The malice in Yan Tingli’s tone was no longer concealed, easily making Shi Sui think of some unbearable memories.

She needed to take a deep breath to forcibly suppress the urge to slap him back.

But wherever Yan Tingli went, he became the center of the crowd.

Just standing behind her, the gaze from around the venue unconsciously converged in their direction.

Shi Sui didn’t want to get entangled with him further, quickly turning off her phone and saying perfunctorily: “My phone’s almost dead.”

Yan Tingli didn’t seem annoyed at all, saying very patiently: “Then just tell me your number, I’ll add you.”

Shi Sui’s heart began to grow irritated, her tone stiff: “I can’t remember it clearly.”

“Alright,” he tilted his head, his voice seeming somewhat regretful, “still so disobedient.”

“But it’s fine.”

Yan Tingli leaned down again, slowly reciting a string of numbers into her ear.

Each digit he spoke made Shi Sui stiffen more, as she whipped around to look at him.

“I’ve been remembering it for you.” He stepped back some distance.

His lip corners curved up, but his eyes held a condescending coldness.

A chill quietly crept up Shi Sui’s spine as she stared fixedly at Yan Tingli, the anger in her eyes almost tangible.

He looked back at her leisurely.

At this moment, Li Yin, who was greeting guests by the door, saw Yan Tingli and her face lit up with delight as she walked over: “Xiao Li, when did you arrive? I was greeting guests and didn’t see you.”

“Through the back door,” Yan Tingli’s gaze swept past Shi Sui as he said leisurely, “I spotted Sui Sui right away.”

“Sui Sui,” he paused, curving his lips in praise, “you look very beautiful today.”

In front of her parents, he always called her by her full name.

This “Sui Sui” made Shi Sui acutely uncomfortable, casting him a displeased look.

But Li Yin didn’t notice anything amiss, instead beaming with joy as she pointed to another seat to Shi Sui’s right: “Now that you’re here, hurry and sit down.”

Sensing the person beside her taking a seat, casually stretching out his long legs.

Shi Sui angrily gulped down a large mouthful of tea.

“Xiao Yin, this young man is…?”

Seeing Su Yu’s puzzled gaze directed their way, Li Yin couldn’t help but introduce: “This is Yan Tingli, I mentioned to you. Sui Sui stayed at his family’s house when she was in Beijing.”

Fang Huaijing’s father also stared at Yan Tingli’s face for a while, then suddenly slapped his knee excitedly and asked Fang Huaijing: “Is this the young President Yan from Zhilian Future who appeared on magazine covers?”

Fang Huaijing twitched his lips, essentially acknowledging it.

“How remarkable! So young,” he immediately stood up, bowing as he extended his hand to Yan Tingli, “I bought your company’s stock last month, and it’s almost doubled now. I have great faith in you!”

Yan Tingli’s lips held his usual gentle smile that could deceive everyone: “Thank you for Uncle’s trust.”

Shi Yue, who had just walked over and heard this topic, joked: “Speaking of stocks, Xiao Li recommended I buy several CN-related concept stocks at the end of last year. They’ve multiplied several times now. You could say Xiao Li paid for the renovation of my new house.”

His words drew envious and amazed looks from everyone present, all sighing about young talent and such.

Seeing her parents’ faces showing pride in Yan Tingli as if he were their own son, a suffocating feeling swept over Shi Sui, making her unable to endure even one more second. She said coldly: “I’m going to the restroom.”

Shi Sui made up her mind that when she returned, she would immediately change seats.

She even thought resentfully that if Yan Tingli continued using her parents to arbitrarily interfere with her life, she’d rather live alone in the old house, only coming home once a week.

She pushed back her chair and left.

In her peripheral vision, the smile at Yan Tingli’s smile seemed to assess her with casual interest.

This calm confidence, this playful toying, made nameless anger rise in Shi Sui’s heart.

