The gold-embossed business card was designed with understated luxury. Shang Wan stared at the card being offered to her, and at the jade-like hand holding it, feeling her scalp prickle.
Damn this author—why did she have to give the early-deceased white moonlight of the major antagonist such common-looking eyes!
At the same time, footsteps suddenly echoed from around the corner of the corridor.
Shang Wan turned her head to look.
Zhou Wei, who had left and returned, had brought a doctor at Gu Xun’s request.
To Shang Wan’s surprise, aside from the doctor, Fu Chen—who had been absent all day and only seemed to be observing her through surveillance—had also appeared.
Fu Chen’s gaze lingered on the hand Gu Xun was using to offer the business card to Shang Wan, and he asked coldly, “What are you doing?”
The atmosphere instantly turned awkward.
Shang Wan’s toes instinctively curled in embarrassment.
To break the stalemate, she had no choice but to rely on her acting skills and play the victim at lightning speed.
She swiftly tucked Gu Xun’s business card into her pocket, pretending not to have heard Fu Chen’s question, and instead looked pitifully at the most normal person in the group—the doctor. Trembling, she raised her hand and said:
“The injury is on this arm. Could you please examine it first?”
The doctor Fu Chen had called was highly professional. Seeing Shang Wan sitting pale-faced in the chair, he immediately crouched down without a word and carefully rolled up her sleeve.
The moment the wound was exposed, the air noticeably froze.
The broken glass wasn’t as sharp as she had imagined, so the wound Shang Wan had forcefully carved into her own arm was far from as neat as one made by a blade.
The gash was jagged and winding.
As her sleeve was rolled up, the half-congealed blood was exposed to the air. Paired with the gruesome wound, it looked like a snake that had been gutted, sprawled across her arm.
It was enough to make anyone’s scalp prickle.
Fu Duo, who had been dutifully playing the role of the brother-obsessed younger sibling, was the first to speak.
After letting out an exaggerated gasp, he stared wide-eyed at Shang Wan’s arm and exclaimed, “My goodness, Miss Shang, how did this happen? How did you get hurt so badly?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Fu Chen shot him a subtle glance.
Fu Duo immediately shut his mouth.
Shang Wan: …
Fu Chen’s gaze lingered on Shang Wan’s wound for a moment before he calmly instructed the doctor, “Bandage it.”
The doctor explained, “Mr. Fu, Miss Shang’s wound is too long and shows signs of inflammation. It needs to be cleaned and sutured—I’ll have to take her to the operating room and treat it in a sterile environment.”
Shang Wan fell silent.
This damn description sounded painful.
Since she needed to go to the operating room, there was no need for the others to keep staring at her.
Fu Chen waved his hand, signaling Fu Duo to go somewhere else, then looked up at Gu Xun and apologized, “Old Gu, what unfortunate timing. As you can see, I still have some matters to attend to here. How about this—I’ll come to the Gu residence later to discuss the collaboration in person. For now, let the butler escort you out.”
Gu Xun nodded, expressing his understanding with gentlemanly grace.
Sitting in the work chair, Shang Wan watched Fu Duo and Gu Xun leave. Suddenly, Fu Chen’s voice reached her ears.
He instructed a servant, “Go fetch a wheelchair.”
Shang Wan: As expected of a domineering CEO—he has everything at home.
A little over ten minutes later, Shang Wan sat in a wheelchair and was steadily pushed into the operating room by a member of the Fu residence staff.
Though small, the Fu residence’s operating room, maintained at a constant 22°C, was fully equipped.
Shang Wan slightly widened her eyes, scanning her surroundings, and sincerely sighed:
It’s really great to be rich!
Unfortunately, although she was in the entertainment industry where money and fame flowed most freely, Shang Wan had never tasted the life of the wealthy.
At eighteen, Shang Wan worked as an extra in Hengdian, playing one cannon fodder role after another. Far from treating money like dirt, she struggled just to make ends meet.
A few years later, she finally became a familiar face in the industry, gradually landing a few supporting roles with one or two lines, and her financial situation finally improved.
Later, she played many supporting roles and gradually gained recognition.
At twenty-seven, Shang Wan hit the jackpot by landing the lead role in a niche art film. That art film happened to tap into the social hot topics of the year, becoming a massive hit and even winning the Golden Rose Award that year. She finally achieved widespread fame.
