The partition suddenly descended.
Shen Congyan looked at the driver, who was staring at him in bewilderment, and said coldly, “Pull over.”
Again and again, he had laid out an easy way for Lin Wanfu to back down, but every time, she had kicked it away without the slightest mercy.
Even a clay figurine had a temper, and he was no exception.
If she didn’t want his love, then she could damn well endure his hatred.
“Shen Congyan, what’s wrong with you now?” Lin Wanfu clearly still had no idea what was going on.
Shen Congyan opened the car door, his expression cold. “Get out of my car. Now.”
Lin Wanfu stared at him in disbelief. “You’re going to leave me all alone in the middle of nowhere? Shen Congyan, I’m this beautiful. Aren’t you worried I might run into some bad person and have something happen to me?”
Dense woods lined both sides of the road. Hardly any cars passed by, let alone pedestrians.
Shen Congyan only curled his lip in a cold smile. “Eldest Miss Lin, what exactly are you to me? What obligation do I have to worry about something happening to you out here in the middle of nowhere?”
At that, Lin Wanfu lost her temper too.
“Fine. I’ll get out. And even if you beg me to get in your car someday, I won’t!”
She got out in a huff. Looking at the deserted road, Lin Wanfu couldn’t help turning back to glance at Shen Congyan.
The man sat motionless in the back seat. The cuffs of his black shirt were rolled up slightly, revealing muscular arms brimming with strength. The sharp lines of his profile were half-hidden in shadow; his brow was strong, his jaw lean, and his long legs crossed casually. He had the poise and allure of a mature man.
“I’m really leaving,” Lin Wanfu said, biting her lip.
Shen Congyan didn’t even look at her. He simply shut the car door without mercy.
Watching Shen Congyan’s car drive away, Lin Wanfu angrily kicked a small stone off the roadside.
She stood there sulking for a while, then took out her phone, downloaded a ride-hailing app, and tried to book a car.
Unfortunately, the road was too remote, and no one accepted her request.
After waiting and waiting for a car that never came, Lin Wanfu sat by the roadside and cursed Shen Congyan’s ancestors for eighteen generations.
She’d been studying up online lately, and now she had enough insults to curse him out without repeating a single one.
Just then, a car stopped in front of her. The kindly middle-aged driver greeted her, “Young lady, are you waiting for a ride? There aren’t many cars around here, so you probably won’t get one. How about I give you a lift?”
Lin Wanfu looked at the well-meaning driver and immediately grew wary, though she didn’t let it show.
“Thank you, Uncle, but no need. I’ve sent my location to my boyfriend. He’ll be here soon.”
“All right, then. Be careful.” The driver gave an awkward smile and started the engine.
When he reached the bend, the driver got out and walked over to a black luxury car. He said nervously, “President Shen, Miss Lin doesn’t trust me.”
“Mm.” Shen Congyan answered coolly, tapping the armrest intermittently with his fingertips. “Get a car ready for Lin Shuyan and have him come pick up his daughter.”
“Yes, President Shen…”
The driver wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
Honestly, he couldn’t figure out what his boss was trying to do. First he’d kicked Miss Lin out of the car, and then he’d sent the driver to pretend to be passing by and offer her a ride.
And even then, the boss hadn’t been satisfied unless he stayed nearby himself, probably worried Miss Lin might run into danger.
Ten minutes later, Shen Congyan saw Lin Wanfu get into Father Lin’s car through the footage relayed by the drone. Only then did he look up and tell the driver in the front, “Go to the Su family.”
With that, he slowly closed his eyes and leaned back, resting.
*
In the car, Lin Wanfu put on the knitted cardigan Father Lin had brought her. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the suit jacket lying on the floor beneath the seat and angrily stomped on it.
Before long, she had trampled it beyond recognition, but she still wasn’t satisfied.
Puffing up with anger, she complained, “Dad, don’t you think Shen Congyan has something wrong with his head? First he abducted me into his car, then, for no reason at all, he dumped me in the middle of nowhere!”
Father Lin had been a real ladies’ man when he was young. How could he fail to see what Shen Congyan was up to? He was obviously just picking a fight with Lin Wanfu.
But Father Lin had a terrible impression of Shen Congyan.
The way Shen Congyan had acted like a bandit yesterday had convinced Father Lin, deep down, that he was a little beast. There was no way he would ever agree to his daughter being with him.
So Father Lin not only refrained from pointing it out, but earnestly advised her, “Fufu, a man as emotionally unstable as Shen Congyan is the worst kind of partner. You never know when he might lose his temper and hit you. You mustn’t fall for a man like that, understand?”
Lin Wanfu wholeheartedly agreed.
“Dad, you’re right. Of course I’d never fall for a jerk like Shen Congyan.”
“That’s my good girl.” Father Lin smiled warmly.
As if something had just occurred to her, Lin Wanfu took out her phone and checked the message from Shen Huaijin.
“Dad, drive straight to the Shen family. Shen Huaijin is back, and he’s waiting for me there,” she said.
At the moment, neither she nor Father Lin had anywhere to live, and they didn’t have much money on them. That meant they could only rent a cheap little place in the dirty, chaotic suburbs.
That was out of the question. She couldn’t bear living like that.
Father Lin tightened his grip on the steering wheel and tactfully reminded her, “Fufu, Shen Huaijin isn’t a philanthropist either. If you want to get something out of him, he’ll want something out of you too.”
What kind of thing a man might want from a woman went without saying.
“Dad, don’t worry. Between Shen Huaijin and me, it’s anyone’s game.”
Lin Wanfu twirled a lock of dark hair around her finger. She had probably inherited Father Lin’s youthful taste for pleasure, because she didn’t consider romance between men and women all that important.
As long as a man was pleasing to her eyes, she didn’t care what his name was if he could give her pleasure.
“I’m only afraid you’ll get in too deep and won’t be able to get out.”
Father Lin sighed softly. He had worked with Shen Huaijin on business a few times before.
There was no denying that Shen Huaijin was an outstanding heir to the family. He was clever and decisive, exceptionally capable, and stood out among his peers. Apart from a slight blemish in his background, he was second to none.
But after observing him several times, Father Lin had noticed that Shen Huaijin had an extreme temperament and was unusually ruthless toward his business rivals. Anyone who crossed him rarely came to a good end.
“Then we’ll see whose methods are better. If I’m outmatched, I’ll accept the loss.”
Lin Wanfu understood Shen Huaijin better than Father Lin did. Of course she wouldn’t underestimate him, but she didn’t believe that even with foreknowledge of the plot, she couldn’t outplay him.
Besides, although System 0573 had been silent, its automatic identity-recognition function was still working. She suspected it had probably run out of energy.
She wanted to try interacting with Shen Huaijin and see if that could restore some of System 0573’s energy.
Father Lin said, “Have you thought about whether Shen Congyan will let you off if you get tangled up with Shen Huaijin?”
Lin Wanfu replied, “Dad, I have my own plans. Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”
If things got out of hand, she could always lower her head to Shen Congyan, admit she was wrong, and sweet-talk him a little.
She knew Shen Congyan was easier to coax than anyone. Give him a sweet date and he’d forget the slap.
But in the original plot, she had stubbornly followed the same path to the bitter end and never once thought of coaxing Shen Congyan.
Even after Lin Wanfu had made herself perfectly clear, she was still determined to go her own way. Father Lin knew there was no point saying more, so he drove toward the Shen family, his heart heavy with worry.