The boy was tall with long legs. Every step he advanced, Liang Jin retreated one, until her body pressed against the cold wall.
The sensation offered not the slightest sense of security.
He leaned down, hooked her chin, and kissed her—a sudden kiss. Liang Jin was forced to endure it, and it didn’t feel the least bit pleasant.
Shao Xingyu had just gone to fetch the car, but now his call came through, shattering the silence entirely. The incessant ringing blared like a siren; if anyone from outside burst in, it would destroy the intimate scene unfolding at that moment.
Liang Jin tried to push him away. Her flickering eyes reflected Shen Keye’s closed lids.
His brow bones were prominent, his breath hot and close, mingling with the cool touch of his skin. Their lips and teeth met, and Liang Jin’s body instinctively softened.
Only when he pulled back a little did she avert her gaze and remind him, “Your phone.”
Shen Keye glanced at the message notification, amused by her awkward expression. “You’re being a bit more obedient this time,” he remarked. “You didn’t bite me.”
Liang Jin had been kissed into a daze. She furrowed her brows, coldly wiping her lips with her knuckles.
Shao Xingyu said the car was waiting at the school gate. Shen Keye replied, “Got it.” As the words left his mouth, he called out, “Hey, Liang Jin.”
His cold, magnetic voice reached her from nearby, speaking softly in a Cantonese lilt that carried a thread of tenderness—yet somehow sounded razor-sharp no matter how she heard it.
Liang Jin looked over. “What?”
“Does it feel good when I kiss you like that?”
In her line of sight, his pitch-black eyes held a lazy, casual smile. The tiny mole on the left side of his nose bridge had just brushed her cheek, leaving it warm and tingling.
A numb, prickling sensation.
Shen Keye watched her with a playful expression.
Stunned by the question, Liang Jin let her eyelids droop and said nothing.
~~~
That evening, Liang Jin returned to the set. With the guarantee from earlier that morning, Zheng Yunzhi no longer clashed with her.
She wrapped all her scenes and began packing up before call time ended. Wu Lin hadn’t reached out again, and without her occasional gossip to break the monotony, Liang Jin felt strangely adrift.
She scrolled through her social media messages and suddenly froze.
【That Wu Lin girl—from the Mainland, right? So desperate. The guy’s got a fiancée, a perfect match, and she still wedges herself in, shamelessly tagging along to the dinner party. No dignity as a woman whatsoever! Someone like her should just…】
Liang Jin couldn’t stomach the rest. She tapped the attached photo.
It showed Wu Lin trailing behind Li Yibo and another woman.
Liang Jin messaged her—no reply. She called, and Wu Lin hung up instantly.
Liang Jin texted Wu Lin:
【When did Li Yibo get a fiancée?】
【Where are you?】
Wu Lin: 【His family set it up.】
Liang Jin hurriedly packed her things, told the crew she was leaving early, and was stopped by Jiang Manyu. “Liang Jin, where are you going?”
“Finished filming,” Liang Jin said. “Clocking out.”
Jiang Manyu still had scenes left. Irritated, she demanded, “What do you mean by blocking me?”
The girl paused by the spotlight and glanced back. “You should ask yourself that. You and Song Youqing sold me out—what was that about?”
Jiang Manyu’s face stiffened, a sudden anxiety flashing across it. “What do you mean? You’re not going? Why not?”
Liang Jin’s expression remained impassive. “Someone’s handling my medical bills.”
Jiang Manyu instantly knew who she meant. She stepped forward quickly and grabbed Liang Jin’s arm. “Have you lost your mind? Do you even know what Shen Keye wants? And you’re taking his side?”
Liang Jin turned to face her, her tone icy. “Then tell me, Jiang Manyu—what do you and Song Youqing want? Would you even let me in on it?”
Wu Lin: 【In Central.】
Liang Jin hailed a cab and arrived at midnight.
She asked the front desk for the room number and found Wu Lin squatting outside the top-floor private room.
Wu Lin had clearly been drinking—her face flushed an unnatural red. Tear tracks crisscrossed her cheeks, now dried; her neck and shoulders were red, and a deep handprint marred the side of her face.
Liang Jin tried to pull her up but couldn’t, so she squatted down beside her instead, gazing at her with concern. “What happened? Who hit you?”
Gone was Liang Jin’s usual calm. “Did someone wrong you?”
Wu Lin stared at her, hand over her mouth, eyes red and puffy as if steeped in water. “Didn’t we agree not to see each other for a while?”
The indifferent eyes beneath Liang Jin’s jet-black hair now gleamed with gentle warmth. Her voice softened. “Blame me for breaking my promise.”
Wu Lin’s heart ached. She pressed her lips together, her face twisting in bitterness. The tears she’d barely held back burst forth like a dam breaking.
She wailed openly.
Liang Jin hugged Wu Lin, coaxing her the same way Zeng Zhi had earlier. She asked, “What did they do to you? Who hit you?”