Perhaps suppressed too long, after several years abroad where she’d learned to be direct, her patience had exponentially diminished.

If there weren’t so many people here.

She would slap him across the face, Shi Sui thought firmly.

When she returned, Shi Sui found a seat in a corner of the other table, casually ate some food, and was called by her parents to toast guests.

Turning around, she saw Yan Tingli had been cornered by the uncles and aunties at that table, all asking him to recommend stocks or profitable opportunities.

Shi Sui could see the impatience suppressed in his eyes.

Yet he had to continue his false courtesy to maintain that facade.

This was what he deserved.

Shi Sui sneered inwardly.

Having just finished toasting, while her parents were chatting with people, she quietly slipped out to find some peace.

She encountered Fang Huaijing, who was similarly leaning against the corner corridor wall, looking down at his phone.

The sound of footsteps made him look up, and their eyes met.

As if the awkward scene from years ago was replaying, they both looked away within a second.

Fang Huaijing was the first to break the silence: “Are you still together with him now?”

Shi Sui shook her head.

“So, going abroad was also to avoid him?”

Shi Sui didn’t speak, essentially confirming it.

“And now…?”

Shi Sui: “We have no relationship anymore.”

Fang Huaijing was silent for a while, thought about it, then still said: “He’s very troublesome.”

As soon as he finished speaking.

A leisurely voice came from behind: “I heard that.”

Shi Sui suddenly looked up.

Behind Fang Huaijing, she saw Yan Tingli appearing from who knows where.

Like a persistent ghost.

Yan Tingli gracefully strode forward on his long legs, walking several steps ahead.

Fang Huaijing frowned.

Feeling as if some cold-blooded creature had crawled up his spine, he turned around to meet Yan Tingli’s smiling eyes looking at him.

This person had even fewer boundaries than before.

This was Fang Huaijing’s immediate intuition.

Several years ago, Yan Tingli still had basic scruples and principles.

Then the current him could be described as lawless without exaggeration.

Yan Tingli glanced at Shi Sui: “He’s speaking ill of me behind my back.”

“Won’t Sui Sui say something in my defense?”

Shi Sui glared at him coldly: “Why should I defend you?”

“I see.” Yan Tingli’s voice dropped, his dark eyelashes lowering as he looked somewhat forlorn.

The next second, he lifted his face with delight: “Then I can only punish him myself.”

“You work at Lingxi Technology now?”

Before Fang Huaijing could answer, alarms went off in Shi Sui’s mind: “What do you want to do?”

Yan Tingli looked at her languidly: “So worried?”

“I was originally just thinking of demoting him.” He paused for several seconds, then said, “Now I want him gone.”

Shi Sui: “What gives you the right to decide someone’s future over one sentence?”

“What gives me the right?” The smile finally slowly disappeared from Yan Tingli’s face as he tilted his head to look at her, saying indifferently, “Because I’m unhappy.”

Shi Sui’s anger could no longer be suppressed.

Blood rushing to her head, she charged forward two steps and slapped that perfect, flawless face.

Yan Tingli could have dodged, but he didn’t.

His dark pupils stared straight at her face. Shi Sui took it as provocation.

This slap wasn’t light – Shi Sui even felt her palm go numb.

After hitting him, she looked at the red mark on Yan Tingli’s face.

Her fingers curled slightly as fear gradually welled up.

Before, she could hit him casually, but after so long apart, Yan Tingli’s hatred for her might have accumulated quite deeply. With this slap, the consequences were truly incalculable.

For several seconds, Yan Tingli kept his eyelids lowered, his tongue pressing against the burning spot on his right cheek.

“You hit me,” after a long while, Yan Tingli slowly looked at her, his eyelashes moving slightly, “for him?”

Shi Sui didn’t retreat, trying her best to meet his gaze: “Who told you to casually suppress people?”

“Casually?” he repeated.

Asking softly: “Didn’t I first ask you to say something in my defense?”

