Hook

Shen Ming remained silent, his fingertips unconsciously curling. Gu Nan smiled, patted his shoulder, and said, "I'm leaving now."

The leg-lifting motion was slightly slow.

When Shen Ming snapped out of his reverie, Gu Nan had only walked three to five meters away.

"You asked me to bring out the badge. Wan Sizong didn't harm Wan Yi, so why are you framing him?"

Shen Ming stared at the figure's back, trying to discern some unnoticed conspiracy.

Others may not know, but he is an insider. Wan Sizong is worried that Master Wan will hand over the entire Wan family to Wan Yi, which is why he has repeatedly sent people to deal with Wan Yi.

After hiring someone to commit murder, Wan Ye and his son had already openly discussed their sordid intentions. The thing Wan Sizong was worried about was simply impossible, and he had no need to take the risk again.

Gu Nan glanced back casually, the sunlight slanting across her profile, her long eyelashes casting shadows under her eyes and spreading across her alabaster cheeks. Her eyes held a glimmer of light as she slowly fixed her gaze.

Shen Ming's Adam's apple bobbed, but he only noticed her red lips opening and closing, without uttering a single word.

Gu Nan suppressed the upward curve of her lips, her eyes showing disappointment. After a long silence, she said in a low voice, "I dare not disobey him."

"Lu Yushi?" Faced with such beauty, Shen Ming retained some rationality. Even if Lu Yushi was capable, with one of the five families in Beicheng having an ambiguous stance, two being enemies, and now having to offend Master Wan, the Lu family had no reason to play this game.

Gu Nan brushed away a fallen petal from her shoulder, her tone light and casual, yet tinged with a helpless sadness: "It was just a test. Master Wan won't easily disrupt the situation unless absolutely necessary."

Shen Ming paced back and forth with his arms crossed, his fingers unconsciously rubbing his cuffs. After a few circles, he suddenly realized something. Lu Yushi had repeatedly challenged Master Wan's bottom line. Anyone would think that he had something to deal with Master Wan. The more assertive he was, the more Master Wan would think that he held something important, and the less likely he would dare to turn against him easily.

Well thought out.

Slowly raising his eyelashes, Shen Ming looked Gu Nan up and down and said, "Coming to Master Wan's house to cause trouble by yourself, you've got some nerve. Aren't you afraid that if Master Wan doesn't fall for it and doesn't take Lu Yushi seriously, how will you leave here safely?"

Gu Nan slowly turned around and swayed to his side, her smile carrying just the right amount of allure. She parted her thin lips slightly and asked, "Will you help me?"

Shen Ming was stunned for a moment, then both delighted and surprised: "You knew I was here?"

Gu Nan swallowed hard, swallowing the sarcasm that was about to come out of his mouth. He really knew how to make himself look good.

Her eyes sparkled, but she neither nodded nor denied it.

"Of course," Shen Ming said confidently.

As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes lit up, and the tangled mess in his mind seemed to suddenly come to an end, and he instantly understood the inside story.

It was Gu Nan who scratched Wan Sizong, and it was Gu Nan who threatened Master Wan. Gu Nan had no grudge against the Wan family, so why would she risk being targeted by Master Wan and jump around like this? It must be because of someone behind the scenes who didn't want to show their face, who was coercing and enticing her. If Lu Yushi regretted it in the future and shook hands with Master Wan, he would just push Gu Nan out to take the bullet.

Everything is working.

The momentary realization on his face lasted no more than a second, gradually replaced by worry. He frowned and analyzed the situation for Gu Nan sentence by sentence: "Even if you tell Master Wan the truth clearly, if the two of you really become friends one day, Master Wan will still choose to believe that Lu Yushi is innocent."

Seeing Gu Nan's blank expression, he abandoned the roundabout way of reminding him and said directly, "In Master Wan's eyes, interests are more important than the truth. Even if you do your best to produce evidence to prove your innocence, Master Wan will not believe you."

Gu Nan: ...

What nonsense are you spouting? I rolled my eyes quietly and summarized it in two words.

—Idiot.

She politely raised her head, but a hint of helplessness was forced onto her face: "Then what should we do?"

His aggrieved expression made him seem completely lost.

Shen Ming chuckled softly, coaxing, "Of course I'll help you. As long as we cooperate well, I'll guarantee your safety."

Gu Nan thought to herself, "Even Lu Yushi wouldn't dare say that."

"The batch of goods you mentioned to Master Wan?" Shen Ming hesitated, waiting for her to answer.

Gu Nan lowered her eyes, a faint smile curving her lips, which quickly faded away, leaving almost no trace.

They've taken the bait.

Looking up, the look of helplessness had returned to his face.

"Lu Yushi is collaborating with Xingzilou on a blockchain system. A batch of mining machines are somewhat involved with Master Wan's side, so I came over in advance to give them a heads-up."

Shen Ming nodded knowingly, a cold glint flashing in his shrewd eyes. He looked at her thoughtfully, half-jokingly, "Lu Yushi has harmed you so much, and you're still helping him?"

Gu Nan shrugged, his back teeth almost grinding to powder as he suppressed his pleasure, and sighed, "I told you before, I have no choice."

Shen Ming smiled and shook his head, his meaningful gaze lingering on her for a long time before he uttered two words: "You do."