Chapter 69: Husband

Liang Shu pressed her lips into a slight smile, "Gu Hansheng."

It was not entirely unexpected; Qian Hui closed her eyes, "So it really is him... Ah Shu, you've grown up."

If it's Gu Hansheng, then it's not surprising.

There are many legends about Gu Hansheng in Yucheng.

Although Qian Hui has never had direct contact with him, she often hears people talk about him.

To a certain extent, no one can shake his position in Yucheng.

Yet this man, despite his stature and appearance that captivate women's hearts, remains.

She stared at the ceiling and said slowly, "So, were you lying to me last time, weren't you? Your benefactor is Gu Hansheng, so you feel confident."

"How did you manage it?" Qian Hui turned her head, "Is it because of your face? So, he willingly supports you, or is it because of your lineage?"

Next, Liang Shu corrected Qian Hui's words with a faint tone, "You're mistaken. Gu Hansheng is not my benefactor, he is—"

"My husband."

Liang Shu had never imagined that one day, mentioning her husband would give her a sense of pride and arrogance from the depths of her heart.

Qian Hui was almost choked by her words, her eyebrows furrowed, "Unexpected...unexpected..."

As she left, Liang Shu took her bag from the end of the bed, standing tall and straight, "My relationship with him isn't as idyllic as you imagine. Like you, I use tactics, but we have a crucial difference: you are ruthless towards others, while I am ruthless towards myself."

Qian Hui calculates to firmly grasp onto Su Qiping; her scheming targets others.

Liang Shu schemes to climb up to Gu Hansheng; her calculations are directed towards herself.

She looked at the woman lying on the hospital bed, "I'm leaving. Take care of yourself."

...

Liang Shu wanted to go to the Gu mansion to find Gu Hansheng and perhaps have dinner with him later.

Xiao Chen was waiting for her across the street.

Liang Shu was about to cross the road when Jiang Jiucheng called her. With a troubled mind, Liang Shu directly hung up the phone.

Little did she expect, as she turned her head, a car was coming straight at her.

Liang Shu felt that her reaction was already fast enough, but she couldn't match the speed of the car.

In the car, the driver was also stunned. He was halfway out of his mind, turning to the man in the back seat, "Sir, it seems like someone hit our car."

The elegantly noble man raised his hand, flipping through documents. After the sudden abrupt braking of the car, he looked up, his handsome brows furrowing lightly, "Hmm?"

What kind of excuse is this?

The driver was trembling with fear, "She ran a red light, she ran a red light."

Whatever the situation, someone was hit.

The man threw down the documents and hurriedly got out of the car. As expected, he saw a woman lying on the ground when he pushed through the crowd.

He pushed aside the onlookers and was startled to see the familiar face twisted in pain.

He ran over and half-knelt in front of Liang Shu, wanting to touch her but not knowing her current condition, so he could only softly call her, "Ah Shu... Ah Shu, how are you..."

This familiar voice, long absent, brought Liang Shu back from a brief unconsciousness.

Severe pain shot through her knee, and as she opened her eyes, she saw the anxious face above her. She hesitated for a moment, her red lips moved, "...Brother."

...

Eventually, Liang Shu's leg was indeed hit, and she was taken to the hospital.

Throughout the examination process, the man accompanied Liang Shu.

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Liang Shu didn't want to trouble him, so she said, "Brother, it's not a big deal. I did run a red light, I can check myself."

Lu Zian looked at her, "Ah Shu, it's been so long since we last met. Can't your brother have a chat with you and catch up?"

In the quiet examination room, Liang Shu slowly lowered her head.

After a while, she nodded, "Okay."

The traffic at the intersection was relatively slow, and Liang Shu felt that she probably hadn't injured her bones, just a minor scrape.

But Lu Zian insisted on having her checked, so Liang Shu couldn't refuse.

...

When Xiao Chen called Gu Hansheng, he was in a meeting.

The phone was on silent, and Gu Hansheng didn't notice it at first glance. It was only when Xiao Chen called the second time that he paid attention.

