Rounding the stairs, Qing Ye saw someone performing pole dancing in the middle of the dance floor, wearing next to nothing. Xing Wu turned his head to look as well. As the dancer slid down the pole with a provocative leg sweep, Qing Ye immediately turned to glare at Xing Wu: “Enjoying the view?”

Xing Wu withdrew his gaze with a smile: “Not as good-looking as you.”

After saying that, he truly didn’t look that way again. The manager led them to the innermost booth, where Qing Ye, following behind Xing Wu and Quan Ya, saw Shu Han standing by the coffee table. Two long rows of full drink glasses were arranged before her. She threw her head back and downed one quickly and decisively, quite fiercely.

There were already over ten empty glasses on the table, and who knew how much she’d drunk before being brought here? Her eyes were unfocused, her vintage floral jacket falling off her shoulders, revealing a sexy fitted tank top and short skirt underneath. With a cold expression, she picked up another glass, about to down it when suddenly her wrist was seized. Xing Wu snatched the glass from her hand and threw it on the table.

When Shu Han turned around, there was a hint of an indescribable emotion mixed with her surprise. Xing Wu immediately pushed her toward Quan Ya and faced Manager Jiang.

Manager Jiang, chomping on a cigar, smiled warmly: “Wu-zi, what a rare guest! How’d you find time to visit your big brother today?”

Xing Wu gave a faint smile: “Just needed to see Brother Jiang about something.”

Manager Jiang enthusiastically patted the man beside him and made room for Xing Wu. Xing Wu walked around the coffee table and sat next to Manager Jiang. The two didn’t seem unfamiliar with each other.

Manager Jiang offered Xing Wu a cigar, but he waved it away: “Not used to them.”

Manager Jiang smiled and gestured to the manager standing at the booth entrance, who immediately understood and left to make arrangements.

Quan Ya supported Shu Han, frowning: “How much have you had to drink?”

Shu Han remained silent, clutching her chest with a strained expression. Qing Ye had seen Shu Han drink before – given her tolerance, it was unimaginable how many drinks she must have been forced to consume to reach this state.

Quan Ya helped her sit on a nearby sofa and asked the server for water. Qing Ye stood at the edge of the booth before finding an inconspicuous corner to sit in.

Soon the manager returned leading two sexy women in low-cut dresses. Qing Ye immediately sensed something was off. Sure enough, at Manager Jiang’s signal, the two women went straight to Xing Wu and sat on either side of him. Manager Jiang smiled: “Since my little brother made a special trip to see me, big brother must show proper hospitality. It’s been a while since we last met, hasn’t it?”

Xing Wu looked up at Qing Ye, who was leaning in her obscure corner with an ambiguous smile, very quiet, showing no emotion on her face.

Just as one of the women was about to take Xing Wu’s arm, he raised it away and said to Manager Jiang: “Brother Jiang knows I’m not into this.”

Manager Jiang laughed heartily and patted Xing Wu’s leg: “There’s no man who isn’t into this. You just haven’t tasted the sweetness yet. How about experiencing some heavenly pleasure at Big Brother’s place today?”

Qing Ye lowered her eyes, one hand resting on the sofa back. Xing Wu replied half-jokingly: “Well alright, since big brother insists, I won’t be polite.”

Qing Ye raised her eyes slightly, her expression instantly vanishing without a trace. Even Quan Ya looked at Xing Wu with surprise.

But then they heard Xing Wu continue: “However, I have a particular preference – I like intelligent women, preferably those who excel in math, physics, and chemistry. And they can’t be more than three days older than me.”

“…”

Qing Ye’s lips twitched as she concealed her amusement.

His words made all the women laugh, and Manager Jiang roared with laughter, slapping Xing Wu’s shoulder: “Little brother, that’s not a preference – that’s preparing to become a monk!”

Manager Jiang didn’t take it seriously at all, treating it as Xing Wu’s nonsense, not knowing Xing Wu had never been more serious.

But after Xing Wu’s banter, the tense atmosphere in the booth gradually relaxed. Qing Ye suddenly admired Xing Wu – he could maintain perfect control over his peers and move freely among these old hands. In such a situation, he had managed to break the deadlock in just a few moves.

Qing Ye secretly breathed a sigh of relief, watching as Xing Wu placed a drink in front of himself and said with a smile: “I hear Sister Shu had some unpleasantness with Brother Jiang today. You know, she’s my brother’s sister.”

Manager Jiang’s eyes swept across the room as he shook his head: “Xiao Han has worked here for so long, and I value her highly. She’s always understood the rules. Last time at a dinner party, someone touched her leg, and she kicked him in the groin – wasn’t that embarrassing for me?”

Qing Ye’s gaze moved to Shu Han sitting opposite. She was leaning against the sofa, legs crossed, head down, with that alluring fox tattoo below her knee-high boots, her expression aloof and cold.

Qing Ye had never asked Xing Wu what Shu Han did. She was older than Xing Wu and his friends, probably in her twenties and no longer in school. Qing Ye had sensed she had some connections, but never expected she would work here.

