Li Nanfang and President Zhao both called Li Qianfan, repeatedly instructing him to provide twenty-four-hour close protection for Su Nanyin.
Last night, Li Qianfan had slept on a mat beside her.
But a little over an hour ago—
For the sake of money, Li Qianfan had personally escorted Kang Er and the others away with Yaoyao, and in the process, discussed important matters with Gao Lingwang and the others in the lobby.
An hour!
So much could happen in that much time.
This included certain assassins, or perhaps Luo Huayin, who had already arrived in Modu, calmly abducting Su Nanyin!
After all, the Great Wall Hotel was so large, with so many guests, that even if Gao Lingwang and the others guarded the lobby, they had no authority to search every single guest entering and exiting.
Those assassins, or Luo Huayin, or even members of the Ma family, could have swiftly abducted her while Li Qianfan and Yaoyao were both away from Su Nanyin.
"How could I forget President Zhao's and Grandfather's repeated instructions?"
"How could I have taken Yaoyao to see Kang Er and the others off!"
"How could I have talked with Old Gao and the others for so long in the lobby?"
Li Qianfan looked at Su Nanyin's mobile phone, which was still buzzing on the sofa, and felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
He was even trembling, overcome by an inexpressible fear.
He turned and lunged towards the door.
He absolutely could not waste precious time wallowing in regret and fear.
He had to find clues about Su Nanyin's abduction as quickly as possible!
"Whoever abducted Guanyin is dead."
Li Qianfan could feel his facial muscles contorting, and his sudden movement to open the door was also distorted.
Ah!
As soon as Li Qianfan opened the door, Su Nanyin, who was just coming out of Su Xin's room and about to enter her own, was startled by the unexpected sight.
She cried out in surprise and quickly stepped back. Seeing his terrifying expression, she hastily asked, "Qianfan, what's wrong? What happened?"
Before she could finish speaking—
Li Qianfan raised his hand and grabbed her arm, pulling her into his embrace.
Ah!
Su Nanyin let out another soft cry of surprise.
Li Qianfan, however, held her tightly and asked sternly, "Where were you? Why weren't you waiting in the room? Why didn't you bring your phone? Do you know how terrified I was when I couldn't find you? Why were you running around by yourself instead of waiting obediently in the room!?"
At the door of the adjacent suite.
Su Xin, who had just seen Su Nanyin out, was stunned by this scene.
The young lady had only come to her room and back, a distance of at most ten meters. Was that considered running around?
Yes.
Su Xin thought so, and then quietly retreated back into her room.
Hoo hoo.
Li Qianfan's breathing was rapid, like the sound of a sealed box, exhaling heavily onto Su Nanyin's shoulder.
She felt as if her spine was about to be crushed by Li Qianfan.
Yet, she kept her head held high, eyes closed, silent and still.
At this moment.
She could clearly feel the overwhelming fear in Li Qianfan's heart from not being able to see her.
"So, Qianfan cares about me this much."
Su Nanyin said silently in her heart, feeling a wave of dizziness as a torrent of warmth rapidly engulfed her.
Bang, bang.
After an unknown amount of time, Li Qianfan's heart, which had been pounding almost out of his chest, gradually calmed down.
He then realized he was gripping Su Nanyin too tightly.
Because he was squeezing so hard, her fair complexion was actually starting to turn pale.
Yet, she remained motionless, eyes closed, chin raised.
Li Qianfan quickly released her and turned to walk back into the room.
Hoo.
Su Nanyin, who had almost suffocated, finally took a deep breath and exhaled softly.
She walked over to the sofa and sat beside Li Qianfan, saying softly, "I just went to find Su Xin and chatted with Maochong using her tablet. The door was ajar, and I saw you when you passed by. I only finished my call with Maochong and the others before coming to find you."
"Mm."
Li Qianfan grunted in a low voice, forcing a smile. "That, that's nothing, I might be a bit overly sensitive. When I didn't see you in the room and called your phone, but your phone was on the sofa, I started thinking of bad things and thought you had been kidnapped."
"With you here, no one can harm me."
Su Nanyin's voice was softer than ever.
Especially in her eyes as she looked at Li Qianfan, two distinct flames were burning!
Those two flames were enough to destroy anything.
She reached out and wiped the cold sweat from Li Qianfan's forehead, then stood up. "Come here, let me wash your hair for you."
After the indescribable fear, Li Qianfan felt completely drained of strength.
He stumbled as he walked, needing Su Nanyin to support his waist with her left arm, almost carrying him into the bathroom.
The presidential suite's bathroom had not only a large bathtub but also a hair-washing station with a neck massage.
Once Li Qianfan lay down, he finally felt his whole body relax. His head rested back, suspended, caught by a pair of hands.
The water temperature was slightly hot, just right.
It was just that Su Nanyin's hair-washing technique was not very good, and she got foam in his eyes.
His eyes stung.
Li Qianfan could only close his eyes and complain casually, "Clearly, you're not the type to serve people. Even a girl I find for fifty yuan in a small county town washes hair much better than you."
Actually, he knew that.
A pampered young lady like Su Nanyin, who was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, must never have done any manual labor and was always served. How could she know how to serve others?
