Lin Wan took a moment to process the situation, realizing that asking questions was futile. It was just more of his pirate logic. Watching him turn to leave, she called out, "Wait."
Chen Jin had already changed into a bathrobe, and when he turned around, the belt hung loosely, exposing a large patch of his chest. Lin Wan froze for a moment, then asked, "Was everything you said at the press conference today true?"
"If I said it was true, would you believe me?" Chen Jin's expression was uncharacteristically serious, lacking his usual air of authority or mockery.
Lin Wan fell silent, and he smiled, walking over to stand in front of her. "Lin Wan, do you think I'm just some heartless, evil person?"
Seeing her remain silent, he sighed, raising his hand to gently touch her face. "It seems trust doesn't exist between us. But sometimes, not trusting can be painful."
Dinner was relatively calm, though the large Xituolanya restaurant felt eerily lonely, with only the occasional clink of cutlery breaking the silence. Lin Wan thought to herself, I guess even those who live in villas aren't necessarily happy.
As the night went on, everything was still, and sleep came quietly—except for a small incident. Half-awake, Lin Wan instinctively tried to move away from him, but instead, she ended up falling off the bed. She groggily picked herself up from the floor and saw him sitting by the bed, leaning against the headboard. In the faint light from the courtyard, she could see his bright eyes staring at her. She thought that the noise must have woken him up, but why did he look so… strange, even terrifying?
"You're really that scared of me?" His voice suddenly broke the silence. Perhaps it was the darkness, but his voice had an eerie, almost drifting quality to it. Lin Wan didn't know how to answer. Was she scared of him? No. She hated him, but… was she really not afraid?
He didn't wait for her response. After a brief silence, he lay back down. After a while, his even breathing filled the room. Lin Wan, still stunned, couldn't believe how easy he was to fool. Wasn't he the type to grab her and interrogate her until he had an answer? Was he sleepwalking?
This thought made her feel a rush of panic. Violence, perversion, and now sleepwalking—this man's danger level was skyrocketing. Lin Wan realized she might end up with chronic insomnia; who knew when he might wake up in the middle of the night and strangle her?
Despite all of this, Lin Wan managed to fall asleep after half an hour of struggling. The next morning, when she woke up, the bed was already empty, with only an indentation on the pillow and the blankets in disarray. Thinking back to last night's strange incident, she felt a chill run down her spine. Thankfully, the warm sunlight streamed through the window, landing on her face and body, like a magical massage that eased her tension. However, the rest of the day made her realize that there was no such thing as "the worst." There was always something worse.
Chen Jin had clearly planned to drive her insane—or perhaps force her to submit. He had cut off all her connections to the outside world. No computer, her phone had been confiscated, and even the landline in the room had been shut off. The only source of external information was television, which only had variety shows and movie channels. Once, when she went to find Old Zhou, she caught him quickly folding up the sports section of the newspaper and hiding it behind his back. She found herself both amused and exasperated. She had just wanted to tell him that the water heater on the second floor was broken.
Sometimes Lin Wan felt that her current situation was bizarre. She was clearly a prisoner under house arrest, constantly watching, yet these two people treated her with excessive courtesy, like a guest. They cared for her as though she were royalty. Every day, Zhou Sao would ask if there was anything she wanted to eat or didn't want to eat, making it all a bit too much. Hearing her being addressed as "Miss Lin" made Lin Wan think that they might as well drop "Lin" and just call her "Miss." After all, she wasn't even as free as they were. She told Zhou Sao to just call her by her name, and Zhou Sao agreed, but the next time, she still called her "Miss Lin" with a smile. Lin Wan give up and let her continue.
The first three days felt like years for Lin Wan. Chen Jin had given her a long "leave" from work, so she didn't worry about losing her job, but she still felt miserable because work had been her only mental support. Only when she focused on drawing could she temporarily forget her sorrow and the dire situation she was in. During those moments, she felt free, able to let her imagination run wild. But now, even that little freedom had been taken from her. He was so cruel.