After Becoming a CEO, I Ended Up With the Gorgeous Lunatic Villainess - Chapter 13

As the words fell, a beam of sunlight slipped in from the window, landing on the windowsill.

It was as if even the sun was curious about what was happening in this quiet room, where the only sound was a faint trickle of water.

Cen Qianyi looked into those eyes, now glistening even more after catching that sliver of light.

She saw the way grievance shimmered in them. Her toes curled slightly against the floor.

What was she feeling wronged about?

In this situation, what did she have the right to feel wronged about?

Wasn’t it this woman who had caught her and forced her to be a plaything? Even the injury on her leg, whether accidental or not, had still been caused by her.

What was she feeling wronged about…

If He Shu could hear Cen Qianyi’s inner voice, she might have felt even more aggrieved. Her sense of grievance was unmatched. No one could understand it, and no one could speak of it!

She regretted the extra explanation she had just blurted out. Now it just sounded… so twisted.

She hesitated, wondering if she should say something to patch it up, but nothing appropriate came to mind.

Cen Qianyi also couldn’t imagine what He Shu had to feel wronged about.

“You—”

“I—”

They both spoke at once.

Just as Cen Qianyi opened her mouth and He Shu tried to offer another explanation, a knock sounded at the door, interrupting the conversation just as it began.

He Shu turned quickly and went to open it. The wet soles of her shoes left a trail of damp footprints on the clean tiles.

Cen Qianyi’s gaze followed the water-darkened cuffs of He Shu’s pants. That must have happened when she had squatted down to rinse her leg earlier.

Thinking back to how focused and careful she had looked while tending to the burn, Cen Qianyi felt another layer of confusion.

He Shu opened the door. It was no surprise to find Su Zhi waiting outside.

What did surprise her slightly was that Su Zhi had already prepared a complete change of clothes and shoes for Cen Qianyi.

No wonder she was the right-hand woman to a domineering CEO. She was thoughtful and competent.

Though sometimes, she was almost too thoughtful. Like earlier, offering coffee in that kind of setting made no sense. Why would anyone hand someone coffee while they were staring at a corpse?

He Shu’s mind unhelpfully conjured up an image of Pei Congxin’s lifeless eyes leaking unknown fluids. A chill of fear and nausea swept over her. She told Su Zhi to wait outside, closed the door quickly, and took a few deep breaths, trying to drive out that nightmarish image.

Yet the moment she turned back toward the shower, that gruesome mental picture was instantly replaced.

The bathroom had only one window, nestled in the corner of the shower stall.

The light that streamed in fell on Cen Qianyi, illuminating the oversized beige tracksuit she wore. It clearly did not fit.

The outfit was baggy, making her seem even more delicate. She looked so small, the hem of the hoodie nearly swallowed her hips.

Her legs, bare from the hem down, looked unusually pale. The color gave her a fragile appearance, and the red marks on her skin stood out in stark contrast.

He Shu snapped back to herself instantly. Her thoughts had no space for wandering. She hurried forward, and gently tugged the towel from Cen Qianyi’s hand. With just a light pull, Cen Qianyi let go.

He Shu took the towel back and quickly began wiping the water off Cen Qianyi’s leg, especially careful when passing over the burn. Her touch was light and deliberate.

She had been the one who burned her. Now, she just wanted to make up for it, hoping it might earn her some ‘sentence reduction’ in the future.

Thankfully, she didn’t sense any killing intent. Otherwise, no matter how many lives He Shu had, she wouldn’t have dared to get so close to the woman who might one day gouge out her eyes.

Once she was done, He Shu picked her up and carried her to the lounge, laying her on the bed.

Cen Qianyi glanced at the bed beneath her. The light that had earlier shone in her eyes seemed dimmer now. Her pale violet eyes deepened with thought.

But before she could dwell on what this woman might do next, He Shu was already crouching in front of her.

He Shu grabbed the ointment from the bed, kneeled on one leg in front of Cen Qianyi, and carefully applied it to her leg with a cotton swab.

“Does it hurt?”

She looked up at Cen Qianyi after applying a bit.

Cen Qianyi’s eyes were half-lowered as she looked at her, her emotions tangled. How did she keep misreading this woman’s intentions every single time…

She’s so… odd…

He Shu noticed her silence and remembered that she couldn’t see. She explained, “This is burn ointment. Does it sting? If it does, let me know. I’ll be gentler.”

Her voice still carried a soft, hoarse quality from crying.

Cen Qianyi felt the coolness on her leg. Her emotions were hard to put into words.

He Shu assumed the silence meant she didn’t want to talk to a pervert like her.

If it were her, she might have cursed already… She’d even wanted to hit her this morning. Now she was suddenly treating her kindly. Who wouldn’t feel confused by that?

