The Mysterious Heiress: Researcher In Disguise

Li Nanli’s room was big.

He pushed the door open, and she saw that the room was painted in a clean mixture of black and white and seemed very tidy.

“You can use the bathroom I used just now. The water is ready, and you’re free to take a bath anytime you want,” Li Nanli said as he emerged from the bathroom. He was still wearing the white shirt, and the two buttons remained unfastened. Perhaps it was hot in the bathroom, as his neck and the tips of his ears were red. He grabbed a similar white shirt from his closet and said, “I don’t have any bathrobes, so you can wear my shirt for the time being.”

Fu Zhi did not notice anything at all as she took the shirt from Li Nanli’s hand. “Alright, I’m going to take a bath now. Don’t forget to bake a cake for me tomorrow.”

Li Nanli was quite surprised to see that she had not forgotten the things about her second brother. However, at the same time, he was relieved that she was just going to give him a cake only and nothing more.

Peeling his eyes away from her, he nudged his chin toward the bed and the black bed sheet and said, “Rest early.”

Fu Zhi went into the bathroom with Li Nanli’s shirt. Suddenly, she thought of something and stopped in her tracks. Turning her head around, she said, “Xiao Li.”

“Hmm?” Li Nanli looked at her.

“Have you been feeling too lonely recently?”

She pressed her lips tight as she tried her best not to accidentally hurt Li Nanli’s vulnerable heart. “Considering your physical condition, you should start a vegan diet and recite the holy names every day. Thinking too much will only add more damage to your already weakened body.”

Li Nanli was speechless.

Outside the villa, the rain continued to fall, creating a pitter-patter as it came in contact with the surface of the window. The noises of nature suddenly became loud and then soft, as if they were the crescendo and diminuendo of one vast, brilliant symphony. Li Nanli did not know what had gotten into his mind, but he swallowed the words that lingered on the tip of his tongue back into his stomach pit in the end. He went to take a bath towel from the closet and handed it to Fu Zhi.

“Okay, Aunt,” he answered, his voice sounding docile.

Fu Zhi nodded and went into the bathroom.

Li Nanli sat beside the bed and took a photo of the entire room, including Fu Zhi’s bag.

He checked the photo first before posting it in his WeChat Moments.

Very soon, Old Master Li video-called him. “You are still at the villa? Does the bag belong to Zhizhi?”

Old Master Li was now sitting in his study. He craned his neck as his eyes swiveled worriedly in their sockets. “You don’t have the WeChat numbers of those lunatics in the Fu Family, do you?”

Li Nanli replied to his questions one by one.

Tears immediately flowed out of his aged eyes when he heard what Li Nani had said. Then, he exposed his purpose for calling him. “Good, good, good. Judging by your progress, it won’t be long before you become the father of a son. After you marry Fu Zhi, make sure you treat her like a princess. You’ve always been a good grandson, but you have to do everything your wife says after you marry her. Then, when your wife passes away, you have to obey everything your son says. From the moment you tie the knot, your wife will be your sun, and you will revolve around her like the Earth. Make sure the Fu Family doesn’t find anything wrong with you and chase you back to the Li Family.”

Old Master Li made it look like he was giving away his daughter to some guy and was worried about her. As Li Nanli did not know how to reply, he received a Taobao link from his grandpa. “This ‘How To Become A Good Hubby’ book will teach you everything you need to know to capture the heart of your wife. Make sure you read through it and capture Zhizhi’s heart.”

Li Nanli did not want to talk to his grandfather anymore. After all, his main purpose for publishing the photo on his WeChat Moments was to show off to other people. He said, “I’m hanging up if you don’t have anything else to say.”

Upon seeing that his grandson was going to hang up, Old Master Li stopped fooling around and got down to business. “When are you coming back to the capital? That son of a swine from the Jiang Family is acting weird again. I heard that he’s going to develop some kind of black technology, and my people told me that he even invited Sheng Hua to his house…”

“I haven’t had time lately, but I’ll look into it when I do,” Li Nanli chimed in, cutting his grandfather’s words short.

There was an indifferent expression etched on his face, and it seemed like he was not interested at all. The Jiang Family was an elite family second only to the Li Family in terms of social status. However, unlike the Li Family, the Jiang Family was huge, and there were a lot of disputes going on with them. In fact, Jiang Jinshu was an outcast that had been disowned by his family.

