After dying and coming back so many times,
Lin Ao had reached a conclusion.
First, learn to be a good person.
As long as he did good deeds and was just an ordinary, decent person, he wouldn't get dragged into those people's affairs so easily.
Second, from this moment on, stay away from everyone in the protagonist group.
He'd live peacefully as an idle rich young master and let them do their own thing.
Third, avoid those women! Avoid those women! And avoid those women!
He had to stay away from them. Every time "Lin Ao" crossed paths with one of them, some guy called the protagonist would show up, and then "Lin Ao" would get killed!
If he wanted to live, he had to keep his distance from them!
Best of all, he should never have anything to do with them for the rest of his life!
First things first, he had to break off his engagement to Gu Wanqing.
Looks like he'd made the right move by casually agreeing to break off the engagement when he spoke with Gu Wanqing that afternoon!
Tomorrow, he'd have to find her as soon as possible, talk it all through, and settle the matter once and for all. Then he'd formally cut off all ties and contact.
Just as Lin Ao was wondering what other precautions he should take, a knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.
"Knock, knock, knock."
"Young master, the master and madam are calling you downstairs for dinner."
Lin Ao stood and straightened his clothes. Starting tomorrow, he'd be embarking on a new life.
He went to the dining room. A middle-aged man with a square face and a dignified, elegant middle-aged woman were seated at the table. They were Lin Ao's parents, Lin Dong and Li Wanyu.
Seeing his parents again left him momentarily dazed. Every time he died, he had no idea how heartbroken his parents must have been.
This time, he'd be filial until he was ninety-nine, and he'd live to ninety-nine himself.
"Dad~ Mom~"
Li Wanyu stood and walked over, taking Lin Ao's hands and guiding him into a chair.
"Oh, my dear boy~ Uncle Zhang said you went on a date with Wanqing today, and you looked awful when you got back. I told you to go to the hospital for a checkup, but you wouldn't. You little rascal, are you trying to worry your mother to death?"
Li Wanyu patted him here and there, her face full of concern.
"Mom~ I'm fine! See? I'm doing great now~"
Lin Ao stood and spun around to prove that he was in excellent shape.
He really was doing great. He was free.
"If you're fine, sit down and eat!"
Lin Dong hadn't asked about Lin Ao's health at all, but while his son was spinning around, his eyes had swept over him at least eight hundred times.
"What did you and Wanqing talk about today? Was it your engagement?"
Li Wanyu beamed. Her child had grown up, and soon she'd be holding a grandchild!
Lin Dong kept a serious face as he picked up food, but his ears were pricked up. He was thinking the same thing as Li Wanyu.
"Mm-hmm, that's right, Mom! We had a great talk!"
Lin Ao lied. There was no way he'd tell them he'd just agreed to break off the engagement, and that tomorrow he planned to discuss it with her in more detail.
If he told them now, his parents definitely wouldn't believe him. They might even think he'd done something to wrong Gu Wanqing, then drag him to her family's home to apologize.
"That's good~ That's good~ I've loved Wanqing since she was little. You two getting together makes me happier than I can say."
Li Wanyu looked deeply pleased. She'd always liked Gu Wanqing. In her eyes, Gu Wanqing was beautiful, clever, gentle, and kind.
She was the perfect daughter-in-law.
"After you're engaged, stop walking around with a long face all the time. You don't even know how to smile at girls. What kind of man are you?"
Lin Dong stared at Lin Ao, his expression grave. He meant every word. Lin Ao was only ever relaxed around him and Li Wanyu; everywhere else, he wore a long face.
There were so many pretty girls at the company, and he still couldn't manage a single smile!
Every now and then, he'd even yell at those pretty young women over some work issue until they cried.
The sight of those girls crying so hard their pearly tears streaked their faces made Lin Dong's heart ache. Working under his son was a miserable business!
If he hadn't snuck into Lin Ao's room that morning while he was still asleep and seen that little Lin Ao could stand up, he would've thought something was wrong with his son down there.
Lin Ao was speechless. That was the old "Lin Ao," a heartless villain.
Give me a beautiful woman now and see what happens. I won't just smile—I'll make a move.
"Why are you talking to him like that? Lin Ao is just shy!"
Li Wanyu shot Lin Dong a look. Her boy had always been a little bashful. He was quiet, a bit serious, and a little cold toward other people...
"No, that's not right! Lin Ao, you have to change. Smile more, and stop going to the company all the time. It'll keep running just fine without you.
"Take Wanqing on a date tomorrow! That's an order!"
The more Li Wanyu thought about it, the more worried she got. What good would it do if he stayed like this after they got engaged? Who'd want to marry a block of wood?
Lin Dong shot Li Wanyu a look in his mind. So much for being shy!
"Sure, sure. Got it, Mom~"
Lin Ao agreed casually.
After all, the impression his parents had of him was set: "Lin Ao" was cold, a workaholic, and a heartless machine.
His easy agreement startled Lin Dong and Li Wanyu. They'd told him plenty of times to stop going to the company so much and take Wanqing out, but he'd always dragged his feet. He'd never agreed so readily before.
Maybe it was because the wedding was drawing near. Their child had grown up and started thinking things through.
The reason Lin Ao agreed so readily
was that he'd already decided he'd live as an idle rich young master from now on. His family was already loaded, so why bother making more money?
He'd cut off all contact between himself and those women, then go out and find the one who would be his one true love.
Tomorrow was the perfect chance to meet Gu Wanqing and explain everything clearly. Then he'd ask her to come over and break off the engagement. If that didn't work, he'd go to her himself.
The worst that could happen was getting scolded. That was still better than dying all over again.
After dinner, Lin Ao returned to his room.
There was just one problem: if he wasn't going to be a villain anymore and wanted to be a good person, how was he supposed to do that?
He'd never learned.
The old "Lin Ao" knew nothing of the warmth and hardship of ordinary life. All he understood were the gains and losses of business. He'd lived like a robot.
After Xiao Fan stole his bride, he'd been forced to turn evil, forced to start doing every kind of wicked deed.
Ask him to come up with some heinous act now, and he could think of hundreds of ways.
Forget it. I'll figure it out when I get there.
First, he'd send Gu Wanqing a text and arrange to meet tomorrow.
Hmm, how should he write it?
The texts he usually sent were about business, or orders telling his subordinates to hunt down the protagonist group.
How were you supposed to write an ordinary text?
After thinking it over for a while, Lin Ao opened his phone, found Gu Wanqing's contact, and started typing.
"I'm Lin Ao.
Time: 8:00 a.m. tomorrow.
Location: My home. (Address: No. XXXX, XXXX Road, XXXX District, Jianghai City)
Agenda: Discussion about breaking off our engagement.
Goal: Successfully break off the engagement.
Estimated meeting time: 1 hour.
Reply 1 to confirm receipt.
Thank you!"
Lin Ao looked at the text he'd written with satisfaction. He'd laid everything out clearly. A girl should be able to understand it easily.
And he'd even politely said thank you at the end. He wasn't usually this courteous to his company's employees.
At last, he'd taken the first step toward being polite!
Okay! That was it. Send.
At that very moment, the gears of Fate began to turn, quiet as a whisper.
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