Chapter 133: Player 5

Tang Shiyu strode over and lifted Yu Liuxue off the bed in one swift motion, intending to move her to the sofa. Yu Liuxue clutched her phone and forced her eyes wide open. As she felt herself float up like a balloon, she hurriedly tossed the phone aside and wrapped both arms tightly around Nan Xu’s arm, giggling foolishly as she exclaimed, “Xuxu, I’m flying!”

Nan Xu was jolted awake by the commotion. She groggily opened her eyes, then smiled and said, “Yinyin, you’ve grown wings.”

Tang Shiyu’s temple twitched violently. Xuxu? Yinyin? Since when did the two of you get so close? With a dark expression, Tang Shiyu tossed Yu Liuxue onto the sofa, then turned to Nan Xu with a cold face. “Are you sober now?”

Nan Xu’s pupils gradually focused. When she realized she was frolicking in Tang Shiyu’s room, panic instantly set in. She scrambled off the bed in a flurry, but the alcohol still in her system made her wobble like a roly-poly doll the moment her feet touched the ground, making anyone watching break into a cold sweat.

Half-awake and half-dazed, Nan Xu stammered, “CEO… Tang?”

Tang Shiyu had no idea how Jian Yin had ended up with Nan Xu, nor what kind of game the two had been playing to end up like this—gathering people not only to play Fight the Landlord but also to drink themselves stupid. Two grown women, sprawled drunkenly on her clean, tidy bed. She was just about to say something to Nan Xu when a soft sound came from behind her. Turning around, she saw Yu Liuxue attempting to climb off the sofa, her eyes fixed on the phone still playing cheerful background music.

She’d had enough. Without hesitation, she ordered someone to escort Nan Xu back to her own room, then scooped up Yu Liuxue and dumped her straight into a bathtub filled with hot water.

As Tang Shiyu helped her bathe, she couldn’t help but wonder if she had committed some grave sin in a past life. Was that why she had to atone in this life by taking care of Jian Yin?

Lost in thought, she suddenly felt a sharp pain on the back of her hand. Looking down, she saw a clear bite mark on her pale skin, silently accusing someone of their recent crime. Yu Liuxue blinked at her with an especially innocent expression, raised two empty hands, and cheerfully asked, “Baby, is this golden axe¹ yours?”

Tang Shiyu’s eyelid twitched. Baby?

Seeing no response, Yu Liuxue waved her other hand, water droplets trailing down her flawless white skin. “Then how about this silver axe?”

Tang Shiyu: “…”

Still getting no reaction, Yu Liuxue lowered her hands in disappointment. Stubbornly, she groped around the bottom of the tub, then suddenly flung her hand upward, splashing water everywhere. Just as Tang Shiyu was about to wipe her face, she heard Yu Liuxue laugh gleefully and say, “Hey woman, then this green hat² must be yours!”

Tang Shiyu took a deep breath. Don’t get mad, don’t get mad. If others get mad, I won’t. Getting angry makes you sick and no one will suffer for you. If I get angry, who will be happy… Damn it!

When Yu Liuxue woke up, her head felt like it was about to explode. Her face was buried in a pillow, and the moment she tried to move, a tearing pain shot through her entire body. She immediately gave up and asked the System in disbelief, “Did Nan Xu throw me out the window last night and then a truck ran over me?”

The System poked out a tiny face. “No. Last night Nan Xu did not push you out the window, and you were not run over by a truck.”

“You just played games with Tang Shiyu all night.”

Yu Liuxue: “?”

Seeing that she had truly forgotten, the System helpfully re-uploaded the events of last night into her mind. Yu Liuxue blinked blankly. “Then Nan Xu and I…”

“Did absolutely nothing,” the System replied respectfully. “You two got way too into Fight the Landlord, drank a few rounds, and started calling each other sworn siblings³. You insisted on making Nan Xu your big sister. When she refused, you punished yourself by drinking more. Eventually, she gave in and accepted you as her little sister.”

Yu Liuxue: “???”

When she saw herself gleefully pull a handful of air from the water and tell Tang Shiyu it was her green hat, she felt like dying on the spot.

