“I’m not a thief!”

Within the welfare center’s dormitory, a nine-year-old girl faced everyone’s suspicions, her eyes red. She had a pair of large, watery eyes and was radiantly beautiful. However, her body looked frail due to malnutrition.

Seeing everyone look at her with disdain and hate, she felt wronged and choked, “That jade… is… It is mine! I’m… I’m not a thief! My mom left that behind for me!”

“So what you’re saying is that I stole your stuff?!” Standing opposite her was a girl about her age. Tilting her head, the girl eyed her coldly before she turned to smile innocently at the other children.

Compared to her, the girl looked sweet and proud, as though she were a lofty, little princess showered with everyone’s love.

As soon as she spoke, the children around them immediately came to her defense.

“You’re obviously lying! You’re lying! Why would Rou’er steal your stuff?!”

“Right, right! That’s impossible! How is Rou’er a thief? Clearly, it’s you who stole her thing!”

Faced with all their condemnations and questions, the girl was unable to give any convincing explanations to defend herself. Absolutely aggrieved, she rubbed her eyes bitterly and burst into tears.

“That is really my jade! Give it back….”

Rou’er eyed her gloatingly and turned to speak to everyone, “Everyone, it’s clear! Xiaoshi is the thief! Don’t play with her anymore! Thieves are bad!”

Several children vigorously nodded their heads. “Uh-huh! Let’s listen to Princess Rou’er! Ignore her in future! She’s a thief!”

“She’s a thief! Xiaoshi is a bad girl! Stealing Rou’er’s thing, shame on you!”

The children roared with laughter as they dispersed. Alone, the girl leaned against a wall. She held back her tears as she gazed at the other children’s backs, tightly clenching her fists.

***

A row of men clad in black suits lined up outside the director’s office.

An energetic-looking elderly man past fifty sat sternly on a sofa. The set of traditional Chinese garments on him enhanced his respectable demeanor, and under the shadows of his brows was an air of fury.

He might be getting on in years, his appearance slightly aged, but from his handsome facial features, one could still picture how stunning he looked during his prime.

The director brought in a pile of documents, carefully showed them to the elderly man, and respectfully offered them to him. “Mr. Mu, these are the children who came into the welfare center last year. All their information is here. Please have a look.”

The elderly man reached out his hand for the documents, went over some of them, and then furrowed his eyebrows. The assistant by his side caught sight of his expression and raised his head to smile at the director, asking, “That child is about eight to nine years old. May I ask, of those who were admitted last year, how many fit this condition?”

The director briefly went over his memories and swiftly replied, “Please hold on a moment.”

The elderly man continued to scan through the documents, yet his eyes were fixed on a family portrait. He suddenly stretched out his hand and pointed. “Let me see this girl.”

The director felt stunned before hurriedly nodding. “I understand! I shall arrange for her to meet you fast!”

He made a call and, soon after, a teacher brought a girl in.

Rou’er diligently stood in front of the elderly man, with her hands to her back and chest puffed up. Grinning from ear to ear, she said, “Grandpa, nice to meet you! I’m Rou’er.”

The elderly man expressionlessly stared at her and carefully examined every inch of her face. His eyes slowly narrowed as he looked at her darkly and gloomily.

Rou’er curiously wrinkled her brows. This elderly man’s fierce-looking face and stern demeanor somewhat frightened her. Just as she retreated a few steps, she saw him suddenly gesture to her.

“Come! Let grandpa take a good look at you!”

“… Okay.” Rou’er hesitantly took two steps forward. The elderly man gently held her shoulders and observed her up close. Despite the compatibility in age, he still felt that neither her appearance nor her facial features were similar to that person.

His vision slowly shifted downwards until it landed on the jade near her collarbone. The elderly man held up the piece of jade and softly asked, “This jade…”

Rou’er stiffened for a moment before smiling sweetly. “This jade was given to me by my mother.”

