Hearing that, Xu Yunshu forced a somewhat strained smile.
“Maybe it’s because I just got back from abroad. I haven’t adjusted to the time difference yet, so I’m a bit uncomfortable.”
As she spoke, her gaze drifted uncontrollably toward Zhu Heqing, paying attention to his every movement.
Zhu Heqing first reached out and touched Yu Huan’s face, confirming that her temperature was normal. Then he called a waiter to bring a glass of warm water and patiently fed it to her.
Xu Yunshu’s expression dimmed. She looked like a camellia about to wither, lowering her eyes and no longer looking in their direction.
He Zhiheng glanced at Xu Yunshu thoughtfully and naturally picked up the conversation. “Let’s turn the air conditioning up a bit. Even I feel a little cold.”
He picked up the remote on the table and raised the temperature by a few degrees.
The rising warmth seemed to dispel some of the chill around Xu Yunshu, allowing her to maintain the last of her dignity.
The group resumed chatting, and somehow, the topic suddenly shifted to He Zhiheng’s cousin.
“Hey, Lao He, isn’t your cousin a student at Qing University?”
“What about it?” He Zhiheng glanced at him. “What are you scheming this time?”
Zhao Xun asked, “Didn’t you see her Moments? She posted several updates, all praising someone.”
Zhao Xun—the red-haired man—took out his phone as he spoke, opened He Zhiheng’s cousin’s Moments, and handed it to him.
He Zhiheng’s cousin, He Ziqing, was a peculiar girl determined to “collect” all zodiac signs and Chinese zodiac animals—either she was in a relationship or on the way to one.
He Zhiheng snorted. This little brat was even blocking him from seeing her posts now.
He took the phone and carefully looked through her Moments.
The latest posts all had meaningless captions—just filler expressions—and the photos all featured the same person, though not in ordinary attire.
He Zhiheng frowned. “Did she fall for some actor again? Why are all these stills?”
But…
Why did the person in the photos look so familiar?
“Tsk, Lao He, you’re outdated. This is called cosplay—role-playing,” Zhao Xun explained, then turned to Yu Huan. “Sister-in-law, you’re also a student at Qing University, right?”
Yu Huan looked at him curiously. “Have you seen me at school?”
“I guessed.” Zhao Xun smiled, a bit embarrassed. “The photos in He Ziqing’s Moments are you, right? Your cosplay is amazing. Can I get an autograph from you?”
Unlike other rich second-generation heirs, Zhao Xun didn’t care about sports cars or investments. His only hobby was anime culture. He even had an entire house dedicated to storing his merchandise and figurines.
Because of her high looks and how well her cosplays matched the characters, Yu Huan had always been popular. Many people wanted to add her on WeChat just to be in her contacts.
But Zhu Heqing had said that having too many contacts would be inconvenient. Yu Huan agreed, so aside from a few familiar club members, she didn’t add anyone else.
Their club had an official account where they posted photos from their shoots.
With Zhao Xun mentioning it, He Zhiheng finally recognized her.
He couldn’t help but marvel inwardly—being good-looking really was convenient. She could pull off any style.
Zhao Xun took the phone back from He Zhiheng and showed the photos to Yu Huan.
It was indeed her.
“Sure,” Yu Huan said generously. “Where do you want me to sign?”
She was already very familiar with the process.
Zhao Xun asked a waiter for paper and a pen. Yu Huan took them, pressed the paper against Zhu Heqing’s body, and smoothly signed her name.
Zhao Xun received it like a treasured possession, holding it with both hands, his expression excited.
With Yu Huan there, the gathering ended quickly.
Before nine o’clock, Zhu Heqing stood up and took Yu Huan’s hand, preparing to leave. “It’s getting late. We’ll head back first.”
He called out Xu Yunshu’s name. “Did you drive here?”
Xu Yunshu shook her head and said proactively, “Brother Zhiheng can take me back.”
He Zhiheng waved his hand. “Yunshu, you should ride back with your brother. We’ve all been drinking—we can’t drive.”