After about five seconds, the man sitting in the main seat lightly raised his hand to interrupt the speaker, and then everyone watched as he answered the call in the solemn conference room.

As the boss, Gu Hansheng was strict with his subordinates, but he was also strict with himself.

Rarely did he interrupt the meeting for personal matters.

But it was different since Liang Shu came into his life.

This little troublemaker was always causing him headaches.

For example, at this moment, Xiao Chen said over the phone, "Sir, Madam has had a car accident."

Gu Hansheng's face immediately darkened, his expression tense, "What happened?"

"This afternoon, Madam went to the hospital to see a friend. Perhaps she was a little affected emotionally, and as she was leaving, she was accidentally hit by a car at the hospital entrance..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Chen added, "The other party seems to be someone of importance too. I saw the car they were driving, it's quite valuable, so they were driving quite fast in a crowded area. Madam has been taken to the hospital by them..."

Driving quite fast, Xiao Chen added that for dramatic effect.

Before he could say more, everyone saw the man in the main seat suddenly stand up, and his revolving chair moved several meters away from the table, hitting the potted plant in the corner.

Then came his ominous tone, "What were you doing?"

Xiao Chen felt wronged.

When he heard about the accident ahead, all he could catch a glimpse of when he got off the car was a figure. It was a handsome man carrying an injured woman into the hospital gate.

Later, based on descriptions from bystanders, he barely confirmed that the person in the accident was Liang Shu.

So, he hurriedly called Gu Hansheng.

At that moment, Liang Shu was still waiting for her examination with Lu Zian. When she saw Xiao Chen's call, she glanced at the gentle and smiling Lu Zian standing there, then she answered the call.

"Shu, I've been spoiling you too much!"

Liang Shu blinked, feeling a bit puzzled, "What's wrong with me?"

Fortunately, she could answer the phone, and her voice sounded normal, indicating that the situation wasn't too serious.

Gu Hansheng was currently in the elevator. Upon hearing this, he sneered, "Where are you?"

"I'm at the hospital."

After saying this, Liang Shu suddenly remembered Xiao Chen's implication, so she quickly added, "I'm fine, I just got brushed by a car. Don't come looking for me, focus on your own matters. I know how to handle myself."

"If you know how to handle yourself, why did you get injured?"

"..."

It was Liang Shu's turn for examination now, and Lu Zian waved to her. She quickly told Gu Hansheng, "Don't come over, I'm fine."

Ending the call, Liang Shu walked over to Lu Zian.

Lu Zian smiled at her, "Was it a call from a friend?"

She casually nodded, then went in for the X-ray examination.

It would be a while before the results were available, so Liang Shu went to the treatment room to have the broken skin on her leg treated. Lu Zian continued to accompany her, finding topics of conversation during this time.

He asked her, "Have these years been treating you well? Why didn't you answer when I called before?"

The woman lowered her head, watching as the nurse carefully disinfected the wound on her leg, much gentler than when Gu Hansheng treated her after A Yun's bite. She shook her head and said, "I didn't not answer, I just changed my phone number."

Lu Zian didn't give her a chance to catch her breath and continued, "Then why haven't you returned to the Lu family?"

Liang Shu looked up at Lu Zian and smiled softly, "It's not that I haven't returned, it's just not the right time yet. I'll go back on New Year's Eve."

The man's large hand gently touched Liang Shu's head, "The Lu family is no longer the fearsome entity it once was. You don't need to be afraid now. If anything happens in the future, you can tell me."

With that, Liang Shu felt a surge of emotion, nodding, "Okay."

Lu Zian was the eldest son of the Lu family, born to Lu Ming's first wife. When Lu Zian was four years old, his first wife passed away. At that time, Lu Ming married the mother of Lu Jinsheng, who later gave birth to Lu Jinsheng and Lu Yao.

Both Lu Zian and Lu Jinsheng managed the family business, and in terms of personal ability, they were evenly matched. However, when it came to business tactics, Lu Zian fell short compared to Lu Jinsheng.

