Chapter 12

Scanning the QR code didn’t necessarily mean she had to add him... but Gu An’an stared at the sunrise-themed profile picture, sinking into an odd silence.
Some people, though young, already seemed old.
She quietly opened her own profile picture in full view: a pink pig with a pushpin tail, a gun-shaped head, wearing a red dress and yellow rubber shoes.
There was at least a twenty-year generation gap between them; it made sense that Liang Chengli asked her to call him “Uncle.”
Gu An’an recalled the entire book’s content, combed through it, and found no appearances for Liang Chengli. Given his level of familiarity with Xie Jinxing, it didn’t make sense that he wouldn’t appear.
But thinking carefully, the story was written from Su Ruan’s perspective. That is, the book showed the world through Su Ruan’s eyes. Liang Chengli didn’t appear, meaning Su Ruan didn’t know him. So, Xie Jinxing hadn’t brought Su Ruan into his circle of acquaintances?
If that was the case... why not?
Could it be that Xie Jinxing loved Su Ruan so possessively that he felt all other men were after her and wanted to hide her away?
Hmm, that’s possible.
A Mary Sue with no limits, capable of anything.
The front desk attendant noticed her coming out and raised a professional smile, showing all eight teeth.
As Gu An’an approached, the attendant stood, holding out the room key. Her service was exceptionally courteous, far more professional than the stammering Su Ruan who could barely make a phone call.
“Miss Gu, here’s your spare key. I hope you enjoy your stay,” she said in a clear, sweet voice.
It was already past seven.
The attendant hadn’t left work yet. Sure enough, whether in the original world or in this sweet, ghostly world, all the excitement always followed the main characters; ordinary workers were always left behind. Humble employees were forever stuck in overtime.
Gu An’an handed the attendant a small cake. She had originally packed it to take as a midnight snack, but gave it to her on the spot.
The resort’s chefs were all five-star, and the pastry chef’s skills were outstanding. The small cake wasn’t only visually appealing but could withstand scrutiny in taste. Beyond accommodating wealthy women who monitored sugar intake to maintain their figure, it also thoughtfully compensated for flavor.
Super delicious! Super healthy! And no fear of gaining weight!
The attendant’s eyes curved, her eight teeth gleaming: “Thank you, Miss Gu.”
Gu An’an waved and stepped into the elevator.
The heavy rain had stopped, leaving the air scented with a mix of soil and greenery. The open window brought in a faint salty tang of sea breeze. The two scents combined into a kind of “burning money” romance.
The restless waves rolled ashore, carrying away the traces of the day on the beach, as if sweeping away all worries too.
Gu An’an happily soaked in a flower-petal bath, pampering herself with full-body care, applying baby cream.
Though she wasn’t as coldly pale as the story’s female lead, she was at least a fair-yellowish tone. Gu An’an was very satisfied; this appearance was only slightly less beautiful than her original, barely making her qualify as a “super big beauty”!
Her phone suddenly chimed on the sink.
She tied her hair into a ponytail... she had originally wanted a bun, but with her long, thick hair, making a good-looking bun was too difficult.
After half an hour of effort, the results were tragic, either a calabash shape or resembling Li Mochou. She gave up.
She glanced at her phone:
LCL: You have added LCL. Now you can chat.
She had sent the friend request at the restaurant, and it was only now approved.
Impressive, this is the behavior of a wealthy person.
Gu An’an pouted, tossed her phone aside, and found a variety show to watch.
Meanwhile, Liang Chengli, having just finished showering, lazily picked up his phone.
Ten minutes passed, twenty minutes, thirty minutes... no message from Gu An’an.
He was a bit surprised.
Although Liang Chengli wasn’t as handsome as Xie Jinxing, with his extraordinary background, mainly Xie Jinxing was a genetic anomaly, not like normal people, Liang Chengli was still quite sought-after in Jing City’s high-society circles. Young, wealthy, handsome, with an excellent family and high IQ, many would compete for his private contact info. Had this little girl no sense of value?
