After Becoming the Family Head, I Got an Unofficial Fiancée (GL) - Chapter 6
The restaurant on the first floor was lit up, and the sound of the kettle boiling water was particularly loud in the quiet of the night.
Jiang Man stood in the kitchen, staring down at the kettle. She knew that Gu Weiyan was sitting in the dining room outside, waiting for her to bring her some water. Since the house didn’t have hot water, she had to boil it fresh. Just thinking about being alone with Gu Weiyan made her nervous.
Even though it had been a week since moving into Gu Weiyan’s house, she still felt out of place, constantly worried about offending this strong-willed woman.
“Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—”
The kettle whistled, and the switch popped up with a sharp click, cutting off the power. Jiang Man snapped out of her thoughts and quickly grabbed a cup to pour some hot water.
The water was still scalding hot and undrinkable, so Jiang Man added a little cold water. She carefully checked the glass to make sure it was safe to drink before walking it over to Gu Weiyan.
At that moment, Gu Weiyan was sitting in the dining room chair, rubbing her stomach. What had started as a slight ache was now intensifying, and her face had turned pale from the pain. She took the hot water from Jiang Man and gulped it down in one go.
Jiang Man watched her drink so quickly and thought she must be very thirsty. She asked, “Do you want another cup?”
Gu Weiyan shook her head, still holding the cup, and quietly said, “No, that’s enough.”
Seeing how pale Gu Weiyan looked, Jiang Man became worried. “Are you feeling unwell?”
“A little,” Gu Weiyan replied, not hiding it. “Go get the first aid kit from the living room. I’m having some stomach pain.”
As soon as Jiang Man heard it was stomach pain, she got anxious and hurried to the living room. She turned around and asked, “Where’s the first aid kit?”
Gu Weiyan, clutching her stomach, was sweating from the pain. Gritting her teeth, she said, “It’s on the second shelf of the storage rack, in a white box. Can you see it?”
“I see it!” Jiang Man quickly grabbed the first aid kit and rushed back to the dining room. She placed it on the table, opened it, and began searching. “Which one is the stomach medicine?”
“The one with the green packaging.”
“The green one… Ah, is this it?”
When Jiang Man pulled out the box, she noticed it felt lighter than expected. She opened it to find it was empty!
Gu Weiyan saw it too and frowned. Over the years, she had worked tirelessly, with no regular schedule for eating or resting. The stomach medicine in the house was always the first to run out.
She realized that the medicine had probably been used up, and Aunt Zhou had forgotten to buy a replacement, leaving behind only the empty box.
The thought made her stomach hurt even more, and she collapsed onto the dining table, gasping for breath. “Can you pour me another cup of hot water?”
“Drinking just water won’t help, right?” Jiang Man looked at her sweating from the pain, grabbed the empty box, and said, “I’ll go out and buy some medicine for you. Wait here!”
Before Gu Weiyan could react, Jiang Man had already run out the door. Gu Weiyan panicked, but the stomach pain slowed her down, and she couldn’t catch up with the girl. She could only sit back down, trying to endure the pain.
She checked her phone—it was nearly midnight.
Gu Weiyan thought about calling Jiang Man to tell her to come back, but then realized she didn’t have her contact information.
“Tch.” Gu Weiyan’s face was pale as she muttered to herself, feeling frustrated.
Meanwhile, Jiang Man had run to three pharmacies outside the neighborhood, and finally found a 24-hour pharmacy. She bought the medicine according to the information on the box, then rushed back.
By the time she returned to the villa, it was already past midnight.
Gu Weiyan was sitting at the door when she saw Jiang Man come back with the medicine. Her anger flared up instantly!
“Who told you to go out and buy medicine?” Gu Weiyan glared at her as she walked inside, her voice sharp. “Do you know what time it is? You’re just a young girl! What if something happened to you outside? How would I explain it to your grandfather?”
Jiang Man stood frozen, holding the medicine, staring at her in shock.
Gu Weiyan, already furious, couldn’t hold back anymore. How could the little brat go out while she was sick? Didn’t she know how dangerous it was for a girl to be out alone in the middle of the night?
Even if she didn’t run into any bad people, what if she encountered a driver who wasn’t paying attention? If they even slightly bumped into her, Gu Weiyan would be the one responsible!
When she saw Jiang Man still wearing a light pink pajama, Gu Weiyan felt frustrated but held back her anger and said to her, “Don’t run out in the middle of the night next time. It’s dangerous.”
Jiang Man, holding the medicine, softly explained, “I… I just saw that you were in so much pain, and I wanted to buy some medicine for you…”
Gu Weiyan understood, of course. Seeing how Jiang Man spoke, barely daring to breathe, Gu Weiyan sighed and said, “Didn’t you know there’s something called food delivery? They also have 24-hour pharmacies.”
Jiang Man froze for a moment, then lowered her head and apologized, “I’m sorry…”
“It’s alright,” Gu Weiyan said. “I should apologize too. You were just trying to help me. But next time, let me know if you’re going out at night, alright?”
Jiang Man nodded and quickly added, “I’ll go make the medicine for you.”
After reheating the water and preparing the medicine, it was already past one in the morning. Gu Weiyan felt much better after drinking the medicine. She looked at Jiang Man, thought for a moment, and then pulled out her phone, placing it in front of her.
