He Knew from the Start

"Director, something has happened to Miss An," Assistant Yin entered the office and immediately handed over the mobile phone to Chu Qichen. 

Chu Qichen lifted his head as he received it. As he scrolled through the phone, he asked "When did this happen?" 

Assistant Yin's face flushed with guilt before replying, "Last night. I forgot to go on Weibo last night. I've just checked it today after the chaotic morning."

Chu Qichen raised his gaze to meet the assistant. The latter quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, Director!"

"Where is she now?"

"I've just got in touch with Aunt Liu. She told me that An Wen's already returned to the villa."

Then, Chu Qichen went back to scrolling through the trending searches. His brows were knitted together when he inquired again, "Lu Maner… Which entertainment company is this actress from?"

"She's from East Entertainment. Director, should we cut ties with her?"

"Without question, but not right now." The actress introduced An Wen to the harsh reality of the entertainment industry. However, Chu Qichen wanted to take the opportunity to pull An Wen out of it.

"Instruct Hua Talent's public relations department to publicize An Wen's actual age."

After that, Chu Qichen phoned Aunt Liu and told her of his intention to visit the villa tonight.

The excited Aunt Liu went to get An Wen out of bed straight away. "Miss, Mister's coming over later."

The information had An Wen widened her eyes in shock. "Isn't he out of the country?" she asked.

"Mister came home last week."

An Wen was overcome with surprise. She quickly got dressed and rushed downstairs to get Jiang Shiyu. "From now onwards, lock yourself in here and never, ever leave this room no matter what happens," An Wen instructed her assistant. 

"What's wrong? Has Lu Maner transformed into her true demon self again?" The shock had taken over Jiang Shiyu's sleepiness. 

"No, but this is ten thousand times more terrifying than Lu Maner." An Wen placed some snacks and drinks in Jiang Shiyu's room before warning the latter once more, "Remember, only leave the room when I say so over the phone. Do not open this door without receiving my call."

"What's actually happening?" Panicked, Jiang Shiyu enquired again.

"I don't have the time to explain. In short, you can't leave this room, understand?" An Wen finally left the room after Jiang Shiyu made her promise. The latter then locked the door from the inside.

Next, An Wen sat on the sofa with the TV on as she waited for Chu Qichen's arrival. A short while later, the sound of the moving car entered her ears. She rose to her feet and glanced towards the porch. Without surprise, Chu Qichen was approaching the house.

He threw an indifferent glance toward her way and changed into the indoor slippers. Aunt Liu hurried toward him and in a very enthusiastic manner, saying, "Mister, dinner will be served when the soup is ready. I've prepared two more dishes specially for you."

"Got it," Chu Qichen grunted and headed for the sofa.

An Wen stood next to the sofa. "Mister Chu," she greeted obediently.

Chu Qichen positioned himself on the sofa then crossed his long, slender legs. He met her gaze and spoke in a soft tone, "You're finally home. Where did you visit this time?"

"I went to several places. Travelling has broadened my experience and made me see things from different perspectives," An Wen replied. 

"Tell me, then, how has it has broadened your experience and changed your perspective," Chu Qichen demanded. His tone was nothing unusual but it somehow made An Wen felt pressured. 

It was as if she was being questioned by her parents.

"I don't really know how to put it into words. Mister Chu, you should go out and see some places too, if you have the time," the girl replied. Her silky-smooth, straight hair fell perfectly on her back. The pretty, peach blossom eyes on her beautiful face glistened as she spoke. 

It was only now that Chu Qichen felt the little girl standing in front of him had grown up. Lying had come so naturally to her. Perhaps she did learn a lot during her time in acting. 

"You don't even know how to express your thoughts anymore. An Wen, it's time for you to return to school."

It was exactly what An Wen thought. She nodded her head like a good pupil and replied, "I'll go to school tomorrow."

Chu Qichen did not press on after that and he watched the economic news silently from the sofa. An Wen who sat at the edge of the sofa also kept her eyes on the news.

Every second felt like an eternity!

"Alright, Mister and Miss, dinner is served!" shouted Aunt Liu from afar.

At that, Chu Qichen turned off the TV and rose to his feet. An Wen followed suit and the two of them went to wash their hands for dinner. It was only then that she noticed how tall he was. She needed to lift her head to cast a sidelong glance at him.

The man turned his head around and met her gaze. Caught in the act, An Wen could only put on a smile. She turned off the tap then said softly, "Mister Chu, I'm done washing my hands."

He also turned off the other water tap. "Mister Chu… I'm not a stranger. Why don't you just call me like how you used to?"

An Wen nodded instinctively although she was trying to retrieve the memory. How did she use to call him? Brother Chu!

'I can't call him that…'

An Wen behaved extra cautiously and solemnly throughout dinner. This was because Chu Qichen would suddenly inquire about her travels every now and again, to which she had to make up some vague answers.

Not long later, Assistant Yin arrived at the mansion. Chu Qichen spoke to him for a while before calling out to Aunt Liu, "Tidy up that spacious guestroom as Assistant Yin will stay over tonight."

An Wen felt like her stomach was in knots because he was talking about the room that Jiang Shiyu was staying in.

Subconsciously, Aunt Liu threw a sidelong glance at An Wen and the latter quickly made up an excuse. "That room has been left unattended for too long and it's covered in thick dust. Why don't we have Assistant Yin stay in the other room?"

"I know that Aunt Liu cleans and tidies up the house twice a week. The room shouldn't be covered in dust, should it?" asked Chu Qichen.

An Wen remained silent as she knew any further attempt to refute would look bad on Aunt Liu.

"Mister, it's true, I've been procrastinating on tidying up that room lately," Aunt Liu added.

An Wen gave Aunt Liu a grateful look, but that was not enough to change Chu Qichen's mind. Instead, he insisted, "It's rare for Aunt Liu to not clean the house. Let's open the door so we can all see how dirty it is."

Aunt Liu was caught in surprise. She turned toward An Wen, but the girl was also at a loss of what to do.

"Open the door!" ordered Chu Qichen.

Aunt Liu was left with no choice. She walked over and opened the door. However, it did not budge because it had been locked from the inside. Assistant Yin went forward to give her a helping hand, but he soon noticed what was going on. "Director, the door's been locked from the inside."

"Who's in there?" Chu Qichen turned around to question An Wen. His facial expression was nothing unusual but it was stern. 

"It's my friend," whispered An Wen timidly. She was overtaken by fear and shock.

"Have her open the door. How can you not invite your guest to dinner and lock your guest in the room?" demanded Chu Qichen. His eyes twitched slightly with anger. 

"She's resting in the room because she's exhausted. I didn't want to disturb her…" An Wen realized how ridiculous she sounded as she continued on. 

Chu Qichen threw a glance her way and An Wen immediately looked down at her feet in silence.

"Come upstairs with me!" Chu Qichen barked and the girl did as she was told.

Upstairs, in the study room, An Wen stood next to the desk like an obedient daughter who was waiting for her father's scolding. She lifted her head to meet his gaze, but she realized the anger in his eyes grew more intense.

Despite that, she had calmed down a little. She raised her head and questioned, "Did you know from the start?"

"What do you think?"

"Why bother messing around with me if you had known from the start?" An Wen was displeased.

"I didn't reveal your secret because I wasn't thinking of meddling into your business. However, now that you know the real world is always lurking with danger, it's time for you to leave the entertainment industry, An Wen," Chu Qichen said flatly, as if he was trying to close a business deal.