Chapter 40: Profligate
By the time she was released, Ruan Yi’s head was already dizzy, and she almost forgot how to breathe.
Her tongue didn’t even feel like her own anymore.
She glared at the man in front of her, who looked thoroughly satiated.
“A kidnapper just stuffed a stinky sock in my mouth!”
In order to disgust this Shen Xun, Ruan Yi spoke without filter. She would do anything to gross him out even a little.
The man was stunned for a second, then couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“A unique flavor.”
What kind of sock being stuffed in would be this sweet?
Even her nonsense was so cute. He really wanted to squeeze her into his arms and swallow her whole. Seeing her made him suffer from “Cute Aggression.”
Ruan Yi felt so disgusted her goosebumps fell all over the floor.
As expected of a yandere ‘gong’… maybe he just likes the stinky socks of student athletes or male kidnappers!
The screeching of tires tore through the air, followed by the massive crash of an impact.
The front bumper of a Bugatti Chiron embedded itself into the rear of the Lamborghini.
Ah, the poor car! Where did this profligate man come from?
Ruan Yi looked at the two injured luxury cars, her brows furrowed with heartache.
The car door was flung open. Gu Zhi practically charged out of the car.
Haha, so it was the profligate man from her own family.
Before Ruan Yi could speak, Gu Zhi’s gaze swept over her entire body like a scanner.
His finger pad slid down her shoulder line, suddenly stopping on the scratch on her forearm from the floor.
He checked Ruan Yi over and over. Finally, his knuckles turned white as he gripped her ankle, looking at the large, exaggerated bruise on her calf. He froze.
“Sorry, Sister.” His voice was so low it seemed squeezed from the depths of his chest.
Ruan Yi raised her palm and slapped Gu Zhi’s shoulder.
“Why are you apologizing? You profligate brat! Do you know how expensive that car is!”
The man allowed the girl to hit his shoulder. He stood up and looked at Shen Xun on the side, his brow furrowed slightly.
“Brother Shen Xun, how did you get here so fast?”
He had locked the location the very first second Ruan Ying received the call, yet he was still one step late.
Shen Xun opened his mouth but didn’t make a sound.
Ruan Yi answered for him. “Don’t mind him. This psycho says he has super powers.”
The sound of Gu Zhi’s shoe soles crushing various metal shards was exceptionally clear in the empty factory.
He surveyed the workshop, guessing what had happened from the bloodstains on the floor.
“Super powers? Clairvoyance or super hearing?” Gu Zhi twitched the corner of his mouth and let out a cold laugh.
“I feel like it’s delusional disorder.” The siblings spoke in tandem, like a rehearsed joke.
But Shen Xun could hear it. Gu Zhi… currently seemed to have a very strong hostility toward him.
The ridicule in his tone was laced with thorns. Only Ruan Yi would think Gu Zhi was just playing around.
When did I offend my future brother-in-law?
Another sharp brake sound broke the three people’s fragmented conversation.
A speeding black Maybach came to a steady stop just centimeters behind the two crashed cars.
If the reaction had been slower by even a fraction of a second, it would have crashed. But at this moment, the car body dipped slightly and stopped without moving.
Ruan Yi’s eyes widened a bit.
This driving skill is good; it’s not profligate.
The car door slid open silently. The man extended his superior long legs and stepped down.
“It seems I arrived too late.”
The man’s voice was deep and devoid of emotion. His gaze swept over the scattered injuries on the girl, yet his brow furrowed uncontrollably.
Heh, she must have misjudged him. Another annoying person had arrived. One by one, these “Calabash Brothers” were treating her like their Grandpa.
“What is President Fu doing here?”
Gu Zhi narrowed his eyes, an impatient gloom surfacing in his eyes.
“We don’t need another outsider here.”
When he heard the word “another,” Shen Xun’s brow locked tight.
Besides this guy named Fu, who else was an outsider? Does he count as an outsider in his future brother-in-law’s eyes?
When did Gu Zhi’s attitude toward me change so much? He clearly used to act as a middleman and help me deliver gifts.
Fu Jingchen raised his hand to adjust his suit collar.
“Merely concerned for a subordinate.”
His gaze passed over Ruan Yi’s pale face. After a half-second pause, he added, “Is caring for an employee’s safety not within a superior’s duties?”
“Su-pe-ri-or, Sister?” Gu Zhi turned his head to look at Ruan Yi, appearing like a jilted lover who had been cheated on.
Ruan Yi心虚ly pursed her lips and swallowed hard.
Fu Jingchen, why can’t you keep your mouth shut? I haven’t figured out how to tell Ah Zhi that I’m staying at NovaVoy yet.
“Caring for an employee? Leaving in the middle of work to care for someone thirty kilometers away?” Shen Xun suddenly spoke, his tone laced with cynical questioning.
This abandoned factory was in the middle of nowhere. He had sped all the way here.
He hadn’t even had a chance to get close to Ruan Yi before these two arrived. Gu Zhi was family, fine.
But what the hell is this guy named Fu?
The man’s finger pad slowly rubbed the watch face on his wrist. “Quite a coincidence. I was nearby discussing a cooperation. It was on the way.”
No one responded. All three seemed to be floored by Fu Jingchen’s shamelessness in lying so calmly.
What big boss would discuss cooperation in this deep forest?
Ruan Yi really wanted to run away. Before she could move, a sinister voice rang in her ear.
“Sister, you haven’t answered my question yet.”
The man’s large hand gripped her wrist, squeezing her palm gently. The tender movement held an unquestionable desire for control.
“Or rather, should I speak clearly with him on Sister’s behalf?”
Gu Zhi seemed to be asking for her opinion, but this sentence didn’t carry a shred of negotiation.
Fu Jingchen saw the sight of Ruan Yi’s hand being held tightly in Gu Zhi’s palm. The veins at his temples throbbed madly. He stepped forward and grabbed the girl’s soft wrist.
“Loosen up. What do you need to be so close for?” Shen Xun pulled the girl toward himself.
Gu Zhi didn’t want to play tug-of-war with the idiot opposite him. What if he hurt Sister? Thus, he stepped closer to Ruan Yi.
Fu Jingchen watched this scene, raised an eyebrow, and slowly approached. The shadow completely enveloped the girl.
He looked down at Ruan Yi’s pale face from the injury. His gaze moved to her reddened ear tips, his tone frighteningly gentle.
“Speak clearly? Who does he want to speak clearly with on your behalf?”
The man cut off the last sliver of light Ruan Yi could see.
The overlapping high shadows created by the three men completely surrounded her. The three distinct auras made it hard for her to breathe.
What is going on? Why has the scene become so bizarre?
It’s here… a scene even more terrifying than being kidnapped.
Within the circle formed by the three, the air seemed to become thin, making it nearly impossible for her to breathe. Cold sweat poured down her back.
Ruan Yi was completely in a mess.
Nothing for it! I have to use that move!
Three, two, one!
Ruan Yi “gracefully” fainted in slow motion.
Translator’s Note: “Calabash Brothers” (Hulu Wa) is a famous Chinese cartoon about seven brothers with different powers who rescue their Grandpa. Ruan Yi is calling the men annoying and clingy. Also, “Fainting” (zhuang yun) is a classic comedy trope in C-novels to avoid social confrontation.
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