Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Jiang Zhizhi learned from her previous mistake of touching Pei Henian's thigh and refrained from glancing downward.
She stared with a complicated expression at her nominal fiancé.
Gu Yuzhi's narrow, long eyes were also fixed on her.
Outside the window, wind and rain whispered, while the indoor light enveloped the two of them.
Amidst the slight commotion, Gu Yuzhi narrowed his eyes slightly and pushed aside the obstructive Qiao Yan standing between them.
He looked meaningfully at the young girl before him—his nominal fiancée—with a faint, ambiguous smile.
"So this is what you look like…"
His deep voice was deliberately lowered.
Hoarse and carrying a certain predatory excitement, he spoke word by word,
"Zhizhi, you're so beautiful."
Jiang Zhizhi also looked at him.
From the system's description of Gu Yuzhi—reckless, insane, adorned with pearls, and manipulative—he seemed every bit a lawless character.
And now he was even praising her beauty in such a sinister tone…
Could he be planning to scar her face?
Jiang Zhizhi's heart trembled.
It seemed that dissolving the engagement needed to be put on the agenda as soon as possible.
Having made up her mind, Jiang Zhizhi leaned her shoulder, draped in a coat, against the doorframe. Strands of hair fell beside her ears, resting on her collarbone, accentuating her fair and delicate face.
She looked at her fiancé with a soft, gentle voice,
"Did Young Master Gu bring such a grand entourage just to greet me?"
Since Gu Yuzhi was the male lead of this world, he was bound to be drawn to Qiao Yan. He probably couldn't wait to distance himself from her.
However, before Gu Yuzhi could speak, Qiao Yan, who had been sobbing beside them, took action first.
She clung to Jiang Zhizhi's arm, crying pitifully,
"Zhizhi, you've misunderstood Young Master Gu…"
"Someone below said you left with a few men. I was worried something might have happened to you and came to check, only to run into Young Master Gu… It's all my fault for believing others so easily. You can hit me, scold me, or even kick me out—I deserve it…"
"But please, don't blame Young Master Gu. You two have just gotten engaged, and this relationship didn't come easily. Don't let a small misunderstanding cause a fight…"
Qiao Yan spoke between sobs, her words seemingly filled with anguish.
As if she had suffered some great injustice, her simple words, heard by those unaware of the truth, might even make her seem like the victim.
His burgeoning interest interrupted, Gu Yuzhi glanced displeasedly at the woman referred to as "Jiang Zhizhi's cousin."
Yet this glance seemed to excite her even more.
"President Gu, I'm sorry…"
"It's all my fault. I shouldn't have let my concern cloud my judgment, nor should I have impulsively misled you before clarifying the truth… causing Zhizhi to lose her temper with you…"
Under everyone's gaze, Qiao Yan, dressed in a white dress like a fairy, cried almost to the point of choking, speaking intermittently,
"I'm sorry, it's all my fault…"
"Please, don't blame Zhizhi. She's still too young…"
Hearing this, Gu Yuzhi narrowed his eyes.
With his deep-set features and heavy brows overshadowing his eyes, he already looked intimidating even when expressionless.
He stared directly at Qiao Yan, as if hearing something quite amusing, and curled his lips slightly.
"Why would I blame Zhizhi?"
Gu Yuzhi's playful smile lingered on the men at the poker table before he tilted his head slightly, sweeping his gaze across the room.
He raised his hand and grasped Jiang Zhizhi's wrist.
Jiang Zhizhi’s eyelids twitched, her eyes widening abruptly.
In her line of sight, the man with fox-like eyes and an unpredictable mind held her fingers.
In full view of everyone, he brought them to his lips and pressed a scorching kiss.
His exhaled breath brushed between her fingers, causing Jiang Zhizhi’s delicate fingertips to curl involuntarily.
In the next moment, the seemingly gentlemanly man tugged her wrist gently, pulling her into his embrace.
His long, sturdy arm rested lightly against the small of the girl’s back, her waist—slimmed by the evening gown—pressed against the inner side of his arm through the thin layer of fabric.
Gu Yuzhi’s voice carried a hint of laughter as he lowered his gaze to look at the little fiancée nestled in his arms.
"Zhizhi is so young—what fault could she possibly have?"
He swept a meaningful glance over the men at the poker table, unsurprised to see Xi Jin’s tense expression.
Gu Yuzhi chuckled softly, then turned to look at Qiao Yan.
"It is indeed your fault."
"You hinted to me that my fiancée had run into trouble, while at the same time being evasive, trying to provoke my anger."
Jiang Zhizhi stared at Gu Yuzhi in shock, wondering if she had misheard.
Qiao Yan’s expression stiffened.
But in the next moment, she quickly regained her pitiful, fragile demeanor, murmuring,
"Although I don’t know why Young Master Gu has misunderstood me, I won’t shirk my responsibility…"
"As long as it helps you and my cousin vent your anger and avoid quarreling, I’m willing to do anything…"
Gu Yuzhi seemed to smile faintly.
"Then why don’t you just die?"
A clap of thunder outside the window illuminated Qiao Yan’s pale face.
The room fell silent, but after a moment, Gu Yuzhi chuckled again.
"Just a joke."
"Since Miss Qiao sincerely admits her fault, it would be best for her to move out of the Jiang residence as soon as possible."
"After all, Zhizhi and I are engaged, and our wedding should be arranged promptly. Having a troublemaking outsider like you staying at the Jiang residence—who knows what trouble you might stir up next?"
A flash of lightning lit up Gu Yuzhi’s features, casting his sharp facial contours into stark relief.
The hushed whispers around her filled Qiao Yan with shame and humiliation, leaving her utterly mortified.
"Isn’t she that cousin from the Jiang family? Stirring up trouble in front of her future brother-in-law—who knows what she’s scheming!"
"I heard she’s been clinging to the Jiang family for years, refusing to leave. Mr. and Mrs. Jiang treat her even better than their own daughter… What an ungrateful wretch!"
"Maybe she’s jealous of Miss Jiang of the Jiang Family and deliberately trying to ruin her marriage…"
"She looks so meek and gentle, but listen to what she says. She’s just a fox playing innocent—does she really think everyone else is a fool?"
Qiao Yan’s face flushed and paled in turns.
Countless eyes were fixed on her, and the atmosphere in the room grew intensely tense.
Tearfully, Qiao Yan looked to the side and called out, "Aunt…"
In the next moment, she clutched her chest as if struggling to breathe and collapsed to her knees on the floor.
"Yanyan! Yanyan! Is it another asthma attack…?"
"Someone, quick! Call a doctor!"
A woman’s trembling voice rang out as Qiao Yan slumped to the floor.
The room descended into chaos. Jiang Zhizhi watched the sudden turn of events, utterly bewildered.
Only the man holding her wore a faint, enigmatic smile, his tone soft and elusive.
"This Miss Qiao certainly knows how to pick the right time to fall ill…"
In the next moment, those deep, fox-like eyes fell upon her face.
Jiang Zhizhi felt a shiver run down her spine under that gaze, instinctively pursing her lips.
A large, well-defined hand settled against the side of her face, lingering from her jaw all the way to her earlobe.
Wherever he touched, a tingling itch followed, until the strands of hair by her ear were brushed aside, revealing the faintly pink earlobe.
The tall, imposing man leaned down, his warm breath brushing against her earlobe, speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear,
"You've lost one of your earrings."
"Darling, tell your husband, what have you been up to in secret?"