Lu Chengwen's blood ran cold.
In a web novel, you never know how a minor villain like him might meet his end.
Sometimes, an author's imagination is just… disgustingly twisted.
He falls asleep, and suddenly the female lead is in his bed?
Are you kidding me?
He'd spent the entire day tiptoeing around red lines, avoiding trouble, only for them to max out his aggro while he was unconscious?
This was straight-up bullying the bad guy!
Sweat dripped down Lu Chengwen's forehead like rain, his body frozen, not daring to move an inch.
His mind was already conjuring images of Long Aotian bursting into his house, smashing his skull with a single palm, and sweeping Leng Qingqiu into a sappy romantic subplot…
Leng Qingqiu looked stunning.
Asleep, bathed in the late morning sunlight streaming through the window, her flawless face glowed. Every eyelash was perfect, delicate, and exquisite.
She slept so deeply, so relaxed, so beautiful, so serene…
But Lu Chengwen had no time to admire her beauty. He knew his life was hanging by a thread.
If he didn't handle this situation carefully, he could be written off and sent to collect his lunchbox in the next scene.
Yet, at that moment, Leng Qingqiu was nestled against his arm, sleeping soundly.
Lu Chengwen thought fast: Stay calm! I can handle this! But I need to move quickly!
Carefully, he reached out with his other hand, gently supporting Leng Qingqiu's head, trying to ease his arm out from under her.
He inched his body back, but Leng Qingqiu, lost in some dream, furrowed her brow and snuggled closer, burrowing into his chest. Not only did she stay nestled against his right arm, but she also naturally pulled his left arm into her embrace.
Lu Chengwen was panicking!
If Long Aotian saw this, he'd be done for!
He waited until Leng Qingqiu settled back into a deeper sleep, then started moving again, ever so slowly.
Supporting her head, easing his arm out, sliding a pillow under her…
In his mind, he pleaded:
Good girl, don't wake up. You're exhausted, just sleep.
I'm getting out of here. I swear I didn't mean to take advantage of you. I'm just as confused as you are!
Sweet little Qingqiu, almost done. When you wake up, it'll just be you in this room.
Finally, he managed it.
Lu Chengwen let out a shaky breath, but as he started to get up, he saw Leng Qingqiu's wide, round eyes staring right at him.
Her face was expressionless—neither angry nor happy, silent and still, just watching him.
Lu Chengwen swallowed hard. "I… I can explain!"
In his haste, he tumbled off the bed, scrambling to his feet.
Leng Qingqiu's eyes remained wide, devoid of her usual CEO poise, looking instead like a curious, harmless little animal studying him.
Standing on the floor, Lu Chengwen confessed earnestly, "I didn't do anything."
"Really. Yesterday, you got drunk, right? You were slurring your words, totally out of it. Someone wanted to take you home, but how was I supposed to know if your people were trustworthy? So I brought you here. You get it, right?"
"But I didn't do anything!"
"I put you in the guest room, I swear. I don't know why you ended up in my bedroom—oh, wait, this is the guest room. Haha! Great. Seriously, I didn't do anything!"
"I mean… yesterday, I was at the factory all night destroying a batch of defective drugs. I was half-dead from exhaustion. I came back to my own room, but somehow…"
Lu Chengwen was on the verge of tears. "I swear on a stack of Bibles, I didn't do anything!"
Leng Qingqiu had opened her eyes to see this guy moving with utmost care, gently lifting her arm, tucking her in, even holding his breath to avoid waking her.
She was sharp as a tack and instantly understood.
This guy was trying to make a run for it.
She could tell he was terrified, sweat pouring down his face, clearly unprepared for this situation and desperate to slip away without disturbing her.
Her clothes were still on, so it was obvious "he didn't do anything."
Instead of getting angry, Leng Qingqiu found this goofball kind of amusing.
So she silently watched his performance.
And what a performance it was.
Especially when he realized she was awake—he was a complete mess, stumbling over his words in a frantic explanation.
Leng Qingqiu, ever the tease, didn't say a word, letting him squirm.
No expression, no emotional cues, just letting him flail.
When she saw he was about to break down, she finally suppressed a laugh and said calmly, "It's fine."
Leng Qingqiu sat up, stretched her neck, and acted as if nothing had happened.
This threw Lu Chengwen completely off guard.
What's going on?
Shouldn't she be screaming? Calling me a beast, a monster, a bastard?
How is this… fine? Do I not need to explain?
Or is she holding back, waiting to sic her goons on me later?
Does she even understand what's happening here? Heavens, I really didn't do anything!
Leng Qingqiu patted her mouth, yawning, then got out of bed.
Lu Chengwen hurriedly offered her a pair of new slippers, fawning over her.
She slipped them on naturally, checked her face in the vanity mirror, patted her cheeks, and fixed her hair as if she were in her own home.
Lu Chengwen stood behind her, hands clasped nervously in front. "Uh… could you say something? You're freaking me out."
Leng Qingqiu turned to him. "Why did you come sleep in my room?"
"I don't know!" Lu Chengwen blurted. "I swear on a lightbulb, I don't know! I was so exhausted I collapsed. Maybe it's because it's my first day here, and I was so tired I got confused about the rooms or something. I really didn't do anything!"
Leng Qingqiu couldn't hold it in anymore. She turned away, stifling a laugh, then said seriously, "I'm going to freshen up. Get out."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Lu Chengwen shot out of the room like a rocket, slamming the door behind him and leaning against it, exhaling in relief.
