For a moment, the air fell completely silent.
The air conditioning in the bar was turned down quite low, washing away the heat and irritation that had been clinging to Yu Huan.
She waited patiently for a moment before repeating herself.
“Do you know Zhu Heqing?”
Of course he did.
Who in their circle didn’t know the famous heir to the Zhu family?
Wang Hao was beginning to regret his earlier boast.
Winning the beauty’s favor was important, but offending Zhu Heqing was far more dangerous.
Zhu Heqing had never been particularly courteous toward women.
If Wang Hao sent Yu Huan to bother him, his father might kick him out of the running to inherit the family business the very next day.
Wang Hao regretted getting himself involved, but at the same time, he couldn’t bear to let such a beautiful girl go after someone as difficult to deal with as Zhu Heqing.
There was even a faint trace of jealousy in his heart.
He was jealous that Zhu Heqing had won Yu Huan’s affection.
Unable to hold himself back, he advised her,
“Zhu Heqing has never been nice to women. Even if you’re as beautiful as a fairy, he still won’t treat you well.”
Wang Hao remembered attending a party hosted by someone in their circle.
He had no idea how that person had managed to invite Zhu Heqing.
The moment Zhu Heqing walked in, everyone’s eyes immediately turned toward him.
At the time, Zhu Heqing had only recently taken over the Zhu family’s business, and quite a few people were already trying to get close to him.
There was also a famous actress at the party who had recently shot to fame because of a drama.
She approached Zhu Heqing with a wineglass in hand, swaying seductively.
Then, using one of those clumsy tricks straight out of a romance novel, she deliberately poured the entire glass of red wine onto Zhu Heqing’s suit and pretended to panic.
“I-I’m so sorry…”
Wang Hao had been standing quite close to Zhu Heqing at the time.
Although the smile on Zhu Heqing’s face never changed, his eyes instantly turned cold.
He calmly took off his jacket and tossed the suit onto the floor as casually as if he were throwing away garbage.
“1.5 million. Are you paying now, or should I call the police?”
The actress’s face immediately went pale.
Her affected, coquettish act disappeared, leaving nothing but fear in her eyes.
Wang Hao had always been a man who couldn’t bear to see a beautiful woman suffer.
He didn’t want a girl as beautiful as a heavenly fairy to be frightened by Zhu Heqing either.
“Zhu Heqing wouldn’t dare be mean to me,” Yu Huan said. “Just tell me where he is.”
Zhu Heqing wouldn’t dare be mean to her.
Beautiful people really did speak with such confidence.
Wang Hao hesitated for a few seconds before finally gritting his teeth.
“Fine, I’ll tell you. But if he asks who told you, don’t give me up.”
Yu Huan nodded absentmindedly.
“I won’t tell him.”
She was too busy confronting Zhu Heqing to care about telling him who had given her the information.
“President Zhu and the others are in the Guan Yun Xuan private room on the second floor.”
“Thanks.”
After getting the exact location, Yu Huan generously gave Wang Hao a smile.
Wang Hao was so captivated that his eyes went unfocused for a moment.
By the time he came back to his senses, Yu Huan had already gone upstairs.
He silently swallowed the words, I don’t even know your name yet, and muttered somewhat bitterly,
“President Zhu really is a lucky man.”
There was a dedicated attendant stationed outside every private room on the second floor.
The moment Yu Huan reached the Guan Yun Xuan room, the attendant stepped forward and stopped her.
“Miss, may I ask what you’re here for?”
“I’m looking for Zhu Heqing.”
The attendant remained polite.
“I’m sorry, Miss. Do you have a reservation or an invitation?”
Yu Huan honestly shook her head, then asked with complete confidence,
“So I can’t go in without an invitation?”
The attendant: “…”
He struggled to keep his expression under control.
“No, you can’t.”
Yu Huan hadn’t expected tracking someone down to be this troublesome.
Her little face scrunched up in frustration.
“Then if I make a scene out here, will it affect your job?”
The attendant nodded.
“I’d be fired.”
“Okay.”
Yu Huan wasn’t an unreasonable or domineering person.
She crouched down beside the private-room door.
“Then I won’t interfere with your work.”
