After Becoming a CEO, I Ended Up With the Gorgeous Lunatic Villainess - Chapter 9

At the very last second, He Shu burst out with a surge of strength. She managed to steady herself mid-fall and grabbed hold of the leg of the person she had just thrown, gripping it tightly.

With a yank, she pulled off the other person’s shoe…

With a loud “thud,” bare skin hit the ground directly, making a noise loud enough to startle the birds in the surrounding forest.

It scared He Shu just as much.

In that moment, a vivid image of her character’s death in the original novel flashed through her mind.

Looking at the person sprawled on the ground, she felt that death scene might just get an upgrade.

Pain radiated from Cen Qianyi’s back, amplified by the sensory intensifier she had used. It surged through her body, stinging so sharply that tears welled at the corners of her eyes.

Years of training had made her resilient to pain.

But that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. It just meant she could endure it.

This damned sensory intensifier.

He Shu rushed forward and saw Cen Qianyi clenching her lips so hard that her red lips now bore pale bite marks. A single tear rolled down her tense cheek.

She looked utterly pitiful.

It was hard to associate her with the cold-blooded villainess who, in the original story, killed without blinking.

Right now, she looked like any ordinary girl who would cry after falling.

He Shu couldn’t bring herself to say sorry, so she silently apologized in her head while checking in with the system.

“System, are you sure this isn’t a mistake? Is this Cen Qianyi really supposed to be a top assassin in the alliance? Look at her. She can’t even break her own fall.”

She herself had managed to brace in time and avoid falling.

“Host, please look at Cen Qianyi’s clothing.”

Clothing? What about it?

He Shu looked down and immediately understood.

Back at the base of the mountain, she remembered seeing Cen Qianyi in only a thin nightgown. Since He Shu had to carry her uphill, she had taken off her own jacket and wrapped it around her. Because they were short on time, she hadn’t dressed her properly. She simply wrapped her up like a rice dumpling and zipped her in.

Cen Qianyi had been injected with a muscle paralytic, and with her arms trapped, balancing would have been impossible.

He Shu figured that death scene was indeed getting a rewrite, but she had no time to dwell on it. Driven by guilt, she forced herself to check Cen Qianyi’s condition despite her fear.

She unzipped the coat that had been wrapped around her. She didn’t look at the front, only at the back, and was relieved to see just some redness and swelling.

As He Shu moved, Cen Qianyi opened her tear-streaked eyes.

She glanced down at her spaghetti-strap nightgown, which barely covered her skin, and the coat that had fallen to the ground like a blanket. Her pale face darkened instantly.

She had known this woman didn’t bring her to a remote mountaintop just to see the sunrise.

But she hadn’t expected her to be this desperate. The moment they arrived, she threw her down and… undressed her.

Feeling the wandering hands on her back, Cen Qianyi’s eyes turned icy.

She knew this woman had wild tastes, but she didn’t think it extended to the wilderness at dawn.

The ground beneath her was damp.

Cen Qianyi looked at He Shu’s dirt-stained knees. Her pants were smudged.

So she wasn’t a clean freak.

Of course not. Dirty things didn’t care about being clean.

Only the dead were clean.

Cen Qianyi swallowed the lingering pain and started to raise her hand to reach for the woman’s neck. But before she could, her body was suddenly pulled forward into a burning-hot embrace.

He Shu had just confirmed that Cen Qianyi’s back injury wasn’t serious and was confused why she was crying so pitifully. She wondered if maybe Cen Qianyi had hit her head and quickly pulled her closer to check.

He Shu carefully brushed away the leaves and grass stuck in her long white hair. Thankfully, there was no sign of blood.

Just as she was about to relax, a cold wind blew across her back. Before she could turn around, a sudden warmth spread across her body.

Looking down, she realized the sunlight had silently crept in, bathing them both.

Tiny sparkles of light flickered in Cen Qianyi’s damp eyes, and her hand paused in midair.

The two of them looked out toward the distant sky.

The sun had risen.

Brilliant rays of dawn announced the sun’s escape from the night’s grip.

The world lit up in an instant, and the sunlight spilled freely across the earth.

He Shu felt something in her chest light up along with it. Since she had become a corporate drone, she left early and returned late, always under artificial lighting. Even the city’s sun seemed like it was just punching a timecard. It was warm, yes, but nothing like this.

This view would make anyone stop, no matter what they were doing, and simply watch.

