He held the back of her head with his hand, his hot lips completely covering her with his breath.

It felt as if an electric current was crackling and shooting out from his warm lips, and Meng Jiuyi subconsciously frowned and turned his head away.

But her chin was gripped tightly, the irresistible force making her open her lips. His tongue pushed open her teeth, probing inside with suppressed desire.

The scalding heat of the sage assaulted Meng Jiuyi's nostrils, making it difficult for her to breathe. The forced entanglement of her tongue caused an increasing heat to spread deep within her skin, as if she were being roasted in a steamer.

She pushed against his chest and arms with all her might, but Tan Yuchen grabbed her hands and pressed them against her head, lifting the back of her head and pressing her even deeper into himself.

A gentle lapping of waves ceaselessly lapped against the hull, masking the thrilling sound of water splashing on the deck.

The man almost swallowed her whole, his movements rough and passionate, her tongue accidentally bumping against his teeth.

The slight stinging sensation made his blood boil, and his movements became even more unrestrained, his unfathomable eyes filled with undisguised desire.

They were both dressed neatly, yet it seemed as if their clothes had all been removed.

Tan Yuchen, still not satisfied, picked her up and held her in his arms, her neck forced to arch upwards by the kisses.

He finally got his wish; his well-defined fingers, calloused from their distinct joints, caressed the smooth, white, and delicate jade handle.

The unbridled handling forced her to tilt her head back even higher.

Meng Jiuyi's eyes were filled with the mist of drunkenness. Her fingers couldn't help but pinch his arm, and her body went limp and slid down. Tan Yuchen held her waist and pressed her against him, kissing her even deeper at the same time.

The kiss continued from the deck to the bed in the bedroom.

A wild beast broke free of its cage and began to devour Tan Yuchen's reason.

The faint sound of a hidden clasp being unlocked could be heard.

His palms were so wide, and each of his long, bony fingers was straining, with white skin oozing out from between them.

Meng Jiuyi's heart was pounding erratically, and the hardest spot on his body was pressed down by the calluses on his palm.

The heat from the friction made her tremble violently, and even in her drunken state, she did not forget to struggle.

Reason returned.

Tan Yuchen buried his face deep in her neck, suppressing his heavy breathing, and his hand also restrained itself from moving outwards.

He kissed her earlobe, his voice low and hoarse.

"This doesn't count. Remember to pay me back slowly in the future."

She was still drunk.

He wanted every single time they did it from now on to happen while they were completely lucid.

--

Jiang Zhou boarded the ship at five in the morning, saying that the plane was already waiting.

Tan Yuchen originally planned to accompany her to the end of the banquet, take her home, and then go to the airport. Who would have thought that things would get out of control?

Meng Jiuyi slept on the large bed in the yacht's only bedroom, which was surrounded by the sea on three sides and had a deck leading directly to the outer balcony, but also ensured maximum privacy from prying eyes.

She was sleeping on her side, and in her dream, she kicked off the blanket because she felt hot, her face still flushed from being drunk.

Deeply asleep, she had no idea that someone had once caressed her lips with such tenderness. Her pink lips were now swollen and excessively red, enough to make anyone who saw them have impure thoughts.

Tan Yuchen gently brushed past the wound on the corner of her lip. The slightly rough lines made her frown even in her dream. The man was looking down at her, the light falling between his brow bones, beneath his thick eyelashes like reeds, his dark eyes like whirlpools, as if to swallow her up.

I don't really want to leave.

He was still waiting for her to wake up so he could settle accounts with her.

Jiang Zhou waited in front of the car and saw the man step down from the yacht. The late autumn weather in late September was chilly, and he was wearing a long-sleeved thin shirt. His relaxed and unruly expression was indescribable, like a lion that had just had a full meal.

The car doors closed, and the Maybach drove out of the heavily guarded port and headed towards the airport road.

Tan Yuchen was lounging in his seat, dozing off. The dim light shone through his handsome brow bone, and Jiang Zhou had already glanced at him several times through the rearview mirror.

"What are you looking at?"

The man didn't open his eyes, his voice low and lazy, "Thinking about how to tattle on me to Old Zhou?"

How could he dare?

Jiang Zhou quickly looked away.

He needs to report on everything, big and small, but it probably won't include matters of the heart.

Jiang Zhou found it utterly baffling; didn't these two try to kill each other not long ago?

