This dead old man pretends to be heartless and sets traps for his disciple, but underneath, he actually still knows how to look out for him...
Chapter 8: High-End Hunters Often Appear in the Guise of Prey!
That night, Xue Rou did not make Su Hao sleep on the sofa; instead, she placed a quilt right down the middle of the double bed to separate them.
Looking at Xue Rou's "carefully prepared" barrier, Su Hao could neither laugh nor cry for a moment.
His wife was somewhat cold, but not entirely ruthless. After all, it was only their first day meeting, so they naturally needed to build a connection first.
The two of them slept through the night in peace. Su Hao was very well-behaved, not daring to cross the line even by half a step all night long. In fact, fearing he might accidentally touch Xue Rou, he curled up all the way against the edge of the bed.
When Xue Rou woke up in the morning, she found that Su Hao had wrapped himself in his quilt and fallen asleep on the floor.
While this left Xue Rou amused, she also felt an immense sweetness welling up inside. She picked up her phone to snap a photo of this goofy scene and quietly set it as her lock screen wallpaper.
Before long, Su Hao woke up as well.
When he emerged from washing up, a lavish breakfast was laid out on the table.
Xue Rou considerately poured Su Hao a glass of soy milk and said with an embarrassed smile, "I don't know if this is to your taste. If you don't like it, I can go out and buy you something else."
"I'm not a picky eater, especially when it's made by my wife." Su Hao raised an eyebrow, and after making Xue Rou blush, he cheerfully dug into breakfast.
After breakfast, Xue Rou suggested they go shopping.
Their home lacked both men's toiletries and suitable pajamas, making things rather inconvenient.
Since Su Hao had nothing better to do anyway, he naturally deferred to Xue Rou's wishes and played the role of her knight in shining armor.
On the way, Shen Yue specifically called to check in on how Xue Rou and Su Hao were getting along.
Hearing that the two of them were heading out to buy things, she immediately transferred one hundred thousand yuan to Xue Rou.
"Rourou, you mustn't treat Su Hao poorly. Pick out high-end clothes, and don't skimp on good food for him. We need to pamper our son-in-law!"
Hearing Shen Yue's words, Xue Rou couldn't help but press her lips together in a smile.
Nothing brought more joy than having one's family accept their husband!
"Wife, aren't you being a bit too biased? You're giving her this much allowance?" Xue Er complained from the other end.
"You don't deserve it!"
Shen Yue dismissed Xue Er with just three words.
The bantering parents left Xue Rou tickled, while also stirring up her anticipation for married life.
With his superior hearing, Su Hao had already heard every word of their conversation clearly.
As expected, choosing Xue Rou was the right decision.
This entire family was full of warm and kind people, unlike Xue Aohan's family, which oozed calculation and arrogance at every turn.
"The things around here are too cheap. Let's go to the business plaza; it's full of boutiques there."
"I don't mind wearing cheap stuff. Expensive things aren't necessarily better—most of it is just brand markup," Su Hao shook his head slightly.
"If you actually bought me those, I wouldn't even be used to wearing them. Let's just casually buy something at a discounted mall; I'm not lacking clothes."
Su Hao wasn't trying to save Xue Rou money; he genuinely disliked superficial things.
"Oh, my mom just gave me a budget specifically for buying you clothes, so you don't need to worry about money."
Su Hao smiled. "Then just keep it. Having extra cash never burns your hands."
"Don't be like that. You've seen what my cousin is like," Xue Rou pouted.
"The company has a meeting this afternoon, and I'm taking you with me. If you're still wearing clothes as plain as this, she's definitely going to make sarcastic remarks at your expense. Don't you want to win back some pride?"
Xue Rou tried using reverse psychology, but Su Hao refused to take the bait.
"Who ever earned respect through their clothes? If you don't have the skills, wearing a dragon robe won't make you a crown prince!"
"If Xue Aohan dares to talk nonsense, I have my own ways of dealing with her. I'll never let that woman get the upper hand."
Weary from Su Hao's constant persuasion, Xue Rou finally compromised, choosing a run-of-the-mill clothing store instead.
"Huh?"
Just as he was about to step into the store, Su Hao sensed someone tailing them. He immediately suggested, "Go buy me a cup of milk tea. I hear city folks love drinking it, and I want to taste what it's like."
"And you?"
"I'm going to the restroom."
Su Hao pointed at the park across the street, which had public restrooms.
Xue Rou didn't think much of it. She nodded and walked into the adjacent milk tea shop.
Meanwhile, Su Hao narrowed his eyes and walked into a blind spot in the park.
It looked deserted, but an ambush had been laid out on all sides.
"Come out."
As soon as the words left his mouth, the bushes rustled.
Stout men emerged one after another, an unconcealed murderous intent written across their faces.
"Kid, knowing we were coming to get you, you actually walked right into the trap. You've got some nerve!"
