Chapter 109: Forgot

“Nor… mal…” Hearing Fu Jinyin speak in halting fragments, Liu Qiu nodded firmly.
“Normal.”

“But I know you hate being touched by me, Jinyin. I’m sorry… I made you feel sick.”

Fu Jinyin blinked her sore eyes, her gaze blankly settling on Liu Qiu’s face.
Her eyes slowly traced over Liu Qiu’s brows and eyes, inch by inch, until they finally stopped on those pale lips.
Then she slowly repeated once more, “Nor… mal.”

Fu Jinyin covered her cheek with her hand and said in a low voice, “Liu Qiu, go out.”

Liu Qiu frowned with worry.
“Jinyin, your body—”

“Liu Qiu. I told you. Get out.”

Fu Jinyin’s voice was hoarse and heavy.

Liu Qiu stopped speaking.
She wasn’t angry, but Fu Jinyin looked far too abnormal.
However, Fu Jinyin clearly didn’t want her to stay here, so it would be better not to make her unhappy.

Before leaving, Liu Qiu reminded her, “Jinyin, call me if you feel unwell.”

There was no response.

Liu Qiu sighed quietly and left the room, closing the door behind her.

The moment the door shut, Fu Jinyin collapsed onto the bed.

She curled up in pain as long, thick tentacles grew from beneath her waist, winding downward and dragging across the floor.

Fu Jinyin opened her eyes.
Purple veins crawled across her face, and both her pale pupils and the whites of her eyes had turned black.

She clearly didn’t have the memory, right?

If she remembered, how could she be so calm?
Those tentacles had plunged deep inside her.

Tiny gaps had been forced open.

Sticky mucus mixed and stretched between them, and every movement made a wet squelching sound.

Such ugly tentacles.

If she remembered them, how could she not be afraid?

So Liu Qiu didn’t remember.
She clearly knew nothing, yet she said it was normal.

Was it because she wanted to sleep with her… so even being violated by her didn’t matter?

Fu Jinyin should hate her.

Liu Qiu had ruined her future.

She could have learned to live like an ordinary person—go to school normally, get a normal job, and die an ordinary death.

Not an experimental subject.
Not a failed product.

Just an ordinary human being.

She hated Liu Qiu.
Hated her so much she wanted to kill her.

But now she had done something wrong too.

Doing something like this to someone who wasn’t even conscious of it… wasn’t normal.

Fu Jinyin removed the hearing aid from her ear, cutting off all sound from the outside world.

This time, the world fell completely silent.

Fu Jinyin wasn’t afraid.

She could hear her own heartbeat.

Thump.

Thump.

Each beat struck heavily against her eardrums.

And once again, she thought of Liu Qiu.

The way Liu Qiu touched her cheek had been gentle.
Her voice when she spoke had been soft and slow.
The worry between her brows had been sincere.

Fu Jinyin suddenly tightened her fingers and grabbed a handful of her messy long hair.

Her heart hurt terribly.

It felt sour and swollen, mixed with a strange feeling she couldn’t identify.

Wave after wave crashed against her chest, making her whole body grow hot.

It was irritating… yet somehow different.

She didn’t know what this emotion was.

Liu Qiu didn’t sleep well the entire night.

She was worried about Fu Jinyin, and she was also drowning in guilt over forcing herself on her.

She truly hadn’t expected that after getting drunk she would do something like that.

She had only wanted to treat Fu Jinyin a little better.

But in the end, she had done something that made Fu Jinyin cry.

She drifted between sleep and wakefulness until dawn arrived.

Still groggy, Liu Qiu fumbled for her phone and checked the time.

7:30.

Not too late.

She could hear faint noises coming from the living room.

It seemed Fu Jinyin was preparing to go out.

Liu Qiu took a deep breath and wrapped herself tightly in the thin blanket.
She didn’t want to go out and face Fu Jinyin.

How could she have been so terrible?

Taking advantage of being drunk to force someone like that.

After hiding under the blanket for a while, Liu Qiu felt a little hot and poked her head back out.

She stared blankly at the porcelain-white ceiling.

She felt like she had become a terrible person.

“Click.”

A very soft sound of the metal door closing.

