Shang Xinglu came out of the bathroom, towel drying her hair, and then went into the study.

Lin Heng was still at his desk, working seriously, his focus evident.

Shang Xinglu suddenly realized that when her ex-husband worked seriously, his handsomeness seemed to rise by about 5% compared to normal?

Earlier, she had acted out in a rather childish manner, and Lin Heng could only endure it, trying to placate her.

He wasn’t good at comforting people. Although he was a professional CEO, his skills as a lover were lacking.

He asked, “Do you need me to explain it from the beginning?”

He seemed quite calm.

Shang Xinglu pouted and replied, “Who else could it be… your mom set you up, didn’t she?”

Lin Heng made an uninterested sound, “Mm,” clearly reluctant.

Being set up like that was pretty embarrassing…

“Then how did she get up here?”

“This place was originally bought for my mother when she came back to the country. They have the authority,” Lin Heng explained, looking helpless.

Shang Xinglu suppressed a laugh, choosing to leave it there.

She went off to take a shower.

Who knew that this workaholic ex-husband of hers would start working again?

Even though Shang Xinglu was barefoot, the soft carpet didn’t make any sound, but as soon as she pushed open the door, Lin Heng seemed to sense her presence.

There was a hint of moisture and the same shampoo scent that he used on him.

Before, it was Lin Heng who was always busy, but now, both of them were.

What used to be a normal situation now felt rare.

Lin Heng didn’t turn around, still focused on his work, but asked, “Would you like a midnight snack?”

Shang Xinglu shook her head, “Not hungry, I ate too much tonight.”

She said this as she walked over and stood behind Lin Heng, her hand resting on his shoulder.

Lin Heng, looking apologetic, said, “I really need to finish this tonight. How about you go to bed first?”

Shang Xinglu knew he was busy, but she wanted to be with him too.

She moved in front of him, curling up in his arms.

The chair was large enough to fit two, but it felt a bit cramped.

Shang Xinglu didn’t mind the cramped space.

She hugged Lin Heng and buried her head in his neck.

Her voice came out muffled, “You keep working, I won’t disturb you.”

Lin Heng couldn’t help but pat her back like she was a child.

“Go dry your hair first, or you’ll catch a cold.”

Shang Xinglu grumbled, “I told you, only idiots catch colds. Let me stay like this for a while…”

Lin Heng chuckled.

Who says they’re an idiot to avoid drying their hair? That was quite cheeky.

He quietly stayed like that for a while, realizing that Shang Xinglu didn’t move at all. Just as she said, she stayed in his arms, not budging.

…She was surprisingly obedient and clingy, to the point it was a little too much.

Having never experienced such a thing, Lin Heng’s voice softened. “What are you doing?”

Shang Xinglu finally lifted her head from his neck and let out a long sigh.

She looked at Lin Heng with a serious expression and said, “I’m sucking on Lin Heng!”

Lin Heng: “…”

Shang Xinglu: “I used to suck on furry things, now I’m sucking on Lin Heng. Is that okay?”

Lin Heng: “…”

Suck on furry things… now sucking… him?

Why did it feel so… strange?

But Shang Xinglu didn’t care whether Lin Heng approved or not. She just continued what she was doing.

She even complained that he wasn’t taking his work seriously, saying, “If you want to look at it, just look at it quickly. What are you waiting for?”

Lin Heng kept looking at the reports, but he thought to himself, Someone’s going to get it later.

However, Shang Xinglu didn’t give him a chance to scold her.

After a while, she tilted her head and fell asleep in Lin Heng’s arms.

Her breathing gradually grew even and deep.

Lin Heng carried her to the bed, noticing the dark circles under her eyes, and sighed.

Although Lin Heng didn’t ask, he could guess what Shang Xinglu was thinking.

But what did it matter what others thought or how her family viewed things?

She rarely worked so hard, and Lin Heng couldn’t say no to her.

…

After acquiring Bichen, Shang Xinglu and Yin Yao’s company was officially established, keeping Bichen’s name and starting to integrate its existing human resources.

In the future, A City would only have the production lines, while the company would stay here.

Even though they had arranged decent employee dormitories on both sides, integrating the human resources was still a tricky problem. Shang Xinglu had been extremely busy for the past half month.

One day, after returning from A City and making a trip to the office, with some free time, Shang Xinglu decided to take half a day off in the afternoon.

Just as she thought about taking a break, her eyelids started twitching—she had a bad feeling.

Shang Xinglu froze in the office, thinking, What happened to me over the past month? Why have I turned into a diligent worker earning money?

…Turns out, supporting a family makes you work hard.

Shang Xinglu was quite moved by her own transformation and decided to rest.

She grabbed her handbag and happily went to the underground parking lot. Just as she reached her parking spot, several men in suits suddenly appeared from the shadows.

Shang Xinglu: “!!!”

She didn’t even have time to scream before she saw a stunning woman with a seductive yet mischievous look push up her sunglasses in the dimly lit underground parking garage.

Shang Xinglu: “……”

If this wasn’t Shi Rui, then who else could it be?

Shi Rui gave a command, “Take her away.”

Shang Xinglu: “……”

Shi Rui continued, “Why aren’t you struggling? I still have a line to say—‘Confess and you’ll be treated leniently, resist and you’ll be punished severely.’ Come on, struggle a little!”

