On Christmas Eve, the festive atmosphere at Rosalie Bar was thick with holiday cheer.
Tonight’s gathering was organized by Fang Yinian, who had invited over a dozen handsome young men to keep them company—each one tall, long-legged, and sporting eight-pack abs. They looked like the cream of the crop.
To match the occasion, everyone had changed into Christmas-themed outfits, making them look more or less the same.
One particularly perceptive young man brought over a glass of wine and placed it in front of her.
Cen Wangyue lounged back in the sofa, watching the men and women grinding against each other on the dance floor. The fresh-faced boy sitting beside her was trying to invite her to spend the night together.
She kept her eyelids half-lowered, unmoved.
Fang Yinian emerged from the dance floor, and the perceptive young man quickly got up to give her his seat. She settled in next to Cen Wangyue.
She looked over with keen interest. “What, not a single one of these guys catches your eye tonight?”
Cen Wangyue lifted her gaze to glance at her. “I just recovered from an illness. I can’t muster any interest.”
She had attended a yacht party hosted by some heiress the day before yesterday, and the moment she got home, she came down with a fever. She’d been lying in bed at home for days, and the moment her condition improved, she came straight to Fang Yinian’s party.
“You’ve had it rough.” Fang Yinian felt genuine sympathy for her best friend.
Just then, a beam of light happened to fall on their booth, fully revealing Cen Wangyue’s striking beauty.
Cen Wangyue’s look tonight was dazzling. She wore a silver sequined gown, and the star-studded crystal tassels on the dress swayed freely with her every movement as she raised her glass, glittering brilliantly under the lights like romantic shooting stars streaking across the sky.
Her beauty carried a hint of sharpness. Those bewitching peach-blossom eyes were enough to captivate any soul, her skin fair as porcelain—breathtakingly beautiful.
Most people here knew Cen Wangyue. Word got around that she was out, and plenty of men rushed over to try their luck.
As the ultimate rich girl of high society, Cen Wangyue never lacked suitors. Even with her spoiled and willful temperament, countless men were still competing for the position of the Cen family’s son-in-law.
Unfortunately, that position had been snatched up by someone from the Sheng family a year ago.
If they couldn’t be the official husband, then being Miss Cen’s side piece would do, right?
Rumor had it the couple’s marriage had been loveless all along. Since they were just a plastic power couple anyway, whatever Miss Cen wanted to do, her so-called husband wasn’t even in the country to stop her.
Fang Yinian clicked her tongue. “Your standards wouldn’t happen to have been spoiled by that deadbeat husband of yours, would they?”
At the mention of her deadbeat husband, Cen Wangyue’s brow twitched.
Cen Wangyue casually swept her long hair back and feigned surprise. “What husband? What husband do I have?”
She’d almost forgotten what her bargain-bin husband even looked like.
There was a trending topic online: “If your husband gave you ten million a month but never came home, would you accept?”
Before marriage, she’d scoffed at the idea.
After marriage, she savored every bit of it.
The two had a business marriage with no deep feelings before tying the knot. On the third day after the wedding, Sheng Tangzhou had flown straight to England, while she lived it up in the capital.
She could accept Sheng Tangzhou never coming home, but what she absolutely could not accept was him suddenly showing up.
Fang Yinian admired her friend’s audacity. She casually picked out a decent-looking guy with a good build from the row of fresh faces waiting to be chosen.
She nudged Cen Wangyue’s elbow and teased, “Take a look at this one. What do you think?”
As the two chatted, the chosen young man took the initiative to lift his shirt, revealing sharply defined abdominal muscles, his arms flexing slightly to bulge with veins.
The men struck various poses, all trying to catch Miss Cen’s attention.
Cen Wangyue held her wine glass, still being picky. “Not bad.”
Not as good to look at as Sheng Tangzhou’s body.
She’d only slept with him for three days after their wedding, and it had her thinking about him for a whole year.
It’d ruined her ability to find a substitute ever since.
“Just ‘not bad’?” Fang Yinian casually reached out and felt the young guy’s abs.
They were clearly pretty good.
Fang Yinian was provoked by her words. “Girl, is your husband some kind of human delicacy?”
She thought to herself—if Sheng Tangzhou was the standard, then there wasn’t a man in the capital who could measure up to him.
Fang Yinian probed, “Babe, don’t tell me you fell in love with your husband after sleeping with him first?”
She laughed at the thought that had just popped into her head. She’d only ever heard of “marry first, love later,” never “sleep first, love later.”
The moment the words left her mouth, Cen Wangyue immediately shot back.
“How is that possible? What feelings could I possibly have for him? Can’t I just crave his body?”
But those three days after the wedding—Sheng Tangzhou had given her the most exquisite experience of her life.
She still had some awareness of what a business marriage meant. She wouldn’t invest real feelings, only playing the devoted couple with Sheng Tangzhou in public.
Everyone knew Sheng Tangzhou’s motives for marrying her weren’t pure. As long as he stayed put overseas, why would she care about this plastic husband?
A year ago, the Cen and Sheng families suddenly announced their marriage alliance. The news shook the entire capital circle the moment it was released.
Everyone knew Old Master Sheng was critically ill and the family was embroiled in a succession battle. Sheng Tangzhou had proactively sought to marry the Cen family’s daughter to expand his own power.
“Exactly right—whoever falls in love first loses.” Fang Yinian took a watch off her wrist and placed it on the table.
She crooked her finger at the young guys, smiling with her eyes curved like crescents. “Tonight, whichever of you manages to make Miss Cen happy gets this watch.”
One sharp-eyed guy immediately recognized it as the latest Richard Mille model—getting it was a win.
The young guys got the message and started performing eagerly in front of Cen Wangyue.
Cen Wangyue let out a casual laugh. Only Fang Yinian could come up with such an exciting game.
The phone screen lit up again and again, but the call went unanswered.
This scene happened to be witnessed by a man, who took a few photos with his phone and sent them to Sheng Tangzhou along with the bar’s location.
Snow drifted down like cotton fluff from the sky. Sheng Tangzhou sat in the car, his expression cold and noble, radiating the oppressive presence of one in power. His refined features were hidden in the shadows, flickering in and out of view with the shifting light.
Just then, a message popped up on his phone.
He opened the photos Zhou Bingxu had sent, and his temple throbbed violently.
【Zhou Bingxu】: Zhou, there are wild men in the bar trying to seduce your wife. Want to come over?
Sheng Tangzhou zoomed in on the photo and studied it. The bar’s interweaving lights reflected in her dark eyes, as if filled with stars. Cen Wangyue’s figure was slender and graceful—that dress on her made her the center of attention wherever she went.
The strange man beside her leaned in to speak to her, red lips curved, every smile and gesture unforgettable.
A flicker of darkness passed through his eyes. His thin lips moved slightly. “To the Rosalie bar.”
Fang Yinian’s drunkenness hit her, and she directly grabbed the young guy’s abs and wouldn’t let go.
The music pounded loud enough to split heads. Cen Wangyue got up to go to the restroom.
Outside the bar, a Maybach and a Rolls-Royce were parked by the roadside.
A man stepped out from the back seat of the car. His nose was high and straight, his features sharp and handsome, and his impeccably tailored suit hugged his frame. He exuded an air of “keep your distance.”
Shang Heyu recognized him first. “President Sheng, here to pick someone up as well?”
Sheng Tangzhou’s tone was cool as he replied, “Picking up my wife to take her home.”
Hearing this, Shang Heyu spoke with a hint of fondness. “What a coincidence—I’m here to pick up my troublesome little sister.”
It seemed the two had the same purpose.