Chapter 36: The Uninvited Guest at the Door

The moment the hairdryer clicked off, Gu Jiachen suddenly heard a persistent knocking from the living room, accompanied by a faint, continuous voice. However, the girl’s apartment door offered surprisingly good sound insulation. Consequently, despite catching snippets of sound, Gu Jiachen couldn’t discern what was being shouted outside.

The CEO’s brow furrowed instantly, a wave of concern washing over him. He wondered if his ‘little rabbit’ had somehow provoked an enemy. Quietly, he pushed open the bathroom door and immediately inquired,

“Who’s out there? Little rabbit, is someone knocking on your door?”

Hiss—

At Gu Jiachen’s question, Zhou Ruoyu gasped sharply, cold sweat beading on her back. Disaster! Gu Jiachen had indeed heard the commotion. What was she to do? This was a huge problem. How could she possibly explain this? Perhaps…

‘Don’t worry, CEO Gu, it’s just another one of your kept mistresses, Big Sister, who has arrived. Your pre-booked ‘double delight’ service is ready?’

Yamero—!

‘What in the world am I even thinking? Ugh, there’s absolutely no way to explain this!’

There was no time to react. The girl instinctively leaned against the door, pushing Gu Jiachen back with surprising force. After bracing herself against the bathroom door, the black-haired loli frantically explained,

“Ah… no, no, no, no one at all! You must have misheard, haha? It’s probably just the neighbors in the hallway, they have guests, and they’re shouting too loudly, hahaha~”

She wiped the cold sweat from her forehead, her explanation a clumsy, panicked jumble. Inside the bathroom, Gu Jiachen, who had nearly gotten his hand caught again, blinked in utter bewilderment. After a moment, he instinctively pinched his chin, a flicker of doubt in his eyes.

‘No… can that excuse really be trusted?’

The crucial point was that the knocking clearly didn’t sound like it was transmitted through the air. It distinctly sounded as if someone was pounding their fist heavily on Zhou Ruoyu’s doorframe to create such a ruckus.

Such a violent approach left Gu Jiachen feeling slightly nervous after a long pause. What kind of trouble had this ‘little rabbit’ gotten herself into? Could it be violent debt collection from a loan shark? Or perhaps the spy lady’s former employers were trying to silence her? This…

Gu Jiachen remained silent for a while. Then, he quietly tapped on the bathroom door. Zhou Ruoyu, who had yet to see her ex-girlfriend leave, now heard two more knocks, triggering a sudden PTSD tremor that made her step aside.

Gu Jiachen then pushed the bathroom door open again, leaving a small gap. He looked seriously at the girl and spoke to Zhou Ruoyu,

“Hey, little rabbit, isn’t that knocking coming from *your* door? You mustn’t lie to me! If you’re truly in trouble, tell me now. Don’t worry, in Lihua City, there’s nothing I, Gu Jiachen, can’t handle. I’m your sugar daddy… Uh, hey, hey, hey? No, don’t push the door! You’ll catch my hand again!”

“Waaahhh, thank you, CEO Gu, but it’s really nothing! If you have nothing else to do, hurry up and take a shower! Come, come, give me your clothes, I’ll wash them for you!”

In her desperation, the girl even began to tug at the stained shirt Gu Jiachen was wearing, insisting he take a shower there. Of course, her primary goal was to turn on the shower to mask her ex-girlfriend’s voice, preventing Gu Jiachen from noticing anything amiss, and to buy herself more time.

It was the first time his kept object had so forcefully pulled at his shirt, leaving the towering 1.85-meter CEO momentarily flustered. He stared blankly as Zhou Ruoyu tugged off his clothes. Then, the girl’s face flushed crimson. After a moment, she reached out, gave the CEO’s abs a firm shove, and then slammed the bathroom door shut, stammering,

“Ugh… just, just wash, scrub off two layers of grime! You’re not allowed out until I’ve finished washing your clothes…”

“Tsk…”

The shirtless Gu Jiachen chuckled helplessly. After a moment, he tapped on the bathroom door, his voice laced with a touch of domineering authority as he asked,

“So… you can solve the problem yourself, right? Then… if I’m showering at your place, little rabbit, you know what you’ll have to do later, right?”

Ugh…

‘What do I have to do?’

Zhou Ruoyu’s face turned beet red. She really, *really* didn’t want to know!

Damn it, if it weren’t for the ex-girlfriend problem, Zhou Ruoyu truly wouldn’t want Gu Jiachen using her bathroom. She’d probably want to replace the showerhead afterwards…

‘Never mind, I’ll just play dumb.’

Thinking this, the black-haired loli by the bathroom door lightly coughed twice, then explained, “No, nothing, ah, I know! It’s a door-to-door salesperson, haha, they’re knocking on my door now. Don’t mind them, they’ll leave in a bit.”

As soon as she finished speaking, hearing the shower turn on in the bathroom, Zhou Ruoyu finally breathed a sigh of relief. She looked back at the door, her brows furrowing. She could hear Gu Xue relentlessly pounding on the door outside, muttering plaintively,

“Open the door, Ruoyu! I heard someone talking inside! If you don’t open up, I won’t leave today, boohoo—! Can’t we just talk it out face to face, talk it out face to face…”

Zhou Ruoyu could only sigh, recalling the scene of their breakup. Had she not made it clear enough that she wanted to break up?

If she were to truly reveal the reason for their breakup—that she discovered his infidelity and his years of overwhelming possessiveness—wouldn’t speaking such words only make their relationship end even more disgracefully?

****

As these thoughts resurfaced, three more parts of resentment welled up in Zhou Ruoyu’s heart. For a moment, she even darkened, wanting to directly shove Gu Jiachen’s head into the toilet in the bathroom. After a long while, she gradually calmed down, hardening her resolve. Then, she directly called the community’s property management.

“Hello? Hi, property management? I’m the new owner of Unit XXX, Building X. A woman who seems to be in an unstable mental state suddenly appeared at my door and has been incessantly knocking. I don’t know her at all; she might be someone the previous owner knew. She won’t believe anything I say. Please send security to remove this woman who doesn’t belong in our community. Stop her wailing, it’s disturbing the residents too much!”

The property management was quite efficient. After the girl hung up the phone, only a few minutes passed before a security guard quickly ran to Zhou Ruoyu’s doorstep. He grabbed Gu Xue’s arm and said coldly,

“Miss, what are you doing here? The owner of this apartment just called property management and told us she’s a new resident here and doesn’t know you at all. The person you’re looking for may have already moved out! Regardless, please stop shouting in the hallway. Several residents have already complained about you disturbing the peace. Please leave! Otherwise, we’ll call the police!”

“Moved… moved out?”

Gu Xue froze, her eyes losing their luster. After a very long time, she nodded blankly, then slowly walked downstairs.

Seeing Gu Xue depart, the security guard quickly knocked on the door again, announcing, “Hello, owner. The matter you requested has been handled. That young lady has left. Could you please sign a service form for me?”

Sign?

Zhou Ruoyu frowned, not expecting things to be so troublesome. She walked to the door, but just as she opened it, suddenly—

A figure abruptly darted back!