DTTM 22

Chapter 22: You Shouldn’t Have Been So Soft-Hearted

That kidnapping left an indelible mark on my life, yet in retrospect, it was only a fleeting moment.

“It’s all your fault…”

Zong Yanlei’s bite wasn’t strong, and since it was through my clothes, I shouldn’t have felt any pain. But perhaps it was my body’s memory being activated or some lingering effect from the injury I sustained during the opening match, just pressing on the bite mark caused a slight warmth and pain.

“Yes, it’s all my fault.” I closed my eyes and, just like when I was a child, accepted all his accusations.

“It’s all your fault…”

“Yes, it’s all my fault.”

Zong Yanlei quieted down, and after a moment, I felt his hand move up from my shoulder and land on the side of my face.

He gently stroked the skin under my eyes with his thumb and spoke again: “Say you regret it, say you shouldn’t have left me, say you… will never betray me for anyone again.”

My shoulder was hurting just now, and now my face was throbbing. I suddenly realized that it had nothing to do with my memory or the injury; it was his touch. My body had become sensitive because of Zong Yanlei’s touch.

“I regret it. I shouldn’t have left you. I will never betray you for anyone else again.” I obediently repeated, hoping to end this conversation as soon as possible.

Maybe he felt my perfunctory attitude, Zong Yanlei’s fingers, which were cupping my cheek, suddenly tightened, and his tone became dissatisfied: “That’s not right…”

I slowly opened my eyes and looked down, wondering what I had done to upset this young master.

“Is this a dream?” His thumb rubbed my lower lip. He spoke in a voice almost inaudible, “Imposter, you’re not Jiang Man. How could Jiang Man regret it? He couldn’t wait to get far away from me, so he’d be free… He didn’t regret it, he… he… had to come back to beg me for someone else…”

“Jiang Man always has so many people he cares about.”

His speech was incoherent and unlike his usual self, making me want to tease him.

“Does the young master often dream of me?”

“…Occasionally.”

“What’s it like in your dreams? Do you always whip me?” As I spoke, my lips rubbed against his fingers, and that annoying heat began to shift again.

I frowned, hesitating whether to avoid his hand, when suddenly my lower back gave way. He used his weight to push me down.

Zong Yanlei put one arm around my waist and the other hand swept across my cheek and grasped the back of my neck.

Just a few days ago, he almost broke my neck in the car. Even though he wasn’t using much force this time, I still trembled because of that physical memory.

Was he really going to hit me?

“Like this.” His hot breath brushed against my earlobe, and he tightened his arms, pressing me into his chest.

I heard a steady and powerful heartbeat, and opened my eyes slightly. Half of my face quickly became hot and itchy from this unexpected intimate touch.

My usually quick-witted mind suddenly went blank. My fingers curled up as I tried to push him away. But they grabbed Zong Yanlei’s sleeve instead.

I opened my mouth to say something, but the muscles in my throat seemed to be frozen, and I couldn’t squeeze out a single word.

That allergic reaction to his touch even got to my throat.

Time passed slowly, and the room was silent except for the soft mingling of our breaths. We lay on the bed, dressed, embracing each other in an awkward position.

Feeling the heartbeat beneath me slowing down, I closed my eyes. My brain, which was gradually overcoming the “allergy” and returning to normal, finally activated my epiglottis, allowing my voice to flow smoothly.

“You shouldn’t have been so soft-hearted.” I sighed, adjusted my position and snuggled closer to him.

‎

‎

I didn’t sleep well that night. Zong Yanlei changed positions several times, making a lot of noise, but each time he only woke me up while he himself remained sound asleep without even opening his eyes.

By six or seven in the morning, when the morning sun streamed into the room, I was too hot to sleep anymore, besides the rising daytime temperature, the man wrapped around me like a velvet blanket was the more significant reason.

It was hot, and it was also uncomfortable.

But what good was this diamond-hard tool? It could only handle ten minutes of delicate work at best.

My poor sleep quality gave me a throbbing headache, and even my secret thoughts about Zong Yanlei were more bitter than usual.

During this time, I was worried about the young master’s unpredictable temper, and I was concerned that we would feel awkward after he woke up. I was even more afraid that he would get angry and fight with me. I even considered whether I should sneak away before he woke up.

But every time I tried to get up, the arm around my waist would tighten, pulling me back to where I was. After this happened several times, I gave up struggling and just waited for him to wake up on his own.

Around eight o’clock, I felt the hand move around my waist, so I woke up from my dozing and lay on my side without turning over.

Then, starting with that hand, all of Zong Yanlei’s muscles tensed up.

“How did you get here?” He pulled his hand back as if burned, and sat up abruptly from the bed.

Fortunately, I was fully clothed, and he hadn’t exposed much skin either, otherwise things would have been very complicated.

“Young Master, you’re awake…” I yawned, pretending that I had just been woken up by him, and turned around sleepily.

The crisp costume from yesterday was now wrinkled and worn after a night of wear. Zong Yanlei looked down, and when he saw his open shirt, his already unpleasant expression, a result of his hangover, turned even more sour.

He frowned, reached out and closed the two sides of his clothes, then his gaze shot at me like two cold knives.

“Explain.”

