Gu Ting: “You can win ‘Another Car Free’ when buying a car?” A car wasn’t a beverage; could it really be buy-one-get-one-free?
The salesperson said with a smile, “The company only gave away three cars as the grand prize this quarter. Miss Gu, you truly have excellent luck. But given your luck, it doesn’t seem all that surprising. After all, you even managed to draw the first prize twice in a row with scratch cards, right? Heh heh heh…”
Gu Ting wasn’t surprised at all. She was already somewhat a local celebrity by now.
Still completely unsurprising, she was once again taken by the store’s salespeople to shake hands in turns before she left. Every single one of them beamed with joy, as if they could already foresee the happy scenario of an explosion in orders tomorrow.
Since many procedures couldn’t be processed late at night, Gu Ting left after paying and signing the contract. She bought several portions of delicious food from a very clean-looking restaurant, and carrying the items, she entered the hospital for the third time.
In contrast to the quiet and serene atmosphere during the day, the outside of Yan Xiu’s ward was unexpectedly bustling at night. A crowd of men, women, young, and old blocked the doorway tightly, crying, making a scene, arguing, and cursing… For a moment, it was hard to tell whether this was a hospital or a vegetable market.
“Yan Xiu, your Uncle Qian treated you so well since you were a child, viewing you as his own nephew. Whenever there was anything good, he thought of you first, to the point that even his own biological son couldn’t compare to you. How could you be so heartless!”
“Your Uncle Qian was merely bewitched by that woman outside, momentarily blinded by ghosts. Those kidnappers were also found by that woman; he didn’t truly want to harm you!”
“…Your Uncle Qian accompanied your father through so many great winds and waves. When your father was alive, he treated your Uncle Qian like a biological brother! If your father has knowledge in the springs below and knows that you personally sent Uncle Qian to prison, he will never rest in peace even in death!”
“Young Mr. Yan, do you have the heart to let our Tongtong and Linlin lose their father at such a young age? Do you have the heart to let the old lady be without her son by her side at such an advanced age? How many years does she have left to live? Do you have the heart? Ah?”
“A blessed man like you has his own heavenly protection; you’ve escaped and nothing happened to you, so why must you drive him to the absolute end? Leave a line in everything so we can meet easily in the future. Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river—there’s no telling when you might come begging to our family. Please, accumulate some virtue!”
Even though Gu Ting stood far away, she could tell at a glance that Du Kaifeng, who blocked the doorway, had a face full of unexpressed weariness. Nevertheless, he remained dutiful, using his cow-like eyes to glare at everyone equally.
“Young Mr. Yan is unwell. The doctor said he needs to rest well at night. If Young Mr. Yan is disturbed by your noise and his old illness relapses, will you be responsible? Your family’s Qian Miao spent money to hire killers to murder Young Mr. Yan, and now your old and young ones are using moral kidnapping on Young Mr. Yan. What, are you trying to show off that your family’s ancestral kidnapping skills are incredibly formidable?”
Gu Ting almost burst out laughing.
The Qian family members still refused to give up, with one sentence following another, blocking Du Kaifeng so tightly that he didn’t even have a chance to speak.
Gu Ting took two steps forward. The ward door opened, and Yan Xiu, dressed in light-colored hospital clothes, stood at the doorway. He was tall with long legs and a handsome face. The moment he appeared, it was like a crane standing among chickens; everyone’s gaze instantly converged onto him alone.
He clearly didn’t speak, but when his gaze swept over, it felt practically tangible, causing people’s hearts to tighten inexplicably. For a moment, there was a dead silence inside and outside the ward.
Du Kaifeng explained with a stiff upper lip, “Young Mr. Yan, the nurse said they lied about being relatives of the Yan family and sneaked up here. Why don’t you go inside and rest first? Give me ten more minutes, and I guarantee I’ll get them sorted out.”
The drama-watching spectator Miss Gu: “…” It seems being a bodyguard isn’t easy these days. You have to be a bodyguard, a caregiver, and also be responsible for guarding the door.
Gu Ting was watching the drama with a face full of relish when Yan Xiu’s gaze suddenly passed over the crowded crowd, landing squarely and unerringly on hers. From his look, Gu Ting seemed to see a trace of… dissatisfaction?
