Deadly Trap.

Chapter 26. Braving Wind and Snow
Su Li glanced at her phone; the cold "Go to sleep" message was followed by no new messages. She then realized it was already 2 a.m.

To distract herself, Su Li had been busy with her studies and drawing until this moment. Rubbing her sore eyes, she stood up, stretched, and looked exhausted.

This day has been so long.

Strolling through the warm, spacious suite, Su Li's gaze swept indifferently over the bruises on her arm: her mother had pulled them. It wasn't the first time, anyway.

Outside the window, the water of the infinity pool rippled violently, obscuring the entire center of Minzhou. The wind seemed to isolate the mountain hotel like an island. Everything was completely different from the night Gu Mufeng first met him.

Su Li sighed deeply.

The past cannot be retrieved. It's hard to say what her feelings were when she volunteered to be "exiled" alone to the place where they first met.

But she had no interest in writing "Ode to Changmen Palace".

Huffing self-deprecatingly, Su Li glanced at her phone screen again; it was already 2:15 AM. She couldn't miss her part-time team meeting at 9:00 AM the next morning. As she walked, Su Li mentally planned the fastest route.

Out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly realized that Gu Mufeng's personal driver was standing near the suite door. She looked at this "bodyguard," who, realizing what was happening, bowed to her from a distance.

Su Li couldn't help but think to herself: Did she actually have a Welsh or Quenxus following her along, just like Gu Mufeng?
In any case, with a dedicated driver, she won't have to worry about getting to her part-time job tomorrow morning.

Rubbing her temples, Su Li was about to turn back to her bedroom and force herself to sleep when her phone suddenly vibrated, the screen lighting up with the contact name "He Bao".

She quickly slipped into the bedroom and closed the door. After hesitating for a moment, Su Li answered Yu He's video call.

"Pear Blossom?!" As soon as the call connected, Yu He's eyes widened in disbelief. "Architect Su, you've turned our school's shabby dorm into a five-star hotel?"

Su Li panicked. She rushed into the dressing room to adjust her angle, avoiding the room's luxurious furnishings, and focused solely on the wallpaper with silver threads.

After catching her breath, she relaxed and smiled reassuringly, "Don't laugh at me! The blizzard is too strong, I'll stay outside for the night."

Immediately, Yu He's eyes lit up with gossipy excitement: "Oh, so you and Senior Gu are living happily ever after, right?"

Su Li suppressed the turmoil in her heart and forced herself to remain calm: "It's past midnight, and you're calling me just for gossip?"

On the screen, Yu He slumped back into her swivel chair in the school library. She pouted and complained, "I haven't finished my calculations yet; all I can think about is who to eliminate. Ugh. I need to talk to you."

Su Li's expression softened, and a genuine, warm smile appeared in her eyes. She leaned lazily against the wall and asked gently:

"Is this the charity budget from last time? To be honest, I have a little bit of money now..."

There was a small surplus from the few zeros Gu Mufeng wired to her this morning, which she had originally intended to keep for herself. But rather than trying to escape her mother's financial burden of studying abroad, wouldn't it be better to use a little of it for charity?

"...If you need help, He Bao, don't push yourself too hard."

"It's not about money. As a renowned actuary, how could money not solve my problems?" Yu He said smugly.

But then she pouted and said, "It's Monday."

“He’s been acting really strange lately, disappearing every few days. Tonight at dinner he accidentally let slip that he owes his brother a lot of money.”

Yu He swung his hands in a wide arc, making exaggerated gestures.

"I subtly inquired, and Lao Zhou actually said he borrowed it from your senior, Gu. Although Lao Zhou confirmed that he's not a player. But does your 'Mincai male god' run an underground bank?"

Su Li pondered silently. Gu Mufeng's words when he was pretending to be her boyfriend, "I mainly work in finance," popped into her mind.

Gu Mufeng is involved in underground lending?

Knowing nothing about Gu Mufeng's finances, Su Li hesitated for a moment. While underground lending was nothing to him given his status and wealth, why did it have to be Monday?

