After dumping the poor tycoon, 22
Gu Shi hung the painting in the bedroom and even disinfected and cleaned it carefully, as if the frame had been contaminated with some kind of virus.
Qi An'an sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed, watching his movements, her face burning with embarrassment.
Cough cough... Can't we just leave it hanging?
It's so embarrassing.
But she didn't say it.
She had thought that the painting would definitely help advance the task by a lot, but it only increased by 2%!
Xiao Hei perched on Qi An'an's shoulder, its voice barely a whisper, "The storyline doesn't mention this painting, but there are Jin Tianyu's fingerprints on the glass. He must have taken the painting away back then and is now sending it back to Gu Shi... An'an, don't be fooled by Gu Shi's calm demeanor; his emotions can be incredibly volatile!"
Qi An'an nodded, repeatedly studying the plot line that Xiao Hei had once passed on to her in her mind.
By this time, Jin Tianyu had already taken over the Jin family's business and had met Gu Shi several times. Gu Shi was particularly fond of finding fault with him, so the Jin family's business was ultimately brought down by Gu Shi.
Not just Jin Tianyu, but others too...
Seeing that she was in a daze, Gu Shi asked, "Don't you like it?"
Qi An'an shook her head, then nodded, "I like it..."
But the melancholy in his eyes hadn't lessened at all; he wasn't as calm as he appeared.
She asked, "Do you know who sent it to you?"
He nodded and continued, "Before, Jin Tianyu refused to return it to me."
The thought that this painting was treasured by another man to remember her naturally made Gu Shi feel terrible.
Looking at the captivating girl in the painting, Qi An'an said, "It's all because you painted her too well."
Seeing that he was speechless, she quickly asked, "Then why are you willing to pay it back now?"
Gu Shi said in a light tone, "His shopping app was reported for leaking personal information and is now facing various investigations. He's probably too busy to look at this painting."
Qi An'an could detect a hint of sarcasm in his flat tone.
She immediately understood that the report must be related to him, and Jin Tianyu had no choice but to return the painting.
"Does his company really have problems?"
A hint of coldness lingered in Gu Shi's eyes. "You think it was a malicious report?"
"..." Qi An'an shook her head, "I don't know about those things, but the painting originally belonged to you, so he should return it to you."
Gu Shi came up to her, looked down at her, his gaze like a deep net, tightly binding her. "It's yours, I'm giving it to you, Qi An'an."
"Mm." Qi An'an nodded. "Thank you, Gu Shi."
Of course she knew that he had come to her full of anticipation, wanting to celebrate her birthday. When he saw her, his eyes were full of trust and love.
Then she personally trampled his love to pieces.
It's clear what sweet thoughts he had when he painted this picture, because the woman in the painting is full of affection in her eyes and brows.
This is how he sees her, how much she loves him.
Qi An'an got up from the bed and hugged Gu Shi. She smelled his cold scent and felt a pang of sadness in her heart.
She buried her face in the crook of his shoulder, her voice deep and muffled, "I feel... like I can never make it up to you, Gu Shi..."
Her hair tickled Gu Shi's cheek, and his heart trembled uncontrollably at the sound of her voice.
He tried his best to remain calm. "How do you know it's irreparable? You have a lifetime, don't you?"
She just gave a vague "hmm".
He pushed her away, looking into her red and moist eyes.
He wanted to ask, "Qi An'an, do you still want to escape?"
But he forced himself to suppress it, the nameless, hidden fear lingering in his heart.
He found that he didn't care about anything else, as long as she could stay by his side.
He ran his fingertip across the corner of her eye, taking away a trace of moisture, and his voice softened, "Besides, what I need is not compensation."
What is that?
Qi An'an wisely refrained from pressing the matter. She sensed his insecurity and said softly, "Mistakes always need to be made up for. Didn't you say we have a lifetime to work things out? So we can take it slow."
Gu Shi gazed at her, and undeniably, he was comforted by her words.
He lowered his eyes and said, "Aren't we going back to the Qi Group later?"
Qi An'an then remembered this and nodded, "Yes, are you going to give me a ride?"
"good."
Qi An'an had no interest in going to work.
However, Qi Dong planned to put her in charge of the amusement park project, and Gu Shi's investment was also ready to be available at any time. She felt that her schedule was well arranged, and with Xiao □ □ busy keeping an eye on the documents, she only needed to follow the procedures, so she wasn't too tired.
Of course, whether this project can be saved in the end is still unknown.
She mumbled and asked, "Do you think I'm useless because I don't have a career?"
Gu Shi seemed to think for a moment before replying, "I don't feel it yet, but you'd better try your best."
Qi An'an: "..." Does this mean she's disgusted?