The elderly man slightly narrowed his eyes. His assistant quickly realized the situation. He hurriedly took out another piece of jade from a briefcase and passed it over to him.

The two pieces of jade were put together and they fit perfectly.

The elderly man’s hands slightly shuddered. Upon witnessing this, the assistant understood his intentions and walked over to the director. He muttered a few words to him before taking out a check with a large amount from the briefcase and handing it over to him. The director accepted it with a smile.

A row of luxurious, black limousines was parked at the entrance of the welfare center.

A desolate-looking girl climbed up the black iron railings in the distance and, with dull eyes, watched Rou’er follow a group of men in suits and enter an extended Bentley.

The moment the doors of the vehicle closed, Rou’er coldly swept her gaze over to her direction.

Coincidentally, their sight collided. Rou’er smiled slyly at her before the car windows rolled up and the vehicles drove off into the distance.

Thus, the lives of two children took an unexpected turn.

On one end of a hospital hallway, the accompanying secretary held her phone in one hand and a report in another, presenting from the document.

“Yun Shishi, 18 years old, a student. Your father was negligent in his business and went bankrupt. According to investigations, all information is correct. Your overall physical condition is proven fit by the medical tests, and there won’t be any issue regarding your custody rights.”

This girl was regrettably unable to meet the conditions for in-vitro fertilization. Then, they could only seek an alternative method.

Yun Shishi sat still on the bench. She gazed at the scenery outside the window. Her expression was strangely calm, yet deep within her watery eyes was complete darkness.

Although the young lady’s delicate features made her seem even younger, her tender face, as if she had experienced many vicissitudes of life, showed a look that was incompatible to her age.

She was the chosen one – the one in a million. Because of her aesthetically pleasing visuals, the remuneration provided by her employer was generous. The sum of five million dollars was already astronomical to her.

Three days ago, she secretly signed a contract without her father’s knowledge, and then she was brought over to this location. She was locked inside this room every day and was forbidden from contacting anyone outside and, even more so, from going out, as though she were a quarantined patient.

She knew that, in order to prepare her for pregnancy, they needed to ensure her health, so that her body would be better suited to carry the baby.

The three meals made for her a day were extremely exquisite. Ham, bacon, bread, beef – everything was almost too extravagant. She knew that those foods were beneficial to people preparing for pregnancy, so even though she did not like to eat them, she could only forcefully swallow them down.

Yun Shishi dared not disobey any orders, as absolute obedience was one of the conditions stated in the contract.

Thus, even today, she faithfully followed her employer’s secretary and anxiously came to this private institute to undergo medical examinations.

This employer of hers was very mysterious; she had not seen him even once. She only knew of the contract, and that signing it would entitle her to a remuneration of five million yuan. This amount should be enough to help her father overcome the financial crisis!

She did not dare to mention this matter to her father. When she left, she only left behind a note and did not say a word of goodbye. Because of the lengthy period of surrogacy, she would probably be unable to go back home anytime soon. Thus, she temporarily did not have to worry about facing her father’s apprehension.

According to one of the conditions in the contract, she needed to be put under close observation all the time until she conceived. When this condition was met, before the next day, one million dollars would be deposited in advance to her father’s bank account. She would be paid an extra sum if she bore a baby boy as mentioned by the secretary.

Surrogacy. Hah… It was laughable. She had thought of everything to earn money, but selling her body had never been one of them! However, since it was a large sum, she could not help but be moved by it.

In financial straits, she chose this road looked down on.

By the sea. A luxurious sea suite villa.

The villas around this area were presented with the best views and, thus, the exorbitant land prices were a given.

After a simple tidying up, an extravagant limousine brought her to the villa. The vehicle quickly departed after she was given some instructions.

The secretary told her that, tonight, he would arrive.

Yun Shishi took a deep breath. She was no longer in the mood to appreciate the beautiful sea view. She tugged at her luggage and entered the villa with a heavy heart.

