“Fu Yanchi, you’re burning bridges after crossing the river.”
“Zhuang Bo, who gave you the guts to add Sister Mianmian on WeChat?” Fu Yanchi’s eyes were filled with warning.
“Don’t you dare get any wrong ideas about her.”
Zhuang Bo shrugged: “If I don’t add her on WeChat, how can I contact her? And you insist on keeping it from her, not letting her know you’re helping her behind the scenes.”
As he spoke, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, “But don’t worry, I’m not like you, coveting your brother’s girlfriend.”
“So what? My brother doesn’t deserve Sister Mianmian.”
“True, your Sister Mianmian is so beautiful. He doesn’t know how to cherish her and insists on finding some older woman—really, what kind of taste is that?”
Zhuang Bo shook his head repeatedly as he spoke.
Fu Yanchi cast a disdainful glance around the room, “I told you to set up a detective agency, and this is what you prepared in one night?”
“This is already the absolute limit of what I could manage after getting up in the middle of the night and spending four hours on it.”
Zhuang Bo took off his hat and leaned his face toward Fu Yanchi.
“My dear young master, look at these dark circles under my eyes. And you, having a top-tier hacker like me do detective work, investigating her boyfriend and that mistress—if word gets out in our circle, I’d probably be laughed out of town.”
“Because you’re the Infiltrator.”
“Oh, thank you so much. It’s because my skills are top-notch, okay?”
Zhuang Bo emphasized it once, then couldn’t resist putting him down.
“Your brother having a brother like you is truly his sorrow.”
“Having a brother like him is also a disgrace to me.”
A low, icy voice escaped his thin lips, his narrow eyes filled with gloom.
“So, how are you going to thank me?” Seeing his obsessive intensity about to erupt, Zhuang Bo quickly changed the subject.
“See you tonight at Glitter Bar.”
With those words, Fu Yanchi had already stood up and walked out.
Luo Yunmian sat alone in a corner of the room, her gaze fixed blankly on her contact list as her finger slowly scrolled down. The cold light of the screen reflected off her pale face.
A flicker of loneliness passed through her eyes—in the six years since coming to Hong Kong, her circle of friends had become so sparse.
Memories of the past flashed through her mind like slides.
For these six years, she had stayed in Hong Kong because she fell in love with Fu Tingshen after arriving, leaving behind the familiar Beijing where she used to live.
Every part of her life revolved around Fu Tingshen. To win his favor, she did everything to cater to his preferences.
She remembered once wearing a qipao, standing before Fu Tingshen, her eyes full of anticipation. But Fu Tingshen only gave her a casual glance and said indifferently,
“This qipao looks nice, but it’s too flashy. I don’t really like it.”
From then on, Luo Yunmian’s wardrobe was filled with dark-colored professional attire.
She pulled open the wardrobe door, looking at the neatly stacked, lifeless work clothes. The corners of her mouth lifted slightly into a bitter smile.
“Hah…”
What had she turned herself into over these years!
She turned and opened the adjacent wardrobe door, where rows of custom-made qipaos came into view. Each one had been lovingly collected by her grandmother.
Luo Yunmian’s eyes reddened. With a bitter smile, she picked out a qipao, changed into it, and carefully adjusted the outfit.
Standing before the mirror, she gazed at the somewhat unfamiliar reflection. The confident, graceful image of her past self in a qipao had grown somewhat hazy.
She let out a soft sigh, loosened her hair, letting her seaweed-like curls cascade down. Picking up a lipstick, she carefully applied it while facing the mirror.
Glitter Bar.
The bar was decorated in dark tones, with an exceptionally high ceiling. Looking up, one could see a rotating hourglass decoration on the ceiling, symbolizing the passage of time.
When Luo Yunmian entered, especially after she removed her windbreaker, she drew quite a few gazes.
A high-collared ink-wash cheongsam made her look as if she had stepped out of a painting from the Republican era. The cheongsam hugged her figure snugly, accentuating her curves—full in the front and rounded in the back.
