“B-boss, go easy on her!”

When Xu Mo entered, he happened to see Shen Yi’s hand resting on Rong Qian’s shoulder. His legs nearly gave out from fright—he assumed Shen Yi was about to hurt this “fan girl” again.

Rong Qian recognized him. “You’re Xu Mo?”

The photo barely differed from the person in front of her, but Rong Qian still confirmed it out of habit.

“If you have any demands, take them up with me. But this whole matter—you’re also at fault here. Still, I’ll remind you—you’d better not push it too far.” Xu Mo steadied himself, putting on the air of a professional manager.

Rong Qian listened, completely bewildered. She asked Shen Yi, “What is he talking about?”

“He thinks you’re a fan who broke into my room in the middle of the night, and that these injuries on you are from me hitting you.” As Shen Yi said this, he couldn’t help laughing and shaking his head.

In some ways, the usually sharp Xu Mo could be quite foolish in everyday life.

Hearing Shen Yi say this, Xu Mo blurted out, “Isn’t it though?”

Shen Yi shook his head. “No.”

“Then—then who are you? Where did you come from? Why are you in my boss’s room in the middle of the night?” Realizing it was a misunderstanding, Xu Mo turned and launched into a barrage of questions at Rong Qian.

Shen Yi’s brows knit slightly. “Xu Mo. Watch your tone.”

“Boss, my bad!” Xu Mo instantly caved.

Shen Yi was usually easygoing, but Xu Mo, who worked closely by his side, knew him well. Easygoing as he normally was, the moment his brows knit together, Xu Mo got scared.

He didn’t know why, but it was as if Shen Yi simply possessed that kind of presence that made people wary of him—summed up in one phrase: do not provoke.

Seeing Xu Mo, Rong Qian felt rather conflicted.

She hadn’t attended his funeral, but she had seen with her own eyes his younger brother, sobbing uncontrollably while holding his urn.

The old man’s faltering, stooped figure was still vivid in her memory—and yet here was the person from those ashes, standing right in front of her, perfectly fine.

Looking at this very alive person, it was hard for Rong Qian to connect him with that set of remains.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Xu Mo noticed the way Rong Qian was looking at him—there was a trace of sorrow in it, and a trace of pity.

Surely it wasn’t that serious—he’d just spoken a bit too loudly. Would the boss really go so far as to kill him over it?

Shen Yi noticed it too, and a flicker of unusual, deep emotion passed through his eyes.

“You—watch yourself!”

Rong Qian could tell what he was thinking, so she simply played along, putting on an exaggeratedly serious tone that was actually a joke.

Xu Mo made a pitiful face. These people just loved picking on him!

Rong Qian had only just woken up, and to let her rest more, Shen Yi didn’t talk with her for long. He took Xu Mo—whose questions still remained unanswered—out with him.

Once outside, Xu Mo couldn’t wait to ask Shen Yi, “Boss, who exactly is she?”

When Xu Mo asked this, Qiao Junche was still sitting on the sofa, also waiting for an explanation from Shen Yi.

Shen Yi’s gaze swept over the two of them. Knowing they wouldn’t let it rest without an explanation, he finally said, “Her name is Rong Qian. She’s an extremely important person to me. As for how important—”

Shen Yi paused for a moment before continuing, “My own safety, compared to hers, isn’t worth mentioning.”

Xu Mo froze. For him to make such a comparison meant that, in his heart, that woman had no equal.

“So where does she live? What does she do for work? And—can she be trusted?”

Considering all the angles, Xu Mo felt it was necessary to “investigate” this woman named Rong Qian a bit.

To this, Shen Yi only had one thing to say: “No one is to ask about her private affairs. From now on, she’ll be living with me.”

“What!” Xu Mo was shocked. Living together? If the media reported on that, things would get bad!

As if reading his mind, Shen Yi walked over and patted his shoulder, smiling faintly. “So, I’ll need you to pay extra attention. If she ever gets caught on camera by the paparazzi, either you clean up the mess, or—you pack your things.”

“Pack my things for what?” Xu Mo had a bad feeling about this.

Shen Yi gently uttered two words. “To leave.”

Xu Mo clutched his chest, putting on an exaggerated expression as though he were about to cough up blood, and said dramatically, “Wah, boss, you’re so cruel!”

Afterward, since Shen Yi still had matters to attend to, he went off to make a few phone calls.

Once Shen Yi had left, Xu Mo sneaked over and sat down next to Qiao Junche, putting on a gossipy expression. “Doctor Qiao, what do you think—what’s the deal between my boss and that woman?”

“All I know is that woman’s life matters more than your boss’s life does.”

“Says who?” Xu Mo was the first to object!

Qiao Junche: “Your boss.”

“Oh, then forget I said anything just now.” Xu Mo surrendered immediately.

But on second thought, he still felt something was off!

He hadn’t known Shen Yi for very long—about three years—but he knew quite a bit about Shen Yi’s past.

Yet this woman named Rong Qian, he’d never once heard of, and Shen Yi had never mentioned her.

It was as if she’d appeared out of nowhere!

“Doctor Qiao, what if—just hypothetically, might not even be right—” Xu Mo kept repeating this, until Qiao Junche, losing patience, told him to just spit it out already!

Only then did Xu Mo lower his voice and say sneakily, “Could this woman possibly be my boss’s first love?”

“That’s possible,” Qiao Junche said, not denying it.

Getting validation, Xu Mo was instantly fired up. “Right, right! You think there’s something to it too! So, is it possible that this woman abandoned our boss back then, and now that she knows he’s famous, she’s come back looking for him!”

Qiao Junche’s expression grew stranger and stranger as he listened—where on earth was this going?

“And another thing—isn’t she covered in injuries? What if she’s some gambler who’s being chased down by loan sharks over debts, and after finding out where the boss lives, she came in the middle of the night to play the pity card and win sympathy—she’s after our boss’s money!” The more Xu Mo talked, the more sense it made to him, and this, he figured, was exactly why Shen Yi didn’t want them asking questions.

That had to be it! He was sure of it!

“Xu Mo, I think you should just ask the person involved. With a brain like yours, I’m honestly impressed,” Qiao Junche said, trying to be helpful.

Xu Mo pouted. “I did ask! Did my boss say anything? No need to guess—it’s definitely this!”

Since reminding him did nothing, Qiao Junche just let him be.

Xu Mo, for his part, was filled with righteous indignation. He felt he’d been entrusted with an enormous mission: to save a wayward young man from himself!

A first love mattered a lot to any man, after all—especially someone like his boss, who was utterly devoted in matters of the heart. When the time came and that woman asked him for money, he’d definitely give it to her!

That couldn’t be allowed to happen!

And so, Xu Mo made up his mind: the moment he caught this woman starting to ask Shen Yi for money, he would stand against Shen Yi himself if he had to—he would not stand by and watch him get swindled out of his money and his feelings by some woman!