As Chuanliu had expected, Wu Fangming appeared at her residence early the next morning.
One really shouldn't easily expose one's weaknesses, otherwise one will be taken advantage of by someone with ulterior motives. Chuanliu couldn't help but think.
Xiaoxiu was eagerly preparing breakfast for Wu Fangming.
"Brother Wu, I fried you a sunny-side-up egg. Do you like it?"
Xiaoxiu rolled up her sleeves, revealing a section of her fair, lotus-root-like arm, and ran back and forth between the kitchen and the dining table.
"Thank you, but no need to trouble yourself. I'm here to see Chuanliu."
Wu Fangming stood at the door, seemingly oblivious to Xiaoxiu's attentiveness, and even took a step back when she approached.
Xiaoxiu missed her target and awkwardly said to herself, "Brother Wu must be tired from coming all this way. Please sit down."
Aunt Wu sat on the sofa like the hostess, inviting Wu Fangming to sit down as well. "Little Wu, what brings you here so early, Xiao Liu?"
Wu Fangming ignored him and waited quietly for Chuanliu to arrive.
Aunt Wu chuckled awkwardly, "You young people always do this kind of nocturnal thing. Xiao Liu was the same yesterday, he didn't come back until very late."
"Aunt Wu knows my itinerary very well."
The girl's voice came from upstairs, her tone casual and teasing.
"It's just... out of concern for you," Aunt Wu said, falling silent.
Chuanliu gestured to Wu Fangming with his eyes, "Shall we go up and have a chat?"
The latter did not linger and got up to go upstairs with her.
Koshou, who had brought out the ingredients from the kitchen, didn't see the man she was expecting and deflated in disappointment. "Auntie, where's Brother Wu?"
Aunt Wu frowned as she looked in the direction the two had left. "They went upstairs with her."
Xiaoxiu's face was full of displeasure. "Why does she always pester Brother Wu? If you hadn't mentioned looking for her back then, we might already be living the high life with Brother Wu in Spade City."
Are you blaming me?
Aunt Wu narrowed her eyes, and her voice turned cold.
Xiaoxiu immediately lost her temper, "No, no, I just feel that she doesn't deserve these things."
Aunt Wu gave her a deep look, her expression meaningful, and said, "Don't think about those unrealistic things. If something happens here, Auntie can't protect you."
Xiaoxiu bowed her head in agreement, but her eyes were filled with resentment and calculation.
Chuanliu and Wu Fangming briefly recounted what happened that night. After a moment of contemplation, the latter said:
"To be honest, 'Nine of Spades' has been picking on me, both openly and secretly, many times. It seems he can't gather enough votes and is trying to forcefully replace me. I've long suspected there's another reason he hasn't acted yet; it looks like he's afraid of a lose-lose situation where someone else benefits."
“That’s right, that’s why I wanted to tell you as soon as I heard about it. Brother Fang Ming, you must be in great danger right now.”
Regardless of his initial intentions, Chuanliu genuinely did not want anything to happen to Wu Fangming.
Wu Fangming patted the girl on the shoulder, "I'm fine on my side, I can handle a head-on fight. But I feel like things are a bit more complicated on your side... Girl, you're in some danger right now."
Chuanliu nodded.
Wu Fangming made up his mind, "How about this, I'll stay here with you for the next few days."
The girl's face lit up with surprise. "Really? Thank you for your help!"
After the matter was settled, Chuanliu arranged a room for Wu Fangming.
Kosode was the happiest of all.
As night fell, Chuanliu specially gathered a few people together in his room and formally announced, "Brother Fang Ming will be staying here with us for the next few days."
Aunt Wu said seemingly casually, "You're not young anymore, you should have some company on Paradise Island."
Hearing Aunt Wu's words, Xiao Xiu's heart tightened, and she couldn't help but clench the hem of her clothes with both hands.
Chuanliu pursed his lips and, surprisingly, began to explain.
"I have always regarded everyone here as family. Now that things have come to this, I will no longer hide anything from you..."
The girl walked to the bookshelf, pulled out a thick book, and took out a well-preserved "3 of Diamonds" from the book's inner compartment.
This was the first time Aunt Wu and Xiaoxiu had seen Chuanliu's perfectly preserved ID card. They had only assumed that Chuanliu had hooked up with a rich man, and they never expected that the girl's ID card would be preserved so perfectly.
On what grounds?
What's the difference between me and her? Why does she get to own this house? Why can she keep her identity? Why can she be with Brother Wu?
Kosode was surprised, but her jealousy intensified.
Chuanliu continued, "Thanks to Brother Fangming, I managed to keep my identity token, which is now being coveted by others."
I was terrified, which is why I specifically asked Fang Ming to come and protect everyone. Please be careful if you're going out recently. As long as we have this card, we won't have to worry about food and clothing in the future.
As she spoke, under the watchful eyes of the others, the girl carefully hid her identity card back in the book.
Aunt Wu, realizing what was happening, spoke first, "Don't worry, your home is our home, and we will definitely keep your secret."
Xiaoxiu lowered her head, seemingly lost in thought, and quietly took two steps toward Wu Fangming, saying weakly, "Brother Wu, you must protect us."
In the days following his confession to the three men, everything remained calm as if nothing had happened.
Every day, Xiaoxiu cooked for Wu Fangming as usual, and Aunt Wu would chat with him whenever she had time.
Chuanliu locked herself up, seemingly genuinely terrified, just as she had said, and dared not even see anyone.
Until one evening.
Xiaoxiu prepared a table full of dishes and even managed to get a bottle of red wine from somewhere, saying that she wanted to thank Wu Fangming for taking care of her these past few days and invited everyone in the villa to have dinner together.
Even Chuanliu, who hadn't been seen for several days, came downstairs.
After a few rounds of drinks, everyone felt sleepy and went back to their rooms one after another.
Xiao Xiu helped Wu Fangming back to his room. He looked clear-headed and no longer felt the drowsiness he had shown in front of Chuanliu and Aunt Wu.
His fingers slid across Wu Fangming's cheek, as if caressing a work of art, and he murmured something to himself.
"Brother Wu, what's so good about her? Why can't you look at me more?"
The woman naturally received no answer. Lingeringly, she leaned against the man, her lips about to touch his cheek, but the man seemed to be having a nightmare, frowning and pulling away.
Kosode continued, talking to herself, "It's okay, you'll see me soon. What she can give you, I can give you too; what she can't give you, I can still give you."
He then left the room.
The next morning, Chuanliu's door was kicked open.
Several strangers appeared in her room.
He recognized the newcomer immediately as a wanderer.
Just as she was about to say something, she saw Kosode walk out of the line triumphantly. "Lazy as a pig, how dare you stay in the '3 of Diamonds' position for so long?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
