Early the next morning, when Xie Yu got up to wash up, Shen Ci had already left.

Before leaving, he put the props scattered on the floor back in their places and took away the coat on the sofa. The room was restored to be spotlessly clean, as if he had never been there last night.

Xie Yu bit his toothbrush and flipped through the hotel's breakfast brochure, casually asking, "The eldest young master doesn't demand Shen Ci to stay and keep him company for breakfast?"

The System said, "The eldest young master couldn't get up, and Shen Ci has a morning meeting and needs to go to the laboratory. You can flip through the agreement; their agreed-upon time doesn't include the morning."

Xie Yu nodded.

He wasn't considered a good student when he was in school. He would skip morning reading sessions whenever possible, and his grades were mediocre. He was the type of problem teenager who sat in the back row of the classroom. In his earlier years, he had even gotten his ears pierced and played around with motorcycles. In short, he and a serious, straight-A god like Shen Ci were not from the same world.

He roughly flipped through the agreement, then tossed the booklet onto the sofa and asked the System, "Are there any arrangements for today?"

"Yes." The System flipped through the novel. "There's a racing match today."

The original owner was a top-tier second-generation rich kid who played quite extravagantly. Besides various unspeakable special fetishes, he also liked to play with race cars.

Xie Yu nodded: "What are the key task nodes?"

"First, you need to bring Shen Ci to attend the match, tell your circle that you bagged him, and have... uh, physical contact with him in front of your bad crowd."

Hearing this ambiguous description, Xie Yu knew immediately that it was mosaic content again.

But the mosaic was exactly where he could maneuver.

Xie Yu nodded: "What else?"

"Similarly, you need to make the protagonist feel embarrassed and uneasy. The key points of the task are: declaring sovereignty, verbal teasing, forced physical contact, and humiliation."

The plot focus of an abusive novel is always similar. Xie Yu nodded to show his understanding. The racing match was scheduled for 2:30 in the afternoon. Heading over just after lunch fit perfectly within the time agreed upon in the contract.

He called Shen Ci: "Alright, I'll let the protagonist know."

In the laboratory, Shen Ci took off his gloves and turned on the water valve.

The laboratory gloves were made of rubber and were unbreathable. After firmly wrapping the skin for several hours, taking them off now revealed a thin layer of sweat covering his knuckles. Under the bright lighting of the lab, contrasting with his cold, pale skin, it looked like a layer of glaze over porcelain.

As water flowed over his fingers, Shen Ci wiped them with a towel. At this moment, the phone in his pocket vibrated slightly, and the screen lit up. Shen Ci paused, but ignored it. Instead, he thoroughly washed and dried his hands before raising his eyes to look at Li Yue and Han Yunyun: "Remember to keep an eye on the temperature of the incubator, record the experimental data every twenty minutes, and if there's anything wrong, please contact me immediately."

These two were his juniors in the laboratory, freshmen who had just joined this year and were unclear about many procedures. The two nodded like chicks pecking at rice: "Okay, Senior Brother Shen."

Shen Ci waved them off to do their own tasks. Han Yunyun took two steps before turning back. "By the way, Senior Brother, there's a conference next week. The professor wants you to attend."

Shen Ci nodded.

Li Yue added, "The advisor said this conference is quite important and wants you to dress a bit nicer."

Shen Ci paused, his expression unchanged: "Mhm."

He didn't have any nice clothes.

At this moment, the phone in his pocket vibrated again. Han Yunyun pointed at it. "Senior Brother, you have a call."

Shen Ci glanced at the caller ID, stopping his movements the instant he saw the name clearly. The fluorescent blue screen of the phone reflected in his pupils, looking like a deep, freezing pool.

Han Yunyun watched from the side, cautiously calling out, "Senior Brother?"

Shen Ci turned off his phone, his expression remaining cold and devoid of emotion. He simply said, "Something came up. I'm heading out for a bit."

With that, without waiting for Han Yunyun to reply, he directly pushed open the glass partition door and walked quickly down the corridor, disappearing from sight.

Han Yunyun watched him leave and muttered softly, "Does Senior Brother seem a bit weird today? What could be so urgent that he can't tell us? In the past, if there were Student Affairs Department activities or meetings, Senior Brother would always let us know beforehand."

