Earlier, when Wen Yifan had blurted out the term "top courtesan" in a moment of distraction, she'd thought Sang Yan would be angry. After all, it carried rather negative connotations. But to her surprise, he seemed to relish the comparison.
He slipped effortlessly into this persona whenever they were together.
As he spoke, Sang Yan guided her hand downward, his voice dropping to a husky murmur. "Haven't you been coveting me for ages? You've always tried every trick to take advantage of me—"
"..."
"Now that you have the right—" Sang Yan kissed her lips again, his tone playfully mischievous yet muffled, "—why are you suddenly holding back your desires?"
It was unclear whether she'd even registered his words.
Wen Yifan tightened her grip around his neck, instinctively opening her mouth to respond.
The next moment, his lips and tongue pressed against hers once more. This time, his touch was gentler, kissing her over and over, as if teasing her, gradually drawing her in.
Slowly, he moved downward.
From her chin to her neck, finally pausing at her collarbone. He left a trail of glistening marks, accompanied by small, rosy bruises that bloomed across her pale skin.
Wen Yifan's thoughts began to scatter as she tilted her head back, unable to focus on anything else. She only wanted to be closer to the man before her, to follow his lead, hoping desperately that it would dispel all her gnawing insecurities.
Sang Yan looked up again, meeting her gaze directly. Then Wen Yifan felt him guiding her hand to a certain spot. His eyes were dark and intent, the corner of his mouth curved up, his voice unabashedly thick with desire.
"Where do you want to touch me?"
"..."
He made a slight, deliberate motion.
"Here?"
Wen Yifan stared at his features, her expression caught between clarity and confusion. She didn't seem fully present in the moment—more like someone seeking reassurance than pleasure. She spoke softly, "Anywhere is fine."
Sang Yan's movements stilled.
She kissed his Adam's apple, as if wanting to offer herself completely. "Everything is fine."
"..."
Sang Yan lowered his gaze, studying her expression carefully. As if finally registering that something was wrong, despite his breathing still being heated, he stopped his advances entirely.
Following the line of his Adam's apple, Wen Yifan's lips continued their descent.
Before she could go any further, Sang Yan raised his hand, cradling her head gently but firmly. Then he tilted her face upward. Their eyes met.
Wen Yifan stared at him, somewhat dazed. "What's wrong?"
"Wen Shuangjiang, what's going on?" Sang Yan's eyes still held traces of desire, but he lightly caressed the corner of her lips, his tone becoming serious. "Talk to me properly."
Wen Yifan didn't answer, only stammering, "Aren't we continuing?"
"Is that all you're thinking about? Because it doesn't feel like you're actually focused at all." Sang Yan observed her expression, releasing an almost imperceptible sigh. "Why did you suddenly come out here?"
Wen Yifan's rationality slowly filtered back. She pressed her lips together, her breathing still somewhat rapid. "I couldn't sleep."
Sang Yan brought up the earlier issue. "Because of what you mentioned? About Che Xingde?"
Wen Yifan remained silent, which was answer enough.
"..." Sang Yan reached out to pinch her cheek, applying just enough force to make his point. "I told you already—it's nothing. If you hadn't brought it up, I wouldn't have even remembered it happened."
Hearing this, Wen Yifan looked at him again, searching his face.
Sang Yan asked gently, "Is there anything else?"
Wen Yifan shook her head.
"Wen Shuangjiang, recently, the frequency of your sleepwalking—" As if finally unable to hold back his concern, Sang Yan frowned slightly, speaking with deliberate slowness, "—has increased quite a bit."
Wen Yifan lowered her head, responding with forced calm. "Maybe I've been sleeping too little lately."
"If you're feeling tired, take a few days off to rest." Sang Yan's tone was gentle but insistent. "Alright?"
"...Mm."
"I might have to go to Yihe soon. My sister isn't coming back for summer vacation, and my parents are worried, so they want me to check on her." Sang Yan leaned down, catching her earlobe lightly between his teeth. "How can I leave when you're like this?"
"I'm fine." Wen Yifan felt the ticklish sensation and instinctively shrank her neck away. "When are you planning to go?"
"End of July."
"How long will you be gone?"
"About a week." Sang Yan continued studying her face, speaking softly. "If nothing comes up, I might leave even earlier."
