*Chapter 57: Fractured Calm*
School was a temporary haven, but even there, Li Xue's thoughts betrayed her. Classmates discussed solutions, equations, and deadlines, while she scribbled numbers mechanically. Every glance felt like surveillance, as if Zhao Liang could appear at any moment to remind her of Clause 6 and the penalties for negligence.
Her professor praised her work, unaware of the inner turmoil she endured. The praise made her cheeks flush, yet the faintest edge of dread remained. If he knew… she thought. Every small success might become a failure in his eyes.
Meanwhile, Mei Yan and Shen Wei shared a rare moment of quiet intimacy over coffee. Shen Wei's teasing was absent, replaced with a gentleness he reserved only for her. Mei Yan's thoughts drifted to Li Xue, her silent suffering, and the contrast with their small, fleeting freedom.
Back at the penthouse, Zhao Liang silently observed. He noted every detail — the way her fingers trembled over her notebook, the stiffness in her posture, the subtle tension in her jaw. Each observation reinforced his quiet dominance, the unspoken power that made every room she occupied a theater of fear.