Shen Ci truly had no way to tell the two of them.

The weather today was gloomy and misty, looking like it was about to rain. Yet, he detoured all the way outside the courtyard. Only when the laboratory windows were far behind him, ensuring that Li Yue and Han Yunyun couldn't hear any sounds from here no matter what, did he unlock his phone.

Two missed calls, both from Xie Yu.

According to Young Master Xie's temper, letting the phone ring three times consecutively without answering was a heinous crime.

Shen Ci stood at the entrance of the laboratory building, his lips pressed into a straight line. He didn't want to call back, but the screen lit up, and Xie Yu called again.

"Hello," Young Master Xie's casual voice came through. "Why didn't you answer my calls?"

Shen Ci: "...I was doing an experiment and didn't hear it."

Xie Yu let out a laugh: "Really doing an experiment or faking it?"

Shen Ci lowered his eyes: "...Really doing it."

Not answering the phone because he was busy with an experiment was certainly not a good excuse, but if Young Master Xie wanted to make things difficult for him, he wouldn't need any excuses anyway.

However, while his whole body was tense, Xie Yu had merely asked casually. After a simple greeting, Xie Yu opened the novel and read his lines to Shen Ci: "I have a racing match in the suburbs. You need to go with me. I'll pick you up at the laboratory building at two o'clock this afternoon."

This was the original owner's condescending young master demeanor. He wouldn't ask Shen Ci if he had time or if it was convenient; he just stated that he was coming, and Shen Ci had to wait.

Fortunately, there were only routine experiments in the afternoon and no crucial meetings. If he hurried up in the morning, he could finish them before leaving.

In the few seconds he paused, Xie Yu spoke again: "Answer me."

Shen Ci could only say: "Okay."

The other party hung up.

Expressionless, Shen Ci put away his phone and walked back toward the laboratory. When he reached the end of the corridor, separated by a layer of misty frosted glass, he suddenly lightened his footsteps and paused at the door.

Separated by a wall, Li Yue and Han Yunyun were gossiping.

Both were newly admitted freshmen, youthful, vibrant, and energetic. Han Yunyun, in particular, loved reading gossip on the school forum. In just the two months since joining, she had already thoroughly figured out who the prominent figures on campus were. Every time Shen Ci returned to the laboratory, he could hear her and Li Yue chatting idly about which department and class had handsome guys, which counselor got together with which professor, and so on.

But this time, the subject of the gossip was a bit special.

Han Yunyun: "Speaking of which, did you see the Bentley that came to pick up Senior Brother Shen Ci that day?"

The day Xie Yu had someone escort Shen Ci for a medical checkup, his subordinate had driven a Bentley to the school.

The original owner didn't like old-school business cars like Bentleys; he preferred flashy luxury sports cars. However, when his subordinates handled errands, they didn't drive the young master's favorites; they just brought the Bentley.

Li Yue recognized the car brand: "I saw it. I think it was a Bentley Bentayga, a car worth over three million."

He muttered: "But isn't Senior Brother Shen from a poor family background, relying entirely on scholarships? He barely orders meat when he goes to the cafeteria, strictly eating vegetarian. Would he have a friend who drives such a nice car?"

Han Yunyun: "Speaking of this, there's a rumor on the forum that the eldest young master of the Xie Family..."

Gossip spread fastest in the school. Not to mention, Xie Yu had always been ostentatious. There were quite a few second-generation rich kids in Jiang City who recognized his cars, and there were many at A University as well. Someone had seen the Bentley's license plate, and catching wind of it, some rumors were already circulating on the forum.

Han Yunyun said a few more words, and Li Yue, seemingly startled by something, raised his voice: "No way. Senior Brother Shen is so aloof and proud, how could he..."

At that moment, the door lock beeped.

This sound was practically like a death warrant. Both of them shuddered simultaneously, and the room became deathly quiet.

Shen Ci pushed the door open and entered without even looking at his junior brother and sister. He stood in front of the experimental bench and put his gloves back on. His slender fingers were wrapped in rubber, faintly revealing the outline of his joints: "Have you recorded the data from just now?"

Han Yunyun's heart skipped a beat: "R-recorded."

She stealthily checked Shen Ci's expression. Seeing that his brows were calm and everything was as usual, she emboldened herself and asked awkwardly, "S-Senior Brother? When did you get back?"