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Tang Shiyu was no longer in the room, so Yu Liuxue bravely climbed out of bed, cleaned up a little, grabbed her blow-dryer bag, and snuck out. Just as she closed the door and turned around, she came face-to-face with Nan Xu, who was also frowning tightly from a pounding headache. Their eyes met in silence. “…”

Yu Liuxue figured Nan Xu probably wanted to kill her right now, so without a second thought, she turned and ran. Unfortunately, she overestimated her stamina and was easily caught. Nan Xu shoved her into a nearby corner, her aura icy cold. “Jian Yin, you did that on purpose last night, didn’t you?”

Everything she had done was clearly meant to humiliate her in front of Tang Shiyu.

The image she had worked so hard to build over the past few years had been completely shattered overnight by Jian Yin. Now she didn’t even know how to face Tang Shiyu. She was terrified of seeing disappointment or doubt in her eyes. That would hurt more than death.

Staring at the culprit before her, Nan Xu clenched her fists tightly. Just as the heroine was about to explode, Yu Liuxue racked her brain and suddenly had a flash of inspiration. She grabbed Nan Xu’s hand and cried out, “Big Sister!”

“Big Sister, didn’t we already swear sisterhood at the hotel last night while lying in bed?” Yu Liuxue looked up at her with pitiful eyes. “I said you were the moon, the stars, and the light. And you said I was a flower, a pearl, more precious than anything else in the world.”

“Big Sister, don’t you remember?”

Those pure, sincere eyes stared straight at her, and Nan Xu, inexplicably, began to believe her. She furrowed her brow, trying to recall whether she had actually said something like that last night. While she was lost in thought, Yu Liuxue took the chance to push her aside and bolted like a rabbit, vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye. Nan Xu gritted her teeth in fury. “Jian Yin!”

Yu Liuxue darted into the elevator and frantically pressed the close button. Just as the doors were about to shut, she flashed a sweet smile at the chasing Nan Xu. “My moon, my stars, my light—until we meet again~”

As the last sliver of the elevator doors closed, Yu Liuxue let out a long sigh of relief. She quickly pressed the button for the first floor, opened her blow-dryer bag, and started texting her friends to hang out. But… she could still feel a sharp, icy gaze boring into her from behind. Yu Liuxue instinctively turned around—and saw Tang Shiyu’s face, darker than the bottom of a pot. “…!”

Without thinking, she lunged for the open button, but Tang Shiyu grabbed her back and asked with a chilling smile, “Moon, stars, and light?”

Yu Liuxue felt utterly miserable. She had just escaped the wolf’s den only to fall into the tiger’s lair. Was she cursed today?

She pressed her lips together and quickly said with a straight face, “Tang Shiyu, let me explain.”

“Ding—”

The elevator doors suddenly opened. Yu Liuxue stammered, then seized the moment. While Tang Shiyu was distracted, she yanked her hand free and made a break for it, shamelessly yelling at the top of her lungs as she ran, “Pervert! Someone’s being a pervert here!”

The security guard immediately rushed over. “Miss, may I ask—”

“Whoosh!” Yu Liuxue vanished before his eyes.

Security guard: “…”

He turned to see Tang Shiyu catching up and instinctively raised a hand to block her. “Miss, please wait a moment.”

Tang Shiyu had planned to avoid the security guards, but they wouldn’t let her pass. A few more burly men in security uniforms quickly surrounded her, and her expression darkened even further. She gritted her teeth and glared at them. “That was my girlfriend just now.”

“Sorry, whether she’s your girlfriend or not, we don’t know. But we’ll have to ask you to come with us.”

Tang Shiyu: “?”

In the end, it was thanks to the old police officer that she wasn’t taken to the station for a “friendly chat.” Over the phone, the officer tried to comfort her, saying, “Your girlfriend sure is full of energy.”

Tang Shiyu was momentarily speechless.

The old officer chuckled and added, “Don’t worry. We’ve got someone keeping an eye on her. If she so much as tries to tiptoe along the edge of the law, we’ll step in and give her a proper lesson on your behalf.”

Tang Shiyu: “…” Should I be saying thank you for that?

After successfully escaping from the tiger’s den, Yu Liuxue leaned against a wall by the roadside, panting like a dog. She rubbed her legs and pinched her waist, puzzled. She was still young—why were her back and legs in such bad shape? Could it be that Tang Shiyu had been too ruthless last night?

Her body ached faintly all over. And now that she’d successfully made Tang Shiyu misunderstand her relationship with Nan Xu, Yu Liuxue felt no urgency to complete her mission. She found another hotel and slept like the dead for two whole days to recover. Then she lazed in bed for another three days before finally bouncing back to life.

