, why don’t we go take a look at what we’ll need for the ceremony? We can start by picking out an invitation design?”
Although his tone sounded like he was asking, Chu Luyu could see from the way he was holding her hand and walking toward the roadside to hail a cab that he had already left her no chance to object.
After getting in the car, Chu Luyu let out a quiet sigh inwardly and thought, Oh well, let’s just go along with it for now. Cuihua told me to keep the male lead stabilized first, and we’ll figure out a solution later.
Come to think of it, Cuihua had been unusually quiet today—like she was really racking her brain over how to set the plot straight. Occasionally, when Chu Luyu glanced over, she saw the system wearing a deeply troubled expression. When she asked what was wrong, Cuihua wouldn’t say, only telling her not to worry about it.
Lost in thought, the taxi had already arrived near a wedding planning agency. Jiang Hezhou took Chu Luyu’s hand and led her out. Once inside, they explained their purpose, and the staff enthusiastically began serving them.
While they were selecting invitation styles, the salesperson sincerely complimented them on how well-matched they looked—their appearances and temperaments complemented each other perfectly. Jiang Hezhou was delighted to hear that, and when it came time to pay the deposit later, he even added an extra ten thousand yuan, saying it was to treat the staff to afternoon tea.
The whole place erupted in excitement. As they left, the staff chorused in unison: “Wishing Mr. Jiang and Miss Chu a long life together and a hundred years of love!”
The wedding agency happened to be located in a commercial area in the city center. As they stepped out, the building across the street was bustling with pre–Spring Festival performances. The atmosphere was thick with New Year cheer, and the streets and alleys looked more festive than usual.
Chu Luyu suddenly thought about the upcoming New Year. She hesitated, then looked at Jiang Hezhou and asked, “Are you going back to the old family estate for the New Year this year?”
Jiang Hezhou shook his head without hesitation. “No. I don’t think anyone’s expecting me back there this year either.”
A few days ago, his mother had actually called him specifically about this matter. Though she hadn’t been very explicit, she’d mentioned that his grandfather was still upset. Jiang Hezhou understood perfectly well that his mother didn’t want him coming back to the estate for the holiday.
Not that he cared much, anyway. At this point, aside from Chu Luyu, there were very few things in this world he truly cared about.
Chu Luyu, however, felt deeply conflicted after hearing his words.
She asked the system: [Cuihua, are you really sure you can find a way to set the plot straight?]
System Cuihua: [What’s up? Why are you asking about that all of a sudden?]
Chu Luyu: [It’s just—I feel so bad for the male lead. Because of what happened with his brother, he can’t even go home for the New Year… I really want to invite him to spend it with my family. But I’m afraid that if you don’t actually have a solution, and I build even more emotional ties with him, won’t it be even harder to get the story back on track?]
After hearing that, the system hesitated for a moment. But soon, it suddenly seemed to make up its mind: [Baby, do whatever you want—anything goes! I’ve already found a way to reset the plot! Just wait a few more days, I need to get a hold of something, and then we can reshape the storyline! So even if you feel sorry for the male lead and want to love him and take care of him, to be with him like a normal couple—that’s totally fine too!]
This caught Chu Luyu completely off guard: [Are you sure? But will it require points from me? Do I have enough points left?]
System Cuihua: [No need for your points—you can keep them all! Later on, you can exchange them for whatever you want!]
Chu Luyu hesitated: [Then what other way could you possibly have… Last time, you even had to steal that test program. A bug this big—there’s no way you can fix it without paying some kind of price, right?]
System Cuihua: [Ahh, don’t worry about it! I’ve got it handled! You have to trust me—I’m the most outstanding system in the Transmigration Administration across thousands of years of past and future! You’re clever enough to exploit mission loopholes, and your system isn’t any less capable! So you don’t need to worry at all—leave every problem to me!]
Though she was still full of doubts after hearing this, Chu Luyu chose to trust it.
A cold breeze laced with the sounds of bustle swept across the street, swaying the hair tucked under Chu Luyu’s hat. She stopped in her tracks, right there on the roadside, and tugged at Jiang Hezhou.
The man turned around and saw the girl looking up at him with sparkling eyes. Behind her, the world was filled with noisy, chaotic clamor—yet strangely, he still heard every word she said next with perfect clarity—
“Jiang Hezhou, if they don’t want you, I do.”
“This Spring Festival, let’s spend it together.”
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