"No, we haven't offended anyone recently!" Tong Xingtong's face was stained with tears as she shook her head in confusion, but suddenly her expression changed drastically. "Are you saying we've been poisoned with Gu, the kind that resides inside a person's body?"

As a royal official of the Yanran Empire, Tong Xingtong naturally had extraordinary experiences and had encountered many strange people and events. She knew what Gu was and understood the terror it brought all too well!

"Yes, and it's a very powerful Gu!" Ye Chen nodded.

There are many types of Gu, and common Gu bugs perish quickly once expelled from the host body!

However, the Gu inside Tong Xingtong and her companions, even if expelled by Ye Chen, possessed extremely strong combat capabilities; it was a ferocious Gu!

Moreover, there was even a king of the ferocious Gu, which Ye Chen was currently suppressing inside his body!

The Gu inside them was indeed very powerful!

"It looks like you probably don't know who is casting the Gu on you," Ye Chen said to Tong Xingtong.

"I rarely move around in this region and have never made enemies with anyone, so there shouldn't be anyone targeting me deliberately!" Tong Xingtong said, perplexed.

"That's strange indeed," Ye Chen pondered. If that was the case, then the matter was exceedingly bizarre. "However, you're safe now, I've already expelled the Gu from your bodies."

"Safe? You helped them cleanse their poison, but ended up poisoned yourself. Are you stupid?" Qin Lan came over furiously, her eyes filled with deep concern. She had personally experienced that perilous moment.

She had seen with her own eyes that Gu bugs had infested Ye Chen as well!

"What! Are you alright?" Tong Xingtong gasped in shock.

For some reason, when Tong Xingtong learned that Ye Chen had been poisoned while saving her, an inexplicable nervousness surged in her heart.

"This Gu can't harm me; let it stay in my body for now!" Ye Chen chuckled, not overly concerned, since the Gu bug would actually become a crucial point for him to break through his current realm.

"Ye Chen, thank you!" Just then, Ye Wushuang also woke up. She had heard snippets of their conversation in her groggy state and understood what had happened to her. If not for Ye Chen's rescue, even being a favored child of heaven, a bright pearl, could not have saved her from a fate of fragility and decay.

"It was nothing!" Ye Chen responded nonchalantly to Ms. Ye's gratitude.

"Are you trying to romance them?" Qin Lan sensed Ye Chen's demeanor and immediately became jealous. "That disgusting worm burrowed into your body, and you nearly lost your life! Even if you wanted to impress them, there's no need to risk your life like this!"

"You're a police officer, please watch your language!" Ye Chen touched his nose awkwardly.

Qin Lan's directness was a bit too much; even if Ye Chen had no such intentions towards Tong Xingtong and her companion, his embarrassment showed after such a statement.

Ye Chen, usually thick-skinned, nearly couldn't bear it, let alone Tong Xingtong and Ye Wushuang. Despite their high status and nobility, they were still women, and Qin Lan's comment had made them excessively shy.

"You!"

Ye Chen was stunned as he observed Tong Xingtong blushing, wondering how this icy beauty, known for her aloofness, could show such a shy demeanor.

"What's wrong?"

Even in her frail state, Tong Xingtong exuded a charming allure, now with a rare touch of femininity.

"No, it's nothing," Ye Chen hesitated.

"You came here to discuss a partnership, didn't you? Why haven't you contacted me these past days?" Ye Chen asked doubtfully.

Tong Xingtong and Ye Wushuang were supposed to discuss a cooperative deal with him, but Tong Xingtong had sought him out only once and then disappeared without a trace, making Ye Chen think they had abandoned the project.

"We've been entangled by someone recently and had no time to find you!" Tong Xingtong explained.

"Oh?" Ye Chen appeared surprised.

Tong Xingtong, as an official of Yanran International, held an extraordinary social status. Who could possibly keep her so preoccupied that she neglected their cooperation?

"Actually, it's not me he's been after, but Wushuang," Tong Xingtong sighed.

"Ye Chen, you just mentioned that we've been poisoned with Gu, and it's a very dangerous one!" Ye Wushuang suddenly asked, her expression becoming anxious.

"Indeed!" Ye Chen nodded.

"Could this Gu kill us?" Ye Wushuang asked.

"My God, have you not realized how you look?" Qin Lan covered her face and wailed. "You've been slipping in and out of consciousness since yesterday, and your complexions are getting worse—literally aging before our eyes, your hair turning dry and white!"

"If it weren't for Ye Chen risking his life to pull you back from the brink of death, you might already be dead!" Qin Lan declared.

"This!"

Upon seeing her dry hair, Ye Wushuang finally displayed a look of horror.

"Ye Chen, now that we look like this, can we go back to normal?" Tong Xingtong asked.

The desire to look beautiful is universal, especially strong among women like Tong Xingtong, a pampered daughter of heaven.

"Your bodies are just drained of vitality, not beyond salvage. Eating some health-preserving supplements should help," Ye Chen nodded.

"Such as the Hundred Treasures Elixir? Would that work?" Tong Xingtong asked about the health elixir that Ye Chen himself had crafted.

"Certainly, that elixir is most suitable for your current state," Ye Chen affirmed. "However, I don't have any Hundred Treasures Elixir left now. As I recall, I left many with you last time!"

"I was just asking about the effectiveness of Hundred Treasures Elixir; we still have some with us," Tong Xingtong replied with a slight smile.

Tong Xingtong was an absolute beauty. Even now, pale and wan, her smile revealed a delicate charm.

"What a pity!" Ye Chen sighed, uttering a mysteriously vague statement.