It seemed.

There was such a thing, but she had directly ignored it.

Shi Sui’s heart felt suddenly gripped by something, her expression somewhat blank.

Just as she was hesitating about what to say, in the quiet moment, Fang Huaijing interjected: “Sui Sui, I didn’t want to stay at Lingxi anyway. Don’t let him threaten you…”

“Did I ask you to speak?” Yan Tingli suddenly raised his voice, interrupting him.

Domineering, arrogant, vile.

Even worse than before.

Fang Huaijing frowned to retort, but saw Yan Tingli’s slightly reddened eye corners – only visible from his angle, difficult for Shi Sui to notice at her height.

But it was fleeting, almost like an illusion.

“You should go back first,” Shi Sui turned to tell Fang Huaijing.

He paused for a moment, sighed, and walked away.

After he was gone, Shi Sui’s tone softened slightly: “What do you want me to say?”

Yan Tingli leaned against the wall, expressionlessly watching her: “Come here.”

Shi Sui immediately glanced around with her peripheral vision.

Though this place was inconspicuous, the corridor connected in all directions, and she could call for waitstaff anytime.

Yan Tingli probably wouldn’t do anything outrageous.

So she tentatively took a small step forward.

Keeping some distance between them.

“Come closer.” He commanded.

Shi Sui gritted her teeth and moved forward a bit more.

This way, only one step remained between them.

Yan Tingli did nothing, just let his gaze travel inch by inch across her face in a detailed examination.

This kind of scrutiny was like a cat’s barbed tongue licking over her, almost piercing along her skin texture into her soul.

When Shi Sui was beginning to feel creeped out, he suddenly raised his hand.

Shi Sui’s eyelashes trembled as she closed her eyes, instinctively about to dodge.

The next second, she only felt a cool touch on her right cheek.

Opening her eyes, she saw Yan Tingli’s knuckles brush past her cheek.

Very lightly, like a breeze.

Shi Sui was stunned.

She detected some gentleness and tenderness from this touch.

She suddenly remembered.

This was their first physical contact since she returned, after years apart.

But she had slapped him.

So what did he… want to do now?

Just as Shi Sui was about to think deeper, Yan Tingli suddenly tightened his fingers and pinched outward.

Her cheek suddenly hurt.

She looked up angrily.

His gaze toward her had returned to that infuriatingly vile look.

“What, did you think I cared about you that much?” Yan Tingli’s lip curve flattened.

“So what exactly do you want to do?”

“That would naturally be,” Yan Tingli stepped forward, coldly brushing past her shoulder, “not letting you have a good life.”

Leaving Shi Sui standing there awkwardly.

Her chest felt like it had a balloon that kept inflating.

After years apart, she could no longer see through what Yan Tingli wanted to do.

But this feeling of having her emotions toyed with and controlled at will.

It was very unpleasant.

Shi Sui became more determined to live alone in the future.

To physically separate herself from all these disturbances.

Finally, the banquet ended.

Shi Sui could finally sit in the car, exhausted, and go to their new home.

Li Yin was still chattering beside her: “Ah, Xiao Li left early – we didn’t even give him the wedding candies.”

Shi Sui pretended not to hear.

“Next time we’ll…”

Shi Sui took all the remaining wedding candies and tore them open in one go: “There won’t be a next time.”

“…”

This made Li Yin and Shi Yue laugh.

Tonight, their family would move into the new house.

The house was entirely bought and renovated by her parents. Until now, Shi Sui had only seen photos and never visited in person, so she was somewhat expectant.

Until the car entered the gates of Bocui Yunwan.

The high-end residential complex was indeed different – from the security at the entrance to the landscaping within the complex, everything showed its quality.

Shi Sui curiously scanned around.

They took the elevator from the underground garage to their floor, arriving at the new house’s brand-new front door.

She craned her neck, waiting for Shi Yue to unlock it conventionally, either with a code or key.

