My girlfriend is from the future!

Wen Liang didn't believe this sudden turn of events was a coincidence. She had come today to find out about He Tianran's situation, and now the man had actually appeared, and was only a wall away from them. She looked at Cao Aiqing, trying to get an answer, but the other party maintained that unsettling calmness and did not respond. She simply put her index finger to her lips, indicating that it was not the time for them to communicate.

The dense sound of rain tapping on the tiles, stones, and lotus leaves separated the interior and exterior of the Chenchen Club into two worlds.

Inside the elegant room, both women were on edge, absorbing every sound coming from next door.

The next private room fell into a quiet waiting state, with only the monotonous sound of rain dripping from the eaves. About a minute later, another set of footsteps sounded, chaotic and hurried, carrying a damp mist. Clearly, someone had rushed over in the rain. The door next door was suddenly pushed open, and the sound of it hitting the wall seemed abrupt and impolite.

"elder brother!"

It was He Yuanchong's voice. He was panting, and even the two women next door could hear the panic in his voice and his disheveled state after being soaked by the rain.

The person in the next room did not respond immediately.

Only silence echoed the wind and rain outside the window, highlighting an invisible pressure.

Wen Liang could almost picture He Tianran's speechless, enigmatic expression at that moment.

And indeed, just as she had imagined, in the next room—

He Yuanchong stood at the door, his hair wet and plastered to his forehead, a water stain seeping from the shoulder of his expensive suit jacket. He looked at He Tianran, who was sitting upright in the armchair, his eyes lowered, intently skimming the foam from his teacup with the lid. The rising steam blurred his expression.

"You called me... in such a hurry?"

He Yuanchong's Adam's apple bobbed as he glanced at the two women in the room, Bai Lingye and Yu Naoqiu.

Bai Lingye sat on the sofa to the side, her posture reserved, her body slightly turned to the side. Her originally forlorn expression turned into one of fear upon seeing He Yuanchong's arrival. She turned her head to the side and moved her body further into the sofa, her desire to escape evident. She perfectly portrayed a victim who had suffered a great injustice but still maintained her composure.

Yu Naoqiu was sitting on another single sofa diagonally opposite Bai Lingye.

She wore a sharp-tailored black suit today, which almost blended into the somber atmosphere.

She didn't perform like Bai Lingye; instead, she crossed her legs, rested her chin on one hand, and tapped the armrest of the sofa with a very regular rhythm with the fingertips of the other hand. Her gaze shifted with interest between Bai Lingye and the ever-silent He Tianran before finally settling on He Yuanchong.

This gaze made He Yuanchong straighten his disheveled tie and regain some composure.

He Tianran blew on the tea foam, took a small sip, and when he put down the teacup, the porcelain bottom made a soft "tap" sound as it touched the mahogany tabletop.

He finally raised his eyes, his gaze like two tangible, cold beams of light, looking at He Yuanchong's soaked shoulders and his slightly flustered face.

"What are your work plans for the afternoon of the 30th of this month, which is... three days from now?"

"Brother...I don't understand what you mean...I..."

He Yuanchong's eyes flickered, He Tianran smiled, took out his phone, and read aloud the chat history that Bai Lingye had sent earlier, as if reciting a script:

"Heh, let me remind you, uh... 'On the 30th of this month, at 3 PM, the Bulgari penthouse river view suite. You bitch, I'm only giving you one chance. If you don't come, you'll regret it!'"

He Tianran put down his phone as if he didn't want to get his hands dirty. Bai Lingye, who was standing next to him, started to tremble and lower her head, sobbing softly. As the sobbing became louder, the color drained from He Yuanchong's face, and his face became even paler.

"Bitch! You fucking played me! Stop fucking crying!"

He Yuanchong suddenly sprang to his feet and rushed toward Bai Lingye, his arm raised as if he were about to deliver a slap filled with shame and indignation!
"He Yuanchong!"

The rebuke did not come from He Tianran, but from Yu Naoqiu, who had been observing the situation quietly.

She had stood up at some point. Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable penetrating power, instantly piercing through He Yuanchong's out-of-control rage.

He Yuanchong's raised arm froze in mid-air, his movement abruptly halted.

He turned his head, his bloodshot eyes looking at Yu Naoqiu in disbelief, his gaze a mixture of unvented rage and a lingering confusion about her reaction.

Yu Naoqiu showed no panic whatsoever. She didn't even look at Bai Lingye; her gaze fell directly on He Yuanchong, carrying an almost stern disappointment.

"Isn't it ugly enough already?"

Her voice was low, but every word was clear: "The second young master of the Shanhai He family, lay a hand on a female artist in a club? Do you want to throw away the last bit of face you have and let everyone see that this is all the worth of you, He Yuanchong?"

Her words sounded like a rebuke, yet subtly brought up the name of the "Shanhai He Family," as if she were not criticizing He Yuanchong's attempt to commit violence itself, but rather the "ugly" consequences that such behavior would bring, which would damage the family's reputation.

She stood on a seemingly dignified high ground, and her words were impeccable.

He Yuanchong was stunned by her scolding. He slowly lowered his raised arm, his chest heaving violently as he panted heavily, like a donkey that was tied up but still unwilling to give up.

Just then, a sigh that seemed to carry a hint of laughter came from the head of the table.

It is He Tianran.

He picked up the teacup again without anyone noticing, his gaze falling on the tea leaves bobbing up and down in the tea soup, as if he already knew the outcome of the thrilling scene just now.

"Miss Yu..."

