Chapter 6: What Is Your Relationship with Zhou Ci?

A short while later, the assistant returned to the car.

“Mr. Zhou, Miss Gu has already run off and I can’t see her anywhere. Do you want to pursue her?” The question sounded almost fatal, but it had to be asked.

He had been working for this boss for two years now, yet he still hadn’t figured out his temper.

Zhou Ci’s voice was cold. “Back to the hotel.”

In Rong City, Gu Shenshen found herself beset on all sides—if she wasn’t being hounded by one creditor, she was pursued by another. And if it wasn’t for the debts, there would always be some lecherous old man casting a terrifying olive branch her way, attracted by her beauty.

She hadn’t seen Feng Shiyao until his first trial. In court, his hair was cropped short, he wore handcuffs, and the glory of his past was long gone.

Su Yan sat beside her. She was Feng Shiyao’s woman.

“He’s in this situation because of you. Do you have any idea who you’ve offended?” Su Yan looked haggard, clearly worn down by the past month.

Gu Shenshen pressed her lips together and stayed silent. When Zhou Ci had appeared before her, she’d actually seen it coming.

The hotel fire, Feng Shiyao’s imprisonment, her own financial ruin—perhaps all of it had been orchestrated by Zhou Ci’s hand.

If it was him, then he’d been plotting for a long time.

“Gu Shenshen, you can’t be heartless. You know how well Shiyao treated you. If someone is pulling strings behind the scenes, he’ll be sentenced even more harshly.” Su Yan’s tone was heavy, tinged with a plea.

Gu Shenshen curled her fingers, glancing at Su Yan beside her. “I know what I have to do.”

Hearing this, Su Yan’s eyes reddened. “I’m not trying to force you, but…”

Gu Shenshen waved her hand to cut her off. “It’s my fault he’s in this mess.”

Ever since she’d run away from home in her teens and met Feng Shiyao, she’d been with him, under his protection. If it weren’t for him, with her kind of beauty that could bring nations to ruin, she’d probably have fallen into the gutter long ago.

Before she was forced into being auctioned at the hotel, Gu Shenshen returned to Haicheng.

She didn’t even go home, heading straight for Zhou Corporation.

When word reached Zhou Ci’s office, he was buried in work. The assistant waited for several minutes before he finally looked up from his tasks.

He glanced coolly at the assistant, who’d been waiting for some time. “I won’t see her.”

Gu Shenshen didn’t have to wait long; the receptionist politely relayed Zhou Ci’s response.

There was no pretense, no grand excuse—just a simple refusal.

As expected as it was, Gu Shenshen couldn’t help but feel stung.

He truly had no conscience, remembering only her faults.

She tossed him a final accusation of heartlessness before turning and leaving.

This attempt had revealed Zhou Ci’s attitude to her.

She also realized that if she wanted to save Feng Shiyao, it would take a heavy price—otherwise, it would be almost impossible.

Not long after leaving Zhou Corporation, a few steps away, a white BMW pulled up beside her.

The window rolled down, revealing a gentle face. Shen Qiqi tapped the horn, pulling Gu Shenshen from her thoughts.

She bent down slightly to look and saw that it was Shen Qiqi, whom she hadn’t seen in a long time.

“What’s your relationship with Zhou Ci?” Shen Qiqi asked directly after she got in the car.

Gu Shenshen thought for a moment. “Enemies, I suppose.”

Shen Qiqi’s brows knitted slightly. “Did you offend him?”

“Offend him? That’s putting it mildly. I’ve gotten myself into enormous trouble.” Gu Shenshen let out a long sigh, helpless and troubled.

“No one in the Zhou family is any good,” Shen Qiqi muttered.

Gu Shenshen’s face was practically etched with worry; she couldn’t help but raise her hand to rub her forehead.

Given time, perhaps she could find a way to deal with Zhou Ci. But after Feng Shiyao’s first trial, the second would come quickly—she had no time to spare.

After a moment, Shen Qiqi remembered something important.

“The Jiangdong Chamber of Commerce’s autumn exchange is next Wednesday in Haicheng. It’s a high-profile event—Zhou Ci will definitely attend, and your family will be there too.”

Gu Shenshen raised an eyebrow. From what she knew of Zhou Ci, he might not necessarily attend.

So she asked curiously, “Why are you so sure he’ll go?”