Chapter 62: Liang Chaosu Personally Admits He Wants To Marry Her For A Marriage Alliance
“Do you need it?” Liancheng parted his index finger separately, and his fingertip touched the scabbed wound. “Iodine is easy to stain and does affect appearances, but if you wrap it with gauze, it won’t affect your work.”
Her skin was fair, her fingers long and slender, and her joints delicate. This fairness was particularly evident at the fingertips, showing the pink of her nail beds. Her fingertips were soft and delicate, and when they touched his wound, it was like a butterfly gently kissing him.
Liang Chaosu’s eyes deepened. “Is there no other reason?” His tone was as if asking casually, so calm that one could discern a hint of gentleness and concession.
“There is,” Liancheng tilted her head and looked at him. “I can list ten or eight reasons right now, but I actually don’t want to say them.”
Liang Chaosu’s eyes deepened further.
The height difference was 23 centimeters, but he was sitting, and Liancheng was standing, so their faces were almost level, cheek to cheek.
Liancheng looked up into his deep, sea-like eyes. She lowered her gaze to his Adam’s apple, a sharp, conical protrusion. The sharper he was, the more her heart spasmed.
After a long time, he asked hoarsely, “Was this prepared for me?”
Liancheng froze.
In fact, if she had admitted it, the reason for buying iodine would have been logical, but she gambled that Liang Chaosu, with his ten thousand clever thoughts, was constantly observing, inferring, and scrutinizing every minute detail.
It was absurd to think she would buy iodine to care for him on the same day she was caught trying to escape.
But she couldn’t deny it either, because once she denied it, it would be obvious that she had ill intentions.
Liancheng simply fell silent.
Whether it was true or not, by not saying anything, she created room for both advancement and retreat.
Liang Chaosu waited for a long time but received no answer, and surprisingly, he didn’t press further.
Liancheng brought the iodine and opened it in front of him, soaking a cotton swab for disinfection.
“Did you buy the gauze too?”
Liancheng answered honestly, “Aunt Wang brought it.”
Not only the gauze, but also alcohol and antiseptic solutions. When she found them earlier, her intestines had twisted with regret. If she had known Aunt Wang would bring them, why would she have left such a huge loophole?
………………
Until the bandaging was finished, Liang Chaosu stared intently at her.
The ambient light of the bar counter cast an orange, wavy pattern, mixed with bright sunlight, illuminating his deeply set eyebrows with an ineffable seriousness.
This seriousness, stripped away his piercing coldness, sharpness, and depth, was like a fierce beast retracting all its aggression, inexpressible and beyond comprehension.
Suddenly, Liang Chaosu received a phone call.
Liancheng exhaled subtly, easing the suffocating pain in her chest cavity.
The voice on the other end of the phone was unusually anxious, and Liancheng recognized it as Gu Xingyuan.
“What’s going on over there? You have to go all out against the Hu family? You’re forcing Boss Hu to involve my Third Uncle. Are you playing me?”
Liancheng didn’t have time to listen further; Liang Chaosu took his phone and went to the study.
Gu Xingyuan on the other end of the phone had been so busy these past few days that he was running around frantically. His mental state was beautiful, forgiving everything before bed and conquering the world upon waking.
But the situation was like a bouncy ball that had hit its limit and was rebounding; however ambitious he had been before, he was now in a dire predicament.
He could only be the villain who strikes first and then plays the victim.
“My Third Uncle is now on his feet, the Hu family is investing, the Liu family is giving the green light, they have money and people. The united directors have bypassed me and convened a board meeting, and the meeting’s content has been distributed to all employees of Gu Corporation, discussing how to impeach me as president.”
Liang Chaosu remained silent, opened his computer, and read the latest few reports in his inbox. The more he read, the deeper his frown became, and the colder his expression grew.
Gu Xingyuan said, “Vice Chairman Liang, you are now the regent overseeing the kingdom, while I am just a struggling crown prince whose position is not yet stable. So, please, do us a favor and come out of seclusion. What vacation can’t wait until we get past this hurdle?”