Gu Shi patted her on the head twice, like patting a puppy, before walking away.
Qi An'an looked at Xiao Hei, wondering what he was up to.
Gu Shi clearly has a possessive desire for her, but he seems to be fighting against that possessiveness.
Xiao Hei: "An An, I don't recommend that you get involved in the affairs of the Qi Group, so as to avoid having too many connections with this world."
Qi An'an completely ignored Xiao Hei's words, since she had heard similar things far too often.
Xiao Hei only reminds you from time to time because of the program settings.
——
Qi An'an's face is already a familiar face to everyone in the Qi Group.
After the news that Qi Ning was an illegitimate child spread, information about Qi An'an, the young lady, was also dug up.
She worked there for a while, but a few days ago she suddenly took sick leave and disappeared without a trace.
Qi Ning was directly sent abroad on a business trip, so everyone assumed that the two siblings were fighting over the family property.
In Qi Dong's office, Qi An'an was engrossed in processing the information he had given her, while Xiao Hei was relaying the gossip circulating outside.
"You're immediately put in charge of the East Suburbs Amusement Park project? Hasn't that been stalled for a long time?"
"Hahaha, that's hilarious. She probably thought this project was still the hot commodity it was at the beginning, but it turns out it's a pile of shit."
"She's been in a vegetative state for five years, did she not do her homework properly?"
"Just a pretty face, not even as good as Young Master Qi. Poor Young Master Qi, he was banished the moment the young lady arrived..."
"Of course! I heard she's getting married into the Ma family, those nouveau riche restaurant owners in Rongcheng!"
"What's the point of a marriage alliance... I've already found a new partner anyway."
"Damn, is it really necessary to be in such a hurry? I think we can hold on for another year..."
...
Qi An'an's eyes were sore and her ears were being tortured, so she couldn't help but say, "Shut up."
Xiao Hei: "..."
Not far away, Qi Dong put down his phone, which was on a call, and looked at Qi An'an. "An'an, what's wrong?"
Qi An'an shook her head.
She just accidentally let it slip.
She casually made up an excuse, "There seem to be mosquitoes in the office."
Xiao Hei: "..."
Qi Dong nodded, but couldn't help but glance at her a few more times. "You're not fully recovered from your illness yet. If you're not feeling well, go home and rest first."
"It's okay. I have to go to the site this afternoon. I'll finish reviewing the materials first."
Qi Dong felt somewhat gratified to see her serious attitude.
He picked up his phone, walked to the French windows, and whispered, "It's nothing, An'an said there are mosquitoes."
He paused for a moment, then said coldly, "President Gu, everything is proceeding according to your wishes now. What else do you want?"
"Mr. Qi, I'll come over for a visit at noon."
After Gu Shi finished speaking, he hung up the phone.
Qi Dong gripped his phone, his lungs aching with anger.
Meanwhile, Xiao Hei continued idly typing out a report, "It's Gu Shi calling, asking about your work progress. He's coming over soon!"
Qi An'an glanced at her and nodded, "Don't talk to me unless it's absolutely necessary."
Xiao Hei: "..."
Gu Shi arrived around noon.
It was during the staff's lunch break, and he came alone without asking anyone to pick him up beforehand. However, Qi Dong had already given prior notice, so the receptionist recognized Gu Shi at a glance and respectfully escorted him to the elevator.
His face was cold and aloof, and he exuded an imposing aura. He even took the high-rise's private elevator, so he attracted attention as soon as he appeared.
Thanks to Qi Dong's deliberate promotion, news of SA Capital's CEO Gu appearing at Qi's Group to discuss cooperation spread extremely quickly.
Gu Shi offered himself up for his use, so he couldn't very well refuse.
After Gu Shi entered the chairman's office, his gaze swept over Qi An'an's small desk, and he frowned. "President Qi, with such a big place, you can't even spare a decent office?"
Qi Dong laughed and replied stiffly, "The people below are a bit slow, but arrangements are already being made."
He was worried that An'an might have some questions and cause trouble by running around asking, so he simply let her stay in his office. But in Gu Shi's mouth, it sounded like he was mistreating his own daughter.
However, Qi Dong also understood that An An didn't care about him cutting off her medical expenses, but Gu Shi did.
Therefore, in Gu Shi's eyes, he was never a good father.
Qi Dong felt guilty about his relationship with his daughter, and Gu Shi always managed to hit him where it hurt.
"I don't need to. I'm fine here, and I don't necessarily have to stay here long-term. It's too much trouble to move around."
Gu Shi seemed to take Qi An'an's casual remark seriously and asked, "Where are you going?"
She replied somewhat awkwardly, "I don't really like working. Anyway, you have money, can't you support me?"
