Volume 1, Chapter 169: Don't Push

The entire city of Shangjing was in an uproar because the Gu family's little princess had run away from home.

Lu Yuan's household was also in a complete frenzy, all on account of this same Gu family princess.

The Gu family's residence was fully equipped with advanced, smart facilities where a single command could automatically draw a bath at the exact, perfect temperature.

She stood in the bathroom shouting for a long time, but nothing happened. Wanting to call out to Lu Yuan, yet afraid of making him angry, she had no choice but to grope her way forward on her own.

Not knowing what she touched, water suddenly began to gush out.

However, it was not warm water, but ice-cold water.

"Ah—help—"

Lu Yuan was currently tending to his own injuries when he heard Gu Chenxi's blood-curdling shrieks. His patience wearing thin, he darkened his face and shouted toward the bathroom, "What is it this time?"

"It's so cold! I'm freezing to death!"

"Hot water will be here in a minute!"

"How long is a minute?"

"Tsk, just wait!"

"Oh..."

Her savior was awfully fierce, yet she knew deep down that he was a good person.

After about five minutes, Gu Chenxi was shivering violently, her teeth chattering. Wrapped in her clothes, she couldn't help asking, "Why isn't the water hot yet? Is it broken?"

Lu Yuan had already finished bandaging his wounds and was sitting in front of his computer checking data. Hearing this, as if realizing something, he sprang to his feet and strode over to the bathroom door. "Still no hot water?"

"No... It's so cold, cough, cough..."

"Did you put on clothes?"

"Mn."

Lu Yuan pushed the door open and stepped inside, nearly fainting from exasperation. She had turned on the cold water tap; forget five minutes, it would never turn into hot water even if she waited a lifetime.

"I think your brain is the thing that's broken!"

He stepped forward, turned on the hot water faucet, and glared at the dazed Gu Chenxi. "Don't get your wounds wet while bathing. Wash up quickly, and I won't care if you catch a cold."

"Got it."

Gu Chenxi sneezed repeatedly. Listening to the commotion inside, Lu Yuan muttered a low curse, grabbed his car keys, and went out.

When Gu Chenxi finished her bath and emerged, the room was empty. She felt dizzy, sleepy, and exhausted.

Her mind was too sluggish to think, and she had no idea when she had crawled into bed and fallen asleep.

Upon returning, Lu Yuan found that his bed had been occupied. The person's forehead was slick with sweat, her brows tightly furrowed and her cheeks flushed red.

"Don't... don't hit older brother..."

"Daddy is bad, I don't like Daddy."

"So hot... so uncomfortable..."

Gu Chenxi muttered deliriously in her distress. Lu Yuan reached out and touched her forehead; it was shockingly hot. She had indeed developed a fever.

Fortunately, he had the foresight to ride his bike ten kilometers out to buy medicine.

He poured a glass of water and propped her up. "Take your medicine."

The pill was pushed into Gu Chenxi's mouth. Tasting its bitterness, she used her tongue to push it back out.

With a dark expression, Lu Yuan pried open her teeth, forced the pill back inside, and threatened her in her ear, "If you dare spit it out again, you're sleeping on the streets tonight."

Startled into a shiver, Gu Chenxi frowned and forced the medicine down with great difficulty.

Seeing that she had fallen asleep without even drying her hair, Lu Yuan gritted his teeth and reluctantly fetched a hairdryer to dry it for her.

Truly, one should never casually show kindness.

Just bear with it. The moment dawn breaks tomorrow, he would send her away.

Gu Chenxi's hair was dark and glossy, clearly having been meticulously cared for in ordinary times. Not just her hair, but her entire person exuded an air of delicacy.

The exposed skin of her slender arms was fair and tender, not at all like that of an ordinary girl.

He had thought she would recover once she took the medicine, but in the middle of the night, Gu Chenxi began to vomit. Having never eaten instant noodles before, her digestive system simply couldn't handle it.

