The sudden power outage threw the banquet hall into chaos.
Guests were visibly startled by the unexpected blackout.
“What happened? The power’s out?”
“How strange—it just went off like that?”
“Please don’t panic, everyone. It might be due to the rain causing an electrical fault. The hotel staff is already checking the situation.”
Song Shuyao stepped in to help the staff maintain order.
Inside Room 519
The room was pitch black. Not a single ray of light.
Only the mingled breaths of a man and a woman could be heard in the darkness.
The effects of the drug had finally worn off, leaving both of them exhausted and gasping for air.
The man struggled to sit up, reaching out to press the light switch on the headboard.
He pressed it several times, but the room remained engulfed in darkness.
Damn—power’s out.
He couldn’t see the woman’s face clearly and, assuming the person beside him was Song Shuyao, softly called out her name:
“Shuyao…”
His voice was tender and full of concern.
Lin Qing, completely drained, heard him through her dazed exhaustion. Her voice hoarse, she whispered:
“I’m not Song Shuyao.”
Fu Sinian froze, as if struck by lightning.
That voice—it was all too familiar.
Just then, “Ding”—the lights flickered back on.
In an instant, the room was filled with bright light.
Fu Sinian turned—and when he saw the woman’s face beside him, his eyes widened in shock.
The harsh light fell directly onto Lin Qing’s face as she slowly opened her eyes.
Their gazes met.
For a moment, the air fell completely silent.
In both their eyes was the same look—suspicion and hostility.
After the power was restored, the banquet hall returned to normal. A piece titled “Charleston Waltz” began playing in the dance hall.
Song Shuyao’s father, Song Lin’an, was speaking with Fu Sinian’s father, Fu Yiqing, about the upcoming marriage between their children.
Fu Sinian had long been designated by the Fu family patriarch as the heir to the Fu Group. With his looks and capabilities, he stood out prominently among the younger generation—not to mention, the Fu family was the wealthiest in Nancheng.
Song Lin’an was extremely satisfied with this match.
“Yiqing, it looks like we’ll soon be in-laws. Shuyao is my only daughter—once she marries into your family, you and your wife must treat her well.”
Fu Yiqing smiled and replied,
“What are you saying? I’ve watched Shuyao grow up. I’m more than happy the two of them have feelings for each other. There’s no way we’d mistreat her.”
“Now that you’ve said that, I can rest easy,” said Song Lin’an.
Then he teased his daughter,
“Shuyao, you’ve really got an eye for people—landing such a prized catch. Among his generation, Sinian’s abilities are unmatched.”
“Dad…”
Faced with her father’s teasing, Song Shuyao actually blushed for once.
At that moment, Fu Yiqing noticed Fu Sinian wasn’t around. He glanced around the room but didn’t see him anywhere.
“Shuyao, where’s Sinian? Why isn’t he with you?”
“Uncle Fu, Sinian said he drank too much and had a headache, so I told him to go rest in one of the guest rooms.”
Song Shuyao checked the time on her phone—9:40 PM. Fu Sinian had gone to the guest room forty minutes ago.
“He’s probably rested enough by now. I’ll go bring him back.”
“Alright.”
She signaled a hotel staff member to lead her upstairs to the guest room area.
Upstairs, inside Room 519
Fu Sinian pinched the bridge of his nose, deeply irritated. He replayed everything that had just happened, finally realizing:
The wine had been drugged.
He stood up, tying his necktie while his eyes lingered on the woman nearby.
She was silently zipping up her dress. Her pretty, round face still held a faint flush. Her once-tidy hair now hung messily around her ears. She looked nothing like her usual sharp and composed self.
Fu Sinian still couldn’t be sure whether this incident was connected to Lin Qing, but just as he was about to ask her—
Knock, knock, knock.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
Both of them were startled.
“Sinian, are you in there?”
It was Song Shuyao’s voice from outside the door.
The hotel’s soundproofing wasn’t great—those inside could clearly hear what was being said outside.
Lin Qing’s whole body ached like she’d been run over by a truck. She had just finished getting dressed when she heard Fu Sinian speak in an uncharacteristically firm and serious tone:
“Hide. Now.”
His sharp tone rubbed her the wrong way.
“Why should I listen to you?” she replied coldly.
Fu Sinian quickly pulled on his suit jacket and explained,
“This was no accident. The wine was drugged—obviously meant for me. Who knows who’s really standing behind that door right now? You’re from the Lin family, I’m from the Fu family. If word gets out about what just happened between us, and it reaches your father or my grandfather… we’re both dead.”
The Lin and Fu families had fallen out more than a decade ago over a failed business deal, and had been estranged ever since.
In the Nancheng business world, the feud between the Lin and Fu families was common knowledge.
If news broke that Fu Sinian and Lin Qing had slept together, the media would have a field day—and their respective families would explode with rage.
Once Fu Sinian spelled out the consequences, Lin Qing also came to her senses. Not daring to delay, she quickly finished dressing and hid in the bathroom.
Fu Sinian tidied himself up, smoothed out the bedding on the bed, threw the used tissues into the trash, and made sure the room looked undisturbed before slowly walking to the door and opening it.
“Sinian, you’re awake. Still feeling dizzy? Any better?”
Only Song Shuyao was at the door.
Fu Sinian secretly let out a sigh of relief.
With a smile and a gentle tone, he replied,
“I’m feeling a bit better—still a little dizzy, though.”
“Shuyao, could you go to the front desk and ask if they have any painkillers?”
He rubbed his temples as he spoke.
Song Shuyao, seeing he still looked unwell, grew concerned.
“Then lie down and rest a bit more. I’ll go check for the medicine.”
“Alright.”
