Zhou Ming couldn’t figure out how to introduce Gadelia. This was even harder than explaining to Jiang Jialie why he was with her in the first place.
“How am I going to die next? Drowning, burning, electrocution, poisoning, assassination, shooting, curses… Every method of death is beyond imagination!”
“Stop, stop! Why would I die? I haven’t committed theft, robbery, or fraud. I haven’t done anything illegal. I’m a law-abiding citizen, so of course nothing will happen to me.”
“Ha… hahaha.”
“Zhou Ming, don’t scare yourself.”
While Zhou Ming was still racking his brain trying to sort out his thoughts, on the other side, Gadelia had already begun introducing herself to Jiang Jialie.
“Hello, young lady. I’m Zhou Ming’s friend, Gadelia Roderigus. You must be Zhou Ming’s childhood friend, Jiang Jialie, right? Nice to meet you. Please take care of me.”
Gadelia gently patted Zhou Ming to bring him back to his senses, then looked down at Jiang Jialie.
She had long black hair, round eyes, fair skin, and was about 1.6 meters tall, giving off a very girlish vibe. Her cheeks were slightly round, her figure well-proportioned, and her chest still developing—probably only a B-cup, rising and falling faintly under her loose clothing.
‘She’s not much to look at—she’s only eighteen, she can still develop!’
“Gadelia, is it? Nice to meet you.” Jiang Jialie raised her voice and replied coldly.
“Zhou Ming, let’s go!”
Her clothes were already soaked with sweat, and there were a few old scratches on her cheeks, but Jiang Jialie didn’t care about any of that. She directly grabbed Zhou Ming and tried to pull him away from Gadelia.
“Wait!”
Zhou Ming stopped Jiang Jialie, turned her around to face him, took out a tissue from his pocket, and wiped the dirt off her face. Then he pinched her soft cheek and said helplessly,
“The problem isn’t solved yet! What about the girl who was kidnapped with you? Did you leave her alone out in the wilderness? Aren’t you going to explain the situation to me?”
“Mm—”
Jiang Jialie let out a soft hum, not refusing Zhou Ming’s actions, actually looking somewhat pleased. She also shot a provocative glance at Gadelia, as if claiming her territory.
Gadelia narrowed her eyes and curled the corners of her mouth slightly. She wasn’t someone who could be provoked easily.
“Zhou, stop arguing for now.”
Reminded by Gadelia, Zhou Ming quickly let go and turned to look at the girl who had been silent all along.
“What’s your name? How were you kidnapped?”
The girl secretly glanced at the gun at Zhou Ming’s waist, her hands hanging tightly in front of her, and answered tremblingly.
“I… My name is Xia Yang, 17 years old. I live at 402, 564 Jingbei Road, District 16, Yucheng…”
Zhou Ming looked at Gadelia with confusion—it seemed more like he was the kidnapper.
Gadelia gently patted Xia Yang’s shoulder. “We are Lantern Bearers. We have official credentials. You don’t need to be afraid.”
She suspected Zhou Ming had said something strange earlier that scared the little girl.
Zhou Ming understood her meaning, took out his credentials, and handed them to Xia Yang. “Can you trust us now?”
After confirming they were real, Xia Yang nodded vigorously and continued.
“My parents owed them money and never paid it back. They threatened me and made me… made me work for them. I tried to run away, but they caught me. When they were transferring me, I met your friend…”
She pointed at Jiang Jialie.
“She wanted to help me, but she got tied up too. Later they took her phone, forced it open, went through her contacts to find you, called for ransom, and then… you came to save us.”
Zhou Ming looked at Jiang Jialie. Seeing her nod, he relaxed. He pointed at the knocked-out kidnappers on the ground and said to Xia Yang,
“Today you were just shopping in District 16. You didn’t go anywhere, got it?”
Xia Yang nodded repeatedly.
Zhou Ming secretly felt proud—this line was just like a suspense movie.
But when he thought about Gadelia being right there, his face stiffened and he silently stepped away from her.
“Let’s go. Get in the car. Someone will handle this.” Gadelia didn’t mind his reaction. Everyone had their chuunibyou moments. She understood.
After driving Xia Yang back to District 16, Gadelia secretly used her ability to make her leave her contact information.
In her memories, Xia Yang was supposed to become one of Zhou Ming’s harem members. She could have ignored it, but after learning about her situation, Gadelia decided to use this incident to show Zhou Ming the value of her ability.
Yucheng University was also in District 16, so she decided to take Zhou Ming and Jiang Jialie back to school on the way.
“Zhou Ming, how did that woman meet you?” Jiang Jialie tugged at his sleeve and asked in a low voice.
“Gadelia… It’s a long story.” Zhou Ming still didn’t know how to explain.
“She came with you to save me, and then she said she’d take care of you… Does she live at your place?”
Gadelia observed Zhou Ming through the rearview mirror. Seeing that he didn’t answer, she simply said it for him.
“That’s right. He’s living with me now.”
“What?!”
Jiang Jialie’s voice shot up, and she grabbed Zhou Ming’s hand, shaking it incessantly.
“Ms. Roderigus, you’re so old. You must be seducing Zhou Ming!”
She glanced at Gadelia’s outfit—a loose sweater that just covered the tops of her thighs, black tights underneath, her figure curves faintly visible.
“Impossible! Zhou Ming can only be mine. No one can take him away!”
“Zhou Ming, have you confirmed your relationship with this young girl Jiang Jialie?” Gadelia asked calmly.
“I and Zhou Ming had an arranged marriage when we were kids. We’ll definitely get married in the future!” Jiang Jialie answered first.
“So, you haven’t officially confirmed the relationship yet.”
“Hmph! Anyway, you don’t stand a chance! I’ll confirm the relationship with him right now, and we’ll get married in a few years!”
Jiang Jialie tightly hugged the stunned Zhou Ming, her eyes seeming to burn with fire as she glared at Gadelia.
“In Yuerxia, polygamy hasn’t been completely banned. Even in big cities, it’s only been gradually restricted in recent decades.”
“And I happen to be a citizen of Yuerxia. According to current international law, as long as Zhou Ming is willing, he can ignore you and marry me.”
“You… You’re lying! I don’t believe you!”