How could I possibly be confined in a cage?

Qingru sent Yanru home and then forbade her to go out again, refusing to let her leave the hospital no matter what.

"You just stay home quietly. I'll go find a yard. Once we move, you can stay home and take good care of yourself."

Left with no other choice, Yanru had to stay at home.

Still feeling uneasy, Qingru went to the police station first and asked Zhang Xun to come and help guard the house, while she went to find the yard herself.

Zhang Xun already had a crush on Yan Ru, so how could he refuse now? He blushed and asked, "You really want me to go?"

"Go when I tell you to, and protect my sister well. There can't be any more accidents. You don't know, a thief sneaked into the yard last night. Luckily we found him early, otherwise who knows what might have happened?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xun was alarmed and immediately grabbed his gun and drove to the Lü family's house.

"Miss Lü... Miss Lü." Upon seeing her in person, Zhang Xun was no longer as complacent as he had been in front of Chief Zhang. Instead, he became reserved and simply put on his usual cold expression.

Yan Ruben was reading in the courtyard when a bang sounded outside the door. When she opened it, she saw the policeman who had arrested her before.

If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have fallen into the water, and I wouldn't have...

Yan Ruqing's cold voice rang out, "Is there something you need? I don't think I've done anything wrong, sir?"

Zhang Xun suddenly recalled the scene of first seeing Yan Ru in this alley on Mid-Autumn Festival night. He had even tied her up and escorted her there. Therefore, his heart, which had just calmed down, surged again, and his tone became guilty:

"Ms. Lü, I'm sorry, everything before was a misunderstanding. It was my duty to arrest you."

"No need. If you've come to apologize, you're underestimating me. I'm not an unreasonable person. What happened before wasn't your fault."

“That’s not what I meant…” Zhang Xun, who was usually eloquent, suddenly ran out of words. “I was just asked by your sister to come and look after you because she said you were home alone.”

Yan Ru sized him up, and remembering the person who had eavesdropped the night before, she didn't refuse. She opened the door and let Zhang Xun in.

Yan Ru walked forward without turning her head and said, "Don't close the door. Come in and sit down. There are no servants here now, so I'll make you a pot of tea myself."

Zhang Xun touched his nose and followed Yan Ru in.

When Yan Ru returned with the tea, there was another figure in the courtyard; Zhang Xun was pointing a gun at him.

"Stop," Yan Ru said lightly.

It turned out to be Song Yuanliang.

Song Yuanliang dared not move, the gun barrel pressed against his temple, but when he saw Yan Ru come out, he still struggled.

Zhang Xun frowned and shoved Song Yuanliang away. "Since Miss Lü told me to let go, then I will let you go. Behave yourself and don't look or touch anything inappropriate."

Yan Ru suddenly realized that her relationship with Song Yuanliang was unknown to outsiders, so she immediately stopped Song Yuanliang from rushing over.

"Wait, I need to ask you for a favor."

Song Yuanliang was pushed and stumbled before he could stop, and he saw Yan Ru's cold expression.

"I..."

Yan Ru reached out to stop him from speaking, "Come with me." Then she said to Zhang Xun, "Could you please keep watch and prevent anyone from coming in to eavesdrop? I have something to ask Young Master Song for help with."

Zhang Xun said helplessly, "Okay."

Even knowing that Song Yuanliang and Yan Ru had a complicated relationship, Zhang Xun still didn't cross the line. Just as Guo Zixing said, such a beauty, even if she were to remarry, would not be his turn.

After grieving for a while, Zhang Xunfu rallied his spirits. He believed that troubled times could produce heroes, and perhaps he would eventually have his day.

Inside the room, Song Yuanliang embraced Yanru tightly.

Yan Ru frowned, but in the end she didn't push him away, letting him hold her, only letting her hands hang down without responding.

Yan Ru remained cold and aloof, making Song Yuanliang anxious and insecure. He quickly expressed his feelings, "Yan Ru, I was very worried when you left. Why didn't you tell me you were going home?"

Yan Ru pushed him aside and sat down, sighing as he said, "It happened so suddenly, I didn't even have time to pack my luggage. You don't know how dangerous it was that day. If it weren't for Young Master Guo's help, my whole family would probably be trapped in the Song residence."

Song Yuanliang probably hadn't slept well for several days; his eyes were dark and bloodshot, indicating that he had been worried about Yan Ru for quite some time.

“Do you know? You disappeared, and I searched for you everywhere. I was afraid that Father had discovered something and harmed you. Yanru, I can't live without you. I thought you were gone and almost followed you in death. If I hadn't heard on the street that your family had been exonerated, I wouldn't have known that you had already returned home.”

Song Yuanliang looked at her with deep affection, but Yan Ru only felt burdened and annoyed. Everything about the Song family was something she didn't want to recall or be involved with anymore. Fortunately, she wasn't pregnant. It would be best if she could break off all ties with Song Yuanliang and completely end that unbearable period.

