Her hand was slapped away, then firmly gripped again.
Gu Xingzhi’s chest rose and fell slightly. “What are you doing?”
Lu Tao could see the obvious menace in his eyes. The man’s earlier elegance seemed to have vanished completely, and his gaze looked as though it wanted to devour her whole.
A survival instinct surged within her, and she said softly, “You’re hurting me.”
The pressure on her hand loosened slightly. He released her, but the playfulness in his eyes was gone, replaced by a coldness—a deeper chill than when she had first met him.
It was as if she had just stepped into his forbidden territory, and his gaze now imprisoned her in a lightless dungeon thousands of leagues beneath the sea.
Lu Tao’s shoulders hitched with a sob, and her apricot eyes quickly grew misty. “I… I was just looking at this button I accidentally pulled off, so…”
The man’s eyes behind his glasses were still tinged with red, bloodshot veins spreading like a spider’s web. He stared at her darkly for a long moment, then left without a word.
Lu Tao raised her hand. Her fair skin was marked with red blotches, and she frowned as she blew on it.
Her little face scrunched up.
It hurt so much.
She hadn’t known that was Gu Xingzhi’s taboo. What was he so worked up about?
And in that instant, she finally understood how he had climbed to where he was today. He was definitely not someone kind-hearted.
Zhizhi was right. She had been naive.
Amidst her fear, Lu Tao also felt a sliver of relief.
At least he had no feelings for her. When the time came, she could still easily walk away.
All she had to do was play the part of Mrs. Gu for these ten months.
Just then, an ice pack was offered to her. Lu Tao looked up and saw Butler Song. Tears began to fall in droplets, but she still spoke politely, “Thank you, Grandpa Song.”
“You’re welcome.”
Butler Song had grown so accustomed to her calling him “Grandpa” that it sounded perfectly natural now. He looked in the direction Gu Xingzhi had left and sighed. “Is there anything you’d like to ask me, madam?”
Lu Tao was taken aback. Why did Butler Song look so expectant?
According to the CEO romance novel formula, butlers should be terrified of being asked about the big boss’s secrets.
Even if asked, they should remain tight-lipped and enigmatic.
But Butler Song was practically laying all his cards on the table.
Still… she wasn’t nosy enough to pry into such matters. Her life was more important.
She pressed the ice pack against her reddened hand. The sudden chill made her even more clear-headed. “Grandpa Song, I don’t have anything to ask you. You know that President Gu and I are only married in name. I’m not interested in his affairs.”
Though she was perfectly clear-headed, Butler Song’s eyes dimmed bit by bit.
Today, seeing the master return from his business trip, clearly looking as though he was waiting for someone, he had held a sliver of hope that the madam could pull the master out of his shell.
Now, that was just wishful thinking.
In the second-floor room, a man’s figure leaned against the shadows, having overheard that very line.
—”I’m not interested in his affairs.”
He let out a faint laugh. His slightly overgrown hair covered half of his brow, and his profile cast an alluring shadow against the wall.
The flame he had barely managed to suppress in his chest blazed even brighter, threatening to consume everything in its path. He turned and closed the door behind him.
No matter who it was—whether they treated him with respect on the surface or smiled at him—they were all just strangers wearing an exquisite, gilded mask.
Lu Tao returned upstairs and looked at her hand. Butler Song’s ice pack had been a godsend; the redness had already mostly faded.
She eagerly pulled out her phone, lay down on the bed, and sent voice messages.
“Zhizhi…”
“Zhizhi…”
“Zhizhi…”
The screen lit up, and a white chat bubble appeared. “Coming, coming. Are you part mouse or what?”
Lu Tao giggled twice, rolling around on the bed like a little dumpling, then made a few squeaking mouse noises into the phone before typing: “I’ve got a huge scoop for you. Gu Xingzhi definitely has some kind of issue. I accidentally saw a scar on his left chest just now, and he flew into a huge rage.”
