“Good girl, keep eating.” He Hui patted her head and coaxed her gently, then turned to Gu Wenhe with even greater anger. “Jiujiu is still growing. What’s wrong with her eating a crab?”
Lin Jiujiu nodded twice in agreement. “Exactly, exactly.”
She took a crab from the platter and placed it in He Hui’s bowl, then put another in Chen Ran’s. In the tone of a peacemaker, she said, “Go on, eat. It won’t taste good once it gets cold.”
Chen Ran hurriedly replied, flattered, “Th-thank you, Miss Lin.”
Lin Jiujiu’s “You’re welcome” was still stuck in her throat when Gu Wenhe interrupted her.
She took the crab from Chen Ran’s bowl and quickly tossed it into the trash can, sneering, “Don’t eat it. How could anything she gives you possibly be good? She might have poisoned it.”
Lin Jiujiu: “?”
Chen Ran was startled. She quickly reached out and punched Gu Wenhe lightly, exclaiming, “Wenhe, how can you say that? You’re being awful!”
Gu Wenhe, however, seemed to think there was nothing wrong with what she had said.
She continued to mock Lin Jiujiu with increasingly vicious remarks, apparently convinced that this girl who had followed her around all this time would remain just as she had been before—no matter how much she insulted or bullied her, she would never leave.
She gave a faint smile and said, “Am I wrong? Women like them think they’re so impressive just because they come from wealthy families. There’s nothing they won’t do. They have no shame.”
“Bang!”
A fair, slender arm reached toward her, picked up the white porcelain bowl in front of her, and swiftly smashed it onto the floor.
A crisp shattering sound rang out abruptly through the dining room.
Before Gu Wenhe could react, everything before her eyes went dark. Heat spread across her face, and something sticky quickly slid down onto her clothes.
Gu Wenhe was dumbfounded.
He Hui was dumbfounded.
Chen Ran was dumbfounded too.
The bowl shattered on the floor had been smashed by Lin Jiujiu.
The plate on Gu Wenhe’s face had also been thrown by Lin Jiujiu.
A plate of stir-fried vegetables had landed squarely over Gu Wenhe’s handsome face. The scalding pain was nothing compared to the humiliation.
The servants in the house all lowered their gazes and quietly filed out of the dining room, closing the door behind them.
Lin Jiujiu was genuinely furious.
Gu Wenhe could insult her. After all, the original Lin Jiujiu had indeed done some unpleasant things in the past.
But Gu Wenhe had never had any right to treat women according to stereotypes.
Yet the moment her anger subsided, Lin Jiujiu regretted what she had done.
Sob.
The male lead’s aura was still there. What if she got herself killed right now?
Chen Ran hurriedly began cleaning the food off Gu Wenhe’s face and clothes. He Hui remained silent for a long while, then secretly gave Lin Jiujiu a thumbs-up beneath the table.
She had wanted to do that for a long time too.
What a wretched daughter.
Amid the mess, Gu Wenhe gritted her teeth and shouted, “Lin Jiujiu! Are you asking to die?”
She had mocked Lin Jiujiu like that before, and had even gone further. Lin Jiujiu had never gotten angry. Even when she was upset, she would at most stew over it for two days before shamelessly sticking to Gu Wenhe again.
Everyone in Nanzhou’s upper-class society knew that Lin Jiujiu was Gu Wenhe’s devoted lapdog.
Gradually, Gu Wenhe herself had grown accustomed to the existence of this lapdog who could never be driven away, no matter how often she tried.
This was the first time Lin Jiujiu had treated her with such hostility.
And she had actually dared to cover her with food!
An anger she had never felt before surged through her, leaving her trembling with rage.
Lin Jiujiu shrank her neck, suddenly turning timid. She hid behind He Hui and muttered, “You were the one who insulted me first. You can’t blame me.”
Gu Wenhe clenched her fists, abruptly stood up, and reached for her.