Now that both Tang Shiyu and Nan Xu probably wanted to skin her alive, she absolutely couldn’t go back to Jian Yin’s house or Tang Shiyu’s company. Pulling out her phone, she scrolled through the screen while speaking to the System. “How about we just take off on a spontaneous trip?”

“How about a yacht party?” Yu Liuxue rubbed her hands together excitedly. “Let’s go have fun for ten days or half a month. No looking back until we’ve toured the world!”

The System couldn’t talk her out of it, so it could only watch as Yu Liuxue paid the fee and signed up. The yacht was setting sail that night. Since everything was provided on board, she brought nothing with her and went empty-handed. After her identity was verified, she was shown to her room.

Yu Liuxue was full of fantasies about meeting cute girls. As soon as the tour group was assembled and the luxurious yacht left the dock, she rushed over to the tour guide, brimming with anticipation. “Guide, where is everyone else?”

She was practically bouncing. “Are there lots of pretty girls in our group this time?”

The guide gave her a half-smile and pointed behind her. “Pretty? I’m not sure. But rich? Definitely.”

Yu Liuxue turned to look in the direction he pointed—and saw a group of elderly grandpas and grandmas, decked out in gold and silver, dancing a waltz under the soft glow of elegant lights.

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She couldn’t help but shiver. “W-Wait… are these the people I’ll be spending the next half-month with?”

The guide nodded, looking at her with rare curiosity. “Honestly, I thought you signed up on behalf of your grandparents. Didn’t expect this.”

Yu Liuxue: I didn’t expect this either, damn it!

Captain, wait for me! There’s still someone who hasn’t gotten off! Don’t sail yet!

She sat in a corner, pitiful, small, and helpless. Her back looked lonely and desolate as she let the wind carry her tears. “Day one of the trip, and I’m already starting to miss Tang Shiyu.”

Thankfully, while the yacht was a bit lonely, it had no shortage of good food and fun. After Yu Liuxue worked hard to integrate into the group of elderly passengers, it wasn’t so bad. Her days were filled with half-dozing through their stories of youth, occasionally pouring tea, refilling snacks, running errands—basically playing the role of a diligent little granddaughter.

After seven days, not only had she gained five pounds, but she’d also started to let herself go.

The trip was only supposed to last fifteen days. When the long-awaited day to disembark finally arrived, Yu Liuxue, now carrying a few extra pounds, stood proudly in front of the tour guide and shouted with heroic fervor, “Guide! I’m ready! I’m prepared to disembark at any moment and contribute to the great cause of socialism!”

After shouting, she couldn’t help but feel that the red scarf⁴ over her chest was even more vibrant.

Just then, a grandma walked over and took her hand. At the same time, a grandpa climbed up onto a table and looked at Yu Liuxue, saying, “Over the past half-month, we especially want to thank this young lady for her care and attention!”

“So, after discussing with my wife, we’ve decided to personally fund another half-month of yacht fun for everyone!”

Yu Liuxue was stunned on the spot. “?!”

“System, pinch me. I need to know if I’m dreaming,” Yu Liuxue said cautiously. The moment she finished, a jolt of electricity surged through her body, and she convulsed. “Damn!”

The System blinked. “Host, did that hurt?”

Yu Liuxue: “?” Did this damn System just electrocute me?

Against her will, Yu Liuxue was once again forced to stay on the luxurious yacht for another half-month. Thanks to her tireless efforts and quick wit, the elderly group adored her to no end—treating her almost like their own granddaughter.

The yacht’s little errand girl could only manage a sorrowful smile.

After finally enduring the second fifteen-day stretch, the day to disembark came at last. Yu Liuxue, now proudly carrying the Hermès bag gifted by a grandma, marched up to the tour guide and declared, “Guide! I’m ready! I’m prepared to disembark at any moment and dedicate everything to my motherland!”

Then she immediately broke into a wailing expression. “Please, I’m begging you, let me off this boat!”

There were no cute girls here. No Tang Shiyu. She’d been lying in bed alone for a whole thirty days!

The guide looked at her with amusement and tilted his chin, motioning for her to turn around. A sudden sense of dread crept up in Yu Liuxue’s chest. Slowly, she turned—and saw yet another grandpa standing tall on a table.

