Chapter Eight
524 Words
Gu Jue didn't break his stride until they reached the door of his private study. He slammed it shut, the locks clicking into place.
The room was bathed in red emergency lighting. Gu Jue released her wrist, but his massive frame remained planted firmly in front of the exit, effectively caging her.
Xinyi didn't flinch. She stood perfectly still, her breathing measured and calm with an icy indifferent expression.
She smoothed the fabric of her simple black dress, deliberately rubbing the spot on her wrist where his fingers had held her.
‘He thinks fear can trigger me’, she mused internally. He has no idea.
"Talk. Now," Gu Jue commanded, his voice a low, vibrating growl. "How did you know the Neiguan pressure point? It’s not common knowledge."
Xinyi met his gaze without a flicker of hesitation.
"YouTube."
Gu Jue let out a single, sharp laugh. "YouTube doesn’t teach that angle, nor the precision required to stabilize a ruptured artery."
He stepped into her personal space, his thumb brushing against her inner wrist. He was checking her pulse. "Your heart rate hasn't changed since I dragged you from the ballroom. Why?"
"You aren't scary, Mr. Gu," she replied, her voice cool and devoid of performative terror. "You’re just rude."
Gu Jue’s eyes darkened, a flash of genuine shock crossing his features. "Most people beg when I corner them."
Suddenly, the door rattled violently before bursting open. Chenyi and Father Lin tumbled in, their faces flushed with panicked indignation.
"Mr. Gu, please!" Chenyi shrieked, pointing a shaking finger at Xinyi. "She’s a fraud! She stole those medical needles from our estate and lied to gain your favor!"
Gu Jue didn't even turn his head. He merely raised a single hand. "Guards."
Two shadows in black suits appeared instantly, dragging the screaming Lins backward. "The woman who saved my grandfather does not explain herself to the likes of you," Gu Jue stated, his tone freezing the air in the room.
The door slammed, cutting off the Lins' frantic wails.
Silence returned. Gu Jue stared at Xinyi, his obsession warring with his confusion. "You have ten seconds to run before I change my mind about letting you leave."
Xinyi walked past him, her pace unhurried and elegant. She stopped at the door, glancing back over her shoulder. "Next time you want answers, Mr. Gu, ask. Don’t drag."
She walked out, not running, simply disappearing into the shadows of the mansion.
Gu Jue watched her go, his jaw tight. His assistant stepped from the corner, bowing low.
"Sir, I’ve scrubbed her file again. It’s clean. Too clean."
"No one is that clean," Gu Jue murmured, his eyes fixed on the empty doorway. "Watch her. Quietly."
Inside the backseat of a taxi miles away, Xinyi’s phone vibrated. A message from Fat Jun lit the screen: ‘Boss, Gu security is scanning your network.’
Xinyi’s fingers moved like lightning across the glass. “Let them scan. They’ll find nothing.”
Gu Jue stood in his study, convinced he had just locked a rabbit in his room. He didn't realize that for the last ten minutes, he had been toyed with.
- Writer
