Chapter 41: A painful past

A Locked Door

You’re kidding me, I saw you lock it!

Lin Lu was truly trapped now, with no one to call for help.

Under her roof, he had no choice but to bow. He hurried to Mi Xue, grabbing her hand, his face like an abandoned puppy’s. “Sister Mi Xue, tell me which word I got wrong to upset you. I’ll fix it, I swear…”

Though he towered over her by half a head, there was no shame in this. She was four years older—a little brother groveling to his big sister was nothing.

Still, he couldn’t help but marvel at how the hunter had become the prey.

A Silent Offering

Mi Xue didn’t speak, just handed him the rice bowl. He took it instinctively, and in that moment, a soft warmth pressed against him. Caught off guard, Mi Xue hugged him, her body fitting perfectly against his chest. After years apart, she felt softer, more fragrant—like hugging a cloud of cotton candy. Every cell in his body seemed to greet an old friend with joy.

If Su Keke saw this borderline cheating, Lin Lu knew he’d be in for it.

A Perplexing Question

Her soft voice whispered in his ear. “Why aren’t you a playboy anymore?”

The question stumped him. He’d never pondered it, nor expected her to ask.

This conversation was about to become a storm of the heart.

“You’d have to ask why I was a playboy before…”

An Overwhelming Closeness

Mi Xue pressed closer, nearly pinning him to the wall, as if unleashing years of pent-up desire. Lin Lu had never felt her so intense.

“Can you… hold me too?”

“My hands are full…”

“If you don’t, the door might stay broken…”

She’d gone rogue—hugging him proactively and threatening him!

Reluctantly, he set down the bowl, his hands slowly encircling her impossibly slim waist. Mi Xue let out a contented hum, like Bing Cheng purring.

Lin Lu wondered if her age had sparked normal physical needs, seeking him, her ex, to fulfill them. Exes were convenient—familiar bodies, no strings attached, use and discard.

Revisiting the Past

“Why were you so fickle back then?” Mi Xue, flushed and cozy, rested on his shoulder like a cat basking in the sun.

Lin Lu hesitated. Some truths, buried deep, he’d never shared, not even with his exes.

When he didn’t answer, Mi Xue analyzed. “Was it because you hit puberty in junior high, curious about girls and dating? Too many pretty seniors and juniors at school, and with your status, you didn’t know who to pick, so you went astray…”

A Partial Truth

With little sex education—parents too shy to talk—most boys entering junior high were curious about the opposite sex, self-teaching through forbidden websites or private moments…

Those with means found their first love; those without suppressed their urges. Lin Lu had too many means, so he went overboard, stepping onto the path of juggling multiple girls.

“You’re partly right…” Lin Lu shook his head. “But you remember Sister Yueyue, right? Zhuang Yan Yue…”

Mi Xue gave a soft “mm.” She knew Zhuang Yan Yue—beautiful and dangerous. They’d met in high school and occasionally crossed paths at university, but Mi Xue always avoided her, too intimidated to interact.

A Controlling Past

“You know Yueyue and I were childhood sweethearts, living close by, even engaged early on. I was thrilled to have a pretty older sister as my fiancée, bragging to everyone. I thought she was so good to me…

She’d come over every morning to feed me breakfast, walk me to school, help with homework, bathe me, and hold me as we slept…

Day after day, she never tired of it. Even my dad thought she was the perfect future daughter-in-law, entrusting me to her.

But her ‘kindness’ slowly became control. Her possessiveness started to scare me…

I had no freedom, no thoughts of my own. She decided what I ate and drank, even if I didn’t want it.

I couldn’t hang out with friends unless she approved—which she never did. Weekends, she kept me by her side.

At school, she’d check on me every break. If I got close to anyone, she’d intervene or sabotage it.

My phone was inspected daily. Everything needed her permission.

Eventually, all social activities were banned. She stopped me from going to school, locking me at home to mold me into her ideal…”

A Painful Memory

Lin Lu’s voice grew heated, his body trembling with the pain of recollection. Seeing his tall frame so fragile, Mi Xue’s maternal instincts surged. She shifted, pulling him into her arms, letting his face rest against her soft, sweet chest to calm him, her hand gently stroking his head.

He didn’t mention the worst parts… Countless nights, he’d wake to find his limbs bound, Zhuang Yan Yue standing by the bed with a sweet, chilling smile.

“I’ll get you a long sick leave from school. Time for some proper training until you’re my obedient little puppy~”

A Dark Abyss

Back then, he felt like he’d fallen into the jaws of a deep-sea monster, desperate to tear through the darkness for a glimmer of light, only to find himself suffocating.

Nestled against Mi Xue’s chest, Lin Lu felt an unprecedented peace. He continued, “So when I got to junior high, I broke free from Yueyue. But she told me, ‘Little Lu, without me, no girl will ever love you like I do.’

I was so suppressed, so rebellious and naive. I refused to believe her. To prove I could find better girls, I started chasing the pretty ones at school—you all…”