Jiang Man looked at her in confusion, and Gu Weiyan explained, “When you went out, I called Aunt Zhou. She said she didn’t know your phone number. Since you’ve been staying here for so long, I realized I don’t have your contact information either.”
“This is just a reminder for me,” Gu Weiyan said. “Enter your phone number. If something like this happens again, I can call you.”
Jiang Man nodded obediently, entered her phone number, and then handed the phone back to Gu Weiyan.
Gu Weiyan glanced at the number and immediately dialed it. Jiang Man felt her phone vibrating in her pocket. When she looked at it, it was an unfamiliar number.
After hanging up, Gu Weiyan said to her, “Save my number. That way, if I come home late, you can call me.”
Jiang Man nodded, holding her phone, and saved Gu Weiyan’s number.
“It’s getting late. You should get some rest,” Gu Weiyan said as she stood up. “Tomorrow, you’ll be alone at home. I’ll try to come back early to keep you company.”
After watching Gu Weiyan head upstairs, Jiang Man’s gaze lingered on the cup that Gu Weiyan had just finished drinking from. After a moment’s hesitation, she got up to wash it. Then she rearranged the chair and made sure nothing was left out before turning off the lights and heading upstairs.
Once she lay in bed, Jiang Man suddenly realized she hadn’t thanked Gu Weiyan yet for the new desk, chair, and bookshelf.
She looked at the empty bookshelf. Since there was nothing on it, it only held her backpack for now, making the room feel even more empty.
Sitting up in bed, Jiang Man stared at the closed door, deep in thought. She realized she had already made Gu Weiyan angry today, so it was probably best not to disturb her. She could thank her tomorrow.
Having made up her mind, Jiang Man lay back down, hugged the soft corner of her blanket, and closed her eyes. She fell asleep soon after.
When she woke up the next morning, it was already past 8 AM. She got up, went downstairs, and noticed the house was empty. Quietly, she peeked into Gu Weiyan’s room, but there was no one there either.
She figured Gu Weiyan had probably already left. Jiang Man stood on tiptoe, trying to sneak a look into her room.
The blanket on Gu Weiyan’s bed was thrown haphazardly on the bed, with half of it hanging off the floor. Jiang Man thought about going in to tidy up, but the moment she stepped onto the carpet in Gu Weiyan’s bedroom, she hesitated.
On her first day here, Gu Weiyan had told her she disliked others entering her room. Even though Gu Weiyan was already at work, Jiang Man didn’t dare go in.
Jiang Man fiddled with the hem of her skirt, thought for a moment, and then turned away.
She didn’t want Gu Weiyan to dislike her. If Gu Weiyan asked her to leave, there wouldn’t be a place for her back at the Jiang family’s home either.
Meanwhile, Gu Weiyan had just arrived at the office and called her assistant, Xiao Chen.
“President Gu.”
Xiao Chen followed Gu Weiyan into her office and asked, “What can I do for you?”
“What’s my schedule like today?” Gu Weiyan asked casually as she sat down and opened her computer.
Xiao Chen flipped through his notebook and said, “This morning, there’s the quarterly meeting. Lunch is with a few executives, and in the afternoon, you’ll be handling some documents. You have dinner with the new business partner at 5 PM.”
Gu Weiyan rested her head on one hand, thought for a moment, and said, “Send the VP to dinner with the new business partner tonight. I have other plans.”
“Alright,” Xiao Chen said, taking notes. “Do you need me to do anything else?”
“No need,” Gu Weiyan said as she glanced at the files on her desk. Standing up, she added, “Let’s have the meeting first. Afterward, order lunch for me to be delivered to my house.”
Xiao Chen was confused. “You’re going home for lunch?”
Gu Weiyan wasn’t sure how to answer. She couldn’t exactly tell him that she had a fiancée at home, and mentioning it to Aunt Zhou would be awkward too.
After a few seconds of silence, Gu Weiyan looked at him and said, “Don’t ask so many questions. Just order the food.”
Xiao Chen blinked, “Understood, President Gu.”
The day was busy, with Gu Weiyan spinning around like a top. She barely had an appetite during lunch with the executives and had Xiao Chen buy a rice ball for her in the afternoon while she listened to her subordinates report on their work.
By 4 PM, after a full day of work, Gu Weiyan saw that it was almost time and decided to head home early.
A few of her long-time subordinates huddled together, whispering.
“What’s up with President Gu today? She’s leaving so early?”
“Yeah, she used to stay at the office until 11 PM. It was like she lived here.”
“Is she turning over a new leaf? Finally balancing work and rest?”
Xiao Chen leaned in to add to the gossip: “Today, President Gu even asked me to order food for her house. But she only has a live-in maid at home. Why does she need to order food? Doesn’t the maid cook?”
“Yeah, it’s a bit strange. Something’s off with President Gu today.”
Xiao Chen said firmly, “When something’s unusual, there’s usually a reason. I bet our President Gu has a secret.”
As for the gossip, Gu Weiyan didn’t hear a word of it. When the driver dropped her off at home, it was still before 4:30 PM. She greeted Jiang Man, then headed upstairs to change clothes.
As soon as she opened the door, she noticed her bed wasn’t made. Gu Weiyan picked up the blanket that had fallen on the floor, wondering to herself why the whole house was neat and tidy except for her own room.
She couldn’t help but mutter to herself, “This girl… I hope she’s not holding a grudge.”