Just as Jiang Cheng had expected, after that day and night Chloe had been completely subdued—literally slept into submission—by him.
He heard the soft click of the door as Jiang quietly shut it behind him.
Only then did Chloe cautiously open her eyes.
Confirming that Jiang Cheng had finally left the room, she finally let out a long, relieved breath.
Slowly, she pushed herself upright.
The moment she did, the sore, tearing ache in a certain part of her body became even more obvious.
With a resentful glare at the door,
Chloe gritted her teeth and muttered, "Is that guy made of robot parts? He was brutal."
After the complaint she rubbed her throbbing temples in resignation.
Right now she felt as if her whole frame might fall apart, every bone crushed and reassembled wrong.
Remembering what had happened last night,
Chloe felt she could no longer see through Jiang Cheng.
She had begged him pitifully the entire night,
but he hadn't relented, persisting until well past midnight,
tossing her back and forth between life and death.
She couldn't understand why Jiang Cheng had to be so rough with her.
After all, too much of anything becomes a burden.
Yet after the brutality, for some reason, he had been incredibly gentle.
Looking at the clean, soft pajamas she wore, Chloe couldn't stop a tender smile from blooming on her face.
Even while drifting in and out of sleep she had sensed Jiang Cheng carefully washing her,
those light touches as if she were some priceless treasure.
Finally, even while asleep he had held her gently the whole night.
And when he had gotten up earlier his movements had been so soft, clearly afraid of waking her.
That stark contrast left her heart alternating between icy cold and warm, a complicated swirl of emotions rising inside her.
She really couldn't grasp why Jiang Cheng could be both brutal and tender.
She had assumed Jiang Cheng was the type who'd jump into bed with anyone.
That was why she had bluntly called it a pure waste of money.
Now it seemed that wasn't the case.
Strange as his methods were,
at least he hadn't treated her like other men who discard a woman after using her as a release.
Still, Chloe knew she couldn't go on like this.
She had intended to earn money with her body,
but she didn't want to be destroyed in the process.
If every night were like this, within a week she'd be wrecked.
Looking at the purple and blue bruises mottling her skin, an idea suddenly flashed through Chloe's mind.
Should she call a few more sisters over to split the firepower?
That way he'd be happy, she'd be happy, and the extra sister would probably be happy too.
In the past she would have flatly refused, even resisted the notion.
Back abroad she had attended plenty of company-arranged parties.
Those gatherings were just like the ones in Great Britain: one man picking two, even three women was common; as long as the price was right, any number was fine.
She used to sneer at such things.
But now, under Jiang Cheng's terrifying pounding, Chloe didn't find her idea the least bit improper.
She even felt a sneaky delight at her own cleverness.
There should be plenty of women around Jiang Cheng anyway.
As soon as she brought it up, what man would say no?
She had come all the way to China; she couldn't head home just because the guy was too capable, could she?
Downstairs in the dining hall, Jiang Cheng—while Charlie served his lunch—opened the system reward.
Ding! Congratulations, Host, on an overwhelming Love Flight Journal; because the other party felt a strange reaction, the system grants you a special lottery chance.
He clicked Draw.
Ding! Draw complete! Congratulations, Host, on obtaining intermediate lithography machine Manufacturing Technology.
A cold electronic voice sounded; Jiang Cheng's tense mood instantly turned ecstatic.
This technology was provided by Jolins, a retiree from Pretty Country's AML Technologies.
The system prompt rang again, sparking Jiang Cheng's keen interest in the mysterious Jolins.
Special note: Jolins is currently vacationing in Tyrande, but his movements are under strict surveillance by the Pretty Country government.
Seeing that note, Jiang Cheng's eyes widened.
An important memory suddenly surfaced in his mind.
In one year—2019—China's chip industry would begin facing sanction threats.
The source of that crisis would be Pretty Country.
Because of their restrictions and suppression, the chip sector would be hit hard.
At its worst, some domestic phone brands couldn't even manufacture.
One major reason for the predicament was the lithography machine.
Before Jiang Cheng's rebirth we could design our own chips but still had no lithography machine of our own.
Thinking of this, Jiang Cheng felt a powerful sense of duty and mission.
Without a lithography machine, designed chips were useless.
Although our self-developed 7-nanometer chips could meet most needs,
international lithography machines could produce 3-nanometer chips.
Those key technologies were firmly controlled by Pretty Country and other Western nations.
After the sanctions we kept searching for solutions and kept advancing,
but it still took a full five years to barely catch up.
During that time we were powerless, repeatedly threatened and sanctioned.
Many companies suffered severe blows to national confidence.
With this technology, China could finally stand straight.
If Jolins were still in Pretty Country, Jiang Cheng wouldn't be sure he could pull him over.
But in Tyrande? That would be child's play… As Jiang Cheng pondered, Charlie set a bowl of stewed abalone soup by his right hand.