Her waist was slender, as if one could wrap a hand around it; her chest was ample, revealing nothing yet all the more enticing; the slit at the hem offered glimpses of her jade-like legs. From behind, her hips were pert and swayed gracefully as she walked, fully embodying the soft, sensual charm of an Eastern woman—truly eye-catching.
Especially with her delicate features paired with waist-length hair and the innocent look in her eyes, she appeared both pure and alluring.
She found a seat on the terrace and ordered a bottle of red wine.
On this evening as the city lights began to glow, the sparkling lights and the shimmering waters of Victoria Harbour complemented each other, while passing boats traced elegant lines across the sea’s surface.
Luo Yunmian breathed in the gentle sea breeze, admiring the intoxicating view of Victoria Harbour. She felt a sense of clarity and openness—in the past, her eyes had seen nothing but Fu Tingshen along the way, causing her to miss too much of the scenery.
A beauty sipping red wine in a bar always easily attracts men with ulterior motives, especially one dressed in an eye-catching cheongsam.
Luo Yunmian’s love for cheongsams stemmed from her grandmother.
In her heart, only a woman in a cheongsam could truly showcase the unique gentle charm of an Eastern woman.
In the past, whenever she attended important occasions with her parents, she would always wear a cheongsam.
The form-fitting cheongsam outlined her graceful figure, especially her slender waist, which captivated many men at banquets, all vying for her contact information.
Thus, a saying spread in the capital: “Luo Yunmian’s waist is soft, and her cheongsam makes countless men willing to bow for her.”
Today, Luo Yunmian’s appearance in a cheongsam might largely be due to Fu Tingshen’s hurtful remark, “She’s just a tool.”
Deep down, she harbored a simmering frustration, wondering how she could be so worthless as to be reduced to merely a tool.
Sure enough, a well-dressed man in a suit approached with a hint of nervousness and anticipation. He bowed slightly and asked politely, “May I buy you a drink?”
Luo Yunmian gently swirled her wine glass, then lifted her gaze. Her almond-shaped eyes, shimmering with a subtle glow, turned to the man before her.
With just that one glance, the man felt as if a feather had lightly brushed against his heart, sending a slight tremor through him.
Luo Yunmian parted her vermilion lips, her voice carrying a touch of nonchalance yet an undeniable allure.
“Trying to pick me up?”
Straight to the point. The man clearly hadn’t expected her to be so direct. He took a bottle of red wine and sat down opposite her.
Luo Yunmian glanced at it—an ’82 Lafite. Another prodigal rich second-generation, it seemed.
They clinked glasses. Perhaps due to the wine, a blush spread across Luo Yunmian’s cheeks. Even the evening breeze seemed particularly fond of her, gently brushing past and playfully loosening a few strands of hair from behind her ears, letting them sway softly in the wind.
When Fu Yanchi stepped out of the private room, his gaze inadvertently fell upon this scene.
The woman’s smiling eyes were fixed on the man opposite her, and they seemed to be chatting happily. His eyes trailed downward from her waterfall-like long hair to the ink-wash cheongsam clinging tightly to her slender waist.
His gaze darkened as it lingered there. Perhaps only he knew just how soft her waist was.
His eyes then turned cold as they swept over the man beside her, who was staring at her unabashedly.
“Hah, so she’s out here to unwind and has even learned to pick up men?”
Zhuang Bo, who came out a step later, followed his gaze and was taken aback.
“Damn, what a righteous-looking sister.”
The Cantonese slipped out.
After speaking, he nudged Fu Yanchi with his elbow, a flicker of romantic impulse in his eyes, but it instantly died down when he caught Fu Yanchi’s expression.
The former’s eyes still held a smile, but the coldness on his face became increasingly visible.
Luo Yunmian glanced back unintentionally and froze in surprise. Watching the man walking toward her, she felt an inexplicable panic rise in her heart.