“These past fifteen days, we especially want to thank Yin Yin for her care and attention…”

Yu Liuxue: Dead.

She rolled her eyes and collapsed on the spot. Immediately, a group of grandpas and grandmas rushed over, pinching her philtrum⁵ and asking anxiously, “Girl, girl, what’s wrong?”

Yu Liuxue clutched a grandma’s hand, tears brimming in her eyes. “I-I miss my partner…”

She finally got off the yacht. The moment she stepped off, she was carried away on a stretcher. The grandpas and grandmas held their spouses’ hands and looked on with sympathy. “Ah, poor girl missed her woman so much she ended up in the hospital…”

Not long after Yu Liuxue disembarked, Tang Shiyu got the news. When she heard Yu Liuxue had been hospitalized, her beautiful brows furrowed tightly. What on earth had Jian Yin been doing on that yacht for a whole month to end up in the hospital?

Tang Shiyu couldn’t help but think of that night when Yu Liuxue got drunk and grabbed at thin air, claiming it was her fallen green hat. Could it be that for the past thirty days, she’d been… in bed the whole time…?

She quickly grabbed her phone and car keys and rushed to the hospital. Nan Xu had been on her way to deliver some documents. Seeing Tang Shiyu in such a hurry, she instinctively called out, “CEO Tang, is something wrong?”

Tang Shiyu didn’t even look back. “It’s none of your business.”

Nan Xu forced a smile, but the disappointment in her eyes was impossible to hide. Ever since she’d been framed by Jian Yin and ended up in Tang Shiyu’s bed, Tang Shiyu’s attitude toward her had grown cold. She clenched her palm lightly, a bitter taste rising on her tongue.

Less than ten minutes later, Tang Shiyu arrived at the hospital. Standing at the door, she saw Yu Liuxue happily eating hot pot takeout, and her face was full of question marks.

After taking a deep breath and mentally preparing herself, Tang Shiyu pushed open the door and walked in. Yu Liuxue instinctively looked up, and when she saw Tang Shiyu, her eyes lit up. She was just about to speak, but Tang Shiyu completely ignored her and instead turned to the doctor. “Hello, I’m her family member. May I ask about her condition…”

As soon as the doctor heard that, he immediately motioned for her to step outside to talk. After carefully closing the door, he quickly pleaded for help. “There’s absolutely nothing wrong with her, but she insists she’s sick and refuses to leave the hospital. We’ve tried everything, but she just won’t go.”

Tang Shiyu froze. “There’s nothing wrong with her body?”

“Nothing at all,” the doctor said with certainty. “We’ve done a full-body checkup. I can stake my reputation on it… Oh right, she did say her periods are irregular. You should keep an eye on that and make sure she doesn’t eat spicy food again. It’ll affect her ability to get pregnant in the future.”

Tang Shiyu couldn’t help but glance back. Was Jian Yin just… eating hotpot?

The doctor shook his head repeatedly. “The weekend’s almost here. Every week we get a bunch of patients who binge-eat and end up here. Just take her and go. Don’t hog the bed if you’re not actually sick.”

“If she really refuses to leave, just register her under psychiatry.”

Tang Shiyu: “…”

When she returned with a dark expression, Yu Liuxue had already finished the hotpot and was brushing her teeth, touching up her lipstick in the mirror. The moment she caught sight of Tang Shiyu in the reflection, she snapped her lipstick shut and rushed over. “Tang Shiyu, don’t you dare say you don’t have something going on with Nan Xu! You were only missing for half a month and I called the police to help search for you. But I was missing for a whole month and you didn’t care at all!”

“You’re just waiting for me to die so you can roll around with your little assistant!”

Tang Shiyu’s temper flared again. The elderly couple in the next bed and the nurse all looked at her strangely. She gritted her teeth. “This is a hospital. Don’t make a scene.”

With that, she grabbed Yu Liuxue and started dragging her out. Yu Liuxue followed obediently, but her mouth didn’t stop. “You must’ve had a great time this month without me, huh? Calling your assistant during the day, and your assistant calling you at night. Oh, where did you two do it? Don’t tell me it was on the office couch…”

Tang Shiyu’s icy glare shot over instantly. Yu Liuxue faltered for a moment and immediately shut her mouth.

