Chapter 295: Sleeping with the Enemy! The Domineering CEO Appears!
Liu Ruyan shrieked, a high-pitched, mortified sound that echoed sharply in the quiet luxury suite. She whipped her head away instantly, burying her burning face in her hands, not daring to look again.
Her delicate, fair earlobes and the graceful curve of her neck were dyed a deep, vibrant crimson, as if she were about to bleed from sheer embarrassment.
"You... you shameless rogue! Put some clothes on!"
Shen Anyu feigned surprise, his expression the picture of innocent confusion. He stood by the bed, completely unbothered by her reaction.
"I'm used to it. That's how I sleep soundly—unrestricted and free. It's good for circulation. What, do I have to accommodate your habits in my own bedroom? You are the guest here, Second Senior Sister."
Liu Ruyan was both embarrassed and angry. Her heart pounded against her ribs like a trapped bird, and her [Grandmaster] composure was shattered.
"Shen Anyu! Don't go too far! Or I'll tell your Aunt! I'll tell Zhiyue you're bullying me!"
Just then, from the adjacent room, a voice drifted through the wall—clear, amused, and terrifyingly close.
"Actually, Ruyan... you don't have to tell me everything. Isn't it a bit inappropriate to tell me about this kind of thing? I'm his aunt, not his mother. And certainly not the morality police."
Liu Ruyan froze. Her blood ran cold, then boiled instantly.
Although the soundproofing in the Jiangjing Manor was the best in the world—military-grade materials designed to block eavesdropping—An Zhiyue was a [Martial Dao Grandmaster] with profound cultivation. Her senses were sharp enough to hear a leaf fall a hundred meters away. How could she not hear them bickering through a single wall?
"Zhi... Zhiyue?!"
Hearing An Zhiyue's voice, Liu Ruyan was so embarrassed she wished she could find a crack in the expensive marble floor tiles to crawl into and die. Her best friend was listening! She felt like a teenager caught sneaking a boy into her room.
Shen Anyu bit his lip, his shoulders shaking as he suppressed his laughter.
An Zhiyue's voice rang out again, tinged with a teasing affection and a hint of mischief:
"Don't worry, you two. I'll respect your privacy and block my hearing with [True Qi]. Do whatever you want—fight, sleep, or... cultivate. Just don't call me to judge. Giggle, giggle..."
Before she finished speaking, An Zhiyue couldn't hold back her laughter. It was a rare, girlish sound coming from the usually dignified elder.
Having been best friends with Liu Ruyan for twenty years, it was the first time she had seen the "Ice Queen of the Capital" so flustered. Liu Ruyan usually toyed with men, breaking hearts with a flick of her wrist. But now? She was like a frightened quail or a timid chick in front of her nephew.
"If Liu Ruyan and Shen Anyu ended up together in the future..." An Zhiyue mused in her room, a playful glint in her eyes. "My former best friend would become my nephew's wife. She would have to serve me tea and call me 'Aunt'. How wonderful. I must facilitate this."
Inside the master bedroom, a strange, heavy stillness settled after An Zhiyue's voice faded. The air was thick with unresolved tension and the faint scent of lavender from the humidifier.
Shen Anyu looked at the mortified woman huddled on the edge of the rug. He knew the art of negotiation: push, then pull.
"Alright," he said, appropriating a tone of great sacrifice and compromise. "I'll leave my pants on. Is that okay? That's my final offer."
In reality, this was a concession Shen Anyu himself manufactured. He never intended to sleep naked; it was just a psychological anchor to make her accept sleeping in the same bed. By offering an extreme first, the "compromise" seemed reasonable.
[Ding! Detected an increase of +1 in Destined Heroine Liu Ruyan's favorability. Reward: Plundered +3,000 Destiny Value!]
Liu Ruyan immediately breathed a sigh of relief, her stiff shoulders slumping. At least he wasn't going to be completely exposed. That was a small victory.
But then a new problem arose.
She looked at the bed. It was a custom California King, huge enough for four people, but it was still one bed.
