Gu Zhongwei's warm breath, carrying the sweet scent of fruit wine, sprayed on Ling Yan's face, causing her emotions, which she had been forcibly suppressing, to fluctuate involuntarily.
"Miss Ling, how can I thank you?"
After fastening her seatbelt, Lingyan could no longer bear the rising heat and prepared to leave, but Gu Zhong grabbed her collar and pulled her closer.
The whispered words were right next to her ear, making her earlobes itch.
"Ms. Gu, you have already given the best response."
She hurriedly returned to the driver's seat, sat up straight, stared straight ahead, and started the car with trembling hands to hide her panic.
"Actually—Miss Ling, you have a magic that makes people unconsciously like you."
Looking at the fleeting lights and shadows of the tall buildings outside the window, and seeing the vague outline of the person next to him through the reflective mirror, Gu Zhong said something ambiguous again.
"Yeah?"
Sensing the hidden meaning in her words, Lingyan's gradually calming emotions stirred again, only to freeze into an ice lake due to her decision.
—Because of what happened in the previous world, Lingyan had already made up her mind not to provoke Gu Zhong in this world anymore, but she still inexplicably fell into this strange love trap.
“Yes—that’s why I think that agreement was unfair to you. Because I think I’ll become more and more willing to fulfill my obligations, and in comparison, I’ll get more in return.”
Gu Zhong brought up the inexplicably signed agreement again.
Ling Yan felt utterly ashamed. Despite being the creditor, she had no control whatsoever, allowing Gu Zhong to draft a completely unnecessary agreement.
Although it was meant to take care of Gu Zhong and prevent her from feeling anxious about owing a huge favor, carrying such an emotional burden doesn't seem like the right thing to do.
When this burden turns into a desire, the only one who feels uncomfortable is Lingyan, who thinks she's just putting on an act.
"Actually—Miss Gu—"
In an instant, Lingyan wanted to overturn all her statements.
Chapter 100 The Newly Rich CEO and the Fallen Heiress (Part Six)
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With just a slight tilt of his head, he saw that the girl beside him had already closed her eyes, her breathing long and even.
The dappled sunlight streaming through the window cast shadows on the young, innocent face, outlining its deep, three-dimensional contours and highlighting the dark circles under its eyes.
Since the Gu family went bankrupt, Gu Zhong had been unable to sleep at night and had been holding on for a long time. Only today did he suddenly relax, and after having a few drinks, he fell asleep soundly during the conversation.
Lingyan couldn't help but chuckle, slowing down the car slightly to drive more smoothly, afraid of waking the sleeping beauty.
When she arrived at Gu Zhong's residence, the bright lights of the luxurious high-rise building pierced through the darkness, abruptly waking her from her sleep.
The luxury apartment in the city center was the last place Gu Zhong could stay.
Because the house was directly registered under Gu Zhong's name, it was spared the fate of being seized and auctioned by the court.
Even in dire straits, one must have a safe place to stay, which is why Gu Zhong never sold it.
"arrive?"
With his sleepy eyes still half-closed, Gu Zhong looked at Ling Yan in a daze.
"arrive."
Lingyan turned off the car and parked it in front of the building's revolving door. A security guard on night duty approached.
"Thank you for seeing me off, Miss Ling."
He pinched the bridge of his nose, barely managing to shake off the lingering sleepiness, and opened the car door, preparing to say goodbye.
"Miss Gu?"
The security guard, who knew the building's residents very well, exclaimed in surprise upon seeing Gu Zhong, his voice tinged with relief.
Hearing the strange tone in the familiar security guard's voice, Gu Zhong felt a sense of foreboding rise in his heart once again.
"Uncle Long, what's wrong?"
"Miss Gu, it's a good thing you weren't here today. A lot of troublemakers came during the day, all demanding money from you."
Uncle Long looked shaken, as if he had been quite frightened.
Upon further reflection, Gu Zhong understood what was going on.
Even though the Gu family's assets were auctioned off by the court, they were ultimately insolvent, and the major creditors would have priority in repayment, so they would not have done such a vicious thing.
Presumably, those gathered here today are unemployed workers seeking back pay due to the collapse of Gu's Enterprises, as well as some small creditors worried about not being able to recover their debts.
It's unclear who brought them together to cause trouble here.
Even though this building, located in the heart of the city where land is incredibly valuable, boasts excellent security, it couldn't stop so many people.
"Many of our brothers were injured. They only calmed down when the police arrived. But they didn't leave. They just sat across the street holding up signs, looking like they wouldn't give up until they saw you."
Uncle Long shook his head as he spoke, pointing to the sidewalk across the street with only a dim streetlight.
Lingyan approached as soon as Uncle Long began his story. She followed the old security guard's gaze and saw that the area was now empty.
