Jia Fu kept her head bowed, not daring to let even a strand of hair tremble. Her heart was filled with shame, fear, and immense regret.

Pei You’an was willing to help her and had the ability to do so. Jia Fu was certain of this. This certainty came not only from his promise to her but more from intuition—a woman’s innate shrewd intuition about men.

To show her determination to die in front of him, using this to pressure him—when she first made this decision, Jia Fu despised herself, but even self-contempt couldn’t stop her from deciding to be shameless just this once.

She desperately needed security. Only Pei You’an could give her that sense of security, and what could bind a man and woman tightly together, never to separate?

Not the relationship of cousins, nor verbal promises, but a relationship between a man and woman that transcended being cousins.

Since she had already decided to be shameless, she should persist to the end, never yielding even in death. Thinking about it now, when she had plunged headfirst just now, even if she hadn’t called out that cry for “help” which she now regretted so much she wanted to bite off her tongue, Pei You’an would certainly have saved her in time.

Unfortunately, in that moment between life and death, her instinctive reaction had completely betrayed her.

He knew she had been playing tricks, exploiting his kindness and sympathy toward her.

The air was terrifyingly still, and Pei You’an’s anger was even more terrifying.

“If I had been half a step slower just now, you would have already lost your life. Take care of yourself. I’m leaving.”

Just as Jia Fu was trembling with fear, preparing to face his thunderous anger, these words suddenly reached her ears.

There was no anger. His voice contained only coldness.

Jia Fu’s heart suddenly sank. Gathering her courage to raise her eyes, she saw him give her a cold glance before turning to walk toward the door.

During these days, the two had gradually become familiar with each other. Due to her deliberate and genuine efforts to get close to him and please him, out of the ten days, she had waited for him to return and dine with her on seven or eight evenings. He had also begun to smile at her, his eyes gentle, and sometimes, in response to her half-intentional, half-genuine, half-true, half-false acts of coquetry and apparent infatuation—which were tests—Jia Fu could even sense indulgence from him as if he enjoyed seeing her this way.

It was precisely because of this that she dared to play this life-threatening trick in front of him.

But at this moment, that gradually softening, tolerant Pei You’an had disappeared. He had reverted to how he was when they first met, even colder than before.

Jia Fu stared with wide eyes at his distant, retreating figure and was stunned.

“Elder cousin—”

She called out softly, her eyes reddening, and with a “plop,” tears fell.

“I was wrong… please don’t be angry…”

Her voice choked up. She lowered her head, kneeling on the corner of the bed, raising her hand to wipe her tears with the back of her hand, but the tears came even more, impossible to stop. Finally, even bubbles of snot appeared.

Suddenly, a hand appeared before her, holding a white handkerchief.

Jia Fu sobbed, looked up, and with red, wide eyes, gazed at the person in front of her.

Pei You’an had returned and stood there, frowning at her disheveled appearance.

Jia Fu hurriedly took the handkerchief, lowered her head to wipe her tears, then wiped her nose. Gradually she stopped crying, but felt deeply ashamed. She tightly gripped the two corners of the handkerchief, unconsciously winding them around her fingers, head bowed without making a sound.

He stood beside her, coldly watching, his gaze moving from her hands twisting the handkerchief to her face. “Finished crying?” he asked.

Jia Fu made a sound of agreement, as faint as a mosquito’s buzz, the few strands of hair that had escaped from her forehead trembling slightly.

“Do you know where you went wrong?” His voice was very harsh.

“Elder cousin, you’re so good to me, yet I pretended to seek death to threaten you…”

Her white teeth bit her plump, tear-moistened red lips as Jia Fu hung her head and spoke weakly.

Because her trick had been seen through, she felt especially ashamed. After speaking, her ears turned red.

“Not just that! You even treated your entire life as a joke! Saying you could be a concubine or servant, or even just have the title? Absurd!”

Jia Fu’s heart skipped a beat. She didn’t dare make a sound and lowered her head even more.

Her posture hadn’t appeased him. His words still carried anger that seemed forcibly restrained.

“Do you know that for a man, such matters can be taken or left, but for you, they are of paramount importance? You are a girl—how could you rashly risk your life based on wild thoughts? Today you said these words to me, and I’ll consider it a momentary slip. But what if it had been someone else? Do you know what consequences there might have been? Are you so certain that person would treat you kindly? It’s far too absurd!”

Jia Fu was stunned. She hadn’t expected this would also anger him.

For her, she had never thought of saying such things to any man other than Pei You’an.

Even if that man could help her escape the nightmare of her previous life like Pei You’an could, she thought she wouldn’t have spoken those words.

But Pei You’an was different.

She trusted him.

She secretly looked up and saw his tightly knit brows, his gaze sweeping toward her. Gathering her courage to meet his eyes, she said softly, “Elder cousin’s reprimand is right… A Fu knows she was wrong… but A Fu would only ask this of elder cousin alone, not of anyone else…”

Pei You’an fell silent, and the room became quiet along with him. The sound of Jia Fu’s heartbeat seemed audible.

“Rest assured, since I’ve promised you, I will protect you. You don’t need to risk your life, even with me.”

After a moment, he spoke, his expression finally softening somewhat.

Jia Fu secretly sighed in relief and quickly nodded. “A Fu understands and will never dare mention this to elder cousin again…”

Before she finished speaking, her stomach made a faint gurgling sound. Though light, it didn’t escape Pei You’an’s ears.

He glanced at her stomach.

Although the Zhen family were merchants, Madam Meng had taught her daughter very strict etiquette. Such an impropriety would have been unthinkable to Jia Fu before. It seemed that ever since she had come up with the idea of threatening to jump, everything had fallen apart.

Jia Fu closed her mouth in embarrassment.

To appear weak enough to faint in front of him, in this weather, she had not only deliberately worn only a thin spring garment to catch the cold wind on the tower roof, but after Zhang Fengtong left during the day, she hadn’t eaten or drunk anything.

Pei You’an said calmly, “Go and eat!”

After speaking, he turned and left. Jia Fu felt as if pardoned from a death sentence. She hurriedly went to the mirror, quickly arranged her hair and appearance, and then hastily followed him.