As Sun Gang finished speaking, Zhang Man, who was standing beside him, could no longer bear it. She shot to her feet, slapping the table.

"Sun Gang, what's that supposed to mean?!" she demanded. "It was clearly your brother who was looking for trouble back then, not us! Isn't this completely unreasonable?!"

At her outburst, the seated Sun Gang was momentarily stunned before he burst into raucous laughter.

"Hahaha, Miss Zhang, you're hilarious! I guarantee that's the funniest joke I've heard all year, bar none," he roared. "You want to talk reason with me, Sun Gang?"

In the middle of his laughter, Sun Gang's face suddenly turned grim. His voice dropped to a cold sneer. "I, Sun Gang, am the only reason that matters!"

"If you two don't agree, don't blame me for being ruthless," he threatened. With that, Sun Gang wasted no more time. He shot Liu Ergou a cold glance, then stood up and left.

Just as Sun Gang looked his way, Liu Ergou happened to glance up, and their eyes met for less than a second.

But that was long enough. If nothing unexpected happens, he's definitely going to hold a grudge against me. He'll come looking to settle the score.

Despite this, Liu Ergou said nothing, simply lowering his head and continuing to eat his meal.

In stark contrast to Liu Ergou's composure, Zhang Man was pacing frantically.

"Oh no, this is terrible!" she panicked. "Er Gou, as soon as you finish eating, you have to leave! Go back to your village and never come to the city again!"

She suddenly froze, then hastily corrected herself. "No, that's not good enough! You have to hide abroad! Come with me, we can arrange it today!"

Forgetting all about her food, Zhang Man grabbed Liu Ergou and tried to pull him outside.

What is going on? Three giant question marks might as well have appeared over Liu Ergou's head. It was no exaggeration to say that Zhang Man was a beautiful woman from a wealthy and powerful family; after all, Zhang Xiuming's influence was not to be underestimated. Yet, after a single encounter with Sun Gang, she was so terrified she wanted to flee the country. Seeing how anxious she was, practically on the verge of tears, only made me more curious. What kind of background did this Sun Gang and Sun Yunxing really have?

"Hey, it's alright. Don't be afraid, Zhang Man," Liu Ergou said, stopping her. "Whatever's going on, let's talk about it calmly. Even if we have to run, at least let me understand what we're running from."

Hearing his words, Zhang Man took several deep breaths to force herself to calm down. With a woeful expression, she said, "Oh, Er Gou, you don't understand! That Sun Gang and Sun Yunxing are half-brothers; they have the same father. Sun Yunxing is just a useless playboy in the Sun Family. Nobody likes him, not even his own father, so all he ever does is fool around and ignore everything important. But Sun Gang is completely different! He's incredibly domineering and ruthless! Normally, he wouldn't care what kind of trouble Sun Yunxing gets into, but it's obvious Sun Yunxing's actions have implicated him this time, and that's why he's so furious! That idiot Sun Yunxing doesn't know who I am, but Sun Gang knows everything! That's why, Er Gou, we really have to run!"

Liu Ergou's face showed his surprise. Damn, to think a simple meal could serve up such a juicy piece of gossip. The Sun Family is a real mess. Half-brothers with the same father... Fantastic. Could someone please fill me in on the details? At that moment, he felt the flames of his inner gossip-lover burning fiercely, desperate to know the whole truth immediately.

Unfortunately, his wish was doomed to go unfulfilled for now. Seeing Zhang Man growing more anxious by the second, Liu Ergou gently patted her arm to comfort her.

But just then, Zhang Man let out a long sigh, a look of despair clouding her face. "Forget it. Let's not go abroad. Even if I did, I wouldn't be able to escape from Sun Gang."

"How about this, Er Gou," Zhang Man said, her expression full of despair. "I'll give you my first time... and then we'll break up. You run as far away as you can, and you leave the rest to me!"

As she finished speaking, she could no longer hold back, collapsing into his arms and bursting into tears.

Seeing the beautiful, tear-streaked sight of her crying in his arms, Liu Ergou felt a pang in his heart. He wrapped an arm around her, gently patting her back.

He spoke softly, "Hey, it's okay. We'll be fine. He's just one guy, Sun Gang. You don't have to be afraid of him or take anything he said to heart. Don't worry, I'm here. Even if the sky falls, I'll be here to hold it up for you. Just ignore him."

Hearing this, Zhang Man only cried harder. "Er Gou, I know you're incredible! And I know you have an extraordinary future ahead of you! But right now, you're still just an ordinary person. You can't possibly fight Sun Gang! If we don't do what he says, he'll stop at nothing! He has endless ruthless tricks up his sleeve! When that happens, it won't just be me... your family and even your friends will be dragged into this!"

Her words took Liu Ergou slightly by surprise. So this Sun Gang isn't so simple, huh? Too bad for him that he ran into me.

Thinking this, Liu Ergou chuckled. "Zhang Man, why would I lie to you? Think about it, have I ever done anything I wasn't sure about? Since I'm saying this, it means I'm confident I can handle it. Leave the rest to me. Just set your mind at ease."

Hearing this, Zhang Man couldn't help but look up at him. She saw that his eyes were filled with sincerity, without a single trace of falsehood. Seeing his serious expression, she finally nodded, choosing to trust him.

Seeing that she had finally stopped worrying, Liu Ergou simply smiled and said no more, turning his attention back to his food.

Soon, the meal was over.

Just as Liu Ergou was about to put his arm around Zhang Man and head back to the hotel, his phone suddenly rang.

He pulled out his phone and was surprised to see the caller was Mi Xiaoying. Staring at her name on the screen, Liu Ergou was lost in thought.

Why would she be calling me? We had a huge falling out last time, so why would she call? Is she trying to reconcile?

He couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle at the thought. That's a pretty wild idea. How could that be possible?

Looking at the phone, which was still ringing insistently, Liu Ergou shook his head again, clearing away all the chaotic thoughts.

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