Seeing Su Li frown and remain silent, Yu He on the other end of the video call quickly said in a reassuring tone:

"Anyway, I don't know the exact amount. But Lao Zhou asked me nervously if I would completely ignore him if he went bankrupt."

Seeing Yu He's reaction, Su Li couldn't help but laugh: "So what do you say?"

Yu He snorted in dissatisfaction: "Of course I said I would completely ignore him. Does he think I'm doing this for charity? This friendship is turning into a charity donation."

Su Li smiled and shook her head:

"You know, even if Senior Zhou really is in debt, he would never use you as a meal ticket. Everyone in school knows he's a person of good character. If he stays at the school in the future..."

Yu He shrugged: "Who cares what men think?"
"But seriously, Rinka, have you been pushing yourself too hard lately? Your eyes are so red today. You've already won the scholarship, why are you staying up all night drawing?"

Hearing Yu He's words, Su Li sighed deeply. Her gaze fell on the snow falling outside the window.

She is like a snowflake; if she doesn't fly in the wind, she will fall and turn into mud.

"It's easy to get a school-level scholarship, but it's hard to maintain it. If my GPA drops, I'll be removed from the program, and I can't even get a scholarship for poor conduct. I have no choice."

Yu He looked helpless:
"Aren't you setting your expectations too high? You've already hooked up with a handsome guy and won a scholarship, what more could you want? Are you expecting your senior, Gu, to write your thesis?"

what.

Unable to resist, Su Li squinted helplessly and instantly imagined Gu Mufeng, dressed in a sharp suit, staying up all night writing his thesis.

Gu Mufeng...writing a thesis?

Minzhou University of Finance and Economics, do students still need to write a thesis to graduate?

Who knew he graduated several years ago?

Su Li didn't reply, but chuckled at her own sudden, overly mundane yet realistic reverie.

The two chatted idly for a while before hanging up. Su Li washed up and returned to her bedroom. Her phone screen lazily reflected her beautiful but weary face. It was almost three o'clock.

She wrapped herself in the blanket. Although her eyelids were already too heavy to open, her mind was resisting, and she just couldn't fall asleep.

This bed isn't... as soft as the one in the penthouse. The cotton duvet cover isn't either... as good as the one in the penthouse...

...enveloped in his scent.

She recalled Gu Mufeng's almost soul-stirring, sincere kiss in front of the mirror, and his hands encircling her waist.

"As long as you like it."

Whether she liked it or not was a question she hadn't considered...

The wind and snow outside the window pattered against the window like countless soft whispers. Perhaps Gu Mufeng's questioning about her bruises stemmed from his concern for her injury.

Gu Mufeng. But he won't come. From now on, she'll just be his mistress.

In a daze, the bed felt like a small boat. Su Li drifted and fell into a state between black and white. A white dream grasped her, but she seemed to be grasping at the last faint footsteps beside her ear.

It seems someone is speaking.

She barely managed to lift her eyelids a crack, but the darkness of the room instantly pulled her back into her dream. She murmured mockingly, "Did you really think he'd brave the wind and snow to come to the mountains to be with his mistress?"

"Mu Fei..."

She hesitated to let go, and then fell asleep. But then, she heard slow, familiar footsteps approaching from beside her bed.

After pausing for a moment, the genius in his heart finally melted away silently.

"fool."

>>>>>
Next Chapter: Black Card
[Author's Note | Chapter Twenty-Six]

This chapter is super sweet! If it's not sweet, you get your money back!

Amidst a raging blizzard and a villa nestled in the mountains, Su Li says she can't write "Changmen Fu"... The past is irretrievable; but why can't tomorrow be better than today?

Did you get hooked on the "fool" ending?

Who is really getting deeper and deeper into this mess?

Come interact with the author in the comments section!

Add to your favorites, follow the updates, and vote – let's show our love for the author who's writing late into the night!

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(End of this chapter)