The Police Raid and the Unconventional Apology

No! Absolutely not!

Xiang Qing’s survival instinct reached its absolute peak at this very moment.

She absolutely had to—immediately, without a moment’s delay—shatter this bizarre, suffocatingly awkward atmosphere that felt thick enough to carve a three-room apartment from.

In a flash, a brilliant idea struck her.

Xiang Qing took a deep breath, then abruptly cleared her throat, and with the loudest voice she had ever mustered in her life, full of vigor, she shouted:

“Police raid!!!”

“Listen up, everyone inside! You’re surrounded! Get dressed and come out now! Confess and be leniently dealt with! Resist and face severe consequences!”

“…”

“…”

The entire restroom plunged into a deathly silence.

The sounds from inside the stall ceased abruptly.

The smile on Gu Wei’s face completely froze.

She slowly, ever so slowly, turned her head, looking at Xiang Qing with an expression typically reserved for extraterrestrials.

Xiang Qing felt a chill creep up her spine under that gaze, yet she stubbornly held her ground, forcing out what she imagined to be a very serious expression.

A few seconds later.

“Bang!”

The door of the innermost stall was kicked open.

A sweaty, blond-haired young man, clad only in boxers, burst out in a rage, followed by a disheveled, flushed delinquent girl.

“Who the hell are you?! Are you insane?!” The blond-haired young man yelled, pointing a finger at Xiang Qing’s nose. “What are you screaming about in here?! You scared my d*ck soft!”

Xiang Qing flinched in fright, instinctively hiding behind Gu Wei.

‘Oh no, I’ve really messed up.’

Before she could even utter an apology, Gu Wei, standing before her, moved.

Seeing her sure thing slip away, Gu Wei’s temper flared even hotter than the blond-haired young man’s.

A palpable aura of “I am utterly displeased” radiated from her entire being, and her gaze was as cold as a blade.

“You, say that again?” Gu Wei’s voice was devoid of any warmth.

The blond-haired young man had initially intended to curse further, but the moment his eyes met Gu Wei’s, he instantly cowered.

‘He had clearly kicked a steel plate.’

He immediately grabbed the delinquent girl, who was still adjusting her clothes, and rushed out of the restroom, forgetting to even close the door.

The ambiguous atmosphere was utterly shattered.

Only a speechless Xiang Qing and Gu Wei remained in the restroom.

Xiang Qing hunched her shoulders, stealing a glance at Gu Wei’s expression.

‘It was as dark as the bottom of a pot.’

She let out two dry laughs, attempting to salvage the situation: “Um… President Gu, look, I scared all the bad guys away. Aren’t I impressive?”

Gu Wei said nothing.

She simply stared coldly at Xiang Qing for a full half-minute.

Then, she suddenly let out a ‘heh’ of a laugh.

That laugh made the hairs on Xiang Qing’s arms stand on end.

“Xiang Qing.”

“You truly are my excellent nanny.”

Gu Wei spoke each word distinctly, every syllable seemingly forced through clenched teeth.

She suddenly seized Xiang Qing’s wrist with frightening force, pulling her towards the exit.

“Home.”

The two cold words struck Xiang Qing.

“We’ll settle tonight’s score when we get home, slowly.”

On the way back, the atmosphere inside the Maserati was so oppressive it felt suffocating.

Xiang Qing huddled in the passenger seat, even her breathing softened, secretly peeking at Gu Wei beside her from the corner of her eye.

‘My goodness, her face was as dark as Zhang Fei’s.’

That face, usually breathtakingly beautiful, now practically had the four characters “Stay Away” carved onto it.

‘It’s over, this time it’s truly over.’

The perfectly good atmosphere had been shattered by her single shout.

The prize had been practically within her grasp, yet she had personally let it slip away.

Gu Wei must be absolutely itching to chop her into pieces right now!

The more Xiang Qing thought about it, the more her heart trembled with unease.

‘No, I can’t just sit here and wait to die!’

She was a professional! If a client wasn’t satisfied, she had to find a way to remedy it!

‘Isn’t it just about coaxing someone? She knew how!’

“Ahem.” Xiang Qing cleared her throat, trying hard to force out a sweet smile.

“Um… President Gu, how about I tell you a joke?”

Gu Wei drove, her gaze fixed straight ahead, her hands steady on the steering wheel, not a single word escaping her lips.

‘Fine, silence means consent.’

Xiang Qing braced herself and began her one-woman comedy show.

“Once upon a time, there was a matchstick walking along the road. It felt its head itching, so it scratched it, and then… then it caught fire! Hahahaha… Is it funny?”