"High-end hunters often appear in the guise of prey."
Su Hao dropped that single line, and his figure vanished from the spot.
In everyone's field of vision, there was only a rapidly leaping dark shadow. By the time they reacted, they were already sprawled on the ground, paralyzed by agonizing pain and unable to move.
Su Hao hauled up one of the tattooed men by the collar and asked expressionlessly, "Who's the mastermind?"
At first, he thought these men were sent by Xue Aohan again, but after a brief scuffle, he realized they were much weaker than the assassins he'd encountered yesterday afternoon.
Stupid as Xue Aohan might be, she wouldn't send a bunch of cannon fodder like this right after yesterday's crew was completely wiped out.
The tattooed man swallowed hard. Terrified by Su Hao's horrifying strength, he didn't dare hide a single detail.
"It's... it's Qian Duoduo who sent us. He... he told us to grab the guy next to Miss Xue—meaning you—and drag you back..."
"So it was this punk."
Su Hao said speechlessly, "He really is hilarious, sending trash like you to deal with me."
"Yes, yes, we're trash. Big brother, we know we were wrong. Please let us go. We were just momentarily blinded by greed and wanted to make some quick cash," the tattooed man stammered, pulling out a bank card.
"This has the twenty thousand yuan from Qian Duoduo. The PIN is the last six digits of the card number. I'll give it all to you, and we won't meddle in this anymore."
"You know how to read the room."
Su Hao smiled faintly, took the bank card, and said, "Tell Qian Duoduo for me that if he ever dares to harass me and my wife again, I'll make sure his entire family line is cut off."
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an astonishing oppressive weight, sending a chill straight down the tattooed man's groin.
The moment Su Hao released him, the man scrambled away as fast as he could, wetting himself in terror and abandoning his comrades entirely.
Su Hao tossed the bank card between his fingers and headed to reunite with Xue Rou.
Before leaving the park, however, he deliberately bent down, picked up two small pebbles, and hurled them toward a densely shaded area on the east side.
Su Hao dusted off his hands and leisurely walked into the milk tea shop.
Meanwhile, passersby heard a loud "bang," followed immediately by a miserable shriek as two bloody-headed figures bolted out from that densely shaded thicket.
"Throwing stones to strike someone—he's an expert. To think Xue Kangning managed to recruit such an overpowered grandson-in-law; he's so lucky."
"I thought Xue Kangning was in the late stages of liver cancer and beyond saving, but who would've guessed a dark horse would suddenly pop up? We'll have to go back and rethink this whole plan."
The two men exchanged anxious words while running at full tilt, terrified that Su Hao might catch up to them...
Chapter 9: Your Pectorals Feel Quite Interesting to Touch
After finishing her milk tea, Xue Rou was full of energy as she began picking out clothes for Su Hao.
Because Su Hao had an incredible physique—a natural clothes horse—everything he put on looked remarkably well-matched, making Xue Rou want to buy out the entire store.
Taking advantage of the moment Xue Rou went to the restroom, Su Hao swiftly swiped his card.
He bought two sets of clothes for himself, but purchased three complete outfits for every single member of Xue Rou's family, choosing the most expensive items available. The total came out to exactly two hundred thousand yuan.
When Xue Rou came out and learned what Su Hao had done, she pouted and said, "Hey, I brought you out to buy clothes today! How did this turn into you buying clothes for us instead?"
"It's all the same. We're family anyway. Besides, this twenty thousand—wait, two hundred thousand—was provided free of charge by a generous benefactor. It'd be a waste not to spend it." Su Hao smiled, had the clerk bag up the clothes, and headed home with Xue Rou.
By now it was already eleven in the morning. Su Hao told Xue Rou to rest while he slipped into the kitchen and whipped up a few dishes.
Xue Rou took a single bite, and her soul felt electrified.
"This is too good! Su Hao, your cooking skills are this advanced?"
"Just so-so," Su Hao said modestly.
His cooking skills had been beaten into him by his senior martial sisters.
That group of women were extremely picky eaters, constantly forcing him to cook various specialty dishes. If it didn't taste good, he'd get a beating—they were terribly high-maintenance.
Later on, as his senior martial sisters successively descended the mountain, he cooked less often, and his culinary skills had regressed quite a bit; but satisfying Xue Rou's taste buds was still more than enough.
After lunch, Xue Rou gave Su Hao a quick rundown of the Xue family's businesses and the company's current situation.
Around 1:30 PM, she had Su Hao change into a suit and head out with her to the company.
"I don't know how to tie a tie."
Seeing the awkward look on Su Hao's face, Xue Rou couldn't help snickering. "I finally caught you with a weakness."
She reached out, earnestly tying Su Hao's necktie and fixing his hairstyle.
