In the private room.
Only Gong Xiaoqiao and Gu Hangshen were left, and at this moment, Gu Hangshen hadn't put on his shirt, which made Gong Xiaoqiao feel that the atmosphere was strangely tense.
"Hey, if you're fine then I'm going back to work," she said.
Gong Xiaoqiao was just about to leave when Gu Hangshen grabbed her hand, "You dare go back there?"
"Why can't I go? I finally got a part-time job!"
"You're not allowed."
"Gu Hangshen, can you be reasonable? If I don't work, where will I get living expenses, where will my tuition come from!"
"Why didn't you tell me if you were short of money?"
"I don't want the Gong family's money, why would I want yours!"
"Anyways, you're not allowed."
"Gu Hangshen, what are you to me! You're overstepping! Even if you are my future brother-in-law, it's not the case yet! And even if it is, I won't acknowledge it!" Gong Xiaoqiao said impatiently.
"Why won't you acknowledge it?" Gu Hangshen surprisingly didn't get angry but just looked at her intently, his eyes unfathomably deep.
Gong Xiaoqiao felt her heart skip a beat under his gaze, "I... I don't even acknowledge my sister anymore, so why would I acknowledge a brother-in-law! Anyway, apart from Grandpa, I don't want to have anything to do with anyone from the Gong family."
It seemed as though something fell apart in Gu Hangshen's eyes.
"According to what you're saying, I'm not your brother-in-law right now, and I'm not a member of the Gong family either, so I can be involved. Moreover, entrusted by your grandfather, I have the right to oversee you. So, you're not allowed."
"What kind of messed up logic is that..." Gong Xiaoqiao couldn't help being exasperated, knowing he was being unreasonable but unable to find words to argue back.
So what if he's the guardian?
Gu Hangshen reached out and removed the annoying wig from her head, smoothing her hair, "If you want to talk about reason, I'll give you reason. There are many places to work part-time, why come to a place like this? Do you know how dangerous it is for a girl? If the person who asked you to accompany the customers today wasn't me but someone with bad intentions, what would you do?"
Gong Xiaoqiao mumbled, "Everyone else can come, why can't I. Besides, I'm a performing arts major, are you going to forbid me from entering the entertainment industry as well?"
"I disagreed with you studying that major from the start. As a girl, you could've studied painting, design, history, philosophy... The entertainment industry is not suitable for you..."
"Here we go again..." Gong Xiaoqiao said drearily, her head drooping.
History, philosophy? Did she look like someone with the potential to be a philosopher?
Every time Gu Hangshen reasoned with her like this, she felt like a daughter being lectured by her father.
Gong Xiaoqiao, who had never felt fatherly love since she was young, often quietly imagined him as her father.
She wondered if Gu Hangshen would go nuts if he knew...
"What? Do you find me nagging, do you mind me minding your business?"
Gu Hangshen's arm was resting on the back of the sofa behind her, making it look like he was holding her, and as he leaned in slightly, the movement seemed even more intimate.
In the dim light, his features appeared slightly effeminate and enchanting, his jet-black eyes shimmered with light as if they had fallen into the stars.
Gong Xiaoqiao felt as if she had been robbed of two and a half of her souls, and she stuttered, "No, not at all..."
"Go quit your job after this, okay?"
"Oh."
Gu Hangshen patted her head contentedly, "Good girl."
Gong Xiaoqiao felt like a little cat being soothed by her owner, and what was even more infuriating was that she could never resist this almost seductive comfort.
It was the same when she was little, as long as Gu Hangshen said, "Xiaoqiao is good, a good child..." no matter how aggrieved she was, she would hold back her tears.
If Gu Hangshen had been a few years older, she really would've suspected he was her real dad.