Proven wrong in a heartbeat

When Bo Lin arrived home, the servants had already drawn his bath.

He lowered his stiff body into the tub. Only when the warm water enveloped him did he let out a soft hum, as though he had finally come back to life.

Then his eyes suddenly flew open. Moisture clung to their narrow corners, lending his aloof face a sultry air.

The next moment, he slid entirely underwater.

An hour later, he strolled lazily out of the bathroom.

His bathrobe hung wide open, revealing lean, firm muscles.

Unlike the bulky muscles people deliberately built with protein powder, his came from years of swimming and regular exercise.

He tipped his head back and gulped down a bottle of ice water.

Yet despite the icy water, the anger smoldering inside him since morning flared as though he had poured alcohol onto it, engulfing him in flames.

A little kept lover in the capital actually wanted to pin Bo Lin beneath him.

Crunch!

The plastic bottle was crushed flat, then tossed pitifully into the trash.

Jiang Kai received a call from his boss just before bed.

"You still haven't found out what I asked you to investigate this morning?"

"I'm very sorry, Mr. Bo. I only managed to find information on some of them, and it was getting late..."

Bo Lin cut him off. "Who are they?"

Jiang Kai immediately replied, "Shu Yan, the young master of the Shu family behind Boyuan; Tan Xilin, the young master of the Tan family behind Shengyuan; and Feng Qian, a classmate of Shu Yan's."

They were all companies he had never heard of.

"Another one is someone pursuing Feng Qian. His name seems to be Hua Jian..."

Bo Lin immediately asked, "Who? The person Hua Jian is pursuing?"

Jiang Kai's heart lurched. Why was Mr. Bo angry?

"Yes, boss. How about I..."

"We'll talk tomorrow!"

Jiang Kai faltered. "Boss?"

Unfortunately, all he heard was the disconnected line.

The next day was the weekend. Hua Jian arrived at the Qi Family's residence at precisely 8:50, as arranged with Butler Chen.

Meanwhile, Xie Zhiwei's assistant was remarkably efficient. As soon as the workday began, the assistant transferred a hundred thousand into one of Hua Jian's bank accounts.

After receiving the money, Hua Jian's lips curved up involuntarily.

"Mr. Hua?"

"Ah! Sorry, Butler Chen."

Hua Jian immediately put his phone away.

Housekeeper Chen asked politely, "Have you eaten? If not, you're welcome to have something here. Miss Fanling has just woken up, so it may be a while before she gets out of bed."

"I ate before coming over," Hua Jian quickly replied. "Please don't trouble yourself, Butler Chen."

Housekeeper Chen did not insist. He asked Hua Jian to sit downstairs and wait.

Once Butler Chen left, Hua Jian discreetly surveyed the villa.

His first impression was that it felt cold and empty, yet a pink pushcart of the sort little girls liked stood in a corner, along with assorted building blocks and pink toy boxes.

He felt there was something strange about the Qi Family everywhere he looked.

But they were only an unimportant backdrop in the novel, after all. A little strangeness was normal.

The enormous downstairs hall contained only a fairly small shelving unit beside the floor-to-ceiling windows a short distance away.

The unit was tall, with three shelves. A vase sat on top, a photo album occupied the middle shelf, and the bottom shelf was empty.

Hua Jian's curiosity stirred, but he restrained himself.

He could look another time, when he had the chance.

Just then, hurried footsteps came from upstairs.

Hua Jian immediately stood and looked over. Sure enough, a girl in a purple tulle dress and purple veil came scampering down from the second floor.

"Miss Fanling, you're running too fast! Please be careful!" Housekeeper Chen called anxiously.

Qi Fanling pressed her lips together and ignored him. After coming down the stairs, she ran straight outside without so much as a glance at Hua Jian.

"Miss Fanling! Oh dear!"

Housekeeper Chen looked rather helpless. He turned to Hua Jian. "I'm sorry. The young miss is a little grumpy when she wakes up."