During her peak years, she took on countless jobs, earning money like crazy. But before she could fully settle her family’s debts and retire to enjoy life, she suddenly died.
In the operating room, the doctor professionally followed the sterilization procedure.
Shang Wan looked at Fu Chen’s indifferent expression and thought, she was not willing to end her life like this.
She was determined to complete the mission and survive!
Sterile gauze gently covered Shang Wan’s wound. The doctor lifted her arm, followed by a stream of saline solution.
Shang Wan closed her eyes briefly, using the needle-like pain to grip the hem of Fu Chen’s clothes and look up at him.
Utter vulnerability was written all over her face, accentuated by her unusually pale complexion due to the injury, making her seem like a fragile piece of porcelain.
Fu Chen lifted his lips expressionlessly and said coldly, “Let go.”
Shang Wan: “…”
What a heartless man.
Fine.
The original host had been pestering Fu Chen for so long, clinging to him like a stubborn piece of adhesive that couldn’t be shaken off. Last night, driven by lust, she even drugged Fu Chen with such a potent dose, tormenting him to the brink of death.
Shang Wan thought that if she were Fu Chen, she wouldn’t even have brought the original host back to treat her wounds. The first thing she would have done after leaving the hotel would have been to drag the person who drugged her to the police station.
Now, just giving her the cold shoulder was already quite restrained.
Since playing the victim didn’t work, Shang Wan had to resort to her real trump card.
Sincerity.
Shang Wan slightly raised her head, still gripping the hem of Fu Chen’s clothes, but with a hint of hesitation on her face. She said, “Mr. Fu…”
Before she could finish her sentence, the doctor disinfecting her wound used tweezers to pick up an iodine-soaked cotton ball and rubbed it heavily over her wound.
Without any need for acting skills, the physiological tears she had held back all afternoon welled up at that moment.
Shang Wan broke out in a cold sweat from the pain, but strangely, she still remembered the lines she had prepared earlier.
She looked at Fu Chen, gasping for breath and with chattering teeth, and said, “Mr. Fu, I’m sorry.”
Fu Chen was taken aback.
Shang Nanzhi’s hand was tightly clutching his sleeve, just like in many moments before.
His cuffs, his collar—they were always entangled in Shang Nanzhi’s grasp like this.
Shang Nanzhi never understood his warnings, never understood the murderous intent he tried to suppress but couldn’t fully hide.
She lived only in her own world, like a beast driven by desire.
And he was the piece of flesh coveted by the beast.
Fu Chen felt disgusted.
However, the person before him was completely different from the Shang Nanzhi of the past.
She was timid, hesitant, and even carried poorly concealed fear in her expression. Yet, when the words “I’m sorry” slipped from her lips, there wasn’t a trace of weakness on her face.
She simply looked at him earnestly and sincerely, stating a fact—that she was wrong.
Her gaze was clear and calm, like a handful of snow.
This was definitely not the original Shang Nanzhi.
Fu Chen stared steadily at Shang Wan as she spoke: “It was wrong of me to disregard your wishes and repeatedly disturb your life before.
“Last night, driven by selfish desires, I even posed a serious threat to your personal safety, which was an even greater mistake.
“If you want me to pay for my actions or make any form of compensation, I am willing to accept it wholeheartedly.
“I promise you that nothing like this will ever happen again.”
Shang Wan had apologized countless times in her life—on-screen, off-screen, coyly, sincerely—all effortlessly and without difficulty.
She delivered this straightforward statement while looking directly into Fu Chen’s eyes.
The gears of the plot had only just begun to turn. Shang Wan remembered that at this point, Fu Chen had not yet repeatedly descended into darkness from the torment of failing to win the female lead’s affection. He remained largely restrained, embodying the demeanor of a refined gentleman.
Although Shang Nanzhi’s methods had been despicable, she had ultimately made amends in time.
Moreover, Shang Wan had just spoken so plainly.
Shang Wan looked at Fu Chen expectantly.
A few seconds later, Fu Chen expressionlessly pulled the hem of his clothes from her grasp.
Shang Wan: “…”
She really shouldn’t have expected any generosity from the male lead!
After the wound cleaning was complete, the doctor began administering local anesthesia to Shang Wan.
The anesthesia took effect quickly, and the doctor worked even faster. With just a few deft movements of his fingers, neat stitches were placed on Shang Wan’s arm.
As Shang Wan watched the doctor cut the thread, she heard Fu Chen say to her, “You may leave.”
