"No... can we not do this? I've never been in a relationship before." Shen Youning's face was burning red, and her speech was hesitant and stammering.
Chen Nuo felt a sudden urge to tease her. "Tsk tsk, how can someone as pretty as you say she's never been in a relationship?"
Shen Youning tightly wrapped herself in the quilt. "It's true... how could a normal person possibly like a cripple like me? That would just be adding a burden to their life."
Chen Nuo reined in his playful mood and pressed his hand twice against Shen Youning's leg.
"Ah..." Shen Youning let out a soft moan.
"Did you feel that?"
Only then did Shen Youning realize that Chen Nuo's palm had gently covered her leg, and a warm current was slowly flowing through it.
Her legs were actually gradually regaining sensation!
Except... did treating an illness require touching her leg?
Wasn't pressing a few acupuncture points enough?
Shen Youning whispered, "Lord Pluto... could you please focus on the treatment?"
Chen Nuo rubbed his nose and said righteously, "What a joke! What kind of person do you take me for, Chen Nuo? You wouldn't actually think I'm trying to take advantage of you, would you? I'm curing your illness, alright? Your vital energy and blood were blocked, and I'm helping you clear the passages."
Shen Youning gave a soft, "Oh."
Chen Nuo said with a reproachful tone, "Little sister, we've barely started! Did you think curing an illness was that easy? It's going to hurt more in a moment, so bear with it. I'm going to circulate the secrets of cultivation through your body so you learn the pathways, and you'll be able to practice on your own from now on."
Shen Youning nodded. "Then what do I need to do to cooperate with you?"
"Lift your hips up a bit; it helps the blocked energy and blood flow smoothly."
"It would be even better to remove a bit of clothing to facilitate the circulation of energy and blood."
Outside the door, Shen Sanwan was pacing back and forth anxiously.
Because his daughter's voice kept drifting out from inside the room, Shen Sanwan's heart was pounding up and down.
"Brother, why do I feel like Pluto's method of treating illnesses is so improper?" Shen Sanwan whispered.
Wang Shengli hurriedly covered his mouth and said, "Don't ever try to second-guess Pluto behind his back. He wouldn't stoop to taking advantage of your daughter. You must know how many top-tier supermodels abroad would kill to spend a single night with Pluto, and he wouldn't even spare them a glance—let alone now, when he is acting as a healer."
Shen Sanwan anxiously rubbed his hands together.
However, at the sound of a scream that followed, Shen Sanwan couldn't wait any longer and burst directly into the room.
"Stop right—"
Before the words left his mouth, Shen Sanwan froze in place. He saw his daughter, who had been paralyzed for five years, standing lively on the floor. Her legs were supporting her firmly on the ground, and she was even hopping around in joy.
Five years—a full five years. Shen Sanwan had spent practically day and night trying to get his daughter to stand up. Her upper body had some mobility, but her lower limbs were completely paralyzed. No one knew how he had survived these past five years.
Exhausted, melancholic, lost, and resentful of his own incompetence, Shen Sanwan completely broke down at this moment.
He knelt on the ground and began kowtowing to Chen Nuo with all his might.
As for Chen Nuo, he sat calmly on the bed, accepting Shen Sanwan's kowtow as if it were only natural.
"Go on, help your dad up. If he keeps kowtowing, I'm going to lose years off my life."
Wiping away her tears, Shen Youning helped her father up.
Shen Sanwan said with intense emotion, "Lord Pluto, I will never forget your great kindness and virtue toward our family. Tomorrow, I will unconditionally gift all the shares under my company's name to you. From now on, you will be the chairman of the Cornucopia Group!"
Hearing this, Chen Nuo felt a massive headache coming on. Newly arrived, he neither wanted to be idle nor busy.
Back then, the very reason he ran away after founding Pluto Palace was because dealing with all those official duties was simply too mentally exhausting; he couldn't do it, and he wasn't willing to do it either.
Asking him to be a company chairman now was no different from setting a trap for him.
"No, even if you give them all to me, I don't want them."
Shen Sanwan was somewhat at a loss, but Chen Nuo continued, "How about this: arrange for me to enter your family's company as a security guard. That job looks quite leisurely."
Not to mention Klein, who was watching the show on the side, even Wang Shengli couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Your Excellency Pluto, with your golden body, you're going to go be a security guard for him?! He wouldn't even be able to bear the weight of it! If you just crook your finger abroad, countless international assassins would be begging to be your security guards; there's no need for you to lower yourself to do it," Klein advised, bowing.
Wang Shengli chimed in, "Absolutely not! Lord Pluto, you saved Youning's life and helped her stand again, which is already the greatest help you could give us. How could we possibly let you be a security guard?"
If the people back at Pluto Palace ever found out that Pluto—who could command a million troops on the borders—was working as a security guard, they would undoubtedly rush over and kill everyone involved without sparing any effort.
Chen Nuo shrugged. "Stop rambling. One word: are you going to give me the job or not? If not, I'm leaving right now."
Shen Youning tugged on Shen Sanwan's arm, her expression clearly showing she wanted Chen Nuo to stay, yet as a young woman, she found it hard to put into words.
Shen Sanwan gave a light cough and said, "Lord Pluto, you can certainly be a security guard. How about this: a million a month, just consider it pocket money."
Chen Nuo didn't care about the money at all; as long as he had something to do, that was enough. After leaving a phone number and swiftly completing his onboarding procedures, Jiang Yurou's call came through.
Chen Nuo answered it, only to find that the voice on the other end was actually Huo Xiaoyu's.
"Chen Nuo! Where on earth did you run off to?! Yurou has been waiting for you at home for a long time! Don't you know we're hosting guests at home today? Hurry back! If you come back late and offend the guests, can you afford to bear the consequences?"
Chen Nuo answered, "Got it."
Hanging up the phone, Chen Nuo had Klein drive him back.
The moment he stepped through the front door, however, Chen Nuo caught the scent of alcohol.
Frowning, Chen Nuo asked, "Why is there the smell of alcohol in the kitchen?Li Xiumei said indifferently, "You mean that fake wine of yours? I used it to make braised pork belly. What, heartbroken over your fake wine? Do you want me to compensate you with two bottles?!"
Jiang Zhenguo said coldly, "What fake wine? Stop talking nonsense! Whether it's real or fake, it's a token of my good son-in-law's sincerity toward me. So what if it's fake?!"
Li Xiumei curled her lip. "Jiang Zhenguo! You know very well who we're hosting later. Mr. Zhou has spent his whole life soaking in wine vats; he'll be able to tell if it's good wine the moment he tastes it!"
Huo Xiaoyu chimed in, "Auntie, don't be angry. There's no need to lower yourself to a bumpkin like him. I have some treasured fine wines at home; we can just bring a few over to entertain the guest later. It's not worth getting angry over him."
Just as she finished speaking, a voice drifted in from outside: "Zhenguo, what dish are you cooking that smells so good? I could smell it before I even stepped inside."
Jiang Zhenguo hurriedly went out to greet him. "Just some home-cooked food, nothing special."
Zhou Tao laughed, "You old rascal aren't being honest, are you? But that's fine—I know you want to surprise me."