Hua Jian's gaze followed Qi Fanling. "Will she be all right out there alone?"

"You can go with her, Mr. Hua," Butler Chen said. "She won't give you any trouble."

Feeling gloomy, Qi Fanling curled up on the swing and swayed back and forth without thinking.

The courtyard was usually very quiet at this hour. Neither the servants nor Uncle Butler would disturb her.

Today, however, it was especially noisy.

This is so nice! Getting paid without having to work is the best. I want roast duck.

Qi Fanling sneaked a look. Directly in front of Hua Jian was the swimming pool, with a large inflatable yellow duck floating in it.

Why has little Fanling been feeling down for so long? Look at that adorable little pout. Still, little girls really are cute. Her eyelashes are so long, and her cheeks are so chubby.

Qi Fanling tightened her grip on the swing slightly. She cautiously glanced at Hua Jian and met his smiling gaze.

Startled, the little girl loosened her grip and toppled backward.

Qi Fanling squeezed her eyes shut in fright and waited for the pain, only to be caught in a pair of strong arms.

"Miss Fanling, are you all right?"

Qi Fanling's face was deathly pale. She clutched Hua Jian's clothes.

"Did that scare you? It's all right. I caught you."

The alien teacher's voice was very gentle. Being held by a stranger made Qi Fanling nervous, and she looked up at him timidly.

Aww, she's so soft and sweet-smelling! So adorable! Her eyes are so big! Aww, I really want to squish those chubby little cheeks.

The alien teacher was using his special powers again, talking without moving his mouth.

Hua Jian's compliments made Qi Fanling's face flush red, but she still wriggled out of his arms.

"Thank you, alien teacher."

She scampered back upstairs in the villa, and Hua Jian followed.

Housekeeper Chen had been watching from inside the whole time. Smiling, he told Hua Jian, "Miss Fanling likes you very much, Mr. Hua. Please head to the art room for the lesson."

"Of course, Butler Chen."

Yesterday, after the tutoring job was confirmed, his senior, Qian, had carefully explained Qi Fanling's progress in learning to paint to Hua Jian.

The little girl was very talented.

According to Qian, her father was a scientific researcher who always wore black-rimmed glasses and favored loose hoodies. That was why nearly all her male tutors were young men dressed the same way.

As Qian had explained, the little girl's guardian had only one requirement.

All that mattered was that she had fun.

When Hua Jian entered the art room, Qi Fanling seemed to sneak a glance up at him before immediately looking away.

He handed her the simple picture he had drawn the night before.

"Miss Fanling, this is a little introductory gift from me."

"Is that me in the picture?"

"Yes. It's the scene from when I came to meet you yesterday."

Hua Jian paused, silently thinking, Little Fanling called me her alien teacher earlier. If I'd known, I would have drawn a spaceship.

Hearing him say that, Qi Fanling found herself thinking it was a pity, too.

The lesson went unusually smoothly.

Hua Jian thought Qi Fanling was practically a little angel.

She was sweet and well-behaved, never fidgeting during the lesson or deliberately getting paint everywhere while she worked.

"Miss Fanling, Mr. Bo will be here shortly."

"Uncle's coming? That's great! I'm going to meet him!"

Qi Fanling sprang to her feet in delight. She stood up so quickly that an entire tray of paint tipped over onto Hua Jian.

He had been proven wrong in a heartbeat.

Housekeeper Chen said apologetically, "I'm terribly sorry, Mr. Hua. Please come to the guest room with me and change into something else."

His outfit was ruined. Hua Jian said helplessly, "Sorry for the trouble."

The guest room was downstairs. As Hua Jian descended, his gaze swept past the large floor-to-ceiling windows, and he saw a black car parked in the courtyard.

A man dressed entirely in black scooped Qi Fanling up and spun her around. The little girl's delighted laughter rang through the entire villa.