Chased by My Heartless Ex - Chapter 82

Xu You’s eyes were hollow and vacant, her pale skin devoid of color, like a porcelain doll that would shatter at the slightest touch.

Zhou Siyu held one of her hands while cupping her cheek, gently pressing down to force her to either look at her or at least maintain eye contact.

Everyone has their fears, especially after she had just escaped from a murderer. It was easy to imagine the shock she must have been feeling.

Yes, before leaving, the police officers escorting the suspect had pulled Zhou Siyu aside and clearly shown her the wanted notice. The face on it was identical to the emotionless half-profile glimpsed through the car window. After cross-referencing the identity information, it was confirmed they were the same person.

“Let’s go, shall I take you to Jianghu Renjia? Or maybe Mingyue Fang? Or should I take you to the hospital?” Zhou Siyu coaxed Xu You gently, mentioning two restaurants that Xu You had previously loved.

A major incident had nearly occurred in the industrial park, and the manager summoned by Zhou Siyu was now holding a meeting with the security team. With his hands clasped behind his back, he paced back and forth in front of the line of employees, reminding them to strengthen security measures while occasionally glancing toward the security booth where the two women were.

Zhou Siyu’s company, YUYOO, was the first to set up operations in the park. To put it more precisely, she owned the land and was the true boss of the place. As the head of security, he had only heard of her name and usually dealt with her subordinates. This time, he had come with trepidation, still worried that Zhou Siyu might suddenly turn around and penalize him and his team.

As it turned out, his worries were unnecessary.

After the police left the scene, Zhou Siyu had stayed by the young woman’s side without moving an inch.

“I don’t want to eat. I want to go home,” Xu You said, shuddering at the thought of the man’s face staring at the surveillance cameras while he lay in wait and chased her.

If she hadn’t mustered the courage to walk over, if she had been a step slower while escaping, or if anything had gone wrong… the consequences would have been unthinkable.

Xu You wasn’t shutting herself off and was able to speak, which eased Zhou Siyu’s worries slightly. Nodding, she told Xu You to wait a moment, reluctant to step away. She remained standing in front of her, took out her phone, and instructed Zheng Ran to drive the car to the entrance and hand it over to her.

News of a murderer entering the tech park hadn’t spread yet. Only uninformed passersby, seeing Xu You and Zhou Siyu in close contact, spread inaccurate rumors.

“Boss, has your progress bar updated?” Zheng Ran teased with a laugh, seeing the blurry picture of an embrace in the group chat and thinking things were going well. But with the professionalism of an employee, she didn’t pause her actions, heading into her office to retrieve the car keys before making her way downstairs.

Zhou Siyu’s expression was grave. Now was not the time for small talk, let alone romance. She only urged, “Less chatter, hurry over.”

Perhaps her serious tone shattered the ambiguous atmosphere, as Zheng Ran sensed something was wrong and immediately sobered up, quickening her pace.

Within three minutes, a pure black G-Class Mercedes with its hazard lights on pulled up beside the security booth, with pedestrians and vehicles making way.

“Let’s go, I’ll take you home,” Zhou Siyu said, standing up. The prolonged squat had compressed the blood vessels in her legs, and as she rose abruptly, blood rushed downward, sending a tingling numbness from her heels up through her muscles and bones to her tailbone.

Xu You nodded woodenly and, supported by Zhou Siyu, rose from her seat, following her to the passenger side of the car.

Zheng Ran had just parked the car when he saw his boss and Miss Xu approaching him in such a manner. He quickly stepped out of the driver’s seat and opened the car door just as the two reached the vehicle.

Xu You got in, and he closed the door before asking, “Boss, what’s going on?”

“I’ll explain in detail later. For now, contact the workers for me…” Zhou Siyu spoke while staring intently at Xu You, who remained motionless inside the car, the anxiety etched on her brow almost overflowing.

As Zhou Siyu spoke, Zheng Ran’s expression grew serious. After his boss finished explaining, he nodded repeatedly. “Leave everything here to me. You take care of Miss Xu.”