"It's good that you'll spend time with Zhizhi. It must be worrying to have such a young girl there alone. Don't argue with her too much." Wen Yifan seemed to have returned to her usual self in this brief time. "Should I help you look for hotels? I'm probably more familiar with that area than you are."
Sang Yan's expression became unreadable. After a long moment, he simply responded, "Alright."
Whether it was the effect of that confrontational phone call or merely psychological relief, Wen Yifan didn't see Che Xingde again in the following days, nor did she hear anything about him from her colleagues.
On WeChat, Zhao Yuandong didn't mention anything about her eldest uncle's family either.
Wen Yifan's unease gradually dissipated along with the disappearance of these people from her daily life.
In the days that followed, Wen Yifan intermittently contacted the car sales consultant via WeChat.
She'd already chosen a model and was just about to go pay and complete the paperwork. But Zhong Siqiao convinced her otherwise, pointing out that the National Day holiday was approaching, and buying during the promotional period would save quite a bit of money.
Finding the logic sound, Wen Yifan decided to wait a few more months.
The car-buying plan was shelved for now.
Sang Yan didn't mention it much afterward, nor did he seem remotely impatient about having to pick her up from work every day. He just casually mentioned that if she needed to use a car, she could simply use his.
As midsummer arrived, the temperature in Nanwu climbed relentlessly, reaching its peak in late July. The scorching sun and heat radiating from the concrete seemed to make everyone inexplicably irritable.
Wen Yifan received a hotline call about a chain restaurant failing to meet hygiene standards, causing numerous customers to suffer from vomiting and diarrhea. The impact was quite severe, and the Food and Drug Administration had already gotten involved.
After organizing the information, Wen Yifan applied for an interview car from the station and prepared to leave with Fu Zhuang.
Just as they exited the building, Fu Zhuang scratched his head, suddenly remembering something. He said apologetically, "Sis, I forgot my phone upstairs. Can you wait here for two minutes? I'll be right back."
"..." Wen Yifan, weighed down by equipment, sighed helplessly. "Go quickly."
"On it!" Fu Zhuang shouted as he jogged back inside. "I'll be back in a second!"
Wen Yifan pulled out her phone and waited. Standing for too long made her realize just how heavy the equipment was. After a moment's consideration, she sent Fu Zhuang a message: [I'll wait for you in the car.]
Then she headed toward the parking lot.
Finding the interview car, Wen Yifan was about to approach it when suddenly, the strap of her backpack was yanked sharply from behind. Caught completely off guard, she stumbled backward several steps and quickly spun around.
Like a nightmare repeating itself, she once again came face to face with Che Xingde's persistent, unwelcome presence.
"Finally caught up with you." Che Xingde grinned with sleazy satisfaction, loosening his grip slightly as she turned. "You're something else. I've been coming here every single day, but never once saw you. No need to avoid your uncle like this, right?"
Wen Yifan glanced deliberately toward the security camera mounted nearby. "Wasn't I clear enough last time?"
"What kind of talk was that?" This time, Che Xingde dispensed with any pretense of civility, getting straight to the point. "Fine, I'll be frank with you. Want to get rid of us? You can. First, give me ten thousand yuan."
"..."
"To reimburse the money your man extorted from me at his bar. Otherwise, neither of us will have any peace."
As if she hadn't heard a word, Wen Yifan ignored him completely and continued walking toward the car.
Perhaps infuriated at being treated like he was invisible, Che Xingde's temper flared, his patience evaporating entirely. His expression turned ugly and malicious as he grabbed her bag roughly. "Damn it! You think you're too good for me now? Your stupid boyfriend doesn't give me face! And you dare look down on me too?!"
Wen Yifan's bag was wrenched away, now firmly in his grasp.
Then Che Xingde shoved her forcefully, venting his rage.
"You fucking whore! Think you're somebody now that you've hooked up with a rich guy?"
Wen Yifan stumbled backward uncontrollably. The nearby ornamental bushes had several protruding branches with sharp edges that scraped viciously against her thigh, leaving multiple distinct cuts. She let out a muffled sound of pain, barely managing to steady herself, and looked down.
Blood was already welling up from the wounds on her thigh.
Che Xingde seemed about to advance on her again.
At that moment, Fu Zhuang returned with his phone. Seeing the scene before him, he froze momentarily in shock, then filled with fury. "Hey! What the hell are you doing?!"
