“There’s something I want to say to you.” His tone was solemn and serious.

Wen Tingli sensed something coming, her voice tightening: “Wait, wait a moment!”

She took several deep breaths: “I’m ready. You can say it now.”

Lu Shicheng laughed instead.

Wen Tingli couldn’t help laughing too.

It was a kind of laughter with no clear reason, something only the two of them could understand — laughing until their back teeth ached slightly, as if they’d just eaten a whole bowl of fresh bayberries.

Laughing until the end, Wen Tingli pressed a hand to her chest, gasping and laughing at once: “Stop, stop — let’s talk properly, the two of us.”

Lu Shicheng said to her directly: “Do you have time tomorrow evening? I want to see you.”

Wen Tingli covered her mouth again. Though she’d sensed this coming in her heart, it was only at this moment that she became absolutely certain — he had yielded, for her sake.

It was clearly something to be happy about, yet inexplicably, she felt a slight ache in her chest.

“I have time! Of course I have time.” She spoke incoherently.

“Then where shall we meet — or should I come pick you up?”

No dragging things out, no playing hard to get.

Wen Tingli felt her nose grow even more sore: “I’ll probably be done with work around seven. You pick a place, and I’ll come find you around seven or eight, is that alright?”

“Alright — then… we’ll see each other tomorrow night.”

The two of them fell quiet at the same moment.

He listened to her somewhat unsteady breathing, his heart aching with bitterness and pain, yet at the same time feeling utterly relieved — he could hardly wait to see her. It was a good while before he hung up the phone. Wen Tingli didn’t move either, and only after there was no sound at all from the other end did she reluctantly set down the receiver.

Immediately after, she let out a short, sharp shriek and flung herself down onto the bed in wild joy.

She was overwhelmed by an enormous happiness; in that moment she felt like a lively fish flopping about, and the blanket on her bed was the wave embracing her. Laughing, she rolled back and forth in the “waves,” so happy she didn’t know what to do with herself. Then, all at once, she went still, her eyes reddening as she gazed up at the ceiling.

This night must surely have been agonizing for Lu Shicheng, for though his heart still held so many unanswered questions, in the end he had chosen tolerance and concession.

All that had passed between them would come to an end tonight.

Tomorrow, for the two of them, would be a brand new beginning.

Wen Tingli, moved, buried her face deep into her pillow. She had always known clearly why she was drawn to Lu Shicheng, but after tonight, this affection had gained some new dimension — not something light and airy, but something with real weight, pressing solidly upon her heart.

Later, she fell asleep, and even in sleep, a faint smile lingered at the corners of her mouth.

She slept until past nine. When she got up, Wen Tingli washed and dressed in a hurried, joyful rush, and went downstairs to find the living room piled with gift boxes, several gorgeous flower baskets draped with red silk ribbons reading “Auspicious Housewarming.”

“Miss Gao and Director Huang had these sent over,” Zhou Sao said with a beaming smile. “The smaller ones are from Miss Zhao and Miss Yan. There’s also a gift box — not sure who sent it, it was left at the door early this morning.”

Wen Tingli went over and picked up the box to examine it closely. This time, she’d only told a few trusted people about her move, so she guessed it was from some close friend. One glance at the handwriting on it, and she knew it was from Li Chengying — inside was a set of study stationery, both dignified and practical.

Wen Tingli smiled faintly. Li Chengying lived simply herself, but was always generous with friends.

She hurried to sit down and call her. The moment she heard Li Chengying’s voice, she said happily: “I saw the gift box you sent! How are you and Head Nurse Liu doing lately? Last time I had that trouble, you both spent so much money and effort helping me — I still haven’t thanked you in person, and now again—”

Li Chengying just laughed: “Why are you so happy today?”

Wen Tingli paused. Li Chengying was an honest, kind soul and didn’t press further, only reminding her warmly like an older sister: “I hear you’ve been driving out on your own a lot lately — do be careful on the road. There’s still no news of Qiu Dapeng from the Beiping side… yes, be patient… and practice that combat technique I taught you when you have time.”

With each sentence, Wen Tingli murmured her agreement. At the end, she asked: “Are you going out somewhere?”

Li Chengying said lightly: “I’m heading out of town today.”