Inside the car, apart from the engine’s hum, there was absolute silence.

Xiang Qing’s laughter echoed awkwardly in the confined space, only to be swallowed by the merciless silence.

‘Help, my toes were already curling in embarrassment; at this rate, I’d be able to excavate an entire mansion.’

‘She wouldn’t give up so easily!’

“One more! This one is definitely funny!”

“Do you know why Xiao Ming always got zero marks on his tests?”

“Because when the teacher asked him, ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’, Xiao Ming replied, ‘I want to marry you!’ The teacher was so angry that she gave him zero every time!”

“…”

“President Gu, won’t you smile? Look at you, always so stern-faced; it really detracts from your unparalleled beauty.”

Gu Wei finally reacted.

She slammed on the brakes, pulling the car to the side of the road.

The screeching brakes startled Xiang Qing so much that her soul nearly fled her body.

“Xiang Qing.”

Gu Wei turned her head; in the dim light of the car, her face was indistinct, but her voice was chillingly cold.

“Do you find this amusing right now?”

“N-not funny.” Xiang Qing instantly cowered, shaking her head like a rattle-drum.

“I just wanted to make you a little happier.”

“I was wrong, President Gu! I shouldn’t have screamed like that at that moment! I just acted on impulse, my brain short-circuited!”

Xiang Qing clasped her hands together, her attitude radiating sincerity.

‘A truly resourceful person knew when to bend. For the sake of money, an apology was a small price to pay!’

Gu Wei remained silent, simply watching her.

Xiang Qing felt her heart race under that gaze, like a fish on a chopping block, awaiting the knife’s swift descent.

‘Oh no, oh no, this apology isn’t creative enough; the sugar mommy isn’t buying it.’

‘I needed to up the ante!’

In a flash, Xiang Qing’s brain spun into overdrive, and a whole new set of excuses was freshly concocted.

She lowered her gaze, adopting a pitiful yet somewhat stubborn demeanor.

“President Gu, I know my behavior just now was quite a mood killer.”

“But… but I also had my reasons.”

She secretly glanced up at Gu Wei, noticing a slight softening in her expression.

‘It’s working!’

“I… I’m just a bit slow to warm up.”

Xiang Qing’s voice dropped, tinged with a hint of grievance.

“When it comes to relationships, I’m very serious. I don’t want to casually start one, much less be deceived or let down.”

“So… so in that situation just now, I really… I was a little scared.”

At this point, she even sniffled at just the right moment.

‘I truly am an unassuming little acting genius! The Oscars owe me a statuette!’

She delivered the speech so convincingly that even she almost believed it.

‘What “don’t want to be deceived” or “don’t want to be let down”? All she wanted right now was to make money!’

‘What is love? Can it be eaten?’

Gu Wei listened quietly, the frost on her face seemingly melting a little.

She remained silent for a few seconds, then suddenly spoke.

“So, what you’re saying is, you want to be in a relationship with me?”

“Huh?”

Xiang Qing was dumbfounded.

‘How had the conversation abruptly swerved here? Was President Gu’s thought process a little too unconventional?’

‘Be in a relationship? She couldn’t run away fast enough!’

‘She just wanted to be a money-making machine devoid of emotion!’

But with things having come this far, wouldn’t saying “no” now be slapping herself in the face?

‘Xiang Qing’s inner thoughts: No! Get lost! Don’t touch me!’

Yet her mouth, driven by a powerful survival instinct, uttered words that were diametrically opposed.

“I…”

A complex expression of conflicted emotions, insecurity, and a hint of yearning appeared on Xiang Qing’s face.

“President Gu… you’re so outstanding, so beautiful, and so wealthy…”

She first unleashed a torrent of lavish compliments, elevating Gu Wei to the heavens.

“I… I’m just an ordinary person. How could I ever be worthy of you?”

“Even if you truly liked me, I… I would still feel unworthy of you.”

She lowered her head, her voice growing softer and softer.

“So, I need time… I need to work hard, to grow. Until one day, I feel I can be worthy of you, that I can stand proudly by your side, only then… only then would I dare to think about being with you.”

After delivering this speech, Xiang Qing mentally gave herself a ‘V’ for victory sign.

‘Perfect!’

‘This maneuver was practically a textbook example of reverse PUA tactics!’

‘Not only did it declare that she wasn’t easily swayed, but it also offered Gu Wei an excuse—”it’s not that I don’t like you, it’s that I’m not worthy”—and, incidentally, painted a grand future vision while keeping the ultimate decision-making power firmly in her own hands!’

‘Xiang Qing, you truly are a business prodigy!’