Are you suggesting I inherit three wives' households? I'll marry my eldest brother and bec

Chapter 277 Are you... alright?

Seeing that Lu Zhou hadn't gotten up for a while, Shen Li couldn't help but wonder—she hadn't hit him hard just now, it was just a test, could she have really hurt him?

She bent down closer, examining Lu Zhou's face, her voice tinged with uncertainty: "Are you... alright?"

Lu Zhou remained hunched over, saying nothing.

Just as Shen Li was about to take two more steps forward, her wrist was suddenly gripped by a force, and the next second she was pulled into his arms and held tightly.

"Sister Li always hits me, but why does she never hit my older brothers?" Lu Zhou rested his chin on the top of her head, his tone full of grievance and a hint of deliberate coquetry.

Shen Li took a deep breath and tried to push him away: "Your older brothers aren't as mischievous as you."

"Mom said, 'Spare the rod and spoil the child,'" Lu Zhou said, tightening his grip on her arm. "Does Sister Li think I'm any different?"

Shen Li couldn't help but roll her eyes and said irritably, "There are different situations when it comes to hitting someone. You're just asking for trouble, you're not really a relative."

She looked up at the handsome face so close to hers, her voice heavy: "Let go."

"I won't let go," Lu Zhou shook his head like a rattle-drum, "You took advantage of me and now you want to deny it? How can you be so heartless and ungrateful?"

Shen Li: "..."

"Let me go first, let's talk this out, okay?" She softened her tone.

"No," Lu Zhou insisted, "If I let you go, you'll disappear all day long, and I won't be able to find you anywhere."

Shen Li was utterly speechless: "Big brother... I've really been busy these past few days!"

"I'm not your older brother, I'm your younger brother," Lu Zhou corrected him seriously.

Shen Li thought to himself: Is this even the point?

"The gate is still open. It would be bad if someone saw us." She tried to reason with them.

The bastard simply picked her up, moved two steps towards the door, slammed the door shut with a "bang," and whispered a soft laugh in her ear, "Now no one can see."

Shen Li looked up at the sky, about to get angry and raise her hand, when she heard Lu Zhou say slowly, "Go ahead and hit me, but remember to take responsibility after you're done."

The raised hand froze in mid-air, ultimately failing to fall.

How come she never noticed before that the third brother was so shameless?

Then he went even further: "Do you know how precious a boy's virginity is? You just took it away like that, and you don't even want to take responsibility. Aren't you a scumbag...?"

Shen Li listened as he recounted his "crimes," and if it weren't for the vague memories of that night, she would have almost believed his lies.

She might have been more proactive in the first half, but later on, this bastard clearly enjoyed it and wasn't willing to give up.

Thinking about my back, it's still aching. It's hard to say who really benefited.

"Beep beep beep— Beep beep beep—"

The phone suddenly rang urgently.

Shen Li patted the hands wrapped around her waist: "Let go, I'm going to connect the power..."

Before he could finish speaking, Lu Zhou bent down and scooped her up in his arms, carrying her in a princess carry towards the phone. He gently lowered her down when they reached it, holding her securely in his embrace, his chin resting on the top of her head: "Go ahead and answer it."

Shen Li: "..."

The phone rang for ages, I can't just ignore it forever, oh well, I'll deal with him properly later.

"Feed..."

"Lili..."

When Shen Li heard her second brother Lu Cheng's voice on the other end of the phone, her eyes lit up, and her tone softened instantly, filled with a hint of excitement: "Second brother! I miss you."

"Yes, your second brother misses you too."

A brief silence fell between them, the only sound in the air being their breathing.

After a long while, the two spoke at the same time:

"two……"

"I heard..."

"You go first." They said in unison once again.

Lu Cheng hesitated for a moment before speaking first: "Third brother said you're not taking responsibility for him?"

Shen Li suddenly turned to look at Lu Zhou beside her, her eyes filled with shock—this bastard actually dared to tattle?

She immediately felt ashamed. The phone was quite loud, and Lu Zhou could hear it clearly from the side.

Shen Li was furious and reached out to pinch his waist hard.

"Hiss—" Lu Zhou gasped, quickly grabbed her hand, and mouthed to her, "Sister Li, I was wrong."

"Lili... what's wrong?" Lu Cheng asked with concern when he heard the noise on the other end of the phone.

Shen Li then came to her senses and said somewhat awkwardly into the phone, "It's okay, it's okay, Second Brother, I... I was wrong."

"You did nothing wrong." Lu Cheng quickly interrupted her.

In a gentle tone, she said, "I heard the whole story from Lu Zhou. To be honest, my eldest brother and I are both willing to accept Lao San. Although we can't contact my eldest brother right now, I know what he's thinking—we're both not by your side, so we'll feel more at ease knowing that Lao San is with you. Don't blame yourself."

Shen Li's nose tingled, and her eyes instantly reddened.

How could my second brother be so good?

Even though he was the one carrying a burden, he still made a special phone call to comfort her.

Lu Cheng, who was on the other end of the phone, was actually feeling bad too.

He couldn't help but feel a lingering fear when he thought about what had happened—thankfully, it was his third brother who was by her side; if it had been someone else, he probably would have hated himself to death. If he had been by Lili's side, she wouldn't have suffered those things.

"Lili, I really want to come back to you." Lu Cheng's voice was a little hoarse, and he couldn't hide his sadness.

He dared not think too deeply about what would happen if Lili were to get into trouble while none of his brothers were around.

How helpless she must have felt.

Thinking about all this, Lu Cheng felt as if his heart was being cut by a dull knife, and he was in great pain.

So when he learned that Lili and Lao San had a relationship, he felt mostly relieved.

Even if it were Ming Xiangyang, he would have to accept it—at least Ming Xiangyang truly loved Lili, which was better than her being bullied by someone with ill intentions.

Let alone if it actually happened, just thinking about the possibility made him feel suffocated.

Shen Li took a deep breath, suppressing the sob in her throat, and comforted him over the phone, "Second brother, don't worry. My eldest brother from my mother's side arranged for ten skilled bodyguards for me early this morning. Don't worry, I have protective gear, I'll be fine."

"But I still can't put my mind at ease." Lu Cheng's voice was full of concern.

Shen Li patiently comforted him for a while, telling him to focus on his career. The two then talked about work-related matters—the land Pengcheng had previously purchased had already started construction, and Lu Cheng had purchased another piece of land, planning to build an electronics research institute.

After hanging up the phone, Lu Zhou gently wiped away Shen Li's tears, his voice low and tender: "I'm sorry..."

He shouldn't have told his second brother; it hurt her feelings.

Shen Li turned to look at him, her eyes filled with inquiry: "Have you told Mom about this?"

Lu Zhou shook his head: "No, but Xiao Nan should know."

"Okay, don't get involved in this. I'll talk to Mom myself."

"Okay." Lu Zhou's eyes lit up instantly. Sister Li's words clearly meant she agreed to their plan!