After this bit of grooming, Su Hao looked completely renewed. Resembling a corporate elite, he exuded an air of steady composure and refined prestige.
"This little hubby of mine is actually quite handsome!"
Seeing Xue Rou gazing at him like an adoring fan, Su Hao couldn't help laughing.
"My dear Miss Xue, wipe your drool—it's almost dripping onto my shoes."
"Ah! You're not allowed to look! Forget you saw that!" Xue Rou cried out in embarrassment, wiping her mouth, only to realize there was no drool at all.
"Hate you, you actually tricked me. I'm going to beat you up."
With a smile at the corner of his mouth, Su Hao stood in place and let Xue Rou pummel him with her cute little maiden punches.
In less than a minute, Xue Rou stopped, panting and wiping the sweat from her brow.
"Why is your body so hard? You hurt my hands!"
Su Hao smiled ambiguously. "I have places that are even harder. I'll let you see them later."
"Pervert!"
Faced with Xue Rou's glare of feigned annoyance, Su Hao spread his hands. "What are your dirty little thoughts running to? I meant my bones!"
"This..." Xue Rou hesitated, words failing her.
Could it be that she was the one whose mind was in the gutter?
"Ring-ring-ring!"
At that moment, her phone rang—it was Song Keke calling.
Xue Rou answered, chatted for a few seconds, and hung up.
"Let's go, Keke is already at the apartment entrance."
Su Hao grunted in acknowledgment, and he and Xue Rou headed out the door.
"Oh no, I forgot my keys."
Halfway down the stairs, Xue Rou slapped her forehead and hurried back upstairs.
Because she was rushing, she didn't notice a loose pebble on the stairs and accidentally twisted her ankle.
Hearing her cry of pain, Su Hao rushed over and realized it was just a minor sprain; a quick massage would fix it.
However, Xue Rou was wearing a hip-hugging skirt today, making things rather inconvenient, so she immediately rejected Su Hao's kind offer.
"It's fine, it doesn't hurt that much. I'll just rest it in the car later."
As he supported her down the stairs, Su Hao frowned and said, "You're not short; why don't you wear flat shoes? High heels make it so easy to roll your ankle!"
"Sigh, what do you men know about a woman's struggles? Not wearing high heels is impolite to clients. I have a very important meeting today, and wearing flats would be extremely discourteous."
Hearing Xue Rou's explanation, Su Hao shrugged and said speechlessly, "No matter how plain you dress, you're still a great beauty. When you condescend to go talk business with them, do you think they care what shoes you're wearing? Their attention will be entirely locked on your face and figure."
Hearing this, Xue Rou pressed her lips together and smiled.
"I thought people from the mountains were all simple and honest, but you're quite the smooth-talker—you really know how to please women."
"What smooth-talking? I'm just speaking the plain truth."
Su Hao preferred pure girls, and Xue Rou completely matched his tastes when she went bare-faced.
Especially when compared to that heavily made-up woman Xue Aohan, Xue Rou stood out like a lotus emerging from clear water, refreshing the mind and soul.
Chatting and laughing all the way, Xue Rou—limping and leaning on Su Hao—stumbled along until she met up with Song Keke.
Song Keke was currently sitting in her car. Seeing the two of them walking hand-in-hand, she teased, "Ooh-la-la, talk about deep affection—you're making my teeth ache just looking at you."
"And I must say, Rourou, you really push yourself. It's totally normal to feel sore after the first time; staying home and resting properly is the way to go. Otherwise, what if you tear something?"
"Right, did you take those precautions I told you about yesterday? Don't tell me you two went in completely bare?"
Song Keke batted her eyelashes at Xue Rou, rambling incoherently from one topic to the next in a way that left Su Hao completely lost.
Xue Rou, however, instantly understood what Song Keke was implying, and her face flushed bright red. "Keke, stop talking nonsense! I... I just accidentally twisted my ankle!"
"Oh please, you expect me to buy such a perfunctory excuse?" Song Keke rolled her eyes.
"Su Hao, you're way too rough! While it's great for a man to be strong, you've got to take the woman's endurance into account!"
"Look at her—she can't even walk straight because of what you did. Just how hard were you going at it yesterday? Don't you know how to cherish a flower?"
With the air of someone who had seen right through everything, Song Keke proceeded to scold Su Hao.
"She tripped and sprained her ankle because she was walking too fast, I didn't push her over. What was I supposed to do?" Su Hao sighed.
"Tch, the two of you are really as stubborn as dead ducks. Did you coordinate your stories at home? You refuse to tell me the truth no matter what, is that it?"
Song Keke's train of thought was racing along a high-voltage wire; she refused to believe under any circumstances that these two could have spent the entire night purely and innocently.
"Keke, it really isn't what you're thinking!" Xue Rou stamped her foot in frustration, which only made her sprained ankle flare up again, turning her face pale.
"Fine, fine, I won't say anymore."
