Chapter Thirty-Four: No One Else May Lay a Finger

Lin Shuo pressed forward, pointing at the rocking chair that had just been destroyed. He sneered and asked, “Why did Xi Mintang come here?”

“Couldn’t it be someone else?”

“Who? The second-generation demolition rich?” Lin Shuo mocked, “Do you take me for a fool? I can even tell the brand of the perfume. Not to look down on him, but he simply doesn’t have that kind of taste. In your circle, besides Xi Mintang, I wouldn’t even consider anyone else.”

“You think you know me so well? Stop assuming things!” Xiaoxiao tilted her head up stubbornly, staring at Lin Shuo. He advanced step by step, gripping her chin. She was forced to retreat, stumbling back onto the rocking chair. Lin Shuo leaned down, pressing close to her, burying his face in the hollow of her neck. He inhaled deeply—the fragrance after her bath was intoxicating.

Her heartbeat quickened involuntarily, her mind flooded with memories of that night’s pleasure. Just as her will began to crumble, Lin Shuo gripped the armrest, looming over her, his gaze flicking to the broken rocking chair in the corner. Coldly, he said, “What’s mine, no one else is allowed to touch.”

Long after he left, she still lay on the rocking chair. Water dripped from her hair, seeping into her neck, chilling her to the bone. Catching sight of the chair, his warning chilled her even further.

She couldn’t quite pinpoint when it began, but he instilled a deep fear in her. Worse still, after each time he ravaged her body and mind, he always managed to make her recall those old memories she’d tried so hard to bury.

Back then, they would sit in a corner of the library, reading and writing reports. Sunlight spilled over the wooden desk, illuminating the faint fragrance of ink between the lines. It was so quiet, only the soft scratch of a fountain pen moving across the paper could be heard.

Xiaoxiao especially loved watching Lin Shuo immersed in his books, as if even he bore the label of spiritual nourishment. She would rest her chin on her hand, tilting her head to gaze at him. The sunlight outlined his strong brow, and his long lashes shimmered with a golden highlight, granted by the sun. Each flutter made her heart race.

“Read your book,” Lin Shuo would remind her, his tone calm and unreadable. Yet she continued to greedily admire his profile, secretly brewing a sweet lie in her heart.

“Look, my fingers are acting strange!” she deliberately feigned a muscle spasm, shaking her fingers quickly to catch his attention. She pouted playfully, “It must be from writing too much—they’re rebelling.”

Lin Shuo gently took her hand, holding her restless fingers, pressing his soft lips to them. The lingering kiss soothed her fingers, and along with them, her restless heart. In that moment, his eyes held a love warmer than sunlight.

Even now, she remembered every bit of their past sweetness. The stark contrast only made her more afraid of each encounter with Lin Shuo.

She tried to repair the broken rocking chair, but whether his force had been too great or she was simply inept, the chair remained beyond saving, lying lifeless in its place. Yet, when she left for work the next morning, it had vanished. The reason was clear—he must have returned during the night. For anything he disliked, his disposal was always swift and clean.

After successfully recruiting Lin Shuo to join, Manager Huang’s attitude toward Xiaoxiao improved considerably. Where once he barked orders, now he regarded her with a measure of respect. At department meetings, he even placed high hopes in her. Her colleagues had begun to look at her differently, as if she might one day soar to greatness and become a phoenix. Their words also carried a subtle hint of flattery.

Lonely Hours, Don’t Talk of Love, Chapter 34—No One Else Allowed to Touch—has been updated!