Towering green mountains, the breeze rustling the leaves, even the still rocks seemed to be cheering the return of light. The sun, as if sensing their joy, generously layered them in golden hues.

In that moment, He Shu felt the force of nature as something gentle and steady, capable of smoothing out the creases in her heart.

She watched silently, trying to absorb as much as she could.

Cen Qianyi had never seen a sunrise like this either.

It reminded her of the first sunlight she had seen when she escaped from the lab…

That single ray of light had made her want to live.

Under the sunlight, the pain in her body started to fade. Suddenly, something soft landed on her shoulders.

She turned to look.

It was the coat that had been taken off her earlier.

He Shu, warmed by the sunrise, looked over at Cen Qianyi’s thin nightgown and remembered she had caused her to fall. Trying to make amends, she picked up the coat and dusted it off.

A delicate chain connected to a collar had slipped into the nightgown earlier. He Shu hesitated but didn’t pull it out. She didn’t dare look too long either and quickly helped her put the coat back on.

This time, she made sure to put her arms through the sleeves before zipping it up.

Then she picked up the shoe she had pulled off earlier. Kneeling on one knee, she lifted Cen Qianyi’s leg and held her ankle to help her put it back on.

As she moved, she noticed something odd. There was a red mark on Cen Qianyi’s little toe, possibly a scrape. She brought the slender ankle closer to examine it.

But the foot in her hand struggled to pull away.

Realizing how it might look, He Shu quickly slipped the shoe back on.

In her mind, the system prompted her with the final line she had to say.

He Shu wiped her hands on her clothes, then lightly brushed Cen Qianyi’s face.

“The sunrise at Xishan is beautiful. Just like you.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the system announced that the “walk-the-dog-to-watch-the-sunrise” plot had been successfully completed.

He Shu let out a heavy sigh of relief. She could finally clock out.

Thank goodness this was a novel. No book could include every single detail. Most of the time, once a scene ended, it would skip straight to the next.

For instance, He Shu’s next scene took place back at the villa.

Everything in between was blank space.

Meanwhile, after the sunrise, Nie Wenyu received a case about a doctor at a hospital who had died from overdosing on hallucinogens.

The drugs left at the scene bore similarities to a new type she had been investigating.

It was a vital clue. She had to go to H City.

He Shu had no idea that the person she was trying to find was already on their way.

After she delivered a line that sounded like pure flattery but actually came off a bit creepy, she stepped away from Cen Qianyi and began negotiating with the system about what she could or couldn’t do during the time skip.

The system gave the usual response: “Feel free to improvise,” with the caveat that she must not say anything she shouldn’t or do anything that could affect future plotlines. Otherwise, she would be erased.

It always used that threat. He Shu had heard it so many times that she was numb to it.

She looked at Cen Qianyi, thinking of something to say. But now she didn’t even dare improvise. What if she offended her further?

After all, she had just tossed her like a sack of potatoes. And now, the way Cen Qianyi was looking at her sent chills down her spine. It felt like she could see right through her.

Cen Qianyi looked at the woman in front of her. The sunlight danced on her trembling lashes like a frightened butterfly.

At least she had stopped crying…

But now she seemed even more suspicious.

Thinking about the file she had read last night, Cen Qianyi felt like the woman in front of her wasn’t the same person.

“Who are you?”

He Shu hesitated, wondering what to say, but Cen Qianyi spoke first.

That question should have been asked when they first met. Clearly, Cen Qianyi had her own pace.

Before He Shu could answer, the system delivered another warning. No forbidden words.

He Shu hadn’t planned to say much anyway. Less talk, less risk.

She was supposed to be a cold CEO. Brief and to the point.

“He Shu. I’m He Shu.”

Cen Qianyi stared at her, repeating, “He Shu.”

“Yes, Shu like special.”

Cen Qianyi looked at her. She was indeed… special.

He Shu didn’t want to keep talking. There were too many restrictions, and she couldn’t exactly drop to her knees and beg. What was the point?

She just wanted to get back to the villa.

“Let’s go. We’re going home.”

She stood and tried to pull Cen Qianyi up. But when she saw her confused expression, something clicked.

Cen Qianyi was surprised by her words and actions. Go home? Just like that?

She had been puzzled when He Shu dressed her again. Was it over already?

In her daze, she watched He Shu pull something from behind her.

He Shu had exchanged points with the system for a reward. She pulled it from her pocket, and with a flick, the foldable white cane extended automatically.

She handed it to Cen Qianyi. “Do you know how to use it?”