Wen Tingli felt a swell of respect — surely another important mission — and asked no further questions. She had a lecture at school at ten that morning, so she went there first for class, ate a bowl of eel noodles hastily in the school cafeteria at noon, and then hurried to the company to discuss the start of filming for Graceful Detective 2.

At the company, her colleagues’ first words upon seeing her were, oddly, the same as Li Chengying’s: “Miss Wen, why are you so happy today?!”

Wen Tingli just smiled — it seemed that when a person’s happiness came from deep within, it couldn’t be hidden from their expression.

At the meeting, Liu Menglin formally announced that the second installment of Graceful Detective would begin filming soon, with the lead role of “Fu Zhenzhen” still played by Wen Tingli — only this time, unlike the first film, Wen Tingli’s salary had risen to twenty-five hundred silver dollars.

None of the company’s staff found this surprising in the least. Graceful Detective was still doing tremendous business in theaters everywhere; a film distributor from Nanyang had offered a sky-high price of fifteen thousand silver dollars to acquire overseas screening rights, and recently so many businesses wanted Wen Tingli for advertisements that they couldn’t even fit them all in the schedule. Given her current momentum, no salary seemed too high.

As the meeting broke up, Huang Yuanshan grabbed Wen Tingli. “Earlier at the meeting, you mentioned the costumes in the show don’t match the latest college fashions — how about we go take a look around your school this afternoon?”

“Sure — but we need to stop by the Gao residence first. Gao Xiaowen said she has something to discuss with me.”

The two rode together in Wen Tingli’s car to the Gao residence, where Gao Xiaowen once again wanted Wen Tingli to advertise her Aoshuang face cream — but unlike the playful arrangement of before, this time it was to be a properly formal advertisement.

Since it was mutually beneficial, Wen Tingli agreed without hesitation. The three chatted happily for a while, and then Wen Tingli said goodbye to Gao Xiaowen and came out, running into Meng Qiguang’s car on the tree-lined avenue outside the Gao residence.

“Qiguang.” Huang Yuanshan rolled down her window on her own initiative to greet him, forcing Wen Tingli to stop as well.

Meng Qiguang also rolled down his window, the two cars parked side by side, looking from a distance like two people leaning in close, whispering secrets into each other’s ears.

Meng Qiguang glanced across — Wen Tingli’s radiant, glowing face lit up his heart like a mirror.

“Miss Wen, why are you so happy today?”

That question again!

This time Wen Tingli shot back without any courtesy at all: “My wish has come true, of course I’m happy. As for you, Mr. Meng — you truly are a man who accomplishes great things, still able to laugh so heartily even after losing a bet.”

The thought of Meng Qiguang delivering Miss Ge’s phone number and address the night before last, provoking her that way, made her blood boil all over again.

She looked at him provocatively, but she’d underestimated Meng Qiguang’s depth. His face showed not a trace of displeasure — instead he shrugged. “Lost is lost — a bet’s a bet, no complaints. Though I’ll say, at the time, this Meng fellow acted with good intentions.”

“Good intentions?”

“Afraid you’d be deceived. Better to clear up matters like that — never hurts. Anyway, congratulations to Miss Wen on having her ‘wish come true.’ At least my little villainous act wasn’t for nothing.”

Wen Tingli glared at him and drove off without another word.

Huang Yuanshan was utterly baffled. “What kind of riddle are you and Meng Qiguang playing at?”

Gao Tingxin watched the scene from a distance with a smile: “What took you so long? I’ve been waiting ages.”

The two went into the living room. Gao Tingxin, as usual rather thick-skinned about such things, didn’t notice anything off in Meng Qiguang’s expression, and busied himself having tea brought while making a phone call to book a restaurant for dinner. When he hung up, Meng Qiguang seemed to snap back to attention: “No private rooms left at Hongyuan?”

“Don’t even mention it — Hongyuan’s not open to the public tonight. Someone’s booked the entire building.”

“Even your standing doesn’t get you a table there?” Meng Qiguang teased.

“I’m baffled myself. Even if you’re worried about being disturbed while dining, booking a whole floor should be enough — why book the entire building? Hmm — could it be Lu Shicheng hosting a dinner there? Only he would have that kind of pull; Hongyuan is, after all, the only restaurant the Lu family owns in Shanghai.”

Meng Qiguang’s expression cooled.

