Chapter 176 - Gloomy

"You took me to your house?" Shi Lian scowls at him. He ignores her scowls and opening the door, he offers his hand to her. 

"I shouldn't be here. What if someone sees us?" she hisses, reluctant to step out from the car. 

He sighs, and grabs her by her arm, pulling her out of the car. "It's my territory, no one will dare do anything" he assures her, "now stop worrying."

Shi Lian is still not sure but she goes with him anyway. Her mind is still wandering to the man. Where did Rong take her? And what will Zichen do? She hopes he does not kills her. That's the last thing she wants. 

Knowing him, she is sure he will not hesitate to kill him but that's different for her. She cannot see an injury let alone be satisfied with a killing. 

Holding her hand, he leads her inside his house. They take the stairs and reach the living room. The room is still the same as the last she was here. 

He makes her sit on the couch, treating her like a child. "I'll get the aid. Do you want water or something?" he asks. 

She cannot help smiling at the way he is giving her so much attention and care. She likes it. "Water will be fine," she says. 

He nods and disappears into the kitchen. She waits, looking around the room. The phone on the glass table buzzes, averting Shi Lian's attention. Zichen's phone buzzes, vibrating with the sound. She peers at the screen, curious to know who it is. She frowns, finding the name of a female — Shen Wangli. Her eyebrows pressed together and she cannot help but get jealous. She thinks it must be a relative of him so tries not to overthink and ruin her mood. The call ends before Shi Lian can even reach to pick it. 

Zichen comes holding a glass of water in one hand and the medkit in the other. 

Noticing her frowning, he asks setting the glass and the kit on the table. "What's wrong?"

She looks at him and quickly changes her expression. It's ridiculous for her to get jealous before even knowing the whole thing. 

"Nothing" she smiles. She then adds, pretending it did not bother her at all. "A person named Shen Wangli called just now."

He gives her a raised eyebrow look and picks her phone to check if it's true. Unbothered, he puts the phone back on the table not caring a least about it. "You aren't going to call her back?" she blurts. 

"No."

"Why? It might be important" she presses. She does not care about the importance, all she wants is to know who this damn Wangli is. 

"Taking care of you is my priority. Besides, that woman does not have any important thing to talk" he asserts, taking out the bandage and antiseptic. 

It's on the tip of her tongue to ask who this Wangli is but she does not want to sound like a suspicious girlfriend who gets suspicious just because a woman called him. 

"Who is she?" she blurts, failing to keep her mouth shut. 

"You jealous, Shi Lian?" he teases, looking at her with a smirk as he goes to sit beside her. 

"It was a general question" she is quick to deny. When she feels it's getting stuffy, she grabs the glass and gulps the whole thing in haste. 

Zichen chuckles watching her act all flustered. "You remember the woman you met at the restaurant?"

She tries recalling which woman he is talking about and then she remembers the woman who was throwing herself at Zichen. 

"Her name is Wangli?" she asks. She is having a hard believing that. Now that she gets to know she isn't any relative of him, she is jealous, more jealous because that woman drools for him. 

"Yes. She is the daughter of one of my mother's closest friends. So you can understand what the situation is" he sighs, reaching for her hand to apply the liquid. 

Holy hell! Is his mother thinking about marriage for both? "You are only friends then...." she controls her raging jealousy. 

"She is annoying. I tolerate her just because my mother won't be upset " he tells her with honesty. She can breathe now. Knowing that Zichen does not likes her, one percent gives her a sense of relief. 

She hisses, realizing about the cuts in her hand. "Sorry, I'll be more gentle," Zichen says, his tone apologetic and his movement smooth. 

Shi Lian does not say anything. She doesn't realize that it will this bad. When Zichen is done applying the antiseptic on both his hand, he goes for the bandage. Like a skilled Doctor, he rolls the bandage on both of her open palms one by one.

She is impressed by his work. The bandage is nearly done, more perfect than she would have done. 

"Thank you" she smiles widely at him, feeling giddy as she looks at the bandage. 

"My pleasure," he says, smiling back. He loves taking care of her and seeing her smiling so brightly. It almost took his heart from his chest when she saw the man pointing a gun at her. He now realizes how much she matters to him. He loves her but is afraid of letting her know. 

"Who was that man?" he asks all of a sudden making her choke on the water she was drinking. 

Should she tell him? She is not sure. He will be angry for sure but that's not what she is worried about. If she told her who the man is or what was she doing with him, then she have to explain the whole thing about the ring, her family problems, etc., which she do not want. 

"Someone who wanted something from me, an important thing of Mo household," she tells, somewhat true. 

"I see." That's all he says. She assumes he will not ask further questions. She at least knows one thing about him is that he will not push her to speak to her. If he doesn't feel like it, he will give her the space. That's the thing she likes about him. 

She leans closer to him and plants a kiss on his lips. When she backs away, he pulls her by her head and kisses her deeply. 

How long has it been since he kissed her? He does not know. All he knows is that he missed her badly, is worried about her, and loves her to death. 

**

She is supposed to go to her house but she urges Zichen to drop her outside the company building. When she makes an entrance inside, everyone's eyes go to her hand. One of the staff comes to her, and asks in concern, "Chairwoman, what happened to your hand?"

Shi Lian laughs assuring her that it is not a big deal. "Nothing serious. Just some scratches."

She then straight away goes to her office, trying not to showcase her hand and avoid staff's eyes. 

When Shi Lian arrives, Fang Xiao gets up from her seat and greets her but then her eyes shift to her hand. Another concerned question. 

"Miss Shi Lian, are you hurt?"

Another 'it's not a big deal' answer. 

"Nope. You don't have to worry. It's only scratched."

"But your dress appears to be messy. Were in some trouble?" she asks, noticing her pants. 

Shi Lian looks down to take a look at her pants which she wasn't knowing until now. Shit. 

"Oh, it was a muddy area where I went" she lies, half laughing. 

To avoid more questions, she quickly makes an excuse and strides inside her office. 

Once she is inside, she releases the breath she was holding. Now that her pants are messy and her hands are bandaged, there is no way she will escape her parent's questionnaire. 

Ugh! She hates lying to them, keeping things from the,m and Zichen as well but her hands are tied. She has told more lies than she ever has in her life. 

She walks up to her desk and sits on the chair, trying to relax. The day was stressful. Just as she tries to relax, the desk phone rings. "She brings the phone close to her ear, almost with zero interest in hearing anything. 

"Chairwoman! The Chairman has stepped in and he is going to your office. He is on his way" the receptionist informs her. 

Shi Lian's eyes pop open and she asks, "My father?"

"Yes. He appeared gloomy when he entered" she notify her. 

Why will her father shoe up here for no reason? She hangs the call and looks in the direction of the door. Her heart starts beating faster and her nervousness grows more and more. If he sees her in a condition like this, he will definitely ask questions, and then she will have to have to answer them. She thought she will change her dress before she leaves from the company to avoid questions but now there's no way of escaping. 

What is her father doing here? Why was he angry?