Volume 1, Chapter 25: What Did You Buy, My Dear?

Faith Lowe did not let Su Yu stay at the mall for long before having her sent home.

As soon as the car pulled up to the entrance, Su Yu looked up and saw Si Yan standing there. He held a cigarette between his fingers, the crimson ember flickering in the twilight. He exhaled a ring of smoke that dissipated into the cool breeze. It was clear he had been waiting for a long time. When she didn't return, his brow had furrowed with impatience, and the cigarette between his fingers was crushed and wrinkled.

He had already cursed himself a thousand times over in his heart: *Damn it! I shouldn't have let her out.*

Just a short while without seeing her had left his heart feeling as if it were being squeezed—anxious and stifled. Yet, mixed into that feeling was an inexplicable sense of ferocity; he hated her for daring to make him wait so long, and hated himself even more for being so desperately tethered to this heartless little thing.

The moment Su Yu pushed open the car door and her feet touched the ground, Si Yan—like a large dog that had been waiting for its master—rushed over in a few strides. He reached out with a large palm, familiarly wrapping it around Su Yu’s slender waist. With a hint of imperceptible possessiveness in his tone, he looked at the items in her hand and asked, "Baby, what did you buy?"

Encircled by him, Su Yu lifted the shopping bag toward him and took out the item, her voice indifferent: "Nothing much, just this..."

Inside the bag was a men’s belt, a cheap, impulsive purchase. Back at the mall, she had racked her brains and concluded that this might be the only way to momentarily distract this madman, Si Yan, so he wouldn't spend all his time spying on her.

Sure enough, when Si Yan saw that she had bought something for him, his deep eyes instantly lit up like ignited starlight. He immediately released her waist, his attention entirely fixated on the belt, his fingertips already itching to touch it.

"You bought this?" the man asked, looking at her from the side. Why would she suddenly buy him a belt? It seemed suspicious, yet he loved it. As long as it was a gift from his baby, he loved everything!

"Yes." Su Yu replied. Obviously, who else would have bought it?

"Heh, what made you think of buying me a belt?" Si Yan stared at her with burning eyes, as if trying to see through her hidden motives.

"If you don't want it, forget it. I'll give it to someone else!" Su Yu said deliberately.

"That won't do! You are not allowed to give it to that loser!" The man domineeringly snatched the belt from her hand, his gaze locked onto it. There was no way he would let her give it to Han Yan!

***

Taking advantage of this gap, Su Yu clenched the hand at her side. While Si Yan’s focus was completely on the belt, she bent down nonchalantly and swiftly tucked the micro-communicator hidden in her palm into the gap beneath the shoe cabinet. The movement was so quick it left almost no trace.

The moment the communicator was hidden, the tension in Su Yu's back eased slightly, and she let out a quiet sigh of relief. But before she could fully relax, Si Yan turned around. He didn't speak; he simply stared at her with a heavy, unfathomable gaze. His black eyes were bottomless, and the air seemed to freeze.

Su Yu’s heart skipped a beat, rising into her throat. *Did he see me?*

Her fingertips curled slightly, and she even held her breath. Just as she grew nervous, Si Yan suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist. With his other hand, he shoved the new belt into her palm, his tone brooking no argument: "Put it on me!"

Su Yu looked down at the belt already cinched around his waist—it was perfectly fine. Didn't he already have one? She paused, holding the new belt, feeling momentarily bewildered.

"Hurry up." Seeing her stunned, Si Yan raised an eyebrow and urged her, his voice carrying an imperceptible sense of urgency.

Su Yu had no choice but to bow her head, her fingers clumsy. This was the first time she had ever done such a thing. When her fingertips brushed against the cool metal buckle, her earlobes quietly flushed with heat.

The man cooperated, raising his arms to give her space. He looked down, his gaze fixed on the top of her head as her hair swayed gently, watching her fumble with the buckle with such earnest, flustered focus. A faint, nearly imperceptible smile touched the corners of his lips, and his eyes held a softness he hadn't even realized was there.

Su Yu gripped the ends of the new belt, her hands loosely circling his waist. Just as she was about to thread it through the loops, Si Yan leaned in closer, deliberately brushing against her. His warm breath fell against her ear, carrying the faint scent of tobacco. He raised a large hand and gently lifted her chin with his thumb, forcing her to look at him.

His eyes were inquisitive, but his tone sounded like a casual question: "Why are you being so obedient today?"

"Did you do something to wrong me?"

The man had already started letting his imagination run wild—for her to be so docile, and even take the initiative to buy him a belt and help him put it on, it couldn't be anything good. Either she was secretly plotting how to leave him, or... she was colluding with that woman named Faith Lowe behind his back, planning to sell him out? The more he thought about it, the darker his eyes grew, and his grip on her chin tightened unconsciously.

***

Su Yu really couldn't outwit him; he could see right through her! If she scolded him, he was angry. If she stopped scolding him and tried to please him, he was still angry. It was truly difficult!

"Speak!"

Si Yan’s phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, a dangerous glint flashing within them. His hand tightened on her chin, and the pain radiating from her jaw made Su Yu frown. A surge of anger suddenly rushed to her head. She snatched the belt back before it could be fastened and said with heat, "If you don't want it, just say so! I’m not giving it to you!"

With that, she turned and ran upstairs, leaving Si Yan standing there alone.

Reaching the bedroom door, she slammed it shut with a *bang*, locked it with a *click*, and leaned against the panel, gasping for air. Then, she threw herself onto the bed, burying her face in the soft quilt, her heart still pounding. That look in Si Yan's eyes just now had been too terrifying—it felt as if he could see right through her. That man was truly, truly terrifying.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

A rapid knocking sounded at the door, followed by Si Yan’s voice from the other side, softening into a coaxing tone: "Baby, open the door. Husband was wrong."

"It was wrong of me to be suspicious of you. Won't you open the door?"

"I really do like the belt you bought!"

He knocked a few more times, his tone sounding much more earnest. Si Yan was filled with regret. Because of an unfounded accusation, he hadn't just lost his wife; he had also lost the belt his soft, fragrant wife had bought for him. If she wouldn't give it to him, she wouldn't give it to that loser Li Han Yan, would she?

Su Yu kept her face buried in the pillow, refusing to listen to his act. She deliberately called back with a tone of grievance and stubbornness, determined to be unreasonable: "Liar! You don't like it at all!"

"You even looked down on the things I bought, and I look down on you too!" She rolled over and shouted at the door panel, "Go away!"