Ceng Hanyu felt sorry for her. Though Leng Xiyao had grown up in the Leng family, she did not have any adoptive parents, and there were some things which she did not share with Leng Haoyun either.
He alighted and rushed to Leng Xiyao.
âWhat are you doing here so early in the morning?â
Hearing his voice, Leng Xiyao looked up. She was met with a face full of concern.
Thereâs someone who actually cares about me.
Leng Xiyao looked extremely pale, and Ceng Hanyu frowned as he wondered what was wrong.
âI donât want to go home. Could you take me to Grandpa? Iâd like to stay with him for a few days.â Leng Xiyao spoke slowly.
Ceng Hanyu nodded in agreement. His eyes flashed with a murderous glint when he spotted the red marks on her neck as he bent down to take her hand.
He said sternly, âWho was it! Tell me who bullied you? Iâll kill him now!â
It was only then did Leng Xiyao realize that the bruises on her neck were showing.
She pulled on Ceng Hanyu, saying, âDonât! Itâs not what you think!â
Ceng Hanyu was infuriated.
âNot what I think? Then what exactly is it? Canât you just tell me?â
Leng Xiyao looked down and remained silent.
In a split second, something clicked in Ceng Hanyuâs mind. His eyes widened in incandescent disbelief.
âIs it Leng Haoyun? It must be him, right? You wouldnât be like this otherwise. Iâll go kill him right now!â
Ceng Hanyu let go of Leng Xiyaoâs hand and turned to leave immediately.
Leng Xiyao grabbed him and hastily said, âItâs not that!â
However, her words fell on deaf ears as Ceng Hanyu continued walking.
In her desperation, Leng Xiyao yelled, âI was willing! Happy now?â
Ceng Hanyu froze. He turned to look at Leng Xiyao in bewilderment. He was rendered speechless.
After some silence, Leng Xiyao pulled on him. âLetâs go, take me to Grandpaâs place!â
Ceng Hanyu did not speak after this, he simply walked towards the car.
When they arrived at the An family home, Leng Xiyao stopped him when Ceng Hanyu was about to alight. She took out a bottle and passed it to him.
âCan you find out more about this drug, and if it causes any side effects? Itâd be great if we can get the results as soon as possible!â
Ceng Hanyu looked at her blankly before taking the bottle and alighting from the vehicle.
Leng Xiyao contemplated silently before following him.
â¦â¦
No one else was in the room when Leng Haoyun woke up, sticky with sweat.
He had a hazy impression of the wet dream last night, and the person in the dream was none other than that adorable girl. It felt way too realistic, and every second of it seemed to be lodged in his memory. He felt rather unsettled even though he knew that it was nothing but a dream.
Leng Haoyun rubbed his forehead. He felt a lot better after perspiring so much last night, and he seemed to have recovered all his strength overnight.
He was about to go freshen up when he saw An Huilin at the door. She was dressed in a bathrobe that belonged to him, and her hair was in a mess.
An Huilin regarded him with a profound gaze.
Realization hit him when he looked back at the messy sheets. What happened last night was no dream.
His voice was unsteady as he spoke.
âLast night, were you...â
âWhat do you think!â An Huilin raised her eyebrows as she made her way in.
The door remained closed throughout the night, but it was already open in the morning.
Seeing Leng Haoyunâs reaction, she knew that he had a fuzzy impression of what exactly happened at best.
An Huilin walked to Leng Haoyunâs bedside and kept her eyes on him, wondering what his next course of action would be.
Leng Haoyun suddenly spoke.
âEven so, I wouldnât marry you. Huilin, after so many years, Iâm sure you know me well enough.â
An Huilin smirked. What about this?
She played a recording where Leng Haoyun was calling out to Leng Xiyao, and An Huilin was imitating Leng Xiyaoâs voice as she answered with âuncleâ. She decided to record this at the last minute, never expecting that it could be of use so quickly the next day.
Leng Haoyun shivered. He recognized his own voice and he could tell from the recording that An Huilin did an extremely poor imitation of Leng Xiyaoâs voice, but he never realized this yesterday.
An Huilin started to get complacent. âWhat would she think if I shared this recording with her?â
âDonât!â Leng Haoyun reacted instantly, his voice steely.
âSo youâre agreeing to marry me then!â An Huilin sounded rather pleased with herself.
