Volume 1, Chapter 27: Is the Fifth Master still hung up on his ex?

After sending the message, Ning Yu felt completely drained and collapsed onto the bed.

That excuse was only good enough to coax a child; it wouldn’t even fool Lin Haoyu, let alone Li Shiyan—that bastard wouldn’t believe a word of it.

Who knew what trouble he might cause her next time, or what traps he’d set.

Just thinking of Li Shiyan gave Ning Yu a headache, and the pain in her back felt even worse.

Before she could sigh, her phone screen lit up with a call from an unknown number.

It was Li Shiyan.

Ning Yu buried her head in the pillow, making her voice sound muffled and weak as she answered, “Fifth Master.”

Her voice was indeed faint, sounding so fragile it seemed it could be swept away by the wind at any moment.

On the other end, the man hesitated briefly, only the sound of whistling wind before he finally spoke: “Caught a cold? Need me to bring you some medicine?”

Even now, he was still teasing her.

Ning Yu rolled her eyes. “No need to trouble you, Fifth Master. I’ve already taken medicine; I just need to rest for a couple of days. Looks like I won’t be able to complete what I promised you…”

The man on the phone chuckled. “I heard when you have a fever, you feel especially hot inside — quite an intense experience.”

Ning Yu: …

She cursed him silently for being so heartless. How could his mind be filled with that kind of thing when she was sick? A man over thirty with such a high libido!

Ning Yu forced a smile. “It seems that sitting in the emergency room has been suffocating for you, Fifth Master. Must be a lot of pressure, and with your age, you really should find a way to properly vent…”

She didn’t finish her sentence before the man’s mocking voice came through: “Ning Yu.”

Ning Yu replied instinctively, “Hmm?”

No response.

She waited two minutes before calling again, “Fifth Master?”

This time, the man spoke: “Lin Haoyu and Ning Yunyun are at Zhuyu.”

He saw them? Then he must be at Zhuyu as well. Ning Yu didn’t care about their liaison; it was Li Shiyan she was concerned about. After a moment’s thought, she said, “Then… I hope you enjoy yourself at Zhuyu, Fifth Master.”

“You’re quite carefree,” Li Shiyan sneered.

“Well, I just said that you must be quite repressed working as a doctor…” Ning Yu trailed off as she heard the sound of a lighter flicking—he was lighting a cigarette.

Suddenly, the man called again, “Ning Yu.”

She paused, holding back the urge to tell him to smoke less. “I’m here.”

“If I really came to bring you medicine today?” His voice was slurred—he must have had the cigarette in his mouth.

Ning Yu was silent for a moment, then softly asked, “Would you come?”

No answer; instead, he threw the question back to her.

The man let out a low laugh, ambiguous and unreadable. “You dumped me, yet I still rush to bring you medicine. You really treat me like a dog, don’t you, Ning Yu?”

His words dragged Ning Yu’s thoughts uncontrollably back.

She had forgotten how long ago it was—long ago—when Li Shiyan was busy making money, working as a stunt double by day, a model, and spending nights almost glued to underground fight clubs.

Ning Yu always waited for him deep into the night, but he never came home. When she closed her eyes, he hadn’t returned; when she woke, he was already gone again.

Fearing she was lonely, Li Shiyan had bought her a puppy.

Maybe she really was a magnet for misfortune—whether people or animals around her, life was always rough. That puppy soon fell ill and died.

That day, Ning Yu’s eyes were swollen red from crying, her whole body nearly suffering from respiratory alkalosis. When Li Shiyan came back, he held her tightly, comforting her as best he could.

Ning Yu would remember forever his hoarse yet earnest voice, despite his own injuries: “Xiaoyu, from now on, I’ll be your little dog.”

His question implied denial while mocking her.

But Ning Yu’s intuition told her something was wrong.

Determined, she struggled to sit up, barefoot, and walked to the window, gripping the tightly shut frame as if betting on something.

She opened the window and peeked out. Not far off, a white car was parked.

Ning Yu heard her heart pounding faster inside her chest. Under the streetlight, she could make out the car emblem and even took a photo.

A silver-white Bentley Continental, with a license plate she’d never seen before. No one sat in the driver’s seat; the engine seemed long off.

Li Shiyan didn’t like Bentleys. He preferred off-road vehicles—especially rugged ones.

That big G-Class suited his temperament perfectly.

Her little hope was dashed. Her heartbeat gradually calmed, and her rationality returned.

The man's impatient, hoarse voice pulled her thoughts back forcibly: “Speak.”

Ning Yu closed the window gently and flopped back onto the bed, suppressing the slight disappointment in her heart. She smiled faintly: “Good thing you didn’t come, Fifth Master. I almost mistook you for still pining over your ex.”

The man was silent for two seconds, then laughed at her foolishness: “Dreams are only worth having if you can fall asleep.”

His answer was decisive.

“True enough.” Ning Yu smiled bitterly, burying her head in the pillow, trying to erase the bitterness in her smile.

He didn’t hang up, and neither did she.

She wanted to sleep, but lying prone for too long became uncomfortable. With the call still ongoing, more than an hour passed and she was only half-asleep, drifting somewhere between waking and sleep.

No sound came through the phone. Slightly dazed, she hoarsely called out, “Li Shiyan.”

The wind blew, wrapping around the man’s hoarse, magnetic voice: “I’m here.”

For some reason, hearing those two words dispelled much of her loneliness, and Ning Yu fell peacefully asleep.

Night fell.

Outside the Ning family villa.

A man leaned against a tree, his tall, upright silhouette hidden in shadow.

White smoke rose from the cigarette between his fingers, one after another.

He rested his back against the trunk, his gaze fixed on a window on the villa’s second floor.

No light shone from within. His instincts never deceived him.

Li Shiyan never made a mistake about Ning Yu.

Dawn broke, and the silver-white Bentley Continental drove away.

……

Ning Yu’s mother wanted to keep her confined for a few more days, at least until her injuries healed.

But the next day, Lin Haoyu showed up, claiming he had an appointment with Ning Yu.

What appointment? There was none. The previous day at Zhuyu, when he took Ning Yunyun there, he hadn’t expected his uncle to be present.

Lin Haoyu was afraid Li Shiyan would misunderstand and think he cared more about Ning Yunyun, especially since his uncle had warned him.

He knew the Lin family’s reputation couldn’t be ruined by him.

So by noon, he came over, hoping to formally take Ning Yu to a social event to show face.

“Haoyu, I know this. I shouldn’t keep you two from dating. But Ning Yu caught a chill last night and has a bit of a cold; maybe another day?” Ning Yu’s mother smiled, trying to decline.

“Ning Yu’s sick? Perfect timing. My uncle is an expert in both Chinese and Western medicine. Let him examine Ning Yu; he’ll have her better in no time!” Lin Haoyu was unusually eager and persistent, ignoring all of Ning Yu’s mother’s refusals.

Her mother could only ask for Ning Yu: “Xiaoyu, look how concerned Haoyu is for you. You must be good to him and be careful not to say anything to upset or hurt him…”

A warning not to say the wrong thing.

Ning Yu had no time to show Lin Haoyu her injuries. Thinking they were going to some social event, she tidied up and followed him.

Determined to redeem his reputation in front of Li Shiyan, Lin Haoyu said nothing and took her straight to the People’s Hospital.

Only when Lin Haoyu pulled Ning Yu to stand at the emergency entrance did she realize.

Letting Li Shiyan know she had lied about having a cold last night was an inevitable ordeal.