After being diagnosed with a terminal illness, the fake heiress binds herself to a rough-looking man

Huo Li leaned back in the driver's seat of the Wuling Hongguang, watching the lights on the third floor across the street go out.

He pulled out his old Nokia phone and pressed the number keys.

Send it to Li Beichen.

[Those mergers and acquisitions currently being negotiated by the Jiang Group, get a few upstream suppliers involved to stir things up. Make a big fuss. Keep Jiang Yu'an busy.]

After sending it, he thought for a moment and added another message.

Don't go too far, just enough. Make it look like normal friction in business competition. I want to distract him, not overturn the table.

Li Beichen replied instantly: [Received. We'll act first thing tomorrow morning. Young Master, are you trying to go on a date without your brother-in-law knowing?]

Huo Li immediately shut down the phone.

Back in the rented room, I paused for a moment as I passed the bedroom.

The creaking, broken single bed with springs sat against the wall, its iron frame covered in peeling paint.

He stared at the bed for five seconds.

---

All the lights in the living room of the hillside villa were on.

The moment Jiang Yu walked in, she knew that this meal was inevitable tonight.

Jiang's mother sat in the middle of the sofa, her face long and drawn.

Mr. Jiang stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, his hands behind his back, without turning around.

Jiang Ruoruo changed into her home clothes, her eyes swollen like walnuts, nestled next to her mother, clutching a tissue in her hand.

Fully armed and on high alert, they were practically ready to unfurl a banner that read, "Jiang Yu, kneel down before me."

"You're finally back!"

Jiang's mother fired the first shot, slamming her hand on the coffee table, "Did you do this on purpose today? For Ruoruo's family reunion banquet, you're wearing that—"

She was silenced by a single look from Jiang Yu'an.

Jiang Yu'an helped Jiang Yu walk in, without letting go of her hand.

He didn't let Jiang Yu go to the sofa; he left her in the entryway.

"Mom, the bleeding from her arm wound hasn't completely stopped yet. We'll talk about it tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? By then it'll be too late!"

Jiang's mother was furious. "Look at how badly Ruoruo is crying! It's a perfectly good family reunion banquet—"

Jiang Yu made a move.

She pushed away Jiang Yu'an's hand that was supporting her and took two steps forward.

His arms were wrapped in thick gauze, and his face was deathly pale.

Jiang Yu'an's suit jacket hung loosely on her body.

"mom."

Jiang Yu spoke, her voice hoarse and nasal from crying.

"It was my fault."

Jiang's mother was taken aback.

"I shouldn't have worn that dress. It's Ruoruo's big day; I shouldn't have stolen her thunder."

Jiang Yu lowered her head, her eyelashes glistening with tears, and her voice grew softer and softer as she spoke, "The champagne tower incident was my own fault for not standing properly; it had nothing to do with Ruoruo. She was trying to pull me up, and I dodged, which is why I bumped into her."

Tears fell down.

One, two.

It slid down her cheek, down her chin, and dripped onto her collar.

"I ruined her family reunion banquet... I'm sorry."

The living room was quiet for two seconds.

Jiang Ruoruo opened her mouth, then closed it again.

The expression on his face was somewhat complicated.

She had prepared a whole bunch of lines about her grievances, but Jiang Yu's move completely ruined them.

You've taken all the blame, so how can she still cry?

If you cry again, you'll be seen as unreasonable.

Seeing Jiang Yu shed tears, Jiang's mother's anger subsided considerably, but she still stubbornly retorted, "I should have known better than to wear that dress..."

Jiang's father turned around, silently looked at the gauze on Jiang Yu's arm, and sighed.

"Alright, everyone's injured, stop talking."

Jiang Yu'an stepped forward, placed his hand on Jiang Yu's back, and patted it gently twice.

"Go upstairs and rest."

Jiang Yu nodded, her lips pursed, tears still clinging to her face.

As she turned to walk towards the stairs, she caught a glimpse of Jiang Ruoruo staring at her out of the corner of her eye.

unwilling.

