Chapter 162: What should one prepare when meeting a girlfriend's parents?

Just as she was about to knock, Ruan Cha paused.

Narrowing her eyes, she stood on tiptoe and pushed the door open a crack, peering stealthily inside.

The room was pitch black, with the curtains tightly drawn, blocking out almost every sliver of light.

Gradually adjusting to the gloom, Ruan Cha pushed the door open further and crept forward in the dark toward Gu Zhenzhi's bed, guided by memory...

Fumbling until she reached the edge of the mattress, Ruan Cha first placed her own little quilt on the bed, then lifted Gu Zhenzhi's blanket and slipped inside like a little animal.

Sensing a sudden sound of breathing beside him, Gu Zhenzhi snapped his eyes open, his gaze instantly turning chillingly sharp.

In the dead of night, his eyes held a cold, deep chill.

The moment he felt someone lift his blanket and reached out to react, Gu Zhenzhi grabbed the intruder's wrist and with a swift, decisive motion, pinned the person beneath him—

"Ahhhhh!"

Ruan Cha let out a piercing shriek.

In the darkness, her eyes shimmered with a fine mist of tears.

Recognizing Ruan Cha's sweet and soft voice, Gu Zhenzhi's movements froze. He hurriedly released her, sat up, and switched on the bedside lamp.

The moment the light flooded the room, Ruan Cha raised a hand to block the glare.

When she finally grew accustomed to the brightness, Ruan Cha glared at him with round, indignant eyes, puffing out her cheeks. "Gu Zhenzhi, what are you trying to do?! You might as well just beat me to death!"

Taking advantage of the light, Ruan Cha lifted her wrist and saw a circle of red marks etched against her porcelain-white skin.

The girl's pink lips puckered into an aggrieved pout.

She thrust her hand right in front of Gu Zhenzhi's face. "Look!"

Under the warm bedroom light, Gu Zhenzhi looked at Ruan Cha against the glow, her exquisite and refined features as delicately sculpted as a work of art.

He raised his hand, the lines of his knuckles smooth and attractive.

Gently gripping the girl's small hand, he rubbed the pinched red spot a few times, letting out a low chuckle that vibrated softly in his throat. "So delicate."

"In the middle of the night, instead of sleeping properly, you sneak into my bed, hmm?" Gu Zhenzhi lifted Ruan Cha's hand, pressed a gentle kiss to her wrist, and then pulled her shoulders into his embrace.

Though accused of being delicate once more, Ruan Cha didn't refute him; she only gave a soft, defiant huff. "I am delicate!"

Then, she nuzzled into Gu Zhenzhi's chest, moving cautiously for fear of disturbing his injuries. "I couldn't fall asleep, and the source of my insomnia is you, so I've come to collect my debt."

Hearing this, a smile bloomed from the depths of Gu Zhenzhi's eyes. He lowered his chin, leaned close to the girl's ear, his voice husky and intoxicating, "Why couldn't you sleep? Missed your older brother holding you to sleep?"

Ruan Cha's heart skipped a beat, and her body instinctively shrank back.

The warm breath brushing against her ear sent a shiver racing through her entire frame.

"Aish!" She gently bit her lower lip, grabbed the quilt, and pulled it over her head. "Stop talking, go to sleep already..."

The moment Ruan Cha closed her eyes, she suddenly remembered that Shen Changqing was arriving in the next few days. She poked her bright, clear eyes out from beneath the cover. "Brother Zhizhi, Shen Changqing should arrive in Mochen the day after tomorrow..."

This time, with Shen Changqing coming over, Ruan Cha intended to hand him completely over to Gu Zhenzhi. In a way, this would give Gu Zhenzhi the leverage and confidence he needed to stand against the Gu family.

"Old Shen?"

However, the news of Shen Changqing's arrival sounded rather different to Gu Zhenzhi's ears.

His eyes deepened.

He began to carefully formulate a plan in his mind...

...

It wasn't until the breathing of the girl beside him grew soft and even that Gu Zhenzhi finally got out of bed.

He walked over to the bedroom balcony and slid the glass door shut.

Taking out his phone, he opened the browser.

With utmost seriousness and rigor, he typed into the search bar: What needs to be prepared when meeting your girlfriend's parents?