With the appearance of a witness, Che Xingde's rationality seemed to partially return. He cursed under his breath, glaring viciously at Wen Yifan one final time before attempting to leave with her bag still in hand.
Fu Zhuang, while pulling out his phone to call the police, tried to block his path. Unable to contain his anger, profanity spilled out. "You fucking dare to rob and assault people so brazenly? Wait to rot in jail, you piece of shit!"
Che Xingde shouted back defensively, "You're the one who'll rot in jail! How is taking my niece's things robbery?!"
"Fu Zhuang, let the police handle it." Wen Yifan straightened up, her voice remarkably steady despite the pain. "There are security cameras everywhere, so he won't get away with this."
"..."
Che Xingde paused, finally noticing the cameras positioned around the parking area. Panic flickered across his face, but he forced a cocky smile. "I'm just taking something from family. You think calling the police will do any good? You'll see whether the police have time to deal with such trivial family matters."
"Fine." Wen Yifan looked at him, her face completely expressionless. "I'll wait and see."
Due to this incident, Wen Yifan's report was handed over to another colleague. She took half a day off, accompanying the arriving police officers to the station. After the director expressed deep concern and very officially assigned Fu Zhuang to follow up on the case as a news story, Wen Yifan first went to the hospital to treat her wounds and undergo an injury assessment, then to the police station to file a formal statement.
Shortly after, Che Yanqin received a call and rushed over. Glimpsing Wen Yifan's presence, she immediately understood what had happened and addressed the officer sharply. "Officer, how can you conduct business like this? How is this considered robbery?"
Che Yanqin's attitude was abrasive, and the police officer replied with barely concealed impatience. "How is it not? We have witnesses and physical evidence. We can file a case immediately."
"We're relatives! This is my niece!" Che Yanqin's voice rose shrilly. "Don't you have family? How is taking something from a family member robbery?!"
The police officer's frown deepened. "Watch your tone!"
Wen Yifan remained completely unmoved by the outburst. She looked at the officer calmly, her emotions carefully controlled, and explained in an even voice, "This is my eldest uncle's wife, but I'm not close to them at all."
"..."
"Also—" Wen Yifan paused meaningfully before continuing, "—Che Xingde has been harassing me for quite some time now. I don't know if this can be included in the case, but the security cameras in front of my company should have recorded everything."
After giving her statement and completing various procedures, Wen Yifan went straight home. She wanted to take a proper shower but worried about getting water on her leg wound, so she only washed her hair and carefully wiped down her body with a damp towel.
Looking at the angry red wounds on her leg, Wen Yifan applied the prescribed medicine, then pulled on a pair of long pants to hide them.
After leaving the bathroom, Wen Yifan lay on the bed and sent Sang Yan a brief message saying she was home.
Remembering that Sang Yan was leaving for Yihe tomorrow, Wen Yifan opened a hotel booking app to help him search for options. As she browsed through listings, drowsiness gradually overtook her. Just as she was about to drift off, she heard movement at the entrance.
Wen Yifan's eyes snapped open immediately. She struggled internally for a moment between sleep and seeing Sang Yan, then pushed herself up to walk outside.
As soon as she reached the living room, she met Sang Yan's gaze.
Sang Yan raised an eyebrow with mild surprise. "You're home early today?"
"Mm." Wen Yifan settled onto the sofa. "After the interview wrapped up, there wasn't much else to do, so I came back."
Sang Yan changed into house slippers and walked in, his gaze dropping downward. Noticing her long pants, he sat beside her and asked casually, "It's the height of summer—why are you wearing long pants at home?"
Wen Yifan lowered her eyes, the lie coming instinctively. "I'm on my period, and it feels a bit cold with the air conditioning."
Hearing this answer, Sang Yan thought for a moment. "Isn't it early this month?"
"..." Wen Yifan froze momentarily, then stammered, "Ah, yes. It's not very regular."
"Then don't sleep with the air conditioning on tonight." Sang Yan didn't seem suspicious, habitually pulling her into his arms and resting his hand on her lower abdomen. "Does it hurt?"
Wen Yifan stared at his face, suddenly finding it difficult to continue this charade. She changed the subject, saying softly, "Aren't you going to Yihe tomorrow? You should start packing your things."
Sang Yan smiled slightly. "There's not much to pack."
