At the same time, quite a few families who opposed the Sun Family mysteriously vanished without a trace. It was as if they had evaporated from the face of the earth, never to be seen again. No one knew where they went. Even when the police investigated, they couldn't find the slightest clue.

After a few more years, the Sun Family became one of the most prominent families in the city, but they weren't satisfied with that. They relocated their entire family to Jingdu. Their old territory here later became one of their strongholds.

After hearing Mi Xiaoying's story, Liu Ergou was just about to say something when she continued, "So you see, Liu Ergou, Sun Gang is no ordinary man! You definitely can't intimidate him for long, a few days at most! In a few days' time, he will find a way to deal with you. He has no moral compass and will resort to any means necessary. You'd better be careful!"

However, Liu Ergou didn't continue on this topic. Instead, he smiled and asked Mi Xiaoying, "Tell me, President Mi, after what I did to you, don't you hate me?"

Liu Ergou's question caught Mi Xiaoying off guard, but she quickly recovered and nodded. "Of course I hate you! I hate you to the bone. It's beyond words now. I wish I could eat your flesh and drink your blood!"

Upon hearing her words, Liu Ergou feigned an enlightened expression, then frowned and asked, "President Mi, that doesn't add up! Logically, if you hate me that much, you should be thrilled to see Sun Gang make me disappear. So why are you warning me about how difficult he is to deal with?"

Liu Ergou's words left Mi Xiaoying speechless, unsure of what to say.

Seeing her silence, Liu Ergou said with a sly grin, "Tell me, President Mi, you couldn't possibly have developed feelings for me, and now all this hate is born from that love? And you can't bear to see me go?"

As soon as she heard this, Mi Xiaoying became like a startled cat, her fur on end, nearly leaping up inside the car. If it weren't for Liu Ergou's quick reflexes holding her down, she might have actually jumped.

Looking at the sly Liu Ergou, Mi Xiaoying said angrily, "Falling for you is impossible, Liu Ergou! You must be dreaming! The reason I'm worried is that if anyone is going to take you down, it has to be me, not someone else! If you fall at Sun Gang's hands, how am I supposed to get my revenge?"

After speaking, Mi Xiaoying turned her head away, ignoring him completely.

Seeing her reaction, Liu Ergou just chuckled and said no more, starting the car. He drove Mi Xiaoying back to Ting Tian Pavilion.

By then, night had fallen.

Looking out at the dark night, Liu Ergou gave a huge stretch. Where should I go tonight?

As he was thinking, his phone rang. He pulled it out and saw that the caller was He Mingxue. When Liu Ergou realized who was calling, his hair practically stood on end.

Oh no, oh no, how could I have forgotten about He Mingxue? I promised I'd go protect her tonight, and I completely forgot!

Swallowing hard, Liu Ergou answered the call. As soon as the call connected, He Mingxue's furious voice erupted from the phone.

"Liu Ergou! To think I trusted you so much! I waited for you all day yesterday! You've really gone too far!"

Listening to her roar, Liu Ergou knew he was in the wrong and didn't argue. He just said, "I'm sorry, President He, I got held up with something. I'll be right there, I'm on my way now. Don't worry!"

With that, Liu Ergou hailed a taxi and headed straight for He Mingxue's office, arriving shortly after.

He Mingxue was sitting behind her desk with a deeply worried expression, so preoccupied that she didn't even notice his arrival. It wasn't until Liu Ergou coughed gently that the distressed woman finally snapped out of it.

The moment she reacted, she threw herself into Liu Ergou's arms and began to sob pitifully. Her sobs were absolutely heart-wrenching, and seeing her like this, Liu Ergou's heart ached for her.

He gently patted her back while softly comforting her, "I'm sorry, President He. I truly got tied up with something, and that's why I forgot about you. But rest assured, I'll never forget again. Really, please believe me, okay?"

Under Liu Ergou's consolation, He Mingxue finally managed to stop crying. As her sobbing subsided, she realized she was in his arms and quickly pulled away.

She whispered, "Alright, I'll forgive you this time. But don't you ever do this again!"

Hearing her words, Liu Ergou nodded eagerly. He then took He Mingxue back to the hotel.

Sitting on the hotel bed, Liu Ergou asked, "President He, how was last night? Did you feel like you were being followed or watched?"

He Mingxue shook her head. "Nothing happened yesterday. The only thing was, I felt like someone was staring at me during lunch. But when I turned to look, the feeling was gone. I guess it must have been my imagination."

Hearing this, Liu Ergou nodded and said nothing more.

Meanwhile, He Mingxue picked up her clothes, getting ready to take a shower. Just as she grabbed her clothes and headed for the bathroom, she caught a glimpse of a dark figure outside the window from the corner of her eye. At first, she thought she was mistaken, but when she looked carefully, she saw a shadow floating outside.

The sight terrified He Mingxue, and she let out a piercing scream.

"AAAHHH!"

He Mingxue's scream startled Liu Ergou. He rushed to her side, asking quietly, "President He, calm down! What's wrong?"

No sooner had he spoken than she hid behind him, pointing at the window with a terrified expression. "Er Gou, outside! There's a shadow floating out there!"

Hearing her words, an incredulous expression appeared on Liu Ergou's face.

Is she kidding me? We're on the 20-something floor! Even I couldn't climb up here barehanded. And she's telling me there's a shadow floating outside? That's ridiculous.

However, Liu Ergou didn't immediately refute her. Instead, he followed her gaze to the window. There was nothing outside; the view was clear.

Seeing this, he turned back to He Mingxue. "President He, look, there's nothing out there. Are you sure you didn't imagine it?"

He Mingxue immediately shook her head. "Impossible! I know what I saw!"