Fortunately, Chen Ran stepped in front of her and wrapped both arms around her waist. “Wenhe, Miss Lin definitely didn’t do it on purpose. Don’t be angry!”
Gu Wenhe’s expression was terrifyingly fierce.
Lin Jiujiu had no doubt that she could skin her alive the very next second.
She, too, sprang to her feet and backed away repeatedly. In the end, He Hui shoved her out of the dining room and earnestly reminded her, “If you don’t have anything to do over the next few days, try not to see Gu Wenhe for now, okay?”
Lin Jiujiu nodded in agreement.
Forget about the next few days—she never wanted to see Gu Wenhe again for the rest of her life.
After leaving the Gu family’s home, she spent a while calming her rapidly pounding heart. Then she shook her head, and a long strip of emerald-green light emerged.
“100.”
As expected, she could recharge simply by getting close to the male and female leads.
She just didn’t know how long a full charge would last.
But given the circumstances, she had no time to conduct more experiments. She hailed a taxi back to the villa registered under the original Lin Jiujiu’s name.
The villa’s location was nothing special, and the grounds were only average in size. Fortunately, it had a small garden, and it was more than spacious enough for Lin Jiujiu to live in alone.
However, the lights in the living room were on.
It seemed that only a dim floor lamp had been left lit, casting a faint, hazy glow.
But both the garden gate and the villa’s front door were securely locked. It didn’t look like a burglar. Perhaps the original owner had gone out and forgotten to turn off the lights.
Lin Jiujiu didn’t think much of it. She pressed her fingerprint against the lock and entered the garden.
It was only when she reached the front door that she heard faint sounds coming from inside.
It sounded like a television was playing.
She froze slightly as countless possibilities flashed through her mind.
A home invasion?
Or someone who had taken over her home?
She cautiously took two steps back and prepared to call the police. Just then, the door opened, and a large hand with distinct knuckles seized her around the waist and hauled her inside without a word.
“Bang.”
The door closed behind her.
Only the television was on inside. She had no idea what was playing, and the dim light made it impossible to see the face of the person pinning her in place.
All she could feel was the hot, suggestive breath against her neck and a faint, woody scent surrounding her.
Her entire body went rigid, and she didn’t dare move. The hand remained resting on her waist. After a while, it gave her a playful pinch. A soft moan escaped before she could suppress it, dissolving into the strange atmosphere.
The person in front of her let out a quiet scoff. His voice was familiar. In a hoarse tone, he laughed beside her ear. “Why don’t you make that sound again for me?”
Lin Jiujiu recognized him instantly.
The great villain who, only moments ago, had ordered someone to press a gun against her forehead—and had just forced her into marriage.
She was even more terrified. Her lower legs trembled inside her trouser legs, and for a moment she didn’t even dare speak. Her black-and-white eyes blinked rapidly in the darkness.
Then—
Another hand closed around her throat.
Shen Huan’s fingers were long and lean. His hard, cold bones rubbed against Lin Jiujiu’s slender neck.
It felt as though the slightest pressure could snap it.
Lin Jiujiu sensed his intent. Her legs began to tremble even more violently, and her eyes instantly reddened. In a hoarse voice, she sobbed, “Don’t kill me.”
Shen Huan was much taller than her, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. He enveloped her as easily as one might cover a tiny chick.
His fingertips were icy as they slid over her neck, sending a shiver through her. The young woman grew even more frightened, yet covered her mouth to keep herself from crying out. With tears welling in her large, watery eyes, she pleaded with him, “I-I don’t want to die yet.”
She had seen Shen Huan’s methods in the novel.
A great villain who killed without batting an eye.
Sob.
“If you don’t want to die, then…” Shen Huan couldn’t help curving his lips. Lin Jiujiu, trembling nonstop in his arms, was unexpectedly entertaining. His features were deep and striking, and in the darkness, they seemed even more dangerous. He lightly bit her earlobe, his voice cold as he said with a faint smile, “Why did you go see Gu Wenhe again tonight?”