But before she could react, the door lock opened naturally from inside.

Immediately, a mechanical voice that once belonged to Little Snail but now belonged to the current smart robot in this house spoke: “Environment detected as safe. Welcome home, Master.”

Today’s temperature is 36 degrees, quite hot. Indoor temperature is 26 degrees, humidity 50%. The optimal environment for human comfort has been adjusted for you.”

“Whew.” As soon as they entered, Shi Yue exhaled comfortably and couldn’t help sighing: “Artificial intelligence is something.”

Thirty minutes earlier, he had told the 3.0 on his phone how much time before they’d be home, and the 3.0 would calculate the timing in advance to adjust indoor temperature and humidity.

Both comfortable and energy-efficient.

Li Yin also wiped sweat from her forehead, nodding with a smile: “Technology changes life.”

She went inside and poured water from the temperature-controlled water dispenser, turning to see Shi Sui frowning and standing by the door, constantly looking around: “Sui Sui, why aren’t you coming in?”

Shi Sui’s mood was very strange, with an underlying layer of unease. She couldn’t help asking: “How does our family have this kind of thing?”

At this stage, these were cutting-edge technologies, expensive and not yet circulated to ordinary households.

Especially this high-tech device before her, which was countless times more advanced than the former Little Snail, was not something their family could afford.

Li Yin handed her the water, smiling as she answered: “The 3.0 is a new product Xiao Li’s company wants to launch. He said they’re currently doing market testing and need a certain sample size for testing. Our house was just being renovated, so he asked us to help with this favor. If there are any bugs, we can provide timely feedback.”

“That’s right, Sui Sui,” Shi Yue also chimed in, “After having this 3.0, let me tell you, it’s become much more convenient…”

As expected.

Shi Sui slammed down her water glass with a “bang,” her lips pressed into a tight line.

Looking at her parents, who seemed to follow Yan Tingli’s every word as if brainwashed by some cult, irritation churned in her heart: “Whatever he says goes? What if this thing isn’t safe?”

Before her parents could speak, the 3.0 in the house suddenly made a sound: “Sui Sui, I have the highest level security system, with three-layer verification of facial recognition, voice recognition, and infrared for entry and exit, absolutely protecting your travel safety.”

Hearing this made Shi Sui even more annoyed, as if that person was whispering in her ear.

“Who told you to call me Sui Sui!”

3.0: “Sorry, what would you like me to call you?”

“Just shut up!”

3.0: “Sorry, call me when needed.”

Shi Sui put her hands on her hips, irritably walking a circle around the house.

Li Yin looked at her worriedly, walking over to feel her forehead: “Sui Sui, are you too hot? You seem a bit feverish?”

“No,” Shi Sui sighed deeply, saying seriously, “I’m not used to this place. I want to move back.”

“What aren’t you used to?” Hearing this, Shi Yue stood up concernedly, “I’ll have people come modify it.”

“Right, what aren’t you used to?” Li Yin also asked.

There was one concern she’d never mentioned to Sui Sui. When they originally bought the new house, they were short on money. Yan Tingli, knowing they felt awkward borrowing from younger people and would be anxious about repaying, thoughtfully offered to buy their old house. He wasn’t in a hurry for it – they could transfer ownership after they moved out.

In other words, the old house now belonged to Yan Tingli, so there was no reason to move back.

Looking at them, Shi Sui slowly lowered her eyes.

She remembered that every detail of this house embodied her parents’ hearts and love.

The old house was small. Her room’s bed was only 1.45 meters wide, and the desk was narrow, unable to hold her large drawing paper.

The balcony wasn’t big either, too cluttered to set up an easel to draw while sunbathing.

After staying at the Yan house, Shi Sui would share all the wonderful novelties there during calls with her parents.

There was a two-meter-wide soft pink princess bed, a closet almost as big as half her former room.