Night fell. In a luxurious bedroom, the curtains were tightly drawn and blocked all the lights.

Within the silent room, she took a bath and quietly lay down in the king-sized bed. She was requested to wear a blindfold. She lost her sense of sight, yet her sense of hearing was greatly enhanced. She could even hear the sea breeze blowing and the waves crashing onto the shore.

Without the blaring lights and the hustle and bustle of the city, the silence could make one’s hair stand on end.

Without the blaring lights and the hustle and bustle of the city, the silence could make one’s hair stand on end.

Soon after, she heard the sound of an engine running getting louder as it approached from the distance. A vehicle halted in front of the villa and its engine turned off.

At that moment, her usually calm heart suddenly tightened as she felt an unprecedented nervousness and restlessness. When the footsteps walking up the stairs grew louder as they drew closer, she could no longer maintain her calmness!

As she was feeling uneasy, the door flung open.

Along with the sound of steady footsteps, Yun Shishi could sense that someone had come in and stopped by her bedside. She was absolutely nervous by now and promptly sat up on the bed.

He… He’s here! Is it my employer?

She was on tenterhooks when one side of the bed slightly dipped – a clear indication that someone had sat on it.

Yun Shishi, who was feeling perturbed, leaned her back against the wall for support. She felt absolutely awkward and was glad that in front of her was stifling darkness. She could only barely make out a towering figure before her, yet her heart still beat with helplessness.

Although she could not see his face, somehow, she was able to sense his strong, overwhelming presence, especially his cold line of sight. He had the air of aggressiveness unique to a ruler, as if he were a noble, arrogant overlord. As for her, she was just like a tribute brought to him in ancient times.

Yun Shishi opened her mouth and spoke in a somewhat vague manner, “You… Who are you?”

The man remained mum. He moved his body and slightly bent forward, leaning closer toward her.

Yun Shishi only felt his looming presence get nearer. Immediately, the imposing figure pressed down on her and completely imprisoned her under his body. Her body shook from the effort of withstanding his body weight. She curled up into a ball, and then she was no longer able to move. She nervously held her hands before her chest. She was nearly suffocating!

Not waiting for her to react, the man narrowed his eyes and pulled her clothes straight up. Her soft, milky white skin was exposed to the air. Suddenly, his large hands delved in—

“Wait!” she exclaimed with a trembling voice. “I… May I take a look at you?”

“Why?”

His youthful yet deep voice was akin to red wine, rich and mellow. It was a husky voice that could draw people in.

“I can’t see anything… I’m scared….”

He scoffed and, with an extremely deep voice, said, “You don’t have to look and you don’t have to be scared.”

The girl’s delicate body had yet to develop fully. She was still so pure, and her slender waist could easily be held in his one hand. His icy fingers rubbed her lips harshly and played around with them nonstop. “Just close your eyes.”

How delightful the tender touch was, just like silk.

His fingertips were a little moist and chilly, and when they came into contact with her warm skin, she could not help but shrink a little. The darkness in front of her eyes only made her more afraid!

His thin lips left her body. He apparently thought that her one piece was in the way, since he tore it apart in the next second.

His near violent moves made Yun Shishi stiffen. She dared not move recklessly.

Her heart beat thunderously in her chest. It was as if her heartbeats were forcing themselves out from her throat.

Shame, panic, fear… With all these emotions weighing on her, she could hardly breathe.

It was in that moment that she started to regret her decision.

She initially thought that she could do it. It was just bearing a child for him, after all. She might have no experience, but, as a woman, this was something she would come across sooner or later. However, facing this unknown yet domineering man, she lost all the courage she had at the start. Right now, she only felt utter fear!

She had just become an adult and had not experienced any form of intimacy yet. She had never even held a boy’s hand in her entire life. Naturally, her heart was unwilling. Still, she was unable to resist his invasion. Under his provocation, she slowly opened up like the flower buds under the morning sun.