"Your flight is at 8:30 PM tomorrow." Wen Yifan began planning seriously. "How about you come to my office after work, and I'll drive you to the airport? Then I'll bring the car back."
"Alright." Sang Yan lowered his head, his warm palm still resting on her lower abdomen, adding casually, "I'll make you some brown sugar water later. Drink it before bed."
Wen Yifan avoided his gaze. "No need."
"What do you mean, no need?" Sang Yan's tone was lazy. "I don't want you waking up in pain in the middle of the night and disturbing my sleep."
"..."
The next afternoon, Sang Yan left his office and entered the restroom. Just as he unzipped, someone at the adjacent urinal greeted him with excessive warmth. "Sang Yan, using the restroom too?"
"..." Sang Yan turned his head to see Xiang Lang's face. "Do you need something?"
"It's been a while, just saying hello." Xiang Lang's voice was bright and casual. "You know, we work for the same company, but we rarely run into each other."
Sang Yan couldn't be bothered to respond.
Xiang Lang didn't seem to mind his cool attitude, finding it rather amusing. "Why are you always like this with me? It's been this way since high school."
Sang Yan glanced at him, his lips quirking into something almost resembling a smirk. "You just have a face that's easy to dislike."
"..."
After finishing, Sang Yan turned toward the sinks.
"You don't have to be like this. Yifan and I are just friends. You've been targeting me for so long." Xiang Lang followed, suddenly remembering something. "By the way, what I said before about planning to attend Yihe University with Yifan—that was just nonsense."
Hearing this, Sang Yan slowly raised his eyes.
"I was just trying to get under your skin back then, but seeing no reaction from you made it pointless. It's been so long—no need for the drinking punishment anymore, right?" Xiang Lang turned on the faucet, smiling easily. "Don't take it out on Yifan, okay?"
Sang Yan let out a light, dismissive sound.
Xiang Lang looked at him with genuine interest, feeling somewhat nostalgic that the two were still together after all these years. "To be honest, I always thought you had the best chance of pursuing Yifan successfully."
"..."
"But your luck was just terrible." Xiang Lang spoke conversationally. "I feel like if it weren't for Yifan having to move to Beiyu with her eldest uncle, you two would have gotten together much earlier, right?"
Sang Yan's movements paused. "Eldest uncle?"
"Yeah."
"Didn't she live with her grandmother?"
"No, she lived with her grandmother for just a short while at first. Later, she always lived with her eldest uncle." Perhaps feeling the conversation had gone on too long, Xiang Lang didn't continue and headed toward the door. "Anyway, I'm off. Going back to work."
Sang Yan remained standing there, his eyes lowered, lost in thought.
At 6 o'clock sharp, Sang Yan left the company and drove to the Nanwu Broadcasting building. He found a parking spot, lowered his window, and sent Wen Yifan a message: [I'm here]
Wen Yifan replied quickly: [Coming soon, wait a moment.]
Sang Yan's fingers tapped absently against the window frame, his mind still circling Xiang Lang's words, increasingly distracted.
In high school, Wen Yifan lived with her eldest uncle but told him she'd always lived with her grandmother. That "uncle" was her eldest aunt's brother. On the day the college entrance exam results came out, when he'd gone to Beiyu to find her, he'd encountered this "uncle" harassing her.
She'd said she didn't know that person.
Connecting this with Wen Yifan's emotional state after encountering that man recently...
Sang Yan's lips gradually compressed into a tight, bloodless line. A suspicion he desperately didn't want to believe was slowly, inexorably forming in his mind. He didn't dare think any further. Turning his head, he reached for his cigarette box, just pulling one out.
At that moment, Sang Yan suddenly heard someone calling his name.
"Brother Sang Yan!"
Hearing this, Sang Yan looked over and met Fu Zhuang's wide, earnest eyes.
Fu Zhuang came over and leaned casually against his car window, very familiar. "You're here to pick up Sister Yifan from work again?"
Sang Yan had encountered him a few times before, but he wasn't in the mood for small talk now. He just nodded curtly.
"You're truly the world's best boyfriend." Fu Zhuang patted his shoulder reassuringly. "But you shouldn't worry too much lately. That pervert is being held at the police station now, so there shouldn't be any trouble for a while."
"..." Sang Yan turned his head sharply, catching onto four specific words. "Pervert?"