Liu Qiu came back to her senses and realized Fu Jinyin had already left.

The company hasn’t gone bankrupt yet?

The thought suddenly popped into her mind.

Slowly sitting up in bed, Liu Qiu leaned against the headboard, opened her phone, and began searching for information about the original owner’s company.

To her surprise, all the negative entries about the company had disappeared.

They had been replaced with advertisements for its products.

Fu Jinyin had turned the company around.

Liu Qiu’s eyelashes trembled.

She sighed deeply.

The original owner locking Fu Jinyin inside the house had truly been torture for her.

She was clearly such a capable person.

Liu Qiu summoned the task interface and began reading the plot prompt.

[Your group is on the verge of bankruptcy.
A rival CEO makes a demand—he asks you to hand your wife over to him.
You refuse no matter what, and the group naturally goes bankrupt.

You think your wife will endure hardships with you.
But in the blink of an eye she throws herself into the rival’s arms.
You are heartbroken.

Only later do you discover that your wife and your rival had already been together behind your back.]

Liu Qiu realized something about the plot was already collapsing.

The company hadn’t gone bankrupt.

The signs were all wrong.

If she had to say… the only thing that had gone bankrupt was herself.

[Host, what are you doing?]

The system’s voice sounded in her mind.

[I’m reading the plot prompt,] Liu Qiu replied.

[I just found out the company hasn’t gone bankrupt. It’s actually getting a little better.]

The system’s voice was clearly mechanical, yet somehow it carried emotion.

[What?! Is your wife that amazing?!]

Liu Qiu asked, [System, will this be a problem? The plot prompt says the company should go bankrupt.]

[But right now the only one bankrupt is me.]

The system replied, [It’s fine. Host, just remember—if I’m still standing here safe and sound, it means the plot is still correct.]

Liu Qiu nodded.

[Got it.]

She patted her cheeks and pulled herself together.

Since she had already made a mistake, she should try to make up for it instead of drowning in guilt.

Although she hadn’t slept well last night, her body felt much better.

Today she would continue looking for a job.

She would give all the money she earned to Fu Jinyin.

She didn’t know what Fu Jinyin liked.

Fu Jinyin also refused to let her get close.

But if she gave her money, Fu Jinyin could buy whatever she wanted herself.

Of course, Liu Qiu didn’t plan to give it little by little.

She intended to save it all up and give it in one lump sum.

The weather today was gloomy, as if a storm was about to arrive.

Liu Qiu searched in another district, from morning until afternoon.

She was exhausted, but still couldn’t find anything suitable.

Looking at the darkening sky, Liu Qiu decided to eat something and then take the bus home.

However, while she was eating, a woman wearing a tight short skirt suddenly sat down across from her.

Liu Qiu glanced at her instinctively.
Seeing that she didn’t recognize the woman, she withdrew her gaze and continued eating.

Unexpectedly, the woman spoke.

“Miss, are you looking for a job?”

Liu Qiu looked up in surprise, immediately becoming cautious.

“How do you know?”

The woman wore heavy, exquisite makeup that looked somewhat gaudy.

She smiled and pushed a business card toward Liu Qiu.

“Don’t be so nervous.”

“I’m a modeling agent. Your figure and appearance are excellent. Would you be interested in giving it a try?”

Liu Qiu looked at the small black card and asked the system, [Does this company actually exist?]

The system immediately replied, [I checked. It’s real. It’s a small modeling company.]

[Host, you can consider it.]

Liu Qiu pursed her lips.

She had never thought about becoming a model before.

But she truly couldn’t find any work.

Raising her eyes to look at the woman, she hesitated before asking, “Can it be part-time?”

The woman nodded.

“Of course. It’s just shooting clothing covers. 300 yuan per hour.”

“The working hours aren’t long, and there isn’t work every day.”

“If you’re interested, you can contact me.”

The woman wasn’t overly enthusiastic, which made Liu Qiu relax a little.

She always felt that people who were inexplicably too enthusiastic must have some problem.

Liu Qiu accepted the business card.

Even after returning home at dusk, she was still thinking about whether she should try it.

She had never worked as a model before.