Wu Lin didn’t answer. She just said, “Jin… Jinjin, don’t ask… I-I can’t take it anymore. I want to go home.” She was on the verge of breaking down. “I want to go back to Jiangnan.”
Liang Jin asked, “Have you broken up?”
“…No,” Wu Lin’s voice trailed off as she buried her head in Liang Jin’s shoulder. “Not yet.”
Liang Jin patted the trembling, sobbing girl in her arms. Through the private room’s small window, she spotted Li Yibo inside, acting like nothing had happened, an older young woman sitting right beside him.
Liang Jin prepared to lead Wu Lin away, but a voice stopped her. “Liang Jin, did I say you could take her?”
Li Yibo had noticed the arrivals ages ago. He wasn’t wearing a jacket. He opened the door and stood in the doorway, his tone laced with impatience. “You really can’t help sticking your nose in other people’s business.”
Liang Jin steadied Wu Lin and got a clear look at Li Yibo’s arrogant face.
Liang Jin asked, “What? Wu Lin’s still sober. Are you trying to restrict her personal freedom?”
Li Yibo replied, “She just insulted my friend and hasn’t apologized yet.”
Liang Jin found it absurd. She shot back, “So you hit her?”
Li Yibo offered no further explanation. He imperiously commanded, “No apology, and neither of you leaves.”
Liang Jin knew Li Yibo was the type who bullied the weak and feared the strong.
Plenty of people said Li Yibo had a good temper, but Liang Jin saw right through him. He was cowardly and selfish. Back when Song Youhuai stirred up trouble on the school team, he hadn’t dared utter a single word. Now, facing her and Wu Lin, his tone was as hard as steel. He’d planned it all before even getting together with Wu Lin—no matter how many flings he had, he’d marry a woman who could actually help him out.
Liang Jin glanced inside the room. Quite a crowd, mostly familiar faces radiating an arrogance and detachment that clashed completely with her and Wu Lin.
Liang Jin had no idea what Wu Lin had said, but whatever it was, it didn’t matter.
Liang Jin asked, “How do you want the apology?”
“Ten shots as compensation. Wu Lin only had one.”
Liang Jin’s heart ached. She eyed the pampered young woman inside, then propped the unsteady Wu Lin against the wall by the elevator. With a light chuckle, she said, “Fine.” Turning to Li Yibo, she added, “I’ll drink them for her.”
The girl’s pitch-black eyes gleamed with sharp, icy detachment, as if they could pierce through every ugly facet of human nature. Her gaze was a blade sharp enough to gut a man. Liang Jin said, “Li Yibo, you owe Wu Lin an apology too.”
Li Yibo sneered. “Why should I?”
Liang Jin replied, “Li Yibo, I can make you regret this.”
Wu Lin had finished her sophomore year when she first saw Li Yibo heading to Jiangnan for a debate tournament. She’d fallen hard and harbored that crush for years before finally mustering the courage to act on it—and it had turned real.
But now, the girl’s sincere heart had been utterly betrayed.
Liang Jin stared at Li Yibo, enunciating each word. “For that slap. And for every time you’ve ignored Wu Lin.”
Liang Jin didn’t believe in love, but she knew one truth.
“Those who betray true feelings deserve to swallow a thousand silver needles.”
~~~
Inside the private room, Liang Jin had already downed three glasses.
Li Yibo wasn’t all that malicious, but he was obsessed with saving face and always went along with the crowd. His pack of sleazy drinking buddies were no saints—they’d deliberately poured high-proof liquor to mess with her.
Liang Jin had gauged it after the first glass, but by the second, she could barely stand.
Li Yibo waited for her to keep going.
The eighth glass. Liang Jin choked it down, the fiery burn sending her head spinning.
Most people in the room knew her. The moment she coughed, they erupted in mocking laughter.
Liang Jin glanced outside, searching for Wu Lin’s figure. Her eyes sharpened—Wu Lin was gone.
Liang Jin tried to head out, but Li Yibo grabbed her. “Liang Jin, one more glass.”
Liang Jin felt like she’d been dunked in a vat of booze. She said, “I need to find Wu Lin.”
“Drink it first.”
Hecklers in the crowd jeered, “Come on, girlie, knock back that shot and you’re golden!”
“We’re not unreasonable folks!”
Liang Jin didn’t catch all of it. She frowned at him and said coldly, “Let go of me.”
Li Yibo’s tone dripped with impatience, his attitude haughty. “Liang Jin, you wanted to play the hero. If you can’t hack it, don’t step up next time.”
Liang Jin tried to wrench free, but someone beat her to it, shoving the hand away.
Shen Keye had gotten Wu Lin’s call and rushed over from Central. One look at Liang Jin like this—the girl barely able to keep her eyes open, slumping dazedly against the wall with no one to lean on—and fury surged in his chest.
Li Yibo blinked in surprise. “Ah-Ye, what are you doing here?”