Zheng Ran had been her trusted employee for over a decade and had long become her confidant. Entrusting the matter to him, Zhou Siyu had no worries. She quickly strode around the front of the car to the driver’s seat and settled in.

Xu You had become like a puppet, mechanically devoid of any ability to act on her own. She remained in the exact same position she had taken when she first sat in the car.

Recently, North City had been strictly enforcing seatbelt regulations for passengers, and for the sake of safety, Zhou Siyu leaned over and pulled the retractable belt from beside Xu You’s right temple, clicking it into the buckle.

With a click, Xu You was secured.

Zheng Ran had turned on the heater when starting the car, and the cabin had just begun to warm up. As Zhou Siyu leaned closer, a wave of cold air washed over Xu You, who blinked and looked at her.

In her haste to leave, Zhou Siyu hadn’t had time to put on a coat. Having spent dozens of minutes in near-freezing temperatures, not only were her exposed skin surfaces icy, but even beneath her thin clothing, a chill seeped through. Her face was flushed with an unnatural redness, and it was hard to say whether it would feel burning hot to the touch.

Though she seemed off, Xu You offered no concern. Instead, she lowered her gaze.

Her intertwined fingers, which Zhou Siyu had held earlier, had had no chance to exert force. Now, her blunt nails repeatedly scratched at her skin, pressing hard into the flesh beneath. After a few repetitions, the pads of her fingers visibly swelled and ached, yet an odd sense of satisfaction rose within her.

“Where do you live? I’ll take you home,” Zhou Siyu said as she fastened her seatbelt, shifted gears, and started the car in one fluid motion.

The tech park was at the end of the main road. As she pressed the button to retract the gate and drove out, her attention was fixed on the traffic ahead. She didn’t notice Xu You’s abnormal behavior.

Xu You paused her fingers, gave her address, and then withdrew into herself again. For the entire journey, she remained that way, using pain to distract from pain.

Meanwhile, Yu Yao’s company renovation was in full swing. After the previous unreliable company, everything was now on the right track, moving in the correct direction with the help of Zhou Siyu and others.

For the past few days, Yu Yao and Mai had been supervising the workers at the company during the day, and at night, Mai would monitor Yu Yao as she exercised her injured leg. While strolling around the neighborhood, the two were nearly frightened into calling security when they spotted an unfamiliar car parked at their doorstep.

Zhou Siyu stepped out of the driver’s seat, and only when they recognized her face did they hurry over.

“What are you doing here? Who told you our address?” Yu Yao limped out from behind the car, her tone accusatory the moment she spoke.

It was because Zhou Siyu had made her an imaginary rival that so many absurd incidents had followed. As Xu You’s friend, Yu Yao’s attitude was something Zhou Siyu tolerated with magnanimity. “Something happened. Youyou was frightened,” she said, deliberately lowering her voice to avoid disturbing Xu You in the car.

Yu Yao followed Zhou Siyu’s gaze and spotted Xu You, her head bowed low, her expression grave.

“What’s wrong with her?” Mai, who had understood the conversation, asked slowly.

“Ran into some bad people, scared her half to death. I suggested taking her to the hospital, but she refused. Didn’t want to eat either. Once she calms down a bit, I’ll have to get her something.” Zhou Siyu’s gaze drifted toward the car as she spoke.

“Sorry, I didn’t protect her well enough.”

After Zhou Su’s words fell, the three of them briefly sank into silence.

The evening breeze rustled through the treetops, lifting strands of hair and mingling their scents. Yu Yao clenched her fists, her nails leaving purple marks in her palms. She had promised Mai and Xu You not to act impulsively. Gritting her teeth, she looked up at Zhou Siyu.

