116: Chapter 116 Encountering a Streetwalker

Three hours later.

Feng Hua Lian lay limp on the bed, her body drenched in fragrant sweat, a look of complete satisfaction on her face.

Cao Kun looked equally satisfied.

Neither of them spoke; only the sound of heavy breathing echoed in the room.

It was some time before Feng Hua Lian slowly regained her senses.

“Are you okay?” Cao Kun’s voice sounded from above her.

“Mm...” she replied softly, her face flushing red again.

Cao Kun gave a low chuckle and kissed the top of her head. “I’ll go get a towel to wipe you down.”

He got out of bed and walked into the bathroom.

Feng Hua Lian lay on the bed staring at the ceiling, suddenly breaking into a smile. It wasn't a smile of pure joy, but one of relief, tinged with a hint of tears.

She had truly become Cao Kun’s woman.

It wasn't forced, it wasn't a transaction—it was her own choice.

Cao Kun returned with a warm, damp towel and meticulously helped clean her up.

This gesture moved Feng Hua Lian even more than the intimacy from moments ago.

He could have easily just gone to sleep after finishing, but he didn't.

After cleaning up, Cao Kun lay back down and pulled Feng Hua Lian into his arms.

The two held each other tightly, able to feel one another's heartbeats.

“Regrets?” Cao Kun asked.

Feng Hua Lian shook her head and nuzzled against his chest. “No regrets. It’s just... how should I face you from now on?”

“Still using formal address?” Cao Kun raised an eyebrow.

“Cao Kun...” she corrected herself, feeling a special sense of intimacy as the name left her lips. “What... what is our relationship now?”

Cao Kun fell silent for a moment.

It was a difficult question to answer.

He had many women, and each held a different place.

He thought about it for a while.

“You are my woman,” Cao Kun finally said. “Is that answer enough?”

Feng Hua Lian nodded, then shook her head. “It is, and it isn’t. I know I can’t be your only woman, and I wouldn't dare dream of that. I just want to know... what place do I hold in your heart?”

Cao Kun stroked her hair, pondering how to respond.

Ultimately, he chose to speak the truth. “You are special, Feng Hua Lian.”

“My helping you might have started on a whim or for some other reason, but now... you truly have a place in my heart—a place that needs to be protected and cherished.”

He paused. “But I must also be honest. I cannot give you a promise of marriage, and I cannot have only you. If you cannot accept such a relationship...”

“I accept it,” Feng Hua Lian interrupted him. “I told you, I didn't want to use my body to tie you down. I just... want to be a little closer to you, to be a part of your life, even if it's just a small part.”

Her voice was soft but firm. “I won't cause you trouble, I won't demand that you only be good to me, and I won't be like those immature women who get jealous and fight for attention.”

“I only need... for you to come see me when you think of me, to hold me like you did tonight. That’s enough.”

Cao Kun’s heart softened.

Feng Hua Lian was too sensible—so sensible it was heartbreaking.

She knew her place, her value, and knew not to ask for too much.

“Silly girl,” he held her tighter. “You don't need to be so cautious. If you need anything in the future, just tell me directly—work matters, life matters, anything. You aren't my appendage. You are Feng Hua Lian, an independent person who deserves to be treated well.”

Feng Hua Lian’s tears flowed again, this time out of emotion. She buried her face in Cao Kun’s chest and nodded vigorously.

The two of them held each other like that, slowly drifting off to sleep.

That night, Feng Hua Lian slept more peacefully than ever before.

There were no nightmares, no sudden awakenings—only Cao Kun’s warm embrace and the sound of his steady breathing.

And the last thing Cao Kun thought before falling asleep was...

He would protect this girl well.

Not out of responsibility, but out of an emotion even he couldn't quite define.

Outside the window, the night deepened and the snow began to fall again.

In that warm room, two hearts had drawn closer in a way that might not fit any worldly standard, but for them, it was enough.

At least for tonight, it was enough.

...

On a winter night in Zhongzhou, the cold wind cut like a knife against the face, swirling with fine snow and blowing through the back alleys of the old city district in a deathly silence.

The streetlights were a dim yellow, swaying in the howling northern wind and casting fractured shadows.

The time came to the following evening.

Cao Kun had just left Feng Hua Lian’s place, the faint scent of her gardenia perfume still lingering on him.

This woman was just like her name—elegant yet distant. Their relationship felt more like a tacit agreement.

She needed his protection; he needed her companionship.

Each got what they needed, making it quite clean.

He climbed into his car, the black chassis nearly vanishing into the snowy night.

The clock hands slid past eleven.

The streets were empty, save for a few foot massage parlors still glowing with suggestive pink lights, looking like fireflies in their final struggle.

Cao Kun drove toward his home.

He had originally planned to stay at Feng Hua Lian’s, but a female friend of hers had come to visit, so Cao Kun left.

There were two ways for Cao Kun to get home.

The main road and a back road.

The main road had many traffic lights and was a longer distance.

The back road required passing through an Urban Village; it was shorter, though the road conditions weren't great.

Cao Kun thought about it for a moment and finally chose the back road.

The car drove slowly.

He soon arrived at the Urban Village.

Low-slung single-story houses were crowded together, their plaster peeling to reveal blackened bricks beneath.

Narrow alleys crisscrossed and wound around like a labyrinth.

As he was driving...

A figure huddled under a streetlight caught his eye like a nail pinning his gaze.

It was a young woman wearing a faded red short down jacket, the zipper only halfway up, revealing a cheap low-cut sweater underneath.

Beneath her black leather skirt were legs frozen red, covered only by a thin layer of flesh-colored stockings.

In this sub-zero weather, those stockings were as good as nothing. She kept stomping her feet and blowing into her cupped hands; the white mist had barely left her mouth before being torn away by the freezing wind.

A streetwalker.

Cao Kun made the judgment in his mind.

In this kind of place, at this time, dressed like that—it was crystal clear.

Urban Villages were never lacking in such women.

They were like weeds, living tenaciously and humbly in the cracks of the city.

Cao Kun was no moral guardian; as long as an adult's choices didn't involve coercion or harm, he had no intention of interfering.

Everyone has their own way of surviving.

The car was about to pass her by.

Just then, the woman looked up, and her gaze collided sharply with his.

Cao Kun’s heart felt as if it had been lightly tugged by something.

What kind of eyes were those?

Hollow, numb, like glass covered in a layer of dust, yet deep within hid a nearly invisible trace of despair.

Not despair over life, but despair over the very act of 'being alive'.

That look was all too familiar; it was just like how Feng Hua Lian had looked the first time she stood before him.

Only, in Feng Hua Lian’s eyes, there had still been struggle and refusal to submit, whereas this woman’s gaze was completely dead.

Like a puppet that had all its vitality drained away.

Cao Kun originally intended to keep going, but then the system's voice suddenly rang in his head.

【Ding! New mission released: Rescue the girl before you. She is controlled by Li Hao. Simultaneously, rescue the other girls imprisoned by Li Hao in the Basement and ensure Li Hao is punished.】

【Mission Reward: 400,000 huaxia coins】

Cao Kun hadn't expected the system to issue a mission at this time.

...