People dressed in fine clothes gathered together, chatting and exchanging toasts, and no one noticed who appeared or left.
There were more people than expected. Fang Bai turned to Ji Yuning and asked, "I'm going to find the old man. Do you want to come with me?"
Before entering, Ji Yuning glanced at her phone. As she stepped into the banquet hall, she spotted the person standing not far away.
After exchanging a glance with Yuan Yizhen, Ji Yuning looked at Fang Bai and said, "No, thank you."
“Okay, go have fun by yourself,” Fang Bai said. “Call me if you can’t find me later.”
Ji Yuning nodded. "Mm."
After Fang Bai walked away, Yuan Yizhen appeared next to Ji Yuning. She pushed up her glasses and said, "You said you weren't coming with me yesterday, so I thought you weren't coming."
Ji Yuning glanced at Yuan Yizhen, then looked into the distance, her voice clear and crisp: "How is it?"
Following the direction, Yuan Yizhen only caught a glimpse of Fang Baidi's back as he was about to disappear into the crowd. She glanced at him briefly before quickly looking away.
“It is indeed her,” Yuan Yizhen said, looking at Ji Yuning, “but Chairman Lu doesn’t know she’s here.”
After parting ways with Ji Yuning, Fang Bai walked towards the back of the banquet hall.
Fang Maozhou should be in the lounge at this time, and he usually comes out about ten minutes before the banquet starts.
When Fang Bai reached the door of the lounge and knocked twice, Chang Suyao's voice came from inside: "Who is it?"
Fang Bai had no intention of barging in. She said, "Fang Bai."
Three seconds later, the door was pulled open from the inside. Upon seeing Fang Bai, Chang Suyao greeted him with a smile, "You've arrived?"
Before Fang Bai could respond, Fang Maozhou's cheerful and loud voice rang out: "Bai Bao, come in quickly, Dad will introduce you to someone."
Chang Suyao's smile froze for a moment, but Fang Bai pretended not to notice, nodded to Chang Suyao, and stepped into the room.
When Fang Bai entered the room and saw another person besides Fang Maozhou, her expression faltered, just like Chang Suyao's. Although she quickly recovered, she was still caught by that person.
Lu Raomei rested her hand on her forehead, smiling as she looked at the person who entered. A beautiful curve appeared on her red lips. "Is this President Fang's daughter?"
"Yes." Fang Maozhou smiled, stood up and walked to Fang Bai's side, saying, "This is President Lu, Dad's new business partner."
Partners?
A look of surprise flashed across Fang Bai's eyes, while his heart was filled with turbulent emotions.
The person sitting in the chair stood up.
Lu Raomei's smile remained unchanged as she walked up to Fang Bai in her red high heels, extending her hand and saying, "Nice to meet you, Lu Raomei."
Fang Bai looked up.
Nice to meet you?
...Have you forgotten her?
"Fang Bai".
Fang Bai had already shaken hands with Lu Raomei, but when she finished speaking and tried to withdraw her hand, it was grabbed tightly.
Fang Bai instantly realized that Lu Raomei hadn't forgotten her; she was just acting.
"Although this is our first meeting, why do I feel like I've met Miss Fang before?" Lu Raomei's voice was alluring. "I even feel like we've known each other for a long time."
Fang Maozhou noticed that Fang Bai's expression was off, and he smiled and said, "President Lu is joking."
After saying that, Fang Maozhou pointed behind him, "President Lu, let's continue drinking tea."
After giving the person in front of her a meaningful look, Lu Raomei released Fang Bai's hand, turned to Fang Maozhou and said, "Okay, President Fang."
Fang Maozhou asked Chang Suyao to pour tea for the two of them, then waved to Fang Bai: "Bai Bao, if you have nothing to do, go find Old Chen and have him take you to say hello to those uncles and elders."
Fang Bai glanced at Lu Raomei almost imperceptibly, then nodded: "Mm."
After leaving the lounge, Fang Bai didn't look for Chen Xiandong. Instead, she went to a secluded corner and sat on the sofa, pondering why Lu Raomei had suddenly appeared.
The book never mentions any cooperation between Lu Raomei and Fang Maozhou. Apart from Ji Yuning, no one in the Lu family had any contact with the Fang family. But now, the villain has not only appeared, but has also become a partner of the Fang family.
If I'm not mistaken, Lu Raomei was the second main character at this celebration banquet.
Was it a hidden clue she overlooked? Or...?
"Aunt Fang?"
A voice interrupted Fang Bai.
Fang Bai raised his eyelashes, and after recognizing the person, replied, "Xiao He."
He Ziyan followed Zhu Ping, idly looking around, when suddenly she saw a figure that looked just like Fang Bai walking over. She made an excuse to come over and sure enough, she saw Fang Bai.
He Ziyan stood in front of the sofa, recalling what she had seen before entering the room, and hesitated before saying, "Aunt Fang, I just saw Ji Yuning go out with a woman wearing glasses."
Fang Bai was taken aback. Wearing glasses?
Is it...Yuan Yizhen?
Fang Bai rubbed her brows, feeling that something was subtly slipping out of her control, but she hadn't yet figured out what it was.
The crisp sound of high heels hitting the ground rang in her ears, growing closer and closer. Fang Bai lowered her hand and saw Lu Raomei walking towards her.
He Ziyan saw it too.
It was a stranger's face.
He Ziyan had never seen anyone so alluring. The red dress she wore made her look like an unpicked rose, but her undeniable aura erased the rose's gentleness, leaving only sharp thorns.
