Chapter 8: He Naturally Doesn’t Like to Smile

The corridor fell silent. Xie Ting’an quickly put away the gold ring, and when he looked up again, he saw Gu Mingchen had finished his call and was walking over. Gu Mingchen held his phone tightly in one hand, standing in front of Xie Ting’an with his eyes slightly lowered, not speaking for a long time.

Suppressing the chill in his heart, Xie Ting’an looked up and casually pointed to a spot opposite him. Gu Mingchen took two steps back and sat where Xie Ting’an indicated, his brows slightly furrowed, but his posture remained straight.

“Couldn’t raise the money?” Xie Ting’an asked in a calm tone, watching Gu Mingchen nod slightly.

“The two million Sun Zong gave you before, do you want me to talk to him again?” Xie Ting’an’s eyes remained as usual.

“Thank you, but there’s no need to talk.” Gu Mingchen shook his head gently. Before he could say more, his phone suddenly rang. Xie Ting’an gestured for him to take the call. Watching Gu Mingchen get up and leave, with no one around, Xie Ting’an looked up and focused on opening the system.

The situation had been urgent earlier, and he hadn’t had time to check the items. He opened the newly acquired data point.

Xie Ting’an first glanced at the system achievement reward “Whispering Skill” and was surprised to find it was a good thing for persuading others.

“Whispering Skill”: Automatically activates within 5 centimeters of another person’s ear, increasing the credibility of the host’s words by 20%. The closer the distance, the higher the credibility increase. Every centimeter closer adds 10% credibility, with a maximum of 70% when directly next to the ear!

Xie Ting’an was silent for a while as he read the usage instructions.

He couldn’t quite imagine himself whispering to a director or shareholder at such close range.

Item “Top Water”: Spraying this item on a person or object will make the first person who smells it become infatuated with that person or object!

Fragrance duration: Two months.

Xie Ting’an pondered the use of the item for a moment, then opened the new data point. The scene before him rippled like water, but with no one around, he couldn’t discern anything for the time being.

The previously reported data point management mode, once acquired, revealed that this mode could hide part or all of the data above others’ heads, restoring Xie Ting’an’s field of vision.

With few data points obtained now, Xie Ting’an didn’t choose to hide them. When he had more data points in the future, with dozens of useful and useless data around everyone, this function would become very convenient.

After studying the rewards for this task, Xie Ting’an was examining the radar map to continue searching for tasks when Gu Mingchen returned from his call, walking steadily and sitting beside Xie Ting’an.

Xie Ting’an looked at Gu Mingchen and indeed saw new data below the health value.

A standard font “26.”

Twenty-six, first rule out age.

Xie Ting’an watched for a moment longer and found that this number didn’t change in the short term.

“That was a call from a classmate,” Gu Mingchen explained in a low voice, his voice clear and slightly magnetic.

Xie Ting’an responded, pondering what the new data could be about.

Gu Mingchen leaned slightly towards Xie Ting’an, his fingers clenched tightly, and after a moment, he spoke in a lowered voice.

“Before… I didn’t take that two million, not out of disrespect for you.”

Xie Ting’an raised his eyes slightly.

Is it respect that I want?

Isn’t my life more important?

Gu Mingchen’s thin lips pressed together, trying not to meet the gaze beside him.

“My fiancée and I have only met once, but neither of us wants our marriage controlled by our families, so we agreed to cooperate and get engaged to stabilize our families.”

Xie Ting’an silently looked at Gu Mingchen, not commenting on this.

Whether Gu Mingchen was being controlled by his family in marriage, Xie Ting’an wasn’t sure, but the child from the Sun family, when Xie Ting’an looked at the contract a second time, he noticed the child’s ID number and her birth date, she was only just eighteen.

Rumors said the child was excellent, getting into a top university before the engagement. Xie Ting’an didn’t think a newly adult girl with a bright future would give up her studies, only thinking about entering marriage.

More likely, her parents and family were using her marriage as a resource, a stepping stone for their gain.

“She is gathering strength, preparing to completely break free from the Sun family’s control, but she needs more time. If I break off the engagement, the Sun family will continue to use her marriage for family gain, so I proposed a four-year agreement.”

Gu Mingchen looked up to meet Xie Ting’an’s gaze, his eyes clear and bright.

“And that two million was the Sun family’s way of currying favor with you. From what I understand, the Sun family has always wanted to develop in Rong City. In four years, or maybe even sooner, the Sun family will definitely seek alliances with other forces in Rong City. The Xie family is currently in the spotlight, and they might become one of their choices.”

Xie Ting’an remained calm, his gaze lingering on the cold face beside him for a moment.

I have to admit, Gu Qiu indeed raised a good son.

Even when he’s fallen to living in a dangerous house, he still thinks of others.

Or perhaps he’s plotting something deeper, something I haven’t noticed yet.

Xie Ting’an glanced at the “26” above Gu Mingchen’s head, briefly distracted, when a few light coughs beside him brought his attention back.

Xie Ting’an looked at Gu Mingchen, meeting his eyes, and noticed that his mood seemed much lighter.

“What’s the good news?” Xie Ting’an asked casually.

“A classmate just lent me two thousand.” Gu Mingchen focused on Xie Ting’an, his thin lips slightly curved, his smile carrying a hint of youthful joy.