Fu Zhi wiped her hair without even blow-drying it, eager to hear her bestie’s gossip. Her sharp eyes narrowed. “Hey hey hey, I’m not interested in my bestie’s husband. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. What husband?” Lu Tao cupped her face, very good at catching the important details. “I’ve never even had a boyfriend. Besides…”
She thought back to how fierce Gu Xingzhi had been earlier. Usually, he was quite refined and elegant, but just now he had been terrifying—she’d been so scared her hairs stood on end.
“Even if he was a husband before, he’s been demoted to a mere consort now. He’s moody and unpredictable—not my type.” Setting aside the moodiness, he kind of was.
Lu Tao clutched her chest. Every time, he made her heart race.
But that was only limited to being her type. A person might have many moments of butterflies in their life, but in the end, there was only one person truly meant to grow old with you.
Fu Zhi still hadn’t blow-dried her hair and draped the towel over her shoulder. “So?”
“Everyone has secrets, and I don’t want to pry. Mm—” Lu Tao tapped her lips with her finger. “But at this critical juncture, I don’t dare defy him and go back to the Lu family. What if I lose my job?”
Fu Zhi nodded. “Then it’s a shame about the plan you made to deal with the Lu family.”
“No worries. It’ll come in handy sooner or later.”
Fu Zhi put down her phone and smiled. This was what she loved about Lu Tao.
She was always so easy to pick things up, and just as easy to let them go.
Whether in romance or friendship, opposites complemented each other beautifully. Someone like her, prone to overthinking, would always admire and look up to Lu Tao’s carefree nature.
After hanging up, she looked around the enormous room, decorated as lavishly as a princess’s chamber.
Lu Tao reached into the pink burlap sack, rummaging around with a rustling sound for quite a while before finally pulling out an exquisite box.
She opened it and glanced down—it was this rather distinctive tie clip that she’d never managed to give away.
On it sat a little metal pig, adorably chubby and lifelike.
When Zhizhi had said “a cabbage got rooted by a pig,” she’d immediately thought of the tie clip she’d picked out for Gu Xingzhi.
It was the very first thing she’d bought when she entered the mall.
But then… there wouldn’t be a chance to give it to him, would there?
She tossed the box aside and lay back on the bed, eyes half-closed, so drowsy she was hovering between sleep and wakefulness.
“Papa piu, papa pei, papa dada dada dada…”
Her phone rang, and Lu Tao answered it casually, thinking it was Fu Zhi. “Hello.”
Her voice was soft and gentle, completely unguarded, as if melting into a puddle of water.
Lu Cen pulled the phone away to check—it was Lu Tao, right? When he’d called her during the day, she hadn’t sounded like that at all.
Just as he’d thought…
Lu Cen’s lips curled upward, rising higher and higher.
He’d asked her to come home, and she’d agreed after a moment’s thought.
Although she’d caused a huge scene at the birthday banquet that day, in his view, it was just a child’s trick to seek attention.
Everything was well within his control. Lu Tao was like the Monkey King who couldn’t escape his palm no matter how he flipped—she simply couldn’t get out of his grasp.
“Hello.”
The moment that self-important male voice landed, Lu Tao scrambled up from the bed in one swift motion and rubbed her eyes: Hunt time, begin!!
She was feeling stifled right now, and had been looking for an outlet to vent.
Lu Cen had just walked straight into the line of fire.
Lu Cen spoke in a commanding tone, looking down his nose at her. “Lu Tao, you must be back by noon tomorrow. We’ve prepared a lot of dishes at home—Sister Tang specially made Emerald Shrimp, Glutinous Rice Eight-Treasure Duck, and Squirrel Mandarin Fish. Bring Mr. Gu along with you.”
Lu Tao curled her lips. Her tastes matched the original soul’s—she couldn’t be happy without spice.
And those dishes, all sticky-sweet in flavor, not a single one she liked.