Lu Raomei sat down opposite Fang Bai, naturally crossed her legs, and smiled at Fang Bai, "I'd like to have a few words with you alone."
He Ziyan subconsciously looked at Fang Bai, and seeing that Fang Bai nodded to her, He Ziyan hesitated for a moment before turning around and walking away.
Before leaving, He Ziyan told Fang Bai, "Call me if you need anything."
Lu Raomei was amused by what He Ziyan said before leaving, and she did laugh out loud. Then, she narrowed her fox-like eyes at Fang Bai and slowly said, "I didn't expect you to be so popular with children."
“However…” Lu Raomei leaned forward, her tone seductive, “One isn’t enough, you want to provoke three?”
Author's Note:
I'm not sure how many more chapters there are about adulthood, but it should be within ten chapters.
Chapter 59
Fang Bai frowned slightly.
She knew that the three children Lu Raomei mentioned referred to the main characters, but Lu Raomei's words were inexplicable, especially the word "provoke," which made Fang Bai feel resistant and even disgusted.
However, one thing is clear.
Fang Bai half-lifted his eyelids and said calmly, "You investigated me."
From the moment Lu Raomei called her name at school, Fang Bai knew that Lu Raomei must have investigated her. At that time, Fang Bai didn't think much of it because it was indeed her who took the initiative, so it was normal for the other party to investigate her. But now, Lu Raomei was not only mentioning her personally, but also the people around her, which meant that Lu Raomei had investigated even those close to her.
A sense of unease washed over her again; the other person had violated her privacy.
Lu Raomei leaned back and chuckled, "It's just a matter of reciprocity."
Lu Raomei has never forgotten that email. Although it only contained two short sentences, those sentences would not have been easily known unless someone had deliberately investigated her. Moreover, the fact that they were able to trace it back to her so quickly after the incident meant that the other party was not to be underestimated. The key point is that she had been searching for this party for a long time.
Fang Bai's curiosity began after receiving that email.
The villain's thoughts are hard to fathom. Fang Bai paused for a moment, then said, "Then I'm even with President Lu."
“Even? That won’t do.” Lu Raomei beckoned to the waiter not far away, turned around and smiled at Fang Bai, saying, “I came to Hu City for you and even cooperated with the Fang family, not just to hear you say the words ‘even’.”
For her?
Fang Bai didn't believe a single word of it.
Lu Raomei was a two-faced woman; nothing she said could be trusted. Fang Bai was too lazy to deal with Lu Raomei any longer, so she asked directly, "What is President Lu's purpose?"
“Honey, as I just said,” Lu Raomei said with a smile, “you.”
Perhaps because he had spent too much time with Ji Yuning, Fang Bai reacted indifferently to the first two words Lu Raomei said, and asked in a cold voice, "Does President Lu think I would believe that?"
“That’s your problem,” Lu Raomei said.
The waiter then brought over the drinks.
After Lu Raomei took one glass, she gestured to the waiter to give the other glass to Fang Bai, who did so, but Fang Bai hesitated to take it.
Lu Raomei raised an eyebrow: "Not drinking?"
Since his last drunken episode, Fang Bai has rarely touched alcohol, let alone with Lu Raomei sitting next to him.
Lu Raomei's eyes flashed with interest. She raised her hand slightly and handed a portion of the wine in her hand to Fang Bai: "Didn't you want to know my purpose? Drink a glass, and I'll tell you."
As soon as she finished speaking, Lu Raomei saw that the person in front of her only hesitated for a moment, ignored the wine glass in her hand, and took the wine given by the waiter and began to sip it.
The little lamb's appearance excited Lu Raomei. She took a sip of wine and, seeing that the liquid in the other person's glass hadn't decreased, said, "Drink it all at once."
Fang Bai really wanted to know Lu Raomei's purpose in coming, because it was completely out of the novel's plot. Although he had his suspicions, Fang Bai still wanted to get confirmation from Lu Raomei.
Having already picked up the wine, Fang Bai didn't hesitate this time. He slightly raised his chin, and the liquid flowed down the side of the glass into his red lips.
After Fang Bai placed the empty cup on the table, Lu Raomei kept her word. Instead of directly stating her purpose, she asked Fang Bai, "Tell me, how did you know Ji Yuning's identity?"
Just as Fang Bai had guessed, Lu Raomei had indeed come for Ji Yuning. But didn't the book say that Lu Raomei didn't harm Ji Yuning before she went to the capital? So what's the reason now?
A hint of doubt flashed in Fang Bai's eyes, but he quickly composed himself and pretended to understand Lu Raomei's meaning, saying, "Of course I know."
Then Fang Bai cautiously probed, "But how does President Lu know Xiao Ning?"
She doesn't even know what her relationship with Ji Yuning is, yet she claims to know Ji Yuning's identity?
Lu Raomei became suspicious of Fang Bai's contradictory statements. Seeing the curiosity hidden in Fang Bai's eyes, she realized that Fang Bai wasn't faking it and that she didn't know about Ji Yuning's other identity.
Lu Raomei thought Fang Bai knew everything Ji Yuning had done, but now it seems that Fang Bai not only knew nothing, but was also completely fooled by Ji Yuning.
Lu Raomei said nothing, but instead smiled and said to Fang Bai, "Want to know? Have another drink."
Fang Bai knew that her feigned ignorance had successfully fooled Lu Raomei.