Li Caiyi couldn't move her body freely. It felt like she was buried under the soil. She felt stuffy, hot, and heavy.

What was this soft yet heavy sensation on top of her body?

Li Caiyi forced her eyes to open and was blinded by the light for a moment. She blinked a few times to fight away her drowsiness before looking down.

It turned out she was buried under dozens of blankets. Each of them was pretty thick. No wonder she felt heavy and hot.

Mustering her strength, which was currently almost non-existent, she propped her body with her arms before sitting up. For the first time, she finally realized she was neither in the hospital nor her home.

This room seemed familiar, but not in a good way.

"It couldn't be...." Li Caiyi muttered to herself, but it was like munching some sand because of how dry her mouth and throat were. She was very thirsty after working so hard before she passed out.

Thankfully, Li Caiyi saw a jug of water on the table a few meters away from the bed. She quickly climbed down the bed and staggered towards it.

After drinking some water, she finally felt alive again. The water jug was made from ceramic with elegant plum blossoms painted on it. One look and she could tell it was expensive.

"Out of all places, why do I end up here again?"

Now that her body felt better, she was able to think again. This room was familiar because she used to stay there often.

It was the guest room of Meng's house.

"But why am I here?" Li Caiyi muttered in confusion as she tried to remember what had happened before she fell unconscious.

Li Caiyi recalled how she kicked and pulled the crumbling brick of the hole in the wall desperately.

She used the pieces of brick to smash the broken wall, forcing it to open wider. However, the wall was sturdier than she thought, so she soon utilized her leg as well.

After doing that for some time, she finally managed to enlarge the hole just enough for her body to slip through. Even though she still had to hold her breath to flatten her stomach and crawl like a worm first.

It wasn't easy, and her energy was depleted a lot. Not to mention the rain was pouring so hard when she was finally free.

Li Caiyi didn't want her attacker to catch her again, so she ran through the rain. She didn't have a clear sense of direction since it was her first time there, but she was sure she had finally reached the main street when her stomach started growling, and her legs gave up on her.

She fell flat on the muddy ground but had no strength to pick herself up. Then, her vision slowly became hazy, and she couldn't remember anything after that.

That was the gist of the series of events. In retrospect, Li Caiyi couldn't blame herself for passing out like that after what she went through.

When she woke up, she was already there, explaining what had happened after she passed out.

"Why does it have to be him again?" Li Caiyi groaned in regret at first but later calmed down. "No, this is better than having that creepy person find me again."

In her vulnerable state, Li Caiyi could only blame her bad luck if she was caught by them.

After sorting out her thoughts, she looked at herself and noticed that she was currently wearing a long nightgown. The fabric was so smooth and light on the skin.

She assumed Meng Renshu must have ordered his servants to clean her up.

Li Caiyi sat on the bedside again while thinking about her next move.

She managed to escape, but so what? In the end, she only came there to suffer. She didn't meet Huang Zhen or Dai Bolin anywhere.

Does that mean she lost the game?

Li Caiyi dreaded thinking of what might happen to Dai Bolin. She had to contact Dai Zhiqiang fast!

"Where is my phone?" Li Caiyi looked everywhere. From the bedside table to the bed, even under the blanket and pillows, but her phone was nowhere to be found.

After some time, Li Caiyi finally remembered that her attacker had taken her phone with them. Her frustration intensified.

"I really don't want to do this, but I guess there's no helping it."

Li Caiyi had to ask for Meng Renshu's help again. He might use this chance to ask something from her again, but a beggar can't choose.

Li Caiyi was about to get up and find Meng Renshu when the door was opened. To her surprise, the person in her mind appeared in front of her right after she thought of him.

"Brother Renshu. You are here." She said while standing up.

Meng Renshu's surprised face was replaced with a bright smile immediately. He practically ran over to her and enveloped her in his embrace.

Li Caiyi wasn't prepared for that and added with her weak condition, it didn't take much for her to fall backward.

They toppled together on the bed, with Meng Renshu on top of her. A flash of panic ran through her.

"Brother Renshu! Please get off of me!"

Unbothered by her rejection, Meng Renshu tightened his hold on her. "Thank goodness you are safe. I was so worried something would happen to you. When I heard you were missing, I thought I had lost you again."

His voice was trembling. No, it wasn't only his voice, but his whole body was shaking. He sounded like he was about to cry.

Li Caiyi wanted to say something, but she doubted he would hear anything she said. And she was thankful to him for saving her too.

She raised her hand and patted his back gently, like coaxing a crying child. "It's okay. I'm still here, thanks to you."

"Don't go anywhere without words again. The last time you went missing, I found you already...."

Li Caiyi knew what he was trying to say without needing him to finish his words. It seemed she had left an unimaginable amount of trauma in him.

"Shh. That's only a nightmare. I'm still here with you, aren't I?"

Meng Renshu was a lot calmer after hearing that. He slowly loosened his hold and raised his head to stare at her face clearly.

There was an inexplicable tension between them. His gaze on her was intense, and they were so close together. The two of them were alone in the closed room, on a bed.

This situation spelled trouble no matter how you looked at it.

Li Caiyi was the first to avert her eyes before awkwardly saying, "Ahem. If you have already calmed down, can you get off me first? There is something I need to talk about with you."

Meng Renshu didn't respond and instead used his fingers to tuck some of her hair which covered her face to the back of her ears.

The subtle touch of his finger on her ears felt like an electric shock, making her jolt in place.historical

Li Caiyi opened her mouth, ready to scold him again, when Meng Renshu corrected his position.

However, instead of raising himself, he plopped his body to her side so they were lying on the bed side-by-side.

Meng Renshu heaved a long sigh before softly speaking, "I'd love to talk, but I feel pretty tired myself. Can we do it while lying down like this?"