Xie Ting’an paused, staring at the expression on Gu Mingchen’s face, vaguely remembering Gu Qiu mentioning that because he and his wife were at odds early on, he had almost never seen his son smile at him.

Gu Qiu tried every way to amuse his son, but nothing worked. Gu Qiu even took the child to see a doctor, who concluded, “He might naturally not like to smile.”

So what’s with this smile now?

After a few days of hardship, did his threshold for laughter lower?

Gu Mingchen’s appearance was undoubtedly top-notch, with sharp and clean lines in his brows and eyes, a high nose bridge. Seeing him smile, a touch of inexplicable allure emerged from the cold and lonely aura. Suddenly, it became clear how he later managed to attract so many people, fearlessly building a harem.

“But this money might still not be enough.”

Gu Mingchen lowered his head, reaching into his pocket, and took out the velvet bag that previously held the gold ring. He carefully poured out the family ring inside, displaying it in front of Xie Ting’an, like a first-time salesman, a hint of unfamiliarity and shyness in his cold eyes.

“Are you interested in this ring?”

The Gu family’s family ring.

Xie Ting’an had seen it from afar but never up close.

The one in Gu Mingchen’s hand seemed different from the usual ones worn by the Gu family. The jade used in the ring was exceptionally clear and lustrous. Gu Mingchen must have regularly maintained it, making the platinum ring band shine brightly, the jade color cool, and warm to the touch.

Xie Ting’an played with Gu Mingchen’s family ring for a moment, aware of its value. Just the materials alone could be worth tens of thousands.

Gu Mingchen quietly watched the family ring between the pale fingers, his ears faintly warm, as if his heart was being toyed with, turning over and over with his movements.

After playing and observing enough, Xie Ting’an raised his hand, placing Gu Mingchen’s family ring back into the velvet bag, and handed it back to Gu Mingchen.

Gu Mingchen’s gaze followed Xie Ting’an’s retracting hand, instinctively tightening his grip on the velvet bag.

Without needing Xie Ting’an to speak, Gu Mingchen knew that this ring held no real value for him.

The Gu family was gone, and no one in Rong City wanted to be associated with the Gu family’s things; they all thought it was unlucky.

Gu Mingchen lowered his eyes, slowly placing the velvet bag with the family ring back in its place.

“I can cover the medical and surgery fees for now.”

Xie Ting’an folded his hands, lightly tapping his fingers on the back of his hand, his gaze as gentle as ever.

“You don’t need to rush to repay.”

Gu Mingchen paused, seemingly not comprehending, and looked up blankly at the person in front of him.

“Keep your ring safe.” Xie Ting’an took the gold ring from his pocket, putting it on his thumb, and casually smiled as he looked at the still-fitting ring.

“You’ve been through a lot lately; you should keep something to support you moving forward.”

As his words fell, Gu Mingchen stared intently at Xie Ting’an, something in his eyes seemed to freeze for a moment, and only after a long time did he gradually come back to his senses, his gaze flickering, wanting to speak but hesitating.

The door to the operating room suddenly made a sound, and a doctor, wearing a mask, quickly walked out.

Xie Ting’an stood up, and Gu Mingchen instinctively followed, trying hard to refocus his attention on the doctor.

“The surgery was very successful.” The doctor removed his mask, a hint of fatigue on his face, raising his hand to smooth the stray hair by his ear.

“The patient’s liver rupture has been repaired. If no complications arise post-surgery, they can be discharged in about two weeks.”

“Thank you, doctor.” Xie Ting’an looked up, seeing only a pale green “67” above the doctor’s head.

Hmm?

Xie Ting’an turned to look at Gu Mingchen, seeing a deep green “91” above his head, with a standard font “26” below. He looked back at the doctor, who still only had a health value above his head.

The function to hide part of the data points hadn’t been activated, the only explanation being that this was a characteristic of the new data point.

After thanking the doctor, Xie Ting’an sent a message to Manager Liu to prepay the subsequent medical fees. Just as he was about to put away his phone, he looked up to see Gu Mingchen, seemingly having built up his courage for a long time, handing over his phone with a QR code on the screen.

“This is my contact information.”

Gu Mingchen slightly lowered his eyes, seemingly unfamiliar with the process of initiating social contact, his tall figure stiff, speaking with some difficulty.

Xie Ting’an smiled slightly, scanned the QR code, and saw Gu Mingchen’s WeChat ID.

Gu Mingchen’s avatar was a lamp in the night, and his nickname was just his name, no need to change the note.

“I’ll repay the money in installments.” Gu Mingchen’s gaze lifted slightly, confirming that Xie Ting’an clicked “Add as Friend,” and the request was immediately accepted.

“The amount I repay each week might vary, but I’ll work hard and do my best.”

Gu Mingchen’s voice was sincere, his eyes fixed intently on the person in front of him.

Xie Ting’an’s hand paused on the screen, looking up to meet those deep blue eyes like gemstones. What flashed before his eyes was the scene in the indoor archery range, where Gu Mingchen removed the black satin band from his eyes, revealing the hideous scars around his eyes and those lifeless, gray eyes.

If Xie Ting’an remembered correctly, Gu Mingchen’s eyes were blinded after breaking off the engagement with the Sun family, while working at a club.