It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

The muffled groans of the girl in his ears made Li Cheng suddenly realize that he was not sleeping in a castle, and the person in his arms was not a blonde toddler, but a silver-haired girl with a mature figure.

But the problem is, weren't they lying flat last night? How did they end up embracing each other?

Am I sleepwalking too?

I opened my eyes with a bit of confusion, and what I saw on my retina was Lavoisier's sweet sleeping face. Her eyes were still closed, and her moist, cherry-colored lips were slightly parted. The muffled groan from earlier had come out from that slit.

Lavoisier was awake, but his eyes were closed. [censored.................................] He couldn't help but let out a muffled groan.

Although doing so revealed that she had already woken up, it also let her know that Li Cheng had woken up.

"Good morning."

Lavoisier finally opened her tightly closed eyes in front of Li Cheng, revealing her agate-red eyes. However, her first words were not to ask why Li Cheng had sneaked back to this room last night, but rather a slightly shy greeting.

After all, this was the first time she had spent a night in the same bed with a man other than her father.

"...Okay, good morning."

Li Cheng tried to respond calmly, then tried to leave as quickly as possible.

The current situation is just too exciting, [...].

[Collapsed......................................................................................]

Lavoisier, however, refused to let go, using both his hands and legs to firmly restrain his movements: "No, let's sleep a little longer."

Trying to break free with all his might hurt the other person, but maintaining the status quo was extremely frustrating for Li Cheng. So, panting heavily, he warned, "If you don't let go, I can't guarantee what I might do."

Lavoisier knew what kind of "bad thing" Li Cheng was referring to, and a shy blush appeared on his cheeks: "I know... but didn't you already promise me?"

Lavoisier had made this decision a long time ago, and even told Li Cheng in front of him. It was Li Cheng who had not taken any action for a long time, which she found a little hard to understand.

Isn't it said that men are very lustful?

However, it seems that this matter is finally coming. Apart from a hint of unease in her eyes, Lavoisier has no intention of resisting. Once she makes a decision, she will resolutely carry it out and will no longer waver from time to time.

Thinking about all these messy things, and smelling that unique scent, Li Cheng felt the girl in his arms getting even hotter.

"Huh...huh..."

Smell, hearing, sight, touch... At this moment, all the senses in his body were stimulating Li Cheng's brain. He was panting heavily, knowing that he could no longer care about the 'win-win plan'.

I couldn't control myself at all, and if I didn't confess now, it would be too late.

It's said that many scumbags hide the fact that they have girlfriends, but his purpose in keeping it a secret was simply to avoid leaving any awkwardness or shadows on both sides. It would be better to be direct, but I didn't expect him to just blurt it out today.

"I have something to tell you."

Li Cheng gritted his teeth and blurted out, "Actually... I have a lover."

After saying this, he prepared himself for whatever might happen. However, as the person involved, upon hearing this news that should have been explosive, Lavoisier didn't react much, only nodding slightly and saying:

"I know."

?

Li Cheng stared in shock, his eyes wide.

He had anticipated many possible reactions from Lavoisier upon learning of this: anger, sadness, and so on. But the outcome was completely unexpected; Lavoisier had known all along.

"Before I came to Lincoln to find you, I inquired about you through acquaintances."

Lavoisier didn't betray Joanna and her cousin Miller, but instead used an acquaintance as a substitute: "I know you are very close to a little girl named Newton, and you even live together. And when you came to Lincoln, Newton also left London, supposedly to return to Lincoln."

"Little girl, Newton would definitely be angry if he knew that title..." Li Cheng thought to himself, then asked with some confusion, "Then you know I have a lover, why..."

Is there a problem with having a partner?

Lavoisier gently nuzzled Li Cheng's chest with his chin and asked in return, "So, did you marry her?"

Wait, is there really nothing wrong with your question...? Li Cheng was deeply shocked by her statement, and then said, "No, but what does it have to do with you coming to see me?"

"It's good that you're not married..."

Lavoisier first breathed a sigh of relief, then blinked and said, "Because I like you, haven't I made it obvious enough?"

Li Cheng was still puzzled: "I know, but..."

"Don't you understand?"

Seeing his still puzzled expression, Lavoisier sighed helplessly and explained as if to a wife facing a foolish husband, "I like you. This is my choice, and it has nothing to do with you."

Li Cheng frowned as he looked at her and said in a deep voice, "But you can have a better choice."

"It's none of your business, I just like to choose this way."

Lavoisier raised his head, his blood-red eyes meeting Li Cheng's gaze without flinching.

At this moment, the personality she had kept so well hidden, the one she hadn't shown to Li Cheng—the courage to venture alone to England—was finally revealed without a trace.

Looking at Lavoisier, Li Cheng couldn't help but think of a German female poet from the same period as Goethe, Katzenberg, who had a very famous poem that is often mistaken for Goethe's work, titled "I love you, but it has nothing to do with you."

I love you, but it has nothing to do with you.

Even the endless longing at night

It belongs only to me.

It won't last until dawn.

Perhaps it can only exist in darkness.

slightly......

Although Lavoisier's values ​​were not as extreme as those in his poems, they were very close to that style.

Li Cheng also came to understand her thoughts a little better.

