We're almost to the village now.

Xiao Lian is extremely anxious in her heart.

This time, she must play her part well.

Otherwise, not only would her reputation be ruined, which would be a minor issue, but her mother's refusal to use her money for treatment would be a major problem!

After much hesitation,

Xiao Lian grits her teeth, pulls the curtains between the back row and the front row even tighter, closes her eyes, and says to Qin Feng, "Come on..."

"No way," shakes his head Qin Feng.

"Why?" Xiao Lian is puzzled.

"The problem now isn't with me, but with you. You're too tense, so you should be the one to take the initiative and 'pounce' on me, to break through your mental barriers," says Qin Feng seriously.

After he spoke,

Xiao Lian's heart grew even more embarrassed.

Take the initiative?

What should she do?

"Then, then..." Xiao Lian, her face flushed with nerves and worry, asks, "What about Sister Yunxiao..."

"Ah..."

Qin Feng let out a long sigh, then with a determined look that accepted fate, said, "If I don't enter hell, who will?"

"Alright then!"

Xiao Lian bit her lip again, took a deep breath, and suddenly lunged at Qin Feng!

A tumble ensued.

A quiver followed.

A few minutes later, Xiao Lian got up, her face already flushed red, hurriedly tidying her messy hair, and said, "Now, it should be about right..."

At the same time,

there was a hint of moisture in her eyes.

Not because Qin Feng took advantage of her, but because she lost her first kiss, feeling a sudden sense of loss, which was originally meant for the man she would deeply love in the future.

She quickly looked out the window, not letting Qin Feng see.

At this moment, Qin Feng sat up and said with a wry smile, "What are you doing? I meant just a hug would be enough, how come you went as far as kissing..."

"Ah?!"

Xiao Lian was startled for a moment, turning her head to look at him, "A hug?"

"Yes!"

Qin Feng said with a bitter smile, "A hug, which involves a larger contact area than holding hands, linking arms, or wrapping an arm around the waist. A hug would have been enough..."

"..."

For a moment,

Xiao Lian felt an urge to cry even more.

She thought that Qin Feng's "pounce" meant kissing.

It turned out to be just a hug.

What a loss!

"Why didn't you say it earlier then?" Xiao Lian said in frustration.

"You covered my mouth, and I also didn't dare to resist you too much, otherwise, what if the two of them in front heard us," said Qin Feng.

"..."

Xiao Lian was utterly dumbfounded and pounded on him in annoyance.

Seeing this, Qin Feng said with a smile, "But we've achieved our goal. You're less restrained, nervous, and shy around me now, right? Those two punches just now were just like what a couple might do during a little quarrel. Your performance is becoming more and more natural."

"..."

Xiao Lian helplessly glowered at him.

Indeed, after what he said, she felt she'd grown "closer" to him...

At this point,

the designated driver called out to them, "The two of you, we're about to reach our destination."

Both of them hurriedly adjusted their hair and clothes.

They were already at Xiao Lin Village.

"What's going on?"

Xiao Lian furrowed her brows at this point.

Ahead, Help us out by reading on *.

was Xiao Lian's home.

A crowd was gathered around her house, watching the commotion.

At that moment.

Master Dai honked the horn.

The crowd all turned their heads this way.

Upon seeing the luxury car, each and every one of their eyes shone with eagerness.

"Although it was a bit strenuous, it was the right decision to bring the car back," Qin Feng said to Xiao Lian with a smile.

After all, it's Chinese New Year, returning home.

The point of this trip was to show off wealth. When it was time to be ostentatious, one should do so, and when it was time to flex, one should certainly flex.

The car door opened.

Qin Feng, looking dashing as he alighted from the vehicle, cast a casual glance at the villagers in front of him.

He could feel their burning gazes, and the subconscious adoration in their eyes.

They started muttered amongst themselves, wondering how a rich second-generation had come to their village.

Qin Feng nonchalantly opened the car door for Xiao Lian as well.

Once Xiao Lian emerged.

The crowd was even more astonished.

"Xiao Lian, is that you?"

Aunt Ma from the village called out.

"It's me, Aunt Ma."

Xiao Lian replied with a polite and enthusiastic smile.

It had been so long since she had been home, she felt a sense of warmth.

"By the way, what happened here? Why is everyone gathered around my house?"

Xiao Lian asked with suspicion.

At that moment.

A young boy ran over, holding a stick in his hand, and upon seeing her, he called out excitedly, "Sis, you're back!"

This was her little brother, Yu Xiaolong, thirteen years old, a middle school student.

Behind him, followed several burly men, each carrying a stick.

The one in the lead was a bald fat man with a gold chain thick as a finger around his neck, clearly a thug.

"Hey, isn't this our village belle returned? Haha, little beauty, long time no see, dressed all fancy, look at you!" the bald fat man said with a sleazy laugh.

Xiao Lian knew him.

He was a loan shark in the county, holding significant sway there.

She'd learned from a recent phone call that the money her mother needed for medical treatment was borrowed from the bald fat man.

"Sis, his words are not to be trusted. He clearly said we could repay after three months, but it's only been one month, and now he's demanding repayment! He even wants to tear down our house," Yu Xiaolong said, gripping the stick with a desperate defiance.

Yu Xiaolian didn't want to deal with this kind of person and asked the bald fat man, "How much did we borrow?"

"Principal and interest together, just give me a hundred thousand and we're even," the bald fat man said.

Yu Xiaolong panicked upon hearing this and cried out, "It was clearly only fifty thousand, it's only been a month, how could it possibly have increased to a hundred thousand?! I'm going to call the police!!"

"Call the police?"

The bald fat man scoffed with a smile, "If I was afraid of the police, would I be making loans at such high interest rates? Plus, where is your 'fifty thousand' IOU? Mine here, clearly states a hundred thousand."

Saying this, he took out an IOU.

It was indeed filled out for a hundred thousand.

"You, you liar!!" Yu Xiaolong said anxiously.

When he signed the loan paperwork, he had to sign and make a handprint on a pile of documents, most of which he couldn't understand. So, he just followed their directions, signing wherever they pointed and unconsciously signed another IOU.

"Alright, I'll give you two options," the bald fat man said as he lit up a cigarette, "First, as I said just now, mortgage your house to me, I'll give you the IOU, and we're square. Your house, with its crumbling bricks and tiles, ain't worth much anyway."

"Second."

He turned his head to look at Xiao Lian, his eyes full of sleaze and greed, "Let your sister work at my karaoke bar in the county for a few months, then you can repay the debt, how about that?"

"Who doesn't know what goes on in your karaoke bar, in your dreams!!" Yu Xiaolong cursed.

The bald fat man laughed, "Joke's on you, acting as if your sister isn't in that kind of business. All the villages around here know that she's selling herself out there. What, now that she's back in the village, she gets to play the saint?"

As soon as he finished speaking.

The people around, who were watching, also looked at Xiao Lian with strange eyes.

At this moment.

Suddenly, a slap rang out sharply.

The bald fat man felt a burning sting on his cheek, and as he turned around, he saw Qin Feng, who had somehow come close, slapping him squarely across the face...