The phone kept ringing, and no one knew what to do about this thorny situation.
Gu Tingshang was nothing like Nan Zhou, with his gentle, good-natured temperament. He was ruthless and heavy-handed; one wrong move could leave the Ye family destitute, their home destroyed and their lives ruined.
Just as Ye Lingshuang was preparing to tough it out and fight back, Eldest Sister stepped forward.
“Give it to me. You’ve got a temper. I’ll talk to him.”
The call connected. Before Ye Wanlan could say a word, a low male voice came through the phone.
“Zhizhi, come downstairs. We’re going home!”
His tone was cool, but he didn’t sound ferocious.
“Um… she’s asleep. She’s resting right now.”
As soon as Gu Tingshang realized it wasn’t Lin Zhixu, his initially mild tone turned cold and sharp, carrying an unmistakable air of authority.
“What floor?”
This was Ye Wanlan’s first time dealing with Gu Tingshang, and she didn’t know he had a habit of speaking in clipped phrases.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m coming to get her!”
Gu Tingshang meant that whether she was asleep or awake, he was taking her home tonight.
His cold manner of speaking unsettled Ye Wanlan, too. She simply handed the phone to Lin Zhixu.
“He’s here to get you.”
Furious, Lin Zhixu emerged from behind the curtains and meowed angrily into the phone.
“Who said you could come get me? I’m not going back!”
“You don’t get to decide!” Gu Tingshang said firmly, leaving no room for negotiation.
Lin Zhixu suddenly realized something.
“Didn’t I never give you my address? How do you know where I am?”
“Take a guess!”
Gu Tingshang’s cool laugh came through the phone. With a slight curl of his lips, he ordered her, “Come downstairs. Five minutes!”
Lin Zhixu opened the window and looked down. Sure enough, a commanding Rolls-Royce was parked below, and beside the black luxury car stood a man just as imposing.
Her little soul nearly flew out of her.
With a bang, she hurriedly hung up, shutting out the devil’s voice.
“What do I do? What do I do? Eldest Sister, Second Sister, Third Sister, he’s here! He really came! How did he find me?”
Eldest Sister let out a long sigh and explained helplessly, “The biggest telecommunications network in Jincheng belongs to Gu Corporation. With Gu Tingshang’s abilities, if he wants to find out where you are, he can.”
“What do I do? He only gave me five minutes.”
Ye Lingshuang stepped forward fearlessly. “It’s fine. Second Sister will go down with you. If he dares bully you again, I’ll fight him to the death.”
There was nothing else they could do just then.
Grandpa reminded her, “Zhizhi, when you go down, just say Second Sister is your close friend. Don’t reveal your connection to the Ye family yet, understand?”
“If you’re in danger, call home. I may be old, but I’ve still got some fight in me.”
Ye Shuyun took two miniature spray weapons out of her bag and handed them to Lin Zhixu.
“Take these, too. They’re my latest high-tech creations—powerful stuff. They could save your life in a pinch.”
With her family’s encouragement, Lin Zhixu felt a little less afraid.
At worst, she’d fight that bastard to the death. If she couldn’t win, she’d just die trying!
The moment Gu Tingshang saw her approaching, he straightened from where he’d been leaning against the front of the car.
He strode toward her. The first thing he asked was, “Does it still hurt?”
Then he took a bottle of brown sugar water, still warm from his body heat, from inside his clothes and handed it to her.
“Drink this.”
The thermos was black, so Lin Zhixu couldn’t see what was inside. She asked irritably, “What is it?”
Gu Tingshang opened the lid to show her.
“Brown sugar water. It’s hot.”
Lin Zhixu had already had a bowl of brown sugar water and a large cup of medicinal tea to ease the pain. She couldn’t force down another drop.
“I don’t want any.”
“Be good. Don’t make me feed it to you!”
Lin Zhixu pushed the thermos away.
“I said I’m not drinking it!”
The domineering CEO Gu had never been one to tolerate contradiction. He tipped his head back, poured the brown sugar water into his mouth, then transferred it straight into Lin Zhixu’s.
The sheer audacity of that brown-sugar kiss left Second Sister Ye, who had never dated anyone, staring in shock.
Good heavens, was it really that intense?
Should she go over and help her little sister?
No—better not make things worse. This new brother-in-law looked cold, but he’d brought her little sister brown sugar water. He probably wasn’t that bad.
Time to slip away!
Watching her sister and brother-in-law kiss in person was just too awkward.
Ye Lingshuang beat a hasty retreat, rushing upstairs to report what had happened to her family.
“Eldest Sister, Third Sister, listen! Our new brother-in-law is kissing Little Sister downstairs. Oh, it’s so lovey-dovey!”
Ye Wanlan felt both worried and relieved. She couldn’t tell whether it was a good thing or a bad thing that her little sister had gotten tangled up with Gu Tingshang, a mad wolf of a man.
After Gu Tingshang fed her the entire thermos, Lin Zhixu was so full she threw up.
“Ugh!”
It all came churning up from her stomach and splattered onto the ground. Lin Zhixu’s face went pale, while Gu Tingshang was so furious his face turned green.
“Lin Zhixu, do you hate me that much?”
“Gu Tingshang, why do you have to bully me? Can’t you just leave me alone?”
Gu Tingshang’s heart suddenly went cold.
Not only was this woman an idiot, she was completely ungrateful, too.
He thought, I didn’t even blame you for sneaking off. I came all the way here to bring you home myself, and even went out of my way to make you brown sugar water and feed it to you. How have I bullied you?
Did being around him really disgust her so much?
Gu Tingshang opened the car door and told her, “Get in!”
They didn’t say a word to each other the entire drive. Lin Zhixu was afraid of him and didn’t dare speak.
Gu Tingshang was seething, and couldn’t be bothered to talk.
When they entered the house, the servants once again came over in unison to greet them.
“Good evening, Eldest Young Master!”
“Good evening, Young Madam!”
Gu Tingshang took off his shoes and loosened his tie, then instructed a servant, “Run a bath and help her wash.”
At the words “take a bath,” Lin Zhixu started trembling all over on reflex. Her wide eyes were filled with fear.
“I’m not taking a bath!”
“Gu Tingshang, I’m on my period now. We can’t.”
Nanny Wang smiled. “Young Madam, you still need to bathe while you’re on your period. Our young master is a clean freak; he likes things clean. You need to keep clean, too.”
Gu Tingshang knew what she was afraid of. He told her plainly, “Don’t worry. I’m not that much of a beast.”
When Lin Zhixu came out of the bathroom, Gu Tingshang was lounging on the sofa, biting into an apple.
He crooked a finger, beckoning her over.
“Why did you run away? Do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?”
Lin Zhixu answered honestly, “Because I don’t want to marry you.”
In an instant, Gu Tingshang’s heart froze over.
“You don’t want to marry me, but you want my money?”
“You’ve certainly got quite a scheme!”
He hurled the half-eaten apple into the trash can. The dull thud made her uneasy.
“Where’s the money?”
Lin Zhixu stammered, “I… spent it.”
“What did you spend it on?”
Even if she bought a house, land, or storefronts, there was no way to spend 105 million in just a few hours.
“That’s none of your business.”
Nan Zhou had never asked her how she spent her money. Once he gave it to her, it was hers to use however she wanted.
But this man had started auditing her accounts before the money had even had time to warm in her hands. He was so sly and underhanded.