A Door Slams into the Face

Guo Lantai was thus unceremoniously assigned by the head of the household to a bedroom on the third floor.

The layout of this floor was the same as the second, but there was only this one north-facing bedroom. Across from it was a remodeled gym, its door wide open and its furnishings clearly visible. It had every kind of exercise equipment, most importantly an enormous floor-to-ceiling window that offered a sweeping view of the beautiful scenery outside the villa.

Farther in were a storage room and a tea room. The tea room led directly to the rooftop garden terrace, presumably the usual spot where the domineering CEO relaxed in his spare time.

Guo Lantai had little interest in those rooms. He looked over the bedroom before him. It was fairly spacious and even had its own bathroom, which made daily life convenient enough, but the furniture and decor were simply far too lifeless.

Everything was the same classical black, with simple designs. Even the bedding was a dreary dark gray!

The whole place reeked of decay. A room like this did not even need to hide anything to breed little ghosts over time!

Besides, this style of decor was best suited to elderly people. He had no idea what the two rooms on the second floor looked like, but Cen Muxiao said they were all the same. He would not believe that even if it killed him!

Standing in the middle of the room, Guo Lantai could not stop clicking his tongue. Tsk, tsk, tsk! If he had not lost his memory, they should have been newlyweds, right?

The decor of a newlywed home should not look like this, should it? Never mind this room—even from the moment he entered the villa grounds, he had not seen a single festive decoration!

What family did not deck the halls and hang red banners when marrying a wife? He had never imagined Cen Muxiao could be this perfunctory, too lazy to even put on a show at this point!

As far as he knew, the mighty domineering CEO owned countless properties. Forget the Cen Family Main Villa Complex that took up an entire mountaintop; Cen Muxiao had countless other mansions of his own, each spacious enough to run laps in.

Yet he had not even considered moving somewhere else!

Tsk, tsk! How realistic!

Still, his attitude clearly showed that the Cen Family Villa did not welcome him. No, it did not welcome the original Guo Lantai!

Why had he agreed to a marriage alliance if he was going to force himself into it like this? Even after agreeing, they could have kept the marriage completely secret. Why make such a huge fuss and hold a wedding?

Did he have money to burn?

Guo Lantai gritted his teeth, then suddenly understood. The original owner had insisted on it. After finally securing an engagement, how could he have been content with merely being Cen Muxiao's hidden shadow?

He had not wanted to give up the dignity of being Mrs. Cen in the slightest!

He had even deluded himself into thinking he could earn Cen Muxiao's attention and affection through his own efforts!

After all, there were countless stories of couples falling in love after marriage. Maybe he would become the lucky one!

The original owner had truly been blinded by love—unrequited love at that. He had not realized that, in the author's hands, the more gloriously he entered the family, the more miserable and laughable his eventual expulsion would be!

Sigh!

With a deep sigh, Guo Lantai stopped dwelling on the original owner's thoughts.

Ever since he stepped into this room, he had felt a faint ache in his back. Looking at everything before him made his head throb.

He had brought an enormous suitcase filled with clothes and daily necessities, but no bedding. Neither the original owner nor Guo Lantai himself liked anything but simple, fresh colors and decor. The bedding in front of him was utterly unbearable.

The reason Guo Lantai had obediently followed Cen Muxiao's arrangement was because he remembered that the original novel had the same scene. The details had only been mentioned in passing. The original owner had not wanted to upset Cen Muxiao, so he accepted it against his will and ended up living on the third floor until he was thrown out.

Heh! What an idiot!

Guo Lantai had no intention of wronging himself just to please that scumbag. If he obediently holed himself up here, would he not be giving those two more opportunities to be alone together?

If he was that considerate, Song Anning would only find excuses to stay for good. After all, although the two had reunited, they had not actually confessed their feelings to each other yet!

And Cen Muxiao had waited for so many years. Once Song Anning spoke up, was there any chance he would refuse?

By then, Guo Lantai would truly become a bona fide third wheel, an obstacle in their way, and an eyesore.

Given the domineering CEO's personality, there would be no need to wait until the marriage alliance expired. For Song Anning's sake, he could simply offer the Guo Family more benefits on top of their existing cooperation and send him packing early.

However, in the original novel, Song Anning was deeply bothered by Guo Lantai's existence and had no intention of letting him escape unscathed. That was why he plotted openly and in secret, not only causing the Guo Family devastating losses but also forcing Guo Lantai out in disgrace, leaving him dead and gone!

No! No! No!

Guo Lantai, who had transmigrated here out of thin air, would never allow that to happen.

At the wedding, Song Anning had practically been one step away from publicly confessing to Cen Muxiao. Yet in the end, he still held back and said nothing. That meant he did not have complete confidence himself!

After all, three years had passed. Whether that once-passionate love had faded with time was something even Song Anning could not determine.

Moreover, based on Song Anning's understanding of Cen Muxiao, a man who thought everything through and proceeded steadily probably could not make an impulsive decision like publicly calling off a marriage.

Song Anning planned before acting. Moving into the Cen family was his first step.

There had been no affection between them to begin with, and now Song Anning was here. Guo Lantai would forever be nothing more than a tool, with no chance at all.

Heh! That damned green tea bitch. Sorry, but this Guo Lantai was not the old Guo Lantai anymore!

This time, it would not be Song Anning stirring things up between him and Cen Muxiao. It would be Guo Lantai forcefully breaking up the lovebirds and turning that moonlight-white love into stinking dog shit!

Thinking of that, Guo Lantai's fighting spirit surged. He shot the haunted house a glance, viciously undid the top two buttons of his shirt, then turned and headed downstairs.

Knock, knock, knock!

Without hesitation, he knocked on the master bedroom door. He was not asleep, so the person inside might not have been able to sleep either.

Sure enough, the door soon opened a crack, revealing a cold, displeased face. "Why aren't you asleep? What is it?"

Guo Lantai raised a hand and scratched at his back, his expression pained and frightened. "My back hurts. Did a ghost slap me? Can you take a look for me?"

Cen Muxiao's gaze swept coldly over Guo Lantai like a blade, his expression plainly saying, Try talking nonsense one more time.

When he saw Guo Lantai repeatedly reaching for his back, the movement tugging his shirt open to reveal a stretch of pale collarbone, Cen Muxiao frowned. Such blatant seduction—he sure had guts!

"Get lost!"

He spat out the word decisively, then slammed the door shut with a bang.

"Ow!"

At the same time, Guo Lantai cried out in pain. Then he felt a wave of heat rush into his nostrils, and blood began streaming from his nose.

Fuck! Guo Lantai hurriedly pinched his nose and cursed inwardly. He had been standing too close—the scumbag had slammed the door right into his face!

What rotten luck!

Knock, knock, knock!

This time, he pounded urgently and righteously on the door. Cen Muxiao had injured him, so he had to take responsibility!

Sure enough, the door opened. Cen Muxiao not only had a dark expression, but his fists were clenched, as though he were ready to unleash his tyrannical wrath.

But when he saw Guo Lantai's face covered in blood, looking so aggrieved that he was about to cry, he froze completely.

Covered in all that blood—had he really seen a ghost?

"You... take responsibility!"

Guo Lantai's muffled voice sounded. Cen Muxiao silently loosened his fists, glanced at the door across the hall, then grabbed Guo Lantai and spoke in an unquestionable tone. "Come in!"

The moment the door closed behind him, Guo Lantai, tears glistening in his eyes, happily made a victorious gesture in his heart. Yes!