The weather in C City had not been good recently, with rain falling off and on.

Su Zhiyuan brought two assistants with him to the construction site. When the contractor in charge heard that the eldest young master of the Su family had arrived, he hurried out to greet him. “Young Master Su, what brings you here?”

“How is the employee who had the accident on the site some time ago?” Su Zhiyuan asked.

Not long ago, an employee had fallen from a high place at the site and been injured. Some media outlets had reported the incident, forcing the group to take it seriously. Su Zhiyuan’s visit this time, aside from discussing the contract, was also for this matter regarding the project.

The contractor’s attitude was respectful as he quickly reported to Su Zhiyuan: “President Su, I have already followed the company’s instructions and paid the compensation to the family. They’ve received the money.”

He hadn’t expected Su Zhiyuan to personally come to C City to inquire about this. After all, Su Zhiyuan was the head of the Su Group—there was no need for such a small matter to alarm him. Fortunately, the issue was already resolved.

“President Su, don’t worry. I personally went to the hospital to see the injured worker at the time. He’s no longer in life-threatening condition.” The contractor bowed his head and bent his waist, smiling as he informed Su Zhiyuan, “The injured worker’s family agreed to accept the compensation, and the money has been transferred to them. The matter has been perfectly resolved.”

Su Zhiyuan did not ask further.

The rain continued falling. Many workers rested in a temporary iron shed, waiting for the rain to stop before resuming construction.

Standing in the dirty, chaotic construction site in his silver-gray fitted suit, Su Zhiyuan had an indescribable sense of elegance and refinement. As he walked inside, the mud splashed onto his polished, expensive leather shoes, but he remained unaware.

“President Su, it’s a mess inside. Don’t get your clothes and shoes dirty. That over there is my rest area, why don’t you sit there for a bit?” the contractor suggested cautiously.

Surrounded by steel bars and cement, someone of Su Zhiyuan’s status made the contractor terrified that he might bump into something or get injured.

“It’s fine.” Su Zhiyuan took the umbrella from his assistant and held it himself, stepping through the muddy ground as he inspected the site.

The contractor could only hold an umbrella and follow behind him respectfully, continuously reporting the progress of the project.

At that moment, a worker ran over and exchanged a look with the contractor.

The contractor immediately said to Su Zhiyuan, “President Su, pardon me, this kid has something to talk to me about.”

Su Zhiyuan nodded.

The contractor pulled the worker over to the pile of cement. “What is it? Can’t you see I’m attending to President Su?”

“Brother Li.” The worker lowered his voice anxiously. “Zhou Ming’s family is here. They’re outside right now, saying they want to talk to you about the compensation.”

“What?” The contractor was startled. He instinctively looked at Su Zhiyuan in the distance. “Hurry and find someone to stop him. He must not run into President Su.”

The worker quickly said, “Some of the guys are holding him back outside. It’s Zhou Ming’s older brother. He’s yelling that he wants to see you.”

The contractor gritted his teeth and instructed, “Stabilize him first. Tell him I’m busy right now and don’t have time to talk. Have him come another day. If he refuses to leave, let him wait. After I finish attending to President Su, I’ll talk to him.”

“Okay, Brother Li, I’ll go tell him now.” The worker ran off through the rain.

The contractor hurriedly caught up to Su Zhiyuan again, plastering on a smile. “President Su, my apologies. The boys under me are always so impulsive, they’re constantly coming to me for something.”

Su Zhiyuan had already inspected most of the site. “It’s fine. Even though the progress needs to stay on schedule, the workers’ safety still comes first.”

The contractor had assumed that someone in President Su’s position would prioritize profit. He hadn’t expected him to say something like this.

He quickly responded, “Of course, President Su. Don’t worry, an incident like last time absolutely won’t happen again. With the weather like this, I’m having everyone rest in the shed because I’m worried something else might happen.”

“Mm.”

Su Zhiyuan brought his two assistants and prepared to leave.

Watching Su Zhiyuan get into the car, the contractor finally let out a breath of relief.

Don’t be fooled by President Su’s aloof and elegant young-master appearance, being able to sit in the position of the Su Group’s head, how would he dare treat President Su like an ordinary rich young man?