She was afraid she wouldn’t do well.

But 300 yuan an hour… that was a lot of money.

[System, do you think I should try it?]

The system gave a firm answer.

[Host, you can. I checked several times. That company has no problems.]

Liu Qiu wanted to discuss it with someone.

But after searching through her mind, she realized there was no one she could talk to.

Among the original owner’s contacts, aside from company shareholders, clients, and other work-related connections, the only people she could talk about personal matters with were Chao Yue and Fu Jinyin.

Fu Jinyin definitely wouldn’t respond to her.

As for Chao Yue…

Chao Yue still hadn’t replied.

Maybe she was angry because Liu Qiu replied too late.

Holding her phone, Liu Qiu fell into a daze.

Without thinking, she tapped into her own account.

She discovered that a new comment had appeared under the latest drawing she posted last night.

Li: Miss Fan doesn’t seem malicious. Does Miss Qiu dislike people with strong presence?

It had been posted at ten this morning.

But at that time Liu Qiu had already been outside looking for part-time work.

Seeing the comment, all the fatigue from the day vanished.

A faint smile curved Liu Qiu’s lips as she replied to the fan.

Qiu Autumn: Miss Qiu doesn’t dislike her, she’s just a little timid. Miss Fan is very nice—she bought Miss Qiu milk tea and even took her home.

Liu Qiu felt a little happy.

Would this fan comment on every chapter in the future?

Her eyes suddenly lit up.

She could draw what happened today and let this fan see it.

Even if the fan didn’t comment, it didn’t matter.

She wanted to draw it anyway.

Thinking of it, she immediately did it.

Liu Qiu sat down at the table and began recording what happened today.

There was no Miss Yin or Miss Fan.

Only Miss Qiu with curly hair, having a hard day looking for a job.

[Miss Qiu has never worked as a model before, but 300 yuan per hour is so tempting. Miss Qiu is troubled and doesn’t know whether she should try.]

After finishing the drawing, Liu Qiu immediately posted it.

When she checked her phone, she noticed that Li had already replied to her previous message.

Li: Very interesting.

Not only that.

After refreshing the page, Liu Qiu saw another reply from Li under the newest chapter.

Li: Miss Qiu can try it—just make sure it’s not a scam first.

Emerald Residence.

A top-tier riverside residential area where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold.

Duan Fan drove her flashy purple sports car and stopped in front of a villa.

As she reached the front door, the heavy doors automatically slid open to both sides.

Duan Fan swaggered inside.

“Sis, why did you call me over so late at night?”

Duan Li, who was sitting on the sofa, gently set down her phone and gestured for Duan Fan to come over.

Duan Fan walked over and plopped down onto the sofa beside her.

She spread her arms and leaned against the backrest, letting out a long breath.

“Sis, I’m exhausted. Whatever it is, couldn’t you just say it on the phone?”

Duan Li’s hair was slightly damp, softly draped over one shoulder.

Seeing Duan Fan’s sloppy posture, she spoke slowly.

“Duan Fan. If I asked you to marry Liu Qiu, would you agree?”

Duan Fan laughed.

She straightened up and flashed a bright smile, but her words were blunt.

“Sis, are you crazy?”

“Liu Qiu is married.”

Duan Li’s gaze was calm, her voice somewhat cold.

“Marriage isn’t necessary.”

“I only need you to combine with Liu Qiu to produce the next heir for the Duan family.”

Duan Fan narrowed her eyes and carefully examined her sister’s expression.

Her sister always had a deadpan face, but after living together for so long, she could still read certain things.

For example—

What Duan Li had just said was completely serious.

The smile slowly faded from Duan Fan’s lips, replaced by a mocking curve.

“Why don’t you use your own genes?”

“Oh right, I forgot.”

“You’re mentally ill.”

It was simple.

Duan Li was afraid her mental illness would be inherited, so she wanted to use her younger sister’s genes instead.

Duan Fan did like Liu Qiu.

But she didn’t want Liu Qiu to end up with her because of Duan Li’s schemes.

And she certainly didn’t want a child inserted between her and Liu Qiu.

Duan Fan let out a soft laugh.

“Sis, I don’t want a kid.”