Therefore, Lu Jinsheng managed the Lu family's business in Yucheng, while Lu Zian was usually in Wencheng.

The two brothers had vastly different personalities.

Lu Zian was known for his warmth and kindness, while Lu Jinsheng was known for his ruthless and decisive methods.

In Liang Shu's memory, both Lu Zian and Lu Yao were exceptionally kind to her.

Ever since Liang Shu left the Lu family, she had actively distanced herself from anyone associated with it.

Lu Zian asked Liang Shu, "Ah Shu, have these years treated you well?"

After much contemplation, Liang Shu gave a rather standard response, "Not too bad."

"Brother, thank you. I've been away from the Lu family for so long, and you've still been taking care of me."

Lu Zian shook his head, his expression one of tolerance, "Nonsense. It was the Lu family's fault back then. Look at such a lovely girl, how she was forced into such a situation. Ah Shu, if I had been there back then, I would never, absolutely never have let them drive you out of the Lu family."

At that time, Lu Zian had already taken over the subsidiary companies of the Lu family in Yucheng.

Due to significant changes in the senior management, various affairs of the company were piling up. Crisis was abundant in such times. Lu Zian shuttled between the two cities, and eventually, he didn't return to Yucheng for weeks at a time.

It was only half a month after Liang Shu left the Lu family that Lu Zian received the news.

Someone told him that Liang Shu had left.

When he rushed home, they said Liang Shu was dead.

So did she leave or die?

The woman from the second uncle's family stepped forward and said, "She's dead. On the night she ran out of the Lu family, it was raining heavily outside. The next day, it was heard that there was an accident about a hundred meters from the Lu family gate, where a heavy tanker truck crushed someone. Considering the timing of the accident, it should be her."

The third uncle's family followed suit, adding fuel to the fire, saying in a sinister tone, "Yes, the scene was terrible. It is said that her entire body was crushed, and the blood dyed that stretch of road red. It happened not far from the Lu family gate. Such ill fate!"

The indifference of these people made Lu Zian too apathetic to even get angry. He said nothing and just walked away.

Behind him, someone kept on talking incessantly, "Don't ever mention her again in the future. This jinx has finally brought about her own demise."

Later, Lu Zian encountered Liang Shu on the campus of the university.

At that time, he was overjoyed to see Liang Shu alive and well, but she refused to see him.

Or rather, Liang Shu at that time refused to see anyone from the Lu family.

Lu Zian eventually found Aunt Mei, giving her enough money to support Liang Shu through university.

He didn't mind Aunt Mei's background, but that afternoon, he talked with Aunt Mei at a café for a long time, and he begged Aunt Mei in a tone of request, "Thank you for letting Ah Shu go to university. In the future, please take care of Ah Shu more. If she wants to go to school or abroad, you don't have to worry about the expenses. I will continue to support her until she graduates from university."

At that time, Aunt Mei had a cigarette in her mouth, her expression somewhat indifferent, "Wasn't it your family who didn't want her? Throwing her away like trash, and now what's this all about?"

Lu Zian looked remorseful, "It was our fault. Ah Shu had a difficult time in our family. Perhaps this is the best outcome now. Please take good care of her in the future."

Regarding the expenses during Liang Shu's university period, this was how Aunt Mei responded to him, "Since I've taken her in, I'll certainly give her the best. You don't need to use money to make up for it."

But in this way, Lu Zian was still unsettled in his heart.

He took a step back, "I understand your meaning. I won't look for Ah Shu in the future. The Lu family is like a quagmire to her. When she's older, I'll look for her again. From now on, I'll trouble you to take care of her more, let her study well, be a good person. The past was never her fault, nor was it related to her. She's still that innocent little girl."

Lu Zian only funded all of Liang Shu's university tuition fees.

And Liang Shu only learned about this much later.

It was Aunt Mei who told her.

Aunt Mei also fulfilled Lu Zian's original words. She urged Liang Shu, not allowing her to completely deviate in the wrong direction. Liang Shu managed to obtain her university diploma and degree certificate from start to finish.