Thank the heavens! I survived!
If she thought I did it on purpose, I'd never clear my name, even if I jumped into the Yellow River!
Looks like Leng Qingqiu's pretty reasonable after all!
Through the door, Leng Qingqiu heard his thoughts and couldn't help but laugh quietly.
This idiot doesn't even know I can hear his inner monologue.
If you'd done it on purpose, you think I'd let you off?
_
After freshening up, Lu Chengwen took the elevator down to the dining room on the first floor.
He walked in to find the whole family eating together.
Lu Chengwen was starving.
Having just escaped disaster, he was in high spirits. "Hey, everyone's here? Morning, Dad, Mom! Wow, the food looks great today. Aunt Xia, quick, get me a bowl of rice—I'm starving…"
Aunt Xia stood there, giving an awkward smile, not moving.
"Serve the rice!" Lu Chengwen looked at her. "What's wrong?"
He glanced at his family and noticed everyone was eerily quiet.
Only Lu Guanghong avoided his gaze, expressionless, staring at his food, chewing loudly.
Lu Chengwen knew something was up.
He forced a smile. "Dad, uh… did something happen?"
Lu Guanghong finally looked up at him. "Where were you last night?"
Lu Chengwen got it.
"Oh! I can explain!" he said. "That batch of drugs was substandard. It's my brother's fault, actually. To cut costs, he skimped on materials. Dad, we can't keep indulging him. Those are medicines, meant to save lives! From now on, keep him away from the factory…"
Lu Guanghong somehow produced a broomstick from nowhere.
Yes, the Lu family tradition demanded a broomstick—the kind found in every rural household, a basic cleaning tool.
Even in their five-story mansion, there had to be a broomstick.
The broomstick was the Lu family's totem!
The broomstick was the Lu family's disciplinary artifact!
The broomstick was the Lu family's anchor!
The broomstick was every Lu child's nightmare!
Lu Chengwen shot to his feet, stepping back. "Dad, let's talk this out! Why'd you grab that thing? Those drugs really couldn't be sold! I'll cover the losses, alright?"
"A few billion? I can afford that! If I trusted you with the business, I'm not afraid of you losing money."
"Then why…?"
"I'm asking you, what did you do last night? What did you do to Qingqiu?"
Lu Chengwen realized his dad was upset about that.
"I can explain that too!"
"Explain my foot! I'll beat you first, then you can explain!"
Lu Guanghong leaped up, surprisingly agile.
"Hey! Dad! Dad, Dad, no! Ouch! That hurts! Dad, I really didn't do anything!"
"Didn't do anything? I know what kind of punk you are! Every guy knows how to chase girls, but using dirty tricks on your fiancée? Is that how I raised you? If I don't beat you to death today, this broomstick's got no backbone!"
"Dad, the broomstick didn't do anything wrong! Just hear me out!"
"Hear you out? You can explain to the weapon in my hand! Running away? Stand still! Stand right there, you hear me? Drop your pants and show your butt!"
Lu's mother quickly intervened. "Guanghong, Chengwen's in his twenties and about to get married. You can't keep pulling down his pants to spank him."
"If I don't beat him, he won't learn!"
Lu Chengwen was beyond frustrated. "It's really a misunderstanding! Why won't anyone believe me?"
"Believe you? I'd believe anyone before I'd believe a little punk like you!"
"Dad, stop pulling my pants! Leave me some dignity!"
Father and son started wrestling in the dining room.
At that moment, Leng Qingqiu appeared at the top of the stairs, coughing awkwardly, her face flushed. "Good morning, Uncle, Aunt."
Lu Guanghong froze mid-motion, standing upright and hiding the broomstick behind his back. "Oh, Qingqiu's awake! Quick, quick, you must be hungry. Come eat, come eat."
Lu Chengwen yanked up his pants, his face burning with embarrassment.
Could it get any more humiliating? Getting his pants pulled down and spanked in front of his fiancée? He'd lost all face, straight to his grandma's house.
Leng Qingqiu found the father-son duo's antics hilariously absurd but felt it would be rude to laugh. She was both shy and trying to suppress a giggle.
She'd heard about the Lu family's down-to-earth style, but seeing it in person was something else—far more rustic and straightforward than the rumors.
Lu's mother hurried over, taking Leng Qingqiu's hand. "Qingqiu, you must be starving. Our Chengwen's so immature, forcing you to drink, right? Next time, don't indulge him. Don't give him any face. If he acts up again, tell us. Your uncle and I will back you up."
Leng Qingqiu was the eldest daughter of the Leng family.
She was the CEO of Qianfeng Group.
Elegant, refined, a high-society success story.
Yet here she was, having gotten drunk and spent the night at her fiancé's house, with her future in-laws fully aware… It was a blow to her image.
What would her future in-laws think of her? What kind of woman did she seem like now?
She was mortified, her face red as a boiled crab, blushing down to her neck.
Even the strongest woman would show a shy, girlish side in a situation like this.
Lowering her head, she said softly, "Uncle, Aunt, it's really… a misunderstanding. Last night, I was… too willful. Brother Chengwen didn't… do anything to me."
Seeing Leng Qingqiu's bashful, flustered demeanor, Lu Chengwen was momentarily captivated.
Then he snapped out of it, jumping in front of his father. "See? See, see, see! She said it herself—I didn't do anything!"
Lu Guanghong whacked him on the head with the broomstick. "Shut up!"