I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

Li Jing'an sat up in bed, his bare back glistening with a thin layer of sweat. He reached for the cigarette case on the bedside table, pulled out a cigarette, lit it, took a deep drag, and slowly exhaled. The bluish-gray smoke swirled and dissipated before his eyes. He half-closed his eyes, as if savoring the smoke, or perhaps relishing some indescribable aftertaste.

He turned his head to look at Liu Yuanyuan, who was still on the bed, and a smug smile appeared on his lips.

This afternoon in the steel mill office, he first watched Liu Yuanyuan's somewhat clumsy dance, then spent a lot of effort correcting her posture. But Liu Yuanyuan consistently failed to learn well and wasn't taking it seriously, which greatly annoyed Li Jing'an. So, in the afternoon, he simply dragged her to the guesthouse, booked a suite, and continued his "instruction." He was going all out today; he wanted Liu Yuanyuan to fully absorb his expertise.

He got out of bed, slipped on his slippers, walked to the window, and pulled back the heavy curtains. The sky outside was already dark, the twilight spreading like ink. Sparse figures of his coworkers were moving along the main road, some on bicycles, some on foot, like fish flowing into an undercurrent, gradually merging into the dusty street outside the steel mill.

"Director Li... Director Li..." Liu Yuanyuan's low voice came from the other side of the bed, with a cautious probing tone.

Li Jing'an snorted and didn't turn around.

"Uncle Li..." she called out again, her voice trembling slightly at the end.

Li Jing'an then turned around, his gaze falling on her. "I've taught you so many times, and you still can't remember?" His tone was unfriendly and threatening. "Call me Director Li when there are people around, and Uncle when we're alone. I'll say it one last time today. If you slip up again, I'll gag you again, so you won't even be able to breathe. And if you cry and beg me like you did this afternoon, I won't soften my heart. Do you hear me?"

"I...I understand." Liu Yuanyuan shuddered, her throat bobbed twice with difficulty, and her face turned deathly pale, as if something invisible was choking her.

Li Jing'an walked around the foot of the bed to the head, facing her who was already half-sitting up. She was clutching the blanket tightly under her armpits, glanced at him quickly, then lowered her head again as if she had been burned.

"Hmm? What's wrong? Lift your head." Li Jing'an's tone was calm yet questioning. "What's wrong? Still shy? We've 'interacted' so many times this afternoon, and you still haven't gotten to know each other?"

Liu Yuanyuan pursed her lips, hesitated for a moment, and then lowered her head and turned her face. Her eyes first quickly rose, but after seeing the object that made her heart skip a beat, they immediately lowered again. She bit her lip, and finally mustered up the courage to face it directly.

Looking at her obedient appearance, a hint of satisfaction flickered in Li Jing'an's eyes. He took a deep drag of his cigarette, then leaned down and slowly blew the smoke into her face. She instinctively wanted to dodge, but forcibly resisted. He placed his hand on her head, a gesture that made Liu Yuanyuan tremble violently, her head instinctively shrinking back.

Li Jing'an frowned slightly, his face suddenly darkening. His hand changed from stroking to grabbing, his five fingers suddenly digging into her hair, pulling her hair sharply towards him.

"Ah!" Liu Yuanyuan cried out in pain. The blanket that had been pressing against her chest slipped off, and her hands involuntarily reached for his. Her scalp was pulled so hard it felt like it was being torn apart, and tears welled up instantly.

"You won't listen to reason, so you'll have to suffer the consequences!" Li Jing'an grabbed her hair and shook it twice before shoving her onto the bed. Liu Yuanyuan cried out in pain, fell onto the bed, covered her head with her hands, and curled up into a ball.

Li Jing'an leaned down, staring at her contorted face in pain. Liu Yuanyuan quickly moved back a couple of steps, her expression terrified, repeatedly crying out, "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... Uncle Li, Uncle Li... Uncle, I'm so sorry..."

"Hmph." Li Jing'an reached out his hand to her again.

Like a frightened bird, Liu Yuanyuan watched the hand getting closer and closer, not daring to dodge, she could only desperately shrink her body, tears welling up in her eyes.

But the hand didn't grab her again; it simply landed lightly on her face. "Look at you, being naughty again. Why are you so disobedient to your elders?" His voice suddenly softened, carrying a chilling tenderness. "At home, your parents discipline you, but in society, only your uncle is willing to teach and take care of you. As an elder, I can't spoil you—otherwise, if you don't learn your lesson from me, you'll have to learn it from others outside. Don't cry, be good, just remember, don't make your uncle angry next time, understand?"

Liu Yuanyuan endured the large hands roaming over her face and around her mouth. She was just about to open her mouth to speak—

"Ugh..." Before she could finish speaking, Li Jing'an's finger slipped inside her lips. She gagged, struggling to suppress her instinctive urge to back away, stubbornly holding herself in place. Li Jing'an was clearly satisfied with her performance. After fiddling around for a bit, he withdrew his finger, rubbed his fingertip, and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips.

"Yuanyuan, that's right. If you're this obedient, how could Uncle not love you? Tell me, what did you want to say just now? Whatever it is, Uncle will agree to it."

Liu Yuanyuan slightly raised her head, her voice as soft as a wisp of smoke: "I just want to ask... can I go home?"

"Go home? I'm not going home today. I'll stay here and give you some more tutoring tonight." Li Jing'an raised the corner of his mouth and stared intently at her.

"Ah? But if I go home... my parents will be worried, and I won't be able to explain it to them..." Liu Yuanyuan's tone was filled with grievance, pitifulness, and undisguised fear.

Looking at her pitiful appearance, Li Jing'an was even more delighted. He plopped down on the bed, sitting close to Liu Yuanyuan, his left arm casually around her neck, while his other hand covered her breasts, kneading and playing with them. "It's alright, don't worry. I'll call Qin Huairu, who works as a waitress at the guesthouse, and tell her to go back and tell your parents that there's something at the factory that requires her to work overtime and she won't be going home tonight. Don't think about anything else tonight, just take good care of me—understand?"

As he spoke, he increased the pressure on her hand. Liu Yuanyuan tensed up, clenched her teeth, but made no sound, only letting out a soft "hmm" in response.

Li Jing'an was even more satisfied and leaned in to kiss her cheek twice. "Come on, let's take a shower. I'll make a call after I'm done, and then we'll go eat to replenish our energy—we'll be busy tonight." With that, he released Liu Yuanyuan and stood up.

"Well... Uncle Li, I have something else to say." Liu Yuanyuan's voice rang out again.

"explain."

"It's about... the spot for going to the workshop... could Wang Manqi take it?"

Li Jing'an turned around and looked down at her.