“Huh?!”
Shen Yu felt like he had just heard the most ridiculous joke in the world.
“Who the hell do you think you—”
His retort was cut off by the sudden ringing of his phone.
He froze, his expression turning grim.
He had come to pick up Qiu Nannan today and had deliberately set his phone to vibrate to avoid interruptions. Only specially designated contacts would still ring.
Like the one currently flashing on the screen:
[Grandfather]
Seeing those words, Shen Yu’s handsome face twisted slightly as he forced himself to rein in his emotions.
He took a deep breath.
“…Grandpa.”
“You ungrateful brat!”
The furious roar came crashing through the phone. Even without speaker mode, the old man’s anger was loud enough for Gu Nianqing—standing nearby—to hear clearly.
Shen Yu’s face darkened as he shot a glare at the faint smile curling on Gu Nianqing’s lips.
“Grandpa, please calm down—”
“How can I calm down after the mess you’ve made?!”
The old man’s cane struck the floor repeatedly, each thud echoing through the phone like it was pounding directly on Shen Yu’s head.
Unable to bear it, Shen Yu held the phone farther away.
He turned and walked off, his voice fading as he moved away.
“Grandpa, it’ll be fine. Aside from the Shen family, they won’t find a better buyer for that project…”
Gu Nianqing simply smiled.
The fewer capable opponents she had to deal with, the better.
Handling that person had already drained her mentally and physically. If Shen Yu wanted to stay stuck in his current state of dull overconfidence, she was more than happy to let him.
A good start was half the battle won. With Shen Yu busy dealing with his grandfather, there was no need to corner him just yet.
“Miss Xu,” Gu Nianqing said, turning to Xu Yingjia, “he told you to kneel, and you’ve already thrown it back at him. How about we leave for now?”
“Huh?” Xu Yingjia was still basking in her moment of bravery and hesitated. “B-but… he didn’t kneel…”
Gu Nianqing pinched her cheek lightly.
“It’s not that easy.”
Patiently, she explained:
“We’ve already gotten all the footage we need from today. Your comeback was perfect—this will blow up soon. The Shen family will make him apologize in person.”
Seeing Xu Yingjia still a bit unwilling, Gu Nianqing narrowed her eyes slightly.
“Do you trust me?”
Xu Yingjia frowned, thinking for a moment.
“…Okay. Qingqing, you always help me.”
“That’s right.”
Hand in hand, the two “sisters” walked off, with Xu Xiaxia hurrying after them, laptop in tow. The three quickly disappeared into the crowd.
Qiu Nannan stood there, at a loss. The hope in her eyes slowly crumbled with each passing second.
Shen Yu never came back.
Of course—he had only used that phone call as an excuse to avoid facing Gu Nianqing.
Under the teasing gazes of onlookers, Qiu Nannan gritted her teeth and got to her feet.
…Damn it. These rich people really know how to play. She was nothing more than a pawn in their game.
Xu Family Residence
A Hongqi sedan slowly drove into the estate, stopping in front of a luxurious mansion.
Faded memories began to resurface vividly in Gu Nianqing’s mind.
She remembered the first time she came here.
Five-year-old Gu Nianqing, wearing the first brand-new princess dress of her life, held the hand of a little boy with slightly unusual features. The woman they both called “Mom” hid them in a storage room off the back kitchen.
The woman looked at the boy’s immature yet abnormal face, her eyes filled with unwillingness and heartache. But when her gaze fell on Gu Nianqing’s delicate face—already showing hints of budding charm—her expression quickly turned to hatred.
She viciously pinched Gu Nianqing’s soft arm, leaving bruises where her nails dug in.
“When the alarm rings, you take Kang Kang and run upstairs—straight to your father. Call out to him loudly! Do you hear me?!”
When Gu Nianqing didn’t respond, the woman gritted her teeth and raised her hand, about to slap her.
“Mom.”
Gu Nianqing’s eyes were wide open, her slightly upturned gaze carrying a hint of early sharpness.
She pointed toward the door.
“You told me to watch the kitchen. Everyone’s already gone.”
The woman froze mid-motion.
She rushed to the door and quickly peeked outside.
Sure enough, the kitchen was empty.
This was her chance. If she missed it, there might never be another moment like this.
She shot Gu Nianqing a glare, slipped out, and quietly closed the door behind her.
What she didn’t realize was that the corner of a plastic bag sticking out of her pocket had already been noticed by her daughter.
Gu Nianqing quietly watched the woman leave. Still holding the boy’s hand, she stayed obediently in the small storage room.
