—The door is already broken. Why not just move tonight?
—Move into my apartment.
Luo Shu was slightly stunned, his words echoing in her mind once again.
Her heart was slightly touched, but she quickly nipped that feeling in the bud.
"Yu Zhan, just forget it. Hurry up and leave. There are so many daughters of noble families waiting for you. I'm just a lowly employee. Any one of them would be better than me…"
Before she could say more, she was cut off by a single sentence from Yu Zhan.
"But not just any woman gets the chance to sleep with me."
Oh my god!
So this thousand-year-old ice block was a virgin too!
No wonder he had asked her on the very first day if she wanted to try being Mrs. Yu. So, he was that traditional of a man.
Luo Shu's face instantly burned hot, and she quickly opened her water bottle and began to chug it down.
"Be safe tonight. Call me if you need anything."
Yu Zhan stood up and walked out of the cluttered room.
"Yu Zhan."
She called out to the man who was walking past her.
Yu Zhan stopped in his tracks, as if waiting for an answer, but Luo Shu only said:
"Thank you."
He didn't say a word, his expression unchanged as he walked out.
He had lost count of how many times this woman had called him by his full name, so casually, as if they were two friends who had known each other for a long time.
Luo Shu watched Yu Zhan's departing figure, then looked at her door…
Her incomplete family, coupled with her unfortunate choice in men, sparked a wave of anti-marriage sentiment in her mind. If it had been someone else who had slept with him that night, he would have asked them the same question.
So, it wasn't because of her, but because of what had happened.
She booked a hotel room for herself, contacted her landlord, and arranged for someone to come and fix the door.
Then, as night fell, she drove her car to the same auto repair shop Qin Heng had used.
This shop was owned by Liao Xian's uncle. This was the final big gift Luo Shu had for them.
Her intentions were made clear: the dashcam in her car was broken, and she needed it fixed. She made a special point of mentioning that she was a friend of Qin Heng's.
The people at the shop recognized the car; it was the same one he had brought in the other day. So, his uncle personally handled the inspection of the dashcam.
Luo Shu pretended to trust them, left the car with them, and walked away.
Soon enough, on Wednesday, the engagement ceremony was canceled.
Liao Xian's uncle must have heard the conversation recorded by the dashcam and discovered the pinhole camera.
The Liao family felt that Qin Heng's lack of feelings for Liao Xian was already a major obstacle. On top of that, his demand that she get rid of the baby showed a complete disregard for the Liao family, so they called off the engagement.
The Qin family was even more devastated. Their son had a child out of wedlock, and now he couldn't even marry the mother. The bird that was in their hand had flown away!
The feeling of using a borrowed knife to kill was simply too satisfying!
Luo Shu was in a good mood for days, but she still had to hurry and find a new apartment. Otherwise, if things blew up and people found out she had been the one to trip them up, it wouldn't be good.
On this day, she was excitedly preparing to leave work. She stood at the elevator door, waiting patiently.
Ding—
The elevator doors opened. Yu Zhan and Shen Yan were inside.
History has a strange way of repeating itself. She stepped inside, and on the 18th floor, they ran into the boisterous crowd from the publicity department.
Luo Shu tried to squeeze to the side to create some distance between herself and Yu Zhan, but she was still pushed next to him by the crowd.
She took a deep breath, feeling like she was about to suffocate.
"Ms. Luo, could you move over a bit?"
A colleague next to her looked at the space between her and Yu Zhan and gave her a shove.
Luo Shu stumbled and nearly fell. Her small hand instinctively shot out to grab something, and it landed on a large, warm palm.
"Whoa!" Luo Shu gasped, quickly steadying herself. She tried to pull her hand back, but he held it tight.
Oh, hell! If anyone sees this, I'll never be able to clear my name!
Just then, a WeChat message pulled her out of her thoughts.
She took the opportunity to pull her hand away.
It was a message from the elderly tailor.
[The clothes are ready. Would you be able to come and pick them up in person tonight? [Location]]
[Okay.]