Compounded with a cold and fever, her body was all the more fragile.

Countless times, Lu Yuan regretted bringing her home; and countless times, he found himself forced to care for her.

It was not until the approach of dawn that Gu Chenxi finally quieted down and fell into a deep sleep.

With someone like this in the house, Lu Yuan had no choice but to take a leave of absence from work in the morning. Besides, having stayed up all night, he needed some sleep himself.

When Gu Chenxi woke up again, she caught the fragrant aroma of porridge. She pushed herself up slowly, only to find that she lacked even the strength to lift a finger.

Lu Yuan looked at her with a darkened face. "Get up quickly. Eat something and leave."

Dazed, Gu Chenxi asked, "Go where?"

"Go anywhere you like, just don't stay in my house."

Gu Chenxi lowered her gaze slightly and remained silent.

As she drank the porridge, she didn't skimp on her praise for Lu Yuan. "You're so amazing. The porridge you cooked is really delicious."

Lu Yuan drank his porridge with a blank expression.

"You're quite handsome, too. You look a lot like my older brother."

Lu Yuan continued to ignore her.

"Good people are rewarded. Since you saved me, you'll definitely be rewarded."

Only then did Lu Yuan cast a chilly glance at her. "Flattery won't work. You still have to leave!"

Having wasted the entire morning, Lu Yuan had no choice but to head to the company in the afternoon.

As they left together, knowing that Gu Chenxi had neither money nor a phone, he handed her five hundred yuan. "This is enough for a taxi home. Don't go looking for trouble anymore."

Clutching the money, Gu Chenxi looked at him with a aggrieved expression. "What's your name?"

Lu Yuan said nothing, mounted his bicycle, and rode away.

Gu Chenxi curled her lips in a pout, holding the money with no idea where to go.

—

Gu Chenxi had been missing for two days.

Despite all factions searching day and night, there was still no trace of her.

Song Qingyu hadn't slept much over the past two days either, yet she was forced to go to work.

As a result, she saw that Lu Yuan looked even more wretched than she did.

"Lu Yuan, what happened to your face?"

Avoiding Song Qingyu's gaze, Lu Yuan pulled up his face mask. "It's nothing."

"Did you get into a fight with someone?"

"A minor matter."

He had never told anyone about fighting in the underground boxing rings. Song Qingyu had previously given him an opportunity to work, making her his benefactor; he couldn't afford to give her any more reasons to worry.

Just as Song Qingyu was about to say something, she heard that President Gu had arrived at the company. Still harboring anxiety over Gu Chenxi, she hesitated for a moment before deciding to go check on Pei Jingmo.

"Your complexion doesn't look too good. Why don't you rest for a while?"

Lu Yuan nodded.

As he rested his head on his desk to sleep, the murmurs of his colleagues drifted vaguely into his ears.

"Can you believe it? I heard the Gu family's little princess is missing. Who knows if she was kidnapped or what? The whole city of Shangjing is on edge."

"I heard the Gu family princess's mind..." The speaker pointed at their own head. "...isn't quite like a normal person's. If something unfortunate happens to her, the consequences will be unthinkable."

"Indeed, and they say she's an absolute beauty, too. It's been two days without any news, I suppose—"

Lu Yuan had never been one for gossip. He simply put on his headphones and drifted off to sleep.

Song Qingyu knocked on the door of the president's office.

"Come in."

Hearing Pei Jingmo's exhausted voice, Song Qingyu pushed the door open and entered.

Pei Jingmo was rapidly signing documents. He intended to compress his workload into an hour and then devote all his energy to searching for Gu Chenxi.

"Um..."

Originally intending to offer some comfort, she found herself at a loss for words now that she was here.

Hearing Song Qingyu's voice, Pei Jingmo paused the hand holding his pen. The next second, he stood up, strode over to her in a few long strides, and pulled her tightly into his arms.

As Song Qingyu made to move, his deep voice sounded against her ear, "Don't push me away. At least for this moment, let me hold you."