Chapter 41

Chapter 41 (New) Keep Your Eyes Open When You're Out Gu Zechuan was thrown out by the bodyguards. Meng Yaqin and Chen Wan were waiting outside. Meng Yaqin was on the verge of tears. "Son, what do we do now? Have we offended the Su family? What about the investment?" Chen Wan was also scared to death. "The Su family has such strong backing—will they retaliate against us?" Gu Zechuan turned a deaf ear. Like a puppet on strings, he walked mechanically, his soul lost, his face blank and lifeless. ... The banquet ended, and Jiang Shixu escorted Chu Tang back to her apartment. "About today..." Chu Tang stood downstairs, hesitating as she spoke. Jiang Shixu stood before Chu Tang, reaching out to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. His voice was low, carrying obvious sadness. "He said today that if you had told him your identity earlier, you might already be married now, and you'd be happy. I admit, at that moment I was afraid. If you..." "There is no 'if.'" Chu Tang interrupted him, lifting her gaze to meet Jiang Shixu's deep eyes. "Brother Shixu, don't worry about things that never happened." "Besides..." The girl's expression was rarely serious. "I never actually wanted to marry Gu Zechuan." Jiang Shixu's eyes lit up. "Really?" Chu Tang smiled and nodded. "Mm." The night wind blew past, and Chu Tang shivered from the cold, but her eyes were bright and sparkling. "Before, I never thought about marrying Gu Zechuan. But now, I'm really looking forward to our engagement ceremony." Jiang Shixu took off his jacket and draped it over Chu Tang's shoulders, pulling her into his embrace. "I'm looking forward to it too." ... Gu Zechuan left the estate and drove off alone, disappearing without a trace. Chen Wan drove Meng Yaqin back to the hotel. Underground parking lot. The moment the two got out of the car, everything went black—they were knocked out, stuffed into burlap sacks. When they woke up again, they were in a dim, noisy private room. Chen Wan and Meng Yaqin were pinned face-down on a glass liquor table. On the sofa directly across sat a man with his legs crossed, his body covered in tattoos. The man grinned with a roguish, wicked smile. "Brother's in a good mood today. How about keeping me company for a few drinks?" Meng Yaqin, who prided herself on being a wealthy madam, had never endured such treatment. She immediately launched into a string of curses at the tattooed man. The tattooed man just smiled, then tilted his chin toward a man in black standing nearby. The man in black walked over, yanked Meng Yaqin up, and delivered two sharp slaps across her face. Meng Yaqin was stunned senseless. Both cheeks burned with searing pain. She covered her face and glared at the tattooed man. "Who are you? Why did you bring me here?" The tattooed man picked at his ear. "Tsk, why does this old woman talk so much? Keep yapping and I'll cut your tongue out." With that, he pulled out a Swiss Army knife and toyed with it in his hand. Meng Yaqin's legs went weak with fear. She clamped her mouth shut and dared not make another sound. Chen Wan was still pinned to the table. The tattooed man picked up a glass of liquor and splashed it at Chen Wan. "Drink every last bottle on this table today, and I'll let you go." Meng Yaqin cried out in alarm, "I can't hold my liquor!" The tattooed man snorted coldly and ordered his men to force the drinks down. Meng Yaqin and Chen Wan were forcibly held down and made to drink copious amounts of alcohol. No matter how they struggled, they couldn't break free. By the end, nearly the entire table of liquor had been poured into their stomachs, their bellies swollen and distended. The tattooed man held the Swiss Army knife, pressing the cold blade against Chen Wan's face. He narrowed his eyes. "Keep your eyes open when you're out. Don't offend people you shouldn't from now on." Chen Wan trembled, her lips quivering, frozen in fear, her face drained of all color. "Understand?" The tattooed man suddenly raised his voice, making both Chen Wan and Meng Yaqin jolt in fright. With their lives in someone else's hands, Meng