Yan Ru was startled by her own inner thoughts. Was she really so heartless?

Concealing the coldness in her eyes, when she looked up again, Yan Ru was already on the verge of tears. "Yuan Liang, I'm sorry, I was unable to inform you."

Song Yuanliang hugged her tenderly and comforted her, "It's alright, I've found you, your father and sister are back, everything is fine, everything is fine."

Yan Ru calmly broke free from him, wiped away unfounded tears from the corners of her eyes, and said, "Yuan Liang, I have two things to ask of you."

Song Yuanliang was already unable to refuse her, let alone with her earnest gaze.

"You said."

"I still have some luggage at the Song family's house. You know, it's the suitcase I usually use. Please help me get it back. Don't let anyone else take it. There are very important things in there."

"Okay, what is it?"

“These are some things I used to use at home, and…” Yan Ru suddenly blushed, “and the things you gave me, I can’t bear to leave them at the Song family’s house.”

Just moments ago, Yan Ru was still shocked by her own cold-heartedness, but now she was already deceiving Song Yuanliang with ease and naturalness, as if she had never been this way before.

"Okay, I will definitely get it back for you," Song Yuanliang said confidently.

Yanru didn't really believe in such things. She believed that only if you did what you said did it count. If you couldn't do it, then you could say whatever you wanted.

"I believe you. The second thing is, you must never show your feelings for me in front of others again..."

"Why?"

"Listen to me. You know how complicated our relationship is. If others find out, I'm afraid I'll never be able to live a life of integrity again. I know I'm partly to blame, but if your father hadn't lied to me about saving him, I wouldn't have..."

At this point, Yanru shed a few real tears, and Song Yuanliang quickly cupped her face and wiped them away.

"Please stop talking, it hurts my heart."

Yan Ru turned her back. "No, reason is hard to understand without explanation. I must tell you the truth. Yesterday at the Song family, so many people saw me, so many people knew that I was your father's concubine... but that's fine. Anyway, from now on, you must never reveal your feelings to anyone again, okay?"

Song Yuanliang was in a dilemma. How could he bear this? He had long admired Yanru, and now he couldn't announce to the world Yanru's ownership. This was worse than death for him.

“But you are pregnant, how can this be hidden? I will definitely inform your father and let him marry you to me openly and honestly, so that we can be husband and wife in the open.”

Yan Ru secretly resented his naiveté, but as long as her own things were not returned, she would still have to rely on him. Therefore, she said, "This is not such an easy thing. My father already hates your father, so how could he turn around and accept you? Listen to me, I will speak well of you in front of my father. You also need to think about the reputation of my Lü family, okay?"

Yan Ru's words made perfect sense, and Song Yuanliang had nothing to say, so he had no choice but to agree.

"Okay, I'll listen to you."

Yan Ru smiled with relief, “I’ve only been in university for half a year, and I will definitely continue my studies in the future. If the atmosphere here can’t accommodate us, then after you graduate, let’s go abroad to study together and live a good life in a place where no one knows us.”

“Okay,” Song Yuanliang was attracted by the future she described. It seemed to be the best solution at the moment, and he even overlooked some details.

Yanru then told him, "Yuanliang, I am not actually pregnant."

Song Yuanliang exclaimed in surprise, "What?"

Yan Ru lowered her eyes, tears welling up again. "Today I disguised myself to see a doctor, and the doctor said I'm not pregnant, and may even be infertile forever. Because from the moment I entered the Song residence, my daily meals and the medicine I took after falling into the water contained things like purple gromwell and phellodendron bark. Taking those things for a long time can cause amenorrhea at best, and infertility at worst, so I..."

Song Yuanliang was momentarily stunned. He subconsciously looked at Yanru's lower abdomen, which was flat and not protruding from the new life.

After processing Yan Ru's words, Song Yuanliang pondered who would have drugged Yan Ru so early on? It could be either Master Song or...his mother...

He was unwilling to admit this guess, but he felt even more guilty towards Yan Ru. In truth, whoever harmed her was his own blood relative. It seemed that he was indeed here to repay a debt to Yan Ru.

With a wry smile, Song Yuanliang said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Yanru. I promised to protect you, but you still got hurt."

"It's alright. Now that we can clearly explain our relationship, as for the future... I'm already taking medicine to regulate my body, so it's not impossible that things will turn out this way."

"Yes, it definitely will. If it doesn't work in China, we'll go abroad. If traditional Chinese medicine doesn't work, we'll switch to Western medicine. We'll definitely be able to cure you."

"Alright, you should go back now. It would be best if you could get my luggage back today." Yanru added in her mind, "Delay might cause problems."

Song Yuanliang was extremely reluctant to leave, and he knew that Yan Ru was right, so he reluctantly rushed to the Song family.

As Yan Ru watched Song Yuanliang's departing figure, her expression, which had been tender and affectionate just moments before, immediately changed. She thought of Zhang Xun in the courtyard...

Yan Ru remained indifferent and did not leave the courtyard again.