Chapter 96: The 2 Women Meet

Chapter 96: Chapter 96: The 2 Women Meet

「The next morning.」

After breakfast, Gu Heng and Jiang Ruan left the mountaintop villa and headed to the high-end fitness studio he was renting.

He had chosen to stay home yesterday for a reason.

Now that he had successfully convinced Jiang Ruan to stay by his side, it was natural to return to his normal routine.

Compared to his home gym, the high-end fitness studio was clearly better suited for Gu Heng to complete his daily training plan. Besides, all the advanced physical therapy equipment, like the liquid nitrogen cryotherapy chamber, was located at the studio.

"You drive."

As Gu Heng and Jiang Ruan walked out of the house, Gu Heng tossed the car keys directly to Jiang Ruan.

"Me?"

Jiang Ruan was taken aback.

"Who else?"

Gu Heng arched an eyebrow. "If the assistant doesn’t drive, is the boss supposed to?"

Jiang Ruan said in a low voice, "I can drive, but I should tell you upfront, I’m a new driver. I don’t have much experience behind the wheel."

"You’ll get the hang of it after a few times."

"And even if you crash it, the car has full coverage."

Gu Heng waved his hand dismissively.

"Alright."

Hearing Gu Heng say that, Jiang Ruan didn’t argue. ’I’ll just treat it as practice,’ she thought.

Without even realizing it, she was already starting to accept her role as Gu Heng’s personal assistant.

Jiang Ruan drove while Gu Heng sat in the back.

She drove a little slowly the whole way, but her driving was steady enough.

After they arrived at the high-end fitness studio, Gu Heng changed and began his workout. He didn’t let Jiang Ruan stay idle, either, having her change into workout clothes and act as his training assistant.

The deep blue yoga pants accentuated the slender length of Jiang Ruan’s beautiful legs.

Seeing her standing there, so full of life, certainly added a splash of color to Gu Heng’s otherwise tedious workout.

Yesterday, Gu Heng’s strength training was based around HIIT, but today, it focused mainly on explosive power.

His routine ranged from medicine ball exercises like squat throws, rotational slams, and leg raises, to box jump drills like rotational jumps, step-overs, and split-leg jumps.

In addition, he incorporated various machine-based exercises.

Although Jiang Ruan was his "training assistant," the role mainly involved standing by, handing Gu Heng water or a towel from time to time, not actually working out with him.

Yesterday, Jiang Ruan had only caught the very end of Gu Heng’s battle rope session, so it hadn’t left much of an impression on her.

It wasn’t until today that she truly witnessed the sheer intensity of Gu Heng’s fitness regimen. And this was just his morning session; there would be similarly high-intensity workouts in the afternoon and evening.

Watching Gu Heng, his face flushed and his jaw clenched with effort, Jiang Ruan was suddenly reminded of the first time she had ever met him. His determination then was exactly the same as it was now.

If he said he’d lose weight, he lost weight.

If he said he’d get in shape, he got in shape.

His astonishing efficiency and follow-through were so impressive that, even though she still considered Gu Heng a despicable, shameless scumbag, she couldn’t help but feel a genuine sense of admiration.

"HUFF..."

After finishing his last set of landmine presses, Gu Heng’s face was a little pale.

As his chest heaved violently, the team of experts who had been standing by immediately swarmed around him, each performing their specific, well-defined roles.

"Supplements..."

Gu Heng glanced at Jiang Ruan, his voice slightly hoarse.

"Here."

At his word, Jiang Ruan quickly grabbed the supplement the nutritionist had given her earlier—a shake with whey protein isolate—and hurried over to hand it to Gu Heng.

After about five minutes, Gu Heng’s heart rate and breathing returned to normal.

"Let’s go."

"Time to eat."

A hint of fatigue showed on Gu Heng’s face. He said this to Jiang Ruan before leading the way out of the gym.

Hearing this, Jiang Ruan silently followed behind Gu Heng.

