Chapter 199 Marriage, or being lovers, it doesn't matter.

Lu Zhuo practically sped back to Lan Garden.

He slammed the car door shut, but his pace quickened until he was almost jogging.

As the elevator doors closed, he stared at the flashing floor numbers, his Adam's apple bobbing.

Will she be there?

Has that silly girl been driven to the brink of despair by those vampires from the Lin family again?

Don't be there.

It's best if it's not there.

If he were there, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to resist taking the person back to his den.

The elevator doors slid open with a ding, and Lu Zhu strode out, his knuckles hooking his coat.

The corridor was empty, and the motion-sensor lights turned on in response.

At the far end, in front of his house, a small shadow was crouching.

Lin Yiyao hugged her knees, burying her face in her arms, revealing only a section of her white nape.

She heard the noise, looked up, her eyes red-rimmed, but not a single tear fell.

Like a little white rabbit soaked by the rain, stubborn yet pitiful.

Lu Zhuo's hands, which were in his pockets, instantly clenched into fists.

It's really here.

Su Ruan was incredibly insightful.

"Yaoyao?"

Lin Yiyao stood up, but her legs went numb from maintaining the same posture for too long, and her body swayed slightly.

He rushed over and grabbed her arm with his palm.

"How long have you been waiting?"

"I didn't check the time."

Her voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible.

"Why are you just squatting here? Can't you call me?"

Lin Yiyao used his strength to steady herself, lowered her eyelashes, and dared not look at him.

"I was afraid you were busy, so I didn't dare to bother you."

He released her, pressed his fingerprint on the lock, and swiped the door open with a beep.

"Come in first."

He stepped aside to make way.

Lin Yiyao froze and looked up at him.

The corridor lamps outlined his tall, imposing figure behind him, but his expression was obscured by the backlight.

Lin Yiyao bit her lower lip and hesitantly stepped through the door.

The lights were off, and only a little moonlight entered the living room.

Lu Zhuo closed the door behind him, without turning on the main light. He leaned against the entryway cabinet, took out a cigarette from his pack, put it in his mouth, but didn't light it.

"Speak."

Lin Yiyao stood in the entryway, her back against the wall, her fingers intertwined.

The mother wore an oxygen mask, her face weak and pale.

Lin Li, the father, stood on the edge of the hospital rooftop, the manic threats still echoing in his ears.

"Yaoyao, if you don't beg Lu Zhuo and watch the Lin family be completely destroyed, I'll jump off this building!"

"The Lin family is finished, I don't want to live anymore!"

"Let the entire Beijing social circle see how you drove your mother and me to our deaths!"

Filial piety, kinship, the survival of the family...

Like countless ropes, they bound her tightly, suffocating her.

She knew that her behavior at that moment was despicable and shameless.

Even though she had clearly drawn a line, she still took the initiative to come closer and take advantage of his old feelings that might no longer exist.

But she had no choice.

She hates it.

I hate that I still have the surname Lin.

She hated that blood relation, which felt like a dog leash, suffocating her.

But what could she do?

Are you really going to let that person jump?

She can't do it.

Her father's precarious figure standing on the edge of the rooftop seemed like countless hands pushing her towards him.

"Lu Zhuo".

She called his name as if she had used up all her courage.

Can I make a deal with you?

Lu Zhuo leaned against the opposite side, his eyelids drooping, making it impossible to discern his emotions.

He knew, of course, why she had come.

The mess that was the Lin family, and her father who used kinship as a rope to bind her.

"trade?"

Lu Zhuo bit down on an unlit cigarette, his voice muffled yet soft and seductive.

"Yaoyao, you want to talk business with me?"

Lin Yiyao's throat went dry from the question.

"I……"

To do business, you need capital and leverage.

What does she have?

The Lin family is on the verge of collapse. All she has left is a mountain of debt she can't pay off and this ridiculous blood relation.

"Yes, deal."

She forced herself to look up and meet his gaze.

