Although Third Brother knew that Gu Ziling’s words were not trustworthy, it was still too overwhelming for him.

  Hu Ran could not sit still any longer. She moved forward and hugged him. “Third Brother…… Don’t be sad.”


  Third Brother smiled but his eyes were teary. “Eighth Brother was right. Maybe I can’t protect you, Xiao Ran.”


  “Then why don’t we back each other up? Hmm?” Hu Ran’s gaze was no longer innocent. She looked at him with a serious face.

  Third Brother looked at her. He was puzzled. But Hu Ran held his hands tightly and said, “Although I don’t know how your brother knows I am faking it, I still have to admit that he is a very clever man. No one has suspected me in the past two years, only your brother and your little sister-in-law.”


  “You……”


  “I faked it,” Hu Ran replied.

  Third Brother laughed. “So, you have been fooling everyone?”


  “Third Brother, listen to me. I pretend to be a fool because I have no choice. Otherwise, I would be dead a long time ago. Can you understand this? My stepmother had been trying to kill me all this time. She tried to poison me and even hired an assassin to hit my car to cause an accident to kill me. If I don’t pretend to be a fool, I would not be able to survive until now. Please forgive me.”


  Third Brother nodded. “I understand. So what now?”


  “You can use me. Use me to do things you want to achieve,” said Hu Ran, “Didn’t your brother ask you to contact him? You can use me as an excuse to go out and meet with him. To sort out your big plan.”


  Third Brother was a little shocked after hearing this. “Why are you telling me this? Aren’t you afraid that……”


  “I am married to you already. So I am a Sheng now. Even if my stepmother knew that I have recovered, it will not be easy for her to harm me. This is the reason I am willing to get married. I want to survive. Your brother was right. We have our own goals. If we want to achieve our goals, we must work together. Otherwise, losing our strength to fight will be a matter of time if things like this keep on happening. So, I decided to be honest with you. Do you want to work with me and change your life? I can’t stand seeing you being tortured like this anymore. Do you want to live in misery for your whole life? It was clearly not you and your parents’ fault. But in the end, you are the one to be blamed? Don’t you think such a life is too suffering?”


  Third Brother lowered his head helplessly. “Of course it is.”


  “If so, are you willing to change everything with me? I can help you to gain power in the Sheng family, and you can protect me until I get the woman out of the Hu family and see her get the punishment she deserves.”


  “Do you really trust me to have the ability to protect you?” Third Brother could not even trust himself.

  “I do!” Hu Ran answered sincerely. “I think your brother and your sister-in-law must have been wanting us to confess to each other for setting up the meeting yesterday.”


  “What about our marriage?”


  “If you don’t dislike me nor have a girl you like, why don’t we make it work? I have also never fallen in love with anyone. So, we can try to make it work. If we still cannot become a real husband and wife by then, we can just let go of each other. What do you think?”


  Hu Ran seemed to have done a lot of thinking.

  “How do you want to help me?”


  Hu Ran sat beside Third Brother. After a moment of silence, she said, “I have been observing the situation, I don’t think your relationship with your grandfather is really that bad. You just don’t want to give in to your grandfather. And with your Second Sister-in-law causing all the fuss, the misunderstandings between you and your grandfather are only getting more and more. If you really care for your parents and want to protect those who you think are important to you, why don’t you hold on to your revenge first? Maybe you will feel disgusted for every word you say and every smile you give to your enemies. I have endured it for two years myself. But I think for a man to get what he wants is more important. A revenge can wait until the time is right.”


  “Perhaps you are right.”


  “So, the first thing we have to do now is to get rid of Second Sister-in-law. Although it is her who passed the news to us, we have to let Grandfather know her motive behind her action. We have to stop Grandfather from being suspicious of you all the time.”


  Looking at Hu Ran’s face, she looked completely different from the one who pretended to be a fool.

  “It must have been very hard for you for these two years, hasn’t it?”


  “Yes. But nobody knows the truth, except your brother,” said Hu Ran, “I know you are worrying about your parents. You are worried that something bad might happen to them, or they are discovered by the Shengs. For this matter, I think you can seek help from your brother. Don’t you think it will be an advantage for us if your parents are not in the Sheng family?”


  “If my parents really fled, then I will have no more reasons to stay in the Sheng family.” He was only willing to marry Hu Ran because of his parents in the first place.

  Hu Ran was a little disappointed, but she was not angry. “I understand. If you really want to leave the Sheng family, I……”


  “But I don’t want to leave now. Didn’t you offer me your help? I will take your offer.”


  “Third Brother……”


  “I told you. Once I am married, I will take responsibility for my wife. What do you plan to do with Second Sister-in-law?”


  Hu Ran looked at Third Brother with a serious look. When she was sure that he was not joking with her, she whispered into his ears. “I will still act as a fool in front of them. We should not let another person know about the truth. Then we will not be exposed easily.”


  “I will go to your grandfather and complain to him. I will tell him about what Second Sister-in-law did.”


  “Then she might bully you.”


  “It is better if she does, because it will be easier for us to know her secret!” said Hu Ran, “In her eyes, I am just a fool. I only know how to make a joke out of myself.”


  Third Brother grabbed Hu Ran’s hands. “I couldn’t even believe myself when I told you that I will protect you, because I have nothing. But now, I will no longer be reluctant to do so. I can cooperate and act with you in any situation. Does this count as my protection for you?”


  “Yes!” Hu Ran nodded.

  But there is one thing I need to say. We can lie to the others, but we can’t lie to each other. Can you promise me that? Otherwise, I wouldn’t know the meaning of me staying in the Sheng family.”


  “I promise.” Hu Ran answered seriously. “But can you take care of me just the way you do to the foolish ‘Hu Ran’? I kind of like it when you are being patient with me.”