Shang Xinglu: “…………”

No way!

You drama queens!!! I am NOT one of you!!!

And so, refusing to cooperate with her overly dramatic friends, Shang Xinglu was taken away in the underground parking garage.

Where to?

To Shi Rui’s home.

They were very professional about it.

Jiang Lexuan, a former supermodel who even had minor roles in a few popcorn flicks, had arranged for a prop team to transform one of Shi Rui’s rooms into an interrogation room, complete with a one-way mirror. They were taking this far too seriously.

Shi Rui had the bodyguards cuff Shang Xinglu to the table.

And, well… there were actual handcuffs.

Leather on the outside, soft fur on the inside—not painful at all…

Shang Xinglu took a closer look, and her eyes nearly popped out.

WTF!!!

Aren’t these… adult novelty handcuffs?!

Shi Rui, what the hell do you do at home all day?!!!

Dressed in a uniform—yes, the spicy kind—Shi Rui turned the desk lamp directly at Shang Xinglu’s face.

Shang Xinglu: “…… My poor eyes! I’m blinded!!!”

Shi Rui: “Oh, so now you care about your eyesight! Speak! Why have you been hanging out with Yin Yao so much lately? You traitor! Betraying our organization?! Today, we’re here to purge you!”

Shang Xinglu: “……”

What kind of ‘organization’ is this…? Say that in front of the cops, I dare you.

After a moment of silence, she turned to the one-way mirror—where Xue Shaoying and the others were watching—and said, “Who wrote these lines? So cringe.”

Silence.

Shang Xinglu: “Jiang Lexuan, right?”

Outside, Jiang Lexuan coughed awkwardly.

Shi Rui scowled. “I’m interrogating you! Am I not intimidating enough? Can you at least respect my authority?”

Shang Xinglu quickly said, “Respect, respect, of course, I respect you.”

Then, she put on the face of a shady pyramid scheme leader and said, “Sister, wanna make some money?”

Shi Rui: “……”

She instantly took a step back. “What are you up to? Why do you look so suspicious?”

Shang Xinglu sighed. “Yin Yao wants to acquire Bichen and asked if I’d join her. So, I said yes. What’s the big deal?”

“How is that ‘no big deal’?! What if she scams you out of everything?!” Shi Rui slammed the table.

“Uh… she’s the legal owner of the company. Any debt will be on her.”

Shi Rui slammed the table again. “Just because she’s our mortal enemy doesn’t mean you should scam her out of everything she owns!!!”

Shang Xinglu: “……”

Hello?!

What is even happening right now?!

After enough theatrics, Shi Rui finally got serious. “I just don’t get it. Why did you suddenly team up with Yin Yao?”

Shang Xinglu said, “Going with the flow?”

Shi Rui: “……Why not say you were forced?”

Shang Xinglu continued, “Well, let me ask you this—if I wanted to make serious money and work hard every day, would you all join me?”

These rich ladies might not have the brains, but they sure had the cash.

One second of silence.

Shi Rui: “No, thanks.”

From outside the room, the others chimed in:

“No, we’re good.”

“If it’s just running a small business, fine. But this kind of stuff… nah.”

“We don’t need more money.”

Shang Xinglu: “……”

Of course.

“Besides, you’re not exactly struggling. Why are you suddenly so keen on making money?” Shi Rui asked.

Shang Xinglu initially wanted to say, “Who doesn’t want more money?”

But that wasn’t the real reason.

She wasn’t particularly ambitious—she liked money, sure, but she didn’t need a ton of it.

So, she chose to be honest.

Her face was expressionless, and her tone was calm, but the moment she started speaking, Shi Rui and the others could tell she was serious.

Shang Xinglu said, “There were many reasons I divorced Lin Heng… But when it comes to him, I used to think, ‘The world is big—if it’s not Lin Heng, it could be someone else.’ But then I realized… if it’s not Lin Heng, it can’t be anyone else.”

“……”

“And yet… Lin Heng is still Lin Heng…” she said, looking at the ceiling, as if those words carried some unspoken meaning.

The room fell into silence.

Outside, Xue Shaoying turned to Jiang Lexuan and said, “Why does this feel like watching our little girl finally grow up?”

Jiang Lexuan sighed. “Yeah. Our silly Lulu… Is she finally using her brain?”

And then, in the very next second, the pyramid scheme leader face returned to Shang Xinglu’s expression.

“So, sisters, wanna make some money?”

Everyone: “…………”

Jiang Lexuan: “Nope, I’m good.”

Xue Shaoying: “Nope, me too.”

Cold. Heartless.

Shi Rui said, “Maybe… you should just stick with Yin Yao?”

Shang Xinglu: “…………”

Fine!

I have my Yao Yao! Come wind or rain, I fear nothing!

Just then, she received a call from Yin Yao.

“Louise, I’ve set up a meeting with the investment manager from Clemens Bank this afternoon. Want to come along?”

Shang Xinglu: “Yes, yes, of course!”

After hanging up, she suddenly froze.

Clemens Bank… why does that sound familiar?

She thought for a moment.

Wait.

Isn’t that Lin Heng’s family’s bank?!