The guy had thrown on a black trench coat. The soft fabric clung just enough to hint at the sharp lines of his build, lending his whole presence a dangerous edge carved by the cold wind.
His eyelids drooped slightly, but his pitch-black eyes gleamed with an unexpected sharpness. “Li Yibo,” he asked, “you think you’re hot shit now?”
Li Yibo hurried to explain. “I just had a little run-in with someone…”
Shen Keye reached for a large bottle of vodka on the bar beside him. His thumb hooked the cap, and with a twist of his knuckles, he popped it open in one smooth flick.
Before Li Yibo could even react, the young man thrust the bottle toward him.
“What the hell?”
“She had a few drinks. You drink a few bottles.”
“Ah-Ye, it was nothing serious. You’re joking, right?”
Shen Keye never picked fights with Li Yibo under normal circumstances—there was no point. But now impulse took over. He bent his elbow, lunged forward, locked an arm around the other man’s neck, and poured the liquor straight down his throat.
The gulping sounds stretched on, each swallow bringing a searing pain that pierced straight to the heart.
Several people in the room shot to their feet. The girl who had arrived with Li Yibo clearly knew Shen Keye. She whispered urgently, “What are you doing? Stop pouring!”
She was terrified, her voice cracking with tears. “Aren’t you two supposed to be friends?”
One bottle was more than enough to burn a man into oblivion.
Li Yibo tried to struggle but didn’t dare fight back. He managed only half before he couldn’t take any more and collapsed in a pathetic heap.
Shen Keye gazed down at him. Backlit by the light, the young man’s silhouette loomed as he squatted and looked Li Yibo in the eye. “Even your girlfriend knows Liang Jin belongs to me. Were you really too stupid to figure that out?”
Shen Keye had just wrapped up the mess with Shen Junbang. Tomorrow, his uncle would be heading back to Hong Kong.
God only knew what troubles lay ahead.
“Next time you touch one of mine,” he said, “come at me first.”
~~~
It was Liang Jin’s first time truly tasting the bite of alcohol. She was still conscious, but her body refused to obey her. As the haze began to lift, she instinctively searched for Wu Lin. “Where’s Wu Lin?”
Shen Keye’s gaze flicked toward the desolate girl. Liang Jin sat hunched, her thin white collarbones stark against her skin. Her head was bowed, her dark hair falling softly around her shoulders. She looked like some fragile, defenseless little creature.
“At a time like this, you’re still looking for her?”
Liang Jin didn’t get the response she wanted. She dragged herself upright. “Where is she?”
Shen Keye let out a cold laugh. “She went home.”
Relief washed over Liang Jin. She tilted her face against the seat and started to ask, “How did you—”
Shen Keye cut her off with a derisive snort. “Liang Jin, I’ve figured you out. Anyone else gets in trouble, and you’re the first one charging in.”
Anyone but him. She couldn’t care less about him.
Liang Jin’s thoughts moved sluggishly, slower than usual. She didn’t feel like talking, but her mouth felt parched.
Shen Keye turned a cold side-eye on her. “Liang Jin, maybe we should just put a tracker on you.”
Her voice came out soft and slurred. “Make Li Yibo break up with Wu Lin. He has a fiancée.”
They had already arrived home.
The car sat in the parking lot. It was too late; outside was nothing but inky blackness.
Liang Jin lifted a hand to rub her burning eyes. Nausea churned in her gut.
“Thanks for today,” she said.
The wind rushing through the windows on the drive had cleared her head a little, but she still felt top-heavy, her feet unsteady beneath her. She reached for the door, only to be yanked back.
Shen Keye pinned her shoulders, holding her in place. His other hand brushed her waist.
His palm burned like fire, as if it might snap her in two right there.
“Liang Jin,” he said, “what will it take for you to like me?”
The young man’s dark brows and eyes were intense, his thin lips curved in a ghost of a smile. His features were striking, carrying a boyish charm—but his actions now radiated danger and raw possession.
Especially when he lowered his gaze to pin her in place.
Liang Jin almost laughed. She wanted to, but a wave of emptiness crashed over her instead. “What do you mean? Have you fallen for me?”
Wu Lin had liked Li Yibo, only to be betrayed.
Her mother had liked Liang Wenbin, and she’d been betrayed too.
Liang Jin’s clear, deep eyes stared at him through the haze, disarming in their purity. No one could hold out against that gaze. Her tone was even, devoid of any flirtation. “Ah-Ye,” she said, “I won’t like you. And you don’t want me to love you anyway, do you?”
Shen Keye found it laughable. He regretted taking that call, coming to find her, standing up for her.
He leaned down and kissed her.
Liang Jin didn’t resist in the slightest.
Bored now, Shen Keye gripped the back of her neck and forced her to respond.
The faint rustle of fabric filled the air as his body pressed against hers, overwhelming her. Liang Jin tried to go through the motions, but her heart raced in chaos.
Shen Keye bit her—fiercely, without mercy.
The bright moon hung high in the night sky, but its light did not reach him.