142: E-sports genius forced love 12

"Zhou Yu'an! Let me go!" She struggled wildly, her nails raking several bloody lines across his back, but the man didn't budge, even chuckling as he patted her bottom. "Be good, don't fuss."

The bedroom door was kicked open, and Lin Xia was thrown heavily onto the bed. Just as she tried to get up, Zhou Yu'an had already pulled off his belt with one hand, and with a 'swish', he quickly tied her wrists to the headboard.

"Are you crazy?!" Lin Xia completely panicked, her voice laced with a sob. "This is illegal detention! I'm calling the police..."

"Go ahead and call," Zhou Yu'an said unhurriedly, unbuttoning his cuff. He leaned down, his fingertips gently caressing her tear-streaked cheek. "Do you think... the police will believe a girl who skips classes all the time and lives off her boyfriend, or will they believe me, her 'gentle, considerate, and universally praised' boyfriend?"

Lin Xia felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.

He had planned it all along.

From the first day she moved in, he had systematically cut off her social circle, making her dependent on him, leaving her isolated and helpless.

Now, she didn't even have the right to ask for help.

"Stay put," Zhou Yu'an kissed her forehead, his tone as gentle as if he were coaxing a child, but it sent shivers down Lin Xia's spine. "When I get back, we'll talk slowly."

With that, he turned and left, the door locking with a 'click'.

Lin Xia lay blankly on the bed, her vision blurred by tears.

Outside the window, the sun shone brightly, but she felt trapped in a dark cage.

She finally understood that compared to Lu Chen's gloomy, silent yet steadfast love, Zhou Yu'an's "gentleness" was the real poison.

But now... what should she do?

Lin Xia shed tears of regret.

At the same time, Wen Ci sensed something, and her heart tightened fiercely.

*

Lin Xia's tears had long soaked the pillow, and the belt on her wrists was deeply dug into her flesh, creating a circle of hideous red marks, with tiny beads of blood even seeping out in some places.

She had been tied to the bed like this for two whole days.

No water, no food; her lips were cracked and bleeding, and her throat burned as if it had been scorched by fire.

Her arms and legs were swollen and purple from prolonged poor circulation, gradually losing all sensation, as if this body no longer belonged to her.

She was like a butterfly pinned to a specimen board; even struggling had become a luxury.

Lin Xia stared at the ceiling, then suddenly pulled at the corners of her mouth, revealing a smile uglier than a cry.

How ridiculous.

She had been reborn, yet she still ended up in such a pathetic state.

If... if she had chosen Lu Chen back then...

As soon as the thought emerged, her heart felt as if it had been fiercely gouged by a sharp knife.

She closed her eyes, imagining that when she opened them, she would see that stern, gloomy face.

Lu Chen would surely cradle her wrists with a pained expression, gaze at her with those deep eyes, and then with the gentlest movements, untie her restraints.

He would never let her hurt.

But now, when she opened her eyes, all she saw was the pale ceiling and the sky outside the window gradually darkening.

So hungry... so thirsty...

Her consciousness began to blur, and her vision periodically went black. In a daze, she even smelled the decaying scent of death.

Someone... save me...

Footsteps suddenly came from outside the door.

Zhou Yu'an paced back and forth in the living room, the sound of his shoes on the floor like a countdown to death.

He was on the phone, his voice very low, but it couldn't hide the twisted excitement in his tone. "Yes, we'll leave tonight."

"She won't tell anyone."

"Never... because she won't have the chance."

The last few words harshly pierced Lin Xia's eardrums.

She began to tremble violently, her heart practically beating out of her chest.

What did he mean?!

"Yu'an! Yu'an!" She suddenly started crying out like a madwoman, her voice so hoarse it was unrecognizable. "I know I was wrong! I truly know I was wrong! I won't run away ever again, please let me go, okay? Please..."

The belt dug deeper into her wounds, and fresh blood dripped down her pale wrists, but she struggled desperately as if she felt no pain.

She didn't want to die.

She absolutely could not die here!

Outside the window, the setting sun dyed the sky blood-red, the last sliver of light piercing through the curtain gap.

And outside the door, the footsteps suddenly stopped.

Dead silence.

Lin Xia's crying stopped abruptly, and she stiffened on the bed, even holding her breath.

He left?

Or... was he just outside the door, quietly listening to her desperate pleas?

*

In the living room, Zhou Yu'an looked down and scrolled through Lin Xia's phone.

On the screen were her chat records with her best friend:

【Lu Chen seems to have come to school looking for you!】

【Do you want to see him?】

Each message was like a knife, stabbing fiercely into his heart.

She actually dared...

Zhou Yu'an suddenly let out a low laugh, his fingertips caressing Lu Chen's photo on the screen, his eyes terrifyingly sinister.

She was the one who provoked him first.

She was the one who said she would love him forever.

Why... why did she dare to change her heart?!

He violently clenched his phone, his knuckles making a terrifying 'crack, crack' sound.

It's okay.

He would make her stay by his side forever.

In the most thorough way.

On the coffee table lay a sharp fruit knife, and next to it, a black suitcase that had already been prepared.

He gently picked up the knife, its blade glinting with a cold light in the setting sun.

"Lin Xia," he whispered gently to the closed bedroom door, like a lover's murmur, "Soon... we will never be apart again."

*

Wen Ci felt something was wrong.

This world was sending her a dangerous signal.

She suddenly turned, grabbed her phone, and dialed the police.

"Someone is going to commit murder." Her voice was terrifyingly calm. "The victim's name is Lin Xia, but I'm not sure of the exact location, it's probably at xxx... Please investigate immediately!"

After hanging up, Wen Ci realized her back was drenched in sweat.

Pale lips... bleeding wrists... and that gleaming knife...

The original female lead of this world was in danger.

*

Lin Xia's vision had begun to blur.

Zhou Yu'an sat by the bed, the fruit knife twirling between his fingers, reflecting cold specks of light.

He hummed an off-key love song, while his other hand gently stroked her sweat-damp hair.

"Xiaxia, do you know?" He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "I've even chosen our joint burial plot..."

The tip of the knife slowly pressed against her carotid artery.

Lin Xia closed her eyes, tears sliding into her temples.

Let it end like this...

If there's an afterlife...

"Bang—!!!"

The deafening crash of the bedroom door being violently kicked open shattered the deadly silence.

Before Zhou Yu'an could react, a dark shadow swept in with a powerful gust of wind!

"Get out!"

A solid wood chair slammed hard into Zhou Yu'an's back. He cried out in pain, and the fruit knife flew from his hand.

Wen Ci seized the opportunity, kicked the weapon into the corner, and then turned to untie the belt from Lin Xia's wrists.

"Hold on! The ambulance will be here soon!"

Lin Xia's unfocused pupils slowly sharpened.

Against the light, the girl's hair was edged with gold, and her furrowed brow made her look like an enraged Bodhisattva.

She untied the belt quickly, yet carefully avoided her bloody, mangled wrists.

Lin Xia even stopped breathing.

She had never seen such a dazzling person.

Who... was this person?

Why did she come to save her?

Zhou Yu'an swayed as he stood up, madness swirling in his eyes: "Meddling..."

He suddenly lunged for the knife in the corner.

"Police! Don't move!"

Several powerful flashlights shone into the room, and the muzzles of guns were all aimed at Zhou Yu'an.

Wen Ci took the chance to fully undo the restraints, shielding the dying Lin Xia behind her.

"It's okay now," she said softly, her finger brushing away a tear from Lin Xia's eye. "You're safe."