Before she could figure it out, Yan Xiu had already withdrawn his gaze, facing the crowd of men, women, young, and old from the Qian family once more. His gaze was deep, dark, and cold, as cold as an ice sculpture devoid of a single shred of human emotion.
“Five years ago, Qian Miao used his position to forge contracts and embezzle 30 million yuan of public funds to participate in illegal gambling. If this evidence is handed over to the police, how many more years will Uncle Qian have to sit in prison?”
The Qian family members looked horrified, their faces turning deathly pale one by one.
“You… you’re talking nonsense! Your Uncle Qian has always been dutiful and has never stolen a single penny from the company!”
“When the old Chairman returns to the country, I will definitely pay a visit to ask him how he can allow his grandson to slander a company veteran like this? It truly chills one’s heart!”
Yan Xiu chuckled softly. He looked exceptionally handsome when he smiled, but the words that slipped from his mouth were like frost flying in the winter months, causing people’s entire bodies to grow cold: “Then how many years should Qian Miao sit in prison for using his power for personal gain, stealing company secrets, and selling them at a high price to a listed company in J City, causing the company’s project to fall through and resulting in a direct loss of 480 million yuan?”
Madam Qian was already stunned. She turned to look at her mother-in-law in disbelief, only to see the elderly Mrs. Qian clutching the hands of her grandson and granddaughter, barely able to keep her footing.
She panted heavily, looking as if she were on the verge of fainting. “You… you…”
Yan Xiu was smiling broadly, his ruthless appearance like a malevolent ghost emerging from hell. “Grandmother Qian, there’s no need to say more. Disturb me again, and I won’t keep a single piece of the evidence in my hands. At that time, I’m afraid you won’t even have the chance to visit him in prison.”
“If you are smart, you should know that from beginning to end, the person who truly harmed him wasn’t me.”
Madam Qian wanted to say more, but she was frightened into silence by a single look full of overbearing pressure from the elderly Mrs. Qian. The family left the hospital in utter disarray.
Faced with this scene, Gu Ting truly wanted to recite a line: Their disheveled appearance looks just like a dog.
Gu Ting turned around, and unexpectedly, the weight in her hands lightened. The food in her hands was taken by Yan Xiu, who had approached at some unknown point.
“The food is about to get cold. Come inside and eat together.”
Gu Ting’s mind drifted for a moment, and she almost bumped into Yan Xiu’s chest. “Ah? Oh.”
Du Kaifeng on the side was still tangling over whether he should help his boss carry the items. Should I? But the moment I took a half-step forward, why did my boss’s gaze look like it wanted to stab me?
To carry or not to carry, that was a question.
To enter or not to enter, that was another question.
Du Kaifeng, whose head was growing a bit large, finally decided to follow his intuition, obediently going downstairs to get some junk food instead.
Yan Xiu and Gu Ting sat opposite each other at the table. Yan Xiu arranged the dishes with one hand, his slender eyelashes concealing the emotions in the depths of his eyes.
He hesitated, saying, “Just now…”
Gu Ting explained hastily, “Just now it wasn’t that I was busy watching the drama and didn’t want to help you. I was just about to go up when you came out. I saw you pack them up obediently in just a few words without them daring to utter a peep, so there was simply no place for me to use my skills.”
Could a righteous person like her do something like standing by and watching a friend’s drama with great relish? No! Unless the drama was truly delicious.
The expression on Yan Xiu’s face slowly returned to natural. Placing a pair of chopsticks in front of Gu Ting, his features turned warm and gentle as he said, “The Qian family and the Yan family are old family friends with a deep relationship. Qian Miao can be considered to have grown up under my grandfather’s gaze. My second uncle and second aunt advised me to show mercy and leave a path of survival for Qian Miao. I refused.”
Gu Ting had danced for the entire afternoon and was genuinely starving. Scooping up the white rice, she began to eat in large mouthfuls, her eyes glued to the fragrant food, yet she didn’t forget to remind Yan Xiu, “Hurry up and eat, it won’t taste good if it gets cold.”
