"Why are you doing this? Don't you really care about your child at all?"
Suddenly, another man's voice rang out in the living room.
Gu En looked in the direction of the sound and saw a man coming out of the room next door.
He seemed quite disdainful of what the man said.
"That child was never what I wanted. His arrival only brings me shame, makes me unable to forget what happened, fills me with deep hatred, and makes me wish I could throw him away! Or, I would rather he were dead and I never see him again!"
As Gu En spoke, his eyes turned bloodshot, and the hatred in them was terrifying.
The man in front of him frowned when he saw this, but said nothing.
"However, why didn't your incense work on Gu Zheng?" Gu En suddenly remembered something and quickly questioned the man in front of him.
The man remained expressionless and said, "I've already told you, this incense isn't effective for everyone, and you knew that back then."
After hearing this, Gu En was very unwilling, but he didn't question it because he absolutely trusted the man in front of him.
"I'm going to take a nap first," Gu En said before walking into her room, leaving the man alone in the living room.
After he left, the man went to the balcony and started smoking. Actually, he had lied earlier. It wasn't that the incense was ineffective on Gu Zheng, but rather that he had added something to it to make the effect less noticeable. For example, Gu Zheng was initially infatuated, but quickly sobered up.
He wasn't a pushover; he just... didn't want to see Gu En make one mistake after another. He couldn't persuade Gu En, so he could only stay by her side to prevent her from sinking deeper, and also to be able to pull her out of the abyss if she fell into it later.
When Gu Zheng left Gu En's house, he went to a bar and ordered a bunch of drinks to drink by himself.
To be honest, because of what Gu En just said, he really didn't dare to do anything to Gu En for the time being. But if Gu En really wanted to make things public, he would only suffer losses for both of them. By losses, he only meant harm to the child.
After drinking two bottles of wine, Gu Zheng called Qin Hao and asked him to arrange for someone to investigate the people around Gu En.
In any case, he will not give the child to Gu En, nor will he ever marry Gu En.
Chapter 387 A World for Two
Gu Zheng drank some wine and suddenly thought of something else.
Perhaps now is the best time to talk to Xia Ran about Gu Chen, and maybe we can even mend our relationship.
But right now, his most important task is to find Xia Ran.
Gu Zheng took out his phone and found Xia Ran's contact information. He had gotten Xia Ran's phone number from Qin Hao.
However, he hadn't dared to hit her, afraid that Xia Ran would get angry, but now it seemed he could.
He used his newly registered phone number to call Xia Ran, feeling both expectant and nervous, afraid that Xia Ran wouldn't answer the phone.
But he'd already called from a different number, so Xia Ran couldn't possibly not answer, right?
Xia Ran, on the other end of the line, was a little confused when the phone rang, but she answered it anyway.
Hello.
Upon hearing Xia Ran's voice, Gu Zheng immediately sat up straight.
"Ranran, it's me. Don't hang up. I have something to tell you. Please don't hang up, okay?"
Gu Zheng sounded like he was afraid Xia Ran would hang up on him, his tone pleading, and Xia Ran could even hear the hint of Gu Chen being affectionate towards him in his voice.
Xia Ran was stunned for a moment, unable to come to her senses.
"Ranran?" Gu Zheng called out again, sounding aggrieved.
Perhaps it was the alcohol, but Gu Zheng didn't feel that there was anything wrong with him.
Or rather, even if Gu Zheng knew, he wouldn't think it was wrong. As long as the person on the other end was Xia Ran, he didn't care what kind of person he was.
Hearing this, Xia Ran finally came to her senses, paused for a moment, and then said...
"You should know about the child's affairs yourself. I don't think I have the right to interfere, after all, I'm just a stepfather."
Although he had decided not to mind Gu Chen's identity, he still didn't intend to reveal his thoughts in front of Gu Zheng.
"No, you have the right." Gu Zheng's tone was still very aggrieved. "You are the child's second father, the person I love. If you don't have the right to interfere, then who does?"
Xia Ran felt a sudden tremor in her heart upon hearing these words, and her grip on her phone tightened.
“I can’t tell anyone about the child right now, so I can only discuss it with you. Ranran, can you come here for a moment? I just went to see Gu En, and he insisted on telling everyone about the child. You don’t know, the child’s identity… if it’s really exposed, it will hurt the child a lot.”
"When Auntie finds out the child's true identity, I don't know if she'll still accept the child. Ranran, could you come out for a moment...?"
Gu Zheng's tone sounded increasingly aggrieved, with a hint of pleading and coquetry.
Xia Ran didn't know what to say. His lips moved slightly, but the words that came out made him despise himself.
"Send me the address."
After saying that, he immediately hung up the phone. He was afraid that if he didn't hang up, the consequences would be unbearable for him.
After hanging up the phone, he could only keep comforting himself, saying that it was just because of the child.
But even though that's what he thought, Gu Zheng's coquettish and aggrieved tone still gave him a strange feeling.
Gu Zheng was stunned for a moment after hearing Xia Ran's words. Hearing the dial tone on the phone, he was extremely excited.
He thought Xia Ran wouldn't come out.
Overjoyed after his initial excitement, Gu Zheng immediately sent the address over.