He spoke, his voice devoid of emotion, even somewhat languid, and carrying a deeper, unspoken meaning:

"You always manage to say the most 'appropriate' thing when I least expect it."

His gaze swept over Yu Naoqiu's still-frosty face, finally settling on He Yuanchong's face, a mixture of anger, humiliation, and bewilderment. Yu Naoqiu's face paled slightly, and his fingers tightened subtly.

He Tianran stopped looking at her and focused his attention back entirely on He Yuanchong.

“Yuan Chong, when it comes to hitting women, either she enjoys it or she deserves it. In my opinion, my female celebrity doesn’t deserve either of those things. Now you’re saying she’s acting in your drama and you want to hit her? Come on, tell me, did she seduce you? Or was she trying to use you to climb the ladder, or was she setting you up? If you can say even one of those things…”

He Tianran patted his chest:

“I’m definitely on your side… but if you can’t explain yourself clearly and then hit her, using violence to cover up your incompetence, then don’t blame me for siding with reason over family.”

With such overwhelming evidence and witnesses, He Yuanchong had virtually no way to refute it. He lowered his head, desperately suppressing the instinctive urge to look to Yu Naoqiu for help. His mind raced back to the anonymous text message he had received shortly after receiving He Tianran's call an hour earlier...

That text message was the real source of his confidence to stand here today.

He wasn't stupid; he wouldn't knowingly stick his head out to get beaten up when He Tianran already had his weakness in his grasp.

The harassment of Bai Lingye has been exposed, and he needs an explanation that can salvage the situation in front of his father, He Panshan, and at the company level, as well as a plan to stop the damage in time.

That text message seemed to offer just that possibility.

He Yuanchong now only hopes that it's not too late...

"Brother... I was wrong."

He Yuanchong's voice was hoarse, and his tone suddenly became low and "sincere." He even bowed slightly, fully embodying the posture of a loser.
"I was confused for a moment, blinded by greed. When I saw Miss Bai... so beautiful and a big star, I... I had wicked thoughts. I admit to the bastard messages I sent, and I even considered taking action just now. I was even more wrong."

He first retreated to advance, admitting all his most obvious mistakes and portraying himself as a fool who was momentarily blinded by lust and acted impulsively, rather than someone who was plotting something.

He knew that at this moment, in He Tianran's heart, he was already a fish on a chopping board. What he said was not important. What mattered was whether his performance could buy enough time for the "loss mitigation plan" and... how Yu Naoqiu would react.

He Tianran understood what was going on after watching his performance.

He seized this opportunity to thoroughly punish He Yuanchong, aiming to completely eliminate all of He Yuanchong's usefulness. Once He Yuanchong became a useless pawn, any connection between him and Yu Naoqiu would naturally crumble on its own.

“Alright, since you’ve admitted your mistake,” He Tianran said calmly, without any emotion, but with a resolute tone, “then I’ll call Dad over later, and you can talk to him yourself.”

What her younger brother cared about most was his image in their father He Panshan's eyes.

A disappointed look from this old father would be more painful than death for him. If this matter were laid bare before He Panshan, He Yuanchong would never have a chance to turn things around with He Tianran.

He Tianran turned around and picked up his phone again, like an executioner raising his knife.

"No... Brother... Don't..."

He Yuanchong's face instantly drained of color, and his voice was filled with genuine terror. He subconsciously took a step forward, almost trying to snatch He Tianran's phone.

Just then, Yu Naoqiu, who had been observing the situation quietly, shook his head at him very subtly and quickly, his eyes conveying a "don't be impatient" message.

Almost at the same time, the door to the private room behind He Tianran was silently pushed open a crack from the outside.

A gentle yet undeniably authoritative middle-aged woman's voice rang out clearly, perfectly interrupting the tense standoff in the room:
"Natural...who are you going to call?"

He Tianran's fingers holding the phone suddenly froze, his hand about to press the dial button stopping in mid-air.

He turned his head and looked towards the doorway.

A woman with an elegant and noble demeanor stood at the entrance, wearing a well-tailored dark green cheongsam with a thin cashmere shawl draped over it, her hair neatly styled.

She wore a perfectly timed, seemingly casually curious smile, but her sharp eyes swept over everyone in the private room: the pale-faced He Yuanchong, the sobbing Bai Lingye, the unreadable Yu Naoqiu, and finally, her gaze settled on the clearly bewildered He Tianran.

She is He Yuanchong's biological mother, He Panshan's current publicly acknowledged wife, and He Tianran's stepmother.

Tao Wei.

Behind her stood two bodyguards in black suits, their faces expressionless, silently demonstrating her status and power.

Tao Wei's appearance instantly disrupted the original balance of power within the private room, making the previously clear situation suddenly become unpredictable.

He Tianran's eyes darkened instantly. He slowly put down his phone, and the last trace of laziness on his face completely disappeared.

"Aunt Tao," he began, his voice regaining its composure but tinged with wariness, "what brings you here?"

Tao Wei smiled slightly and walked into the private room with a calm step. Her gaze fell on He Yuanchong with affection, and her tone was reproachful: "I heard that Yuanchong rushed over to find you. It's raining so hard outside. I was afraid that he would be rash and make you angry again, so I came to check on him."

She casually attributed her arrival to her mother's concern, seemingly oblivious to the strange atmosphere in the private room and He Yuanchong's grief-stricken appearance.

"It seems..."

Her gaze swept over Bai Lingye and Yu Naoqiu again, finally returning to He Tianran's face. Her smile remained warm, but carried a profound meaning.

"It seems I've arrived at just the right time?" (End of Chapter)