After speaking, Song Shuyao left the room and hurried toward the front desk.
Fu Sinian closed the door behind her.
He walked over to the bathroom and said toward it,
“She’s gone. You can come out.”
As soon as the words fell, the bathroom door opened.
Lin Qing stepped out.
Fu Sinian turned his head and caught sight of the red marks on her neck. His gaze paused briefly.
The room fell into silence again.
Neither spoke first.
The unexpected incident had caught them both completely off guard.
Fu Sinian’s eyes lingered on her, and fragments of their school days flashed through his mind.
Lin Qing had always disliked him.
Suddenly, he opened his mouth and asked seriously,
“Did you know anything about what happened today?”
His tone was stern—bordering on accusatory.
Lin Qing clearly hadn’t expected to be suspected. Once she realized what he was implying, she became angry.
“Fu Sinian, what do you mean by that? Do you think your drink was the only one that was spiked?”
Fu Sinian took in the anger in her expression. Her reaction made things much clearer.
She wasn’t involved.
He lowered his voice and said,
“Sorry. I shouldn’t have doubted you. I’ll get to the bottom of this and give you an explanation.”
After a brief pause, he looked at her, hesitated for a few seconds, and then added:
“If you want me to take responsibility… I can.”
To Lin Qing, that felt like a slap followed by a sweet date.
It was bad enough to be dragged into this mess for no reason, and now she was being accused on top of that?
What kind of situation was this?
Proud and strong-willed, Lin Qing felt a deep bitterness rise in her chest.
Under Fu Sinian’s gaze, she dug out a blank check and a pen from her bag.
She scribbled on it for a moment, then forcefully shoved it into his hands.
“President Fu, no need for you to take responsibility. We’re both adults. Consider this 2.5 million yuan as me buying one night from you. From now on, we’re even.”
With that, she turned and strode toward the door.
Bang! The door slammed shut behind her.
Fu Sinian looked down at the check in his hand. In the amount field: a glaring ¥2,500,000.
He frowned and flipped the check over—only to find a handwritten sentence on the back.
His face immediately darkened.
In bold black ink, it read:
“Needs improvement in technique.”
The implication was crystal clear—she’d treated him like a gigolo she didn’t plan to call back.
He instantly regretted having offered to take responsibility.
Take responsibility?
Like hell he would take responsibility for that woman!
With a firm squeeze of his hand, the check crumpled into a ball and flew straight into the trash can.
After Lin Qing left the hotel room, she didn’t take the elevator down. To avoid anyone knowing she had been on the guest room floor, she chose to take the stairs back to the banquet hall.
Su Yi had already called Lin Qing multiple times, but none of the calls went through. She was anxiously searching everywhere for her.
Lin Qing stopped by the restroom and pulled out a compact from her bag to cover the red marks on her neck.
Looking at herself in the mirror, she checked if the skin on her neck had returned to its normal tone.
She let out a long sigh of relief.
She was grateful that tonight’s incident hadn’t been discovered. Since she usually wore makeup to work, she always carried a compact in her bag—perfect for moments like this. If she had shown up in public looking like that just now, not even ten mouths could explain it away.
As Lin Qing exited the banquet hall, she immediately saw Su Yi searching for her.
She walked over and patted her on the shoulder.
Su Yi let out a breath.
“Where did you go? I couldn’t reach you at all!”
“I went up to the guest rooms to rest a bit. My phone died and shut off.”
Lin Qing added,
“The wine was too strong—I’m still feeling unwell. Can you let Ms. Jiang know that I’ll be leaving early?”
Su Yi glanced at her watch, then looked out the window. It was still raining hard.
“It’s really late, and you’ve had too much to drink. Taking a taxi alone would be too dangerous. I’ll drive you home.”
Lin Qing looked out at the pouring rain and realized Su Yi had a point, so she agreed.
The two of them informed Ms. Jiang Muhong, then quickly left the event.
Shortly after Lin Qing had left, a group of people gathered outside Room 519.
Fu Yiqing and Song Lin’an had waited a long time for Fu Sinian to return to the banquet but eventually came upstairs to check on him.
Song Shuyao handed Fu Sinian the painkillers. He opened the packaging and took one.
Song Lin’an asked with concern,
“Sinian, are you alright? Shuyao, you should’ve kept an eye on him—how could you let him drink so much?”
Scolded by her father, Song Shuyao looked aggrieved.
“I… I thought… Sinian has always held his liquor well.”
Noticing this, Fu Sinian quickly stepped in to explain,
“Uncle Song, don’t blame Shuyao. It was my fault—I got carried away. I rested a bit, and I’m feeling much better now.”
Fu Yiqing, who had remained silent, swept his eyes around the room. When his gaze landed on the trash can beside the nightstand, his eyes darkened slightly.
After a short pause, he looked away and said,
“Since you’ve rested, let’s head back to the hall. We shouldn’t keep the guests waiting.”
Fu Sinian, worried that staying in the room any longer might raise suspicions with his father or Song Shuyao, followed them back to the banquet hall.
Su Yi drove Lin Qing home to Crescent Bay.
At 10 p.m., Lin Qing entered her apartment. The moment she turned on the lights, a gray-and-white cat jumped into her arms, meowing affectionately.
It was her five-year-old Ragdoll cat, Yuanbao.
She hadn’t even had time to shower yet—her skin felt sticky, and her knees ached with soreness.
Thinking about everything that had happened tonight, Lin Qing’s eyes grew misty.
She hugged the cat tightly, rubbing her face into its fur, burying her face in its soft little back. The plush warmth helped ease her emotions.
Inside the 100-square-meter apartment, it was just her and her cat.
Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the rain continued pouring down.