Chapter 204

Chapter 204: Do Not Covet What Is Not Yours The next morning, Lu Shuci drove Gu Tian to the Ruan residence. At the entrance to the villa district, Lu Shuci and Jiang Shixu's cars happened to meet, one in front of the other. Jiang Shixu had been to Huayue Law Firm several times, and on two occasions he had happened to see Lu Shuci driving out of the underground parking garage—a black Maybach, whose license plate he also remembered. Once inside the villa district, Jiang Shixu accelerated and pulled his car ahead of Lu Shuci's, then slowed down again. In the Maybach, the man watched in the rearview mirror as that Cullinan moved in front of him, and a smile tugged at the corner of his lips. Early in the morning—what a small world, and an ill-fated encounter at that. Lu Shuci was not annoyed by Jiang Shixu's aggressive overtaking. He too slowed down, following behind with effortless ease. A few minutes later, they arrived in front of the Ruan family villa. Jiang Shixu stopped his car. Lu Shuci stopped his as well. The two men got out of their cars at the same time, almost in unison. A gentle morning breeze drifted through the trees, carrying the fresh fragrance of morning dew and flowers, softly swaying the leaves on the roadside branches. The morning light was warm and tender. Yet in this beautiful morning, the atmosphere between the two men was anything but pleasant. The air was thick with an intense smell of gunpowder. Jiang Shixu's dark eyes were as deep as an abyss, a cold, piercing light gleaming within them. His gaze swept toward Lu Shuci like a sharp blade, and a cold smile curled at his lips. "What is Lawyer Lu doing at the Ruan residence so early in the morning?" A smile lingered on Lu Shuci's lips, but his eyes were indeed icy. "That's hardly any of your concern." Jiang Shixu's gaze was frigid. "Do not covet what is not yours." Lu Shuci showed no sign of backing down, meeting Jiang Shixu's eyes directly. "And is the person President Jiang covets yours?" Jiang Shixu sneered coldly. "She can only belong to me." "That remains to be seen." Lu Shuci was still smiling, but his eyes were sharp. "Ha." Jiang Shixu let out a cold snort, his gaze contemptuous. "Anyone would think Lawyer Lu is so devoted, but I've heard that you dated someone else back in university." Lu Shuci's expression showed not the slightest crack, still maintaining that gentle, refined demeanor. "I did date someone—for just three short months. Nothing happened." "Are you trying to say you're still clean?" Jiang Shixu smiled. "You confessed to Tangtang, then got together with someone else, and after breaking up, you came back to pursue Tangtang. What do you take her for?" As he spoke, Jiang Shixu took two steps closer to Lu Shuci. The smell of gunpowder grew even stronger. Jiang Shixu's eyes turned colder still. "She's not a trash recycling bin." The smile in Lu Shuci's eyes vanished without a trace. His expression darkened, and he was about to speak when suddenly Chu Tang's voice sounded from behind him: "Lawyer Lu, you're here—why don't you come in?" Chu Tang had just seen Lu Shuci from upstairs, standing outside the gate without coming in, so she came out to check. Lu Shuci stood at the entrance, and through the iron fence gate, Chu Tang could see his profile. But Jiang Shixu was standing behind the courtyard wall, and from that angle, he was just blocked by a tree in the yard, so Chu Tang didn't see him. Hearing Chu Tang's voice, Lu Shuci's dark, heavy expression softened. He turned his head and called out to Chu Tang in a raised voice: "Coming." With that, Lu Shuci smiled at Jiang Shixu and said, "President Jiang, I'll take my leave." Lu Shuci drove his car into the Ruan family villa courtyard, parked, walked to the rear of the car, opened the door, and said to Gu Tian, "Come on, let's go play with your sister Chu Tang." "Yay!" Little Gu Tian was overjoyed. Jiang Shixu stared at Lu Shuci's retreating figure, his fingers tightening bit by bit. ... Yang Xuelian had a fairly good impression of Lu Shuci. Last time at the hospital, when she learned that Lu Shuci had obtained the Peace Amulet from Puji Temple for Chu Tang, she went home and told Ruan Shaodong