Standing on the second floor of the guesthouse, watching Su Mo's figure gradually disappear into the distance, Tang Ning checked that his favorability rating had now reached a perfect 70, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly. Then, her eyes subtly glanced at the paparazzi who had been following her closely since she left Qing City, thinking he was being very discreet. Tang Ning gave a delicate yawn and casually tossed herself onto the bed.

Tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow?

Tomorrow, I guess. The favorability rating is almost 90%, but that person doesn't seem to have the patience to wait until the day after tomorrow.

That's what she thought.

Meanwhile, on his way home, Su Mo was still thinking about the furtive figure who had been hiding by the wall watching him and Tang Ning. He wondered if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the person's back looked strangely familiar. However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't match the figure with someone from his memory.

But it's always better to be safe than sorry. Before leaving, Su Mo made a special trip to a small shop near the guesthouse. It just so happened that the shop owner was an old friend of his. At Su Mo's request, the shop owner readily agreed, saying that he would keep an eye on the guesthouse whenever he had time, and would call him immediately if anything seemed amiss.

With this preparation, Su Mo finally felt a little relieved. Now he just hoped that he wasn't being paranoid.

After taking a deep breath, Su Mo quickly returned home.

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he was met with a teasing look from his younger sister. Not only that, she also pulled him aside and bombarded him with questions, such as whether he had fallen for Tang Ning, when he had fallen for her, whether he was pursuing her now, and how their time together this afternoon went...

Once they start asking, it never ends.

Su Mo, who had only figured out her feelings for Tang Ning this afternoon with the help of her old classmate, couldn't help but ask, and her face turned red in no time.

His appearance made Su Ya reluctant to ask any more questions, so she let him go.

Just then, the girl noticed her brother's bare wrist and immediately pointed at it, "Brother, what's wrong with you? You're not wearing a bracelet again. I specially went to the temple in Wenshan to get those red ropes and bells for you, to keep you safe!"

Upon hearing Su Ya's words, Su Mo, who had raised his wrist, suddenly remembered that he had taken off his bracelet last night before going to bed because he wasn't used to wearing things that made noise while sleeping. He had placed it on his bedside table and then forgotten about it when he woke up this morning.

Seeing his younger sister puffing up her cheeks like a pufferfish, he quickly went back to his room, put on the bracelet, and promised her that he would wear it to bed that night and definitely wouldn't take it off.

Suya finally smiled with satisfaction.

The next day, thinking about her appointment with Su Mo in Wenshan, Tang Ning finished breakfast at the guesthouse and immediately prepared to head towards the Su family's courtyard.

Even Tang Ning didn't expect that not long after she went out, she was stopped in a small alley by a group of hooligans who looked like scoundrels. As soon as they saw Tang Ning, the leader, a man with a perm wearing a black leather jacket and sunglasses, immediately raised his chin at Tang Ning in a flippant manner.

"So you're the girlfriend that Su Mo brought back?"

"girlfriend?"

Tang Ning countered with a question.

"Isn't that right? Let me tell you, you can't deny it to Brother Chen now. My men all saw it yesterday. You and that guy were chatting and laughing, very intimately. Your pretty boy boyfriend owes us so much money. You're dressed nicely and drive such a nice Bentley. Why don't you pay off his debts for him? Otherwise..."

The man with the perm, who called himself Brother Chen, took off his sunglasses and spoke in a threatening tone.

Hearing this, Tang Ning couldn't help but chuckle softly, making Chen Ge's eyes light up. Inwardly, however, he cursed Su Mo for being so lucky to have such a rich and beautiful girlfriend. Actually, if this woman couldn't afford it but was willing to spend a few nights with him, he wouldn't necessarily refuse...

With these thoughts in mind, a hint of excitement crept onto Brother Chen's face.

Tang Ning's eyes deepened slightly at that expression. She casually leaned against the wall behind her and curled her lips into a smile. "I hate it when people threaten me. I hate even more... those clueless toads who drool and dream of eating swan meat!"

As soon as she finished speaking the last word, Tang Ning successfully saw that this so-called Brother Chen was completely enraged by her.

"You bastard, you don't know what's good for you! Get him!"

Brother Chen had no sense of chivalry or respect for women. When he heard the woman mock him as a toad, he lost all reason and went berserk, determined to teach her a lesson.