"Yeah, creepy and absolutely disgusting. Just hearing what he said made me furious." Fu Zhuang grew visibly angrier as he spoke, his voice rising. "He kept insisting Yifan was his niece and all that, and he's been coming to the station to harass her recently. Yesterday, it even escalated to the police station."
Sang Yan's voice dropped dangerously low. "Police station?"
Fu Zhuang nodded vigorously. "He pushed Sister Yifan, and her leg got scraped up by tree branches. She bled quite a lot. It looked really painful."
After talking for a while longer, Fu Zhuang finally registered something odd and found it strange. "Brother Sang Yan, didn't you know about this? Didn't Sister Yifan tell you?"
Sang Yan played with the cigarette between his fingers, silent for several long seconds.
Then, with perfect composure, he said, "She did."
Afraid of delaying Sang Yan's flight, after receiving his message, Wen Yifan didn't dare dawdle. She left the office, found Sang Yan's car in the familiar spot, and after sliding into the passenger seat, asked, "Do you want me to drive?"
Sang Yan's voice was flat. "No need."
He said nothing more and started the car.
Wen Yifan nodded, lowering her head to check her phone, mentioning casually, "By the way, I helped you pick out several hotels last night—all near Yihe University. It's summer vacation now, so there are plenty of vacant rooms. No need to rush the booking. Why don't you look through them and see which one you prefer? I'll make the reservation for you."
Sang Yan made a noncommittal sound.
Noticing his unusual silence, Wen Yifan turned to look at him. She was about to speak when she suddenly realized the car seemed to be heading in the wrong direction. She said hesitantly, "Did you take a wrong turn? We're supposed to go to the airport, but this road leads back home."
Sang Yan continued staring straight ahead, his tone cold. "We're going home first."
"..." Wen Yifan didn't understand what was happening and asked carefully, "Did you forget something?"
Sang Yan made another brief, indifferent sound.
Wen Yifan glanced at the time display. "Then we need to hurry. I'm worried you'll miss your flight."
For some inexplicable reason, Wen Yifan felt the atmosphere in the car had become extremely tense. She felt increasingly uneasy, her right eyelid twitching persistently. She couldn't help asking, "Are you in a bad mood today?"
Sang Yan didn't respond.
Wen Yifan tried again. "What's wrong?"
Seeing he still wouldn't speak, Wen Yifan started talking about various light, happy topics, hoping to improve his mood. But seeing he had absolutely no desire to engage in conversation, she gradually fell silent.
She felt deeply worried and sensed an approaching storm.
They drove into the underground parking lot of Shangdu Huacheng.
After getting out of the car, Sang Yan reached out and grasped Wen Yifan's wrist firmly, walking toward the elevator. Wen Yifan stared at his profile, somehow feeling an ominous sense of foreboding, yet unable to pinpoint what had gone wrong.
She tried saying a few more things to lighten his mood.
Sang Yan would respond, but his tone was completely different from any other time—remaining icily detached. It seemed he was only replying to avoid making her uncomfortable, but in reality had zero desire for conversation.
They rode up to the 16th floor, and Sang Yan took out his key to open the door.
The two walked inside.
Wen Yifan stood in the entryway, not bothering to remove her shoes. "Then you should quickly go and get—"
Before she could finish the sentence, Sang Yan picked her up bodily and set her on the shoe cabinet. He looked at her with a completely blank expression, as if needing to confirm something, and directly began rolling up her pant leg.
"..." Wen Yifan's face froze.
In that instant, because of his actions, she understood exactly why his mood had soured.
Wen Yifan instinctively tried to stop his movement.
Sang Yan reacted with lightning speed, completely disregarding her weak resistance. He used one hand to pin both of hers, forcefully continuing to roll up her pant leg until he reached her upper thigh.
Her legs were fair and delicate, without a single mark.
Sang Yan paused, looked up at her again, and wordlessly started rolling up the other pant leg.
It was only then that Wen Yifan truly became panicked, but she couldn't break free from his iron grip.
"Sang Yan!"
Just as he rolled the fabric up to her thigh, Sang Yan saw the wounds covering her leg. Several bloody scratches, not yet fully scabbed over, with some areas still visibly seeping, red and swollen, looking absolutely horrific.
In that moment, Sang Yan's carefully controlled anger seemed to finally ignite.
He closed his eyes briefly, visibly suppressing his fury before asking in a voice barely above a whisper, "How did this happen?"
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