Naturally, the high-end fitness studio had its own private nutritional restaurant.

It wasn’t very large, but it was fully equipped.

As Gu Heng, flanked by his entourage, slowly entered the restaurant, the first person he saw was Luo Xiwen, sitting by the window.

She was wearing an apricot-colored blazer dress with a stylish, side-buttoned belt. The overall look was formal yet approachable, not overly stern.

Her jet-black hair was coiled neatly at the back of her head, her makeup was exquisite, and her posture was elegant and poised.

Just as Gu Heng looked toward Luo Xiwen, she looked back at him, a smile naturally blossoming on her stunning face.

"Gu Heng, you’re done with your workout."

Luo Xiwen stood up and walked over to greet him.

"Just finished."

Gu Heng nodded and asked with a smile, "When did you get here?"

"I..."

Luo Xiwen was about to answer, but she paused, the words catching in her throat as she saw Jiang Ruan behind Gu Heng.

At the same time, Jiang Ruan saw Luo Xiwen.

Their eyes met, and both women recognized each other.

After all, it was only natural for them to remember each other, as both were masterpieces crafted by Lady Nuwa to show off her divine skill.

"I just got here, not even ten minutes ago."

Luo Xiwen gave Jiang Ruan a deep look before turning her gaze back to Gu Heng to answer.

"Have you had lunch?"

"Not yet."

"Then let’s eat together."

"Okay."

Standing between them, Gu Heng naturally sensed the frequent glances the two women exchanged. He didn’t see any reason to be awkward about it and made the introductions forthrightly. "Xi Wen, this is Jiang Ruan. She’ll be my personal assistant from now on."

"Jiang Ruan, this is Luo Xiwen."

"She’s my exclusive client manager at China Merchants Private Bank. You could also call her my private secretary."

Gu Heng gave them a simple introduction. "Your work might overlap in the future, so you two should get acquainted. Feel free to contact each other if anything comes up."

’Personal assistant?’

A flicker of something passed through Luo Xiwen’s eyes. Then she smiled and proactively extended her right hand to Jiang Ruan. "It’s a pleasure to meet you. Let’s keep in touch."

"Likewise."

Jiang Ruan looked at the poised, radiant woman before her. Staring at Luo Xiwen’s impressive figure—slender yet buxom—she felt an inexplicable pang of insecurity.

’Hold on...’

’She wasn’t this... well-endowed last time we met, was she?’

’Could it be padding? Is she a fraud?’

Jiang Ruan stewed in her thoughts, secretly observing Luo Xiwen’s expression.

Although Luo Xiwen acted perfectly poised and gracious, Jiang Ruan’s keen female intuition told her that something about the other woman was off.

"So, Xi Wen, did you come looking for me for a reason today?"

After the introductions, Gu Heng casually placed a hand on the small of Luo Xiwen’s back and guided her toward the table by the window.

"Just a small thing."

Feeling Gu Heng’s intimate gesture and seeing that his attention seemed to be entirely on her, the sense of crisis and tension that Luo Xiwen had felt at Jiang Ruan’s sudden appearance vanished in an instant.

Hearing her reply, Gu Heng knew exactly what she meant.

’Obviously, the "small thing" was just an excuse. She just missed me.’

Compared to Xu Mo’s overt displays of affection, Luo Xiwen was far more reserved.

At that moment, Luo Xiwen’s heart felt as sweet as honey, but Jiang Ruan was feeling the complete opposite.

Jiang Ruan watched as Gu Heng walked off with Luo Xiwen without giving her a second glance. The table they chose clearly had no room for her, and an unexpected sense of disappointment washed over her.

It’s human nature not to worry about having little, but to worry about having less than others.

Jiang Ruan watched the two of them talking and laughing, then silently walked to a more secluded corner, sat down, and began to eat her lunch.

For some reason, today’s lunch tasted inexplicably bitter...