Hearing his daughter's confident words, Qi Dong couldn't help but feel uneasy and subconsciously glanced at Gu Shi's expression.
He knew very well that Gu Shi was not an easy person to talk to.
Gu Shi is clearly trying to make An An look good, but An An is not only disappointing, she also said such things...
Sure enough, Gu Shi said, "I won't raise them."
You couldn't discern any emotion in his tone.
Qi An'an: "...I have a car and a house, and I have a million in my account, so I can support you."
Gu Shi's eyes were unfathomable; the promises she made no longer held any appeal for him.
"..." To prevent his daughter from saying anything more absurd, Qi Dong interjected, "Is An'an hungry? What would you like to eat?"
It was Qi Dong who brought up lunch, but in the end Gu Shi simply took Qi An'an away.
From the moment Gu Shi entered until he left, he only stayed for about ten minutes.
In that sense, it seems more like he came specifically to pick up Qi An'an for dinner.
Qi Dong was happy to see the two of them develop their relationship and naturally wouldn't try to hinder it.
However, Gu Shi doesn't seem to have mentioned their marriage to An An yet, and it's unclear what his plans are.
After the two left, Qi Dong received several phone calls from old friends to "reconnect," but they all kept asking about Gu Shi.
Several board members had initially strongly opposed An An's appointment, but now that they saw this trend, they stopped uttering a single word of objection.
Gu Shi is a business genius who appeared out of nowhere. He is better than anyone else at playing the capitalist game, and his every move is magnified by his peers in the industry.
They speculated whether the Qi Group had some special value, but they certainly didn't believe that Gu Shi was rushing over because of a woman.
——
Qi An'an thought she was quite familiar with Rongcheng, so she volunteered to take Gu Shi to find something to eat. But when they got there, she found out that the shopping mall Gu Shi used to love had closed down.
Finally, starving Qi An'an followed Gu Shi and ate some congee by the roadside.
During this time, Gu Shi showed no impatience whatsoever, and even advanced the task progress by 3%.
Qi An'an went to pay the bill and brought him a bottle of yogurt when she came back.
She could tell that he always enjoyed spending time with her, no matter what happened, whether good or bad.
He became independent too early and was lonely for too many years. He longed for the ordinary life with a loved one.
Just after 2 a.m., Gu Shi took Qi An'an to the construction site of the amusement park. He did not leave, but followed her the whole time, but acted as if he was invisible and did not say a word.
The other members of the project team knew his identity, but dared not utter a sound, lest they displease him and cause the project to be delayed again.
The amusement park covers more than 100 hectares and is entirely composed of European-style buildings. The completed castle is painted orange, and a huge Ferris wheel can be seen in the distance. However, due to the suspension of construction, it is not maintained and the exterior of the Ferris wheel looks somewhat old.
When Qidong initially secured this project, it relied on bank loans and investments from partners. However, the project dragged on for too long, making it difficult to secure loans and preventing the investment from keeping up. Later, during a rush to complete the project, a worker fell and died in the hospital. A series of issues combined to cause the project to be delayed repeatedly.
Last year, a large amusement park was built in a neighboring city, and it attracted domestic tourists as soon as it opened. Faced with such market competition, Qi's Group completely abandoned the project.
No one expected that Gu Shi would take a liking to him.
The project is restarting, and there aren't many people in the park. Qi An'an, as the new person in charge of the project, is the one who asked all the team members to come to the site for inspection.
The amusement park has already invested 5 billion yuan in its initial phase, but that's far from enough. To reopen it, they not only need to solve the funding problem, but also find ways to cope with strong competition from neighboring cities and add innovative attractions...
Qi An'an's mind was filled with images of many popular IPs, and she felt a surge of excitement.
Little Black sensed her excitement, and the whole ball wilted.
How long will it take to finish this project? How many people will An'an have to interact with during that time? She shouldn't be doing this!
Apart from Gu Shi, the chosen one, everyone else here is unimportant; to put it bluntly, they're just NPCs!
The employee handbook only offered suggestions, but didn't explicitly prohibit anything. Xiao Hei had only heard from other systems that some new employees, due to their high emotional intensity, fell into depression after being detached from the real world...
That's terrible. Qi An'an ignored it. Since she had taken on the project, she might as well supervise its completion.
It wasn't until evening that Qi An'an managed to roughly see the entire amusement park, and Xiao Hei would point out some engineering problems left over from the construction.
She wrote them down one by one.
When Engineer Liang, who was leading the project team to inspect the site, noticed her behavior, his disdain was replaced by surprise, and his attitude improved afterward.
The project was frequently overseen by different leaders, none of whom were competent and always came up with unrealistic ideas, resulting in a significant waste of resources and funds.
