Chapter 69 Fanatics

"Fanatics? From where?" She exclaimed, as the car slowly made its way back onto the main road. Some of them were still trying to keep up, but eventually, they were blessedly free of human leeches and far, far away from Xue Ning's apartment.

"Everywhere? Who knows really, they've been after me for years," Jingwei said. "Can you use my phone to give Shengli a call? He needs to threaten to sue people again."

"Who?" She asked as she reached into his front pocket to grab his phone. Unlike the first time she did it, there was less hesitation and awkwardness, even if his chest muscle felt just as firm as before.

It also helped that this time, they weren't followed by suspicious black cars. Like the car that tried to kill them the night before. She shivered at how close they came to death.

"Shengli is my personal lawyer! He's been with me for a long time, since he was an intern actually. It was him who handled the initial club incident too," Jingwei explained, giving her a quick, careful look. "Are you cold, Xue Ning? You are shivering. Is the aircon too cold?"

Jingwei already had his hand out, ready to change the settings.

"I'm fine," Xue Ning said, unlocking his phone with the password he gave her last time, and spotting Shengli in his recent messages. His last message to Jingwei was a plaintive 'please don't create more trouble'.

Xue Ning would almost feel bad for calling him, if not for the fact that her apartment was mobbed by people and she wasn't allowed to swat them aside like they were houseflies.

"I'll put you on speaker," Xue Ning said.

The phone gets picked up a mere two rings later.

"Please tell me you have a mighty good reason for calling." A highly irate voice stated. "Or I will ask for a transfer to your brother's department immediately."

"Good morning to you too, Shengli." Jingwei said wryly. "How are you this fine morning?"

"That depends on what you called me for," Shengli pointed out acerbically. Any other boss would have found it rude, but Jingwei merely laughed. Xue Ning wondered if Jingwei was so accepting of her own sarcastic remarks because he was surrounded by people who are similar.

"Do I need to help you flee the country? Write another NDA?" Shengli continued.

"None of that, just good old suing again. My loving fans have returned," Jingwei said.

"Really? I thought they would have given up after your stunt with the lawn sprinkles." Shengli said. "Are they still camped outside your place?"

"No - they are camped outside Xue Ning's house instead! I need you to get some police officers, some of our lawyers and sue all of them again." Jingwei said, making a slow loop around her apartment, making sure to stay out of view from the crazy fans that were still congregating at the apartment complex, clearly waiting for him to return.

Shengli spluttered. "And how would I know where she lives?"

"Ask Yi Ting! Come on man, I'm giving you a reason to go out of the office and talk to her," Jingwei said. "Don't sound so grouchy."

This Shengli person made a noise over the line, as though he was an overboiling kettle. Xue Ning guessed that he probably had sky-high blood pressure.

"Fine," he gritted out. "I'll be there shortly, DO NOT go out of your car, or anywhere near her apartment until I give you the all clear."

"Got it, thank you!" Jingwei said cheerily before hanging up.

"Yi Ting… she's the woman that delivered my parcel right?" Xue Ning frowned as she tried to recall.

"Correct! She was supposed to help you unpack it too, and then tell me your reactions, but I guess she didn't want to go that far," Jingwei mused.

"I also wouldn't want her to do that," Xue Ning scoffed. The thought of unboxing sexy lingerie was already embarrassing enough alone, having another stranger with her watching over her reactions would be unbearable! "That'll be so awkward for us both - I had a feeling she was ready to leave the moment she delivered the package."

"Good thing I'm not a stranger then," Jingwei said. "And after seeing these people camp at your apartment, I'm glad you're moving in with me. Your house isn't safe."

"And your house is?" Xue Ning asked curiously.

Jingwei shrugged as languidly drove along a random lane. "At least my apartment complex has security guards on duty. And electronic locks. And an alarm system with CCTV. Yours…"

"Yes, my house sucks," she said bluntly. "Don't run away screaming if you see a cockroach in my kitchen later."

"I still want to see it," Jingwei insisted. He had a feeling her housing situation was less than ideal, but he wanted to know exactly how she lived, just so he would know how to make improvements on his apartment!

