Since when had he changed sexes?

Lu Xiaoxiao knew she had no power to refuse. She exchanged contact details with Ji Yunhuai in dejection, a bleak sense of impending servitude rising in her heart.

Once she finished applying medicine to her ankle and knee, Ji Yunhuai tossed a pair of flat leather shoes onto the floor in front of her and said, "Wear these home."

One look told her the shoes were a major brand's latest design, and they went fairly well with the dress she was wearing.

Lu Xiaoxiao really wasn't in any condition to keep wearing heels, so she didn't refuse. She simply picked them up and put them on.

This was one of the few remotely decent things Ji Yunhuai had done tonight. But if he hadn't forced her to stay, she wouldn't have sprained her ankle in the first place!

Lu Xiaoxiao wasn't about to thank him. After putting the shoes on, she shot Ji Yunhuai an angry glare and asked, "Can I leave now, Young Master Ji?"

She placed pointed emphasis on the words "Young Master Ji," loading the title with sarcasm.

Ji Yunhuai didn't mind her little display of temper. Besides, he was so used to being flattered that he saw nothing wrong with the title. He even rather enjoyed it.

Now that he'd achieved his goal, Ji Yunhuai had no reason to keep Lu Xiaoxiao here.

So he nodded. "You can."

Lu Xiaoxiao left the lounge muttering curses, then went straight downstairs to call a car and head back to the Lu Family home.

Lu Yubai and Lu Jiaoyue weren't supposed to know she'd come today, so she had to get home before they did.

Hopefully, things were going smoothly between Lu Jiaoyue and Gu Sipei.

As dusk approached, Gu Sipei finally settled an overseas investment deal, reaching an agreement with his business partner.

The initial draft had proposed a sixty-forty profit split. After an afternoon of negotiations, that had become seventy-thirty. Such a substantial profit would be enough to make the senior members of the board see him in a new light.

Besides that, he had also put the spy his older brother, Gu Sijing, had planted among his staff in his place.

The man still didn't know his true allegiance had been discovered, but after today, he would certainly act more cautiously.

Gu Sipei hadn't immediately removed this disloyal subordinate because he intended to turn his opponent's weapon against him, deliberately feeding Gu Sijing information about his movements through the man.

Gu Sijing was suspicious by nature, yet arrogant. He always had complete confidence in his own arrangements and only trusted reports from people he'd planted himself. Little did he know that everything he saw was precisely what Gu Sipei wanted him to see.

Gu Sipei pushed open the door to his private lounge and rubbed the space between his brows, suppressing the fatigue welling up inside him. "Take the documents back to the office first," he instructed Assistant Lin. "I'll sleep here for a while."

He had held an emergency meeting at the office last night and barely slept a wink. Now that everything was settled, it was time to rest.

"Of course. I'll arrange for someone to bring dinner over later."

With that, Assistant Lin left the room and closed the door behind the CEO.

After working for Gu Sipei for so long, Assistant Lin genuinely admired his abilities.

When Gu Sipei had first been parachuted into the Gu Corporation, Assistant Lin had suspected he was nothing more than an incompetent rich kid who had landed a senior position through connections. Assistant Lin was extremely confident in his own abilities; he had fought his way through round after round of selection to reach his current position, and initially, he had carried himself with a certain pride.

Before long, however, Gu Sipei's precise, decisive judgment and ability to execute his plans had won him over.

The Gu Family's second young master was no mediocrity, as he had imagined. Upon arriving, he had established a foothold in a company where Gu Sijing had spent years laying his groundwork, rapidly built his own power base, and held his own against Gu Sijing. By now, he firmly had the upper hand.

Assistant Lin had witnessed how much effort Gu Sipei had put in throughout that time. His boss worked at an incredibly intense pace every day. Whenever he discovered a problem, he swiftly stamped it out with an iron fist. When things got busy, going two or three days without sleep was commonplace, often leaving others wondering whether his body could withstand it.

Yet Gu Sipei was like a robot that never tired. Whenever Assistant Lin thought he was about to reach his limit, he displayed perseverance far beyond that of ordinary people. His physical and mental strength were almost frightening, inspiring deep admiration and trust.

Although Gu Sipei wasn't the Gu Family's eldest son, Assistant Lin always had a feeling that he would most likely be the one to take control of the Gu Corporation in the future. All Assistant Lin needed to do was remain absolutely loyal to the second young master and wait for the day power changed hands.

After Assistant Lin left, Gu Sipei headed toward the bedroom, his nerves finally relaxing a little after being stretched taut all day.

As he had risen to prominence in recent years, people had often described his business methods as ruthless and extreme. But Gu Sipei knew all too well how much the law of the jungle applied to the Gu Family-if he didn't bring others down, they would devour him without mercy.

If he didn't want to become an expendable pawn, his only option was to keep climbing until he stood at the top of the pyramid, until no one dared entertain the thought of using him.

Soon. It would be soon.

It wouldn't be long before he brought Gu Sijing down for good.

Until then, Gu Sipei wanted no unexpected variables in his life.

No person or thing could stand in the way of his progress.

The bedroom curtains had already been drawn, and the faint scent of incense lingered in the darkness-the kind Gu Sipei usually used.

He occasionally suffered from insomnia, so he had stocked many of his residences with incense to help him sleep, including this lounge.

Perhaps the familiar scent lowered his guard, or perhaps the dim light made it difficult to see, but Gu Sipei failed to notice that someone was already lying in the bed.

After he took off his jacket and sat on the edge of the bed, someone suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled him backward.

Caught off guard, Gu Sipei fell onto the bed before he could react.

The "uninvited guest" who had ambushed him didn't stop there. Instead, she pushed her luck and snuggled into his arms, moving her hands from his arm to wrap them around his waist.

The body nestled against him was soft and warm, unmistakably a woman's.

Plenty of women tried to attract Gu Sipei's attention, but this was the first time he had encountered one bold enough to climb into his bed.

Gu Sipei's brows drew tightly together. He instinctively moved to push her away, irritation rising within him.

How had someone suddenly gotten into his private lounge? Assistant Lin was far too careless. Hadn't he checked the room beforehand?

But the next moment, a girl's soft, sweet voice sounded in the darkness. "Sis, you're finally back..."

Gu Sipei: "?"

Sis?

Since when had he changed sexes?

Before he could work out whom he was being mistaken for, Gu Sipei suddenly noticed something else: the girl's voice sounded familiar, as though he'd heard it somewhere before.

Gu Sipei immediately reached over and switched on the bedside lamp, illuminating the face of the girl beside him.

When he saw Lu Jiaoyue's face clearly, Gu Sipei looked stunned.

...How could it be her?