The group seems to want to restart the project. This young lady looks delicate, but she doesn't complain of being tired even after half a day. She has a good understanding of every piece of equipment and has a unique perspective. Perhaps... this little world can really be officially launched one day?
Around 8 p.m., Qi An'an got into Gu Shi's car and slept all the way home.
Xiao Hei was so disappointed in An An, what a great opportunity to communicate! An An missed it!
But, but the mission progress has increased!!
Xiao Hei stared at the 73% figure in the void, lost in confusion.
As the car came to a stop, Xiao Hei saw the handsome man carefully unbuckle Qi An'an's seatbelt and lift her out of the car, as if she were some rare treasure.
There was absolutely no trace of hostility in them.
She's just a love-struck fool who's completely lost in the web of romance.
——
As they entered the elevator, Qi An'an woke up with a start. She instinctively reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing closer to his strong arms. "I didn't sleep at noon, I'm so sleepy..."
"Go back and take a shower before you sleep." Gu Shi lowered her head slightly.
A smooth jawline and thin lips flashed before Qi An'an's eyes.
How could she miss such a good opportunity to seduce him?
She gently lifted her chin and gave him a quick peck on the corner of his mouth, as if it were an involuntary action. When he looked down at her, she slowly kissed his lips again.
If he wanted to avoid it, he could have easily done so.
But he didn't.
There was neither rejection nor an attempt to delve deeper.
The deep, dark color in his eyes was so intense it seemed to devour her.
She placed her palm against his chest and felt the surging power within.
He was clearly trembling with emotion.
"Why are you acting like a wooden doll..."
Just as Qi An'an made a teasing remark, the elevator doors opened, and Gu Shi carried her out, saying, "The monitoring room operates on a 24-hour shift system."
Qi An'an: "???"
There are two surveillance cameras in the elevator!
Why didn't he remind her earlier?
Gu Shi glanced at her, who looked as if the sky was about to fall, and smiled.
Qi An'an could see it clearly, and regardless of whether there were still surveillance cameras, she hugged his neck tightly again, and as if she was angry and embarrassed, she kissed his chin several times in a row.
Gu Shi remained unmoved, as still as a mountain, but his heart pounded even faster.
After entering the room, Qi An'an was pinned against the door and kissed until her legs went weak.
She didn't know how she was pushed into the bathroom. After taking a quick shower, she lazily lay down on the bed and felt like she had come back to life.
She saw the painting hanging on the wall and suddenly jumped up again.
[Little Blackie, Little □□ I got two mosquito bites on my right foot.]
"..."
Xiao Hei didn't understand, but he did as instructed.
It left two mosquito bites on the back of her feet, which were red, swollen, and quite noticeable.
When Gu Shi came out, Qi An'an was squatting in the cabinet rummaging through it. "A-Shi, where is the erythromycin ointment we bought last time?"
The bottom layer.
Qi An'an quickly found the ointment.
"Bited again?" Gu Shi stepped forward, his body seemingly still enveloped in warm, damp steam.
"Uh-huh."
Where to bite?
Qi An'an climbed onto the bed with the ointment in her hand, and lifted her foot, "...foot."
Gu Shi's eyes flickered slightly as he sat down by the bed and took the ointment from her hand.
She would steal glances at his expression every now and then.
Xiao Hei: "He's not angry."
Of course, she could tell too.
Under the soft light, her shapely feet, with their delicate and fair skin and slender, graceful ankles, were even more beautiful than in the painting. The two marks on the instep of her right foot resembled two red plum blossoms resting on the snow, subtly revealing their charm.
Gu Shi's gaze swept over her, gradually becoming intense. He lowered his eyes, reached out, dabbed some ointment, and applied it. "How many mosquitoes did you kill in your past life?"
She said in a sweet, coquettish voice, "You're still joking with me, it tickles so much..."
She reached out to scratch, but Gu Shi slapped her hand away. "Don't touch it, just bear with it."
To prevent her from scratching again, he gently held her right foot in his palm.
For a moment, both of them were stunned.
His palms were burning hot, and Qi An'an felt her feet go weak, a tingling sensation rising from there to her brain.
"Gu Shi, shall we do it?"
Her eyes were misty and watery, giving him full control.
But she didn't know that all his self-control vanished the moment she asked him that question.
He leaned forward, pinning her to the bed, his large hands gripping her soft, boneless feet even tighter.
His eyes were slightly red from the surging emotions, and the veins on his neck showed his explosive power.
He wasn't a foot fetishist at all; he was fascinated by every inch of her—her eyes, her hair, her voice…
He wanted to possess everything, whether it was tangible or intangible.
What angered him at the time was not how she humiliated him, but that she abandoned him.
His revenge wasn't to see her suffer, but to keep her by his side again.
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