Gu An’an had nothing to talk about with wealthy people.
If she hadn’t feared that in future melodramatic events she might need him to save her life, she wouldn’t have bothered adding him.
Instinctively, Gu An’an sensed something, this man gave her the same uneasy feeling as Xie Jinxing.
Thus, Liang Chengli was definitely not a good guy. Gu An’an felt that the two of them together could make a “partner-in-crime” combo. Unless she wanted a harder life mode, she wouldn’t get involved with Liang Chengli. Otherwise, he was just a seasonal “holiday greeting message.”
Liang Chengli was slightly surprised, but only a little.
Remembering Gu An’an’s request to pass a message to Xie Jinxing, he dutifully called Xie Jinxing.
Xie Jinxing had just left the charity event venue.
The auction was still ongoing, but the Xie family only needed a representative to appear. There was an important guest for dinner, so he couldn’t leave. At that moment, he was standing outside the lounge corridor smoking.
The Gothic cathedral-like dome stretched the hall to a dramatic height. Light cast across Xie Jinxing’s tall figure. The rain had cleared, leaving the air fresh, with the sweet, grassy scent of the ground. The stained glass colored the streetlamp light outside in warm hues.
A gust of wind blew, dispersing the smoke.
Xie Jinxing, back turned and leaning on the railing, had his pale, slender fingers tinted dark by the colored glass.
“Speak.”
Liang Chengli rolled his eyes, relaying the message from Gu An’an.
“A trivial matter, really troubling you?” Xie Jinxing held a cigarette between his forefinger and middle finger, eyes squinting slightly. His cat-like, outward-turning eyes looked excessively wicked in the half-light.
“The little girl earnestly requested me...I had to inform you.”
“Hmm.”
“Hmm, what does that mean?” Liang Chengli was displeased. “Will you go or not? I need to give her a definite answer.”
“When did you become so attentive?” Xie Jinxing laughed at the absurdity.
“I’m not that attentive. But this time, you’re back in the country. The Xie family wants to get involved in sports, right?” Liang Chengli leaned against the cushion lazily. “Jing Media may not have much, but Jing Sports has several Asian Games gold medalists in men’s basketball, Olympic golds in table tennis”
Xie Jinxing flicked the ash and looked into the endless night. “Send me the little girl’s contact information.”
Liang Chengli: ???
“Who?” he asked.
Xie Jinxing’s voice was like the wind itself: “Gu An’an.”
Liang Chengli: “......”
The seaside resort was perfect for sleeping. The sea breeze was gentle, the waves rocked slowly. The starry sky was beautiful, the food delicious...
If it weren’t for being thrown into the water by the senior coach to struggle for survival, every day at the resort could have been even more wonderful.
Gu An’an spat out a mouthful of salty seawater, shedding a tear as salty and tragic as the sea itself: “Coach, although I sincerely beg you to impart your lifelong knowledge, isn’t this going too fast? Step by step, step by step! Even in fantasy stories, when passing on unparalleled skills, they give some body training time. I’ve only trained one day, and you’re throwing me into the sea?”
“You wanted to speed up, didn’t you?”
The senior coach grinned, her large white teeth glinting in the sunlight.
She clapped Gu An’an’s rounded buttocks: “Those with courage survive! You drank seawater today, tomorrow you can swim five nautical miles! Ten miles is nothing, a hundred isn’t a dream! Three-day crash course starts with drinking seawater!”
“Swim or not!” The senior coach stood hands on hips, pointing forward, shouting. “After my three-day course, even if the Titanic sinks, you can dog-paddle back!”
Gu An’an: “......”
She gave her a thumbs-up.
If you risk your life, crash courses are possible.
She discovered that seawater, besides being a bit fishy and salty with a touch of seafood footbath aroma, wasn’t that hard to swallow.
She could already dog-paddle five nautical miles, still short of a hundred nautical miles, lacking only strong muscles.
