Chapter 4: Big Brother Has Your Back

"Gu Luosheng, what do you mean by that?" Lin Yichen took a deep breath, perplexed by how Gu Luosheng seemed to have turned into someone completely different from the person he remembered.

Gu Luosheng regained her composure. "Exactly as I said."

Lin Yichen felt as though a bone were stuck in his throat; he simply couldn't get used to this new personality of Gu Luosheng.

The Gu Corporation soon appeared before them. Gu Luosheng got out of the car and walked away without so much as a backward glance. Lin Yichen remained seated inside, the anger in his chest searching for an outlet. He could only turn to the driver and say, "Drive. Take me back to the Lin family."

"Yes, young master."

...

When Gu Luosheng tried to enter the company, she was stopped by the security guard. "Miss, what brings you here today?"

"I'm here to see Gu Yunqi," Gu Luosheng replied, invoking Gu Yunqi's name, but the guard was not so easily swayed. "Do you have an appointment?"

"Appointment... No, I don't."

Back then, whenever Gu Luosheng came to see Gu Yunqi, she never needed to make an appointment. Everyone in the company, from the top executives down to the security and cleaning staff, knew her well.

Now, she had truly fallen from grace, unrecognized by anyone.

"I'm sorry, no appointment, no entry," the security guard said firmly, leaving no room for negotiation.

Gu Luosheng stood by the gate and took out her phone, intending to call Gu Yunqi, but she couldn't remember his number no matter how hard she tried.

Her documents and phone had been confiscated by Gu Yunzhou, which had made it impossible for her to find a decent job or reach out to Gu Yunqi for help.

This phone she had only bought two years after working in the warehouse, when Gu Yunzhou finally returned her ID.

There wasn't a single contact saved in it.

She pondered for a long while but still couldn't recall Gu Yunqi's number. In the end, she could only give up and wait quietly at the company entrance for Gu Yunqi to appear.

She waited until seven in the evening. At last, Gu Yunqi emerged, waiting by the roadside for his driver. Gu Luosheng hurried over and called out carefully, "Big brother."

Gu Yunqi glanced at Gu Luosheng and looked away at first, showing little reaction. It wasn't until she called out again, "Big brother," that he looked at her more closely. Seeing her disheveled appearance, he asked in disbelief, "Are you Luosheng?"

Tears welled in Gu Luosheng's eyes. She wanted to reach out and embrace Gu Yunqi, but hesitated, fearing he too had changed...

Gu Yunqi seized the hand she was about to withdraw, gazing at the calluses on her palm, anger flickering in his eyes. "That rascal Yunzhou has really gone too far, making you work as a warehouse laborer?"

"You're so thin!"

Gu Luosheng could no longer suppress her emotions. She collapsed into Gu Yunqi's arms, sobbing. He didn't mind the dust on her clothing, gently wiping away her tears.

She hadn't cried when she suffered grievances at the hands of Gu Yunzhou and Lin Yichen, but with Gu Yunqi's comforting words, the tension buried deep within her was finally released, and tears flowed uncontrollably.

Employees leaving the company were stunned to see Gu Yunqi embracing a woman.

"Isn't that our President Gu? He's actually holding a woman?"

"Wait, that woman looks familiar?"

"You know her?"

"That's Gu Luosheng! The fake heiress kicked out by Vice President Gu!"

"There's gossip about this in our company? Quick, fill me in!"

"Forget it! If word gets out, I won't have a job tomorrow. I'm out of here."

...

"Big brother, I missed you so much!" Gu Luosheng sobbed softly. "Please believe me, I really didn't run over Gu Qingwan with my car. She rushed at me on her own!"

"Come, I'll take you home," Gu Yunqi said, seeing the driver pull up. He tried to lead Gu Luosheng toward the car.

But Gu Luosheng hesitated; she didn't want to return to a home that felt so cold.

"It's alright. With me here, I'll stand up for you. If Yunzhou dares to bully you again, I'll string him up and give him a beating," Gu Yunqi said, making Gu Luosheng laugh through her tears. When they were children, Yunzhou would protect her outside but was the chief bully at home.

Whenever that happened, Gu Luosheng would seek out Gu Yunqi for support, and he would always scold Yunzhou, making him apologize to her.

"Luosheng, come home with me," Gu Yunqi said earnestly, and Gu Luosheng remembered her old faith.

She was willing to trust in Gu Yunqi's promise. "Alright."

They got into the car and talked for a long time, as if they had returned to the past.

Back then, he had just graduated from college and was sent abroad for further studies by their father.

She herself had been the only heiress of the Gu family.

Gu Luosheng gazed out the window at the neon lights flashing by, feeling as if the world inside the car and outside were two separate realms.

At eight o'clock, the car arrived at the Gu family's villa.

Gu Yunqi pressed his fingerprint to open the door. In the living room, Gu Qingwan and Gu Yunzhou were playing video games together, while Madam Wang bustled in the kitchen.

"Big brother, you're home!" Gu Yunzhou greeted Gu Yunqi with a smile as he glanced at the doorway.

Gu Qingwan also called out sweetly, "Big brother!"

Gu Yunqi's face was stern as he brought Gu Luosheng, who had yet to step inside, into the house and snatched the phone from Gu Yunzhou's hand.

"Gu Yunzhou, apologize to Luosheng!"

"Gu Luosheng?" Gu Yunzhou was momentarily stunned. Seeing her, he sneered, "I thought you really had the guts to leave the Gu family. Turns out you just ran to big brother for protection!"

"Gu Luosheng, you really go to great lengths!"

Gu Luosheng couldn't refute Gu Yunzhou's words. She truly hadn't wanted to return home; if Gu Yunqi hadn't insisted, she would have never come back.

"Gu Yunzhou!" Gu Yunqi raised his voice, asserting his authority as the eldest brother. "Don't make me repeat myself!"

"You locked Luosheng away for five years. You owe her an apology! Do you know how many five-year periods a person has in their life?"

Gu Yunzhou protested, "Why should I apologize? She ran over Qingwan and never apologized to her!"

Before Gu Yunqi could reply, Gu Qingwan quickly interjected, "Second brother, don't say that. I'm sure Luosheng didn't mean to hit me, or maybe she mistook the accelerator for the brake..."

"I saw it with my own eyes—Gu Luosheng drove straight at you. She must have done it on purpose," Gu Yunzhou insisted. He turned to Gu Yunqi with confidence. "Big brother, shouldn't you make Luosheng apologize to Qingwan as well?"

Gu Yunqi frowned. Both Gu Qingwan and Gu Luosheng had told him what happened that day, but their accounts were completely different. He didn't know which to believe.

After all, the palm and the back of the hand are both flesh.