Old Master Li knew that his grandson was busy courting the love of his life. Therefore, he reminded him of this again before hanging up.

After half an hour, Fu Zhi finished her bath and came out of the bathroom with the bath towel on her shoulder.

She was wearing a white shirt and her usual school trousers. The moment she sat on the bed, Li Nanli pulled her to him, trapping Fu Zhi in between his long arms as he said, “Let me help you dry your hair.”

Seeing how persistent he was, Fu Zhi had no other choice but to give the towel to him. He was tall, and she was sitting with her back facing him. She had no idea why, but she felt that the air in the room was particularly stuffy tonight.

Li Nanli pulled her closer to him so that her shoulders could rest on his chest. Then, he combed through her hair with his fingers gently as he dried her hair.

A few minutes later, Fu Zhi started to feel sleepy. She let out a yawn, found a comfortable position, and closed her eyes.

By the time Li Nanli realized it, she was already sleeping deeply. A grin hopped onto the corner of his lips as he gazed at the girl who was sleeping comfortably and soundly in his arms. Her eyelashes were long, and her face was delicate.

When Liu Mi appeared in the bedroom, he saw his boss staring fondly at Fu Zhi. He touched his nose awkwardly, and just as he was about to leave, Li Nanli turned his head toward him.

After he placed Fu Zhi on the bed, he walked out of the room and closed the door.

Pitching his voice low, Liu Mi said, “President Li, I was just notified that the young master of the Jiang Family has come to Yu City to look for Sheng Hua. Besides, Ms. Ouyang from the Ouyang Family has successfully cultivated the Valley Orchid that you want.”

Li Nanli nodded, his brows forming a cold frown. “Tomorrow, when you go to buy a cake for Lu Yushen, remember to pick the most bitter one.”

‘That’s not what I’m talking about.’

Liu Mi did not know what to say.

‘Besides, how bitter does the cake have to be? More bitter than your heart? He’s her brother, so how can you be jealous of him? You’re really such a dog.’

…

Fu Zhi had no idea how long she had been sleeping, but when she cracked her eyes open, the thunderstorm had still not let up.

She sat up on the bed, and the silk coverlet slid down her body. She scanned the room and saw Li Nanli sitting on the couch. His eyes were closed, and she was not sure if he was sleeping or not.

She pinched her nose and got up from the bed. She walked up to him and pushed his shoulder. Since she had just woken up, there were a few strands of hair sticking to her face.

When Li Nanli opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Fu Zhi’s face, which was dimly lit by the light beside him. She seemed as if she had not had enough sleep yet. Then, she pointed at the bed and said, “I will go sleep in the guest room. You—”

“Aunt!” he called out to her. Before she could do anything, he coiled his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder. Then, he said, “There’s thunder. I’m scared, so please stay with me.”

Fu Zhi, aka Aunt, fell silent.

*

The next day, Fu Zhi went to school after grabbing breakfast.

It was Wednesday, and the weather was cold. Every student in Class 21 gathered to discuss the news broadcasts and the hot topics on Weibo, but Fu Zhi was not interested.

She sat in her spot with her headphones on, watching a video on how to bake a cake.

“Zhizhi, you’ve been mentioned in the news and the hot topics on Weibo again thanks to Master Sheng Hua and Gu Yan.” Su Xing approached her, scratching her head. “But it’s strange. CCTV News only mentioned you and Master Sheng Hua, and Gu Yan was only mentioned on the hot topics on Weibo.”

Sheng Hua was the only researcher in their country who was often mentioned on the news and Weibo. He had mentioned that he was coming to meet a friend yesterday, and many people suspected that the person in question was Gu Yan.

Su Xing said, ‘”Because of this, Gu Yan’s fan base has increased tremendously. Today, I saw that even the young master from the Jiang Family in the capital has followed her on Weibo. She’s getting a lot of attention right now.”

Even though Su Xing was happy for Gu Yan, she still felt a little uncomfortable about it. “Well, Gu Yan is a nice girl, but her fans are so low quality-wise.”

They kept on slandering Fu Zhi on Weibo.