Seeing that the situation was not good, the shop owner on the other end did not hesitate to call Su Mo.

"Xiao Mo, something terrible has happened! Brother Chen and his men have ambushed your girlfriend, and now they're going to beat her up!"

Because she was really looking forward to her trip to Wenshan with Tang Ning today, Su Mo got up early and was trying on clothes one by one in her room. As soon as she received the call, she didn't care about anything else and ran frantically towards the guesthouse.

Yes, wasn't that one-eyed guy who was peeking from the side yesterday the one next to Brother Chen?

He only remembered his one-eyed feature, but nothing else.

It's all his fault, it's all his fault.

He shouldn't have acknowledged Tang Ning in the first place. Knowing this was Brother Chen's territory, he still acted so recklessly. If something really happened to Tang Ning, he'd probably never forgive himself for the rest of his life.

The more Su Mo thought about it, the more panicked he became, and he walked faster and more hurriedly.

Tang Ning, Tang Ning...

With Tang Ning's name in his mind, Su Mo got closer and closer to the guesthouse. Soon, he heard shouts and yells coming from the alley not far away, accompanied by a loud thud as something heavy fell to the ground.

Su Mo rushed over like a madman, shouting as she ran, "Brother Chen, it's me who owes you money, it has nothing to do with her, if you have any trouble, come to me..."

Before the boy could finish speaking, a dark shadow flew straight towards him.

He instinctively dodged, and then watched as a thud landed right next to him. Who else could it be but Brother Chen?

At this moment, Brother Chen looked more miserable than he had ever seen. His perfectly good perm was now a mess, covered in dirt, with a large, bright red handprint on his right cheek. Even his eye sockets were bruised, making his already small eyes almost unable to open.

Seeing Chen Ge like this, Su Mo swallowed all the words that were already on the tip of his tongue. Looking into the alley, Tang Ning, wearing a pair of white sneakers, swung her long leg and slammed a small henchman against the wall. With her other hand, she grabbed the collar of another person next to her and raised her fist to gouge into his eye.

Hearing his voice, Tang Ning, who was in the middle of beating someone up, turned around and looked at him. "Su Mo, what brings you here?"

Before Su Mo could answer Tang Ning's question, he caught a glimpse of the shortcut key that Brother Chen had just pressed. Knowing something was wrong, he quickly grabbed Tang Ning's hand and pulled her outside.

The reason why Brother Chen was beaten so badly earlier was entirely because he underestimated Tang Ning. Not only did Tang Ning not bring any weapons, but he also didn't bring many men. Otherwise, if his men had swarmed him, no matter how powerful Tang Ning was, he probably wouldn't have been able to defeat them.

The most important thing now is to get her out of there as soon as possible. Brother Chen's reach isn't that long. Given Tang Ning's status, if she really leaves, he won't be able to get revenge even if he wanted to. If possible, it would be best if Xiao Ya went with Tang Ning too, otherwise...

As for himself, he couldn't care less about anything else. He owed Brother Chen so much money and wrote so many IOUs. From now on, he'd just have to take it one step at a time!

Gritting his teeth and gripping Tang Ning's hand tightly, Su Mo ran headlong toward the Su family home.

Because of the running motion, the bell on the boy's wrist kept ringing. Hearing the familiar sound, Tang Ning suddenly looked down and immediately saw the red string bracelet on Su Mo's right wrist.

really……

When the original owner came to Wenshan to discuss a contract, she unexpectedly encountered a lecherous unlicensed taxi driver and was almost assaulted. Suddenly, someone passing by in the dark shouted into the rustling bushes that he had called the police, scaring the driver away. It was Su Mo.

The bell sound that the original owner heard during her most desperate and painful moment also came from Su Mo.

You asked how Tang Ning recognized the combination of bells and red rope, which is so common.

Relying on intuition?

Of course not.

As soon as the unlicensed taxi driver fled, the original owner immediately heard a calm, almost indifferent voice say, "The person is gone. You should go home now and don't go out at night anymore."

After saying that, the boy who had unexpectedly saved her walked away with his hands in his pockets without even meeting her.

The original owner, still shaken, picked up her dirty coat from the bushes, wrapped herself up completely, and shakily emerged from inside, only to step on a bracelet...

The original owner had spent countless efforts searching for that unique weaving technique, but even on Taobao, she couldn't find a bracelet with the same bell and red rope design as the one she had collected, except for the one on Su Mo's wrist.

