After Failing to Reverse the Plot, I Made My Escape - Chapter 25

“You are now my wife, belonging only to me.”

Lover.

In the twenty-odd years of Chang Tingzhi’s life, that word simply did not exist.

He had been abused as a child. Even after his biological family found him and brought him home, he felt no emotion when faced with their weeping. Looking at those faces so similar to his own, he found them only noisy and boring.

He had been different from other children since he was small. He did not cry or cause trouble; he would only sit quietly by himself.

People said he was antisocial.

An incident occurred that led to him being sent to the hospital.

That day, his class was taken hostage. Several children in the classroom were tied up as hostages with bombs strapped to them. The kidnappers used them as leverage, demanding money and safe passage from the school.

The classroom was filled with the sound of children crying. The air was thick with the smell of sweat and gunpowder.

The hijacked children were too young to understand the need for silence. They could only follow their instincts, letting out sharp, explosive wails.

So noisy.

Chang Tingzhi sat quietly in the corner. His inorganic black eyes held a trace of boredom. There was no expression on his face as he watched the kidnapper point at the bombs on the hostages and negotiate desperately with the teachers outside.

What could crying solve?

It was nothing more than a futile struggle.

It would be nice if things could suddenly become quiet.

Chang Tingzhi thought this as his gaze drifted calmly toward the child closest to him.

A cold and twisted thought quietly crept into his heart, and a corner of his lips suddenly curled upward.

As the kidnapper became increasingly agitated and negotiations reached a stalemate, time seemed to freeze in that moment.

With a flick of Chang Tingzhi’s finger, the watch on the wrist of the boy who had once bullied him suddenly emitted a piercing siren.

The kidnapper’s frayed nerves snapped instantly. Losing his final bit of patience, he raised the remote in his hand. “Die, all of you!”

The button was pressed in that instant.

The violent explosion was deafening. Flames and thick smoke spread instantly. Shattered desks, chairs, and debris flew everywhere. A scorching wave of air mixed with the scent of blood rushed toward him.

Standing in the corner, Chang Tingzhi squinted slightly against the blast of air.

He stared at it all without expression.

He watched the boy who had once mocked him get blown back by the shockwave. His body was covered in burns as he lay at Chang Tingzhi’s feet, wailing in agony. Blood spread across the soles of Chang Tingzhi’s shoes, leaving behind bright red prints.

Chang Tingzhi clearly felt something unprecedented and cold.

Pleasure.

When people arrived, they only saw Chang Tingzhi standing amidst the ruins and debris. His eyes were lifeless, yet a strange smile hung on his lips.

He was sent to the hospital and diagnosed with Emotional Detachment Disorder.

How could he have an emotional deficiency?

He clearly felt a supreme, twisted joy in controlling the fates of others and easily erasing those he loathed.

However, he knew that if he did not fit in with the crowd now, he would be labeled a freak.

That would not do.

If he was sent away, how could he continue to find pleasure?

Thus, he began to act as the well-behaved child everyone expected, becoming the model student in the eyes of others.

His memory was never wrong.

Yet one day, a person stood before him, kissed him, and told him, “I am your lover.”

It was too ridiculous.

Chang Tingzhi’s fingertips lightly brushed the lingering warmth on his lips, a gentle kiss left by Yu Fuqiu earlier.

How could he have a lover?

“Then, can you come home tonight?”

Yu Fuqiu took a step back, maintaining a proper distance as if the person who had been acting affectionately in his arms just now was someone else.

This sudden distance made Chang Tingzhi frown in discomfort.

He opened his mouth, but the words reached his lips and would not come out.

Chang Tingzhi’s gaze could not help but sweep over Yu Fuqiu’s neck. Those purple bruises were exceptionally prominent. Whenever he saw them, Chang Tingzhi felt an inexplicable, throbbing pain in his heart.

He was very afraid.

He needs me.

Chang Tingzhi lowered his gaze to look at Yu Fuqiu, who was a head shorter than him. He fell into those eyes that were as bright as stars, filled entirely with his own reflection, pure as a pool of clear water.

Chang Tingzhi’s throat moved twice before he gave a low “Mhm.”

Yu Fuqiu could not believe his ears. He froze for a moment, and then a wave of immense joy rushed over him. However, he restrained his movements. He turned around, the corners of his mouth lifting. “Oh, okay, good. Then, I will go tell Xiao Ling.”

“No need.”

Chang Tingzhi’s voice remained cold and devoid of emotion, but in Yu Fuqiu’s ears, it seemed to carry a hint of warmth.

“Tonight is the Starry Night Banquet. I will pick you up and take you there.”

The Starry Night Banquet.

Yu Fuqiu’s footsteps faltered. The plot from the book slowly surfaced in his mind. This was the first meeting between the protagonist top and bottom.

But this time was different. Chang Tingzhi had him by his side.

He took a deep breath and patted his face, trying to suppress the unease in his heart. “Then I will go get ready. Chang Qiu Group just released their autumn and winter designs. I happen to be wearing them, so I can do some promotion.”

Just as his hand touched the doorknob to leave, a powerful arm blocked his way.

Yu Fuqiu looked up in confusion, not understanding Chang Tingzhi’s actions.

“No hand-holding?” Chang Tingzhi arched an eyebrow. “We just broke the rumors of our divorce, and there are so many staff members outside. Do we not need to maintain our public image?”