“Yeah, it’s all because of you. Back then, you let your impulses get the better of you and tricked her into coming to Beicheng, hurting her both physically and emotionally. Do you have any idea what she went through during those days? How much she suffered? She finally managed to pull herself together, and then you, the great savior, suddenly realized how wonderful she was, turned over a new leaf, and used underhanded tactics to keep her here. I know it started with my mistake too, but ask yourself, what were your intentions? And if you had even an ounce of humanity, you’d understand what our lives were like. What kind of behavior is it for you to barge in like this?”

Yu Yao trembled as she spoke. Xu You had been her close friend for most of her life, and even though she could only see her back through the car window, she could feel her pain as if it were her own.

“I know you’re not that kind of relationship,” Zhou Siyu said calmly.

She bit the soft flesh inside her cheek and let out a sigh from her chest. “You have every right to be angry, and she has every right to resent me. But you weren’t part of our years together, you don’t know the whole story. I’m just trying to pursue a bit of happiness, hoping Youyou can truly recognize her feelings for me. Once this project is over, I won’t bother her anymore.”

Yu Yao was completely taken aback that Zhou Siyu already knew the truth about the three of them. She opened her mouth to question her.

“She doesn’t want me to know, so let’s just pretend I don’t. Let her go,I won’t force her. Like I said, this is the last time.” Just the thought of Xu You leaving and disappearing completely from her life made Zhou Siyu’s heart ache faintly, and a trace of sorrow unconsciously surfaced in her eyes as she spoke.

Yu Yao’s cheek muscles twitched, unsure how to retort.

She clenched her jaw, standing half a head shorter than Zhou Siyu but matching her in intensity. “You’d better keep your word.”

Without waiting for Zhou Siyu’s response, she took Mai’s hand, walked to the passenger side, opened the car door, helped Xu You unbuckle her seatbelt, and then, supporting her own limping body, guided Xu You back to their home.

The iron gate slammed shut from the inside. Zhou Siyu leaned against the car and lit a cigarette.

Her gaze remained fixed on the living room with its drawn curtains. The story unfolding behind the floor-to-ceiling windows was one she could no longer be part of. Once the cigarette burned out, she turned, got into the car, and went to deal with the problems she needed to resolve.

By then, the photo of Xu You and Zhou Siyu had already spread through the company group chat. One person in the busy design department saw it, and soon everyone was discussing it.

Qian Doudou received the message and managed to calm things down for a while. Then she got a leave request sent on Xu You’s behalf by Yu Yao. With three weeks left until the final submission deadline, Xu You had asked for a full week off.

Trusting in Xu You’s abilities and understanding her state of mind, Qian Doudou didn’t ask too many questions. After offering a few words of concern, she approved the leave.

The pressure of the major project was intense, and Xu You’s gossip gradually faded beneath the weight of busy work. Except for Li Rui, everyone slowly forgot about the rumors and threw themselves into their tasks. After several days of constant companionship from Yu Yao and Mai, Xu You finally managed to emerge from the shadows and prepared to finish her remaining work.

Yu Yao’s car was parked at the company, and she had no intention of driving to and from work for the time being. Xu You called a ride using her phone before heading out. After saying goodbye to Yu Yao and Mai, she slipped on her sneakers and opened the door. Naturally, she walked toward the black car parked in front of her home, opened the back door, and got in.

As an outsider, Xu You remained reserved, staring out the window the entire time. She didn’t pay close attention to the driver’s information displayed on the screen, nor did she notice that the driver never confirmed her details or the ride order.

The car sped through the city, weaving through traffic, before finally stopping at the entrance of YUYOO Company.

Having zoned out during the ride, Xu You only snapped back to reality when they arrived. As she reached for the door handle to leave, a deep male voice drifted from the front seat to the back.

“Ms. Xu.”

Hearing him call her by her surname, Xu You was instantly terrified. She looked up in alarm and met a pair of sharp eyes staring back at her through the rearview mirror. Xu You began to tremble, noticing how the driver’s muscular arms seemed ready to burst through his leather jacket. Her heart pounded wildly.

Sensing her gaze, he suddenly curved his lips into a faint, ambiguous smile in the mirror.

“Shall I pick you up here again tonight?”