Five years without pregnancy means you're too weak; I remarried a powerful man and had triplets

The moment Tan Gui opened the door, she stopped in her tracks.

She stood in the entryway, her eyes scanning the entire living room like a scanner. The open kitchen island was made of a single piece of imported Italian marble, with natural and smooth veins that gleamed with a warm luster in the sunlight.

The living room sofa is a low-key dark gray, and the leather is obviously top-grade top-grain cowhide. The feel of sitting on it is as soft as a cloud.

She remembered that the large screen hanging on the TV wall was a flagship model of an international brand, which was available but not for sale.

"Zhizhi," Tan Gui turned her head, her expression as serious as if she were interrogating a criminal, "how much did you tell me you were paying for this house last time?"

Shen Zhiyi changed into slippers and bent down to push her suitcase against the wall: "Eight thousand five hundred, what's wrong?"

"Eight thousand five?!" Tan Gui's voice rose eight octaves. She strode into the living room, tapping her fingers on the marble island, then touching the leather of the sofa. Finally, she looked up at the built-in speakers and smart lighting system on the ceiling. "Look at the materials used, this marble, these appliances—all top-tier international brands. And touch this floor; it's as smooth as a mirror, without a single scratch. There's absolutely no sign of anyone living in this house!"

She turned around, hands on her hips, a "Are you kidding me?" look on her face: "This landlord spent so much money renovating, and then he just rents it out for only 8,500? What's he after? Is it because you're pretty?"

Shen Zhiyi was amused by her alarmed expression and came over to take her arm: "Don't make a fuss. I heard that the landlord bought this house to live in himself, but later he was transferred to a job abroad and rented it out to get his money back as soon as possible. He left before he even had a chance to move in after the renovation, which is why it looks so new."

"But that doesn't make sense..." Tan Gui narrowed her eyes suspiciously, took out her phone, quickly opened a rental app, and showed Shen Zhiyi several listings in the same neighborhood. "Look," she said, "same layout, same size, and even less furnished than yours, all rent for between 15,000 and 20,000 yuan. Yours is only 8,500 yuan, less than half of theirs!"

She shoved her phone screen in front of Shen Zhiyi's face, her tone growing increasingly serious: "This isn't about recouping funds; it's practically charity! Zhiyi, tell me honestly, does this landlord have some ulterior motive towards you?"

Shen Zhiyi leaned over to look at the price comparison on the phone screen, and her heart skipped a beat.

She did find the rent unbelievably cheap before, but she was in a hurry to move out and the house was exactly what she wanted, so she didn't think much of it.

Now that Tan Gui has reminded me, those doubts have quietly resurfaced.

"No way..." she muttered to herself. "The agent said the landlord is a businessman, a nice person, and that he rented it cheaply because he was in a hurry to go abroad."

"You believe what the agent says?" Tan Gui rolled her eyes, put her phone away, and her expression became even more serious. "Do you know how many unscrupulous landlords lure people in with low prices, then install hidden cameras to film them, or bury traps in the contract, making it impossible for them to leave later!"

As she spoke, she paced around the room like an alert cat, her eyes scanning every corner of the room with laser-like precision.

They peeked behind the curtains, peered into the air conditioner vents, and even checked the sofa seams and under the bed.

She crouched in the corner of the living room, looking up and carefully inspecting the smoke detector and vent on the ceiling, muttering to herself, "These upscale residential areas are the easiest places to hide pinhole cameras..."

Shen Zhiyi stood there, watching her best friend search her entire house like a detective investigating a case, and said, both amused and exasperated, "Yingying, don't scare me..."

"I'm not trying to scare you, I'm protecting you!" Tan Gui stood up, brushed the dust off her knees, her expression serious and brooking no argument. "For women living alone in rented apartments, safety awareness must be at its highest. You wait, I'm going to search this place thoroughly today!"

As she spoke, she walked towards the bedroom, as if she could pull out a hidden camera from any corner at any moment.

As Shen Zhiyi watched her retreating figure, she couldn't suppress the doubts in her heart.

Renting a house like this for 8,500 is really... illogical.

Seeing Tan Gui searching the room like a detective, Pei Jin couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle. She leaned close to Lu Zichuan's ear and whispered in a low voice, "See? I told you not to set such a low price. Now you've aroused suspicion, haven't you?"

Lu Zichuan's thin lips were pressed tightly together, and his jawline was slightly tense.

He only meant to reduce Shen Zhiyi's expenses and ease her burden, but he didn't expect that his good intentions would backfire and make her suspicious of the house.

He glanced at Pei Jin without making a sound, his eyes clearly saying, "Make amends quickly."

Upon receiving the signal, Pei Jin immediately patted his chest, adopting a "I've got this covered" attitude, cleared his throat, and loudly proclaimed, "What's there to be afraid of! With our CEO Lu here, just send someone to conduct a thorough check-up, won't that be enough?"

As he spoke, he walked over to Tan Gui and, with a grin, stopped her from heading into the master bedroom: "Gui-jie, don't bother looking anymore, this house is definitely fine."

Tan Gui narrowed her eyes suspiciously, looking him up and down: "How do you know there's no problem? You're not the landlord."

"Although I'm not the landlord," Pei Jin blinked, casually putting her arm around Lu Zichuan's shoulder and passing the buck to him, "our CEO Lu is a major shareholder in this complex, and he owns several apartments here. Right, CEO Lu?"

Lu Zichuan nodded slightly in agreement, his expression unchanged: "Mm."

"See!" Pei Jin clapped her hands and turned to Shen Zhiyi and Tan Gui, saying, "President Lu has shares in this community, and he manages the property management. Since this apartment was listed by a real estate agency, the paperwork is definitely complete, and the landlord's information is on file with the property management. How about this, I'll call the property management now and have them bring you a copy of the landlord's property ownership certificate and the lease agreement to check? Guaranteed to be legal and legitimate, no deception!"

He spoke with absolute certainty, appearing righteous and awe-inspiring, but inwardly he was giving Lu Zichuan a knowing wink: "Am I being fair? I've brought up your identity directly; now they should believe me."

Tan Gui looked at Lu Zichuan with suspicion: "Really?"

Lu Zichuan remained calm, meeting her gaze with composure and certainty: "Really. There's nothing wrong with the house; you can stay here without worry."

His gaze passed over Tan Gui and landed on Shen Zhiyi's face, his voice unconsciously softening slightly: "If you're really worried, I'll have the property management send someone to do a full security check tomorrow, including checking for hidden cameras. I'll cover the cost."

"Then... I'll have to trouble you, Mr. Lu," she said softly.

"No trouble at all." Lu Zichuan's lips curved into an almost imperceptible smile.

Seeing that Lu Zichuan had said this and his attitude was sincere, not like he was lying, Tan Gui finally dropped her prosecutor's demeanor and muttered, "Alright then, I'll believe it if there are test results. But Zhizhi, you still have to be careful, it's not easy for a woman living alone."

"Okay," Shen Zhiyi replied with a smile.

Pei Jin secretly breathed a sigh of relief and mouthed "done" to Lu Zichuan.

Shen Haozhi stood in the center of the living room, watching the back-and-forth drama unfold, and thoughtfully stroked his chin.

He felt like something was off...