Love is not a transaction, nor is it a commodity that can be traded fairly, nor does it have any set rules. Rather, it is a free relationship, equivalent to an inherent right.

Because of Li Cheng's actions, Lavoisier fell in love with him, and if they could become lovers and get married, that would naturally be the best choice.

But if he couldn't do it, Lavoisier reserved the right to do what he liked.

Of course, all of this is based on the premise that Lavoisier still likes Li Cheng. If one day he stops liking him for some reason, then perhaps Lavoisier will just leave and the two will become strangers.

There may be struggles, but once you've decided on something, you'll do it; there may be hesitations, but once you've completely let go of something, you can leave without any regrets.

Stubborn, yet free-spirited.

Two seemingly contradictory words, mixed together, harmoniously constitute Lavoisier's personality.

If you respect her thoughts and her personality, then stop trying to convince her that you're "thinking of her" or that "you have better options."

Because now all the facts are laid bare, there is no more concealment, and everything was decided by Lavoisier himself.

Chapter 219 I'm not pretending anymore, I just want your body.

That being said, did Lavoisier really not care at all about Li Cheng's actions?

That's impossible, of course. Human thought isn't a machine, nor is it purely diode-like. Rather, it exists in a hybrid state, where rationality and emotion intertwine. External rational/emotional decisions are merely due to the prevailing logic of reason/emotion.

Even the most ruthless person, when making the coldest decisions, still has a soft, emotional side.

Li Cheng gazed at Lavoisier, who was so close to him. At this distance, where they could feel each other's breath, he could clearly see the seriousness in her eyes—it seemed that, as she had just said, her liking for Li Cheng was her business and had nothing to do with Li Cheng.

But Li Cheng knew in his heart that if it weren't for yesterday, if he hadn't visited Mitchell with the intention of giving her a shock, but instead unintentionally turned it into a surprise for Lavoisier, filling her with joy and satisfaction, then Lavoisier probably wouldn't have made that confession this morning.

That might have led to another development—Lavoisier would have found Li Cheng first, and after confirming his current life with his own eyes, he would have left Lincoln silently, filled with loneliness, and returned to Cambridge to continue being his professor.

After that, she might remain single for the rest of her life, or she might find another person she loves, but in any case, she won't have much to do with Li Cheng, returning to the 'pure relationship between an aristocrat and an artist/scientist' that Li Cheng had previously attempted.

Li Cheng didn't know which outcome was better for both parties, but he felt he had to take responsibility—manslaughter is still murder, and so is a mistaken relationship.

"I originally wanted to try to maintain our pure relationship with our sponsors, but I never expected to end up like this."

As Li Cheng spoke, the corners of his mouth curled up, and his expression changed from the previously suppressed stiffness to a lively look in his eyes: "Since that's the case, then I don't need to pretend to be a gentleman anymore."

"Ok?"

Lavoisier was a little nervous, as mentioned above, she still cared about Li Cheng's opinion.

Under her tense gaze, Li Cheng's eyes flashed: "I'm coming clean, I'm lusting after you."

He hugged Lavoisier tightly as he spoke: "I was immediately attracted to her when we first met in the library. My eyes lit up and I thought, how could there be such a beautiful girl? She's exactly what I like."

Upon hearing this answer, Lavoisier first let out a long sigh, then snorted softly, "I don't believe it."

Li Cheng's behavior does not quite fit this description. Not only does he often disappear for ten days or half a month, but he has never even initiated a kiss with her. Both times they kissed, she was the one who took the initiative.

That's because I had pure appreciation for it.

Li Cheng argued vehemently, "There are plenty of beautiful girls in the world, are they all going to be my wives?"

Lavoisier asked in confusion, "Then why did you come looking for me again later?"

"That's because I later realized that you are truly talented and your ideas coincided with mine, so I thought of sponsoring your research—don't underestimate yourself, even if you rely on yourself, you will eventually be able to discover the existence of oxygen."

Li Cheng certainly couldn't say it was because you're Lavoisier, so he seriously made up a lie: "I think you're good, so you are."

"He just has the will but not the guts," Lavoisier said, completely unconvinced.

“Hey, that’s because I’m a loyal man, at least that’s how I’ve always seen myself,” Li Cheng retorted.

"Heh." Lavoisier scoffed.

Li Cheng disdained to refute such a pointless question. He lowered his head, aimed briefly, and then kissed those cherry-colored lips. The moment their lips touched, a burning sensation spread from the point of contact, as if melting their entire bodies.

[SVIP content...]

After the kiss, Lavoisier had no strength left. She closed her eyes tightly, feeling the sensation of each other's breath on her face, ticklish and filled with a sense of satisfaction.

The mood was just right, and the two of them knew exactly what was going to happen next.

But just as he was getting into the swing of things, Li Cheng suddenly stopped and said, "Wait, I have something to ask you first."

Is there anything more important than now?

Lavoisier opened his eyes, looking somewhat annoyed and puzzled, and asked, "What is it?"

There really was one. Li Cheng put on a serious expression and asked, "When was the last time you bled?"

?

Why are you asking this?

Lavoisier, somewhat embarrassed and annoyed, nudged Li Cheng. How could he ask such an utterly pointless question at a time like this?