0040 Would you like to use something else to cover the cost first?

The villa was heavily guarded, and entry required multiple checks. Once inside, the banquet hall had been set up with 10 tables for a reunion with important relatives and friends. Young children were running and playing in the hall, creating a lively scene.

But this liveliness ultimately had nothing to do with Song Ning. None of the people here were related to her by blood; she was always an outsider.

For an orphan, such a scene of being surrounded by children and grandchildren is not heartwarming, but rather cruel.

In previous years, she had always declined, citing Su Qingru's presence in Nansu. This year, perhaps because Old Master Shen's health was deteriorating, even Su Qingru had specially arranged a vacation to come, leaving Song Ning with no excuse.

Mr. Shen arrived late at the last minute before the banquet began.

The old man had a full head of white hair, his lips were tightly closed, and his expression was serious. Time had etched lines on his face, but it had not taken away the ruthless determination in his eyes.

As soon as Mr. Shen came out, the children who were playing in the hall stopped and dared not make a fuss. They were all carried by their parents to sit down at the table.

He was followed by several elders, as well as Shen Yuxiu and Shen Jiayi.

Song Ning knew that the old man greatly admired Shen Jiayi, who had joined the army, but Shen Yuxiu…

Didn't this old man always look down on him? Why bring him along? He's so old, you can't expect him to join the army, can you?

Song Ning glanced at Shen Yuxiu and secretly complained, but then she saw that Shen Yuxiu was also looking at her. However, this time he didn't smile at her like before; instead, he looked serious and there wasn't a smile on his face.

Song Ning lowered her head to drink water, avoiding Shen Yuxiu's gaze. She was seated at a table with Shen Yuxiu and his peers, where an old classmate, Shen Jiayu, was also present.

Shen Jia sat down next to her: "You don't seem very happy today."

Song Ning put down her water glass: "If you can't see clearly, don't talk nonsense. I just have a sour face, it has nothing to do with my mood."

"Haha. Your face is really arrogant when you're not smiling. Remember the first time I met you? The way you were so arrogant was really annoying," Shen Jia joked.

You think you're so great?

Song Ning simply made the stench even more obvious.

Before Mr. Shen arrived, no one touched their chopsticks. Now that he has sat down, everyone has started to pick up their chopsticks one after another.

Wine glasses clinked, elders and juniors exchanged pleasantries and chatted casually.

Song Ning ate a couple of bites hastily and then retreated into the room that had been arranged for her.

Once the noise from playing outside had subsided and the voices had fallen silent, Song Ning went outside to find a drink of water.

A substitute maid offered to fetch water for Song Ning, but Song Ning refused.

On the way to the main hall, Song Ning knew that most of the guests had already gone to sleep, and only a few servants on duty were still awake, fearing that Song Ning might end up like them.

It was already past 2 a.m., after all, and she was such a night owl...

Just as Song Ning was about to say no, she saw Shen Yuxiu walking in from another corridor connecting to the main hall.

To provide lighting for those who come here, the lights are not turned off anywhere except the bedroom, so she could clearly see his gloomy eyes.

He approached, his voice unusually sharp: "Why don't you answer the phone or reply to messages?"

"I didn't see you being particularly eager to see me." The kitchen connected to the main hall. Song Ning went into the kitchen, took a bottle of ice water from the refrigerator, and took a swig.

The cool water flowed down my stomach, relieving the dryness brought on by the heating, but it couldn't wash away the unhappiness in my heart.

If you really want to find her, you can just ask any of the maids to find out which room she is in. Why do you have to pretend to call or text her?

"How long are you going to keep making me angry?" Shen Yuxiu asked, his tone almost icy, devoid of his usual doting affection.

Song Ning saw Shen Yuxiu's chest heaving violently, as if he was suppressing his anger, but the expression on his face made him seem afraid. Song Ning felt a pang in her heart and a strange sense of sadness and heartache.

"Is this how you admit your mistake? It's more like you're threatening someone." Song Ning stubbornly refused to back down, but her tone was no longer as fiery as before.

