Chapter 7: What He Discarded as Worthless, Others Marveled at as Heavenly

Gu Yunci's gaze lingered on Meng Shutang's face for a second before shifting away. "She has legs."

With that, the man grabbed his coat and turned to leave.

Bai Cixian immediately followed. "Brother Yunci, the rain is too heavy. Let's walk slower so we don't get soaked."

Bai Cixian's tone was gentle, so sweet and sensible that it made one's heart ache.

Meng Shutang sat there, watching Gu Yunci and Bai Cixian walk into the curtain of rain sharing a single umbrella. The umbrella was clearly tilted toward Bai Cixian's side, leaving half his body in the rain.

The silhouettes of the two were strikingly intimate.

Slender fingertips brushed across the photo of her mother's hospital bed on her phone. The metallic sweetness surging up to her chest was slowly swallowed back down.

Once the Wenlüxiaozhen project ended and the payment was collected, she could pay for her mother's medical treatment herself.

Then she would never need to rely on this man again.

He and she would be completely done.

After eating, Meng Shutang went to inspect the site once more.

Tomorrow, executives from Yingxia Group would come for an on-site survey of the project for future long-term cooperation. There could be no more slip-ups on the exhibition side.

After two hours of work, she returned completely soaked. The light in the entryway was dim, and she shook the water from her hair.

She turned to remove her clothes, planning to soak in the bathtub, only to find the man standing there in a bathrobe.

He stood tall, wreathed in a haze of water vapor. Droplets fell from the tips of his hair, splashing onto the sleek lines of his abdominal muscles.

The muscles of his waist and abdomen were sharply defined, the V-line sexy, eight-pack abs tightly arranged.

He watched Meng Shutang come in, no emotion in his eyes. He casually grabbed a pure white towel draped by the door to dry his hair, with a hint of nonchalance in his grip.

Flustered, Meng Shutang abruptly turned around, intending to walk out.

But the moment her hand touched the doorknob, she remembered that the first-floor lobby had been packed with people, all demanding rooms.

She hesitated again.

Wenlüxiaozhen had not officially opened yet. The scattered tourists now were all drawn by reputation, and with the heavy rain, the hotel surely had no spare rooms.

If she left, where would she stay?

She decided to settle in and stay, but the voice behind her made her heart sink little by little.

Behind her came the man's magnetic voice. "What's going on? How did someone else get into my room?"

"President Gu, after the heavy rain, guests swarmed in all at once. All the open rooms are fully occupied.

Would you like us to arrange a different room for you?"

"No need." The man hung up with a cold face.

Meng Shutang stood at the door for a moment, then turned and went into the bathroom.

She had only taken off half her clothes when she suddenly remembered she hadn't brought a change of clothes, and she froze on the spot.

Her clear eyes swept over Gu Yunci's white shirt draped nearby. She frowned slightly, bit her lip, and put the clothes she had just removed back on one by one.

The damp, cold fabric clung to her skin, and she couldn't help shivering again.

Once everything was back on, she quietly opened the door to go get her things.

The man, sunk lazily into the leather sofa smoking, heard the movement and turned his eyes, imperceptibly, watching her disheveled state—hair wet, wearing cold, damp clothes.

His thin lips pressed lightly into a cold, sharp curve.

In the depths of his eyes, calm as a lake, there was no emotion at all.

Meng Shutang had a mild temperament but worked extremely efficiently. After her shower, she blow-dried her hair, changed into a white knit dress, took out pen and paper, and began drafting the cultural creative proposal for the collaboration with the Palace Museum.

The proposal reached the product line concept stage. Since it was jewelry, she wanted to embed new Chinese-style elements into it.

To give the jewelry new selling points and stories.

Small as she was, she sat by the window, her figure perfectly proportioned, her features exquisite. The whole of her was like a white peony quietly unfurling, a beauty beyond compare.

She kept busy until very late before rising with a slight yawn.

As she stood up, she noticed the man sitting in a suit directly across from her, his shirt unbuttoned two buttons at the collar, exuding a lazy sensuality.

Only his gaze was unfocused, as if he were not looking at her but at something else.

She didn't look at him either, and simply lay down on the bed.

She took up a very small space, curled up, just like that day, a thin blanket half covering her face.

Gu Yunci's Adam's apple bobbed unconsciously, his gaze lingering on her, growing somewhat heated.

His long legs beneath the suit trousers tensed slightly, as if an indescribable heat surged from his tailbone up his spine.

He abruptly crushed the cigarette butt in the ashtray, as if using it to suppress the impulse in his heart, then grabbed the suit jacket draped over the back of the chair and strode out.

Hearing the door close, Meng Shutang opened her eyes slightly.

She had just seen his eyes, and she knew what they meant.

If it were before, she would have obediently walked over, sat on his lap, cupped his face, and kissed him first.

In truth, in the three years of their marriage, apart from her menstrual periods, Gu Yunci had not let her go a single day.

When playing around, his favorite thing to say was, "I love watching you blush, your voice trembling, begging me for mercy."

Now, he was again tormented by that nameless heat into restlessness. The beast hidden inside him, never satisfied—only Bai Cixian could give him peace!

……

That night, Meng Shutang slept fairly soundly.

After breakfast, she carried her briefcase to the project base. She had just entered the elevator when she saw Gu Yunci and Bai Cixian inside.

Gu Yunci had said something that made Bai Cixian laugh heartily.

But the moment she stepped in, Bai Cixian stopped laughing.

She squeezed out a polite smile and stood in the corner, just waiting for the elevator doors to open so she could immediately leave this awkward place.

But when they actually reached the first floor, she wasn't the first to walk out.

Bai Cixian pressed the elevator button, "Brother Yunci, you go first."

Meng Shutang's foot that was about to step out shrank back; she had thought they would inevitably be intimate for a while in the elevator, but it turned out she was overthinking.

When they arrived at the base, President Wang of Yingxia Group had already arrived.

Bai Cixian trotted over and greeted him.

President Wang took Bai Cixian's hand and kept praising her beauty and competence.

But catching sight of Gu Yunci in his peripheral vision, he immediately let go of Bai Cixian's hand, "Miss Bai, President Gu is here; why didn't you say so earlier?"

President Wang strode forward, "President Gu, I'm Wang Qiang of Yingxia Group, sent by headquarters to inspect Wenlüxiaozhen."

Gu Yunci shook his hand, then released it, "The meeting room has prepared clear tea, the temperature is just right. President Wang, you've worked hard coming all this way; would you like to rest a bit first?"

Wang Qiang shook his head, "No need, let's go straight to the tour; I still have to return later."

The group walked to the base for a tour; along the way, Wang Qiang said, "President Gu, your legendary feats in the industry are renowned far and wide, especially the 'This Has Water' cultural tourism ancient-style town you led the design of last time, which moved mountains and waters indoors—truly a textbook-level operation; our whole department specially organized study of it!"

"This visit is both for observation and study; we hope to establish long-term friendship with the Gu Clan..."

A gentle breeze blew, bringing waves of fresh fragrance.

Following the scent, Wang Qiang turned his gaze toward Meng Shutang's direction.

Seeing Bai Cixian, he found her pleasing to the eye, but the moment he saw Meng Shutang, he was stunned by her heavenly beauty.

At a glance, it left one breathless.