Everyone knew that ever since Su Zhiyuan took over the Su Group, the company’s profits had at least doubled over the past few years.

The contractor watched the car start up with a smiling face.

“Li Gui!” At that moment, a tall, burly figure rushed over, and the other workers could no longer hold him back.

The worker who had delivered the message earlier spoke awkwardly, “Brother Li, he insists on seeing you.”

“All right, all right. You guys go inside, I’ll talk to him.” The contractor, Li Gui, quickly glanced in the direction of Su Zhiyuan’s car—the vehicle happened to be pulling away.

Li Gui spoke to Zhou Ming’s older brother: “You’re Zhou Ming’s big brother? You’re here about Zhou Ming’s compensation?”

Zhou Hao’s expression was agitated. “Yes, you people have gone too far. My brother fell from a high place, and the doctor said he’s half paralyzed. You all have to be responsible for the compensation.”

Li Gui took out a cigarette and held it between his lips. “I already transferred the compensation into your family’s account. You all signed the papers too, agreeing to the settlement. What now? Getting greedy?”

Zhou Hao clenched his fists, his eyes burning with anger. “You took advantage of my elderly mother’s poor eyesight and tricked her into signing. You said the compensation was one hundred thousand, but the contract only states ten thousand. It’s not even enough to cover my brother’s surgery. You’ve gone too far, this is clearly sucking our blood.”

“We agreed on ten thousand from the start. Where did one hundred thousand come from?”

Li Gui bit down on the cigarette, his expression completely unconcerned. He continued speaking to Zhou Hao: “I’m just a wage earner too. Don’t make things hard for me. You saw that luxury car that just left, right? Do you know who was inside? That was the famous Su Zhiyuan—President Su. This entire plot of land, the whole project, all of it belongs to him.”

“When I see him, I can only bow and nod, listening to whatever he says.” Li Gui’s tone carried hidden meaning. “About the compensation, I’m just following President Su’s instructions. You know how capitalists are—vampires, all of them. They don’t care about the lives of people like us.”

Thinking of his brother lying unconscious in the hospital, Zhou Hao trembled with rage. “I don’t want to hear your nonsense. You can forget about sending us away with ten thousand. My brother still hasn’t woken up, and our family can’t afford the medical fees.”

“I know, I know. I sympathize with you.” Li Gui removed the cigarette from his mouth and sighed. “Zhou Ming followed me for a while, he’s practically my brother. How could I just watch him like this? Here, this is one thousand. Take it first. If it’s not enough, I’ll try to gather more.”

Li Gui shoved the money into Zhou Hao’s hand. “Don’t make things hard for me. I told you, I’m only doing what President Su ordered. How much compensation you get is all up to him. I already transferred the money to you. Don’t come looking for me. I’m in a tough position too. President Su didn’t even want to give that ten thousand at first, it was me who fought hard for it.”

Zhou Hao stared at the money forced into his hand, gripping it tightly as if he were holding his brother’s life. His eyes turned red. “He’s gone too far! Is my brother’s life not a life?”

Li Gui inwardly laughed at his naivety.

He patted Zhou Hao’s shoulder. “You know how rich people are, they’ve always looked down on us. They don’t care about our lives. Even if we suffer, we can only swallow it. There’s nothing we can do. After all, how can an egg smash against a rock?”

The fine, hazy rain soaked into Zhou Hao’s clothes as he gripped the one thousand yuan tightly in his hand.

“Anyway, I’m just following President Su’s arrangements. If anything happens, don’t come looking for me again. You took the money, you signed the papers—the matter is already settled. Go back and take good care of Zhou Ming.” Leaving those words behind, Li Gui walked off with the cigarette dangling from his lips.

Zhou Hao stood where he was, the money in his hand crushed into wrinkled folds. His eyes were red, and the veins on his neck stood out in strain.

“Brother Li, has Zhou Ming’s brother left?” The worker who had delivered the message earlier hurried over when he saw Li Gui walk back in.

“I’ve sent him away. If he comes again, don’t bother with him.” Just now, it was only because President Su was present that he had bothered soothing the man.

“Brother Li, this…” The young worker hesitated a little.

Li Gui warned him, “Keep your mouth shut. As long as I’m around, you’ll always have meat to eat.”