It is also necessary to mention that although Liang Shu did not study at the highest institution in Yucheng, her university was not inferior, at least ranking in the top five of Yucheng University.

For Liang Shu, there was no need to reminisce about the Lu family.

She changed the subject, "Brother, I saw in the news some time ago that you got married. Congratulations."

The reason why Lu Zian returned to Yucheng was also because of his marriage.

The eldest son of the Lu family's wedding was held in Yucheng.

Liang Shu saw it in the news at that time.

Liang Shu said, "I saw the photos. Your wife is very beautiful and suits you well."

Talking about his wife, Lu Zian's mouth couldn't help but curve into a warm smile. The light in his eyes softened a lot. He said, "Yes, I wanted to call you to the wedding, but you changed your number. Your sister-in-law is also a very gentle person. Let's meet her another day."

Liang Shu felt a twinge in her nose. She watched as the nurse packed up and left, then tilted her head, as if to play with the hair beside her ear, "Hmm, okay."

They had been talking for quite a while.

Thinking that Gu Hansheng was on his way, Liang Shu was afraid that the two of them would meet later. She said, "Brother, you must be very busy. I'll just wait for the results by myself. You don't need to worry about me. I can handle it myself."

But Lu Zian was more stubborn. He smiled, "Not busy. Let's have a meal together later. There are still many things I want to say to you, big brother."

This time, Liang Shu felt anxious. She said, "Really, there's no need. You can focus on your own matters."

But she couldn't resist Lu Zian.

Liang Shu resigned herself.

...

When Gu Hansheng arrived, Xiao Chen had already figured out everything about Liang Shu.

Of course, seeing Liang Shu chatting happily with another man, Xiao Chen didn't want to interrupt.

He led Gu Hansheng towards the office.

Knocking on the door and entering, they happened to see Liang Shu and another man standing close together, looking at the results of the X-ray examination together.

At the same time, the doctor's voice was heard in the room, "Your leg is not seriously injured. Rest well, avoid getting the wound wet, there are no other problems, don't worry too much."

Lu Zian smiled, naturally reaching out to pat Liang Shu's head, "Alright, thank you, doctor."

Thus, this scene appeared particularly glaring in Gu Hansheng's eyes.

Furthermore, Gu Hansheng felt deeply offended, sensing Lu Zian's covert flirtation right in front of him, the rightful protagonist.

The man exuded a formidable aura, making it nearly impossible for bystanders not to take notice of him.

Just as Lu Zian finished his sentence, the corner of his eye caught sight of the striking man standing by the door.

For someone like Gu Hansheng, Lu Zian was not unfamiliar.

Although he didn't frequently appear in the circle, there were always legends circulating about him.

This man's sudden appearance here, coupled with his cold, almost menacing gaze fixed on him and Liang Shu, led Lu Zian to naturally assume that they were occupying the doctor's consultation time.

Hence, Lu Zian took Liang Shu's arm again and said, "Ah Shu, let's step outside to talk and make room for others."

Liang Shu was currently engrossed in examining the X-ray in her hand, unaware of the man who had already stood by the door.

So, she naturally nodded, "Sure."

This "Sure" was the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Veins bulged on Gu Hansheng's forehead, his fingers clenched into a fist inside his pocket, his gaze chillingly fixed on Liang Shu.

At that moment, Liang Shu finally sensed an ominous presence behind her.

She turned around, only to unexpectedly meet those deep, ink-like eyes, brewing with the most intense flames, as if they could reduce her to ashes in the next moment.

The X-ray in Liang Shu's hand slipped through her fingers and fell to the ground in front of Gu Hansheng's black leather shoes.

In the next instant, she watched helplessly as the man's elegant shoes unhesitatingly stepped on it, then strode over to them, lowering his head, his gaze unwaveringly fixed on Liang Shu.

Even if Lu Zian were slow-witted, he should have realized by now that this man meant trouble.