Even Gao Tingxin noticed something was off now.

“What’s wrong? Oh right, what did you say to Wen Tingli earlier at the door — she seemed rather annoyed. Did you offend her?”

Just then Gao Xiaowen came bustling down from upstairs.

“Wen Tingli’s in a great mood right now. No one could offend her today even if they tried.”

Gao Tingxin asked with a laugh: “Oh? Has Miss Wen had some happy occasion recently?”

Gao Xiaowen blinked, cleverly cutting off the topic: “What else could it be but Graceful Detective‘s box office beating Southern Beauty‘s? Brother Meng, sit and relax — I still have to go meet my business partner.”

“Business partner?” Gao Tingxin had always looked down on his younger sister’s business ventures with disdain. “You call that little dabbling of yours a business?”

“We’ll see about that!” Gao Xiaowen tossed off that line and left.

Gao Tingxin turned to Meng Qiguang: “Speaking of film — you know Chen Maoqing, right? The manager of Film Empress Yu Peiling. He’s now the head of Huamei Film Company. He’s had people approach me several times recently, saying he wants to meet you.”

“Him?” Meng Qiguang scoffed. “These days, any old rabble can request a meeting with me?”

“His reputation isn’t great, I’ll admit — if you don’t want to see him, I’ll just decline for you.”

They discussed the specific plans for building the amusement park for a while. Seeing it was getting late, Gao Tingxin wanted to drag Meng Qiguang off somewhere for entertainment, but Meng Qiguang said he couldn’t be bothered.

After leaving the Gao residence, Meng Qiguang had his attendant go inquire around Miss Ge’s residence. The attendant reported back: “Miss Ge left for Hangzhou first thing this morning, saying she plans to spend half a month there before returning to Shanghai. As for Hongyuan, nothing can be found out there for now — only that someone’s entertaining important guests there tonight.”

Meng Qiguang fell silent for a while, then drove himself back to the Meng residence alone.

On the way, passing by a certain cinema, he saw from a distance a movie poster for Wen Tingli’s Graceful Detective hanging by the entrance. Meng Qiguang gazed at that radiant, spirited face and, without realizing it, slowed down. Unexpectedly, another car pulled out from a side street; the sky had already darkened, and Meng Qiguang was somewhat distracted. By the time he realized something was wrong, he yanked the steering wheel hard to avoid the other vehicle, but it was too late — with a “bang,” his car crashed straight into the high wall on the left.

Meng Qiguang’s head slammed against the steering wheel, and he lost consciousness instantly.

Wen Tingli got home right at six o’clock, and the moment she walked through the door, she anxiously asked Zhou Sao: “Did Mr. Lu call during the day?”

Zhou Sao handed over a letter she’d been holding tightly for some time, saying with a smile: “Mr. Lu brought it by in the evening. When he heard you weren’t back yet, he wouldn’t even come in to sit for a while.”

Wen Tingli pressed the letter to her chest and dashed happily upstairs, opening the door and sitting at her vanity to read his letter, slowly and sweetly.

In fact, Lu Shicheng had only told her in the letter that they’d meet at a place called “Hongyuan” — the entire content was barely twenty characters. But she felt as if the letter contained so much more, reading it over and over, unwilling to put it down.

Her social circle was fairly extensive these days, yet she’d never heard of a place called “Hongyuan” — she guessed it must be some sort of private, high-class club, where she needn’t worry about being spotted by fans while dining.

It seemed Lu Shicheng had thought of everything — all she needed to do was show up at ease. Wen Tingli kissed the letter, and joyfully searched her wardrobe for a newly made silver qipao. Fearing the night chill, she added a matching-colored jacket over it, fastened around her neck the pink diamond necklace Lu Shicheng had given her the year before, and hurried downstairs.

The place was on Rue Cassini. To get there quickly, Wen Tingli took shortcuts the whole way; when she reached Route Ratard, her heart suddenly settled, because Rue Cassini lay just ahead.

She thought to herself she’d driven so fast, she wasn’t sure if her hair had been mussed by the wind. Seeing no pedestrians on the road, she simply pulled the car over to the curb and took out her mirror to check her makeup by the streetlight.

Suddenly, two very short, jarring sounds came from the alley to her left.

Wen Tingli froze, then felt her scalp prickle — gunshots! She couldn’t have misheard.

