Chapter 242 – Report to the CEO: Madam Has Run Away Again – Bastard (05)
Bai Tang originally thought going down just one floor would be enough, so he took the stairs.
He pushed open the door to the emergency exit. The lights were off inside, and the electronic devices in the office emitted a faint green glow.
The restroom was at the very end of the corridor, and to get to it, he had to walk through the hallway.
Bai Tang glanced inside. The dark corridor looked like a man-eating monster with its mouth wide open, waiting for its prey to approach.
He swallowed hard, thinking it would be safer to go to a floor with the lights on.
Bai Tang shut the door and went down another floor.
He opened the emergency exit door—dark again. He shut it and kept going.
He went down like this for fifteen floors until he finally found a lit hallway on the twentieth floor.
He let out a breath of relief and quickly walked toward the restroom.
Gu Yan didn’t know which floor Bai Tang had gone to, so he took the elevator and searched floor by floor.
After taking care of business, Bai Tang stood in front of the mirror, looking at his reflection with a bitter smile.
So what if he was good-looking? The male lead had broken up with him anyway.
He placed his hands under the faucet, and the sensor-activated tap turned on automatically.
Bai Tang scooped up water and splashed it on his face. He patted his cheeks and said to his somewhat disheveled reflection in the mirror, “Stop thinking about it. Just focus on the mission, earn energy, and help Qiu’er and Xiao A level up.”
Xiao A was deeply moved. Even in a situation like this, the host could still think of him. Among all the hosts he had been bound to, most would become emotionally entangled after doing missions for a while, rarely thinking about anything else.
Suddenly, the spotlight on the bathroom ceiling flickered, accompanied by a faint buzzing sound.
Bai Tang looked up, and at that moment, the outer door was slammed shut by the wind with a loud bang.
The spotlight above continued to flicker, then with a final pop, everything went pitch black.
Bai Tang was terrified of the dark. In the darkness, it felt as though countless demons and monsters were creeping toward him, baring their fangs and claws.
Bai Tang was panicking and couldn’t tell which direction to run. His arm knocked over the bottle of hand soap. As he turned to flee, his foot stepped on the bottle, throwing off his balance, and he fell heavily to the floor.
His arm scraped against the ground, tearing the skin.
The pain brought tears to Bai Tang’s eyes instantly.
His vision blurred with tears, but the green glow of the emergency exit sign shone faintly in the darkness.
He was both scared and in pain, struggling to get up. The sharp ache in his knees made it impossible to stand.
“Wuwuwu~~~”
Bai Tang crawled toward the door, only to find it had been slammed shut by the wind earlier—and couldn’t be opened from the inside.
Gu Yan, frustrated by the slow elevator, had switched to the stairs after running up a few floors.
When he reached the twentieth floor, the emergency exit door was ajar, but the corridor beyond was pitch black.
Standing where the wind from the hallway flowed through, he could faintly hear intermittent whimpering mixed with the sound of the wind.
Following the sound, Gu Yan pushed open the restroom door and saw a figure curled up in the corner—like a wounded little animal. The whimpering was definitely coming from there.
“Tang Tang?”
Bai Tang heard someone call his name. He had just lifted his head when, before he could even see who it was, he fell into a warm embrace.
“I found you.”
The deep male voice was filled with exhaustion, yet firm and steady.
“Ah Yan…”
The young man opened his mouth in disbelief.
“It’s me. I’m here.” Gu Yan held his precious one, lost and now found, and kissed the youth’s forehead through his tousled hair.
He carried Bai Tang in his arms and brought him back to the thirty-fifth floor. Everyone watched in shock as their CEO walked into the office carrying a disheveled young man.
“Yao Yao, am I seeing things, or did the CEO just carry your brother inside?” Meili poked Sha Yao’s arm in disbelief.
Sha Yao’s eyes blazed with fury. That scumbag—could he really still want to toy with Tang Tang’s feelings?
She stormed into the office, brimming with murderous intent, the others following closely behind.
Gu Yan carefully placed the young man on the sofa. The wide, soft cushions sank under his weight, making Bai Tang look even smaller and more delicate.
Under the bright light, Gu Yan could clearly see the various scrapes and bruises on Bai Tang’s body. Some were minor, just broken skin, while others were already scabbing over.
The injuries weren’t exactly serious, but they looked shocking all the same.
