Chapter 146: Are You Worried About Me?

As expected, Hou Jianming’s brows were so tightly knit that he could probably crush a fly between them.

He couldn’t be bothered to keep up the pretense anymore and got straight to the point. “Miss An, do you really not understand how I feel?”

An Nan looked puzzled. “What do you mean, Boss?”

Hou Jianming put on a look of deep affection. “I’m interested in you, Miss An. I want you to be the mistress of this base!”

An Nan sneered inwardly—Pfft! A man pushing forty, and he’s trying to act out a romance drama with her?

She feigned shock, taking a few steps back to put some distance between them. “Boss, how could you think that way? Does… the second-in-command know about this?”

She put on an innocent face, once again trying to sow discord.

Hou Jianming’s smile faltered. “Miss An, I’m talking about us. Why do you keep bringing up the second-in-command?”

He’d already dangled the tempting title of “base mistress,” so why did she keep harping on about Zhu Dazhuang?

Hou Jianming was starting to feel a bit resentful toward Zhu Dazhuang.

An Nan didn’t explain further about the second-in-command. Instead, she asked, “Aren’t you and Sister Susu a couple?”

Hou Jianming was taken aback, then replied righteously, “She’s just a concubine. You would be my official wife. How could she compare to you?”

“Official wife?”

Given his age, he should have been married already. An Nan shot back, “Boss, haven’t you ever been married?”

Hou Jianming coughed awkwardly.

He was already thirty-seven—claiming he’d never been married would be unrealistic.

So he told the truth. “I was married, but my wife died in the second month after the disaster hit. She didn’t even give me a child.”

An Nan cursed him inwardly. What a scumbag—so shamelessly so!

His wife hadn’t been gone long, and he was already living it up with beautiful women every day. Was it really his wife’s fault she hadn’t given him a child? None of the women he’d forced himself on at the base had gotten pregnant either.

Seeing her silent, Hou Jianming continued to make promises. “Don’t worry, a second marriage is still an official wife. Your status would be completely different from the other women. Look, I’m even planning to entrust all my assets to you.”

An Nan sneered inwardly.

Who’s he trying to fool? Being a warehouse manager is basically like being a bank clerk—you get to look, but you don’t get to touch.

Besides, even if he really gave her all his supplies, An Nan would never agree to be with him.

What a toad, dreaming of eating swan meat.

She’d heard Gu Zhiyu talk about Hou Jianming these past few days.

Before the apocalypse, he was just an ordinary office worker. After more than a decade of hard work, he’d finally become a deputy manager at a branch of the Gu Corporation—he’d never even met the big boss at headquarters.

Now, relying on a bit of cunning and borrowing Gu Zhiyu’s name, he’d set up a base and started dreaming of being emperor.

Not satisfied with power, he wanted a harem too?

An Nan was rolling her eyes so hard she could see the sky.

But on the surface, she remained calm. “Thank you for thinking so highly of me, Boss. This is all a bit sudden—I’ll need some time to think it over…”

Hou Jianming was overjoyed that she hadn’t rejected him outright. He reached out and put his hand on An Nan’s shoulder.

“Beautiful, how long do you need before you give me an answer?”

An Nan glanced at the greasy hand on her shoulder, her eyes turning cold. She stepped back to shake him off.

“After your birthday party.”

If you’re still alive by then, that is.

Hou Jianming was delighted to hear this—his birthday party was coming up soon.

He didn’t mind her dodging his touch and laughed heartily. “Great! I’ll be waiting for your good news.”

An Nan forced a smile, said goodbye, and turned to leave.

As she walked away, she glanced at her shoulder. Which hand had he used to touch her just now?

His right hand, she thought.

Wasn’t that the same hand he used for the warehouse fingerprint scanner?

She snorted coldly and strode out of the villa.

After passing through the iron gate, she saw a tall figure standing not far away. Dappled sunlight fell on his face, making it hard to see his expression clearly.

An Nan’s heart skipped a beat, and she hurried forward.

Gu Zhiyu stood motionless by the roadside, holding her dog, Fugui, by the leash.

It must have been fifty-five or fifty-six degrees out, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

An Nan walked closer. “What are you doing here?”

Gu Zhiyu didn’t answer, but asked instead, “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” An Nan replied, then asked again, “Why are you here?”

Gu Zhiyu pressed his lips together, saying nothing.

An Nan wanted to ask, “Is it because you were worried about me?”

But she felt there was no need to ask something so obvious.

So she just looked into his eyes. “How long have you been waiting here?”

Gu Zhiyu answered vaguely, “Not long.”

Beside them, Fugui quietly lifted his left front paw, then put it down, then lifted his right front paw.

Sister Nan, the ground’s burning my feet!

An Nan smiled, took the leash from Gu Zhiyu’s hand. “Let’s go home.”

He must have been standing here for a long time.

The two of them walked back side by side.

Gu Zhiyu, tall and broad-shouldered, walked on the sunny side, shielding her from much of the scorching sun.

An Nan glanced up at his handsome profile. “Want to have some mung bean soup when we get back?”

His cheeks were already sunburned.

Gu Zhiyu looked down at her, dazed for a moment, then nodded. “Okay.”

Then he asked, “What did Hou Jianming want with you?”

An Nan snorted. “To show off his wealth.”

Gu Zhiyu was taken aback. “Show off his wealth?”

An Nan chuckled. “Surprised?”

Gu Zhiyu had assumed Hou Jianming wanted something from her, but it turned out the guy just wanted to flaunt his ‘assets.’

She said mockingly, “He showed me his private stash in the villa and told me to think about whether I want to be his wife.”

She only mentioned the villa stash, not the fact that there was an entire warehouse.

Gu Zhiyu narrowed his eyes. “Wife?”

An Nan replied sarcastically, “His official wife, mind you. He said he also has concubines.”

She paused, then added, “He really thinks highly of himself—actually thinks he’s some kind of emperor.”

Gu Zhiyu scoffed, “His way of chasing women is to flaunt his wealth?”

An Nan couldn’t help but laugh.

Honestly, Hou Jianming was really showing off in front of the wrong people—between her and Gu Zhiyu, who didn’t have more supplies than him?

She teased, “If we’re talking about wealth, no one can beat you. President Gu, have you ever tried this trick to chase girls?”

Gu Zhiyu’s lips curled slightly. “Being rich isn’t much of an advantage. That’s not where my strengths lie.”

“Oh?” An Nan looked at him with interest. “Then what are your strengths, President Gu?”

Gu Zhiyu looked down at her. “What do you think?”

An Nan met his gaze, and suddenly the sunlight felt too hot, burning her cheeks.

She looked away and quickened her pace. “Let’s hurry back and have some mung bean soup.”

Gu Zhiyu smiled and quickly caught up with her."