If she wasn't mistaken, this must be something that Su Ya came up with herself, so how could there be anything the same on the market!

Thinking this, a fleeting thought crossed Tang Ning's eyes.

The original owner probably never knew, even in death, that the benefactor she so deeply cherished was also one of the executioners who drove her to her doom.

Sometimes, not knowing is another kind of happiness.

Just then, Su Mo suddenly stopped running with her hand, pulled Tang Ning up, and hid in a nearby alley.

Because at this moment, Brother Chen's men had already blocked their way on motorcycles, and they couldn't escape.

Upon seeing this situation, Su Mo's anxiety was like a fire that was about to consume him completely. Not only that, but even the hand he was holding Tang Ning's was already soaked with sweat, and the boy's breathing became more and more rapid.

Because he knew that they couldn't hide in an alley like that for long; sooner or later, Brother Chen's men would find them, and then...

Su Mo squeezed her eyes shut, and when she opened them again, she immediately released her grip on Tang Ning's hand. Turning around, she looked at Tang Ning intently and placed her hands on her shoulders. "Listen to me, Tang Ning. I'll go out and distract those people, the ones on the motorcycles outside. When you see an opportunity, run straight out of town without looking back. There's a bus that stops every ten minutes on that road outside to take us to the city. When you get out of town, get on the bus as soon as you see it, okay? Don't take a taxi. A lot of the drivers here aren't very nice. No matter how strong you are, you're a woman, you can't stop them from being well-prepared!"

"And what about you?"

Tang Ning couldn't help but ask.

"I...I'll be fine. I still owe Brother Chen a lot of money. He's counting on me to pay him back. He won't do anything to me!"

Su Mo pretended to be relaxed and even forced a smile at Tang Ning.

But only he knew in his heart that if he wanted to protect Xiaoya from the furious Brother Chen again, he would probably have to suffer a lot.

But he didn't feel that Tang Ning had done anything wrong. After all, he was the one who dragged her down from the beginning. Otherwise, why would a CEO of a big company do this...?

God knows how fortunate he was that when he ran over, it was Brother Chen and the others who were injured, not Tang Ning. Otherwise, he would never have been able to forgive himself for the rest of his life.

But after this separation, someone as hopeless as him will probably never have any contact with Tang Ning again, let alone... let alone have any feelings for her.

Thinking of this, he didn't hesitate to give Tang Ning a hug, and after taking one last greedy and unrestrained look at her, Su Mo rushed out with a resolute look in his eyes.

Before he could even leave the alley, Tang Ning grabbed his wrist tightly, amused, and said, "Su Mo, what are you doing? It's not that serious..."

"Let go first..."

Before Su Mo could finish speaking, the roar of a motorcycle rang in their ears.

"Found it, it's here."

Upon hearing such an excited voice, Su Mo's face turned pale.

When he came to his senses, he was already blocking Tang Ning's way. Looking at Brother Chen who jumped off the back of one of the motorcycles, Su Mo gritted his teeth and said, "Brother Chen, I have returned all the money to you as requested. I have no relationship with her. She is just my employer. She came to Wenshan to discuss business these past few days. She is not my girlfriend. You have really made a mistake!"

"Oh……"

Hearing Su Mo's words, Chen Ge with panda eyes chuckled and pointed to his face, "Even if I'm wrong, all these injuries on my body are wrong. If this bitch doesn't give me an explanation today, I promise, but my brothers definitely won't agree..."

"I can compensate you for medical expenses, emotional distress damages, and all other costs."

Just as Brother Chen was speaking passionately, Tang Ning stepped out from behind Su Mo and said matter-of-factly.

"You really think I care about your stinking money? What I want is..."

One million.

He managed to say three words to Brother Chen, but the rest of his words caught in his throat, and his eyes widened suddenly.

"If you agree, I can write you a check right now. Have your brother go to the bank to confirm it, and we'll wait here with you."

Tang Ning made this suggestion.

Brother Chen moved his lips, but couldn't utter a single word.

Not to mention him, even Su Mo was dumbfounded by Tang Ning's amazing actions.

Seeing that Brother Chen neither nodded nor shook his head, Tang Ning frowned. "Isn't one million enough? Two million."