Humans are creatures of inertia; if he made her feel so comfortable, she would never want to move out!

"Suit yourself, how long do we need to wait for Shengli to clear the rabble?" Xue Ning asked, curious.

"Won't be long," he said, tone conspiratorial. "He hates work, so he'll always make sure to resolve it quickly. And with these kinds of fan stalkers, there's already protocol - it'll be done in an hour max!"

"Alright then," Xue Ning leans back against the clean leather seat. "Guess we'll just wait then."

-

Back at the office, Liu Shengli immediately organised his own legal team, a pack of wide-eyed interns who seemed utterly confused at the thought of going out of the office to deliver summons.

They came in here expecting to be chained to their desks, flooded with stacks of paperwork, dying of Vitamin D deficiency as they never see the light of the sun, like every legal intern in any other company.

But of course, Sun Enterprises had always prided itself on being different. It provided an enriching, fulfilling and… unique working experience.

"Now, all of you know what you must do," he handed them thick stacks of brown envelopes, each containing important legal documents.

"While you're threatening legal action on the trespassers on Li Xue Ning's property, do get as much identifying information from them as possible. I've sent a file with information of Sun Jingwei's most persistent stalkers, make sure to familiarise yourselves with them on the way."

"If they attempt violence, don't forget to add assault on the list of charges." His interns paled.

"I'll be there to supervise, so consider this your first mission on the field." He continued, internally smirking at the looks of despair on his interns. Poor sweet summer children, he'll show them that working at Sun Enterprises wasn't all shine and glamour.

The interns gulped. "Sir… you mean… we could get hurt?"

"Yes." Shengli said heartlessly. "If you do, get it on camera. You'll be compensated fairly."

The interns shot each other with appalled looks. No wonder the reviews for this place were so poor, and the turnover rate was so high! But alas, they couldn't refuse, and deep down, they know that if they performed well, they'd be like Mr Liu Shengli, giving orders from his cushy leather chair.

"Make sure to get as many of them as possible. Do all of you understand?" Shengli asked.

"Yes Sir." They replied, with various levels of enthusiasm, which is honestly, not much.

Just for that, he wasn't going to tell them that there were going to be police officers, and Yi Ting had sent a couple of security guards as added backup. He wasn't that evil. Much.

"Prepare yourself, we'll leave in 5 minutes." He said, clapping his hands twice. "Get this settled in an hour to increase your bonus."

Suddenly, there was a lot more enthusiasm, as all the interns bowed and fled the room, calling for the company cars.

-

"Are they done yet?" Xue Ning didn't want to be that annoying child in the backseat when her parents drove on road trips, but she found herself regressing to that state of mind while Sun Jingwei made yet another turn around the residential estate.

They've passed by the same bakery 9 times, and that logo of a winking Frenchman holding a baguette seemed to grow more mocking with every loop!

"Soon, Xue Ning. Be patient," Jingwei chided gently. It was amusing to see Xue Ning stew in impatience next to him. He was having a great time, familiarising himself with the area, just in case Xue Ning would like to have a date nearby.

"I just don't like the thought of people near my living space." Xue Ning confessed. "And now that your car showed up, they'll know it's definitely me in the pictures online."

Goodbye privacy, it was nice knowing you. Xue Ning mused bitterly.

"Yeah…" Jingwei replied awkwardly. "The news would have leaked out eventually, but at least we can make sure you're safe with me in my home. No deranged fan of mine will hurt you with me there!"

"Oh, how the turntables have turned." Xue Ning said dryly, to hide her inner unease. Deranged fans weren't going to stop with lawsuits - there was a reason why they are deranged! She had a feeling she would be seeing more of them in the future, whether she liked it or not.

More importantly, this confirmed a thought that had been steadily brewing in that one hour drive - there was no way she could return to her normal, unobtrusive lifestyle, before she ever met Sun Jingwei.

Just like Xiumin, everyone will suddenly know of her, have opinions on her, and have no qualms about possibly harassing her.

Now only time will tell, if she would have the same ending.