She didn't understand what he was afraid of. Was he afraid she would find out something, or that someone would hurt her? With him and Shen Xiaoyue protecting her, who would dare to hurt her?

"Come back to the room with me." Shen Yuxiu grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards him.

Song Ning didn't resist, but her wrist was gripped tightly and it hurt a little. Song Ning reminded him, "Shen Yuxiu, pull less, it hurts."

Shen Yuxiu glanced at Song Ning out of the corner of his eye and indeed relaxed a little.

The moment the two entered the room, a fire was ignited, as if dry wood had been kindled.

Before the door was even closed, Shen Yuxiu grabbed Song Ning's chin, pressed her against the wall, and kissed her passionately.

Shen Yuxiu's hot, wet tongue forcefully and aggressively invaded Song Ning's mouth, sweeping wildly through every nook and cranny.

Shen Yuxiu ate half of Song Ning's lipstick, and the other half smudged, making her already full lips look even sexier.

Saliva that she couldn't swallow in time spilled from the corner of her mouth and flowed down her delicate chin. Song Ning's tongue went numb from Shen Yuxiu's kiss.

She pushed against Shen Yuxiu's chest, trying to make him stop, but Shen Yuxiu acted like a madman, recklessly stirring her lips and tongue, their necks intertwined, their hot breaths mingling.

Song Ning, in a fit of rage, closed her mouth to bite his tongue, which he was trying to provoke, but he grabbed her cheek and, after another round of almost punishing tongue-teeth entanglement, Shen Yuxiu finally released Song Ning, his breath unsteady and his gaze desolate: "I can't let you bite me today."

"Shen Yuxiu, you kissed me too hard," Song Ning gasped, her eyes welling up with tears.

Shen Yuxiu closed the door and reached into his casual trousers to take out a small box.

Song Ning was stunned and looked up at Shen Yuxiu in surprise.

Proposing marriage?

Shen Yuxiu seemed to see what she was thinking, opened the box towards her, and said with a cold expression: "A New Year's gift. I originally wanted to give it to you at midnight."

Inside the box was a gold necklace with a horizontal "S"-shaped gold strip in the middle, engraved with "IC1805 & IC1848".

"Can't you come to my room?" Song Ning picked up the necklace and stroked the number on it with great affection.

She didn't know much about astronomy, but Shen Yuxiu had mentioned these two things before.

He said there are some very romantic nebulae in astronomy. She listened very carefully at the time, and she especially remembered these two.

The Heart Nebula and the Soul Nebula.

"The old man won't let us leave." Shen Yuxiu put away the box.

"Shen Yuxiu, what do these two numbers mean?" Song Ning asked.

"Find it yourself." Shen Yuxiu maintained his icy expression. "Shall I bring it for you?"

So you can be shy too?

"Don't think I'm not angry just because you gave me this necklace. You were sucking me like a leech just now, it hurt so much." Song Ning handed the necklace to Shen Yuxiu, turned her back, and grabbed her hair.

Actually, she had also prepared a New Year's gift for him, but she was too embarrassed to give it to him first.

"You've never cared about yourself, so why are you afraid of pain?" Shen Yuxiu unfastened the necklace and put it on her, his expression still unpleasant.

Song Ning turned around: "I didn't."

"Let my people stay with you for a while, and once this is over, I'll have them leave."

"You're not going to hide it from me anymore?" Song Ning turned around.

"Whether you believe it or not, stopping you from going has never been my choice," Shen Yuxiu said.

“But someone said you contacted him and told him to stop investigating,” Song Ning confronted.

“I did contact him, but I didn’t stop him. When I went to see him, I only asked him to keep an eye on your situation, not to give up the investigation,” Shen Yuxiu said frankly.

"So, Dad's the only one who won't let me investigate?" Song Ning asked.

Shen Yuxiu remained silent.

Song Ning knew that Shen Yuxiu was not answering in order to protect Shen Xiaoyue, and she also knew that Shen Xiaoyue was doing it for her own good, but that was not what she wanted: "Why didn't you explain before?"