Shu Han felt Qing Ye’s gaze and looked up at her. Even for someone like Shu Han, who understood many things clearly, she didn’t want to be looked down upon, especially by someone as untainted as Qing Ye. In this situation, the contrast was quite ironic.

From the first time she saw Qing Ye, Shu Han had sensed an unprecedented radiance about her. She had seen many girls, but none had that kind of composed pride. More ironically, her composure didn’t come from social grinding like Shu Han’s – it came from within, pure and clean.

Though Shu Han’s expression remained blank, Qing Ye seemed to detect a barely noticeable embarrassment on her face. Qing Ye immediately looked away toward the dance floor as if nothing had happened.

Xing Wu and Quan Ya exchanged glances. Quan Ya shook his head, and Xing Wu knew there must be more to the story. Shu Han had dealt with these big bosses often and was always smooth – she wouldn’t have embarrassed Manager Jiang unless they’d gone too far.

Xing Wu smiled slightly, downing his drink in one gulp, and said leisurely: “I see Sister Shu has already had quite a lot to drink. What would it take to appease Manager Jiang?”

Manager Jiang shooed away the girl sitting between them, put his arm around Xing Wu’s shoulders familiarly, and raised another glass: “She’s been talking about quitting lately – isn’t that an international joke? All the girls at Le Zhi Xing follow her orders. If she just says she’s done and takes people with her, who am I supposed to reason with?”

Xing Wu immediately knew this was just Manager Jiang’s excuse and smiled: “Who would dare touch Brother Jiang’s people in this territory? Unless they’re taking them out of town?”

Manager Jiang laughed loudly and slapped Xing Wu’s shoulder hard, deliberately using force, saying with a false smile: “Isn’t that exactly what I’m afraid of – someone trying to take my people?”

As Manager Jiang downed his drink, the booth fell silent. Though both men were smiling, the atmosphere had become strange. Qing Ye instantly felt a chill.

As Shu Han uncrossed her legs and was about to stand up, Quan Ya pressed down on her shoulder. Manager Jiang still had his arm around Xing Wu familiarly. Xing Wu kept his eyes down, and Qing Ye couldn’t read his expression. She frowned – this bastard Manager Jiang was forcing Xing Wu to take a stance. If Xing Wu said he wouldn’t touch Jiang’s people, he’d be throwing Shu Han to the wolves. But if he said he would, given the current situation, if a fight broke out, Qing Ye wondered if calling 110 would help their disadvantaged group.

Either way, with just the four of them – one drunk, one with basically zero combat value, just Quan Ya and Xing Wu – they weren’t getting out today. Should they just surrender?

Just then, a staff member rushed in hurriedly, calling out: “Manager Jiang, something’s wrong! Teacher Fang says her child has food poisoning and needs to go to the hospital, she can’t come!” The young man was so flustered he hadn’t noticed the atmosphere in the booth.

Manager Jiang’s expression changed as he put down his glass and stood up: “Has Manager Jia arrived?”

“Manager Jia’s group is already arranged in the upstairs booth.”

Manager Jiang walked to the booth entrance and looked upstairs. Qing Ye, sitting in the corner sofa by the door, followed his gaze. Sure enough, there was a unique open luxury booth upstairs, filled with middle-aged men who looked distinguished.

Manager Jiang immediately cursed: “You’re all useless! Can’t even find someone to play piano? Is it that hard to find someone to play Mozart for Manager Jia? Go ask around who can play, quickly!”

The young man said with a bitter expression: “I’ve asked everyone backstage, but the girls only know how to play ‘Two Tigers.'”

“…”

Setting aside “Two Tigers,” Qing Ye found it bizarre that someone would come to a place like this and make such a ridiculous request as wanting to hear Mozart – it was pretentious with a strong hint of tackiness.

She craned her neck to look and saw people indeed moving a piano onto the stage where dancing had been earlier. She didn’t know who this Manager Jia upstairs was, but he seemed to be someone Manager Jiang valued highly.

Qing Ye stood up and asked calmly: “Which Mozart piece?”

It seemed only then did others noticed Qing Ye’s presence, all looking at her bewildered. She wore an expensive ripple-pattern wool coat, her expression carrying an incongruous nobility. She didn’t look like she worked here. Manager Jiang turned to look at the manager, presumably asking who she was.

But the young staff member said to Qing Ye: “Just Mozart, you know? That famous Mozart song!”

“…” Qing Ye wanted to tell him Mozart was a person, for fuck’s sake.

Then she lowered her head and started unbuttoning her coat, leaving everyone completely confused. Who was this girl? Where did she come from? Why was she undressing?

Qing Ye ignored them all as she undid her coat buttons, took it off, and walked straight to Xing Wu, throwing the coat to him. Xing Wu caught it, narrowed his eyes, and asked softly: “Are you sure?”

Qing Ye raised an eyebrow at him and smiled confidently. He suddenly remembered the photo he’d seen on Qing Ye’s computer – her home in Beijing had an expensive grand piano.

Xing Wu’s lips curved into a smile as he watched Qing Ye walk elegantly in her high-heeled ankle boots to the young man and say calmly: “Lead the way.”

The young man looked at Manager Jiang in surprise. Manager Jiang turned to glance at Xing Wu, then nodded to the young man.