She quickly dropped the mirror in her hand and frantically started the car — this was clearly a dangerous place, she had to get away as fast as possible!

But before she could get moving, a figure staggered out from the mouth of the road ahead, running unsteadily toward her car.

Wen Tingli spun the wheel wildly to avoid him, but as luck would have it — the very thing one fears most is often the very thing that happens — the car mysteriously wouldn’t start, and the man collapsed right onto the hood of her car, blocking her way entirely.

Without thinking, Wen Tingli pulled the gun from her bag and aimed it at the front windshield — the man was middle-aged.

Another figure came running up the alley behind him, gun raised, giving chase — and this figure looked strikingly familiar.

Sister Li.

Wen Tingli quickly threw open her door and rushed out to meet her.

But Li Chengying seemed not to recognize her at all — not even glancing her way — and fired another shot into the back of the man’s head, grabbing his collar and hauling him off the hood of Wen Tingli’s car like a dead pig.

“Go, now!” This was directed at Wen Tingli.

But Wen Tingli couldn’t move her feet at all, because she’d just noticed Li Chengying’s chest and abdomen were entirely soaked in blood.

“…You’re hurt!” Her heart clenched into a knot.

Li Chengying shoved her back with one hand. “I’m not hurt — that’s his blood that got on me. Watch out it doesn’t get on you too. The police will be here soon from the gunshots — go, now!”

She looked entirely composed, not at all like someone who was wounded. Without another word, she pushed Wen Tingli back into the car.

Wen Tingli stared anxiously at her, unable to look away, and Li Chengying snapped sternly: “Listen to me!”

At this point, the smartest thing to do was to follow orders. Wen Tingli obediently drove off as instructed, but before she’d gone far, she quickly circled back — if her eyes hadn’t deceived her, there had been blood between Li Chengying’s teeth.

An ominous premonition seized her heart, and she rushed back to the spot, only to feel as though a basin of ice water had been poured over her from head to toe — Li Chengying lay collapsed by the roadside.

Something had gone wrong!

Wen Tingli, pale-faced, threw open the door and ran toward Li Chengying — there was no time for questions now, only one word filled her mind: hurry!

She strained with all her strength to drag Li Chengying up and shove her into her own car. This time, Li Chengying no longer had the strength to stop her, because great gouts of blood were pouring from her mouth and from her chest and abdomen.

Wen Tingli went ice-cold all over — this wasn’t the Li Chengying she knew. The Sister Li she knew was always full of energy, always standing tall and strong like a pine tree. But the body before her now was withering rapidly with every drop of blood she lost.

Straining, she got Li Chengying into the back seat, then took off her own coat and laid it over her to keep her warm, then jumped into the front seat, wiped her tears away roughly, and sped off.

Her first instinct was to drive straight to Rue Cassini to seek Lu Shicheng’s help, but she was certain Li Chengying wouldn’t allow that — and sure enough, a low groan came from the back seat: “Don’t let anyone know.”

Wen Tingli glanced toward the direction of Rue Cassini, then resolutely turned the car around and drove back the way she’d come.

“Don’t be afraid, Sister Li.” She wiped the cold sweat from her face with one hand, her voice trembling as she comforted Li Chengying. “I’m here, nothing will happen to you. We’ll be at the Red Cross hospital soon.”

“Can’t go to the hospital…” Li Chengying said weakly from the back seat. “Find Liu Xiangzhi… she has medicine there, surgical equipment…”

“Yes.” Wen Tingli’s throat choked up as she nodded desperately.

Just then, a police car suddenly appeared ahead. Wen Tingli’s heart seized with terror as if she were already dead — seeing no way to retreat, she steeled herself and drove straight toward it head-on, humming a tune casually as she drove. The officers indeed showed no suspicion at all, not even glancing into her car, and drove straight past her.

From the back, Li Chengying gave a relieved smile: “Always this clever… clever and bold both.”

Wen Tingli wanted to smile back, but tears fell despite herself — she could tell Li Chengying’s condition had grown quite dire.

“That man up ahead… was a Japanese agent. Last year we disrupted an operation of theirs in Shanghai. This time he came prepared. Fortunately… I handled him alone, no other comrades were involved… the fewer people implicated in this, the better.”