Liu Ruyan felt that Shen Anyu wouldn't back down any further. But sleeping in the same bed with a man? Especially a man who had just killed a [Heavenly Human] and radiated such dangerous masculinity?
She felt like a rabbit being asked to sleep in a dragon's nest.
"I... I'll just sleep on the floor," she mumbled, pointing to the thick Persian rug. "It's comfortable enough."
Shen Anyu didn't speak. He reached out and grabbed Liu Ruyan's small, cold hand.
"You... what are you doing?!"
Liu Ruyan's face lost all color, turning pale. Her internal [True Qi] felt suppressed just by his touch.
In reality, she was usually a queen-like figure, formidable and untouchable. But in front of Shen Anyu, her strength, her family background, and her pride were completely suppressed.
There is always someone stronger. If a lickspittle wants to be with a queen, he must become a eunuch; but to conquer a queen, one must be an Emperor.
Shen Anyu smiled. It wasn't an aggressive smile, but it brokered no argument. It was the smile of a predator who had already caught his prey.
"If I let you sleep on the floor, Aunt would definitely blame me if she found out tomorrow morning. She'd say I don't know how to treat a guest, especially her best friend."
"Don't worry, my bed is huge. We can separate it in the middle. I won't cross the line unless you invite me."
Fearing that refusing Shen Anyu would cause him to do something even more drastic—or worse, wake up An Zhiyue again—Liu Ruyan could only nod helplessly.
"Fine. But you stay on your side! If you cross the line, I'll... I'll bite you!"
She pulled away from his hand and scrambled onto the bed, hugging the far edge as if the center was made of lava.
She had just finished showering not long ago. She was wearing a loose purple lace nightgown that she had "borrowed" from the guest closet. It was elegant but revealing. As she moved, the silk slid up her thighs, revealing long, shapely legs that glowed with a pearly white luster in the moonlight, like fine mutton-fat jade.
Noticing Shen Anyu's gaze lingering on her legs with appreciation, Liu Ruyan squeaked and quickly pulled the plush duvet over herself, wrapping herself into a tight cocoon.
"Don't look!"
If it weren't for the central air conditioning keeping the room cool, she would surely have broken out in a sweat from nerves.
Shen Anyu smiled, amused by her reaction. He walked to the other side, stretched his limbs lazily, and comfortably lay down. He closed his eyes instantly, his breathing becoming even.
The room plunged into silence.
At first, Liu Ruyan was very wary. Her eyes were wide open, staring at the ceiling. She strained her ears, every muscle tense, fearing that Shen Anyu would try to sneak an attack the moment she lowered her guard.
One minute passed.
Ten minutes passed.
A full hour passed.
The room was silent, save for the rhythmic humming of the AC and the ticking of the clock. Shen Anyu hadn't moved a muscle.
Listening to Shen Anyu's long, steady breathing, it seemed he was truly tired and had fallen asleep.
Only then did Liu Ruyan relax her tense muscles. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She turned her head slightly to glance at him.
In the soft moonlight filtering through the curtains, Shen Anyu's handsome face looked peaceful, almost boyish. His long eyelashes cast shadows on his cheeks. There was a faint hint of fatigue under his eyes—the only sign of the titanic battle he had just fought.
It made her feel a sudden, unexpected pang of sympathy.
"No, no, no..."
Liu Ruyan shook her head repeatedly on the pillow, trying to shake the thought away.
"What is there to feel sorry for? He's a scoundrel! A demon who bullies women!"
"However..."
Her mind drifted back to the deafening sounds of battle she had heard earlier, and the ruined battlefield she had seen with her own eyes. Even after several hours, the image of Tian Yunzi's broken corpse was burned into her retina.
That was a top-tier battle at the [Heavenly Human Unity] level. An unprecedented clash of titans in the Yanxia Martial Arts World.
To witness it firsthand would be the fortune of all martial artists.
