Nan Yu couldn't hold back her curiosity and voiced it out.
Tan Linyuan glanced at her, his hands not pausing in their action. "Spending too much time with Qu Jiaran has made you talkative, hasn't it?"
Nan Yu: "..."
She really didn't like it when Tan Linyuan compared her to Qu Jiaran.
So she chose to shut up.
But soon, she couldn't help grimacing in pain and cried out, "Uncle Tan, be gentle—"
"Now you feel the pain?" Tan Linyuan curled his lips, and his low - pressure mood finally eased a bit. "A bit of pain is good. It'll stop you from daydreaming."
Even as he said that, he lightened his touch.
After the wound was treated, it needed to be iced. Tan Linyuan went to the fridge to get some ice cubes.
The moment the ice touched her skin, Nan Yu finally felt the swelling, hot pain start to subside.
She pressed the ice - wrapped towel with her hand and lifted her lips tiredly. "Thank you, Uncle Tan, for taking care of me."
Actually, she should have used a more polite tone, but after a tiring day and such a scare, she couldn't even force a fake smile.
"Uncle Tan, are you thirsty? There's..." Nan Yu stopped halfway. Then she remembered that he probably knew where everything was, so she just stopped talking.
Tan Linyuan noticed her pause and said casually, "I rarely let others do things for me."
What he meant was probably that the reason he was so familiar with this place was that he had personally arranged everything here.
"The water pipe in the bathroom had a problem. I wasn't busy some time ago, so I changed it for you." He mentioned it casually. "If there are any other problems in the future, just contact me."
Buying a whole villa and hiring someone for interior decoration was not difficult for a rich person.
What was difficult was to do everything personally.
Before this, Nan Yu had also looked for a house everywhere. She knew how exhausting it was to find a comfortable place to live.
But he didn't mind the trouble at all. He not only re - created the former Ye Nanwan but also took care of her living comfort.
Her heart felt like it was soaked in water, being slowly crushed, and it trembled slightly.
Tan Linyuan put away the first - aid kit. Looking at her slightly less swollen wrist, he said calmly, "Shen Suhai invested in two projects last month. He was probably trying to go independent. But because the return rate was too low, I decided to withdraw the investment. The projects have now been aborted."
Nan Yu was stunned. She was very surprised to hear him mention the conflict between him and Shen Suhai again. "Has the conflict between you two intensified?"
Tan Linyuan nodded slightly and curled his lips sarcastically. "Sort of. The old rabbit is cornered and ready to bite."
Tan Linyuan's actions not only hit Shen Suhai's decision - making ability but also gradually stripped him of his power, pushing him into a dead end in the business association.
The day when Tan Linyuan made Shen Suhai "relinquish his military power" would be the day when the Shen family truly had no way out.
"What does this have to do with my abduction?" Nan Yu murmured. "Will my soon - to - be marriage with Shen Yanche change this situation?"
Tan Linyuan didn't answer her. He just rubbed his temples, and fatigue and helplessness gradually showed on his face.
Nan Yu looked at him silently.
She knew that a person in Tan Linyuan's position had to plan carefully and take every step with caution.
He had to weigh his own gains and losses, and also know those of others, so as to stay invincible.
In the business world, there was never absolute calm.
Even a huge ship sailing smoothly on the sea would eventually receive the sad news of being swallowed and destroyed by the waves.
Tan Linyuan looked up at Nan Yu. His eyes were deep, with a meaning that Nan Yu couldn't understand.
It was like scrutiny, and also like he was confirming something.
Tan Linyuan reached out and touched her forehead. His tone was flat. "In ancient times, there was a bad custom. If an old man or a son in the family was dying, they would usually marry a girl with a compatible horoscope or a so - called lucky girl to 'ward off evil and bring good luck', trying to save the dying person in this way."
Nan Yu looked confused.
"You're that lucky girl. Do you believe it?"
Tan Linyuan tilted his face and locked his eyes on hers, as if waiting for her reaction.
Nan Yu opened her mouth but was speechless for a moment. "… This is too absurd. And Shen Suhai's health isn't that bad."
Tan Linyuan smiled, then quickly restrained his expression, and his eyes gradually became gentle.
"Yeah, it is quite absurd."
He followed her words and ended the topic, but there was a sense of relief.
She didn't believe these baseless things.
But it was precisely these baseless things that were pressing down on him so hard that he could hardly breathe.
Nan Yu was silent for a while and then said, "Your lie is not as good as saying that he thinks I'm close to you and I can speak to you."
After all, at first, the Shen family asked her to get closer to Tan Linyuan for this very purpose.
Tan Linyuan's breathing became slightly lighter. He looked at her quietly. "Why do you think you can speak to me?"
Nan Yu couldn't figure out the meaning behind his words. She thought he was mocking her. She lowered her head and smiled at her own self - conceit. "Yeah, why do they think I can speak to you?"
It was just a casual relationship. How could she have any influence?
Who was she to expect this great Buddha to favor her?
It was wishful thinking and overreaching.
Tan Linyuan looked at her quietly. His expression remained unchanged. He revealed the answer word by word. "It's terrible. They guessed right."
Nan Yu blinked.
"Nan Yu, I've said," his eyes were calm, "I can always be your backer."
Nan Yu was stunned. The sourness in her heart surged violently. She lowered her head and never dared to look into his eyes.
He had indeed said so, and he was doing so now.
Looking back on what he had done, there was nothing to fault.
As an elder, he was a patient and kind uncle; as a noble figure, he was a merciful god to all things; as a lover, he was an excellent one.
But something was wrong.
There was still something amiss.
Nan Yu took a deep breath to prevent herself from being confused by his false tenderness. "What about Qu Jiaran? Will Uncle Tan also be Qu Jiaran's backer?"
Tan Linyuan's mood turned cold. "I have no obligation to do so."
"Is it because you have no obligation or because she doesn't need it?"
Nan Yu calmly met his gaze. "If Uncle Tan just wants to satisfy his male protective instinct on me, then you'd better find someone else."
The living - room floor was covered with a carpet. White flowers bloomed on a green background, like jasmine in spring.
Nan Yu straightened her body, and a touch of red appeared on her nose. "What you're doing is unfair to Qu Jiaran."
Qu Jiaran was the woman he was going to marry formally and the partner he had legal obligations to.
Tan Linyuan's gaze was deep. "She won't care. She just wants a title."
Nan Yu's voice was clear. "But I care."
Tan Linyuan let out a long breath. He gently pinched her palm, his thin lips tightly pressed. "Yuyu, I can give you anything you want."
As long as she could stay obediently by his side, within his sight, to make him feel at ease.
Nan Yu lifted her lips and smiled. She had never been calmer than at this moment. "Then I want Uncle Tan to cancel his marriage with Qu Jiaran. Can you deliver?"