Chapter 4: You'll Pay for the Button

"Huh?"

Wen Nianqi suddenly remembered—every fight they'd ever had was really just an excuse to ask him for money. Had he misunderstood again?

Shen Wang was not a patient man. Anyone could tell from their intimate moments that his temper ran hot and fast.

If she kept pushing, he might just lose it and dump her!

Shen Yan [Transfer: 52,000 yuan]

[Is that enough?]

In the past, Wen Nianqi would have accepted the money on the spot, calling him "darling boyfriend" with every breath, nodding like a bobblehead. *Enough, enough.*

This time—

Wen Nianqi steeled herself and returned the money again.

Kitten [Don't think you can brush me off with a few stinking bills. I'm really angry this time!]

[I'm just that unreasonable!]

Behind the screen, her grin stretched so wide it nearly split her face.

Damn Shen Wang. Hurry up and break up with me already.

She killed the screen and went back to pulling out bags one by one, laying them under the camera to show them off.

Just picturing how furious Shen Wang must be right now, she couldn't stop the corners of her mouth from curling up.

Fu Yan felt a chill creep over his skin. He turned his head mechanically and stole a glance.

Shen Wang's face was carved from ice. Fu Yan swallowed hard. "Wang-ge…"

"Get lost!"

Fu Yan: "…"

Through the screen, Wen Nianqi caught the voice and thought it sounded familiar. "Boss Fu, what's going on?"

Fu Yan didn't dare say another word to Shen Wang.

The man was clearly furious, though Fu Yan had no idea why.

No way he was poking that hornet's nest.

"N-nothing. Keep going."

Wen Nianqi didn't think much of it and brought out the jewelry too.

In under half an hour, every item had been appraised.

Except for one slightly rusted bracelet, everything was accepted.

Fu Yan rolled the Buddhist bead bracelet between his fingers. "Total comes to eight hundred forty-two thousand. For Miss Wen's beauty, I'll round it up—eight hundred fifty thousand."

Close to what she'd expected.

So he actually did have some skill.

Wen Nianqi curved her lips. "Thanks."

"Add me on WeChat. I'll send you my bank card number in a bit."

"Sure."

Wen Nianqi had two accounts—one main account for friends and family, and a secondary one for maintaining her persona.

She'd originally added Shen Wang on the secondary account. But later, when he started transferring so much money, she'd offered up her main account to show her sincerity and keep this golden goose on the hook.

For this payment, she pulled up the secondary account's QR code for him to scan.

After adding her, Fu Yan snuck another glance at the gloomy Shen Wang beside him. "Alright, I've got something to take care of—I'll hang up now."

The call ended.

Fu Yan got up, brewed a cup of coffee, and set it in front of him. "What's wrong? What's got you this fired up?"

Shen Wang lounged against the black leather sofa, jaw tight, flipping his phone over and over in one hand.

"Something's off."

"What's off?"

Shen Wang exhaled and lifted his eyelids. "Kitten won't take my money anymore."

Shen Wang liked to call that online gold-digger "Kitten."

Fu Yan was used to it. Like keeping a pet.

"Wang-ge, no offense, but real women are right there—you can see them, touch them. Throw enough money and you can even sleep with them. Why pour your heart out for some girl online?"

"Who said I poured my heart out?"

Shen Wang took a sip of iced coffee. Bitter. "I just feel like something's slipped out of my control."

He hated that feeling.

Fu Yan waved a hand. "Fine. How much did you send her?"

"Fifty-two thousand."

"If you ask me, if she didn't take it, she definitely thinks it's too little. She's a gold-digger—every thought in her head is about fishing for cash. When something doesn't add up, it's because the catch wasn't big enough."

Fu Yan muttered, "Fifty-two thousand and she still thinks it's too little?"

Silence hung for a moment. Then Shen Wang spoke. "I think I gave too little too."

Fu Yan's eyes went wide. "?"