--

When Meng Jiuyi woke up, it was almost past midnight.

The dizziness from being drunk made her sit up and scratch her head. Standing next to her was a smiling woman in a suit, who had previously woken up on a cruise ship.

She didn't scream like last time; she just shifted slightly to the side.

“Miss Meng, don’t worry. The Third Young Master instructed me to take good care of you. You can tell me if you need anything. You can call me Xiao Ding.”

"And him?"

"The Third Young Master left in the early hours of the morning."

Xiao Ding said, "The car is waiting outside. If you want to leave, you can have them take you back now."

Meng Jiuyi felt a little relieved, glanced down at his clothes, and breathed a sigh of relief.

It's the same routine as last night.

Having learned from the previous experience, this time she handled it with great ease. At this moment, Xiao Ding brought over a box.

"This is what the Third Young Master left for you."

The light green velvet packaging, with a tassel bow on the front, is hard not to make one's imagination run wild.

Meng Jiuyi blinked uncomfortably as she thought of the chicken blind box he had given her last time.

She untied the bow, and in the middle of the huge gift box lay a lonely key.

"key?"

Meng Jiuyi was completely confused, flipping through the pages repeatedly, "Did he say anything else?"

Xiao Ding shook his head, a smile playing at the corners of his eyes.

Meng Jiuyi was at a loss for words when he was laughed at. "I...I was just asking. I'm not curious at all."

As he spoke, he subtly pushed the key back with one finger.

She was clearly trying to cover something up, and Xiao Ding stared at the unusual redness at the corner of her mouth, his smile deepening.

I closed the door behind me when I left.

She should wash up and get out of there; she's even more carefree without Tan Yuchen around.

However, while brushing her teeth, Meng Jiuyi noticed the wound on the corner of her mouth through the glass mirror. She frowned and leaned closer to the mirror to examine it carefully, just like Conan catching a culprit.

She didn't even need to look closely; the redness and swelling on her lower lip looked as if it had been roughly rubbed.

In an instant, memories of last night flooded back, like a burst dam—

He kissed her...on the deck...on the bed...he untied her bra strap...

Meng Jiuyi's eyes widened and his breath caught in his throat. He heard a series of crisp ringing sounds, as if he were playing a ring toss game, easily tossing the rings over and firmly trapping his prey.

She stood at the sink, motionless.

Last night's seemingly plausible conjecture has now been completely dispelled, falling further and further down with the collapse.

Meng Jiuyi slowly looked at the key in the box.

The meaning was so obvious: by unlocking the gilded cage, he was telling her in this way not to be ungrateful.

Her jawline exuded a clear arrogance as she grabbed the keys, opened the window, and threw them forcefully out.

With a "ding-dong," the key sank into the sea.

--

Back in Kyushu, Meng Jiuyi changed his clothes and rushed to catch his flight. Everything on the yacht was buried with the key as it was thrown into the sea.

Even the weeds in my heart will stop growing.

We arrived in Yongxi around 3 p.m. There are 19 children's welfare institutions in Yongxi City. Among them, Zhongshan County Welfare Institution is the most inconspicuous place and is where Gao Xianyue lived before she was adopted.

Meng Jiuyi's hair was tied up high, and he wore black-rimmed glasses and a suit, looking just like a working-class person.

She handed over her work ID, and the dean greeted her with a smile.

"Thanks to your newspaper and new media organizations, more and more people in society are paying attention to child adoption in recent years."

"This is what we should do."

Someone brought in tea, and Meng Jiuyi pretended to open his notebook and asked, "Dean, when adopting children, what age range do you usually prefer?"

“Children aged 0-3 have not yet formed social relationships and are more likely to develop deep emotional bonds with their adoptive parents.”

Meng Jiuyi paused for a moment, then continued, "Are there any requirements regarding the age gap between the adoptive parents and the adoptee?"

“Adoptive parents should be at least 30 years old. If they are adopting a child of the opposite sex without a spouse, the age difference should be at least 40 years.”

Meng Jiuyi frowned almost imperceptibly.

Gao Xianyue was adopted when she was nearly seven years old. If the Gao couple really wanted to foster a bond between their children, why didn't they choose a younger child?

According to the timeline of the investigation and research, Chairman Gao, who was under forty years old at the time, was divorced when he adopted Gao Xianyue, and only remarried his ex-wife shortly afterward.

This clearly does not comply with national adoption procedures!

--

Good night~