Deep Fog Kiss

"cake."

The man reached out and handed over a palm-sized box of Sachertorte dark chocolate cake.

Jiang Li lowered her eyes. They had just lost her cake, and now another one had been sent. What did this mean?

Gu Zhishen's lips curled slightly. "I'll make you one."

"Didn't they say you can't eat it when you have a cold?" Jiang Li muttered, reaching out to take the cake, but the man suddenly took it back.

He raised an eyebrow slightly. "Forget it."

He said this and turned to leave.

"Hey!" Jiang Li quickly grabbed his hand and snatched the cake back from him.

Her fingertips gripped his strong, powerful forearm, and his body heat seemed to seep into Jiang Li's body through the fabric of her loungewear.

Jiang Li was taken aback and quickly let go of his hand.

The man's gaze inadvertently swept over his arm, his eyes darkening.

"Thanks."

Jiang Li smiled and thanked him, then felt a gentle tap on her forehead.

"Eat less," Gu Zhishen said with a smile in his eyes, "Eating too much will give you a toothache."

"oh."

Jiang Li responded, holding the cake as she closed the door, a faint bitterness lingering in her chest.

......

The next day, Jiang Li got up very early and drove out quickly before Gu Zhishen went downstairs for breakfast.

Before I even reached my destination, my phone rang urgently; it was a call from an unknown number.

"Feed?"

As soon as she answered, a shrill voice suddenly rang out, "You're that woman surnamed Jiang?"

Jiang Li frowned slightly; the voice sounded somewhat familiar.

Who are you?

"Who am I?" the other person sneered. "I'm Wu Jianhui's wife! You're the one who broke his leg, aren't you?"

Jiang Li's hand on the steering wheel suddenly tightened; it was her!

She asked with a smile, "Auntie, is something the matter?"

"How dare you ask if there's anything wrong?" Wang Xiuchun cursed on the other end of the phone. "What are you up to, woman? How can you be so vicious! Just because you drive a luxury car doesn't mean you can do whatever you want. You think you can just run someone over? Are you trying to kill someone?"

"Auntie, you've misunderstood," Jiang Li chuckled, her voice calm and unhurried. "The uncle took the wrong turn, and I accidentally bumped into him. The accident has already been settled, and I won't shortchange you on the compensation I owe."

"You heartless, wicked woman with dead parents! You deliberately hit him and you still won't admit it!" Wang Xiuchun cursed. "You think paying 500,000 yuan will be the end of it? My husband's leg is broken, and now he's in pain all over his body, lying in bed half-dead, and he'll be bedridden for the rest of his life!"

"Our whole family is counting on him. Now that he's down, I have no hope left for myself! My grandson can't even afford to go to school, and you'll have to take responsibility for that!"

"You think you can give me 500,000 to appease a beggar? Let me tell you, this isn't over!"

If Jiang Li hadn't known that Wu Jianhui was eating and drinking well in the hospital, she almost would have believed this old hag's words.

The couple really do share the same bed; they're even better at lying and deceiving each other than anyone else!

She recalled what the other person had said in the hospital room earlier—"Isn't she rich? Let her go broke! You two are short of capital for your business, just take it from this woman!"

She suddenly curled her lips into a smile. "Five hundred thousand isn't enough. How much do you want?"

"Three million!" the other party demanded, "Give us three million, and this matter will be settled."

Jiang Li smiled gently, "Do I look like I have three million?"

"Don't give me that crap! As long as you have three million, we're just being kind! That car you drive is worth more than three million, isn't it? I don't know what kind of law or interest it is, but I know your car is very valuable." Wang Xiuchun said shamelessly, "You're so rich, three million is nothing to you, you can't possibly not be able to afford it."

"Even if you really can't afford it, you can sell your car! There's always a way you can't afford it!"

Jiang Li's car was parked on the side of the road. She sat in the car and looked out the window.

Outside the window, a little boy with a chubby face was squatting at the hospital entrance.

Jiang Li's gaze fell on the little boy, and she asked, "What if I don't give it to him?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Xiuchun became enraged, "If you dare not give it to me, I'll sue you, have the police detain you, and lock you up for ten or eight years!"

"Since my family is going to starve anyway, I'll hang myself at your doorstep and become a wronged ghost, so you'll never have peace day or night!"

Jiang Li leaned back in her seat, tapping her fingertips on the steering wheel. "Give me the account."

Upon hearing this, the other party snorted coldly, "Scared now? As long as you pay the money, this matter will be settled."

As she spoke, a text message popped up, displaying Wang Xiuchun's name and her bank card number.

"Transfer the money within three days. Otherwise, you won't have a single day of peace!"

The other party hung up the phone after speaking.

Jiang Li stared at the disconnected phone, her eyes filled with coldness.

Then, open an audio file and save it.

......

"Little one, would you like some candy?"

At the hospital entrance, the girl looked down at the little boy playing with toy cars on the ground, her eyes crinkling into a gentle smile.

She reached out, revealing a chocolate wrapped in gold paper in her palm.

The little boy looked up and saw a beautiful older sister.

He shook his head. "I won't eat it. My mom said I can't eat food from strangers."

"I'm not a stranger, I'm your grandfather's friend." Jiang Li squatted down, looking at him with a smile. "I know your grandfather's name is Wu Jianhui, and your grandmother's name is Wang Xiuchun."

She smiled gently, revealing her dimples. "Your name is Tiger."

"You know me?" the little boy asked, his eyes wide. "Are you really my grandfather's friend?"

Jiang Li nodded. "I also know you're seven years old this year."

She smiled, unwrapped the chocolate, and held it to the boy's lips.

The boy stared longingly at the chocolate in front of him, swallowed hard, wanting to eat it but hesitating.

Jiang Li asked with a smile, "Do you know your grandma's phone number?"

The little boy looked at her and nodded. "I know."

Jiang Li opened her phone's call log. "Hey, is this it?"

The little boy's eyes lit up. "It's my grandma's phone call!"

Jiang Li smiled and patted his head, "Look, your grandma just called me to chat, I wasn't lying to you, was I?"

The little boy's eyes were innocent. "Are you really friends?"

"Okay." Jiang Li nodded and handed him the chocolate.

Her smile and words were so convincing that the little boy happily accepted the chocolate and swallowed it in one bite.

"Is it tasty?"

The little boy answered indistinctly, "Delicious!"

"Your grandma said eating too much candy will cause cavities, so she won't let me buy you candy," Jiang Li smiled sweetly. "I'll secretly bring you some next time, okay?"

The little boy opened his big eyes wide. "Really?"

"Really, but you have to keep it a secret." Jiang Li held up her little finger. "You absolutely can't tell Dad, Mom, Grandpa, or Grandma about giving you candy today. It's a secret between the two of us."

The little boy immediately pinky-swore with her and nodded emphatically, "Okay."

Jiang Li stood up, smiled, and patted his head. "Tiger is such a good boy."

She waved to the little boy, got into the car, opened an audio file, and forwarded it to Xiang Jingcheng.

He then made another call, laughing as he asked, "Lawyer Xiang, I think I'm in trouble. Is this considered extortion?"

On the other end of the phone, I could hear a woman cursing from the recording.

Then, the man's clear voice said, "Extortion, involving a huge sum of money, is punishable by imprisonment."