I Am More Paranoid Than the Villain – Chapter 139

The Proposal Ring

Shushu My Wife【Ending】

The sea-view suite Lin Shu had booked offered a stunning panorama of the azure water right from the room.

Shen Man stood on the balcony, letting the ocean breeze wash over her.

Lin Shu walked out with two glasses of red wine, her eyes bright.

She smiled, handing one to Shen Man. “Do you like it?”

Shen Man returned the smile with a nod, accepting the glass and taking an elegant sip. The way her long, pale fingers cradled the crystal stem of the glass, the gentle swirl of the wine—it was utterly mesmerizing.

Lin Shu’s lips parted slightly. Her heart began to race.

She lowered her gaze, hesitating, the words caught in her throat.

“Shushu.”

A soft voice called from beside her. Lin Shu looked up instinctively, and in the next second, a pair of soft lips met hers. She closed her eyes and melted into the kiss.

“Shen Man, I have something to tell you,” Lin Shu said, her own red lips parted as she caught her breath. Her expression was serious.

“What is it?” Shen Man asked with a smile.

“Are you…” Lin Shu managed one word before her heart suddenly hammered against her ribs. The sound of the wind was drowned out by the frantic pounding in her ears. She was so nervous she could barely breathe. She opened her mouth again, forcing out the rest of the sentence. “Are you hungry?”

Shen Man couldn’t help but laugh.

She reached out, gently brushing away the strands of hair the wind had swept across Lin Shu’s face. “It’s almost noon,” she said, her voice a soft, amused caress. “We should get some lunch.”

“Right,” Lin Shu nodded quickly, her delicate face a picture of earnest obedience.

Shen Man turned and called to order room service.

Lin Shu remained where she was, one hand pressed over her heart. It was still thumping away—peng peng¹—so loud it felt like it was right beside her ear, so fast it felt like it might leap out of her chest at any moment.

After ordering, Shen Man turned back to the figure staring blankly out at the sea. “Shushu,” she said, smiling, “it’s windy out here. Come inside.”

The words finally broke Lin Shu from her trance. She smoothed her hair and walked back into the room with a solemn look.

Shen Man was sitting on the edge of the bed. She caught Lin Shu’s slender arm and gently pulled her into an embrace.

Leaning in close, she whispered against her earlobe, “Is something on your mind today, Shushu?”

“Of course not,” Lin Shu retorted immediately, pouting her delicate lips. “I was just thinking about work.”

“Today is our first date. The only thing you should be thinking about is me,” Shen Man murmured, her own lips parting. Her pale fingertips pressed against Lin Shu’s heart, lingering for a moment before slowly tracing a path downward.

A shiver ran through Lin Shu, and her legs nearly gave out. She had to grab Shen Man’s shoulders for support. “Not now…” she gasped.

Shen Man let out a soft chuckle, her fingers wrapping around that slender waist.

Lin Shu took a few quick breaths, trying to calm her racing heart.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it,” Lin Shu said, scrambling to her feet and smoothing down her clothes.

The door opened to reveal a server with a food trolley. Lin Shu turned away, feeling awkward, and crossed her arms in front of her. The server, though finding it a bit odd, said nothing, simply set up the lunch and left.

Lin Shu let out a sigh of relief, then shot Shen Man a look that was both a complaint and a flirtation. “I told you it was time for lunch, and you still had to mess around.”

Shen Man just laughed, offering no defense.

They ate in comfortable silence, enjoying the ocean breeze.

After a few bites, Lin Shu glanced furtively at Shen Man, that same hesitant look returning to her face.

“Shushu, is the food not to your liking?” Shen Man looked up, smiling. “I ordered all your favorites.”

“It’s not that,” Lin Shu said, shaking her head, clearly distracted.

Shen Man’s gaze softened. After a moment of thought, she said gently, “I’m sorry about before. I shouldn’t have gotten so carried away.”

“I wasn’t blaming you,” Lin Shu mumbled, her lips in a pout, looking utterly wronged.

Shen Man couldn’t help but smile. She stood up to put some more food on Lin Shu’s plate. “Eat up, Shushu. We can take a walk on the beach later.”

“It’s too crowded there. I don’t want to go,” Lin Shu said, her tone unconsciously taking on a whiny, coquettish edge.

“Alright,” Shen Man agreed instantly. “What would you like to do today?” she asked with a smile.

“Just stay here. Sunbathe, enjoy the breeze,” Lin Shu replied, poking at the food in her bowl, her unhappiness written all over her face.

Shen Man just gave a helpless, fond smile.

Lin Shu’s appetite was gone; she barely ate a thing. After a server cleared the table and left a platter of fruit, she lay back on a lounge chair on the balcony, gazing at the vast blue sky.

Shen Man sat beside her, quietly enjoying the tranquility of the sea.

“Do you want to go out?” Lin Shu asked after she’d finished, her cheeks puffed out slightly.

When no one answered, she turned her head and saw that Shen Man had, at some point, fallen asleep in her chair.

Lin Shu’s heart skipped a beat. She quickly sat up. Leaning closer, she gently poked Shen Man’s soft cheek. “Are you really asleep?” she whispered.

The only reply was the sound of Shen Man’s steady breathing.

A jolt of delight went through Lin Shu. She rose as quietly as she could and tiptoed into the room, moving like a little cat.

With trembling excitement, she opened her bag and pulled a ring box from an inner pocket. Inside the exquisite box lay two rings, each with a unique design. Lin Shu had designed them herself and commissioned the most famous master jeweler to create them.

She picked up one of the rings, holding it carefully in her palm. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her chaotic heart, but it was no use. Not only was her heart pounding, but her fingers were trembling, too.