Tang Shiyu didn’t say another word. The air around her was freezing, and her gaze looked like it could devour someone. Yu Liuxue clutched her seatbelt tightly, her heart pounding wildly. As they neared home, Yu Liuxue stubbornly spoke up again. “If you have the guts to do it, don’t be a coward about admitting it.”

“If you really have no feelings for Nan Xu, then why have we argued so many times and you still haven’t kicked her out? You’d rather spare her feelings than let your girlfriend suffer. And you still dare say you don’t have feelings for her…”

Before she could finish, Tang Shiyu tackled her. Before she could even react, her clothes had already been torn to shreds.

Yu Liuxue’s heart surged with excitement, but her face still wore that unrelenting, self-righteous expression. “Don’t use force. Say something.”

Tang Shiyu paused, then said helplessly, “I’ll transfer Nan Xu to the branch office in another city.”

“She’s the daughter of Mom’s high school classmate. Her mom personally came to ask for the job.”

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Yu Liuxue threw another unreasonable tantrum, and finally, thoroughly satisfied, she and Tang Shiyu went at it seven times in one day, completely draining Tang Shiyu. Afterward, Yu Liuxue complained, “Why did they give Tang Shiyu such amazing skills? At this rate, I’m going to start getting attached to her.”

System: Speechless handsome guy.

After resting for a while, Tang Shiyu got up to get dressed. She had already grown used to her own rogue tendency to pounce on Jian Yin at the drop of a hat. She felt no guilt—if anything, she was already looking forward to the next time. Once dressed, she said calmly, “This weekend, I’ll take you home to meet my parents.”

Yu Liuxue didn’t even think before replying, “No.”

Tang Shiyu’s eyelid twitched. She gritted her teeth. “We’re just having a family meal.”

Yu Liuxue’s ears perked up. Family meal? That meant Sister-in-law Lu Ling would be there too? She immediately changed her mind. “Alright, but I’ll drive myself. No need to trouble you.”

The corners of her lips curled into a devilish, arrogant smile. “Tang Shiyu, don’t think that just because you’ve had my body a few times, you can do whatever you want. In my heart, you’re still the most annoying person in the world.”

Afraid she’d die of anger if she stayed any longer, Tang Shiyu put on her watch and left with a blank expression.

Yu Liuxue let out a satisfied burp.

As soon as the weekend arrived, she drove Tang Shiyu’s luxury car straight to her future in-laws’ mansion. From a distance, before even getting out of the car, she spotted Lu Ling looking especially gentle today. Yu Liuxue immediately got excited and rushed over. “Sister-in-law!”

Lu Ling turned around and greeted her politely with a smile. She thought Yu Liuxue would stop, but instead, the girl ran straight into her arms.

Lu Ling’s hand froze in midair. She instinctively turned to look at Tang Shiyu, who had just come out carrying a fruit platter. Yu Liuxue tilted her little face up, her eyes blinking like stars. “Sister-in-law, ever since we parted last time, I’ve missed you so much.”

“I missed your lips, your smile, and your tenderness toward me.”

With every word Yu Liuxue spoke, Tang Shiyu and the man behind her both grew darker in expression. Finally, the man couldn’t take it anymore. He strode over and pulled his girlfriend into his arms, then pointed rudely at Tang Shiyu. “Jian Yin, your woman is over there.”

Go hug your own woman. Stop staring at mine.

Though disappointed, Yu Liuxue had no choice but to look at Tang Shiyu. She was about to speak when she suddenly doubled over and gagged. “Urgh—”

Yu Liuxue: “…?”

Tang Shiyu’s face was expressionless. “What, do I disgust you that much?”

Just then, Tang Shiyu’s parents appeared. Yu Liuxue quickly shook her head in denial. “No, I didn’t mean that. Don’t misunderstand.” She smiled politely at her future in-laws, and when they returned her smile, she turned back to Tang Shiyu. This time, she was ready to praise her in front of her parents to earn some brownie points. But just as she opened her mouth, she let out another earth-shattering, soul-shaking “Urgh—”

The pitch rose and fell, powerful and resonant, like a Buddhist chant of sorrow that cleansed the hearts of everyone present.

Tang Shiyu took a deep breath and gritted her teeth. “Jian Yin, you better be pregnant.”

Yu Liuxue’s eyes instantly widened like copper bells: “?!”

Pregnant?!!!

Translator’s Notes