Chapter Thirty-Three: A New World

Jiang Hu opened the door and entered, carrying food in his hands.

He acted as though nothing had happened, smiling as he set the tray down in front of Mo Nianian. “Sister, it’s time to eat.”

Mo Nianian leaned against her pillow, her expression caught between a smile and a sneer, an unspoken resentment simmering in her eyes. “Feeling capable now, are you?”

Jiang Hu remained silent, refusing to answer. He set up a small table over her bed. “Sister, eat first.”

Mo Nianian fingered the chain around her wrist. “How long are you planning to keep me here?”

“Sister, you haven’t eaten all day.”

“Unlock it.” Mo Nianian’s face was cold as she extended her chained hand, the links clinking.

“That’s impossible, Sister.” Jiang Hu gazed at the chain with an infatuated satisfaction, his eyes warm and obsessed.

He leaned in, his gaze consumed by longing, reaching out to caress her face. “From now on, you’re mine alone.”

Mo Nianian slapped his hand away. “Shut up. I don’t want to hear any of this.”

She was practically seething—this wretch was truly outrageous!

Jiang Hu’s expression darkened, his gaze flickering before he forced a smile. “It doesn’t matter. You can’t get out of it. I threw away the key. You’ll stay here with me forever.”

Mo Nianian let out a laugh of disbelief. “Do you really think this will keep me here?”

Jiang Hu fell silent. There were many things about Mo Nianian he did not know, and more than once he’d suspected she was not quite human. He lived in fear that one day she would vanish without a trace.

He licked his lips, his voice turning grim. “It’s alright. I’m prepared. Sister, even if you had wings, you couldn’t escape.”

Mo Nianian was so angry she nearly performed a disappearing act then and there. The system in her head was frantically trying to calm her down.

[Host, calm down, calm down—this is the final step, don’t throw it all away now. Stay calm.]

Mo Nianian’s smile never reached her eyes; she wanted nothing more than to strangle this wretch. She replied, each word laced with venom, [I am very calm right now.]

“Sister, let’s eat,” Jiang Hu said, sitting across from her and attempting to feed her.

She was indeed hungry, and she never let food go to waste.

She accepted the food Jiang Hu offered.

Jiang Hu’s eyes narrowed in satisfaction, savoring the moment. He was nearly trembling with excitement—at last, she was his. From now on, she would stay here, watching only him.

They would never be parted again.

His heart threatened to burst with fulfillment.

A sudden, resounding slap echoed through the room, leaving a vivid red mark across Jiang Hu’s face.

Mo Nianian leisurely withdrew her hand.

Jiang Hu lowered his head, his expression shifting several times before he forced another smile and looked up at her, “Sister, are you full now?”

Mo Nianian could no longer fathom this madman.

She turned over and lay down, refusing to acknowledge him any further.

Jiang Hu watched her back for a long while before leaving, his presence heavy and oppressive.

Thinking back, his actions had been riddled with flaws, but Mo Nianian had never suspected a thing. Looking at it now, she realized it was all of her own making.

If she’d known, she never would have taken him in. He was the protagonist; he wouldn’t have died if she’d thrown him out. At worst, she could’ve found him a sweet, kind heroine to warm his heart.

She’d been far too careless.

Mo Nianian: [Was the man at the party him as well?]

The system’s data glitched in panic. [I really don’t know!]

[Heh.]

Mo Nianian snorted. That pretty much confirmed it. So he’d had these thoughts long before?

Confined in this place, stripped of everything, Mo Nianian wasn’t sure what Jiang Hu had done to her, but her whole body was weak and powerless—she couldn’t even get out of bed, much less escape. The chain itself was of some unknown material, and even at her best, she wasn’t confident she could unlock it.

Clearly, he’d been planning this for a long time.

Jiang Hu seemed to know she didn’t want to see him, and so kept out of her sight, coming only to deliver her meals each day.

Mo Nianian showed no gratitude; she ate the food but offered him only blows. If her hand didn’t ache and she had any strength left, she’d have slapped him even more.

The red mark on his face never faded.

After two whole days trapped, she was at her limit, and the useless system still couldn’t be activated due to a malfunction.

Mo Nianian berated the system mercilessly.

Her anger had reached its peak.

Jiang Hu entered again, repeating the same words as always. “Sister, it’s time to eat.”

Mo Nianian sat on the bed, arms crossed. “How much longer do you plan to keep me here?”

He wouldn’t answer. “Today I made your favorite sweet and sour ribs. There’s plenty.”

“Jiang Hu!” There was a barely suppressed fury in her voice. “What is it that you want?”

“Yes, I mistreated you before. But over the past years, I’ve repaid all my debts. I owe you nothing, and there’s nothing binding us anymore—”

“Sister, won’t you at least taste it?”

Mo Nianian knocked his chopsticks from his hand. The food fell to the floor, gathering dust.

“What do you really want?” Her tone was icy, her gaze fixed on him, demanding an answer.

Jiang Hu lowered his head, trembling. “You know what I want! Sister, from the very beginning, I only ever wanted you!”

She had pulled him out of the abyss—how could she now cast him back into that hopeless hell alone?

How could she be so cruel?

“Then I’m sorry to disappoint you. I never loved you—not from the beginning, not ever.”

Her words were merciless and brutally honest.

Jiang Hu’s eyes filled with tears. He lunged at her, pinning her down. “I don’t believe you! You were always so good to me—how could you not love me? You’re mine, only mine!”

He tore at her clothes in a frenzy, possessed by madness.

Mo Nianian did not move, staring at him with cold indifference, her face utterly devoid of emotion. The look in her eyes was colder than for a stranger.

Jiang Hu stopped. Tears streamed down his reddened face, his voice choked with despair. “It doesn’t matter. Even if you don’t love me, as long as you stay by my side, we can be as we were.”

“Jiang Hu, there’s no going back.”

Mo Nianian cruelly shattered even his last hope.

He clung to her desperately, burying his face in her shoulder with the childish pleading of old. “We can, I know we can. Please, Sister, trust me.”

“We can be like before, can’t we? As long as you don’t send me away, I’ll do anything.”

He whimpered softly, like a little animal abandoned by the world.

“Jiang Hu, taking care of you was a complete accident. I have no obligation to keep you around. Now, I regret it. So could you please disappear from my world—forever?”