But she wasn’t a pervert… just a miserable soul forced to go to work by the system.

The thought made her want to cry again. She sniffled, and seeing that Cen Qianyi didn’t seem to be in pain, continued applying the ointment.

Cen Qianyi noticed the red creeping back into He Shu’s eyes and furrowed her brows slightly.

Was she… crying again?

Cen Qianyi looked at her, confused. She was not actually crying. It only looked like she was trying to hold it back.

From this angle, Cen Qianyi could see her up close. Her brows were darker than most, with a natural arch. Paired with the faint upward tilt of her eyes, it gave her a striking look.

But at this moment, as she carefully applied the ointment, her long lashes trembled slightly and still held some water droplets. That tender seriousness softened her normally aloof appearance.

It almost made her seem like… a gentle person.

Cen Qianyi’s fingers brushed the neat bed sheet beside her, leaving behind a few creases. Is this really the He Shu from the files I found?

He Shu had no idea Cen Qianyi had begun to question her identity.

After finishing the ointment, she breathed a sigh of relief and grabbed the dress Su Zhi had prepared.

Watching closely for a reaction, she noted there was no aggressive resistance this time, unlike when she had tried to put her in a white coat.

That made He Shu wonder if the problem had been the clothing last time. Or with how she had put it on? Or was it just Cen Qianyi’s mood back then?

Unable to find an answer, and knowing she’d never be told, He Shu finished dressing her. Then she realized she also needed to change.

Su Zhi had told her she’d have to visit the police station. Her current outfit had coffee stains and soaked pant legs.

Showing up like that would tarnish a CEO’s image.

She walked to the wardrobe Su Zhi mentioned. Everything had been neatly hung inside.

When she opened the wardrobe, a pleasant scent greeted her and the mirror inside reflected a flash of light.

So meticulous. He Shu mentally gave Su Zhi extra points.

The wardrobe held multiple coordinated outfits, all pressed and wrinkle-free.

Su Zhi had good taste too. Every set inside looked great to He Shu.

She picked the one in the center. It seemed to be Su Zhi’s top recommendation.

Click.

Cen Qianyi snapped out of her thoughts and turned toward the sound.

He Shu had unbuckled her belt, undone the buttons, and pulled down her pants and socks in one smooth motion.

The loosened shirt hung open, barely covering a pair of sleek, elastic black underwear.

Perky. Cen Qianyi didn’t know why that word popped into her mind…

But that image disappeared quickly as He Shu straightened her back.

Now it was taut.

She clearly worked out. Her waist wasn’t thin, but it was firm. The inward curve suggested strength, like a bowstring pulled taut.

As He Shu unbuttoned her shirt one by one, she met Cen Qianyi’s gaze in the mirror. Those pale violet eyes still lacked focus.

He Shu raised an eyebrow. Thank goodness she couldn’t see. She wasn’t used to undressing in front of someone.

She slipped off the shirt, exposing herself almost fully in the mirror.

Tsk. That body. Not bad at all.

He Shu twisted from side to side, then turned to check her back.

She admired the smooth lines and the delicate protrusion of her shoulder blades. She almost whistled at her reflection.

Come to think of it, ever since she transmigrated, she’d been running non-stop. She hadn’t had time to properly check this body.

She had only confirmed that the face resembled her original one.

But the body was completely different.

She used to be 1.7 meters tall. This body looked to be at least 1.75.

She had long legs before, but not this long.

She extended a leg and struck a model’s pose.

Tsk. These legs could walk a lingerie runway.

He Shu tilted her head, covering her mouth as she giggled quietly.

Cen Qianyi watched her smile and raised an eyebrow. What was she laughing about?

And earlier, when she twisted in front of the mirror, what was she checking?

And now that satisfied expression, what caused that?

Realizing she had not been injured?

He Shu cupped her chest. She had changed too fast this morning and felt too weighed down by the job to notice that her chest had gotten a little fuller.

Seeing the lace edge of the bra cling tightly to her curves, He Shu swallowed. It was just too sexy. Her face heated up.

That look didn’t escape Cen Qianyi’s eyes. Her gaze trembled slightly. Was she really attracted to her own body?

Although it was an attractive body…

Still, she didn’t need to act like she had never seen one before.

Cen Qianyi turned her head and looked away, pinching her itchy earlobe.

Then again, maybe she really hadn’t.

He Shu finished admiring herself. Remembering she still had things to do, she changed into clean clothes, helped Cen Qianyi into shoes and socks, and led her out of the lounge.

The moment He Shu appeared, everyone in the outer office turned to look.

Su Zhi immediately noticed something different. She looked at Cen Qianyi, who was being led by the wrist.

Ever since the boss had brought her back, she had always appeared fragile. But now, something about her felt different.

