Tensely, Wang Zhuo parked the car in the narrow alley between the buildings. When Fu Xinran looked over again, she noticed that Wang Zhuo's heavy expression had suddenly eased, making him look like nothing was wrong.

"What on earth is going on?" Fu Xinran was utterly bewildered. Why had they suddenly veered into an unfamiliar residential complex while driving on the main road?

Wang Zhuo chuckled, "Nothing," just finding a quiet spot to talk with you.

"You, you're being ridiculous!" Fu Xinran was both annoyed and amused, her eyes wide as she said, "We're going to be late for the exam!" "Late for what? We can still get in even half an hour late," Wang Zhuo was completely unconcerned.

Why choose such a secluded, deserted place to talk? Fu Xinran grew wary, "...Let's get this straight first, I'm not giving you a wrap!"

Wang Zhuo burst into laughter, looking at her mischievously and asking, "Do I look like such a rogue? It's broad daylight, a clear sky, and there are old men strolling and aunties walking dogs in this complex. Imagine if someone saw us—how awful would that be."

"That's not necessarily true," Fu Xinran retorted righteously, "You've done this sort of thing before. I have a feeling you just wanted to pull the curtains shut and then ask me to 'charge' you."

Wang Zhuo laughed heartily, triumphantly reaching out to tap her defined, red lips. "This is my favorite little socket; a little plug-in and I'll be fully energized."

"Don't even think about it." Fu Xinran impatiently pushed his hand away, placing hers on the gear shift. "Do you have actual business, or should we just leave?" Wang Zhuo pleaded, "Isn't charging serious business? I didn't prepare enough for this exam; whether I pass on the first try depends on you."

She shot him a sidelong glance, Fu Xinran genuinely wanted to pry open his skull just to see how uniquely constructed the interior was.

"Okay, no more messing around." Wang Zhuo finally regained a sliver of seriousness, saying cheerfully, "That was just a drill, but I suspect the real thing could happen at any moment. That's why I need to remind you: you've been with me so long, you know too many corporate secrets. It’s hard to guarantee your safety, as people might covet that knowledge."

Fu Xinran nodded slightly, blinking. "Didn't we discuss this before? I’ve always been careful."

"The previous level of danger wasn't high enough," Wang Zhuo shook his head. "Outwardly, people only see you as my assistant, not a researcher, so those with ulterior motives don't pay you much mind. But now, we have so many profitable ventures—each one makes others envious. With so many cash cows all grouped together, and them digging three feet down to find my R&D team failing, the most likely place they'll look for a breakthrough is you." Fu Xinran's heart skipped a beat. What Wang Zhuo said was undeniably true. Aside from herself and a few eyewitnesses, who would ever believe that Wang Zhuo did all his main research work alone? The so-called hired researchers were merely specialized laborers assisting with peripheral tasks. Thus, the secret rested entirely on Wang Zhuo’s shoulders; no other core developer could be found.

If someone truly harbored ill intentions, unable to deal with Wang Zhuo, the second target would inevitably be her!

"I'll arrange some bodyguards for you; it's time we did that." Wang Zhuo said with a faint smile. "You might not be used to it at first, but you'll adjust. They are all reliable people; you can even make friends with them."

Fu Xinran froze, feeling a strange sense of astonishment. What was happening? She was becoming someone who needed bodyguards?

"What's with that expression?" Wang Zhuo laughed heartily. "You need to ditch that grassroots mentality. A powerful career woman worth over a billion, holding core commercial secrets worth hundreds of billions—isn't it perfectly normal to have a few bodyguards around?" "I'm not holding any commercial secrets," Fu Xinran refuted, half in exasperation, half amused. "Don't set me up as a target; knowing your secrets would cost me my life." "Your people are my people; what's the point of worrying about life or death?" Wang Zhuo gazed at her cold, beautiful, and sexy face, finding her more and more captivating. He declared possessively, "If any man dares to look at you twice, I'll gouge his eyeballs out and use them as stepping stones for my tea."

"Yeah, you're the boss," Fu Xinran glanced at him sideways, but secretly, she deeply cherished this declaration of ownership.

Wang Zhuo smiled smugly, contemplating whether to draw the curtains for a quick 'charge' and properly enjoy Fu Xinran's fiery red lips, when suddenly a little girl, about three years old, came running toward them, laughing joyfully.

The little girl laughed and ran, leaning sideways, her face turned back, shouting, "Come chase me..." In a flash, she reached the front of the car. Just as Fu Xinran let out a soft gasp, there was a gentle thud as she bumped into the front grille.

After sitting down hard, the girl's small mouth quickly turned into an inverted crescent. She opened her mouth and burst into loud wails.

Fu Xinran quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door to check. Just then, an older woman, perhaps in her fifties, came running around the side of the building. Seeing the little girl sitting on the ground in front of the car, she cried out, "Nini!" and rushed over.