Jiang Yu went upstairs, closed the door, and buried her head in the pillow.

As for how Jiang Yu'an will handle the situation and how he will appease Jiang Ruoruo, that remains to be seen.

That's his business.

She can't control it, and she's too lazy to control it.

The phone was under the pillow.

She took it out, hesitated for a few seconds, and didn't open Huo Li's chat window.

Jiang Yu'an just sent the message "Stay away from her" using her phone.

She didn't know what Huo Li would think after seeing this.

But she knew that if she sent a message now, Jiang Yu'an might check her phone.

Never mind, let's wait a couple of days.

---

Two days later.

Jiang Yu'an suddenly became busy.

The acquisition deal involving the Zhao family suddenly took an unexpected turn when the other party temporarily modified three core clauses and refused to budge.

Jiang Yu'an has been staying at the company for two consecutive days since Monday morning and hasn't gone home.

Jiang Yu observed for a full day and a half.

On Monday night, Jiang Yu'an did not come home for dinner.

On Tuesday morning, he called back to ask if his arm was feeling better.

On Tuesday at noon, Jiang Yu confirmed that she could go out.

She wore a loose cotton T-shirt, denim shorts, and canvas shoes.

The gauze on my arm was removed and replaced with a breathable dressing.

Go downstairs.

Wang Ma is preparing vegetables in the kitchen.

"Wang Ma, I'm going to get something from Lin Xingran. I'll be right back."

Wang Ma hesitated, "The eldest young master said—"

"I'll only be out for two hours."

Jiang Yu had already opened the door and turned back to smile at her.

"Keep this a secret. I'll bring you your favorite osmanthus cake when I get back."

Wang Ma opened her mouth, but ultimately didn't stop her.

After leaving the villa area, Jiang Yu hailed a taxi and headed straight for the south of the city.

---

When the car reached the alley entrance, Jiang Yu's heart was beating abnormally fast.

I can't quite tell if it's nervousness or something else.

Add to that something else she's less willing to admit.

The metal roof of the auto repair shop was scorching hot under the sun.

She stepped inside in her canvas shoes, and the smell of engine oil hit her.

Under the metal shed of the auto repair shop.

The hood of the Wuling Hongguang was open, and Huo Li was leaning half his body inside, wringing something out.

Hearing "high heels"—no, today it's "sneakers."

The sound of rubber soles stepping on cement.

Huo Li straightened up.

Black old man's vest, covered in oily phone.

It's exactly the same as when she first came.

"Oh." Jiang Yu stood at the door, hands on her hips.

Huo Li wiped his hands with a rag and looked her up and down.

White T-shirt, shorts, with some dust on my legs.

This is much more down-to-earth than the last time I wore a silk dress.

"How's your arm?"

"It's done." Jiang Yu tore off the dressing to show him; it had already scabbed over.

Huo Li walked over, grabbed her wrist, and flipped it over.

When my finger touched the edge of the scar, I applied very light pressure.

"Does it still hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt anymore."

Huo Li released his grip.

The two men stood under the tin shed, with a Wuling Hongguang van between them, and neither of them moved.

Jiang Yu couldn't hold back any longer and kicked the tip of his shoe.

"Let's go. Upstairs."

Huo Li's eyebrows twitched.

"What's the rush?"

"I can only come out for two hours."

Huo Li tossed the rag into the toolbox, closed the hood, and picked up the keys from the table.

The two people went around to the bottom of the rented house through the back door.

Go upstairs.

The stairwell still had that musty smell typical of old buildings, and the motion-activated lights kept turning on and off.

Third floor.

Huo Li opened the door.

The moment Jiang Yu stepped inside, she stopped in her tracks.

The house is still the same house.

The paint on the walls is still peeling, the fan is still the same old broken one, and the curtains still can't be drawn properly.

But the bed was changed.

The creaking single spring bed was gone.

Instead, there was a 1.5-meter double bed.

It's not a spring.

It is a thickened mattress made of solid wood boards.

The mattress was new, covered with a dark gray sheet that was neatly folded.