No worries, the swim ring would help. If Xie Jinxing dared strip her, she would drag him under too.
Die together!!!
Meanwhile, Su Ruan was fired the next day by the resort.
Oddly enough, Xie Jinxing hadn’t decreed Su Ruan as his official lady despite losing her protector Lu Xingyu. Because she said the wrong thing, she offended a wealthy vacationing woman.
This rich woman, in her forties, made her fortune raising pigs. She had just moved from the countryside and hadn’t yet fully integrated into the CEO world, nor appreciated Su Ruan’s tenacity. Her pudgy fingers, adorned with ten gold rings, pointed at Su Ruan’s nose, scolding her for being uncoordinated, and waved her hands to demand Su Ruan leave.
“A fool like this? My pig farm wouldn’t even take her!”
The wealthy woman was irritated: “She spilled water on me, could she have epilepsy?”
Manager: “Ah... this...”
The front desk manager saw Su Ruan’s pale face, unsure what to do, and contacted the person in charge.
The person in charge, already briefed by Lu Xingyu, dared not take liberties with Su Ruan, a “connected” employee. So he called the top BOSS and got a very un-Mary-Sue-like reply from Assistant Li: Does he look like someone who does charity?
Su Ruan was promptly dismissed.
Upon learning this, Gu An’an unleashed her potential, swimming fifteen nautical miles that day.
And then was exhausted.
Half-dead, she spent the last day of vacation, dragging her tired body back to school.
Grandpa Xie telephoned her from afar, asking her to come home for dinner.
Though Gu An’an tried not to cause misunderstandings, he was still intent on treating her as part of the Xie family. If there was a family dinner, she was always invited. He even sent someone to pick her up, concerned she might feel uncomfortable.
Lu Xingyu straddled his motorcycle in full custom gear, helmet only revealing his clear eyes.
Impatient: “Hurry! I’m in a rush.”
Gu An’an silently pulled her suitcase and walked back expressionlessly.
“Hey, hey, hey, where are you going?” Lu Xingyu kicked the stand, hung his helmet, and chased after her.
“I’ll take the bus.”
“I’ll drive you! Why take the bus?” Lu Xingyu grabbed her arm, his handsome face tense. “You’d waste my time! Ruan Ruan worked somewhere unsafe today; I need to pick her up...”
In her absence, Lu Xingyu and Su Ruan’s relationship had progressed quickly, from full names to nickname repetition:
“Ruan Ruan.”
Ugh
“Then go pick her up! Why do you care what I do?” Gu An’an flicked her hand: “Let go! Let go quickly!”
They tugged back and forth, when a car slowly stopped in front of them.
The window rolled down, revealing a baby-faced driver. Inherited Xie family peach blossom eyes, high nose bridge, slightly chubby cheeks, and deep dimples when smiling.
“What are you doing here?” Lu Xingyu frowned.
He stared at Xie Youjun, feeling a rising unease.
It seemed something that belonged to him was slowly slipping away.
The teenager leaned his arms on the window, grinning: “Brother, grandpa worried Sister An’an might be inconvenienced, so he sent me.”
The newcomer was Xie Youjun, second son of the Xie family’s second uncle.
Just turned eighteen, finished the college entrance exams in June. Just got his license, but had the nerve to drive on main roads. Wealthy kids start playing with cars at thirteen or fourteen, racing by fifteen or sixteen. Though Xie Youjun’s driving experience was limited, he already knew the car inside out.
He hadn’t lived in the old Xie mansion, sent abroad by Xie Liang for school, returning in senior year.
They hadn’t met often, but were acquainted. He treated Gu An’an far better than Lu Xingyu did, after all, she was very pretty.
“I’m here. Need you to pick her up?” Lu Xingyu’s lips tightened, looking like a stern scholar.
Xie Youjun shrugged. “Grandpa arranged it.”
Ignoring Lu Xingyu’s slightly pale lips, he tilted his head to Gu An’an: “Sister An’an, get in?”