Su Zhi couldn’t say exactly what.

She glanced at He Shu. The boss had been acting strange ever since she met this woman.

She even called her “Qianqian” in her sleep.

That had never happened before.

And it made Su Zhi uneasy. No past plaything had ever had a name. Once the novelty wore off, they were discarded.

But this one… Su Zhi felt a strange tension, afraid something was changing.

He Shu helped Cen Qianyi onto the sofa and took her seat in the CEO’s chair.

Su Zhi snapped back to business mode and gave her report.

“Boss, the hospital’s lawyers have arrived. The company’s legal team is heading directly to the police station. Once there, you don’t have to say anything. Let the lawyers handle it.”

He Shu kept a calm expression, but inside, she was riding a wave of emotion. Listen to that! Lawyers from the group! That sounds so CEO-like!

And not just that. As a ‘villainess,’ she was about to go to the police station, accompanied by her legal team.

Of course, she couldn’t bring Cen Qianyi, the forcibly detained one, to the police.

Cen Qianyi understood that, but what she didn’t know was that He Shu hoped she would escape. So she left only a token bodyguard outside the office.

Once she was sure He Shu had left, Cen Qianyi hacked into her computer.

While waiting for the program to execute, she pulled out the crumpled business card from her pocket and flattened it.

A black card. Gold-embossed font. Just as she remembered. Besides the character “Nie,” it had only a number. No extra information.

Or so it seemed.

Cen Qianyi flipped it over. There was a symbol on the back.

A red lipstick print, matching that woman’s hair color.

The computer screen lit up with the red authorization page. Cen Qianyi tucked the card back into her pocket and entered the access code.

She logged into the Bounty Alliance and confirmed the order.

Fang Nian was surprised to receive the payment before even leaving the hospital.

What did that mean? That Yi already knew the target was dead.

A regular doctor’s death hadn’t even made the news, yet Yi knew. What did that mean?

It meant she had been in the hospital, or at least had been there.

Fang Nian’s thick glasses reflected a cold glint. She immediately stopped tracking that special person and switched to pursuing Yi instead.

Cen Qianyi didn’t know someone was investigating her. Even if she did, it wouldn’t matter. If she were that easy to kill, that billion-dollar bounty wouldn’t still be hanging.

After confirming the order, she didn’t bother reading the next mission’s details. She went into the internal database and began researching He Shu.

She had a feeling. A gut feeling. That the He Shu she was dealing with was not the same person as the one in the files…

…

At the police station in downtown H City, He Shu was “invited” into the interview room.

Just as the lawyers had said, she didn’t need to say a word.

To every police question, the lawyers either responded for her, rejected it, or accused the other side of slander.

It was just like in the dramas.

He Shu had nothing to do. Perfect time to read.

The chair was just uncomfortable enough to keep her from falling asleep.

While reading about the red-haired protagonist solving cases, she thought of that officer Judy with red hair, the same one who had tried to crush her hand.

According to the book, this world had many people with genetic defects, often marked by unusual hair colors.

There was Judy with red hair, and Cen Qianyi with that milky white tone. All naturally colored.

Thinking of Cen Qianyi, He Shu looked at the upcoming plot… If only the cops would just arrest her now…

Her breath quickened, and her cheeks grew warm. She pressed her hand against her head to hide her face.

She skimmed ahead. Too embarrassed to read those parts in broad daylight.

Then she stumbled on a key line.

[Cen Qianyi looked at the woman whipping the pillow and sneered. Even if those she hypnotized regained consciousness, they would remember only what she wanted them to…]

He Shu sat up straighter. Her eyes lit up.

Hypnosis!

Cen Qianyi could hypnotize!

Wait, why hadn’t she used that from the start?

The book explained that a muscle paralyzer had affected her eye movements.

So once it wore off, she could hypnotize at will!

He Shu’s own eyes twitched.

Three days. It only needed three days to wear off.

This was day two. If she made it through tomorrow, the day after, Cen Qianyi would be free to hypnotize her.

There was hope!

He Shu slapped the chair in excitement. The officers and lawyers turned to look, unsure what she was so excited about.

“It’s nothing. Just a cramp. Please continue.”

She forced down her glee. Now she understood why the original plot had her stay. With that kind of power, why leave?

When she realized she would not actually have to go through any of those humiliating things, the kind of scenes that made her blush just reading them, He Shu felt a deep sense of relief.

Just two more days!

…

That night, stepping out of the police station under the stars, He Shu began to hope. If Cen Qianyi ran away now, it would be perfect. No need to endure two more days.

Unfortunately, when she returned to the villa, the girl was still there.

Worse, the system’s voice rang in her head.

Time to work.

And tonight, not only would she sleep beside Cen Qianyi…

There was a little pre-bedtime “ritual” waiting too.