“She’s the student council president, and also…” Rong Shenghan’s voice was as deep as the lowest note of a cello, his gaze falling on Yu Jiuyuan’s burning cheeks, “I found out first.”
He carried her toward the suite inside the lounge, his back as straight as a mountain.
Xie Zhecheng stood there, his knuckles white from clenching his fists. On the carpet in his line of sight lay a butterfly-shaped hair clip that Yuan Xu had given him, gleaming faintly under the light.
As the suite door closed, Yu Jiuyuan suddenly grabbed Rong Shenghan's collar.
In her hazy state of consciousness, she seemed to see the snow on Changbai Mountain, the star map of the Astronomy Club, Yuan Xu's excited face, and Lin Yanran's awkward expression.
Those she had tamed, schemed against, and held in the palm of her hand, had all now become blurred shadows.
"Rong Shenghan..." she murmured his name, her voice filled with broken dependence, "It hurts..."
Rong Shenghan felt as if his heart had been pierced by those words.
As he lowered his head and kissed her burning lips, he suddenly recalled the feeling of being kissed by her twice before—a feeling that was tentative, controlling, and effortless.
But now, her kiss carried a pure, undisguised longing, like a dying plant seeking its last breath in his arms.
[Rong Shenghan: Emotional fluctuations - Positive +15 (Current 107)]
Overwhelmed by positive emotions, the unpredictable vice president shed all pretense at this moment.
As he watched her relax in his arms, he suddenly understood the truth behind this taming game: it wasn't that she was taming them, but that they had already willingly become puppets manipulated by her.
The snow outside the window started falling again at some point, landing on the window of the lounge and melting into winding water streaks.
Lin Yanran stood outside the door, like a silent stone statue.
Xie Zhecheng sat on the sofa, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the butterfly hair clip.
In the banquet hall in the distance, Tang Nianzhi was still curiously asking about the president's whereabouts.
Yuan Xu's sound controller fell to the ground, and the clear melody echoed in the empty side hall.
The fireplace in the suite was burning brightly, casting the shadows of the two people on the wall, a scene both tender and broken.
Lin Yanran clenched her fists, her knuckles turning white.
For the first time, he hated his own arrogance. If he hadn't thrown a tantrum at the registration desk, he might have noticed something was wrong sooner.
A muffled groan came from inside, like a whip lashing his heart, making this arrogant young master of the Lin family taste the bitterness of powerlessness for the first time.
[Lin Yanran: Favorability 3 (unchanged), Emotional fluctuations - Negative 24 / Neutral 10 / Positive 0 (Negative -5, Positive +3)]
Negative emotions plummeted, and positive emotions began to fluctuate for the first time.
He leaned against the cold door, listening to the indistinct sounds inside, and suddenly understood why his father had said, "The person you absolutely cannot offend in Saint Sakura is Yu Jiuyuan."
It wasn't because of her family background, but because she always managed to make the people around her willingly lose control for her.
The fireplace in the suite was burning brightly, and the firelight reflected on Yu Jiuyuan's burning skin, making it look like it was plated with gold. In her hazy state, she felt someone unzipping her dress. The hands were steady and carried a familiar warmth; it was Rong Shenghan.
"Don't be afraid." His voice was as deep as a cello, and he kissed her forehead, his words carrying a comforting tone. "I'm here."
Yu Jiuyuan tried to push him away, but her fingertips were too weak to move.
The intense heat within her body had driven her to the brink of madness; her remaining pride crumbled like paper armor before the face of her physiological instincts.
Her grip on his collar shifted from resistance to dependence, like a drowning person clinging to the last piece of driftwood.
Rong Shenghan looked at her reddened eyes and suddenly remembered the first time he saw her in Changbai Mountain. She stood in the snow, her eyes as cold and clear as a snow lotus.
Now, this snow lotus is being scorched by raging fire and can only seek refuge in him. He lowered his head and kissed her lips, his gesture filled with unprecedented tenderness and an unwavering determination to possess her.
Yu Jiuyuan's consciousness was like floating in warm water, occasionally touching the clear reefs.
She remembered Yuan Xu excitedly showing off the aurora butterfly, the moment Lin Yanran awkwardly zipped up her coat, Xie Zhecheng's focused profile as he played the piano, and Rong Shenghan's first time transferring schools, smiling and saying, "Nice to meet you, President Yu."
The names she had placed in the "taming manual" now turned into blurry specks of light, flickering in the darkness.
Rong Shenghan: Favorability 64 (unchanged), Emotional fluctuations - Negative 1 / Neutral 8 / Positive 110 (Positive +3)
He kissed her sweaty forehead with an unprecedented tenderness.
He knew this accident would change everything.
Tang Nianzhi's gaze, Xie Zhecheng's silence, even Yu Jiuyuan's eyes when she looked at him.
But he didn't regret it. From the moment she kissed him for the second time, from the moment she said "Vice President Rong is a gentleman" in the parking lot, he had already willingly fallen into the trap she had set.
He has already lost, and he lost willingly.
The snow outside the window fell heavier and heavier, covering the spire of Saint Sakura Academy and the clamor of the banquet hall.
Inside the suite, the fireplace glow illuminated intertwined figures. Before Yu Jiuyuan's consciousness completely sank into darkness, she seemed to hear a notification from the system panel, but she couldn't tell whose favorability rating was soaring or whose emotions were spiraling out of control.
All she knew was that the wildfire ignited by the Su family eventually burned away all pretense, revealing everyone's truest and most desired selves.
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