"You are aware of the current situation of the Lin family."

“My dad stood on the rooftop.”

"My mother is in the hospital, and her condition is not good."

She took a breath, her chest aching with a tightness.

"But I can't just stand by and watch them die."

"Lu Zhuo, I'm begging you."

"Give the Lin family a hand, at least don't let it collapse completely, and don't let my dad really jump off."

Lu Zhuo took the cigarette from his lips and crushed it between his fingers.

Tobacco dust fell in a soft rustling sound.

"Yaoyao, you should know who's behind the Lin family's affairs."

Lin Yiyao nodded, tears falling to the floor.

“I know it’s my brother.”

"Then you should also know that he and I are in the same boat."

Lu Zhuo stated the facts calmly.

"Old Yan has just cast his net, and I'm turning around to try and salvage your sinking boat. It's like I'm going against him."

Lin Yiyao trembled, her face turning even paler.

How could she not know?

Yan Tingnan had just taken action against the Lin family, and her relationship with Lu Zhuo was now so awkward and delicate.

Speaking now would be tantamount to putting Lu Zhuo on the hot seat, forcing him to choose between brotherhood and her.

This will put Lu Zhuo in a difficult position, a very difficult position.

This makes her seem so shameless and selfish!

But she had no choice.

She was forced to the edge of a cliff; if she retreated, her family would be destroyed.

"I know this is difficult for you."

Her voice was broken, trembling with despair.

“I know this will come at a great cost, Lu Zhuo, but I won’t let you help me for nothing.”

She mustered the greatest courage of her life and looked up at him through tearful eyes.

"As long as you can help the Lin family get through this crisis, you can name your price for my parents."

"Name your terms?"

He repeated her words, his voice rising slightly at the end.

His gaze fell on her slightly trembling lips.

"Yaoyao, the only thing you have left to negotiate with me is yourself."

Lin Yiyao's pupils contracted sharply, and a chill instantly spread through her limbs and bones.

He really did...

Such conditions would be proposed.

When she was at her most vulnerable and helpless, he kept her by his side in the way she least wanted to be.

Her eyes were burning hot, but she stubbornly refused to let the tears fall.

"good."

She heard herself speak in a numb voice.

Lu Zhuo's gaze sharpened.

"I promise you."

Lin Yiyao looked at him, her eyes filled with desolation.

"As long as you can help the Lin family get through this crisis, I'll do whatever you want with me."

"Marriage or being lovers, it's all fine."

The last few words were so soft they were almost inaudible.

Lu Zhuo stared at her for a long time.

Looking at her slightly trembling yet upright spine, and at the glimmer of light in her eyes that refused to be extinguished.

My heart feels both sore and swollen.

This silly girl is always like this; she seems the most obedient, but deep down she's the most stubborn.

"Yao Yao".

He spoke, his voice low and hoarse.

"Is this all the fuck you've got?"

"You sold yourself to me for those scumbags?"

Lin Yiyao flinched at his shout.

"Otherwise what?"

She looked up at him, and finally couldn't hold back her tears; a single tear slid down her cheek, which she quickly wiped away.

"Lu Zhuo, I am not you."

"I can't be like you, saying no and then giving up so easily!"

"Those are my parents. No matter how despicable they are, I can't just watch them die!"

Her voice was choked with sobs and hoarse.

"I know you look down on me, think I'm a coward, and think I deserve it!"

"Yes! I'm a coward! I deserve it!"

"But what else can I do besides come to you?"

Lu Zhuo looked at her, and the spark in his eyes shattered into dust with a tear.

"In your heart, all I, Lu Zhuo, am is is taking advantage of people's misfortunes, is that it?"

Lin Yiyao was stunned.

What does he mean?

Lu Zhuo closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, all that remained in his eyes was helplessness and resignation.

"Alright."

His voice was terribly hoarse, carrying a sense of resigned weariness.

"Don't cry."

"I'll take care of the Lin family's affairs."