“It didn’t matter if you misunderstood me back then, but not now. I need you to believe in me, and also believe in the person who is protecting you.” Shen Yuxiu reached out and touched the necklace on her collarbone, his fingertips lingering on the number on it.

His heart and soul were the gifts he wanted to give her.

Song Ning stared at Shen Yuxiu, whose eyes held an indescribable gloom. For some reason, Song Ning suddenly felt a sense of panic. She grabbed Shen Yuxiu's hand and called out to him, "Shen Yuxiu."

Shen Yuxiu calmly withdrew his hand, pulled Song Ning to sit down on a single chair, and sat down opposite Song Ning: "Didn't you want to know who sent the letter? As long as you agree to let me find someone to protect you, I can tell you who he is. You can let that amateur detective verify the truth."

"Then tell me, if what you say is true, I'll consider letting that person stay." Song Ning suddenly wanted to reassure Shen Yuxiu.

“Yes, I agree. I agree to let you find someone to protect you,” Shen Yuxiu argued.

“If what you’re saying is true, then I agree to let you find someone to protect me,” Song Ning promised.

As long as that person doesn't stop her, follow her, or protect her, she doesn't care. How could he not understand? What she cares about isn't that he hired someone to follow her, but that he refuses to stand by her side.

She doesn't need others to influence her choices under the guise of doing what's best for her; she wants to be able to choose for herself.

Shen Yuxiu rubbed his temples, seemingly relaxing a bit. He bent down, resting his hands loosely on his slightly open thighs, and continued, "The sender's surname was Ding. He was a courier who accidentally fell from a building and died a while ago."

She already knew that; that amateur detective was quite dedicated, investigating cases even during the Chinese New Year, and very efficient.

According to the detective's analysis, the sender and writer of the letter were not the same person. The sender was only in his twenties, had a child, and had no relation to Song Ning, so it couldn't have been him who wrote the letter.

"And who wrote the letter?" Song Ning asked.

“This is not within the scope of the transaction.” Shen Yuxiu stood up and leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, his expression clear – there was no room for negotiation.

"You're using something I already know to negotiate with me?" Song Ning's eyes widened, her face flushed with anger.

"I made myself very clear just now; I was telling you who sent the letter," Shen Yuxiu said matter-of-factly.

"You cheated! I don't want to honor the contract." Song Ning almost stomped her foot. She got up and paced around the room, trying to relieve the anger in her chest.

She could have agreed even without the deal, but now she felt inexplicably uneasy, with a persistent feeling of being cheated or taken advantage of. She even suspected that his expression just now was a deliberate act to soften her heart.

“I didn’t know you already knew beforehand.” Shen Yuxiu’s gaze followed Song Ning.

"Who cares if you know or not?" Song Ning stood still, wishing she could drill two holes in Shen Yuxiu with her gaze.

She was furious because she hadn't gained anything at all and had even been tricked.

"Then I'll give you something else in exchange?" A faint smile appeared on Shen Yuxiu's face, which had been cold all night.

"What?"

Song Ning felt that nothing could relieve her frustration.

Shen Yuxiu said slowly, "Your Class D driver's license."

Well, the temptation was just too great. She had just gotten her driver's license when Su Qingru forced her to keep it for her because of speeding. She had asked for it back several times, but Su Qingru refused to give it to her.

“Your own son is different.” Song Ning was a little jealous. She walked up to Shen Yuxiu and held out her hand, asking, “Where’s your driver’s license? Give it to me first.”

Shen Yuxiu placed his hand on Song Ning's hand and gently held it. He stood up to face her, his clear voice carrying a hidden ambiguity: "Your driver's license is at home, but I can pay for it with something else first, do you want?"

Perhaps it was because the room was too quiet, or the light was too dazzling in his eyes, that Song Ning felt her mouth getting dry again. She licked her lips and said, "Shen Yuxiu, I'm thirsty."