Yu Fuqiu’s heart, which had been fluttering just moments ago, slowly sank.

Right. How could he forget the character setting of the original protagonist top?

One of his traits was that he could not perceive any emotion. Only the destined protagonist bottom could make him feel joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness, allowing him to experience supreme novelty and infinite stimulation.

Because of this, the two of them were a match made in heaven.

However.

Yu Fuqiu looked at the hand barred in front of him. Not long ago, these hands had held him tightly and stroked his skin as they whispered intimately.

At least for now, Chang Tingzhi belonged to him.

He was still by his side.

His hand gently took hold of Chang Tingzhi’s wrist. The warmth of their skin touching made his heart skip a beat.

A crimson flush gradually crawled up his earlobes.

Yu Fuqiu secretly scolded himself. They had been married for so many years and had a seven-year-old child. Why was he still acting like a young boy in his first relationship?

Even so, the moment the door opened, he could not help but take step after step to close the distance between them, leaning closer to Chang Tingzhi.

“Brother Yu! Are you okay?”

When Tan Ling heard the door open, she turned around with a look of worry and alertness. She was still holding a sword from the prop team. It was a real sword, and the cold light reflecting off it shimmered against Chang Tingzhi’s expressionless face.

“Brother Chang, you, you, you are still here.”

Chang Tingzhi swept a cold glance at the sword in her hand. “Yes.”

Tan Ling immediately withdrew the sword and forced a smile. She stood guard at the door, trembling with fear that Chang Tingzhi might do something dangerous to Yu Fuqiu.

Sister Chu Chu had said nothing except to tell her to do her best to take care of Yu Fuqiu, saying that it was really not easy for him to be alone.

However, seeing Yu Fuqiu being held almost halfway in Chang Tingzhi’s arms, Tan Ling dazed. It was as if the old Brother Chang had returned.

Yet, she felt that something was different.

“Very nervous?”

Chang Tingzhi leaned back in his seat with his eyes closed to rest, but he could still sense the gaze that frequently drifted toward him from beside him.

“No, it is not that.” Yu Fuqiu had walked international red carpets and won major awards, but when he was actually alone with this new personality of Chang Tingzhi, he suddenly did not know what to say.

“What did you two do when you were alone together before?”

Chang Tingzhi opened his eyes and turned his head. His dark eyes were like bottomless black holes as they stared at Yu Fuqiu.

This was the first time Chang Tingzhi had actively mentioned the previous Chang Tingzhi.

“Tingzhi, he.” Yu Fuqiu pursed his lips. “How do you want me to distinguish between you?”

“You and he have completely different personalities. He likes cilantro and custard buns shaped like rabbits. He would pull off the rabbit ears, saying they were too hard and he did not like them. He eats tomatoes without peeling them, and he loves tomato stir-fried noodles with a bottle of yogurt.”

“Also, he only liked eating eggs with plain porridge. He would break the yolk and pour it into the porridge. You have no idea how picky he was when he was young. I put in a lot of effort to fix those habits, otherwise how could he have grown to 1.9 meters tall?”

Suddenly, Yu Fuqiu’s pupils dilated.

Chang Tingzhi leaned in and kissed his lips, blocking the rest of his words in his throat.

He opened his mouth in surprise, making it easier for Chang Tingzhi to invade.

But the kiss was gentler than he imagined. It only lingered on his lips for a moment before Chang Tingzhi restrained himself and pulled back.

Chang Tingzhi’s gaze darkened as he looked at those red lips.

On the inside of the lower lip, there was an inconspicuous tooth mark. Only after kissing him would one know there was a mark left there.

He had not left that mark.

This thought caused a sudden surge of anger to rise in Chang Tingzhi’s heart.

In Yu Fuqiu’s incessant chatter, he had only spoken of another person. This realization made him feel irritated.

So, he had to cut off Yu Fuqiu’s words.

“Yu Fuqiu, you must remember.”

He lifted Yu Fuqiu’s chin, his eyes an inorganic black.

“The man who is your husband now is me.”

“You must learn more about me. This is your duty as a wife.”

“I do not like hearing other men’s names or preferences from your mouth.”

“That is in the past.”

“In your present and future, you are my wife.”

The distance between them was very close, close enough that Yu Fuqiu could count Chang Tingzhi’s eyelashes, each one distinct.

He has lost so much weight.

Yu Fuqiu thought.

“Okay.” Yu Fuqiu nodded slowly. His chin was still gripped, forcing him to tilt his head back to meet those eyes.

“So, what would you two do?”

Like a child demanding an answer, Chang Tingzhi repeated the question.

“He would hold me, kiss me, and act spoiled. We would share the things we encountered.”

Before he could finish his sentence, he was pulled into Chang Tingzhi’s arms.

Immediately, that gentle kiss fell upon his lips again. Following that, a slight but clear sting came from the inside of his lower lip.

“Ungh!”

Yu Fuqiu let out a muffled groan. Chang Tingzhi had used his teeth to bite a mark onto the softest, most fragile part of the inner membrane, neither too hard nor too soft.

Then, Chang Tingzhi pulled back slightly, still holding him tightly in his arms. He looked down at Yu Fuqiu’s eyes, which had instantly turned red and watery, and at his ravaged lips that bore the secret tooth mark.

“Like this?”

He spoke softly.

“This is the first action of our time alone together.”

“You must learn to adapt to me.”

After all.

You are my wife now.

Belonging only to me.