Both of them were dressed in neat, beautiful formal outfits today. At a glance, they looked similar—but with a touch, it was easy to tell that the boy’s clothes were made of far finer material than her princess dress.
Gu Nianqing reached out and straightened the dark green bow tie at his collar. A strange, unreadable glint flickered in her bright eyes.
Kang Kang grew annoyed, shaking off her hand and snatching the bow tie away.
“This is mine! Don’t touch it!”
The boy shouted unhappily, pushing her to the ground. His already unusual features twisted into something even more unpleasant.
Gu Nianqing was long used to his temper. She didn’t cry or make a fuss—just sat on the floor and sniffed lightly.
“Kang Kang, do you smell that?”
“Smell what?”
“Something really delicious.”
Her face took on a dreamy expression, like a little glutton entranced by food.
“It smells so good… like the meat soup Mom makes for you.”
Kang Kang scoffed.
“What’s so special about that? It’s just soup—I’ve had it before.”
But influenced by her, he sniffed the air anyway.
Sure enough, a rich, irresistible aroma drifted in from outside the door.
This wasn’t like anything he’d had before.
His interest was piqued.
“I want some!”
Gu Nianqing hesitated.
“But this is someone else’s house. Mom is just here to help—we can’t just take their food.”
That kind of reasoning clearly meant nothing to Kang Kang. Out of everything she said, he only understood one thing: she wasn’t going to get him the soup.
He plopped down on the floor and began wailing.
“I want it! I want it! I want it!! This is my house anyway—Mom said the Xu family will all belong to me in the future!”
Gu Nianqing stared at him blankly, as if frightened.
“Who’s making all that noise in here?!”
The storage room door was suddenly pushed open. A tall man in an apron and a white chef’s hat frowned as he looked inside.
“How are there kids in here?!”
The head chef’s imposing presence immediately silenced them. Kang Kang’s crying stopped abruptly.
Gu Nianqing quickly reacted and ran over to apologize.
“Uncle, our mom is Gu Sheng. She told us to stay here.”
“Gu Sheng?”
The chef thought for a moment and recalled the name—Mr. Xu had mentioned it. She was hired to help with preparations for his birthday banquet.
The young lady of the house had been running a fever that afternoon, and Gu Sheng had even volunteered to prepare a medicinal stew. Watching her skillful handling earlier, the chef had been quietly impressed.
“So she brought her kids along…” he muttered, then waved it off. “Fine. Stay here and behave. Don’t touch anything in the sealed containers.”
With dishes about to be served, he didn’t want to waste time on two children. After giving his warning, he turned to leave.
But Gu Nianqing timidly tugged at his sleeve.
“Uncle… we’ve been here all afternoon…” Her eyes blinked, already turning red. “Could we have something to eat?”
Her soft, pleading voice softened him.
“All the food in the kitchen is meant for serving right now. There’s nothing for you—” he began to refuse, but his gaze landed on a pot still simmering over low heat.
“Why hasn’t the young lady’s medicinal stew been taken off the stove yet?”
He hurried over to check. The clay pot was bubbling thickly, the broth overcooked, with a layer of foam forming on top.
“Oh no… it’s ruined.”
He sighed, turned off the heat, and picked up the pot, about to pour it out.
Then he felt two pairs of eyes staring intensely at him.
At the doorway, the two children were fixated on the fragrant pot in his hands.
Gu Nianqing swallowed and asked hesitantly,
“Uncle… such a good-smelling soup… you’re going to throw it away?”
The chef was already irritated, thinking the hired help wasn’t reliable—but remembering these were Gu Sheng’s children, he held back his complaints.
“This is medicinal food for the young lady. It has to be done properly!”
He suppressed his irritation and explained.
“But… it smells so good…”
Gu Nianqing looked at him longingly. Beside her, Kang Kang was already drooling uncontrollably.
The chef had children of his own. In the end, his heart softened.
He served each of them a bowl.
“The young lady is recovering, so she can’t have something like this. But for filling your stomachs, it’s fine.”
Gu Nianqing carefully scooped up a piece of meat with a beautifully patterned porcelain spoon, her face full of disbelief.
“I—I can’t believe I get to eat such a big piece of meat…”
The chef fell silent.
…What kind of life was this child living?
Meanwhile, her brother had already finished his bowl without hesitation.
As the chef was still thinking, he suddenly saw the boy grab the girl’s bowl and pull it toward himself, even snatching the piece of meat from her spoon.
“Hey, you—”
The chef was about to scold him when his eyes widened in shock.
The boy’s body suddenly began convulsing violently. Foam spilled from his mouth as he toppled off the chair.
“Kang Kang!!”