chapter 3

I looked down at the chain around my ankle. It was only long enough for me to move around the bedroom. I even had to call him in to unlock it whenever I needed the bathroom.

“I can’t get out. How am I supposed to fetch your clothes?”

Jiang Wenzhou fell silent. “…Then how am I supposed to leave?”

“Put on what you were wearing before.”

He sounded troubled. “You know I’m a clean freak.”

Did he know he was a man?

I rummaged through the closet and found a pair of his pants that had somehow ended up among my clothes.

I grabbed a bedsheet too.

“It’ll be drafty, but it beats walking out naked. Make do with this.”

A hand emerged through the door, wreathed in steam, and took the pants and sheet.

I started recording on my phone, hid it behind the nightstand, and sat on the bed to await the magnificent spectacle.

The bathroom remained quiet for a while. At last, the handle turned and Jiang Wenzhou stepped out.

I was ready to laugh, but the sound lodged in my throat the moment I saw him.

The pants were on properly. The sheet was not.

It gaped where the ends crossed, revealing a broad sweep of collarbone. The deep V dipped low enough to hint at the lines of his abs.

Jiang Wenzhou seemed embarrassed. When he noticed me staring, he pulled the sheet closed.

“I’m leaving.”

My thoughts lagged half a beat behind. I nodded blankly. “Okay. Don’t catch a cold.”

He laughed under his breath and turned away.

The door had been closed for several seconds before I sucked in a breath and came back to myself.

Was I allowed to care whether he was cold while giving him the silent treatment?

I locked the door and yanked out my phone for emergency advice.

“What if the silent treatment doesn’t work either? What else can I do?”

I really was not a coldhearted woman.

With Jiang Wenzhou half naked in front of me, I could not help worrying he might be cold.

My cousin grew suspicious. “Jia, why do you keep asking me about this? Are you trying to learn all my tricks so you can report them to my parents?”

“Do I look like someone who would betray family?”

“Fine, I trust you. The hunger strike and silent treatment both failed. I cried until I was exhausted, so I decided to run away.”

“What? Aren’t you afraid you might actually get out?”

“?”

“No, wait, that came out wrong. How were you planning to escape?”

“Don’t ask. I already failed. I cut up my bedsheets and tried to climb down from the second floor, but my parents caught me almost immediately. Now they’re watching me even more closely. But I won’t let that defeat me. If I failed this time, I’ll try again. I love him!”

I nodded thoughtfully.

Running away would make them lock me up even more securely.