“I left you my ‘Memorial to the Emperor’ a few days ago. How could you have made such a huge mistake by following it?” Liang Chaosu replied to a few emails. “Is it because your surname is Gu, not Liu? So you’re even worse than Ah Dou, a useless failure?”
As soon as he spoke, Gu Xingyuan, realizing he had gone too far, felt guilty and his bluster subsided. “That’s going too far. People are born different, and besides, you’re not Zhuge Liang. The situation is already like this, so you make a decision.”
Liang Chaosu sneered. “Then proceed with the original plan. Deal with the child who shouldn’t have appeared, stabilize the board first, and then make a comeback once the funds arrive.”
Gu Xingyuan felt he was just giving him false hope. “When will those funds arrive?”
“After she gets married.”
Outside the door, Liancheng’s heartbeat stopped. Her hands, hanging at her sides, trembled uncontrollably.
She hadn’t intended to eavesdrop on Liang Chaosu’s phone call earlier. She had gone to the master bedroom to see what exactly Xiao Da was up to with the batch of professional attire he had brought.
When she rounded to the walk-in closet, she discovered that the conservative black, white, and gray outfits originally prepared for her had all been replaced with a dazzling array of bright pink, youthful young lady and socialite short skirts and fur coats.
The shoes had also been updated. Colorful high heels, from high to low, with heels from thick to thin, filled the entire shoe cabinet. She couldn’t find a single pair of flat shoes.
Liancheng couldn’t understand what whim Liang Chaosu was having now. She couldn’t help but come and find him.
As it turned out, she overheard this sentence.
She had already mentally prepared herself for Gu Xingyuan’s issue with the child. While she now felt a sense of shared vulnerability, what she feared most was Liang Chaosu’s latter half of the sentence.
What could be more conclusive than confirming it with her own ears?
Everything suddenly became clear without being asked.
The fact that her escape was easily forgiven, the generously given luxury residence, and his inexplicably gentle attitude just now were all means to pacify her before the marriage alliance.
He had specifically asked Aunt Wang to come and instructed her to make her look vibrant, and to dress her in bright, beautiful clothes, all of which were considerations for her appearance.
After all, with her current appearance as a country bumpkin and widow from the mountains, she would only put off the marriage alliance partner.
But why did he want her to leave the Liang family?
Liancheng’s mind was a jumbled mess of straw. She took a step forward and then retracted it.
Liang Chaosu responded to the phone call and glanced at the doorway.
Gu Xingyuan was still rambling, “Then should I send a big gift for your sister’s wedding? To thank her for our victory.”
“If you honestly handle your own affairs, that will be the biggest gift.”
Liancheng couldn’t listen anymore.
Regardless of her situation within the Liang family, and whether Liang Chaosu acknowledged her or not, to outsiders, Liang Chaosu now had two younger sisters.
The marriage of his biological sister, Liang Wenfei, was a joyous occasion that would unite the Shen and Liang families, a pact made ten years ago, and had nothing to do with the Gu family.
Coupled with the phrase “our victory,” Gu Xingyuan’s words were equivalent to naming Liancheng directly.
She turned to leave but hesitated in place, not knowing where to go.
This duplex apartment was a total of 630 square meters, with five rooms, two master bedrooms, two studies, a tea room, a reception room, a spa room, a gym, and a home theater.
Legally, she was the owner of all of this. In terms of space, any corner could comfortably accommodate her.
But Liancheng felt she had nowhere to stand.
It was an explosive flaming mountain; if she stayed there, lingered, and her escape was even slightly delayed, she would be melted into ashes by the surging, high-temperature magma.
Aunt Wang, after a conversation with Xiao Da that held hidden meaning, returned and was stunned when she opened the door to the Nanny Room.
Liancheng sat blankly at the foot of her bed, her hands resting on her knees trembling densely.
“What’s wrong?” Aunt Wang closed the door behind her. “Did he bully you?”
Liancheng lowered her head, her expression unreadable. “Aunt Wang, please tell Madam Liang that I am here.”