Since it was already late at night, the troublemakers probably realized they couldn't hold out for Gu Zhong today, so they left for the time being.
“Miss Gu, your place of residence doesn’t seem very safe.”
After a moment's thought, Lingyan frowned and stated a fact.
He sighed heavily, utterly baffled by the fact that his last refuge had been leaked.
She had done her calculations and anticipated all possible scenarios, so she was extremely careful when traveling.
However, despite such caution, he still couldn't escape being found; indeed, there are no secrets that stay hidden forever.
Gu Zhong could already imagine how her life would be turned upside down in the future.
"Miss Gu, why don't you find somewhere else to stay temporarily?"
Lingyan suggested, genuinely concerned about the future situation.
"Um?"
Gu Zhong looked at her in confusion, realizing that he had nowhere else to stay.
“I currently live in Linjiang Bay. If you don’t mind, you can move there with me.”
Seeing Ling Yan make the suggestion with such an upright expression, Gu Zhong's brain short-circuited for a moment, then he suddenly burst out laughing.
"Miss Ling, are you inviting me to live with you?"
Hearing Gu Zhong's teasing, Ling Yan belatedly realized how ambiguous the meaning was when the two of them said such things.
Uncle Long glanced at Gu Zhong on the left and Ling Yan on the right, feeling that the atmosphere between these two close male friends was slightly strange.
That's not what I meant—
Ling Yan hurriedly tried to explain, but Gu Zhong's casual agreement silenced her.
"Sure. Anyway, we're in a romantic relationship now, aren't we, Miss Ling?"
With his last words, Gu Zhong suddenly closed the distance between them, whispering in Ling Yan's ear with an undisguised smile.
Her actions and words froze Lingyan in place as if she had been frozen in place, unable to move an inch.
Her soul seemed to float out of her body, looking at herself stiff as a puppet.
Even when Gu Zhong greeted her and went upstairs to pack her luggage, Ling Yan only responded blankly.
"The two ladies seem to have a very good relationship."
Unfortunately, Uncle Long added a comment from the side, which only made Lingyan's already conflicted state of mind even more tangled.
"Miss Gu is a pitiful person too—"
The old security guard sighed and walked back to his post, sitting down at his desk and flipping through the still-smelling, freshly printed newspaper, leaving Lingyan alone in the same spot.
The summer night breeze did not alleviate the heat in her heart, but instead made her even more frustrated.
Back in the car, leaning against the soft seat back, Lingyan lightly tapped the steering wheel with her fingertips, closed her eyes, and began to clear her mind of the jumbled thoughts.
She didn't know why things had turned out this way; she had only wanted to use the name of affection to make Gu Zhong accept her kindness in a legitimate way.
Unexpectedly, Gu Zhong's little brain had a convoluted thought process, and somehow he started talking about the principle of equivalent exchange.
As a suitor, one is ultimately inferior and is very likely to end up losing both money and love.
Gu Zhong then proposed a contractual relationship, claiming that he also wanted to further leverage Ling Yan's power.
In the end, Lingyan was completely fooled and felt that what she said made perfect sense, so she signed the agreement without hesitation.
By using such a monetary relationship to forcibly keep someone by her side, anyone who didn't know better would think she was a tyrant who abducted women. Who knew that the abducted woman herself had offered herself up and had her completely bewitched?
Ultimately, Gu Zhong simply didn't want to feel too guilty, but he also felt that he had nothing to give her, and all she wanted was to be alone. He wasn't that averse to it, so he simply offered it up.
Unexpectedly, she began to enjoy this relationship even more, leaving Lingyan at a loss, because this was not her original intention.
Indeed, as Gu Zhong said, no matter how you look at it, Ling Yan suffered more losses—not only did she lose money, but she was also very likely to lose people.
They are clearly the creditor, but they seem to be the debtor, unable to take any initiative at all.
Patting her face, Lingyan banished the jumbled thoughts from her mind and returned to her original goal.
In this life, everything she did was solely to ensure Gu Zhong's safety and prevent the elusive Xuanhu from setting up another scheme.
"Miss Ling seems quite troubled?"
Gu Zhong's voice suddenly rang in her ear.
Ling Yan turned her head and saw the person leaning against the car window, smiling and looking at her.
"Miss Gu's actions were very swift."
Unable to answer Gu Zhong's question, Ling Yan directly changed the subject.
"There's nothing much I need to bring, just some clothes."
Gu Zhong shrugged and replied.
Getting out of the car and walking around to the back, Lingyan opened the trunk with her key. Just as she was about to lift Gu Zhong's bulky suitcase, she happened to bump into a soft hand that reached out at the same time.
As if electrocuted, Ling Yan instantly withdrew her hand.