Leng Haoyun did not respond.
Resentment and viciousness flashed past An Huilinâs face.
Still not agreeing? Iâll add some fuel to the fire!
âHow about this!â An Huilin threw her mobile phone at him. Leng Haoyun took a closer look and saw pictures of the documents containing information about the inheritance and transfer of shares.
How did she get her hands on these?
His mind was racing through the events of yesterday. He seemed to have forgotten everything after he opened that document and made the decision to transfer the shares to Leng Xiyao. The next thing he knew, it was already the next morning.
Everything was fuzzy in his brain. He could not wrap his head around how exactly An Huilin got access to those documents.
He then threw her mobile phone against the wall, smashing it into smithereens.
An Huilin scoffed at him. âDid you think that was the only copy? Iâve already saved another copy elsewhere. Donât you think Leng Xiyao will be elated if I send these to her!â
âI dare you!â Leng Haoyun stared at her.
An Huilin backed away instinctively from his palpable fury.
âWell, that depends on you. Let me see. If Leng Xiyao sees it, sheâll probably be super upset. The uncle who loves her so much only raised her because of a deal. How heartbroken do you think sheâll be when she finds out?â
Leng Haoyun seethed with anger. It took a while before he answered her. âFine! Iâll agree to marry you. But! Never let Yao find out, or else Iâll kick you out of the Leng family immediately and weâll get a divorce!â
An Huilin shrugged like it was nothing. âI have no issues with that! As long as you donât go back on your word, I wonât do anything that might inadvertently harm myself! I have just one request. I want to move in after we get married. Youâd shudder to imagine what I might do if you donât agree to that!â
Leng Haoyun glared at her for what felt like hours before forcing himself to agree. âFine!â, he eventually said.
He then added, âGet out!â n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
An Huilin turned away like a proud peacock. âLetâs settle the date for it quickly. I hope there wonât be any more issues!â
She then left without another word.
Leng Haoyunâs fists were clenched, his face ghastly.
â¦â¦
Leng Xiyao did not attend any classes that day. Everything in the room Old Man An prepared for her was pink. It was heartbreaking for Leng Xiyao when she saw the room. This was how much her grandpa doted on her!
Leng Xiyao decided to take a nap after Ceng Hanyu left. It was already two in the afternoon when she woke up.
Guan Zixuan was still with Mo Suqing when Leng Xiyao decided to call her.
Maddened, Leng Xiyao wanted to hurl insults over the phone.
âWhy is that Guan Zixuan thing still not leaving!â
Mo Suqing glanced at the âthingâ beside her and said, âYe Zhongjue doesnât allow me to go to work since Iâm pregnant, and Iâm stuck at home. Itâs too boring being alone, so itâs nice that heâs here keeping me company!â
âOh...â Leng Xiyao responded half-heartedly, her temper subsiding.
âSuqing, I have something to tell you!â
âMm, go on!â Mo Suqing was enjoying some grapes as she spoke. Leng Xiyao was someone who shared all secrets with her.
âLast night, I found a document containing information about some inheritance and share ownership, and an agreement to be my guardian. Do you know that my parents transferred ownership of their shares in The Unparalleled to my uncle and asked him to take care of me? I feel so upset and conflicted after finding out. All that love and concern he showed seemed genuine, but on the other hand, I feel mocked after seeing those documents. Did you know that I...â
Mo Suqing stopped eating. She asked calmly, âYao, I need to know something. Compared to all of this, how important is Leng Haoyun to you?â
âOf course heâs the most important!â Leng Xiyao answered without hesitation.
âThen itâs fine!â Mo Suqing continued to help her analyze the situation. âSince he is the one you care about the most, and heâs nice to you, thereâs no need for you to mind that those documents even exist! Even if it was purely transactional in the beginning, Iâm sure there will be genuine love and concern after so many years. And as you said, he seemed genuine.â
Mo Suqing paused before continuing. âLetâs look at it from my perspective as an outsider. Look, he already has Red Kill. The Red Kill Mercenary Group charges exorbitant fees, and itâs not difficult for him to set up another business empire if he had wanted to. The Unparalleled is equivalent to the icing on the cake for him, so donât read too much into this. Spend your time reading some books and work towards becoming a jewelry designer instead!â