Tan Linyuan's cold aura was so intense that Nan Yu paused as she held onto him. After a moment of silence, she slowly withdrew her hands.
Sitting on his lap, Nan Yu felt that his body temperature had dropped a bit, and his gaze was colder than before.
She stared at him quietly, and the smile on her face faded away bit by bit.
"So, do you really have to involve others?" she said softly. "Even if this is not the result I want to see?"
Tan Linyuan's voice was equally cold. "I'm just eliminating any people or things that might put you in danger."
He reached out to hold her hand, but she pulled it away.
"Your hand is injured now, and your career plan needs to be reset. A more responsible supervisor will be more beneficial for your career development."
"But Sister Min has been really nice to me. I trust her plan more."
Tan Linyuan didn't give her a chance to argue. He just said indifferently, "You'll meet someone better after the New Year. There's no shortage of capable people in the world."
Nan Yu was shocked.
She felt as if she was being choked and couldn't breathe. "Tan Linyuan, you're too extreme."
After she said this, Tan Linyuan's gaze darkened.
He looked into her eyes and repeated what she said. "I'm extreme?"
"You're making Sister Min lose her job because of this and forcing me to change to a new leader. Isn't that extreme?"
Tan Linyuan sneered. "Who am I doing this for?"
"I don't need you to do this," Nan Yu said. "I don't need you to do things in the name of being good for me."
Tan Linyuan's face turned ugly.
Nan Yu stood up from his lap, took a few steps back, and stared at him warily. "Isn't this extreme?"
In a fit of anger, Nan Yu blurted out, "I don't like this Tan Linyuan at all!"
When Tan Linyuan saw her stand up, he stood up too.
He lowered his eyes and looked at her belly. She was more than five months pregnant, and her belly was starting to show.
He stood in front of her, staring at her motionlessly.
His gaze was as calm as still water, but Nan Yu felt as if she was being scrutinized, and her body gradually stiffened.
The atmosphere was silent for a few seconds.
It was Tan Linyuan's voice that broke the dead silence. "I'm extreme? I can be even more extreme. Do you want to hear?"
Nan Yu opened her mouth but didn't make a sound.
Tan Linyuan stared at her intently and got closer and closer to her. "I not only want to fire Ying Min. I even want to chain you up, lock you in a cage, and hide you where no one can find you."
His voice was hoarse and tinged with anger. "You're not allowed to go anywhere for the rest of your life. You can only stay with me until we're old and die."
Nan Yu's breath caught in her throat. Looking at his cold face, she felt inexplicably scared. "Tan Linyuan..."
He raised his hand, grabbed her chin, and kissed her lips forcefully, causing a slight stinging sensation.
This Tan Linyuan made her feel both strange and familiar.
A long time ago, before they officially got together, he had gone crazy because Zhou Yu was too close to her.
This kiss was rough, but it was already a more restrained version.
His tongue forcefully invaded her mouth, robbing her of her breath. She tried to struggle, but he pressed her even tighter.
He was like a raging fire that could burn them both at any moment.
As Tan Linyuan kissed her, he tasted the saltiness on her lips.
He opened his eyes and saw tears rolling down her face and into the corner of her mouth.
As if regaining his senses all of a sudden, Tan Linyuan immediately stopped.
He took a deep breath, lowered his head, and gently wiped away her tears with his hand.
"I'm sorry, Yuyu," Tan Linyuan's voice was hoarse and low. "It's my problem. I'll revoke my decision."
He meant to revoke the decision to fire Sister Min.
At that moment, Tan Linyuan realized that her happiness was more important than all these unfounded worries.
Nan Yu didn't say a word, but her tears flowed even faster.
Tan Linyuan was extremely panicked. He frantically used tissues to wipe away her tears, feeling so painful that he could hardly breathe.
He shouldn't have been like this.
But that feeling of helplessness and the urge to fight back made him lose control again and again.
He clearly shouldn't have involved her.
He was like a madman, like a devil, and even said such crazy things as "locking her up for a lifetime"!
But once the words were out, they couldn't be taken back.
He didn't know if he would be forgiven by her.
"I was out of my mind," Tan Linyuan lowered his eyes. "If you hate me, I can go out for a while."
He turned around to leave.
A pair of arms wrapped around him from behind.
"I don't hate you."
Tan Linyuan's body stiffened almost instantly.
He didn't dare to move, afraid of scaring her away.
Nan Yu's voice was muffled and a bit choked with sobs. "I understand."
Compared to the fear and shock she felt when she heard those words just now, she felt more heartache and discomfort.
His love was so heavy and crazy.
It turned out that the more noble and upright a person was, the deeper and more intense their obsession with love would be.
Those who craved love couldn't bear to lose it once they got it.
His love was like drinking poison to quench thirst.
It was the same kind of passionate and desperate love as hers, living for the moment.
So she understood his madness and his insecurity.
It turned out that in love, they were the same kind of people.
...
As her pregnancy advanced, Nan Yu felt more and more bored at home.
During a routine check - up at the hospital, the doctor advised her to go out more, which was beneficial for the fetus's development.
Moreover, a pregnant woman's emotional state could also affect the subsequent delivery. If she was under high - pressure for a long time, the probability of a difficult delivery would increase significantly.
When Tan Linyuan heard the words "difficult delivery", he frowned.
The doctor suggested, "You can go out and relax to strengthen the relationship between husband and wife."
Relaxing on a long - distance trip was out of the question. Tan Linyuan would never let Nan Yu travel far.
Nan Yu herself didn't want to go through the trouble either. After her belly got bigger, she even found it hard to walk a few steps, let alone go out for fun.
So Tan Linyuan asked her if she wanted to go back to the previous villa for a few days, saying that he just needed to go back to get some documents.
That place was far from the city's hustle and bustle, and the air was fresher. Nan Yu readily agreed.
When she returned to the villa where she had stayed for a few months, she felt a sense of nostalgia.
She was helped out of the car by Tan Linyuan and carefully examined the building.
"What are you looking at?" Tan Linyuan parked the car in a different spot and saw her looking up at the building.
Nan Yu blinked and turned to ask him, "Will this be our wedding house in the future?"
There was a hint of innocence in her tone. "Normally, after getting married, I should live in my own house. We can't always live at my parents' place."
Her parents' place referred to Ye Nanwan. So her logic was that she should live here after marriage.
When Tan Linyuan understood her logic, he couldn't help but laugh. "This place isn't suitable."