Yaqin and Chen Wan didn't dare disobey. They could only nod repeatedly. "We understand." ... Three days later. "Knock, knock, knock—" Chen Wan stood at the door of the hotel suite and knocked several times. "Zechuan, are you in there?" No response. Chen Wan frowned and took out her phone to call him. It rang for a long time with no answer until it automatically hung up. Ever since they came back from Su Yu's place that day, Gu Zechuan had been out of contact with her. He didn't reply to messages, didn't answer calls. When she came to the hotel looking for him, he wouldn't open the door. She learned from the front desk that Gu Zechuan hadn't checked out. "Bang, bang, bang—" She pounded on the door. "Gu Zechuan, open the door! If you don't open it today, I'll keep knocking until you do!" After ten minutes of pounding at the door, it finally opened. A thick stench of cigarette smoke and alcohol rushed out, making her gag reflexively. "What a smell." Chen Wan pinched her nose, her expression full of disgust. Looking at Gu Zechuan, his eye sockets were sunken and dark, his stubble unkempt, his face greasy, and his body reeked of smoke, alcohol, and sour sweat—he looked like he hadn't bathed in days. Chen Wan suppressed her nausea and asked, "How did you let yourself get like this?" Gu Zechuan's eyes were dull and lifeless, utterly dejected. "Is something wrong?" "I couldn't reach you for days, I was worried about you." Chen Wan pushed the door open and walked into the room. The curtains were drawn tightly, no lights on—in the middle of the day, the room was pitch black. Chen Wan frowned and turned on the light. The spacious suite was littered with empty liquor bottles in the living room, the ashtray on the table overflowing with cigarette butts, ashes scattered everywhere. Chen Wan turned on the exhaust fan, then walked to the window, drew open the curtains, and opened it for ventilation. "Gu Zechuan, are you planning to stay this dejected forever? What about the Gu Group? The investment from the Su family fell through, and these past few days Uncle Gu has been running around everywhere, yet not a single company is willing to invest in the Gu Group. After some inquiries, it turns out it's pressure from Ruan Chutang's fiancé's side." Chen Wan looked at Gu Zechuan, "Do you know who Ruan Chutang's fiancé is? He's the president of the Jiang Group, the crown prince of Jiangcheng, Jiang Shixu! Their family background is even stronger than the Su family's—there's an elder serving in the capital. Once Jiang Shixu speaks, which company in Jiangcheng would dare invest in the Gu Group?" Gu Zechuan was like a puppet with its strings cut, utterly lifeless, his face numb and expressionless. He didn't respond to Chen Wan's words either. Chen Wan said a whole lot, but seeing that he wouldn't utter a single word in reply, she stomped her foot in frustration and turned to leave. The room fell silent again. Gu Zechuan dully dragged his already numbed body further inside. Having been in the dark for too long, he couldn't adjust to the glaring sunlight all at once. A wave of dizziness hit him, and his tall frame swayed—he could barely keep his footing. He paused by the window, staring blankly outside. The sun was bright. After a long while, he picked up his phone. Dozens of missed calls, WeChat messages at 99+, not a single one he'd replied to. Just then, Jiang Yuzhou's call came in again. Gu Zechuan thought of something and pressed answer. "Zechuan, where have you been lately? I couldn't find you anywhere," Jiang Yuzhou said, his tone puzzled as the call connected. "Did you see the messages I sent you?" Gu Zechuan spoke, his voice hoarse, "Are you still in France?" Jiang Yuzhou hadn't expected that question. He paused for a moment, then replied, "Yeah, why? I'm not coming back until tomorrow." "Buy something for me." "Sure, send it over." Jiang Yuzhou hesitated, then asked again, "What's wrong with your voice? Why is it so hoarse?" A moment of silence. Gu Zechuan spoke softly, "She's getting engaged." "Huh?" Jiang Yuzhou was confused. "Who? Who's getting engaged?"