The fact that she was personally washing his hair was already a repayment for his concern about her safety.
And yet, he was nitpicking about this and that!
Su Nanyin was too lazy to argue with him and said nothing.
He wanted to say more.
But his mouth was suddenly covered.
What was covering Li Qianfan's mouth?
Jelly.
As Li Qianfan's mind went into a confused state, he thought of this item.
How long?
Who knew.
In any case, Li Qianfan finally understood why his eyes were mesmerized.
Ru Hua's voice came through, "Old, old buddy, shall we find an opportunity to meet in person at night?"
Meet in person?
Meet in person for what?
It was already good online, wasn't it?
How would meeting in person work?
Li Qianfan's mind was a mess. He asked, "Didn't you say we'd get married online first, and then meet in person?"
"I don't want to marry you online anymore."
Ru Hua's voice sounded ethereal as she said, "I think it's best to remain as buddies. After all, Prince (Jiao San) always calls you the 'head of the household.' I feel like half of the good stuff is being snatched away by her. I don't want to share with others, so let's stay buddies."
"Fine, whatever you say."
Li Qianfan, whose eyes were stinging, asked, "How shall we meet? Are we going to book a hotel room?"
A finger slowly touched his lips. "Dream on. We'll find some time to go clubbing, drinking, and dancing. After so many years, I've only been to a VIP club once. Before, I disdained such places. But now I realize that going crazy there would be great."
She paused.
Ru Hua added, "Now that I'm young, I want to try experiencing the lifestyle young people enjoy most. Playing cards at home all the time gets boring after a while."
"Okay."
Li Qianfan said, "Since you like going, I'll take you to see it. But for safety, it needs to be kept secret, and you'll need to put on a little makeup."
Ru Hua asked, "Then, what should I wear?"
Li Qianfan thought for a moment. "A fur skirt, perhaps?"
"Okay."
Ru Hua asked again, "Fishnet, or super-thin black?"
Li Qianfan thought seriously again before saying, "There might be fish in the club?"
Thinking that he would soon meet Ru Hua in real life, Li Qianfan felt as if he was dreaming.
He was nervous, even scared.
Yet, inexplicably, he longed for that moment to arrive sooner.
As a result, throughout the entire afternoon, he seemed to have lost his soul, frequently pursing his lips.
Su Nanyin, however, acted as if nothing had happened. She ate and drank as usual.
After she was full, she even took a nice nap for half an hour.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, the Yuan family arrived.
Yuan Lao Er brought ten billion yuan in cash (or rather, in cards).
And he said to Mr. Qianfan and Ms. Su—
"The Yuan family is extremely angry and regretful that Yuan Mingliang (Editor-in-Chief Yuan) secretly colluded with Ma Hongtu to fabricate rumors about the Empress's pregnancy behind the Yuan family's back!"
"The Yuan family has decided to strip Yuan Mingliang of his position as editor-in-chief of a certain media company, from top to bottom."
"Furthermore, they have officially announced his expulsion from the Yuan family. His future fate, no matter what he does, will have nothing to do with the Yuan family."
Yuan Lao Er finally asked Mr. Qianfan and Ms. Su if they were satisfied with the Yuan family's handling of Yuan Mingliang.
As long as the money was in place—
Heh heh, who cared about Yuan Mingliang's fate?
The two parties conversed pleasantly for a full hour. Yuan Lao Er politely declined Li Qianfan and Su Nanyin's warm invitation to dinner, patted his behind, and left gracefully.
Alright.
This debt was settled.
What Li Qianfan needed to do next was to pay a visit to Mr. Ma Hongtu!
Ma Hongtu, having been severely injured by someone last month with all four limbs broken, had only returned home from the hospital a few days ago.
The ancients said, "A humble position does not allow one to forget the country."
Applied to Ma Hongtu, it meant: "Although I am crippled, I cannot become dejected. I must pull myself together. Even if I am lying in bed, I cannot abandon my duties."
After all, the position of head of the East Earth Biochemical Research Headquarters was very significant.
Meng Yue, known as the biochemical genius of East Earth, was now merely the director of the Sijiu Biochemical Research Institute.
In terms of system hierarchy, Meng Yue was still Ma Hongtu's subordinate!
Ma Hongtu did not want to give up this position to someone else.
Thinking that Li Qianfan was the one who caused him to be confined to bed, Ma Hongtu would instinctively grit his teeth.
Especially after learning that Li Qianfan had brutally murdered his nephew, Ma Qiang, the previous night, hanged his second brother, Ma Hongshan, the day before yesterday, and extorted a full 5 billion from the Ma family.
From the moment he woke up this morning until past four in the afternoon, Ma Hongtu had been continuously cursing Li Qianfan.
He had poured out every curse word he could think of upon him!
"Li Qianfan, Su Nanyin!"
Ma Hongtu sat in his wheelchair in the living room, holding two cloth dolls in his left hand and a steel needle in his right, repeatedly pricking the dolls and fiercely cursing, "You abominable pair! I swear, one day I will tear out your sinews, strip your skin, eat your flesh, and drink your blood!"
Suddenly—
A man's voice came from beside him, startling Ma Hongtu, who was completely immersed in a world of hatred. "Ma Hongtu, how is your injury healing?"