Zhu Heqing would eventually come out anyway.
She could simply wait here and catch him when he did.
Seeing the attendant about to say something again, Yu Huan looked up at him with wide almond-shaped eyes, completely incredulous.
“I’m not interfering with your work anymore. Can’t I even sit here by the door?!”
The corner of the attendant’s mouth twitched.
“Do as you please.”
Yu Huan was quite lucky.
She had barely been crouching there for two minutes when the private-room door opened from the inside.
A waiter carrying a tray walked out.
Yu Huan immediately spotted Zhu Heqing sitting on the sofa.
Her anger flared instantly.
“Zhu Heqing!”
Her sharp, angry shout drew everyone’s attention.
Zhu Heqing looked toward the sound.
The person he had been thinking about day and night had appeared before him without warning.
She was crouched on the floor in a tiny little bundle, staring at him expectantly. Her hair was slightly messy from the journey.
Everyone watched as the man who had just moments ago looked distant and distracted suddenly showed surprise, disbelief, and even the faintest hint of grievance.
Zhu Heqing immediately stood up and hurried to the doorway.
He scooped Yu Huan up from the floor and pulled her into his arms.
“Fufu, when did you get back? Why didn’t you tell me to pick you up? How long have you been waiting here? Are your legs tired from crouching? Why didn’t you call me?”
He kept rambling like an overly concerned parent.
Yu Huan slapped a palm over his mouth, silencing him.
“Be quiet first.”
She straightened up and quickly glanced around the private room.
Aside from one woman in a white dress, everyone else was a man.
One of them was He Zhiheng, whom she had met not long ago.
The lighting was normal. There was nothing suspicious on the table, and the room didn’t even smell strongly of alcohol.
Yu Huan relaxed a little, but she was still unhappy.
The hand covering Zhu Heqing’s mouth slid down to his cheek, where she pinched him lightly.
“I’m away for a few days, and you sneak off to a bar behind my back. Zhu Heqing, you really are up to no good.”
Her words were blunt and could easily have offended someone.
But He Zhiheng had already witnessed Yu Huan calling Zhu Heqing over for something as simple as getting her a glass of water.
He knew she had been spoiled rotten, so he didn’t take offense.
Instead, he quickly explained,
“This is my fault. I was the one who called Ah He over.”
“His younger sister just came back from abroad, so we organized a little get-together. I own this bar, so we picked this place for convenience.”
Yu Huan gave a quiet “Oh.”
Only then did she realize that she had wrongly accused her boyfriend.
She looked up at him with a hint of embarrassment.
Zhu Heqing wrapped his large, well-defined hand around hers and gently rubbed it a few times to reassure her.
Then he introduced her to everyone.
“This is my girlfriend—and my future wife—Yu Huan.”
They had barely made it past the first step of their relationship, yet he was already proudly claiming her as his future wife.
The blatant declaration of ownership made the corner of He Zhiheng’s eye twitch.
“Fufu, this is Li Yan. This is Zhao Xun…”
Zhu Heqing introduced everyone one by one.
Each time he called out a name, the person would greet Yu Huan with a smile.
“Hello, Sister-in-law.”
Finally, Zhu Heqing’s gaze landed on Xu Yunshu.
He leaned close to Yu Huan’s ear and spoke softly.
“This is Xu Yunshu. She’s my younger sister.”
Xu Yunshu’s already pale face became even whiter.
She suppressed the sourness rising in her nose and quietly greeted her.
“Hello, Sister-in-law.”
Xu Yunshu had already mentally prepared herself for the possibility that Zhu Heqing would eventually have a woman in his life.
But actually seeing him holding another woman in his arms with a tenderness she had never witnessed before—and hearing him openly declare that this woman would become his future wife—
Xu Yunshu felt as though an invisible hand had clenched tightly around her heart, leaving her struggling to breathe.
Yu Huan had heard Zhu Heqing mention her before.
She smiled at Xu Yunshu in a friendly manner and asked with concern,
“Are you feeling unwell? You look so pale.”
Zhao Xun scratched his head.
“Yunshu was perfectly fine when she first arrived. Could the air conditioning be turned down too low?”