CHAPTER 235: CHAPTER 235 MR. HUO NEEDS A WOMAN

"Uncle, what are you afraid of? Are you afraid that I might like you? That kind of liking between a man and a woman?" Tong Keke suddenly laid it bare, her clear and lucid eyes staring at Gu Qianxi like calm water, carrying an emotion that made Gu Qianxi avoid her gaze.

"Aren’t I too old for you? I’m a full seven years older than you, and you’ve always called me uncle. Our relationship is familial, and it always will be. You’re my little niece..."

"I’m not!" Tong Keke responded bluntly, "I have no blood relationship with you."

"But my responsibility to you will never change in this lifetime. I am your guardian!" Gu Qianxi’s heart was in turmoil, a mess of tangled emotions. Deep down, he had faintly sensed something, but he had always chosen to ignore it.

Yet today, Tong Keke seemed determined to tear everything open.

He would not allow it. Absolutely not.

Tong Keke looked at his coldly handsome face, his tone as severe as a parent’s scolding their child.

Suddenly, she understood. She wished she could be a little stupider, have lower emotional intelligence, so that she wouldn’t instantly grasp what her uncle was trying to convey.

"Uncle, why did you come to find me today? Is there something you need?" Tong Keke, stunned by his stern reprimand, tried hard to suppress her urge to cry. She asked as calmly as she could.

Gu Qianxi looked at his hand. Sometime during their exchange, his finger had pointed to her small face, and he quickly withdrew his hand.

His handsome face remained tense, his thin lips pressed tightly together as he suppressed the storm of turmoil within him. He said in a quiet voice, "Nothing much, just wanted to let you know I’m leaving the country and came to say goodbye."

"I wish Uncle a safe journey and a peaceful return!" Tong Keke suddenly seemed to grow up, becoming startlingly mature and understanding.

Even Gu Qianxi was taken aback. His deep eyes swept quickly over her small face, and he cleared his throat lightly. "Got it. Focus on your studies."

Tong Keke didn’t respond again. She just watched the tall figure of the man disappear from view, and in that instant, her tears surged forth.

As soon as Gu Qianxi left the school gates, his turmoil only worsened.

He didn’t even know what was wrong with him, only that something felt off everywhere.

Even his heartbeat seemed irregular.

"Damn it!" he cursed under his breath.

It seemed he needed to call Yan Ting over to his place for a drink; otherwise, this foul mood would likely linger indefinitely.

That evening, Gu Qianxi invited Yan Ting to his villa.

When Yan Ting stepped into the living room and saw Gu Qianxi already pouring himself a drink, he raised an eyebrow slightly, his tone filled with amusement. "Aren’t you always the one telling me to drink less? What’s the matter today? Bad mood? Who’s dared to upset our dear Dean Gu?"

"Too much work, too much stress. Having a drink to unwind—do you have a problem with that?" Gu Qianxi raised an eyebrow in return and responded with a plausible excuse.

Yan Ting sat down beside him, accepted the glass of wine handed to him, and downed it in one gulp. "Indeed, the pressure is immense!"

"What stress could you possibly have? You’re about to become the Huo Family’s heir. Isn’t everything at your beck and call?" Gu Qianxi sneered at him with a mocking smile.

But Yan Ting’s eyes betrayed a hint of sadness. He sipped his wine and replied in a voice several tones lower, "Power and status are every man’s pursuit, but life isn’t fulfilled merely by money and authority."

"True, it also takes a woman..." Gu Qianxi suddenly began to laugh, a laugh filled with mischief and implication.