Over the past few days, Yu Yan seemed to have settled back into his usual work routine, leaving early and returning late.
The wound on his forehead was treated with a special dressing every day. After undergoing a little more cosmetic treatment, he would be able to officially return to work.
Yu Yan seemed to be in a good mood. When he came home, he brought back a mountain of bags and packages.
Gu Xichao was lying on the sofa, watching a documentary on the tablet Amit had given him.
In truth, just two seconds earlier, he had been reading a trending topic. It was only when he heard the front door open that he hurriedly switched to something else.
Yu Yan rummaged through the pile of gifts and pulled out several fan-made dolls of himself. He called out to the man on the sofa:
“Catch.”
With a casual flick of his hand, he tossed one over, sending it through the air in a clean arc.
Gu Xichao hurriedly set down the tablet and caught the little object before it hit him.
He looked down and saw yet another plush doll modeled after Yu Yan. With obvious disgust, he immediately threw it onto the floor.
“Don’t throw it away. These are gifts from my fans. I thought you liked them…”
Yu Yan picked up the doll and dusted it off.
This chibi version of Nunu was clearly the cutest one. It even had Yu Yan’s signature beauty mark on its face.
“They’re your fans, not mine,” Gu Xichao replied coldly.
“Then can I be your fan?”
Yu Yan deliberately raised his voice to a cute pitch. Holding Nunu up, he pretended the doll was speaking.
Nunu bounced playfully toward Gu Xichao, bobbing up and down in front of him.
Less than two seconds later, it was mercilessly swatted away again.
“Hey!”
Yu Yan flew into a minor rage before sheepishly retrieving the doll once more.
The trending topic Gu Xichao had just seen was titled: “Yu Yan’s Contract Terminated.”
If he remembered correctly, that brand was a subsidiary of Shen Jizhou’s company.
He did not know whether it was merely a coincidence, or whether Shen Jizhou had been unable to contact him and had started following the clues to investigate his disappearance.
Naturally, Gu Xichao desperately hoped it was the latter.
He suddenly regretted not telling Shen Jizhou the truth—that he was Gu Xichao.
At the very least, it would have left open the possibility that he was still in the country and had been abducted by an enemy. It might also have allowed them to build a little more trust between them.
He had sounded so distant during their last phone call. At this point, he would already be incredibly fortunate if Shen Jizhou did not assume that he had fled because he was guilty of something.
Gu Xichao turned toward Yu Yan, who was still sorting through the gifts, and suddenly spoke.
“I’ve finished reading the project proposal. I think your previous suggestion was good, but I have one condition.”
“My business partner, Shen Jizhou, must be present.”
The moment Yu Yan heard that name, his expression darkened.
The brand’s sudden decision to terminate his contract had recently caused a huge uproar online. Neither Yu Yan nor Agent A understood why the company would do something that harmed someone else without bringing itself any benefit.
But once Yu Yan learned that Shen Jizhou had been behind the decision, everything made sense.
Now that he had heard that name from Gu Xichao’s lips, Yu Yan was abruptly reminded that this unpredictable variable still existed.
“What if I refuse?”
Yu Yan’s voice instantly turned cold.
“I’m busy tomorrow. We’ll talk about it another time.”
“Wait. Hear me out. I have a better idea. There’s a very good chance it could create a result where one plus one is greater than two…”
Gu Xichao was still gesturing with his hands.
Before he could explain his idea, Yu Yan walked into his room, slammed the door shut, and locked it.
“Still as willful as ever,” Gu Xichao muttered.
Over the past few days, his opinion of Yu Yan had only just begun to improve slightly. Yet the young man still had that terrible attitude, refusing to listen and walking away before anyone could finish speaking.
Naturally, Gu Xichao had his own reasons for making that demand.
On the one hand, he truly had a better plan. On the other, bringing Shen Jizhou into the project would give him more opportunities to make contact with the man and seek further help.
A gentleman might love money, but he had to obtain it through honorable means.
Gu Xichao certainly enjoyed making money, but he would never sacrifice his freedom for it.
Besides, his ambitions went far beyond that.
He wanted both the fish and the bear’s paw. He had no intention of giving up either.
Perhaps this time, he really could recover the six billion yuan Yu Yan had swindled from him…
The following afternoon, in an executive office at Huanxing Entertainment.
“The PR department has been working overtime for three straight days, and now a whole group of paparazzi and influential accounts are hinting that they have explosive dirt on you. Tell me the truth. Did you go out and cause trouble again?”
Agent A had only just returned, yet she immediately threw herself into dealing with the mountain of work waiting for her.
She had barely managed to clean up the previous mess a few days ago, and now there was another one.
“They’re only bluffing.”
Yu Yan leaned back in his chair with his legs crossed, biting the straw of his vegetable and fruit juice without a care in the world.
“I know they’re bluffing, but the state you’ve been in lately has me worried. And look at your face! If it weren’t insured for fifty million yuan, I’d probably have to use my year-end bonus to pay for the damage!”
Agent A snatched the juice from his hand.
“You deliberately sent me away last time. Surely you can finally tell me what happened now?”
“You’ve met the other person before. At the police station,” Yu Yan replied casually.
He then unlocked his phone and tapped an icon.
A live view of Xilin Manor’s living room appeared on the screen.
Yu Yan switched between several different camera angles. Finally, he found Gu Xichao in the study.
Gu Xichao had a lightweight navy wool sweater draped over his shoulders. Resting his head on one hand, he sat beside the window and quietly read a book.
“What?”
Agent A’s slender brows drew together.
“Do you mean President Shen, the man we met at the police station last time? Wasn’t that whole misunderstanding settled long ago?”
“I knew they weren’t satisfied with the compensation…”
“Don’t tell me you went looking for that foreigner who resembles President Gu again and ended up making President Shen furious?”
“Pfft.”
Yu Yan did not know whether to laugh or cry at Agent A’s extraordinary sharpness.
“That’s not the reason.”
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