Sha Yao entered the office, ready to demand what exactly Gu Yan intended to do. But the moment her gaze landed on Bai Tang, she gasped in alarm.
“Tang Tang, what happened to you? Did he hit you?!”
She rushed forward to push Gu Yan away, but he didn’t budge an inch.
“Lingxue~” Bai Tang spoke softly, “I’m okay.”
He glanced at Gu Yan, who was looking at him with deep concern.
“Ah Yan didn’t hit me.”
On the contrary, it was Gu Yan who had rescued him.
At the Gu Group, each floor’s power supply operated independently. Tonight, since everyone had left early, the maintenance crew was working in the building’s electrical room. The strong winds had caused unexpected disruptions. No one anticipated it would scare Bai Tang and cause this whole misunderstanding, let alone lead to him getting hurt.
Sha Yao reached out, wanting to touch Bai Tang but afraid of hurting him.
“How did it end up like this…”
“I’ll take you to the hospital,” Gu Yan said. Though he knew the young man didn’t like hospitals, he couldn’t ignore the injuries. Seeing those bruises and scrapes made him wish he could take the pain himself.
“No~” Bai Tang shook his head. He could actually heal on his own and didn’t want to go to the hospital.
Hearing his refusal, Gu Yan silently stood up. Sha Yao took the opportunity to crouch in front of Bai Tang.
“Tang Tang, be good, let’s go to the hospital, okay?” she said anxiously.
Before long, Gu Yan returned with a first aid kit.
Since Bai Tang didn’t want to go to the hospital, they had no choice but to treat the wounds here.
Gu Yan opened the kit and took out iodine, cotton swabs, and other supplies.
“I’ll do it,” Sha Yao said to Gu Yan.
“Move aside.” Gu Yan’s expression darkened—he didn’t want to argue with a woman.
“Hey, be reasonable!” Sha Yao snapped, arms akimbo. “If it weren’t for you, would Tang Tang be like this right now?”
Her words hit Gu Yan like a knife. If only he had agreed to meet Bai Tang back then, listened to his explanation, maybe… maybe they would’ve already been together.
He would’ve taken good care of Tang Tang—never let him get hurt like this.
Sha Yao snatched the supplies from Gu Yan’s hands and unscrewed the iodine cap.
“This is going to sting a bit, okay? Bear with it.”
“Mm-hmm~” Bai Tang nodded softly.
Sha Yao gently disinfected and treated Bai Tang’s wounds, while Gu Yan and Bai Tang exchanged a look.
Bai Tang stared at Gu Yan, and his eyes slowly turned red.
Then he lowered his head, refusing to meet his gaze.
“Does it hurt a lot?” Sha Yao wiped away the tear that had fallen onto the back of her hand from the young man.
He was crying from the pain—it had to hurt terribly.
“N-no… it doesn’t hurt…” Bai Tang sobbed.
Xiao A was full of guilt. Back in the restroom, he had turned away for just a moment to look through the notes Qiu’er had left him, hoping to find a way to comfort his host—and in that brief time, Bai Tang had gotten hurt.
He knew Bai Tang was most afraid of pain. So, while Sha Yao was tending to the wounds, he had temporarily blocked Bai Tang’s sense of pain.
Gu Yan dialed a number.
Not long after, Assistant Jin appeared at the door of the CEO’s office, holding a bag.
“Excuse me, coming through.” Assistant Jin adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and spoke to the four people crouched by the door.
The four eavesdroppers quickly straightened up and moved aside to let him in.
“President, here’s what you asked for.”
Gu Yan took the bag from Assistant Jin and pulled out towels, clothes, and other items.
Sha Yao had just finished applying the medicine and turned around—immediately noticing the clothes in Gu Yan’s hands. It was obvious they matched Bai Tang’s preferred style.
“Give them to me,” Sha Yao said.
Gu Yan glanced at her. “You’re going to help Tang Tang change clothes?”
“Why wouldn’t I—” She suddenly realized that Bai Tang was a boy, and she was a girl. It wouldn’t be appropriate for her to help him change.
“Tang Tang can change by himself,” she said, unwilling to back down.
Gu Yan didn’t respond. Bai Tang tugged on the hem of Sha Yao’s shirt.
