Chapter 83

Chapter 83: We're Neighbors Now Chu Tang glanced down at the caller ID. It was Yu Jiaojiao. She pressed answer. "Lawyer Ruan, can you come over? There's something I'd like to ask for your help with." Chu Tang steadied her emotions. "What's wrong?" Yu Jiaojiao kept it brief, explaining the situation in a few words. Chu Tang's brows furrowed, concern showing on her face. "Wait for me, I'll be right there." After hanging up, Chu Tang grabbed her bag and stood to leave. "Something's come up and I have to go. Let's catch up another time." Chen Yuanyuan pursed her lips. "Really? You're not just setting an alarm to escape our questioning, are you?" Chu Tang helplessly pressed her hand to her forehead and showed Chen Yuanyuan the call log. "I'm not lying to you, something really came up." Chen Yuanyuan crossed her arms. "Fine then. Next time I'll interrogate you under torture, and you'll confess everything!" "Deal." Chu Tang dropped that single word and hurried off. Chen Yuanyuan scooted closer to Zhou Xueluo. "Xueluo, tell me... what does... that feel like?" Zhou Xueluo's face flushed bright red, and she stammered, "I... how would I know... I've never even been in a relationship..." "Right." Chen Yuanyuan patted Zhou Xueluo's shoulder, speaking with the air of someone wise and experienced. "You're a good girl. You're not allowed to date. Those guys with dyed hair aren't good enough for you." Speaking of which, she was reminded of her own disastrous first love. Chen Yuanyuan had been in one relationship, during her freshman year. The other person was a senior student a year above her—good-looking, with plenty of admirers. Chen Yuanyuan was pretty and came from a wealthy family, so she had plenty of boys chasing her too. But she'd set her sights on that senior. The senior had pursued her first. When they first got together, she and the senior were glued to each other all day, showering Zhou Xueluo and Chu Tang with couple PDA every single day. As the saying goes, "Those who flaunt their love die fast," and that saying was eerily accurate. That's exactly what happened to Chen Yuanyuan. She'd been dating him for less than two months when the senior's long-distance girlfriend showed up at her doorstep, and only then did she learn she'd been the other woman. She teamed up with that girl to publicly tear the scumbag apart, spreading news of his cheating and two-timing far and wide, leaving him utterly humiliated and making him the most despised person on Jiangda's campus. Qin Yan had even charged into the school and beaten the scumbag to a pulp. In the end, Qin Yan used his family's influence to force the scumbag to drop out. Since then, Chen Yuanyuan had been traumatized by romance and hadn't dated anyone in all these years. The most intimate thing she'd done with that scumbag was kiss—she'd never even thought about going to bed with him. "Ugh..." Chen Yuanyuan let out a sigh. "I feel like I'll never get the chance to experience it in this lifetime..." ... When Chu Tang drove over, Yu Jiaojiao was comforting a young girl who was crying heartbreakingly. "Lawyer Ruan, you're finally here!" Yu Jiaojiao's eyes lit up the moment she saw Chu Tang. "Please help Xiaoyue. She's really too pitiful." Chu Tang said, "Jiaojiao, tell me in detail what happened." "It's like this—this girl is called Liu Yue. She's my neighbor where I rent." Yu Jiaojiao let out a heavy sigh, her eyes full of sympathy. "Yueyue's parents both passed away, and she only has her older brother to depend on. To pay for her schooling, her brother started working early to earn money, but..." Yu Jiaojiao's face showed reluctance to continue, and her eyes grew moist. "But Yueyue was recently diagnosed with leukemia. She dropped out of school and was hospitalized for treatment. Her brother Liu Ming, to scrape together Yueyue's medical expenses, worked overtime at the factory day and night, putting in over ten hours a day..." At this point, Liu Yue, who had just been comforted by Yu Jiaojiao, started crying again. "My brother was exhausted from overwork. His mental state was terrible at work, and when he was operating the machinery, his hand accidentally got caught in the machine... Now his entire right hand is gone..." Liu Yue choked up and could barely continue. "I... I..." Yu Jiaojiao gently patted Liu Yue's back to help her breathe. "Lawyer Ruan, Liu Ming is currently hospitalized for treatment. This is clearly a work injury, but the factory hasn't compensated him at all. The boss just gave him two months' wages and sent him off. Liu Ming has already been fired, and the factory hasn't paid any of the one-time disability compensation, one-time work-related injury medical subsidy, or one-time disability employment subsidy." Liu Yue sobbed terribly. "I know I don't have much time left, but my brother's road is still long. All the money he earned before went to treating me. Now that the factory won't pay, my brother can barely afford his hospital bills. Lawyer Ruan, please, I beg you to help me." Chu Tang's heart felt heavy and constricted. Her expression softened with emotion as she comforted her, "I have a general understanding of the situation now. Don't cry for now. Can you take me to the hospital to see your brother?" "Mm-hmm!" Liu Yue nodded. "I'll take you there." ... Meanwhile, at Mingjia Garden. "Mr. Gu, what do you think of this unit?" the real estate agent in the black suit asked with a smile. He had just shown Gu Zechuan several units in this building. Judging from this Mr. Gu's expression, this unit was clearly the one he liked best. Gu Zechuan stood with his hands in his pockets, sweeping his gaze across the room before giving a slight nod. "This one's quite nice. I'll take this one." The salesperson's heart leaped with joy as she pulled out the purchase contract. "So, would you like to sign the contract now?" "Yes." "Great!" The salesperson beamed, handing the contract to Gu Zechuan. Gu Zechuan took the contract, sat down on the sofa, flipped through it casually, and signed his name with a pen. Last time, Xu Jingxuan had given him a business card. He had contacted that person, who indeed invested a large sum of money into the Gu Group. Once the funds were in place, the group's projects could continue running, and before long, the Gu Group was back on track. Now he no longer had to worry about money. In order to see Ruan Chutang often, Gu Zechuan had bought an apartment in the same residential complex where she lived. This complex had been built a few years ago. The location was excellent, and the units had sold out quickly—there were no new apartments left in the complex now. The unit Gu Zechuan bought was a resale, but the previous owner hadn't lived there often, so there weren't many traces of daily life in the place. It was hardly different from a brand-new one. After signing the contract, Gu Zechuan paid the full amount on the spot. Once the salesperson left, he took a careful look around the apartment. It was a finely decorated two-bedroom, one-living-room apartment with a large balcony. He didn't particularly care for the decorating style, but since he wanted to move in as soon as possible, he didn't plan to change the decor. In a good mood, Gu Zechuan sat on the sofa with his legs crossed, a faint, unreadable smile curling at the corner of his lips. Chu Tang, from now on, we'll be neighbors. ... Liu Yue sat down in Chu Tang's Bentley, looking ill at ease, not knowing where to put her hands or feet. The young girl gently tugged at Yu Jiaojiao's sleeve. "Jiaojiao-jie." "What's the matter?" The girl leaned close to Yu Jiaojiao's ear and whispered, "Is Lawyer Ruan's car very expensive?" She lowered her eyes to look at her own toes, her little face flushed red with embarrassment. It had rained today, and the mud on the road was filthy. The pair of white canvas shoes on Liu Yue's feet—washed until they had turned yellow—were splattered with mud, the toes stained black. Yu Jiaojiao followed her gaze downward. The girl's left foot was gently rubbing against her right, betraying her unease.