After Teasing the Heroine and Running Away, I Was Forced into Love - Chapter 53

“You mean Miss Xu?” He Roushuang asked, a smile playing at the corners of her eyes. She secretly relished Shi Qing’s bitter words, as they confirmed one crucial truth: Shi Qing cared about her.

Cared enough to not want to be apart.

So, this confrontation she had crossed worlds for could be considered a victory, even though she had stolen the Male Lead’s beloved. It seemed she had also surrendered her own heart in the process.

“I didn’t interact with her much today.”

“Don’t worry. I’m just trying to provoke He Shanjian. I have everything under control.”

He Roushuang reached out and ruffled Shi Qing’s hair.

In truth, she hadn’t completely neglected the Female Lead. She had also been working to establish connections within the company, and she still held high expectations for Shi Qing’s abilities.

After all, she was the Female Lead.

The author had bestowed upon her countless plot armor.

Shi Qing nodded, but she couldn’t shake her unease. Xu Wangjin’s face, so similar to her own, served as a constant reminder.

“You still have to meet that bastard father today. I’m really worried.”

He Roushuang didn’t rush to leave. If this were the old days, when she had to drag things out until the last minute, she would have been clutching a steaming bun, dashing through the streets like lightning to squeeze onto the subway.

But now, those worries were gone. As a senior executive at the company, she no longer needed to fret about being late.

He Roushuang could simply tell her assistants:

“My beloved subjects, I’m late. You don’t mind, do you?”

And that would settle everything.

“So, bring your bodyguard. I have a new one with me today.”

Although the original owner’s bodyguard lacked emotional intelligence, as the saying goes, “When God closes a door, He always opens a window.”

This bodyguard was a classic case of brawn over brains.

When He Roushuang first transmigrated, she wasn’t particularly fond of this bodyguard, who always seemed to be bursting out of his suit. After all, she had to pay for the repairs herself.

But one incident changed her perspective.

As everyone knew, the original owner had a notoriously unpleasant personality and often mistreated her subordinates at the company.

Just days before He Roushuang’s arrival, the original owner had punished an employee for poor performance by firing them without compensation.

A textbook example of legal recklessness!

When He Roushuang transmigrated, she was unaware of this incident. During her first few days, she forced herself to go to work, bracing for the worst.

Sure enough, she encountered the fired employee, who harbored deep resentment.

Clutching a massive pile of rotten eggs mixed with overripe bananas, the disgruntled employee hurled the fragile glass jars at He Roushuang, clearly aiming to create a sensational social media spectacle, mimicking a CEO who had been doused with water.

By making a public scene about her unfair dismissal and lack of compensation, he hoped to draw societal attention to his plight and force someone to intervene.

He Roushuang froze, watching the glass bottles rain down from the sky. Just as she braced herself for social humiliation and the stench of sticky, disgusting liquid, her bodyguard spread his arms wide, intercepting the airborne filth.

Reeking of the foul mess, he charged at the thrower, determined to take him down with him. He smeared the foul-smelling goo from his suit all over the man’s face and body.

From that day forward, He Roushuang crossed out the word “foolish” she had written next to her bodyguard’s name in her notebook, based on the original novel’s plot. With a decisive stroke, she replaced it with “loyal retainer”!

Though her bodyguard was physically imposing and not particularly quick-witted, often struggling to understand her intentions, he proved invaluable in times of danger. He Roushuang had dispatched her loyal retainer to protect Shi Qing, fearing that the emotionally unstable gambler Shi Jianye might lash out at her.

“Why do you need a new bodyguard?” Shi Qing tilted her head, a faint suspicion already forming in her mind. She wasn’t foolish, but she wanted to hear the answer from the person in front of her.

“Because he’s highly skilled. I want him to protect you. If your father makes any dangerous moves, you won’t get hurt.”

“Don’t hesitate to use him as a meat shield. I’m paying him a hefty monthly salary. And Shi Qing, remember this: no matter what happens… your life is the most important thing.”

Hearing how much the other person cared about her was enough for Shi Qing.

“I’m not a child anymore. He can’t control me now.” Shi Qing gently shook her head, then reached out to slightly close He Roushuang’s slightly open collar, concealing even the last hint of her fair skin.

It wasn’t that Shi Qing was unusually possessive; she simply didn’t want anyone else to see the mark.

He Roushuang, however, misinterpreted the gesture.

Heh heh… the female lead likes me that much?

Does that mean we’ll never be apart?

But… in the world of novels, the protagonists’ romances are always full of twists and turns. He Roushuang couldn’t be too confident.

But for now, it was enough to seize the present.

“I believe in you,” He Roushuang said with a smile, leaning forward to press a soft, fragrant kiss against Shi Qing’s cheek.

As He Roushuang walked away, Shi Qing could only watch her flowing, long hair sway gently at the ends.

Her fingers trembled as she touched her cheek. The kiss had been searingly hot.

She remained dazed for a moment until a bodyguard came upstairs to find her. Only then did Shi Qing snap out of her reverie and belatedly follow the bodyguard out of the apartment.

The meeting place with her father wasn’t a fancy restaurant or a sun-drenched park.

Instead, it was her mother’s private hospital room. Fresh flowers bloomed on the bedside table, and the window offered a view of lush greenery.

With no outsiders present, they could discuss family matters without fear of being overheard.

Shi Qing felt nothing for her father, so agreeing to meet him in front of her mother was merely to cheer her up.

The man wore a formal suit, slightly cheap but clearly carefully chosen. For her usually slovenly father to make such an effort was truly remarkable.

“Qingqing!”

Shi Jianye’s eyes lit up the moment he saw his daughter after years of separation. He couldn’t resist reaching out to touch her.

Shi Qing moved with the agility of a nimble fox, evading his enthusiastic embrace without a single hair being touched.

“You should see Mom first,” she said.

Shi Qing opened her mouth, the word “Dad” swirling between her lips and teeth a hundred times, yet she couldn’t bring herself to say it. She couldn’t forgive this cowardly man.

So she settled for an awkward “you.”

“Oh, right.”

“Look at you! Seeing you looking like an angel made me forget about your mother.”

Shi Qing’s frown deepened. Just then, Shi Jianye glanced up and noticed the bodyguard standing beside her.

The bodyguard was tall and imposing, not particularly handsome, but he always made an effort to look presentable when accompanying the young lady.

“Is this your boyfriend?” Shi Jianye asked, his eyes darting to the bodyguard even as he approached his wife’s bedside.

He inwardly sighed, thinking, This is bad.

He had thought Mr. He was quite decent. If his daughter already had a boyfriend, what would he do?

Hearing her father’s question, Shi Qing reached the breaking point.

“No,” she snapped. “I have a girlfriend.”

Her words struck like a bolt from the blue, shocking even Huo Wenlan, who was lying in the hospital bed.