Wilderness Romance!

Lu Pingchuan pondered for a moment, then, suppressing the pain in his heart, gently pushed the box back. His expression returned to its previous calmness, showing no trace of greed.

"I appreciate Fourth Master's kindness. Before saving Hongying, I didn't know she was your daughter, and I never expected to receive anything in return."

"Besides, this gift is far too valuable; I cannot accept it."

Master Zhao raised an eyebrow slightly, leaned back in his armchair, and his smile noticeably faded.

"Mr. Lu, this villa cost me a full three million back then, plus that one million check, that makes four million. You are so young, yet you remain unmoved by such a huge sum of money. I am truly impressed."

In Master Zhao's mind, there is no such thing as free kindness in this world; everyone has ulterior motives.

Moreover, Hongqi Village is a well-known impoverished village in Qingshui County, and almost all the people living there lead impoverished lives.

Now, Lu Pingchuan is facing a huge sum of money that could change his family's life, yet he has chosen to refuse it, which is completely illogical.

He had suspected Lu Pingchuan was one of Luo Sanpao's men before, and this incident only deepened his suspicions.

Upon hearing this, Lu Pingchuan's smile froze. If you only consider these words, there seems to be no problem. However, when paired with Master Zhao's sarcastic tone, it becomes a different story.

"Fourth Master, there seems to be a hidden meaning in your words."

"Dad," Zhao Hongying frowned, "Pingchuan isn't greedy for money. Don't always try to guess what's going on in other people's minds."

"What do you know?"

Master Zhao glanced at his daughter, his tone flat, revealing neither joy nor anger: "The world is bustling with people coming and going for profit. What is the purpose of life? Isn't it to make life better for ourselves and our families?"

"Mr. Lu, please don't mind. I'm just a straightforward person. When you're out in the world, the last thing you can trust is someone who doesn't ask for anything in return. Your refusal makes me uneasy."

In reality, he didn't want it to be this way, but being in this position, he had to be wary of anyone at all times.

"Damn it." Lu Pingchuan cursed inwardly. He should have accepted it; it was worth millions.

He had been careful beforehand, wanting to leave Zhao Si with the impression of being a man of great ambition and not greedy for money, so as to facilitate better cooperation in the future. After all, people like them value profit above all else.

Unexpectedly, it backfired.

It seems that he has no choice but to leave first, but he is not worried about the cooperation at all.

After he leaves, Zhao Si will definitely investigate his background. Once the other party finds out about his past conflict with Luo Sanpao, everything will be resolved.

Lu Pingchuan ran his fingertips along the rim of the teacup and chuckled softly, "Fourth Master has been through so much, it's understandable that he's suspicious and cautious."

"I saved Hongying for two reasons: first, I couldn't stand seeing those people bullying a weak woman; second, the people who were bullying her were Luo Sanpao's men."

"Fine, since Fourth Master is uneasy about me, then I'll leave."

It would have been better if Luo Sanpao hadn't been mentioned; the moment Luo Sanpao was brought up, Master Zhao's suspicions only deepened.

"Bang."

He slammed the teacup on the table, a fake smile on his lips, but his eyes were full of threat.

"Mr. Lu, things need to be done clearly and things need to be explained clearly. After all, you saved Hongying. If you just leave like this, people will say that I, Zhao Si, am ungrateful and will talk behind my back."

At the same time, several men dressed in black suddenly appeared at the door, their meaning self-evident.

"Dad, what are you doing?"

Zhao Hongying stood up and grabbed Lu Pingchuan's hand: "Pingchuan, come with me. Let's see who dares to stop us."

"Hongying." Master Zhao's face darkened, clearly showing some anger: "Now is not the time for you to be unreasonable. Go back to your room first, and I'll talk to Mr. Lu alone."

"What are you going to talk about? What's there to talk about?" Zhao Hongying sat down with a thud. "You want to talk, right? Then talk in front of me. After we're done, I'll take Pingchuan back."

"You..." Master Zhao gritted his teeth: "Hongying, I am your father. No matter what I do, it is for your own good and for the good of our family."

"Ah Fu, take the young lady back to her room."

Afu waved to the men in black at the door, and two men in black immediately entered the hall and stood on either side of Zhao Hongying.

Seeing this, Lu Pingchuan raised his hand to stop the two.

"Hongying, you go up first."

"Pingchuan." Zhao Hongying frowned, her eyes filled with worry. "My dad is clearly trying to make things difficult for you. What will you do if I go up there?"

Lu Pingchuan glanced at Master Zhao, a confident smile on his lips: "Master Zhao is right. Things should be done clearly and words should be explained clearly. I have a clear conscience, and I also believe that Master Zhao is not an unreasonable person."

"But......"

Zhao Hongying wanted to say something more, but Lu Pingchuan interrupted her, saying, "No buts. Listen to me and go upstairs."

Zhao Hongying's lips moved, but she swallowed back the words that were about to come out.

She gave Lu Pingchuan a deep look, her eyes filled with worry, before finally turning around and walking towards the stairs, glancing back every few steps.

Zhao Siye witnessed this scene, and his fingers holding the teacup tightened slightly, his heart churning with complex emotions.

Hongying was pampered by him since childhood. She was stubborn and strong-willed, and always rebellious and unruly.

Normally, no matter how much he advised or scolded her, Hongying rarely obeyed. She would argue and contradict him about everything and would never back down.

But just now, Lu Pingchuan simply told her to go upstairs, and she actually obeyed obediently without being stubborn or entangled at all.

Especially the way Hongying looked at Lu Pingchuan just now, full of tenderness and worry, a look he hadn't seen in many years.

More importantly, they had only known each other for less than a day.

What did this kid do last night? He managed to completely subdue the rebellious Hong Yingzhi.

No, no matter what, we must thoroughly investigate Lu Pingchuan's background and motives. If he harbors malicious intentions, we must deal with him as soon as possible.

Thinking of this, the gentleness in Master Zhao's eyes completely disappeared, leaving only a deep scrutiny and vigilance.

Inside the hall, Lu Pingchuan and Master Zhao sat facing each other, while several men in black stood closely behind Lu Pingchuan, creating a tense and oppressive atmosphere.

Master Zhao put down his teacup. The sound wasn't loud, but it carried a strong sense of pressure.

"Lu Pingchuan, now it's just the two of us. Tell me, what exactly is your purpose in approaching Hongying?"

Lu Pingchuan slightly raised his eyes, calmly meeting Zhao Siye's calculating and scrutinizing gaze, neither humble nor arrogant.

"Fourth Master, before I met you, I thought you were someone important. I never expected that the famous Fourth Master Zhao would be so narrow-minded."

"Listen, not everyone is like you, doing everything with a purpose. Please don't judge others by your own petty standards."

"You scoundrel!" Afu roared, "Lu Pingchuan, how dare you speak to Fourth Master like that?"

"Don't think you can act recklessly just because you saved Miss Hongying. Believe me, I'll make sure you never see the sun rise tomorrow."

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