I agreed to be a kept man, but I'm still being punished by the system.

At seven o'clock the next morning, the sharp sound of the mobile phone alarm clock once again shattered the tranquility of the master bedroom.

When Lin Yang awoke from his deep sleep, his first sensation was still numbness.

The left side of my body, from my shoulder to my arm, felt so heavy that I couldn't control it.

He struggled to turn his eyes, and what came into view was Chen Wanjun's peaceful sleeping face.

She remained wrapped around him, using his arm as her personal pillow, and slept soundly.

He carefully used his still-movable right hand to pull out his left arm, which had gone numb from being pressed down by her breasts, and picked up his phone to turn off the alarm.

The tactile sensation in my fingertips hasn't fully returned yet.

[Congratulations, host! Your obedience level has increased to 99%, making you number 2 in the "Soft Rice Encyclopedia"!]

A line of pale blue virtual text appeared on my retina and then quickly disappeared.

Lin Yang sighed silently in his heart.

I've tried so hard, but I still haven't reached 100%.

Perhaps this 1% was her last act of defiance.

He threw back the covers and quietly sat up.

The noise around her woke Chen Wanjun. She opened her eyes groggily, still feeling sleepy.

"I have to go to work today," Lin Yang said softly. "Take good care of yourself at home and remember to eat on time."

Chen Wanjun nodded obediently.

A hint of reluctance flashed in her eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a more determined light.

She knew he was leaving; he had his own world and his own things to do.

But she also has her own things to do.

That is, making money.

Earn enough money so that this newly established relationship can continue indefinitely.

Lin Yang returned to room 2403 across the hall.

I took a shower and changed into the Zegna suit that I had sent to the dry cleaners for expedited cleaning yesterday.

The man in the mirror still had bruises on his face that hadn't completely faded, but his eyes were completely different from those of the timid college graduate he used to be.

The sharp lines of the suit accentuated his broad shoulders and lean waist, and this expensive battle suit gave him the illusion that he was about to go to the battlefield.

He drove his brand-new, dark blue Cayenne to Su Man's home in Tianheng Garden.

Aunt Chen's breakfast was as lavish as ever, and the restaurant was filled with the aroma of soy milk and fried dough sticks.

Su Man was already sitting at the dining table, sipping her porridge.

Lin Yang didn't stand on ceremony. He sat down opposite her with an air of nonchalance and casually picked up a meat bun and started eating it.

Su Man's gaze fell on the bruises on his face, and her brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

"I went to see the doctor yesterday, what did he say?"

Her tone was calm, as if she were talking about work.

"The doctor said there's no problem, my bones are strong, and I'm in great shape," Lin Yang replied indistinctly, his mouth full of steamed buns.

Upon hearing this, Su Man's nerves, which had been tense all day, finally relaxed.

Yesterday at the company, she was somewhat absent-minded all day.

"Sigh, what car did you buy yesterday? You spent over 900,000 in one go." Su Man put down her spoon and changed the subject.

Lin Yang swallowed the bun in his mouth, took a sip of soy milk, and then gave her a mysterious smile.

You'll find out soon enough.

After breakfast, Lin Yang leaned back on the sofa and waited for Su Man to go back to her room to change clothes and put on makeup.

A dozen minutes later, a sophisticated and powerful career woman appeared in front of him.

The two took the elevator down to the underground parking garage together.

When the elevator doors opened, Su Man immediately saw the unfamiliar behemoth parked next to her Volvo S90.

The deep blue body reflected a dark and profound luster under the garage lights, and even those who knew nothing about cars could tell the significance of the shield-shaped emblem on the front of the car.

"Porsche?"

Su Man stopped in her tracks, a look of surprise on her face.

"This car...it must cost over a million, right? You bought it for just over nine hundred thousand?"

"certainly."

Lin Yang pressed the car key, the car lights flashed, and a low response was emitted.

He opened the passenger door, gestured for them to enter, and said something with a hint of frivolous boasting.

"That saleswoman was completely smitten with how handsome I am, and immediately gave me a huge discount."

Su Man rolled her eyes at him.

"Pfft, I don't believe you."

Even so, she got into the passenger seat, which smelled of brand-new leather.

Lin Yang got into the driver's seat, skillfully started the engine, and drove the million-dollar luxury car smoothly toward Enwei Group.

The dark blue Cayenne parked downstairs at the Enwei Group building attracted the attention of many office workers.

The two entered the building one after the other. Su Man went straight to her director's office, while Lin Yang went into his assistant's office.

He Xiaoya and Li Tong had already arrived, and the office was filled with the sound of keyboards being typed.

"Yo."

He Xiaoya, with her sharp eyes, was the first to notice the injury on Lin Yang's face.

"You've grown a birthmark on your face after just one day?" Her voice was undisguisedly teasing.

Lin Yang walked to his workstation and put down what he was holding.

"This is this year's trendy style. How about I get one for you for free?"

"It's still a trendy style."

He Xiaoya pouted, turned her body towards him, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I bet he offended some beautiful girl and got beaten up by her boyfriend."

Lin Yang raised an eyebrow, not angry but smiling.

He leaned back in his chair, his gaze passing over He Xiaoya and landing on Li Tong, who was working silently to the side.

"Who says that? Why can't it be a beautiful woman who messes with me? Don't you think so, Sister Tong?"

Li Tong's gaze didn't leave the screen; she simply replied with a faint comment.

"I don't know, I don't understand what you're talking about."

Just then, the screen of her phone on the table lit up.

The screensaver is a group photo of a man wearing half-rimmed glasses who looks very refined, with his arm intimately around her shoulder.

Lin Yang's gaze fell on the photograph.

"Sister Tong, is this your boyfriend?"

"Mm," Li Tong finally turned around and responded.

He Xiaoya immediately seized the opportunity, her tone filled with a sense of superiority.

"That's right, Tong's boyfriend is a top student pursuing a master's degree at Huahai Jiaotong University."

An invisible hierarchy of contempt has formed in the office.

He Xiaoya graduated from Yenching University.

Li Tong graduated from Aurora University.

Lin Yang, on the other hand, was merely a graduate of Huahai University of Finance and Economics. Although it was also a 211 university, it was still inferior to the former two.

"That's amazing, Sister Tong," Lin Yang sincerely praised. "Is your boyfriend planning to take the civil service exam?"

Li Tong nodded.

"Yes, he has that idea."

Hearing this, He Xiaoya's smile deepened, and she gave Lin Yang a meaningful glance.

"Unlike some finance university graduates who don't work hard and just think about how to live off their wives all day long."

These words struck at Lin Yang's Achilles' heel, which is also the very foundation upon which he stands today.

He remained expressionless, and even smiled slightly.

"Even though it's a university of finance and economics, it's still a 'two-one-one' university."

He deliberately pronounced "211" with a less-than-standard pronunciation, with a hint of self-deprecation and indifference.

He Xiaoya was taken aback by his shameless attitude and was about to retort.

"Two, one, one..."

"Alright, alright, stop arguing, let's get to work and get to work."

Li Tong interrupted their bickering. Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried the air of an older sister in the office.

He Xiaoya turned away dejectedly and stopped talking.

The office returned to silence, with only the sound of keyboards clicking.