Hearing Tang Ning casually add another million to their account, Brother Chen swallowed hard. He felt this woman was far more exciting than playing mahjong. This wasn't a hundred or two hundred yuan, but a million or two! Why, why could she... be so casual...?

"Isn't two million enough?"

Tang Ning said this with some distress, and then, under the expectant gazes of Brother Chen and the others, and with Su Mo secretly anxious, she sighed, "Then forget it. Since Brother Chen is unwilling to accept my suggestion, why don't you tell me what kind of explanation you want? After all, I can't think of any other explanation besides money."

Seeing that Tang Ning was no longer willing to raise the price, Chen Ge and the others could hardly hide their disappointment. Then, under the watchful eyes of his underlings, Chen Ge stepped forward and coughed twice, "You... well, add a little more."

"Tang Ning!"

Before Su Mo could speak, Tang Ning had already pressed his hand down. "Okay, then let's add another 500,000, making it a total of 2.5 million in compensation. I wonder if Brother Chen is satisfied?"

"Oh, right."

As if suddenly remembering something, Tang Ning continued, "I've paid off all the money Su Mo owed you, including interest. After that, I only have one request: I hope you won't bother them anymore, okay?"

The money the woman paid in compensation, plus the money Su Mo owed, made Chen Ge and the others, who had done a quick mental calculation, suddenly became breathless. This was a huge sum of money!

Immediately, Chen Ge completely forgot about the grudge he had just suffered at the hands of Tang Ning, and burst into laughter, "That was satisfying! So this is Miss Tang? That was truly satisfying! Hahaha, I, Zhou Chen, am determined to be your friend!"

Although he laughed heartily, the injuries on his face looked particularly comical against the backdrop of his smile.

Meanwhile, Su Mo was still in a daze. He simply couldn't believe that a heavy mountain that had weighed on his heart for nearly ten years had been so easily moved away by Tang Ning.

Even after Brother Chen and the others had counted the money and left one by one on their motorcycles, he was still somewhat dazed.

It can be said that what Su Mo was thinking was completely reflected in his level of favorability.

Su Mo's current favorability rating: 80.

No wonder he's a man who can buy favorability with money!

After figuring out his feelings for her, he had been stingy with the increases of 2 or 3 points. But when Tang Ning spent money, he increased her points by 10 points in one go.

That's amazing.

Then Su Mo stared blankly at Tang Ning, and as soon as Brother Chen left, she called the police station to report the incident.

That's exactly right!

With the country cracking down on organized crime so vigorously, this "Brother Chen" is not only lending money at exorbitant interest rates but also threatening the personal safety of others. He's a typical member of organized crime. If we don't crack down on him, who will we crack down on?

Is her money so easy to take?

Because of her investment in Wenshan, she still has some connections, and she will definitely make sure that every single one of Brother Chen's gang goes to jail.

On the other side, Chen Ge and his gang, who had taken the money and whose expressions changed, were about to secretly make a move against Tang Ning and Su Mo. Before they could even have a chance to act, they were all caught. They probably won't be able to cause any trouble for the next few years, or even more than a decade.

Su Mo was stunned when he learned about these things.

Of course, that's a story for another time.

After hearing Tang Ning's words, he pointed to his nose with some surprise, "Me? I saved you before?"

"Don't you remember?" Tang Ning quickly helped him recall, "Seven years ago, near Wenshan, one night at midnight, don't you remember scaring away a black cab driver? If it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't be who I am now! So, you don't need to rush to return the money to me. It's all yours. On the contrary, I should thank you for saving my life back then. Thank you so much, Su Mo!"

Tang Ning bowed to him earnestly.

Seeing this, Su Mo quickly helped her up.

It was at this moment that he seemed to have a vague impression of such a thing.

You ask him why he remembers things from seven years ago so clearly? Well, he's lied to a lot of people in his life, but he's only saved one person in his life. Who would have thought that the person he saved was actually Tang Ning from seven years ago!

Such a fate, such a fate...

Su Mo's heart pounded in her chest.

Su Mo's current favorability rating: 83.

Author's Note: This is just to foreshadow some plot points. Don't think it's a whitewash; the angst will continue, it's still going to be angsty, it's my usual practice~~~

Pei Alian will be here in the next chapter, don't worry. After all, we need to raise Su Mo's favorability before he arrives, so as to prevent Pei Yuan from causing trouble.