His tone was cold, but it no longer carried the barely suppressed murderous intent from before.
Shang Wan: “?”
Judging by his tone, did this mean he wasn’t planning to kill her for now?
The looming threat of death finally seemed to have receded, and Shang Wan felt genuinely grateful to Fu Chen, almost wishing she could kowtow to him on the spot.
Given the impracticality of such an action, Shang Wan stood up instead and bowed deeply to Fu Chen, flattering him: “President Fu truly has a magnanimous heart. Thank you, President Fu!”
Fu Chen: “…”
Something felt off.
The door to the operating room slowly opened, and Shang Wan stood up to leave.
The moment she stepped out, she heard the System’s notification: “The male lead’s Bond Points have increased to 10.2. Please keep up the good work, Host.”
Shang Wan thought to herself: “Huh?”
After apologizing for so long without any visible reaction from Fu Chen, she had assumed his heart was as hard as stone. Who would have thought!
He seemed cold on the outside, but his inner thoughts were quite active.
It was four in the afternoon when she left, and the gloomy sky had begun to drizzle.
An aunt from the Fu residence handed Shang Wan an umbrella and escorted her to the entrance of the estate.
Shang Wan stood at the gate, umbrella in hand, waiting for the driver to bring the car around.
It was winter, and the cold rain mixed with the chilly wind seeped into her bones, chilling her from head to toe.
Shang Wan tightened the bloodstained, now-dry coat around her and was about to send a message to the original body’s manager when the effects of the anesthesia began to wear off.
A sharp, stinging pain spread from the stitches on her arm, and Shang Wan grimaced in agony. Her hand trembled, and the umbrella was promptly swept away by the wind.
Shang Wan resigned herself to her miserable fate and went to retrieve the umbrella. Before she could take two steps, someone gently grasped her wrist.
Gu Xun, who should have left long ago, held a plain black umbrella and pulled her under its shelter. “Since your wound hasn’t healed yet, you shouldn’t get caught in the rain,” he said.
Then, he glanced at the butler who had escorted him out of the Fu residence. “Go fetch Miss Shang’s umbrella.”
The butler complied, picking up the umbrella, closing it, shaking off the raindrops, and holding it in his hand—but he made no move to hand it to Shang Wan.
He maintained a silent posture, as if not wanting to disturb the two of them.
Shang Wan swallowed nervously.
Perhaps because Gu Xun was the most unhinged character in Star Path, or perhaps because of his blatant covetousness toward her eyes, Shang Wan couldn’t help but feel her scalp tingle at the sight of him.
She took two steps back, trying to retrieve the umbrella from the butler’s hand so she could put some distance between herself and Gu Xun.
But Gu Xun saw right through her intention.
He chuckled softly. “Miss Shang seems quite afraid of me.”
Shang Wan forced a dry laugh. “Not at all.”
Gu Xun’s gaze drifted across Shang Wan’s face, lingering inch by inch before finally settling on her eyes.
He stared for an unbearably long time—so long that Shang Wan was convinced he was about to have one of his episodes and gouge out her eyes on the spot to preserve them as specimens. But then, he suddenly looked away, turning his attention to the pouring rain.
“The rain is heavy,” he said. “Shall I take you back?”
Shang Wan firmly declined. “President Fu has arranged for a driver. There’s no need to trouble you.”
Although her mission was important, something like having her eyes gouged out could wait another day.
Gu Xun didn’t seem bothered by the rejection and simply said, “Alright.”
With that, he stood beside Shang Wan under his umbrella, waiting with her for the driver to arrive.
A quarter of an hour later, the entrance to the Fu residence remained empty, with not a single person in sight.
Gu Xun looked at Shang Wan calmly. “It seems the driver had something come up. Miss Shang probably won’t be able to wait for anyone.”
Shang Wan: “…”
He’s not even bothering to pretend anymore, is he?!
And if she remembered correctly, wasn’t this the Fu residence?
Did Fu Chen even have the basic decency of a male lead? How could he let a villain like Gu Xun run amok in his own home?!
Shang Wan gritted her teeth inwardly but could only put on a troubled expression outwardly.
She looked up at Gu Xun and said, “Then I suppose I’ll have to trouble President Gu to give me a ride.”
Gu Xun smiled. “No trouble at all.”
Shang Wan cursed inwardly: No trouble, my foot!