Seeing Xue Rou looking both embarrassed and angry, Song Keke waved her hands repeatedly and motioned for Su Hao to help her into the back seat.
Arching her back, Xue Rou rubbed her ankle. The more she rubbed, the more swollen it got; and the more swollen it got, the more it hurt, twisting her expression in agony.
Su Hao couldn't bear to watch any longer. After a moment of thought, he said to Xue Rou, "If you find it inconvenient, just put both your legs across my lap. That way I can help stimulate circulation and clear the stasis, and you won't have to worry about any accidental exposure."
Xue Rou hadn't expected Su Hao to be completely aware of her exact concerns. She was instantly overwhelmed with shame and embarrassment, not knowing what to say.
In her mind, resting her fair, tender legs across a man's lap was no different from exposing herself...
Chapter 10: Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire!
Song Keke glanced back and saw that Xue Rou's ankle was swollen high, looking somewhat stunned.
"No way? You actually twisted your ankle?"
"Doctor Su, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and treat Rourou!"
"Rourou, stop worrying about pride or whatever. You're husband and wife now, what are you still acting shy for?"
"If you delay any longer, you'll probably be commuting to work in a wheelchair tomorrow!"
Song Keke's urging finally made Xue Rou drop her reservations.
Stiff-bodied, she shifted toward Su Hao, kept her legs tightly pressed together, and rested both of them across Su Hao's lap.
Watching Xue Rou move with the stiffness of a corpse, Su Hao couldn't help wanting to laugh. "Anyone watching would think you injured your legs."
"Stop talking and just help me fix it already."
Xue Rou was already extremely bashful, and being teased by Su Hao like this made her little face flush even brighter.
"Fine, fine, I'll treat Miss Xue right away."
Su Hao didn't waste any more time. He slipped off Xue Rou's high heel and, peering past her sleek silk stockings, surveyed her ankle.
"Such an evil-looking move. I feel like I've seen this exact scene in some Japanese film." Song Keke's mood-killing remark made Xue Rou's face burn so red it felt like it was about to drip blood.
"Keke, if you keep this up, I'm not sharing my secret weight-gain tips with you next time."
Song Keke proudly retorted, "I don't need to gain weight. My figure is just right."
"When I say weight gain, I mean your airport chest!"
Song Keke froze, glanced down at her own flat-as-a-board nursing station, and her face turned green.
"You... fine, you win!"
Xue Rou giggled and flashed a victorious V-sign.
Su Hao wasn't distracted by the two women's inappropriate banter. He muttered to himself, "No bones are broken, but it's indeed slightly dislocated. Spread your feet just a tiny bit, and I'll pop the bone back into place."
Su Hao spoke as casually as could be, but Xue Rou was frightened pale.
"Is bone-setting going to hurt a lot? Otherwise forget it, I'll just rub some medicine on!"
"It'll only take a second, it's not that scary. Don't move around, you're going to expose yourself!"
Su Hao's sudden, out-of-nowhere remark made Xue Rou's heart skip a beat, and she hurriedly clutched at the hem of her skirt.
Right at that moment, a sharp *crack* rang out, followed immediately by Su Hao's casual voice.
"See? I told you it was just a matter of a split second!"
As it turned out, Su Hao had deliberately scared Xue Rou just then, tricking her into worrying about wardrobe malfunctions purely to distract her.
"You jerk."
Realizing it after the fact, Xue Rou pinched the flesh on Su Hao's chest.
"Ow! You woman really take kindness for donkey's liver. Wasn't I just trying to distract you?"
"Distracting me hurts too!" Xue Rou complained with a wronged look.
Of course, while her words sounded like accusations, seeing with her own eyes how the swelling on her ankle had vanished within those few short seconds and returned to normal, she still felt deeply grateful to Su Hao.
"It hurts *me* more, you know." Su Hao clutched his chest, frowning and putting on an exaggeratedly uncomfortable face as he said, "You pinched way too hard. If you don't rub it better, I won't recover."
Hearing Su Hao say this, Xue Rou knew the guy was definitely messing with her.
However, she didn't expose him. Instead, she very cooperatively placed her small hand on Su Hao's chest and began gently stroking it.
At first Su Hao didn't notice anything amiss, but gradually, he realized Xue Rou seemed to be genuinely enjoying it. His eyelid twitched. "Stop, stop, stop. I'm all better, it doesn't hurt anymore."
Su Hao urged her several times before Xue Rou finally released her grip with a look of visible reluctance, as if she hadn't had enough.
"Your pectorals feel quite interesting to touch..."
Hearing this from the driver's seat, Song Keke found it simply too unbearable to watch.
Sure enough, married women turned into total perverts.
Her best friend's last shred of dignity was probably about to be thrown off the peak of Mount Everest.
………………
Before long, the trio arrived at Shangxue Company.