about it. Ruan Shaodong's reaction was lukewarm—he just gave an "Mm" and didn't say much more. Yang Xuelian didn't know what that "Mm" from Ruan Shaodong meant. Was he dissatisfied with Lu Shuci? Or had he already acknowledged Lu Shuci in his heart? This time Lu Shuci came to the Ruan residence, and it happened that both Yang Xuelian and Ruan Shaodong were home—a rare occurrence. Lu Shuci had good upbringing; every time he came to the Ruan residence, he never arrived empty-handed. The previous few times, he had brought gifts as well. It was just that on those earlier occasions, Ruan Shaodong and Yang Xuelian hadn't been home at the same time. Lu Shuci greeted Ruan Shaodong and presented the gifts he had prepared. Two bottles of Moutai from the mid-nineties and a cake of fine tea. He had made inquiries in advance—Ruan Shaodong didn't smoke, usually enjoyed tea, and occasionally liked a drink or two. The household servant took the gifts, and Ruan Shaodong glanced at them, a hint of approval showing in his eyes. But only a hint. He certainly wasn't going to agree to Lu Shuci pursuing his precious daughter over a few small gifts. "You're thoughtful." Out of politeness, Ruan Shaodong said this one courteous line. Yang Xuelian was more enthusiastic in her attitude. She said with a smile, "Little Lu, you should just come as you are—no need to bring gifts. You're too polite." Lu Shuci smiled warmly. "These are only what's proper." Ruan Jiaojiao spotted Gu Tian and ran over enthusiastically to take her hand. "Tian Tian, come play in my room." Gu Tian smiled in response. "Okay, Sister Jiaojiao." After the two little ones went upstairs, Ruan Chu Tang and Lu Shuci sat down on the sofa in the first-floor living room. The servant brought over hot tea and cut fruit. "Mr. Lu, please have some tea." "Thank you." Chu Tang asked, "You said you had a case you wanted to discuss with me. Let's talk here." Lu Shuci nodded. "Alright." The two of them were both focused when discussing the case. Ruan Shaodong didn't disturb them—he simply glanced at them and got up to head to the tea room. Yang Xuelian also tactfully excused herself. Before leaving, she looked back at them and sighed inwardly, thinking that Xiao Lu and Tangtang really were a good match. If only Tangtang could let go of Jiang Shixu and be with Xiao Lu instead. ... It wasn't until she returned to the law firm and threw herself into work that Chu Tang felt fulfilled again. She had been recovering from her injuries in the hospital for over a month, and during that time, several cases had gone to court, but she could only have other lawyers appear on her behalf. She wanted to review the case files, but none of her friends were willing to go to the firm to pick up the case folders for her. No matter how she asked, they all refused, telling her to rest well and not worry about work. When Lu Shuci visited her at the hospital, he even joked, "Don't worry. The firm has been doing just fine without you this past month. Everyone has cases on their hands, so no one's starving, and the firm isn't going to go bankrupt." Now that she was finally discharged, Chu Tang felt like she had been given a new lease on life. Sitting back down in her familiar office, Chu Tang closed her eyes and slowly let out a breath, her mood feeling much lighter and more pleasant. Yu Jiaojiao knocked on the door and came in grinning, placing a stack of kraft paper case folders on Chu Tang's desk. "Welcome back, Lawyer Ruan!" Xiao Xiao followed behind her. "Welcome back!" Yu Jiaojiao pointed at the case folders she had just brought over. "See? We told you to rest well in the hospital. You finally had a rare chance to take a break, and you were still thinking about work. Now that you're back, you'll have plenty to keep you busy." Chu Tang smiled. "That's good." She turned to Xiao Xiao and asked, "How did those cases that were handled by other lawyers go?" Xiao Xiao gave Ruan Chutang a rough rundown of how the court hearings went, then concluded, "We won all of them." "Excellent." Chu Tang's gaze was approving. "Xiao Xiao, you've improved a lot." Xiao Xiao curved her lips into a smile. "That's all thanks to having such a great mentor like you."