Li Chengying murmured to herself in the back seat, sounding relieved.

Wen Tingli nodded through blurred, tearful eyes: “I understand, Sister Li. Please, don’t say any more. Close your eyes and rest.”

Time seemed to crawl unbearably slowly, the road ahead seeming endless. Wen Tingli’s tears kept streaming down as she drove mechanically, desperate to go faster, faster still, silently praying for Li Chengying the whole way.

She wasn’t sure how long she’d driven when she finally arrived at an abandoned factory. Someone rushed out from the end of the road.

Wen Tingli had already loaded her gun, her eyes fixed straight ahead, until she recognized Head Nurse Liu and hastily threw open the car door.

“Where is she?!” Head Nurse Liu had several people behind her, each one’s eyes filled with intense dread.

“In the back seat! She’s lost a lot of blood…” Wen Tingli said quickly, not even noticing that her own hands had gone as cold as ice, pulling Head Nurse Liu’s hand toward the back of the car as she spoke.

The moment Head Nurse Liu saw Li Chengying’s state, her knees buckled, but she steadied herself at once and said to those behind her: “Quickly, tell Dr. Wang to prepare for surgery.”

Li Chengying had been right — this abandoned factory was, in fact, a makeshift medical station. Inside was an operating table, with medicine and equipment piled in the corner. They carefully laid Li Chengying upon it; the moment the cloth sheet was placed over her, it was instantly soaked through with blood.

That searing red!

Wen Tingli was trembling — no, not just her; she saw several people’s hands shaking too. But Head Nurse Liu remained remarkably steady and strong, and under her direction, a tense, orderly rescue effort began.

Wen Tingli waited in the outer room, unwilling to leave even a step.

Over the next few hours, footsteps occasionally sounded from within, and now and then voices too, but no one came out to tell her how Sister Li was doing.

Every sound from inside made Wen Tingli’s heart lurch. Never before had a wait felt so agonizing; never before had a night felt so cold.

At last, exhausted, she sank down to sit on the floor, leaning her head back against the wall.

As she moved, she noticed something glinting at her neck. Looking down, it was the pink diamond necklace.

Lu Shicheng!

Wen Tingli scrambled up in a panic — she’d forgotten he was still waiting for her at Hongyuan!

She paced anxiously, searching the room for a telephone, only to discover this place had no phone line at all. Just as she reached to pull open the door, someone came out from the side room.

“Miss Wen, Sister Li wants to see you.”

A glimmer of hope kindled in Wen Tingli’s chest, and she hurried after the person into the room — but the moment she saw Li Chengying’s face, it felt as though her heart had been struck a heavy blow.

There was no saving her.

She had never seen such an ashen color on a living person’s face; the scent of death was already drawing near.

Someone in the room was crying silently. Wen Tingli’s teeth chattered as she stumbled, trembling, toward Li Chengying.

Li Chengying’s neck was rigid, her eyes fixed stiffly on the ceiling, her gaze already unfocused.

“Sister Li…” Wen Tingli bent over and wept over Li Chengying, her tears falling onto Li Chengying’s face, making it look as though Li Chengying herself were crying.

Wen Tingli felt instinctively that this was some kind of desecration, and quickly reached out to wipe the tear away.

Li Chengying never cried — she was so resolute, so unyielding; even the approach of death would not make her afraid.

Li Chengying’s eyes seemed to have already lost their sight, but she could still hear the sounds around her. “…Thank you… for bringing me… back.”

Wen Tingli sobbed uncontrollably: “No, I should thank you — if not for you and Dean Deng, that man surnamed Qiu would have killed me long ago. And this gun… you taught me so much, Sister Li. Please, please hold on.”

Li Chengying’s breath was now failing, but she still struggled to say something.

Wen Tingli leaned in closer.

“…Save people… save more…”

Then came a long silence.

Wen Tingli remained stubbornly, motionlessly bent over, listening, as if by staying still she could make Li Chengying keep speaking.

Head Nurse Liu suddenly burst into loud sobbing.

Everyone in the room was crying, the sound thick with deep sorrow and unwillingness to let go.

Wen Tingli stood stiff and unyielding, until someone gently wrapped her in their arms — only then did her overwhelming grief burst forth all at once. She sobbed and sobbed, her back bending, until she collapsed to her knees on the floor.