Fu Xinran was just reaching out to help the little girl when a sharp shout halted her movement: "How did you drive!"

Immediately after, the auntie shoved her roughly from behind, causing her to lose her balance and land sitting on the hood of the car. Although she wasn't a fragile woman, she was wearing high heels and a pencil skirt, which impeded her movement. Moreover, the auntie had struck suddenly from behind. If the car hadn't been there to break the fall, this push would have sent her tumbling down in utter disarray.

"Nini! Nini, are you okay?! Nini, where did you hit yourself? Where does it hurt? Tell Grandma quickly!"

The auntie rushed forward, tightly gripping the little girl's shoulders, asking questions incoherently out of extreme worry. Due to excessive concern, her facial expression was almost ferocious.

The little girl had merely stumbled; she hadn't even scraped her skin. Of course, she cried from the minor pain, but after a few cries, it should have been over. However, the look on the auntie's face terrified her. Her crying paused for about two seconds, then she hiccupped a few times, and when she cried again, it was even louder, piercing and heart-rending.

Immediately, homeowners who had been strolling, walking dogs, dancing, chatting, or practicing Tai Chi in the complex were drawn by the noise. The auntie yelled out, "Nini was hit by this car!" instantly making Fu Xinran and Wang Zhuo the target of public outrage.

The dramatic turn of events left Fu Xinran speechless. She offered a few explanations but was immediately cut off by the incensed crowd of residents. Seeing that it was impossible to reason with them, she returned to the car to ask Wang Zhuo what to do.

"Why don't we just give her some money? You still need to get to your exam, and the little girl looks pitiful anyway."

"Have some common sense, will you? Do you think if you get out now to offer money, those people won't smash our car?" "Then what should I do? They won't believe anything I say now!" "Go tell them that the complex has surveillance footage and they can watch it themselves."

That was a good idea. Fu Xinran immediately got out of the car and relayed Wang Zhuo's words to the auntie, whose agitation had reached an unreasonable level.

"Watch footage for what!" The auntie waved her arms wildly, her short, permed, instant-noodle-style hair shaking like a lion dancer. "I saw with my own eyes you driving and hitting Nini! How dare you deny it! It's just an Audi—let me tell you, my son drives a BMW, I'm not afraid of you!" Fu Xinran's head ached terribly. She asked helplessly, "Then what exactly do you want?" "Oh dear, now you're getting impatient? Don't you have any morals, any conscience at all!" The auntie pointed directly at Fu Xinran's nose, adopting a truly shrewish posture.

"Forget it, I'll call the police." Fu Xinran shook her head helplessly and returned to the car to get her phone.

The auntie immediately shouted defiantly, "Why should you call the police? I'll call!" After shouting, she quickly pulled out her phone, dialed a number, and started chattering non-stop in the Jiangzhou dialect, clearly calling for backup.

Wang Zhuo gave Fu Xinran a wry smile. "Let her cause trouble. It looks like I'll have to retake this exam."

Fu Xinran said frustratedly, "Why don't we just drive out? I don't believe anyone would dare block us." Wang Zhuo spread his hands, caught between laughter and tears. "Our glass might be bulletproof, but I'm not sure about bricks."

"How could we run into people like this? Unreasonable," Fu Xinran huffed, glancing out the car window, unable to resist adding, "A shrew."

At this moment, the auntie was still relentlessly on her phone call, seemingly having an endless stream of grievances to vent. The little girl who had fallen was clearly terrified by the scene; even though a neighbor lady had already picked her up, she continued to cry incessantly.

Wang Zhuo shook his head and smiled. "You must never become like her in the future. I certainly don't want our next generation to be educated that way from childhood."

Fu Xinran pouted, "Hmph. Why would I ever have your children? Stop dreaming."

"That's what you said," Wang Zhuo said smugly. "I've decided. From now on, I'm cutting off your supply of facial masks and nutritional meals until your relative takes her long vacation."

Anyone else hearing this would be utterly confused about what he was referring to, but Fu Xinran perfectly understood the implication. She felt both shy and embarrassed, swinging her small fists to hit his arm.

The "facial masks" and "nutritional meals" needed no further explanation; anyone familiar with Wang Zhuo knew these two "magic weapons." And the relative's "long vacation" referred to the entire period of pregnancy and nursing, as menstruation stops for about three months after childbirth, which he termed the "long vacation."

If he doesn't apply the mask and doesn't provide the nutritional meals, then after ** a certain intimate act **, where does Wang Zhuo's essence go? Naturally, it's for sowing the seeds of the next generation! Connecting the dots, his meaning was: whether or not to have children is not up to her; she must listen to him!

Outside the car, the auntie finally finished her phone call. She turned around and saw the man and woman inside the car flirting and laughing together. The auntie's anger flared up instantly, and she delivered a fierce kick to the car body!