A faint rosiness inexplicably bloomed on Tong Xingtong's pale face, and Ye Chen's "what a pity" carried a deep significance that only she could understand.

Tong Xingtong was naturally beautiful, a truly attractive woman, but she did not like men—Ye Chen felt it was a pity to see such charm wasted on a lesbian.

"Yanran is coming to Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan!" Tong Xingtong suddenly announced, clearly intending to reveal this information to Ye Chen.

"Hmm," Ye Chen responded indifferently.

"She is coming for you!" Tong Xingtong added.

"Ha-ha, she seems really focused on the pharmaceutical company affairs!" Ye Chen appeared nonchalant.

Tong Xingtong, observing Ye Chen's calm demeanor, couldn't figure him out for a moment. Was he playing dumb, or did he genuinely not understand?

The pharmaceutical company affairs were entirely under Tong Xingtong's control, but Chu Yanran's visit to Hong Kong and Macau was solely because of Ye Chen. She ultimately hadn't forgotten him and was now even mustering the courage to seek him out!

"You should rest early; it's getting very late, I have to go!" Ye Chen said.

Upon hearing Ye Chen was leaving, Tong Xingtong's lips parted slightly, yet she said nothing to make him stay.

After experiencing such a terrifying incident, only with Ye Chen there did Tong Xingtong feel a sense of security.

Now that Ye Chen intended to leave, Tong Xingtong couldn't help feeling somewhat lost.

"Ye Chen, don't leave!" Just as Ye Chen was about to depart, Ye Wushuang spoke up. "I know, I know who bewitched us!"

"What!" Tong Xingtong gasped in shock.

"Who?" Ye Chen inquired.

"It's the Xue Family!" Ye Wushuang declared. "I heard from my grandfather that an elder in the Xue Family once assisted a peculiar person, who apparently was a Gu Master!"

"The Xue Family?!" Tong Xingtong expressed disbelief. "That's unlikely, aren't the Xue Family and the Ye Family supposed to be forming a marital alliance, and aren't you supposed to marry that Xue Chong?"

"I also find it unlikely, but I have a strong intuition that it was the Xue Family who made a move against us!" Ye Wushuang spoke, her face showing signs of outrage.

Hearing the conversation between the two women, Ye Chen frowned, realizing the aristocratic circle was indeed very chaotic!

"Wushuang has a fiancé named Xue Chong, who is an heir of a wealthy family!" Tong Xingtong explained to Ye Chen. "After we arrived in Hong Kong and Macau, this Xue Chong came upon hearing the news. He not only invites us out daily but also frequently hosts meals for us."

"Given his relationship with Wushuang, it's hard for me to openly confront him, which has unfortunately delayed discussions about the pharmaceutical company with you," Tong Xingtong sighed.

Ye Chen nodded thoughtfully and asked Ye Wushuang, "If Xue Chong is your fiancé, why would he hire a Gu Master to kill you?"

"That time he tried to assault me, I kicked him below the belt, so he harbored a grudge and definitely wanted to kill me—that must be it!" Ye Wushuang's reasoning was coherent but somewhat naïve.

"Perhaps," Ye Chen smiled. Ye Wushuang's simplification of the issue was somewhat idiotic.

"You don't believe me?" Ye Wushuang pressed. "I have a strong feeling it's Xue Chong who's out to harm me!"

Seeing Ye Wushuang's certain demeanor, Ye Chen was briefly moved; sometimes a woman's sixth sense can be truly frightening, seemingly able to predict anything like a true prophet!

Just like the superstar Liu Shihua, whenever he did something bad, Liu Shihua could casually make a nearly accurate guess. Could it be, as Ye Wushuang believes, that her fiancé was indeed trying to harm them?

"Whether this is true or false, you two need to investigate it yourselves. I'm just a bystander," Ye Chen mused for a moment then dropped that irresponsible comment.

"..."

"Alright, I'm going now. My wife has warmed up the bed and is waiting for me at home!" Ye Chen no longer wished to be entangled with them.

Upon hearing this, Tong Xingtong was stirred. Could it be that Ye Chen had changed, becoming a genuinely dutiful family man? What would Yanran do then?

"What if someone bewitches us again after you leave?" Ye Wushuang expressed her fear.

"I fought the Gu Master, and in the end, I subdued a Gu King. He should be severely weakened and unlikely to take any action soon," Ye Chen reassured.

"Oh." Ye Wushuang nodded faintly, really wishing for Ye Chen to stay but unable to find a good enough reason.

"I'm leaving now. I'll wait for Chu Yanran to come and discuss the pharmaceutical company with me!" At last, Ye Chen left these words behind and departed.

"He just left like that?"

Qin Lan felt utterly ignored, so she followed Ye Chen's figure by using Meteor Step.

"Xing Tong, what do you think is the relationship between that female cop and Ye Chen?"

——

——

The book has been on the shelf for nine days. In this period, our man updated 170,000 characters—an average of twenty thousand words a day! I haven't built up any reserve, so I'm almost out of my mind writing these days, and haven't had time to correct any typos in the book; please bear with me!

I get up to write at seven every morning and can't go to bed until two or three in the morning. My wife is so resentful she doesn't even talk to me anymore…

With nightly coffee shifts and moderate cervical spondylosis, combined with my wife's grievances, it's really tough for me...

I'm focusing on quality now, so I've been updating three times a day, all released in one go in the morning; please bear with me!

ps: Let the man brew a little and then explode into the most thrilling climax for you!

ps: I think I should have a good talk with my wife soon...

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.