He glanced at Gu Hansheng, then at Liang Shu, outwardly calm but inwardly puzzled.

Liang Shu closed her eyes briefly, then smiled at Gu Hansheng, her voice gentle, "Mr. Gu."

Then she turned slightly towards Lu Zian at her side, addressing him, "This is Mr. Gu, my friend..."

Before she could finish her sentence, she was abruptly interrupted by the man's sudden interjection.

Taking another step forward, Gu Hansheng extended his hand to Lu Zian, all his emotions impeccably restrained.

At this moment, there was only a faintly inscrutable smile on the man's face as he cut in, "Hello, I'm Ah Shu's husband."

With just one sentence, Lu Zian was so taken aback that he forgot basic etiquette.

He didn't return the handshake, instead staring at Liang Shu in astonishment before finally meeting Gu Hansheng's gaze.

Liang Shu also froze.

She hadn't anticipated that Gu Hansheng would introduce himself in such a manner.

It seemed like the situation was spiraling out of control.

Gu Hansheng withdrew his hand, smoothly pulling Liang Shu into his embrace, his strong palm firmly resting at her waist, exuding a pronounced possessiveness.

Lu Zian took a full minute to digest Gu Hansheng's words.

Then, watching Liang Shu already enfolded in Gu Hansheng's embrace, he gave a slight tug at the corner of his mouth, reaching out, "Hello, I'm Lu Zian. Today, the driver at the hospital entrance almost collided with your wife, fortunately, no major harm was done. I apologize sincerely for the inconvenience."

Reading Liang Shu's expression, Lu Zian gathered that she wasn't keen on Gu Hansheng getting acquainted with him, so he took the initiative to clarify their relationship.

Liang Shu, understanding the situation, remained silent.

Gu Hansheng's right hand gently caressed her waist as he watched the hand extended towards him, after a brief pause, he lightly grasped it, "Gu Hansheng."

Then, the man turned his head towards Liang Shu, softly inquiring, "Is everything alright? What did the doctor say?"

Liang Shu glanced back at the examination sheet he had stepped on, faintly revealing a footprint, shaking her head, "The doctor said it's nothing serious, I didn't feel uncomfortable either, just scraped my knee a bit, the nurse has taken care of it."

The man nodded, "That's good."

Liang Shu glanced at Lu Zian, saying to Gu Hansheng, "It's nothing serious, and it has already taken up so much of this gentleman's time, let's go back."

Hearing this, Gu Hansheng felt a chill in his heart. Did this girl realize she had wasted others' time? Yet he showed no sign of abnormality on his face, nodding in gratitude towards Lu Zian, "I've already understood the situation. It was my wife who ran the red light, so if she got hit directly or fled after the accident, it would serve her right. Yet, I've been waiting in the hospital for her for so long. Mr. Gu is truly grateful."

Liang Shu, "..."

Lu Zian, "..."

Liang Shu felt as if her life was worthless.

Lu Zian felt that Gu Hansheng was insinuating something in every word.

Lu Zian responded with a smile, "It's my fault for hitting someone."

Both were masters of the game of diplomacy. Liang Shu, to end this awkward situation, took the initiative to loop her arm through Gu Hansheng's, smiling brightly at him, "Husband, let's go."

"Husband..."

It seemed to be the first time he heard these words from her.

Gu Hansheng was quite pleased, his expression softening considerably.

He nodded towards Lu Zian, "My wife and I will take our leave, until we meet again."

...

Gu Hansheng had driven himself here.

Exiting the hospital, he made his way to his car.

In his haste earlier, he hadn't parked properly, with one-third of the front of his car protruding outside the parking spot, completely blocking the vehicle in front. Despite the conspicuous Phantom, the owner dared not voice any complaints, waiting stubbornly until the owner of the car appeared and moved it.

Liang Shu followed Gu Hansheng at this moment.

With his long strides, Gu Hansheng outpaced her in three or four steps.

Feeling a bit disgruntled trailing behind, the woman called out to him, "Gu Hansheng."