Wen Tingli splashed water numbly over her face, and when she raised her head, she caught sight of her own pale, swollen face in the mirror by accident, and the tears welled up once more.

For everyone there that night, it had been agonizing beyond words.

In the inner room, people were quietly discussing arrangements for Li Chengying’s affairs, and Head Nurse Liu kept urging Wen Tingli to leave.

Wen Tingli went in for one last look at Li Chengying’s remains before stumbling out, utterly bereft.

Dawn had already broken; the sun’s rays fell upon her face, yet she found them only harsh and blinding. Everyone else had a new day ahead of them — only that elder-sister-like good friend of hers would remain forever in the long, dark night behind her.

She wiped her tears dry in silence and drove the car back into the city, then suddenly shivered all over and turned the car back toward Rue Cassini.

She quickly found the small white building called Hongyuan and rang the bell at the iron gate. A man in a long robe came out.

“Whom are you looking for?” The man looked her up and down, then suddenly startled. “You’re Miss Wen Tingli, aren’t you?”

Wen Tingli said, filled with unease: “Is Mr. Lu still inside?”

The man silently led her upstairs to a room. The room was empty; on the table sat a large bouquet of deep red roses, their petals already beginning to wilt.

Beneath the flowers was a blue velvet jewelry box, and beside it an empty cup — touching it, she found the cup still faintly warm.

“Young Master Lu waited here for you the entire night,” the man said quietly behind her.

Wen Tingli’s eyes brimmed with tears, and she rushed to go downstairs, but the manager caught up to her and handed her the velvet box.

“Young Master Lu left this here. Please would you take it to him?”

Wen Tingli opened the velvet jewelry box in the car — inside was an exquisite pair of butterfly-shaped diamond earrings, the butterflies’ bodies made of solid diamond, their wings trembling as if alive.

Wen Tingli’s heart ached sweetly, and she couldn’t help but stroke the trembling wings again and again.

She raced to the Lu residence as fast as she could, but before she’d even gotten out of the car, she saw many vehicles parked in front of the Lu mansion, the iron gate wide open, Steward Xu hurriedly directing the household staff at the entrance — clearly something had happened.

Wen Tingli got out of the car in alarm and walked toward the gate. Steward Xu, startled, hurried up to her. “Miss Wen.”

“I’m going in to find Young Master Lu.”

Steward Xu said with difficulty: “Perhaps you should come another day — the household is in chaos right now, Young Master Cheng may not be in the mood to receive you.”

Suddenly someone called out from further ahead: “Miss Wen! I was just coming to find you.”

It was Kuang Zhilin, riding out from the Lu residence in a car. Wen Tingli immediately ran to the car. “Mr. Kuang.”

She noticed at once that Kuang Zhilin’s face looked very grim, and she asked urgently: “What on earth happened at the residence?”

“Old Master Lu had a sudden attack of angina in the early hours,” Kuang Zhilin said, wiping the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. “Since Young Master Cheng wasn’t at the residence at the time, the servants couldn’t find him for instructions, and treatment was unfortunately delayed. Old Master Lu is still being treated at the hospital now. The Lu family relatives have already rushed over upon hearing the news, and it looks like they intend to hold Young Master Cheng responsible.”

At this point, Kuang Zhilin turned a blade-sharp gaze on Wen Tingli: “May I ask where you were last night, Miss Wen? Young Master Cheng waited for you at Hongyuan the entire night. Later, fearing something had happened to you, he sent several trusted men to search for you quietly, but even by daybreak, they hadn’t found any trace of you.”

Wen Tingli closed her eyes in sorrow.

Before she’d left, Head Nurse Liu had repeatedly warned her that Li Chengying’s death must not be revealed to anyone for the time being — the Japanese were still searching the concession for their comrades, and if word got out, it could very well trigger more assassination attempts and more sacrifices.

This would surely never be what Sister Li would have wanted.

Wen Tingli’s uncharacteristic silence stirred a flicker of doubt in Kuang Zhilin’s heart. Since he’d known Wen Tingli, he’d never seen her this despondent before — that lifeless, deadened look made it impossible for him to press her further.

As he hesitated, Kuang Zhilin suddenly recalled two news items he’d read in the papers that morning.

One was the morning paper, the other yesterday’s evening edition.

