Chapter 17: Scheming

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

“This belongs to Qianqian. I accidentally dirtied my clothes and she lent me her new clothes to wear,” Gu Qingxin replied with an unnatural expression on her face. She had been a bad liar since she was young.

Fortunately, Lin Yin never doubted her daughter. She nodded and replied, “Go change out of these clothes and rest early.”

“Alright. Mom, you should rest early too,” Gu Qingxin said. As she watched her mother leave, she grew increasingly more depressed. She needed to come up with a plan to bring her mother to the hospital for a check-up as soon as possible.

Gu Qingxin returned to her room. The moment she closed the door, she seemed to have lost all of her energy. She leaned her back against the door and slowly slid down until she ended up sitting on the floor and curled into a ball.

At the thought of Beiming Han, Gu Qingxin felt her entire body turn cold. Her mouth was filled with that man’s distinctive taste and she was almost out of breath.

…

The following day was the day that the Gu family was supposed to provide the mother and daughter duo with living expenses. In the past, they paid via credit card. However, today Gu Qingxin received a call from Zhou Mantong asking her to return to the Gu family residence to collect the money.

Afraid that Lin Yin would worry about her, Gu Qingxin kept this from her mother and went to the house that she had not set foot in for three years.

…

When Gu Qingxin regained consciousness, her surroundings were pitch black. She remained dazed for a long time before she returned to her senses and sat up abruptly on the bed.

Some light filtered through the window. She did not have clear vision, but she knew that this was Tang Rongling’s bedroom.

How did she end up here?

Zhou Mantong called her and asked her to return to the Gu family residence to collect their living expenses. When she arrived, one of the maids, Zhou Jie, informed her that Zhou Mantong was still playing mahjong and made her wait in the living room. She even kind-heartedly poured Gu Qingxin a glass of fruit juice.

Feeling thirsty, Gu Qingxin gave it no further thought and drank all the fruit juice. Afterward, she lost consciousness.

There was something wrong with the drink that Zhou Jie had given her.

The bedroom door suddenly opened with a click and Gu Qingxin’s heart jerked aggressively. It was too late for her to leave. Without sufficient time to put more thought into this, she subconsciously hid behind the curtain.

As the door opened and steady footsteps were heard, Gu Qingxin’s heartbeat accelerated to the point that it threatened to jump out of her chest. What exactly was Zhou Mantong planning to do?

Tang Rongling had attended a social gathering today and consumed some alcohol. He was not drunk, but his stomach felt slightly uncomfortable, and his body was inexplicably hot.

Just as Gu Qingxin was praying that he would hurry up and go take a shower in the bathroom so that she could sneak out without attracting his attention, the curtain that had been shielding her was drawn with a whoosh.

She looked up in shock and saw Tang Rongling’s handsome, unblemished face. His features were so perfectly defined he looked more like a sculpture. His eyes flashed with a trace of astonishment which quickly transformed into coldness and unconcealable disgust.

The look of disgust in his eyes pierced through Gu Qingxin’s heart. Her hands curled into fists and her nails dug deeply into her palms.

“Does he really hate me that much? Have the past ten years been nothing but a lie?” she thought.

“What are you doing here?” Tang Rongling grabbed her arms with his large hands that felt more like pliers and dragged her out from her hiding spot behind the curtain.

“I came here to get our living…” Gu Qingxin started explaining herself before she was cut off.

“Are you here to seduce me?” Tang Rongling asked mockingly as he pinched her chin.

Gu Qingxin instantly shook her head. “I’m not here to seduce you. I’ve been framed. Zhou Jie gave me a glass of fruit juice that was spiked.”