Beams of light permeated through the semi-covered pale-yellow curtains, scattering irregular patches of brightness across the room's tiled floor. A gentle breeze stirred, whispering through the potted plants by the window, basking in the nourishing sunlight and caressed by the wind.
It was nine in the morning.
Yang Haoran laid listlessly in bed, a black notebook on his computer desk – a schoolwork journal compiled by his sister, which he had never bothered to open. He had been home from the hospital for two days now, held in a kind of house arrest by his stern mother who refused to let him leave the house, a confinement that felt like a cruel theft of his freedom.
Is a bird without freedom still a bird?
Lost in his thoughts, Yang Haoran abruptly remembered something disturbing: since returning from the hospital, he had not experienced the usual physiological response to sexual arousal. Even the morning erections he had always had were nowhere to be seen.
"Could it be some kind of aftereffect?"
This question played on his mind, fuelling his anxiety as he considered the increasingly likely possibility. In a rush, he sat at his computer desk and expertly turned on the monitor. As the startup screen flickered, he opened his browser and typed in a website.
The "study" videos he had downloaded before were curated from various websites, but they were all destroyed ruthlessly by his mother. He clicked on a confirmation button, and an adult video website appeared on the screen, and he was about to casually open a video for testing.
Then he heard a familiar patter of footsteps outside his door.
Startled, Yang Haoran quickly shut down his computer, jumped back into bed, and pretended to be asleep, all in one swift motion. He pulled the blanket over himself, feigning sleep.
A click echoed, and the door swung open.
Dressed in a black suit dress, black velvet pantyhose, and black pointed high heels, Liu Ruoxi walked into the room. She had just returned from the office, having prepared breakfast for the family before rushing out to work. Even though the period of hospital stay with her son had been planned, a mountain of work had accumulated that needed her attention. These two days, she had been mainly occupied with work matters.
Her mission in the game was to be completed within three days. Last night, she downloaded some videos to a USB drive at the office but had forgotten to bring it home. Thus, she had to return to the office again this morning.
She put in considerable effort to find these videos. Unable to locate them herself, she ended up posting a reward in an online forum using a secondary account. The promise of a large sum of money expedited the process, and within minutes, she was contacted by a fellow forum member who provided the resources.
Little did he know that the person seeking these resources was a woman of exceptional beauty.
Looking down at her son who was pretending to be asleep, Liu Ruoxi raised an eyebrow: "Get up. I'll give you three seconds. Three… Two…"
Before she could count to one, Yang Haoran opened his eyes and got out of bed quickly. He knew all too well that his mother's eyes missed nothing, and any act of deception would only embarrass him. Yang Haoran gave his mother a once-over.
His mother, as always, was immaculately dressed and her makeup was delicately done. Her long and slender eyebrows were painted like distant mountains, and her amber eyes were as clear as a deep pool. The black eyeliner and light brown eyeshadow accentuated her captivating eyes, making them not only elegant but also slightly tantalizing.
Beneath her straight nose, her small, plump lips were painted with a dazzling lipstick. The glossy texture was mesmerizing, like a tender cherry, with her flawless features akin to a masterpiece of the heavens. Her shapely figure was enveloped in a black dress, with a strapless top peeking out from the small suit jacket. The contours of her neck were graceful, and her 36E breasts were pushing against the narrow top, like two lofty mountains creating a breathtaking view.
Her slender waist was tightly bound by the suit jacket, from where the curve gently rose to form a large, round buttock. Below the black skirt, her sexy black stockings were as thin as cicada wings, revealing the tender white flesh underneath. Her long, straight legs were like a work of art, perfect and flawless.
Even though he often referred to her as an old hag in his heart, Yang Haoran knew that his mother was undoubtedly a peerless beauty. Her angelic face coupled with her devilishly curvaceous body was enough to make any man covet her.
A wave of heat surged within Yang Haoran, but he dared not stare at her for too long. He quickly lowered his head, afraid that his dirty gaze would defile his mother. The mere idea of such a seductive mother was impossible to ignore ever since he became aware of his own sexuality, but the moral condemnation and his mother's stern gaze had always kept such thoughts in check, buried deep in the corners of his heart.
"Why aren't you looking?" Liu Ruoxi caught the fleeting heat in her son's eyes and felt a twinge of embarrassment.
"Look at what? Mom, what are you talking about?" Yang Haoran lifted his head, looking left and right in feigned confusion.
Seeing her son's act of playing dumb, Liu Ruoxi recalled the task she had to complete today. She took a deep breath to calm herself and said, "Open your computer."
"Did your computer break down again, Mom?"
"Do you want a spanking?"
Under his mother's piercing gaze, Yang Haoran didn't dare to speak another word. He obediently turned on the computer monitor. He was somewhat puzzled. His mother had checked his computer not long ago. Why was she doing it again?
Thankfully, he hadn't downloaded any "study materials" in the past two days.
As Liu Ruoxi thought about what was going to happen next, despite her mental preparation, a faint blush appeared on her cold and beautiful face.
"Plug this USB drive in."
Maintaining her composure, she handed over a small silver USB drive to her son, instructing him with a natural tone.
Yang Haoran didn't think too much about it. He assumed that his mother had prepared some study materials for him to catch up on his schoolwork during his home stay.
He took the USB drive and plugged it into the computer. As the computer read the device, a notification popped up in the upper right corner of the screen showing that the drive had a total capacity of 256 GB, with 167 GB used.
Upon seeing this, Yang Haoran was filled with dread. His mother couldn't possibly have downloaded over a hundred gigabytes of study materials, could she?
His hand that held the mouse trembled slightly.
Deep within, he could no longer restrain himself, scolding his mother harshly.
However, on the surface, Yang Haoran still cheerfully asked, "Mom, what's this here?"
Liu Ruoxi's blush was even more noticeable, yet she maintained a cold expression, stating coolly, "Why do you ask so many questions? Wouldn't you know once you open it?"
As Yang Haoran reached for the mouse, ready to open the USB drive, Liu Ruoxi, behind him, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, her chest heaving dramatically.
When she opened her eyes again, her composure had been regained— as cold as ice, expression indifferent.