A super large sunny balcony, a bay window where you could lay carpets, and a quiet environment where you’d never hear car noise again.

Her parents had realized almost all these dreamy scenes that belonged to other people’s homes for her.

Looking at their concerned expressions and faces that clearly showed the marks of time from years of hard work.

That sentence, “I want to move back,” ultimately couldn’t be spoken. She sniffled lightly and said sullenly: “It’s fine, I’ll get used to it.”

Li Yin and her husband breathed sighs of relief, stroking her head: “That’s good then.”

That night, Shi Sui lay on the soft princess bed in her bedroom, hugging the oversized stuffed animal Li Yin had bought her.

Moonlight filled the room like water in peaceful silence, with the constant temperature system in ultra-quiet mode.

No longer could she hear the honking outside the old house, occasional dog barking, or the humming of the old air conditioner.

Yet Shi Sui lay with her eyes open, her thoughts in chaos, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

The 3.0 suddenly spoke: “Master, would you like me to play some soothing music to calm your nerves?”

“Don’t make sounds when I haven’t called you,” Shi Sui said coldly.

3.0: “Command received.”

But the next moment, very soothing piano music began playing in the room.

Shi Sui almost immediately spotted the bug, sitting up abruptly from bed and glaring toward the corner of the room, at the sub-control system in the darkness.

Why was there an AI that didn’t listen to its master? Had she asked it to play music?

Indeed, what kind of person designs what kind of AI?

This thing would be roasted to death when it hits the market – the company should just go bankrupt.

Shi Sui cursed inwardly while listening, simultaneously dreaming of Yan Tingli’s company going under.

She didn’t even know at what moment she closed her eyes and beautifully entered dreamland.

Outside the huge glass window, the night was like water, the full moon missing a corner, spilling silvery white light.

In the piano room, the young man’s articulated fingertips flowed like clouds and water across the black and white keys.

He lowered his eyelashes, moonlight illuminating half his profile – every contour exquisitely refined.

Until the 3.0 spoke: “Mr. Yan, detected that Miss Sui Sui has entered deep sleep.”

This system was networked with the 3.0 at the Shi family’s new residence, but this one had higher priority and could control that system at any time.

Yan Tingli said indifferently, “What you played wasn’t as good as my performance.”

3.0: “Of course. Mr. Yan, your piano pieces are richer in emotion. Music is always more beautiful because of feeling.”

Yan Tingli’s fingers paused, causing the first tiny flaw in this piece. His lips showed a somewhat strange curve as he scoffed: “Feeling? What feeling?”

3.0: “Longing.”

Yan Tingli suddenly pressed the keys heavily, the piano emitting a “thump” of trembling sound.

“Longing? You think I miss her?” Yan Tingli laughed from his throat with a “heh” sound, “She lied to me, hid from me.”

After a few seconds’ pause, his eyelashes moved as he said slowly: “Even hit me.”

His tone suddenly turned cold: “For such a waste.”

“I only want to punish her.”

“Lock her in a small room, helpless and alone,” Yan Tingli stared at the keys, his eyes falling into a certain calm madness, “where no one can help her escape from my hands again.”

“Everyone will also make her happily marry me.”

“Especially her dearest Mom and Dad.”

Saying this, his lips curved in a particularly pleased arc as his fingers lightly swept across the piano, leaving a string of melodious notes.

The 3.0 interrupted: “Doing this won’t make you happy.”

Yan Tingli’s expression suddenly darkened as he stared at the keys, mist-like bewilderment spreading in his eyes.

He quickly recovered, saying indifferently: “What does an AI like you understand?”

3.0: “Although I cannot comprehend human emotions, I infer from your behavioral logic that you love Sui Sui very much and miss her greatly.”

“If you played the lullaby piano music for her instead of having me monitor her every move, you would be happier.”

Yan Tingli’s face turned completely cold: “You’re very talkative today.”

3.0: “Good night, Mr. Yan.”