Actually, what he said to Xia Ran earlier, that he couldn't resolve the issue of the child, or that he had no one to discuss matters concerning the child with, was deliberately said to Xia Ran.
If we're talking about solutions, he does have some.
After all, if Gu En had released the news on the spot, his people could have immediately suppressed it.
It might have made people in the circle notice something was off, but he understands now.
So what if someone notices something amiss? He doesn't believe anyone would dare say anything bad about Gu Jia. As long as he says the child is his, who would dare deny it?
The only problem is my aunt and her family. If my aunt finds out, some things will be unavoidable.
So, as long as Gu En doesn't go too far, he'll turn a blind eye until he finds the person Gu En passed the message to.
He wasn't cowardly or afraid of trouble; he just wanted to think about his child and family.
If he were alone, none of this would be a problem, but now he is not only the head of the family, but also a father.
People tend to hesitate and become overly cautious once they develop a weakness.
Gu Zheng quickly put the matter out of his mind and turned his attention to his relationship with Xia Ran.
He was determined to take this opportunity to cultivate a good relationship with Xia Ran. Through their conversation, he had come to understand that Xia Ran was soft-hearted and could not resist his coquettishness and submission.
Meanwhile, Xia Ran had changed her clothes and was ready to go out.
He came out of his room and found Grandpa Xia and the others eating in the living room. They probably thought Xia Ran was in a bad mood, so they didn't want to disturb her and didn't call her to eat, but they left some food for her.
When the group saw Xia Ran come out of the room, they were all somewhat surprised.
"Xia Ran, you're awake? Come sit down and eat. I'll get you some bowls and chopsticks." Yu Wu tried to get up, but Lin Ziming pressed his shoulder down beside him.
"You're a guest, how can I let you get the bowls and chopsticks? Please sit down, I'll get them."
Yu Wu could only sit down again, while Xia Ran gave the others an awkward smile and said,
"No need, Brother Ziming. I have to go out because of something, so don't bother getting me any bowls and chopsticks. You guys eat. By the way, could you take the leftovers back for me after you finish eating? Also, the fortune teller said today that the day after tomorrow is a special day. I was thinking we should hold a bar event the day after tomorrow."
Xia Ran said a long string of words, and Lin Ziming, who was about to get bowls and chopsticks, also stopped in his tracks.
"Are you sure you don't want to eat? Where are you rushing off to? Let me take you there."
“Exactly, can’t we eat first before going?” Grandpa Xia finally said.
"No need." Xia Ran quickly shook her head. "I have something urgent to attend to, so I won't have dinner with you. I'll be leaving now. We can talk about it when I get back."
He finished speaking hastily and left, as if afraid that the others would ask him more questions.
If Grandpa and the others knew he went to see Gu Zheng, they would definitely start to overthink things.
After Xia Ran left, the people in the living room exchanged glances, and Lin Ziming sat down again.
"Grandpa, don't worry. Xiao Ran is an adult now. She knows what she's doing. She'll be fine. Maybe she's just going out for a walk or a meal with her friends."
Seeing the worry on Grandpa Xia's face, Lin's father offered a word of comfort.
Grandpa Xia sighed. How could he not be worried? After all, he had just learned that Xia Ran and Gu Zheng had argued. Now that he had suddenly gone out alone, what if something happened to him?
Yu Wu: "Yes, Grandpa, don't worry. Xia Ran was still in the mood to talk so much just now, so he's probably fine. He's probably just out running errands."
"That's right, Grandpa, don't worry. I promise you, Xia Ran will be fine," Lin Ziming said confidently. Even if something really happened to Xia Ran, he could make sure she was alright.
The old man's worries dissipated somewhat after being comforted by the group.
"Okay, okay, with you all here, I feel much more at ease."
The old man's words were true. If he were alone like before, he would really be at a loss. But now that he has a few trustworthy people around him, he is not so panicked.
He was just overthinking it. Xia Ran probably just went out for a stroll and nothing bad will happen to her.
Xia Ran took a taxi to the address Gu Zheng had sent her. It was a private bar. Xia Ran hadn't been to these kinds of places much before, and she didn't know what to do as soon as she entered.
Gu Zheng said he would call when he arrived, so Xia Ran made a call, and the call was answered almost instantly.
"Hey, Ranran, have you arrived yet?" Gu Zheng's voice came from the phone, accompanied by what sounded like a foot kicking a chair.
Xia Ran paused for a moment, gave a soft "hmm," and then hung up the phone.
Seeing that Xia Ran was standing still, the waiter came over and asked her a question.
"Sir, is there anything I can do to help you?"
"No need for now, I'm waiting for someone, thank you."
"Okay, sir. Please call me if you need anything," the waiter said before leaving.
A man standing nearby witnessed this scene, and a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes.
Xia Ran's behavior clearly indicates that she doesn't come to bars often, something that seasoned bar regulars like them could tell at a glance.
Plus, Xia Ran is quite good-looking, which is exactly what they like best – clean and easy to fool!
The man, holding a glass of wine, walked over, thinking himself incredibly dashing.
"Sir, is this your first time here?"
Distracted, Xia Ran glanced over subconsciously. Out of politeness, he gave a soft "hmm," but didn't answer whether it was his first time here.