“Lingxue…”
Seeing Bai Tang’s pitiful state, Sha Yao hesitated. She had just applied the medicine herself—she knew the worst injuries were on his elbows and knees. He probably couldn’t even lift his arms properly. How could he change clothes on his own?
Gu Yan stepped past Sha Yao and walked to the sofa.
With a gentle tone, he said to Bai Tang, “It’s not convenient here. Let me take you to the lounge to change, okay?”
“Mm~” The nasal-toned reply was like a cat teaser toy—making everyone in the room feel a tickle in their hearts.
Gu Yan lifted the young man into his arms and carried him bridal-style, passing by Sha Yao and Assistant Jin as he headed toward the lounge.
Click—the lounge door shut behind them, leaving Sha Yao and Assistant Jin staring at each other in silence.
The four eavesdroppers from earlier walked in from the doorway.
Meili asked curiously, “Yao Yao, does President Gu know your brother?”
From the looks of it, they seemed quite close.
“No relationship,” Sha Yao replied curtly.
Why was Tang Tang still not out yet? Was Gu Yan bullying him in there?
…
Inside the lounge.
Bai Tang sat on the bed, facing Gu Yan in awkward silence.
Before seeing him, Gu Yan had imagined a thousand ways they might reunite—what he would say when he finally found the young man. But now that they were truly face to face, words failed him.
The young man’s eyes were red, like a little rabbit.
After a long silence, Gu Yan finally broke it.
“I’m sorry.”
Bai Tang bit his lower lip. Faced with Gu Yan’s apology, he didn’t know how to respond.
“Don’t cry. It was my fault. Will you give me another chance?” Gu Yan gently cupped Bai Tang’s face, wiping away his tears with his fingers.
“You… you said you wanted to cut ties with me…” the young man sobbed softly.
“I didn’t sign the papers. We’re still engaged.” Gu Yan pulled out the document from the bedside drawer—the one that only had Bai Tang’s signature on it.
The space for both names held only Bai Tang’s, and it was stained with tears, the writing blurred and smudged. Even if Gu Yan were to sign it now, it would no longer be valid.
Right in front of Bai Tang, Gu Yan tore the document to shreds.
“I’m a bastard.”
Shreds of paper fluttered through the air like snow. Bai Tang looked at the determination on Gu Yan’s face.
“Because of the Bai family, I took out my anger on you. I left you alone in that villa for three years, never once checking in. I even forced you out… I was a bastard. There’s no denying that.”
As he spoke, Gu Yan suddenly slapped himself hard across the face. The sharp sound of the slap startled Bai Tang.
He immediately grabbed Gu Yan’s hand, watching as the skin on his face visibly swelled and reddened.
“Does it hurt…” Bai Tang’s eyes filled with tears.
Gu Yan gripped Bai Tang’s hand tightly.
“But that day, I heard you crying… and I regretted it so much. I didn’t answer your call. You might not believe me, but the moment I heard your voice, I knew—you were the one I wanted to spend my life with. But then, I lost you. Heaven must have taken pity on me and let you appear before me again. Tang Tang, if I could turn back time, I would never have made that choice. Can you give me one more chance?”
“You… you bastard…”
Gu Yan’s heartfelt confession broke Bai Tang down in tears. He buried his face in Gu Yan’s chest.
So he hadn’t abandoned him. He hadn’t abandoned him after all.
All the frustration and heartbreak he had been holding in for days came pouring out. Bai Tang couldn’t stop crying, his tears falling one by one onto Gu Yan’s chest, each drop stinging like fire.
“Wuwuwu~~~”
“I’m a bastard.”
“You… you really are…”
“Baby, forgive me.”
“I love you. It was love at first sound.”
Author’s Note:
Today was officially my first day back at work. But a new case appeared in our office building, so we were forced to relocate to a new, much farther office. The commute now takes 1.5 times longer than usual (I can’t breathe 😩). I’m so worried I won’t be able to update in time—I don’t even have a backlog of chapters saved! I snuck in some writing during work today and managed to get this done. I still haven’t written for the “roomie” next door, and who knows what time I’ll get home tonight. (Life is too hard.)
I have to transfer subway lines—it’s over an hour on the train. Honestly, I’m really scared.
PS: I want to post extra updates too, but I just don’t have the time. This weekend, I should have a break, so if nothing unexpected comes up, I might be able to do bonus chapters then~ (Fan love~ ❤️)