[Your boyfriend should really like it.]
Ugh…
She glanced at the message and quickly turned off her screen.
But she didn't realize that Yu Zhan, standing right next to her, had seen everything.
His gaze had lingered on the familiar profile picture and location, and on the word "boyfriend."
The elevator reached the basement level. She hurried out and got into her car.
She put in the location and drove off.
The car stopped in front of a manor. The guards at the gate wouldn't let her in, but the navigation clearly indicated that her destination was inside.
Just as she was about to send a message to ask, she saw that he had already sent one.
[Wait at the gate for two minutes.]
Without thinking much of it, she got out of the car and began to admire the manor before her.
It was a castle in the style of Notre Dame. From the manor gate, one had to cross a vast lawn to reach the castle. Kapok trees were scattered sparsely across the lawn, a breathtakingly beautiful sight.
Just then, a familiar car pulled up beside her. The window rolled down.
It was Yu Zhan!
They stared at each other.
The guards opened the gate for Yu Zhan, but he didn't drive in.
"Ah! Granddaughter-in-law! You've been waiting long!"
Grandpa Yu came running out of the manor, laughing heartily.
"Granddaughter-in-law?"
The two people at the gate were dumbfounded.
"Why did you two come in separate cars?" Grandpa Yu looked at them.
"What's wrong? Did you have a fight?"
Luo Shu shot Yu Zhan a pleading look.
Yu Zhan let out a small laugh and got out of his car.
"Grandpa, you go inside first."
He took Grandpa Yu's arm and ushered him back into the manor.
Grandpa Yu was a bit reluctant, but he didn't want to interfere in their business, so he stood at a distance, waiting and watching secretly.
Yu Zhan walked over to her and asked coldly, "What's going on?"
Luo Shu took two innocent steps back.
"I don't know either. I just came to pick up some clothes."
"Then why did Grandpa call you his granddaughter-in-law?"
His tone was icy, as if he were blaming her, or perhaps angry at being rejected.
"I don't know…" Luo Shu thought for a moment. "I asked him to make a shirt for you, to compensate for the ones I ruined…"
Yu Zhan was stunned. "He knows my size?"
She answered timidly, "I didn't have your size, so I took your jacket to him, and then I told him, I said…"
Oh no. Her face turned red.
"Said what?"
"...I said, it was for my boyfriend, and asked him to match the size of the suit."
Her voice suddenly dropped to a whisper, a stark contrast to her usual quick-witted speech.
How clever!
Yu Zhan snorted. "You are so dead!"
He put his hands on his hips, his brow furrowed, and looked at the expectant expression in Grandpa Yu's eyes not far behind him.
"Did I screw up?!"
Yu Zhan looked at her with his deep, dark eyes.
"All my clothes are made by my grandfather. They have my name on them. You said you were ordering for your boyfriend. What do you think my grandfather would think?"
He sighed.
"No wonder Grandpa asked me the other day if my clothes had been ripped…"
"..."
Only then did Luo Shu realize what a huge mess she had made.
"Do you know what day it is today?" Yu Zhan's bottomless eyes stared at her intently.
"What day?" she asked, clutching her dress.
"It's my grandfather's 80th birthday. All our relatives and friends are here."
Luo Shu's legs felt a bit weak. This kind of large family gathering was like something out of a palace drama. People's intentions were hard to read, and one wrong move could make you the target of public criticism.
Yu Zhan said nothing, waiting for her to speak.
"What should I do?" she asked, her hands clenched into fists. Only now did she understand why she didn't have to pay a deposit or provide any measurements.
"The birthday boy himself came out to greet you. Everyone inside is probably waiting for you to appear."
Luo Shu looked up at him in fright, her eyes seeming to say, Save me, save me…
"Either you come in with me, or you explain it to Grandpa yourself," Yu Zhan said, glancing over at Grandpa Yu.
If she turned and left now, Yu Zhan would probably become the talk of the town tonight. But if she went to explain, how could she possibly explain it?