"Bro, if you've got more money than you know what to do with, toss some my way."

Shen Wang shot him a look. "I don't spend money on men."

With that, he picked up his phone and sent another transfer.

*Ding dong—*

In a taxi.

On the way back to school.

A notification slid down from the top of Wen Nianqi's screen.

Shen Yan [Transfer: 131,400]

"Holy shit."

That was her first reaction.

Realizing there were other people in the car, she clapped a hand over her mouth.

This was the first time Shen Wang had ever sent her that much in one go.

Then another message popped up.

Shen Yan [I don't have much patience. Keep this up, and I'll deal with you when I'm back in the country.]

*Boom—*

Wen Nianqi sat bolt upright.

Her temper melted like butter.

The words "deal with you when I'm back" killed any urge to keep throwing her tantrum.

She typed back frantically.

Kitten [Got it, my treasure~ Thank you for feeding your girlfriend, I'm the luckiest girl alive! Sending you a virtual kiss ど⁰̷̴͈꒨⁰̷̴͈う♡]

[I won't take the money though, okay? Your company is worth more than anything.]

Reading the message, Shen Wang curved his lips.

An easy kitten to soothe.

Shen Yan [Mm.]

Wen Nianqi let out a breath. If she waited for him to come back and "deal with her," she'd be walking straight into her previous life's fate.

This life, the next, and the one after—she would never forget those three days and nights of torment.

She'd screamed until her throat went raw, and still got no mercy.

Just thinking about that crazed look on Shen Wang's face sent goosebumps crawling up her arms.

Terrifying.

She sent her card number to Fu Yan. A short while later, the eight hundred fifty thousand landed in her account.

One step closer to the breakup!

Wen Nianqi silently cheered herself on.

Still over a million to go, four months to do it. She *would* earn that money!

Everything had gone smoothly today.

As a reward, she bought herself a milk tea that evening and made sure to snap a photo for Shen Wang.

Kitten [Matcha flavor, so good! ✧⁺⸜(˙▾˙)⸝⁺✧]

Shen Wang received the picture.

In the past, he'd barely glance at it. This time, he stared at the photo for a long while.

The girl's fingers were slender, her knuckles delicate. The long manicure made them look even more refined, and a purple crystal bracelet circled her wrist.

He analyzed silently.

She must be pretty thin in person.

Shen Yan [Mm.]

Back at the dorm, Ji Haitang said, "Nianqi, interested in joining a competition?"

Wen Nianqi set her backpack on the desk. "What competition?"

"You remember how last year's Spring Festival fireworks in Hu City got roasted by the entire internet? So this year they're taking firework design submissions from the public—anyone can enter. If your design gets picked, the prize is fifty thousand yuan."

At the word "money," Wen Nianqi's eyes lit up. "Fifty thousand!"

She was an art major. Sure, she usually spent her time providing emotional value to her sugar daddy, but she hadn't slacked on her actual skills.

She knew full well that was her future bread and butter.

Now it had become a survival skill.

"I'm *very* interested. Where do I sign up?"

Ji Haitang, still being shaken by the shoulders, laughed. "The official website."

"Dorm leader, you're the best! Beautiful inside and out—love you, love you."

With that, she spun around, opened her laptop, searched for the official site, filled in her info, and signed up without missing a beat.

Out of habit, she snapped a screenshot and sent it to Shen Wang.

Shen Yan [You can do design? I figured you were just a glutton who only knows how to eat.]

Kitten [?]

[Shen Yan—the *Yan* that means "disgusting"!]

[Not only do I do design, I'm going for first place. Just you watch.]

Shen Wang stared at the line "*Yan* that means 'disgusting'" and felt his lips curve before he could stop them.

In the past, Wen Nianqi had bent over backward to accommodate his temper—it was boring. Lately, her bickering with him had a different kind of flavor.

Shen Yan [When you lose, you'll be the loudest one crying.]