Xu Yunshu didn’t respond. Yu Huan had already wanted to take a shower, so she simply went over and grabbed Xu Yunshu’s hand. “Let’s go. It’s not very safe for a girl to go back alone at night.”
Xu Yunshu looked at Yu Huan’s lively and charming expression. There wasn’t a trace of reluctance on her face—her desire to go home early was written plainly.
She was like a child who had grown up in love, completely unaware of how to hide her feelings.
Xu Yunshu lost the strength to resist and let Yu Huan pull her out of the private room.
Meanwhile, Zhu Heqing followed behind at a leisurely pace, holding Yu Huan’s coat and small bag that she had taken off because of the heat. From time to time, Yu Huan would shoot him an annoyed glare. “Don’t step on my shadow.”
Zhu Heqing chuckled softly and apologized in a low voice. “I was wrong, Baby.”
When there were fewer people around, Zhu Heqing especially liked calling Yu Huan “Baby,” as if doing so truly made her his—someone who couldn’t do anything without him, who needed him for everything.
Wang Hao felt like he was hallucinating.
Otherwise, why would he hear the famous President of the Zhu Corporation calling someone “Baby” in such a tender voice?
After Yu Huan went upstairs earlier, Wang Hao had lost all interest in having fun. He had casually taken a drink and stood by the staircase, determined to be the first to comfort her.
Who would have thought that after such a long time, Yu Huan never came back down?
Just as Wang Hao was lost in his thoughts, people came down from upstairs.
Yu Huan walked down holding Xu Yunshu’s hand, while Zhu Heqing followed behind, carrying the woman’s clothes.
Wang Hao recognized the clothes—they were the ones Yu Huan had been wearing.
Before he could react, he heard Zhu Heqing call Yu Huan “Baby” again.
Wang Hao stood frozen until the three of them walked out of the bar, only then coming back to his senses.
So it wasn’t that beautiful people were simply confident.
It was because she truly had a close relationship with Zhu Heqing.
He downed the rest of his drink in one gulp. “Damn.”
If Xu Yunshu had still held onto any illusions about Yu Huan’s identity before, the sight of Zhu Heqing’s passenger seat made everything clear.
Her brother wasn’t just casually playing around.
Zhu Heqing was driving a Cayenne today. A man who usually preferred simplicity had decorated the passenger seat in a distinctly girlish style. Even the hanging ornaments were things girls liked, and there were plenty of snacks prepared there as well.
Xu Yunshu felt bitterness in her heart, but still forced herself to smile. “My brother treats you really well. I’ve never seen his passenger seat look like this before.”
Yu Huan fastened her seatbelt and replied without hesitation, “Zhu Heqing likes decorating. He always says a bare passenger seat is uncomfortable, so he bought things to decorate it himself—like a little princess.”
Zhu Heqing had been paying attention to Yu Huan the whole time. Seeing her turn her head to talk to Xu Yunshu, he held the steering wheel with one hand and gently touched her head with the other. “Baby, don’t turn around casually. It’s dangerous.”
Yu Huan snorted. “You’re so controlling.” But she obediently sat still.
Xu Yunshu sat in the back seat, her face hidden in the darkness. Even though the temperature inside the car was just right, she felt as though her body was turning cold inch by inch.
She suddenly recalled a conversation she had once overheard between Zhu Heqing’s parents before she went abroad—
“Yunshu is already twenty. It’s not appropriate for her to keep staying in the Zhu family. No matter what, she’s still the first heir of the Xu family. Should we find a time to talk to her and let her return?”
“This child is sensitive. If you tell her, she’ll think we don’t want to raise her anymore. It will only create distance between us.”
“There are rumors outside that Yunshu is the Zhu family’s child bride. A He is already grown, yet he doesn’t have a single woman by his side. If this continues, it won’t look good for our family.”
“Sigh… how did such rumors even start… Let me think about how to tell her without hurting her.”