"What is it?" "Just... your future wife has to be good to our babies. Promise me?" Ye Shengsheng’s voice was laced with a fragile hope. Lu Shiyan froze. The girl still didn't understand. He'd already told her he would take responsibility. After spending the last few days together, he’d realized he was genuinely fond of her. Was she planning on just having the babies and then leaving him? "Shengsheng, my wife will be you. No one else. Besides," he added, "don't you want to be there with me, to watch our babies grow up together?" Ye Shengsheng could feel that Lu Shiyan’s kindness was genuine, but she was terrified it would be fleeting. A flash in the pan, just like her parents’ love had been. That was why she couldn't bring herself to trust him with her heart. And that wasn't even mentioning the vast chasm between their worlds. She could only stare back at him, dazed. "I... I..." Not wanting to hear a refusal, Lu Shiyan silenced her, his hand cradling the back of her head as he leaned in. He poured everything he wanted to say into that kiss. It was a lingering, soul-stirring kiss that left even the one in control with a heart in turmoil. He had never imagined he would feel this way. A moment later. Ye Shengsheng leaned against his chest, gasping for air, utterly bewildered by the kiss. Lu Shiyan felt he was truly losing control. He was surprised by the depth of his craving for this girl. *Better take it slow,* he thought, afraid he might scare her off. He held Ye Shengsheng close, gently stroking her back. "Shengsheng, let's try dating. What do you say?" "Huh?" "Uncle, it's okay, you don't have to..." "It was my first time, too," Lu Shiyan interrupted, an almost wounded look on his face. "Are you saying you don't want to take responsibility for me, Shengsheng?" Inside, however, his thoughts were far more calculating: *Making this girl my wife... feels right. And to get a wife, a man needs to be shameless.* But from the stunned look on Ye Shengsheng’s face, it seemed he had indeed frightened her. "Shengsheng, let's just try dating, okay?" Lu Shiyan’s own heart was pounding. He’d told himself to take it slow, so why did every word out of his mouth sound like it was designed to scare her away? Ye Shengsheng snapped back to reality. "Uncle, I'll take responsibility," she said, her young face a mask of solemnity. Her seriousness made Lu Shiyan chuckle. "Alright. Get some sleep. You have school tomorrow," Lu Shiyan said gently. "Okay~" After watching Ye Shengsheng fall asleep, Lu Shiyan rose and left the room. He had done a lot of thinking over the past few days. If he had to choose someone to spend the rest of his life with, then let it be this girl. He liked her quite a bit. As for everything else... they had time. The next day. Ye Shengsheng had class and needed to leave early. Although the school was close, she didn’t want to risk being late. After breakfast, she got into Lu Shiyan’s car. Seeing the man in the driver's seat, she understood. When he said he would drive her, he meant it. Ye Shengsheng sat quietly in the back, feeling a faint sense of pressure sharing the enclosed space with him. She watched him drive, her eyes drawn to his long fingers on the steering wheel, his handsome profile. She was mesmerized. Until… "Shengsheng, if you keep staring like that, in a minute..." Ye Shengsheng gave an awkward laugh and turned to look out the window. "Uncle, you can just drop me off at the next intersection. I can walk from there." She didn't want him driving up to the school gates; it would attract too much attention. Lu Shiyan agreed with a hum. Ye Shengsheng thought for a moment. "You can just have the driver take me from now on. You don't have to go to the trouble." After all, his own work was so demanding. However… "Shengsheng, are you saying you don't want to see me?" Ye Shengsheng fell silent. She didn't dare answer, unsure how to respond. After a moment, she figured this was probably how boyfriends and girlfriends acted. He said they were trying to date, so if he wanted to drive her, she should let him. Lu Shiyan stopped the car a short distance from the school, and Ye Shengsheng breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to get out, she heard his voice. "Li Ma will bring you lunch." Ye Shengsheng paused. "Okay~." After closing the door, she hesitated, then tapped on the front window. The man lowered the window, his expression soft as he looked at her. "What is it?" "Goodbye, Uncle! Drive safe!" Then she practically fled toward the school. Lu Shiyan watched until she had disappeared onto campus before he finally drove away. Ye Shengsheng entered her classroom and took a seat in the far corner, the same solitary spot she always occupied. She didn't have a good relationship with her classmates. It wasn't that she was unfriendly; it was that her roommates had rallied the others to ostracize her. As the lecture began, Ye Shengsheng focused on taking notes. One of her roommates happened to glance toward the back and thought she saw a familiar face. She jabbed her two cronies. “Look. Isn’t that the charity case?” The two followers craned their necks. “It really is her.” “Hey, look at her outfit. Isn’t that the latest release from ‘You’?” Xi Kexin whispered. “I think it is!” the other two agreed. “That set costs over thirty thousand. Where’d she get that kind of money? Don’t tell me she actually sold herself?” The sarcasm in Xi Kexin's voice was sharp. “Maybe she finally saw the light. Forget trying to get ahead through studying; might as well cash in while she's young.” “She should be thanking our Kexin,” another chimed in. “If Kexin hadn’t shown her the 'path to success,' she’d still be wearing clothes she dug out of a dumpster.” The three of them covered their mouths, stifling their laughter. Ye Shengsheng, sitting in the back, was completely oblivious, engrossed in the lecture and her notes. Her morning was a blur of rushing from one classroom to the next. Just as her last morning class ended, she received a call from Li Ma. After agreeing on a meeting spot, Ye Shengsheng headed out of the school. A black Maybach was parked at the mouth of an alley near the school, with Li Ma standing beside it holding an insulated food container. Ye Shengsheng spotted her as soon as she left the campus gates and hurried over. "Young Madam, slow down! Don’t run, there’s no hurry!" Li Ma called out, her heart in her throat. "Li Ma, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting," Ye Shengsheng said politely. "Not at all. From now on, I'll wait for you here when I bring your lunch," Li Ma said with a warm smile. "Okay, thank you!" Ye Shengsheng took the container. "Li Ma, you should go back and rest. I'll bring the container home tonight." "Alright. I'll head back once I see you inside the school." With Li Ma watching, she walked slowly back onto campus. Not wanting to return to her dorm, she found a quiet spot to sit and eat her nutritious meal. She only had one class in the afternoon. Afterward, she returned to her dorm, hoping for a nap. When she entered, the room was empty. She lay down on her bed, a wave of drowsiness washing over her. A moment later, a clamor of voices jolted her awake. “Can you believe how shameless she is about selling herself? She hasn’t slept in the dorm for ages, and now she even has someone delivering her meals.”