Looking at her serious face while eating, it was as if the matter Yan Xiu mentioned wasn’t worth mentioning at all.
After a large mouthful of rice went down, Gu Ting finally spared some attention to answer him, “Good refusal! If I were you, let alone a path of survival, I wouldn’t even leave him a fart! I have only one wish—let him die!”
“He hired killers and almost took your life, yet you’re supposed to consider things on his behalf? Are you the reincarnation of the Holy Mother?”
“Repaying injury with kindness—how then do you repay kindness? Repaying violence with violence, an eye for an eye—that’s what feels satisfying!”
As she spoke, Gu Ting suddenly realized that she was being a bit reckless. In the alternate world she transmigrated to, fighting, killing, living, and dying were as common as wearing clothes or drinking water. But the reality she was currently in wasn’t like that; how could she be so wild and brutal?
Gu Ting shut her mouth at the right time, seriously focusing on her food. She lifted her eyes to peek at Yan Xiu, only to find that Yan Xiu didn’t show any look of surprise or shock. He was just as calm as always, and when their gazes met, he broke into a smile, appearing to be in quite a good mood.
Yan Xiu merely felt that, at the very least, there was still one person truly considering things on his behalf.
Far from finding Yan Xiu cold-blooded, Gu Ting highly appreciated his character of clearly distinguishing gratitude from grudges and seeking revenge for a wrong. Not only did she appreciate it, but she also drew inspiration from him. Hadn’t that Lin Yi been haunting her and proactively pestering her repeatedly? It was time for her to make a move.
On the way back, Gu Ting pulled Lin Yi out of her block list. First, she sent a smiley face over. Lin Yi appeared flattered, but before he could send a voice message back, Gu Ting sent two videos over in succession.
The videos were carefully selected by Gu Ting. The first video recorded a graphic and bloody scene of a litter of piglets being castrated one after another with non-stop squealing. Especially the moment the knife sliced down and a certain object dropped, it straight up caused a man’s body to shudder, his back passage to tighten, and his scalp to go numb.
Gu Ting still felt physiological discomfort after watching it, let alone Lin Yi, who was also a male. Watching it, he only felt a wave of phantom pain.
The second video wasn’t bloody; it was just a factory processing sheep kidneys. Freshly harvested sheep kidneys were as tender as peeled eggs, and as a row of spiked machinery slowly descended, puncturing, flattening, and slicing… Once the process was finished, it was as if some filthy things had been cleared out perfectly clean.
The voice message sent by Lin Yi was exceptionally strained: “Gu Ting, what. Do. You. Mean?”
Gu Ting smiled wickedly and replied, “Good things must be shared with everyone.”
By the time Lin Yi wanted to speak again, the other party had blocked him once more. He couldn’t even find a place to curse her out, which made him truly furious!
Seeing Lin Yi so miserable made Gu Ting feel even more refreshed. When she got off the car at the entrance of her neighborhood, a message sent by Hidden Master arrived. The base IP of the click farm from last night had been found. Although the other party used VPNs to layer disguises and hung a foreign IP, they were still stripped by Hidden Master until nothing was left.
The company where the click farm was located wasn’t in this city, but in a certain western province—a place Gu Ting had never set foot in.
Gu Ting was a bit surprised by this result. If it were in this city, she could have marched directly to the opponent’s base and personally delivered a lawyer’s letter to them. Just thinking about that image felt highly exciting.
Now, she could only inform Officer Wu of this news and let the police urge the other party to pay compensation.
Yes, Gu Ting decided to make the best use of everything. If I can’t handle the click farm, can’t I handle the click farm’s wallet?
Her livestream room was banned again, so having nothing to do at night, Gu Ting returned to her residence to fulfill her promise, staying up late with Lin Mengmeng to watch variety shows.
The next day, when Pan Ruoling got out of bed and opened her door, she saw Gu Ting sitting on the sofa looking exhausted with heavy bags under her eyes and a broken, bewildered gaze, looking as if she were in a state of excessive sorrow.
“Lingling, hurry up and comfort your Sister Tingting,” Lin Mengmeng, who was glowing with energy from staying up, said from the side.