On one side was Tian Yunzi, the Master of the Netherworld Palace, a bogeyman who had dominated the dark world for decades. A peerless expert!
On the other side was Shen Anyu, the Young Master of the Yanxia Shen Family, who—until today—had no reputation whatsoever in the martial arts world other than being rich.
The final outcome? The rich kid killed the legend.
"If this news spreads... it would shake the entire world," she whispered.
"That Shen Anyu... he hides so deep. He is like an abyss. You never know where the bottom is."
Liu Ruyan's charming eyes fluttered as she looked at Shen Anyu, deep in thought. Her previous impression of him as a "playboy" was shattered. Now, he was a mystery. A dangerous, alluring mystery that pulled her in.
Liu Ruyan didn't dare to dwell on this matter too much. Shen Anyu's secrecy surely involved a grand scheme that she couldn't investigate without getting burned.
"Speaking of which... after such a major battle, even if Shen Anyu wasn't severely injured externally, he must have been exhausted. His [True Essence] must be depleted, right?"
"No wonder he fell asleep so quickly. He must be drained. He probably can't even lift a finger."
"So... he is incapacitated right now."
Liu Ruyan muttered softly, finally feeling completely at ease. A smug smile appeared on her lips. Thinking that Shen Anyu was too tired to move, let alone assault her, she felt a sense of victory.
"Hmph. You sleep like a pig. Serves you right."
She giggled into her hand, feeling safe. She closed her eyes, ready to sleep.
Just then.
Liu Ruyan's charming eyes widened.
Swish!
An arm, heavy and hot like iron, suddenly shot across the expanse of the bed. It moved with the speed of a striking cobra.
It wrapped around Liu Ruyan's slender waist.
"Ah!"
Before she could scream, she was dragged across the mattress.
Thump!
She slammed into a hard, warm chest. Shen Anyu—still with his eyes closed—had pulled her into his arms like a teddy bear. His legs entangled with hers, pinning her effectively.
The heat from his body was searing, burning through the thin silk of her nightgown. His scent—masculine, clean, and overpowering—filled her nose, making her dizzy.
"He... he's pretending?!"
...
Meanwhile, in another part of the city.
The bustling film set of a large-scale historical drama was chaotic. It was late at night, but the studio lights were blinding, turning night into day.
"Woman! You are playing with fire!"
A cold, domineering voice cut through the noise of the crew, silencing everyone.
A tall, well-built young man in an expensive, custom-made black suit stood in the center of the set. He looked down at the petite woman trembling before him with a gaze that could freeze water.
His expression was a mix of indifference, arrogance, and slight disgust. His aura was powerful, suffocating, like a high and mighty monarch inspecting a beggar who had dared to touch his robe.
It was Lu Xiuhan. The CEO of the Lu Corporation. The new [Child of Destiny] of the "Domineering CEO" archetype.
"CEO Lu... I... I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to step on your shoe! Someone pushed me!"
Wen Feifei stood there, dressed in the ragged, dusty clothes of a palace maid extra. Her face was pale, her eyes slightly red and brimming with tears. She looked aggrieved and pitiful, a white lotus in the mud.
The last time she refused that unspoken rule from a male director, she was blacklisted in the industry. Although Shen Anyu had "dealt" with the director, the industry blacklist remained effective due to inertia.
Wen Feifei could only work as an extra in various film crews, taking the lowest jobs, even working overtime late into the night for a pittance, all for a slim chance to be seen.
But Wen Feifei's natural beauty was too dazzling to hide. It had aroused the jealousy of the second female lead in this crew, who had just "accidentally" pushed her during a break.
This caused Wen Feifei to stumble and stomp her muddy boot right onto the pristine, polished Italian leather shoe of Lu Xiuhan, who was on a site visit to inspect his investment.
A single thought flashed through Wen Feifei's mind as she looked up at the terrifying man:
I'm finished.
The Lu Corporation was the entertainment industry giant in the Demon Capital. And CEO Lu Xiuhan was notoriously domineering, ruthless, and intolerant of mistakes.
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