“It’s like this…” I cleared my throat, quickly got out of bed, backed off the bed, and only spoke again after making sure I was far enough away from him. “You were drunk last night, and I was afraid something might happen to you, so I followed you in. But as soon as I was helping you unbutton your clothes, you suddenly pulled me to lie down on the bed.”

“Me? Pull you onto the bed?” He narrowed his eyes, his handsome face reflecting both suspicion toward me and doubt about himself.

“Yes, not only did you pull me onto the bed, but you also held me tightly and wouldn’t let go.” I took advantage of his inability to remember, and boldly started talking nonsense, “You kept saying that you couldn’t live without me, that you couldn’t do without me, and that I shouldn’t leave.”

“I said I couldn’t live…” He held his forehead, and stopped repeating as if he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

“Hmm. You also said that I was the navigator you really wanted, and that you would honor your bet and would never replace me again.”

Upon hearing this, he raised his hand from his forehead, and all the self-doubt on his face instantly transformed into questioning.

“Are you kidding me?”

“It’s absolutely true, why are you denying it now?” I held up my hand, pointed to the sky, and swore without the slightest hint of guilt on my face. “If I’m lying, may I be struck by lightning and suffer a terrible fate…”

What interrupted me was a pillow that flew right in my face.

“Enough, get out!” Zong Yanlei shouted irritably, a dark cloud hanging over his head.

Before the second pillow could hit me, I reacted quickly and ran out of the bedroom.

In just a few steps to the gate, my back pain and leg aches disappeared, and I felt refreshed.

“Jiang Man? What happened to you…”

As soon as the door was opened, Xu Chengye appeared at the door, his hand half-raised, about to ring the doorbell.

He looked at my wrinkled clothes with suspicion, his gaze falling on the bedroom behind me.

“Oh, Mr. Zong and I had an in-depth discussion about our strategy for the upcoming competition last night. We had a very enjoyable chat and didn’t sleep all night, nor did we change our clothes. Why don’t you come back later so Mr. Zong can tidy up a bit?” I explained to him naturally.

I didn’t know what kind of image was playing out in Xu Chengye’s mind. His lips trembled, and after a long while, he said a resounding “Okay,” then stiffly turned and left.

I had to leave Fantong at 10:00 AM, so I went back to my room and immediately went to wash up. When I came out of the shower, breakfast was already laid out on the table. I ate my toast while browsing online comments about yesterday’s match.

[Is the Demon King really done for? Are you kidding me? He actually lost to his own secondary car?]

[It’s obvious that You is no good; this guy has terrible stress tolerance. Can’t he step down and make way for someone better? Xiao Mei deserves better!]

[Jiang Man is really amazing! I specifically watched his live stream from inside the car, and it seems like he’s memorized the entire floating island maze. No matter where he jumped, he could immediately confirm his location.]

[I used to think Lance was stronger than him, but yesterday’s match completely changed my mind. Where did the Demon King find such a gem? He’s incredible.]

[I will always support Jiang Man!]

[I feel like crying. The Wo people ‘s brilliance has finally been seen by the whole world.]

[It’s only the second game, some people shouldn’t be so happy yet. Yesterday the Sun God team ranked third and fourth, what are they so proud of? Wait until they win the championship this season before you start bragging.]

…

After reading the comments, I put my phone down, leaned back in my chair, and let out a sigh.

Yes, we’re only third or fourth, still a long way from the championship, so we can’t let our guard down.

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‎

With just a few minutes to go before 10 o’clock, the members of the Sun God team were all ready, waiting for Xu Chengye and Zong Yanlei to get in the car before setting off.

“My head hurts so much, I feel like throwing up…” Yi You held a paper bag, burying half his face in it. “What is Lao Xu talking to the Demon King about? Why is he taking so long… I can’t take it anymore, Xiao Mei, I feel like I’m about to die.”

Tan Yunmei sat next to him, engrossed in playing a match-3 game on her phone. She answered “hmm”, I didn’t know if she actually heard him or was just habitually responding to every sentence.

“You don’t care about me at all. I told you I’m dying!”

“Hmmm.”

It was habit.

“Tan Yunmei! I’m angry…”

Amidst the sounds of retching and vomiting, Xu Chengye and Zong Yanlei finally appeared at the hotel entrance.

Zong Yanlei walked in front, with Xu Chengye following behind, everything seemed perfectly normal. But when they were about three meters away from the van, Zong Yanlei stopped and looked towards a certain high point on the left.

I subconsciously followed his gaze and looked over, only managing to catch a glimpse of the reflection in the lens.

The next second, the sound of a bullet cutting through the air and the sound of a human being hit exploded in my ears at the same time.

I blinked and looked toward the end of those sounds.

Zong Yanlei looked down at the bloodstains on his palm with furrowed eyebrows. A startling patch of bright red blood quickly seeped into his clothes on his lower left abdomen.

Sometimes, people who are suddenly shot are unaware that they have been shot. A significant amount of adrenaline interferes with the brain’s signal perception, allowing the body to temporarily block out pain.

However, this shielding is time-limited. When adrenaline begins to drop and the brain’s receptors function normally, the pain will return.

He looked up, his knees buckled, and he knelt on the ground.

“Hide.” He stared at me without making a sound, but I could still clearly read his lips.

However, it was too late. The moment he looked at me, my adrenaline began to kick in. It interfered with my brain signals, cut off my perception of danger, and made me rush out of the van without a care in the world, just to get to his side.