Waaah, I'm being forced into loving my yandere wife's brain.

Lin Zhiyao was woken up by the heat.

A sliver of pale light peeked through the gap in the curtains. When she opened her eyes, she felt as if she were wrapped in a damp towel, sticky and uncomfortable.

Lin Zhiyao's gaze shifted downwards, and several abnormal flushes appeared on her body, more intense than at the beginning, and she felt faintly hot.

She propped herself up on her arms, her shoulders aching as if someone had been massaging them all night, and her lower back was also dull and sore, making her feel like her whole body was about to fall apart.

My whole body felt numb and sore; anyone who didn't know better would think I'd been thoroughly abused all night.

"Hmm..."

Lin Zhiyao couldn't help but furrow her brows and groan.

Although my mind was still a little hazy, I thought to myself that this couldn't be explained by just not being used to the new environment; it might really be a virus.

Lin Zhiyao shook her head to wake herself up. Her legs were still weak when she got out of bed, and she almost fell.

She leaned against the wall as she entered the bathroom, turned on the hot water and splashed her face. The person in the mirror had a flushed face and watery eyes, and did look rather tired.

Lin Zhiyao didn't dare to delay any longer, thinking that she needed to take her medicine quickly to control the situation, since she was going to join the film crew today. So she changed her clothes and went downstairs.

Shen Jin was unusually not sitting in the living room today. There was a bagel and coffee on the coffee table, with a note next to it: "I have a morning meeting, I'm leaving now. Remember to eat breakfast."

Lin Zhiyao felt a warmth in her heart as she looked at the words, but she couldn't care less because she was feeling really unwell.

She sat down, ate half a bagel, rummaged through the first-aid kit Shen Jin had given her, found a strip of cold medicine, took two pills, and swallowed them with her coffee.

After taking her medicine, Lin Zhiyao leaned back on the sofa for a while, wondering why the underfloor heating was on so strongly.

She barely wore anything last night, but she still woke up covered in sweat. I don't know if this is considered normal.

Lin Zhiyao rubbed her forehead, glanced at the time and saw it was almost nine o'clock. Ignoring the fact that her body was still very sore, she quickly put on her backpack and went out. She took the subway for three stops to get to school.

Holding the pre-printed lab guide and group meeting schedule, she found the lab with the nameplate hanging in the corridor on the third floor of the biology building.

When I pushed open the door, there were already a few people inside, chatting and drinking coffee around a round table in the rest area. They all looked up when they saw the new faces.

"Lin Zhiyao?" An Asian girl with a ponytail stood up first, smiling and extending her hand. "I'm Chen Nian, a third-year doctoral student. You've seen the group roster, right? I'll be responsible for showing you the daily routine."

Lin Zhiyao quickly grasped her hand and said, "Hello, senior sister."

Chen Nian was very enthusiastic. She pulled her to sit down next to her and asked her if she lived far away and if she was used to the weather here.

A few white classmates nearby also came over and chatted for a bit; the atmosphere was quite nice.

After chatting for a while, someone asked her about finding a house, and Lin Zhiyao mentioned the two-story house on Cherry Street.

Chen Nian was somewhat surprised: "The rent in that area isn't cheap. You really got a bargain?"

"Yes, it's for year-end sales."

Lin Zhiyao nodded, then couldn't help but sigh, "But the underfloor heating here is too intense. I've been waking up from the heat every morning for the past few days, covered in sweat. I barely wore anything to sleep last night, but it still wasn't enough. I'm thinking of buying a cooling mat."

She said this in a slightly joking tone, and the people around her laughed. Chen Nian, however, looked a little confused: "I have a friend who lives on Cherry Street, and I've never heard of the heating being this bad. She wears normal pajamas at night and still needs a light blanket, otherwise she'll catch a cold."

Lin Zhiyao blinked: "Really? Maybe it's because I have a constitution that tends to be hot? Or maybe my room gets a lot of sunlight?"

"That's possible." Chen Nian didn't say anything more, patted her shoulder, and said, "Then be careful not to turn it too high, and be careful not to catch a cold."

Lin Zhiyao responded, and that strange feeling in her heart resurfaced, but then she thought that maybe people's feelings are different, and the group meeting was about to start, so she didn't think about it anymore.

As the bell rang.

Lin Zhiyao met with the other members of the laboratory and postdoctoral fellows.

To her slight relief, the director was much gentler in real life than he appeared in his emails, speaking with a smile and looking at her with a friendly gaze.

But Lin Zhiyao always felt there was something subtly off about it.

For example, when she finished her self-introduction, the professor smiled for a moment, but his eyes gave a strange feeling. His gaze lingered on her face for a couple of seconds, as if he were scrutinizing something.

After the meeting, the professor went to her desk and asked her a few questions about her undergraduate background, as well as how she was doing and whether she was used to living there.

Lin Zhiyao answered each question, and the professor nodded, finally asking, "What are your plans for the weekend?"

