The beginning of this struggle itself was inherently unfair.

Xu Hang stayed by Duan Yelin's side both out of his own free will and because he was compelled to stay by Duan Yelin's side.

At the age of eleven, his family was ruined, and he traveled through mountains and rivers from Shucheng to his uncle's house. He lived under someone else's roof for a whole seven years.

In Jin Yan Tang, there was a beautiful small garden called Qiyuan. When Xu Hang was young, his mother often told him stories about her own childhood in Qiyuan. These stories always made Xu Hang daydream. However, when he finally moved into Jin Yan Tang and into Qiyuan himself, he realized that appearances can be deceiving - it was beautiful on the surface, but filled with hidden flaws.

The more beautiful, the dirtier.

Meeting Duan Yelin happened in the Qiyuan Garden. He was the honored guest invited by Jin Hongchang. Every time there was an esteemed guest visiting the house, Jin Hongchang would always have Xuhang come out to meet them.

That day, he overslept and nearly missed the time. His clothes were not properly fastened, and he hurriedly ran with a flustered expression, fearing that he would slip on the cobblestones. He lowered his head and ran, crushing the peony petals on the ground, staining himself with a scent that was reminiscent of Attar of Roses. And thus, he accidentally collided into Duan Yelin's embrace.

"Mmm, it smells so good..."

What Duan Yelin actually meant was peony.

Xu Hang, who had just turned eighteen, despised it when others used such words to describe women in order to belittle him. As a result, he viciously stepped on Duanye Lin's foot, pushed him away, and spat at him in disgust.

Duan Yelin, who had never experienced such "hospitality" before, was momentarily stunned. He tried to grab Xu Hang, who was about to run away, but only managed to lightly brush against his billowing clothes. Just like a slippery fish, that person glided away.

The peonies in the Qiyuan Garden are truly strong and fragrant.

When it came to the banquet in the front hall, even through two table's distance, Xuhang could still feel Duan Yelin's gaze on him, never leaving for a moment. It was a gaze that was naked, simple, and filled with possessiveness, as if Duan Yelin was radiating light from head to toe.

He felt it, and his foster uncle felt it too.

The next day, Jin Hongchang used a tone that sounded as if he had received a special favor from the heavens, even a moment of great joy, as he said to Xu Hang, "I've raised you for so long, and this is the most useful thing you've ever done!"

When he was sent to Xiao Tongguan by being stuffed into a car, Xu Hang thought countless times about jumping out of the car and escaping along the way. However, he knew that even if he jumped out of the car, he couldn't leave this road, and even if he left this road, he couldn't escape from this city.

Xiao Tong closed the door, locking the two Qiaos in the depths of the Copper Sparrow Pavilion.

When Duanyelin saw Xuhang enter, he patted the seat next to him and said, "Have a seat."

Xu Hang slowly walked over, his head hanging low and a gloomy expression on his face.

Then, when she got close to Duan Yelin's side, she suddenly looked up. A glint of light flashed, and she swiftly drew a blade hidden in her sleeve, slashing it toward his throat!

The naive intention to kill, so naive that it makes people sigh for him.

Duan Yelin seemed completely unperturbed. With a slight lift of his eyes, he reached out with one hand and firmly gripped the person's wrist. With a twist, the blade fell off, then he twisted the person's arm and pressed them down onto the sofa.

"I knew it, you're not the obedient type. If you don't stir up some trouble like this, you won't give up."

Eighteen-year-old Xu Hang was no match for the thirty-one-year-old Duan Yelin in terms of status, power, or strength.

Duan Yelin pinched Xu Hang's chin, seeing a tinge of anger cracking through his apathetic eyes. This inexplicably amused Duan Yelin: "I merely said a sentence, and your uncle immediately sent you over. Your hands are so weak, were you drugged?"

Xu Hang's hands trembled slightly as he lay on his back, looking up at Duan Yelin. In his heart, he had already sliced him into countless bloody streaks.

"Do you believe in fate?" Duan Yelin slowly stood up straight, calmly starting to undo his own clothes, from his coat to his shirt. "That day, there were three banquets, and I happened to go to the Jin family's; among so many gardens, I happened to enter the Qiyuan (Beautiful Garden); out of all the people on the road, it happened to be you who collided into my embrace. Xu Hang, even if you're unwilling, you have to accept it."

"Don't make your perverse desire sound so righteous!" This was the first sentence that Xu Hang finally uttered.

Duan Yelin gently patted his face and used his thumb to touch his bottom lip, saying, "You should consider yourself lucky to have met me."

"You? You're just as disgusting as those who have nothing but greasy guts in their heads."

There's no other way... Duan Yelin stared at his lips and the faint glimpse of his tongue inside, licking his own lower lip, already eroding his sanity. "Now, all I want is to grab a lock and lock you up in the little bronze prison."

Xu Hang bit down hard on Duan Yelin's thumb as soon as he opened his mouth. With a forceful grip, blood immediately gushed out! The blood flowed into Xu Hang's mouth, the salty taste choking him, as it dripped down from the corners of his mouth. Duan Yelin, in pain, jerked his hand back and spat out the blood after turning his head to the side, giving Duan Yelin a vicious glare.

Duan Yelin wiped his clothes slightly, then grabbed Xu Hang's lapel. With a half-smile on his face, he said, "If you still have the strength to bite me later, I'll let you kill me as much as you want."

In the next moment, Xu Hang was swept off his feet and laid down on the bed in the rest area.

That day was unforgettable for Xu Hang. He rarely screamed, but whenever he opened his mouth, he would fall into Duan Yelin's crazed pursuit.

His approach was terrifying, like a typhoon that would disrupt and grind down everything in Xu Hang's past. The more he sensed Xu Hang's inability to accept it, the more determined he became.

While resisting Duan Yelin's intrusion, Xu Hang couldn't help but deeply sigh at his own powerlessness. Duan Yelin, who had rooted his passion in Xu Hang's frozen land, unexpectedly caused it to crack open, forcing the infertile land to become soft and malleable.

The sound of collision is a torture to the ears, but also a brilliance to the soul. The final spring rain falls upon the land, causing the long abandoned places to tremble in a pitiful manner.

Just as Duan Yelin said, Xu Hang fainted in despair, and even when he woke up weakly, he didn't have the strength to bite him again.

But what surprised Duan Yelin was that from beginning to end, even though he bit his tongue until it bled, Xu Hang did not shed a single tear.

Not only that, but in the following four years, no matter how crazy and domineering Duan Yelin became, even in moments of heated love, Xu Hang had begged for mercy, shown weakness, and even given up, but he never cried.