Shen Ci's expression was aloof: "Just now."

He didn't continue the topic. Taking out the reagents he needed to use and categorizing them, he added, "I have to go out at 2:00 PM. I'll finish the work this morning, and you two can watch over things in the afternoon."

"Ah?" Li Yue hesitated: "Finish it all in the morning?"

Han Yunyun also said: "The workload is a bit heavy, isn't it? Senior Brother, are you skipping lunch?"

Without even lifting his head, Shen Ci replied: "Mhm."

The atmosphere became gloomy for a while, and no one spoke again.

After lunchtime passed, Han Yunyun and Li Yue left one after another. Shen Ci kept track of the time to rush through the experiment. Looking at his watch, it was ten minutes to two.

By now, the sky had turned gloomy. Through the glass windows, a dark, oppressive mass could be seen in the distance. The smell of moisture filled the air, making even the inside of the laboratory unbearably stuffy. Judging by the sky, it looked like a heavy downpour was imminent.

Shen Ci pressed against his throbbing forehead. Skipping lunch compounded with hypoglycemia made him feel dizzy. However, if he were to pass out in front of Xie Yu, he didn't want to know what the consequences would be.

After hesitating for a moment, he still went to the school's small supermarket to buy a cheap bar of chocolate.

Since it was right after mealtime, students were buying snacks in groups, making the checkout line slightly crowded. By the time he paid and came out, there were only three minutes left.

Xie Yu's text message arrived right on time: "I'm here, downstairs at your building."

For Xie Yu, arriving at the agreed destination three minutes early was basic courtesy. If he wasn't afraid of breaking character, he would usually arrive ten minutes early. But for Shen Ci, this felt more like a signal of the young master's dissatisfaction.

He pinched the small bar of chocolate in his palm and took a shortcut back. This path was sparsely populated and went through the school's birch forest. Halfway there, a strong wind suddenly picked up, making the birch trees rustle loudly.

Autumn weather changed particularly fast, often sunny in the morning and rainy in the afternoon. The dark clouds that had been gathering overhead for so long were split open by a streak of silver-white lightning. In the next second, before Shen Ci even had time to react, a torrential downpour arrived right on cue.

In late summer and early autumn, this rain was surprisingly cold.

He didn't have an umbrella and nowhere to take shelter, getting completely soaked from head to toe. Rainwater continuously rolled down his shirt, causing the fabric to stick entirely to his body.

His phone vibrated again, and Xie Yu asked: "It's raining. Where are you?"

Without time to think much, Shen Ci hurried to the laboratory building. Sure enough, he saw a silver-gray Bentley parked downstairs, featuring a waterfall grille and two rows of matrix headlights. A small window was rolled down. Young Master Xie sat in the driver's seat, resting his forehead on one hand with a lollipop in his mouth, scanning the passing crowd through the glass, seemingly waiting very impatiently.

The original owner smoked, but Xie Yu didn't. Having a lollipop in his mouth was just to maintain the character setting.

At this time, it was exactly two o'clock, which was also the time for students to return to the laboratory. People were coming and going in the building. Li Yue and Han Yunyun walked over from the dormitory side and recognized Shen Ci from a distance. Seeing his disheveled state, Han Yunyun couldn't help but be taken aback: "Senior Brother, do you not have an umbrella?"

Before she could finish her sentence, the Bentley's doors unlocked, and Xie Yu rolled down his window halfway.

Caught in the middle between them, Shen Ci felt his whole body go stiff and cold.

Xie Yu didn't know Li Yue and Han Yunyun: "What are you staring blankly for? Aren't you cold? Get in."

Shen Ci pursed his lips, ignoring Li Yue and Han Yunyun, and got into the car right in front of them.

Once he was inside, Xie Yu rolled up the window, leaving a small gap for air, and asked, "What happened?"

Shen Ci was soaking wet all over, his face pale and lips turning blue. Rainwater dripped down from his hair, and his clothes clung tightly to his body, making him look rather pitiful.

Xie Yu only glanced at him once before looking away.

The wet shirt clinging to his body perfectly outlined a section of his waistline. The curve of his waist dimples was smooth and beautiful, very suitable to be wrapped around and held in the palm to play with. The fabric of the clothes was also sheer, a thin layer that teased without fully exposing, exuding an allure like a beauty half-hiding her face behind a pipa. With just one look, Xie Yu saw everything he should and shouldn't see.