Lin Zhiyao honestly shook her head.

The professor then said, "I happen to have an opportunity to conduct research this weekend at a research station in the suburbs to collect data. It's a rare opportunity, and it would be very helpful for newcomers to get involved in this type of project. If you'd like, I can take you with me."

Lin Zhiyao's eyes lit up, and she nodded repeatedly.

The professor patted her shoulder, his hand lingering on hers for a few seconds before moving away before Lin Zhiyao felt uncomfortable. He added that he would send the itinerary to her email later before turning and leaving.

Lin Zhiyao stood there happily for a while, feeling that today had gone too smoothly.

Chen Nian, standing beside him, was somewhat surprised and teased him good-naturedly, "Has the professor changed his ways? He actually took you there personally. You've got quite the influence, haven't you?"

"Don't tease me, senior sister. I was just a little lucky. Maybe the professor wanted to know how the research in this area was progressing in China, which is why he took me on as a mentor."

Lin Zhiyao blushed as she tidied the table.

The afternoon was spent familiarizing myself with the system, reviewing past data, and organizing group meeting minutes.

She was so busy that she barely checked her phone. By the time she came out of the lab, it was already dark, the streetlights had just come on, and there were still traces of melted snow on the ground.

Lin Zhiyao wrapped her scarf tighter and walked towards the subway station near the school gate. She had only walked a few dozen meters when her phone vibrated in her pocket.

She took it out and saw that it was a message from Shen Jin.

"I'm near the east gate of your school. Are you done with your work? I just happened to be passing by, so I'll pick you up and we can go back together."

When Lin Zhiyao saw that message, her heart skipped a beat for no reason.

She stood still and replied with two messages, saying that she was walking towards the East Gate. Shen Jin replied with "Hmm, no rush." ​​She stared at those two words for two seconds, and her ears inexplicably felt hot.

When I got near the East Gate, I saw the familiar black sedan parked on the side of the road with the window rolled down halfway.

She didn't recognize it as a Cayenne, but she recognized it as Shen Jin's car.

Lin Zhiyao stepped forward.

Shen Jin leaned back in the driver's seat and, seeing her approach, slightly raised his chin to indicate that she should get in the car.

Lin Zhiyao opened the passenger door and got in, bringing in a gust of cold air that made her nose turn red from the cold.

Shen Jin glanced at her and casually handed her a bottle of mineral water. "How was your first day?"

"It went pretty smoothly!"

Lin Zhiyao couldn't help but laugh as she fastened her seatbelt. She took a sip of water, unscrewed the cap, and said, "The people in the group are all nice, the atmosphere is great, and my senior sister takes good care of me."

"That's good."

Shen Jin started the car and turned the steering wheel to merge onto the main road.

Lin Zhiyao leaned back in her chair, her words flowing freely: "And there's some really good news. Our professor said he'd take me to a research station in the suburbs this weekend to collect data in the field. This kind of opportunity is really rare for a newcomer, and I didn't expect him to be willing to take me on the very first day."

Her voice was filled with barely concealed excitement, her eyes sparkling as she spoke, turning her head to look at Shen Jin's profile, waiting for his response.

The atmosphere in the carriage suddenly became quiet for a moment.

Shen Jin's fingers on the steering wheel tightened almost imperceptibly. The car's speed remained unchanged, but Lin Zhiyao keenly sensed that the atmosphere around him seemed to have become heavier.

"Research station?" Shen Jin asked, his voice not much different from usual, but his speech was slower. "Just the two of you?"

"Um... The professor said there are limited spots, so he'll only take me." Lin Zhiyao nodded without thinking much about it.

The red light ahead turned on, and Shen Jin slowly stepped on the brakes, bringing the car to a stop.

He turned to look at her, his expression indistinct, as the streetlights shone in from the side, casting a small shadow under his brow bone.

"How long will it take?" he asked again.

"It wasn't very specific, but it should be a same-day round trip, right? I'll check my emails later."

Lin Zhiyao was taken aback by his question, sensing something was off about his tone, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. "What's wrong?"

Shen Jin was silent for two seconds, then shifted his gaze from her face back to the red light ahead.

The light turned green, he released the brakes, and the car glided smoothly forward.

"It's nothing," he said, his tone returning to its usual casualness. "I was just asking about your weekend plans. I was thinking if you were free, we could go shopping in the city together, but it seems that's not necessary."

His words gently dispelled the slight unease in Lin Zhiyao's heart, and she smiled, "It's okay, there will be plenty of opportunities next time."

Shen Jin hummed in response but didn't say anything more.

The carriage quieted down, with only the low hum of the heater blowing through the vents.

Lin Zhiyao leaned back in the passenger seat, turning her head to look at the street scene flashing by outside the car window. Perhaps because she had been working hard all day, the soreness in her body came back, and her eyelids began to feel heavy.