Cen Qianyi didn’t move. She stared at the object in her hand…

Given the size, and the fact that He Shu had pulled it from behind her… Did her pocket even have that much space?

Seeing no response, He Shu explained, “It’s a white cane.”

Then she immediately regretted saying it. She had blinded someone and now was giving her a cane.

This reward… was suspiciously convenient. But also useless.

Worse, it made her seem even more like a pervert.

She wanted to explain, but worried she’d make it worse. In the end, she just shut up.

She turned to look at the staircase down the mountain. It was gentle, but someone who had only been blind for one day wouldn’t be able to manage with a cane alone.

That was foolish of her.

He Shu retracted the cane and folded it back up. It wouldn’t fit in her pocket again.

The cane came with a strap, so she fastened it around Cen Qianyi’s wrist. Then she walked over, bent down, and without a word, carried her on her back.

Thankfully, she had some strength.

Cen Qianyi didn’t believe she was serious until she felt the stairs underfoot.

So this woman really had just brought her to see the sunrise?

What a strange person…

He Shu carried her all the way down the mountain. Once at the bottom, she immediately set her down.

No matter how strong she was, she was worn out.

Panting with her hands on her knees, He Shu took the cane from Cen Qianyi, unfolded it, and let her hold one end while she held the other. She led her toward the villa.

Su Zhi came running up from a distance. When she arrived, He Shu passed the cane to her.

She was too tired. She needed to lie down.

He Shu headed straight for the villa, and the moment she saw the couch, she threw herself onto it, arms and legs spread out like a starfish, completely still.

Su Zhi arrived with Cen Qianyi a bit later.

Seeing He Shu exhausted, she looked concerned. “Boss, are you alright?”

He Shu didn’t have the strength to talk. She waved a hand.

Su Zhi turned to Cen Qianyi and noticed how calm she looked. She wasn’t happy about it.

In the past, whenever the boss “walked the dog,” it was the dog who ended up exhausted… This one was definitely different.

But no matter how different, she was still just a pet.

Su Zhi took her to the designated room and returned to He Shu’s side. She decided not to mention the message from the hospital just yet. Instead, she asked another question.

“Boss, would you like breakfast?”

Of course. He Shu managed to lift her head a little, exposing her face from the couch cushions. “Yes. I’m starving.”

Su Zhi nodded. “Alright, I’ll arrange it now.”

She took a step, paused, and turned back. “Boss, what about the pet?”

Pet?

He Shu struggled to lift her head and followed Su Zhi’s gaze to the door, where Cen Qianyi stood…

It took her a second, then she understood…

She was asking whether Cen Qianyi, the so-called pet, should also be given breakfast.

Why did she have to call her that? He Shu suddenly remembered she had renamed the “Dog Room” to the “Pet Room.”

Which meant Cen Qianyi, who lived there, really was a pet…

Wait. What if she hadn’t changed the name?

And come to think of it, Su Zhi always used to say “dog.” This was the first time she had used the word “pet.” Seeing the boss hesitate, she thought maybe she’d said something wrong and was about to correct herself when He Shu spoke.

“Yes, everyone eats breakfast. Have you eaten?”

Su Zhi smiled gratefully. The boss was so kind, even asking about her.

“I have. I’ll go make arrangements.”

He Shu relaxed back into the couch. Having a thoughtful assistant was a blessing. She’d give her a raise later.

She was rich now, worth billions!

The last time she had been near anything “worth billions,” it was when she bought a phone case from a billion-dollar discount campaign.

She chuckled to herself, then suddenly felt a chill down her back, like someone had shoved her head into a freezer.

She looked up in confusion and saw a wave of killing intent directed straight at her eyes.

She nearly fell off the couch in fright!

What was going on? That killing aura was intense!

She had climbed the mountain with Cen Qianyi on her back, then carried her back down. It was just one fall! And now she wanted to kill her?!

What a villainess. So ruthless. One fall and she wanted blood.

And they had just been fine a moment ago. Was she that slow to react?

Panicked, He Shu sat up and looked at Cen Qianyi.

In the dining room, at the round table, Cen Qianyi was kneeling on a small cushion.

In front of her was a low, square stand that barely reached her calves.

On it sat a bowl. Or rather, it was more like a basin.

From afar, it looked like stainless steel.

A stainless steel… basin…

He Shu’s eyes widened in horror as she watched her beloved assistant, the very one she had just praised and planned to give a raise, pour a full bowl of dog food into it.