The worker quickly promised, “Brother Li, don’t worry, I definitely won’t say a word.”

Li Gui was vicious to the core. The group had allocated over a million yuan as the compensation fund, but Li Gui had taken all of it to pay off gambling debts, leaving only ten thousand to give to Zhou Ming’s family.

The young worker had discovered this by accident. Afraid of Li Gui’s methods, he could only accept his money and promise not to reveal anything.

As for Zhou Ming—he was simply unlucky to have run into such a cold-blooded, heartless boss.

– – – ˗ˋˏ♡ˎˊ˗ – – –

Su Ci knew that her older brother would later be stabbed to death, and her heart had been uneasy all along.

She didn’t understand the people around her brother, and there were too many possible suspects. Who exactly wanted to kill him?

For the past two days, she had repeatedly reminded her brother to bring all three bodyguards with him.

On the morning of the third day, Su Ci went to find Su Zhiyuan early. Seeing that the life bar on his wrist was still a thin red line, she knew her brother’s danger had not yet passed.

Who exactly wanted to kill her brother?

Could it be a rival in the business world?

“Didn’t you say you’d accompany me for breakfast?” When Su Zhiyuan saw his sister’s distracted expression, he flicked her forehead lightly. “Let’s go.”

“Okay.” Su Ci accompanied her brother down to the hotel dining area for breakfast. Just as they sat by the window, she noticed Lu Zhe sitting diagonally across from her.

When had he come down?

Because he was worried her brother might suddenly barge into her room for a spot check, Lu Zhe had booked another room the previous day.

Normally, Su Ci would have stuck to him, running to his room to stay with him. But with her brother in danger, she had no mind to tease Lu Zhe.

Now seeing him here eating breakfast, she felt a bit happy. Taking advantage of her brother not looking, she blinked at Lu Zhe across the way.

“Brother, you’re not busy today, right?” Su Ci withdrew her gaze and asked her brother across from her.

“Mm, I’ve finished everything. Why? Staying here bored you already? You want to go home?” He had been busy these past two days while his sister stayed in the hotel. “Since I’m free today, I can take you around C City.”

“No need.” Su Ci shook her head immediately.

Going outside was even more dangerous. Anyone in the surroundings could be a potential attacker, and she wouldn’t be able to guard against it.

“No need?” Su Zhiyuan was a little surprised. He raised an eyebrow and asked, “Didn’t you say you came to C City to relax?”

“I suddenly don’t want to anymore. I realized there’s nothing fun here. It’s better to just stay in the hotel.” Su Ci worried that her brother would go out, “You too, Brother—you’ve been working hard these past few days. You should stay in the room and rest today. Don’t go out. We’ll go back to B City tonight.”

“Okay.” Su Zhiyuan agreed with a smile.

Su Ci pressed her lips together and repeatedly reminded him, “Brother, you absolutely cannot go out this afternoon! Stay properly in your room.”

Su Zhiyuan gave his sister a pampering smile and agreed again, “Alright. But why are you so nervous about me going out?”

“With such heavy rain outside, and you still wanting to go out—you’ll get soaked and catch a cold.” Su Ci lied without blinking. “Anyway, you’re staying obediently in your room today. I’ll come check on you anytime.”

A gentle smile softened Su Zhiyuan’s refined features; none of the coldness he showed outsiders was there. “Alright, alright, I’ll listen to everything you say, Xiao Ci.”

After breakfast, Su Ci urged her brother back to his room. When they left, she secretly winked at Lu Zhe not far away.

Watching her brother enter his room, Su Ci finally returned to her own and messaged Lu Zhe, telling him she would be having lunch with her brother at noon.

Her brother’s life bar had four hours left.

As long as he stayed properly inside the hotel room, the other party wouldn’t be able to kill him.

Whether they would try again afterward would depend on how the life bar changed once the four hours passed.

If it remained a thin red line, it meant the enemy still intended to kill her brother. If it turned yellow or green, the danger would be gone—even if they attempted something, it wouldn’t succeed.

At noon, Su Ci had the meal delivered to Su Zhiyuan’s room, then she ran over so they could eat together there.

Just like she said, she wouldn’t let him take even one step out of the room.