He coughed: "How did you get yourself into this state?"

Shen Ci: "I just happened to get caught in the rain."

Through the layer of glass, he raised his eyes to look out the window. Li Yue and Han Yunyun were still standing rigidly in front of the laboratory building, hesitating over whether they should come over and ask.

Xie Yu gave an "Mhm," and reached out to open the front storage compartment. "Your shirt is soaked through. Take it off first."

Shen Ci had caught a chill and coughed just from having the air conditioner on last night. If he was wrapped in wet clothes for the whole trip, Xie Yu wouldn't even need to go watch the racing match; he could just send him straight to the hospital.

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Ci abruptly paused, looking over in disbelief. His body tensed up, his nails digging almost into his flesh. He just stared at Xie Yu, unmoving for a long time.

Xie Yu continued rummaging through: "What's wrong?"

Shen Ci asked hoarsely: "Here?"

"Ah?" His voice was too quiet, and Xie Yu didn't hear clearly. He continued digging in the storage box, seemingly reaching for something deep inside.

Shen Ci paused for a long time before raising his eyes in a panic.

Separated by a thin layer of one-way glass, people were coming and going outside the laboratory building. Young men and women weaved through the campus, talking and laughing, as if they were in a completely different world from the inside of the car.

Shen Ci stared blankly out the window. Li Yue and Han Yunyun were still under the eaves. Han Yunyun held an umbrella in her hand, and Li Yue had dug out the towel he prepared for playing basketball in the afternoon, seemingly wanting to bring it over to him.

The glass was a one-way mirror, but a ventilation gap had been left in the rear window. If the two changed their angle, they would be able to see inside the car.

Shen Ci lowered his eyes.

The silence in the car was so dead that for a moment, the only sound was Xie Yu rummaging for things.

In the silent stalemate, Shen Ci seemed to have thought of something. His face turned ghastly pale, and his fingers trembled uncontrollably. A moment later, seeing that Xie Yu had no intention of relenting in the slightest, he silently reached out for his buttons. One, two... His cold, pale skin was exposed to the air, breaking out in a layer of fine goosebumps.

By the time he got to the last few buttons, his shirt clinging precariously to his body, Shen Ci closed his eyes completely.

But the next moment, something soft came down right over his head. It was thick and heavy, completely covering him.

Shen Ci was stunned, subconsciously reaching out to touch it, and grabbed a handful of fluff.

It was a thick blanket.

Xie Yu turned the heater to the maximum, pulled the fleece blanket out of the storage compartment, and draped it over Shen Ci's head, saying, "Hurry up and dry off. Looking like this, how am I supposed to take you out to see people?"

This was the original owner's tone.

Shen Ci didn't speak, as if he hadn't processed it yet. His wet hair stuck to the side of his ears, and only his eyes peeked out from the fluff, looking at him fixedly, a bit dazed.

Xie Yu: "What are you staring blankly for? Wipe yourself off."

He had been quite frightened by Shen Ci's medical checkup report. It was no exaggeration to say that with Shen Ci's constitution, a simple cold could quickly develop into pneumonia, leading straight to hospitalization, the ICU, and if more serious, straight to the crematorium. Xie Yu would still act his part in the places indicated by the plot, but in situations like this not mentioned in the novel, he didn't dare let the protagonist freeze.

Seeing Shen Ci not moving, Xie Yu simply took the blanket and ruffled it roughly over his wet hair.

Outside the window, Han Yunyun was walking into the laboratory when she turned her head. Positioned exactly at that gap, she caught a glimpse of the scene inside the car.

She saw that on the spacious car seat, their senior brother was sitting in the passenger seat, tightly wrapped in a thick blanket, with only a small portion of his head exposed. In the driver's seat was a tall, handsome young man wearing a Patek Philippe with an azure blue dial on his wrist, which looked extremely valuable just from a glance. At this moment, he had casually pushed the watch up his wrist, holding a blanket with both hands as he leaned over to rub their senior brother's head, drying his hair. His brown pupils refracted scattered spots of light, and his peach blossom eyes were brimming with a smile.

Looking at it, he actually seemed quite gentle.