The evening paper’s headline read: [New Red-Hot Starlet Rumored to Be Closely Involved with Business Tycoon].

Below it were two photographs. One showed a young woman speaking with a well-dressed young gentleman in the corner of a garden.

The other photo showed two cars parked side by side, at extremely close range, with the two drivers gazing at each other.

Kuang Zhilin recognized at a glance that it was Wen Tingli’s car; the man wasn’t hard to identify either — both photos showed Meng Qiguang.

The article stated, in essence: the starlet had reportedly admired this business tycoon for some time — drawn to his sharp business acumen and dashing charm, and also because he had once saved her from dire trouble; it was said she still kept his business card in her wallet to this day, showing how much weight he held in her heart… The two now frequently met in secret, avoiding public view, but because these meetings had grown so frequent, they’d occasionally been spotted by observant onlookers…

And in this morning’s paper, the most prominent headline reported that Meng Qiguang had been hospitalized after a car accident the previous day, with the accident occurring exactly yesterday evening.

Reportedly, Meng Qiguang had been under emergency treatment at Cixin Hospital all night, and was still not out of danger.

Thinking of this, and looking again at Wen Tingli’s swollen eyes, Kuang Zhilin felt his suspicions deepen further, but then it occurred to him — surely Young Master Cheng had seen both of these papers too — and he swallowed the rest of what he was going to say. “You’d better discuss it with Young Master Cheng yourself.”

Entering the main building, Kuang Zhilin led Wen Tingli straight upstairs when suddenly, from the side parlor, someone’s voice rang out, full of hostility: “I hear you waited an entire night at Hongyuan for some woman yesterday, and this morning you’re still running around looking for her. No wonder the servants couldn’t find you when your grandfather fell ill — is your grandfather really worth less to you than some woman outside the family? How could the Lu family produce such an unfilial descendant as you! Cousins, you must all judge for yourselves — does a man like this deserve to be the head of the Lu family?!”

Just then, Gao Xiaowen came bustling down from upstairs.

Wen Tingli suddenly recognized the voice as belonging to Third Master Lu — she hadn’t expected him to arrive so quickly.

“Shicheng, your grandfather is already advanced in years. As his closest grandson, you should at the very least show him filial devotion — how could you be so negligent? I hear it took the servants a full three hours to locate you after your grandfather fell ill. You’ve — you’ve truly disappointed us all.”

Lu Shicheng, evidently well accustomed to facing such barrages, replied calmly: “So did Third Uncle go visit Grandfather at the hospital this morning?”

Lu Kejian was momentarily at a loss, then, turning to notice Wen Tingli and Kuang Zhilin standing outside, immediately wheeled his chair around to turn his attack on Wen Tingli instead. Glancing at the necklace around her neck, he said coldly: “Is it her? Is she the film star? Who gave you the nerve to come to the Lu residence?!”

Several sharp gazes turned toward Wen Tingli. Lu Shicheng immediately instructed Kuang Zhilin: “Take the elders to the hospital first — I’ll follow shortly.”

“Don’t try that with me,” Lu Kejian snapped sharply. “If you don’t give a proper accounting for last night soon, none of the family elders will let this go!”

But Kuang Zhilin had already gone over to his wheelchair with several others and, amid Third Master Lu’s protests, wheeled him out without ceremony, then came back in and politely invited the other Lu family elders to leave as well. None of the relatives wished to get tangled up in the uncle-nephew feud, and with Kuang Zhilin’s intervention giving them a graceful exit, they all left one by one.

In a moment, only Lu Shicheng and Wen Tingli remained in the hall.

Wen Tingli’s heart was flooded with boundless guilt and grievance, and she rushed toward Lu Shicheng, head bowed.

Lu Shicheng couldn’t wait any longer and pulled her into his arms, lowering his head to study her closely. “Where were you last night?”

There wasn’t a trace of reproach in his tone — only concern he couldn’t hide.

“Last night, a friend of mine ran into trouble — it was urgent, so I had no chance to call you. I only just found out you waited for me at Hongyuan the entire night.” Wen Tingli said, full of guilt.

Lu Shicheng felt a quiet chill of alarm — he couldn’t imagine what she must have gone through last night; her face was so pale, her spirit so worn, the grief in her eyes impossible to conceal.