Lin Shu pressed her lips together, then grabbed the glass of red wine from the table and downed it in one go. She drank so fast she nearly choked.

Shen Man’s eyes fluttered open, just enough to peek at what was happening in the room. Seeing Lin Shu start walking back toward the balcony, she quickly closed them again.

Clutching the ring tightly, Lin Shu returned to Shen Man’s side.

She knelt down and opened her hand. The edge of the ring had already left an imprint on her soft palm.

“Shen Man,” Lin Shu said softly, her head bowed.

In the next instant, the world felt like it was heaven and earth spinning.² She found herself lying on top of a soft body, and the person who was supposed to be asleep had opened her eyes.

“Shushu, did you call for me?” Shen Man asked with a gentle smile, her eyes full of warmth.

“You weren’t asleep?” Lin Shu gasped, her fingers tightening around the ring.

“I was, but then you weren’t beside me, so I woke up,” Shen Man explained, her voice husky with the lingering traces of sleep.

Lin Shu’s face flushed a deep crimson.

After a moment of silence, she looked up, annoyed, at that smiling face. “Why couldn’t you have slept a little longer?” she grumbled.

“If I’d really been asleep and missed Shushu’s ring, I would have regretted it for the rest of my life,” Shen Man chuckled, her tender gaze filled with infinite affection.

Hearing that, Lin Shu felt the flower of her heart burst into full bloom.³ The words that had been so hard to say before now came with a surge of courage.

She stood up and looked at Shen Man with a serious gaze. “Shen Man, I love you,” she said, her voice steady. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you. No matter what happens in the future, I will never let go.”

“Will you marry me?” she asked, holding out the ring, her expression solemn and sincere.

Shen Man let out a soft laugh. She looked at the ring, then said playfully, “Something this important should be my job.”

“I don’t care! This is my proposal, so you’d better say yes!” Lin Shu declared, her eyes wide, bright, and utterly captivating.

“I will,” Shen Man said, a smile gracing her lips as she held out her left hand. Her long, slender ring finger was pale and beautiful.

Beaming, Lin Shu took her hand and, with great care, slowly slid the ring into place.

“Shushu, you’re my wife now,” Shen Man said, stroking the ring, her eyes dancing with joy.

“I should be the one saying that!” Lin Shu announced loudly, leaning in to capture those beautiful red lips with her own.

Shen Man smiled, her eyes curving into crescents as she returned the kiss.

They held each other, kissing as they moved from the balcony back into the room. Shen Man closed the doors and drew the curtains, plunging the room into dimness.

Lin Shu’s breathing grew ragged. Her eyes became dewy and moist, holding a captivating mistiness that could steal a person’s soul.

Shen Man licked her lips, leaned in, and took a delicate earlobe between them. “Wife…”⁴ she breathed, her breath like an orchid.⁵

A tremor shot through Lin Shu’s body, a tingling numbness spreading through her limbs.

The smile in Shen Man’s eyes deepened as she whispered the title again and again.

Lin Shu bit her lower lip, her pearly white teeth a stark contrast against the flushed red. Her eyes were hazy, her mind a complete blank, unable to form a single thought.

“Shushu, my wife…” Shen Man’s voice was now slightly hoarse. Her usually calm eyes held a fiery passion that seemed to burn even brighter in the dim light.

Lin Shu let out a soft moan and wrapped her arms around Shen Man’s neck. Fighting the tremors inside her, she managed to say, “You’ve already accepted my proposal. From now on, you’re mine. You can only be loyal to me. No flirting with anyone else, and absolutely no finding a little three.”⁶

“If I ever find out…” Before she could finish, her lips were sealed by another kiss.

“There are no ‘ifs.’ My heart only has room for Shushu,” Shen Man said earnestly, her fingers tracing the outline of that exquisite face. “I’m already yours, Shushu. You’ll have to be responsible for me for a lifetime.”

“Naturally,” Lin Shu said proudly, then suddenly gasped, her body tensing as she bit down hard on her lip.

A triumphant smile spread across Shen Man’s face.

Lin Shu’s breathing grew heavier as her body and mind finally, completely, let go.

The temperature in the room climbed, filled with a charming and romantic air.

By the time the heat had dissipated, Lin Shu was lying languidly on the bed. A pure white blanket was draped over her waist, unable to hide the suggestive red marks scattered across her skin.

Shen Man, now in a bathrobe, got up and pulled open the curtains, letting the warm sunlight spill into the room.

Lin Shu squinted, gazing at the blue sky and white clouds outside. The cries of seagulls echoed in the air, clear and resonant, like a song.

“Shushu, this ring is beautiful,” Shen Man said, sitting on the edge of the bed and wiggling her ring finger. “You designed it, didn’t you?”

“Of course,” Lin Shu replied, the corners of her lips curling in a smug smile. She held up her own ring finger and hooked it around Shen Man’s. “They mean ‘never betray, never separate.'”

“That’s a wonderful meaning,” Shen Man said with a gentle smile, her gaze fixed on Lin Shu. “Just like us. Never betray, never separate.”

The words were both a repetition and a vow.

“Mhm,” Lin Shu nodded emphatically, her eyes curving with happiness. “You still haven’t said it,” she added expectantly.

Shen Man smiled knowingly. She leaned down, her expression tender. “Shushu, I love you, and that will never change.”

“Me too,” Lin Shu replied, her voice full of bliss.

Their eyes met, and in each other’s gaze, they saw the love and the resolution to stay together for a lifetime.

Shen Man closed her eyes and gently kissed her.

Their fingers were intertwined, the two unique rings catching the sunlight and glowing with a golden luster. On the wall, their shadows merged, forming a perfect heart, as if blessing their love for all eternity.

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