Fu Xiling gestured toward the hotel’s glass revolving door with a slight nod and a faint smile, then asked Shi Zhi, “Shall we go?”

The car interior was quiet. Shi Zhi remained half-squinting, her expression calm as she gazed at him.

Fu Xiling thought that if he teased her even just a little more—no, not even a little, just a few more words—Shi Zhi would immediately grab her study materials, slam the car door, and walk away.

Maybe she’d even slap him before leaving.

“What are you thinking about?” Fu Xiling quickly broke the silence before Shi Zhi could erupt, even throwing the blame back at her with a smirk. “You’re overthinking. I’m just here for a meeting nearby. It’s boring to be alone.”

Shi Zhi’s response to his remark was blunt: “You’re nuts.”

Fu Xiling stepped out of the car, casually tossed the keys to the valet at the entrance, and tilted his head toward Shi Zhi. “Come on, it’s more comfortable than your university’s study hall.”

He wasn’t wrong.

Shi Zhi followed him through the revolving doors into the hotel, where the fragrant aroma and cool air greeted her, indeed very pleasant.

The hotel’s tiled floor gleamed, reflecting the chandelier’s light and their figures walking side by side.

Fu Xiling added, “If I were truly crazy, I’d have taken you to the hotel at No. 23 on the next street.”

After a moment of thought, he laughed abruptly. “Should’ve done that from the start.”

Shi Zhi didn’t catch his meaning and glanced sideways at him.

Noticing her look, Fu Xiling said, “That hotel belongs to Shen Jia’s family. Didn’t he ever tell you about their business?”

Indeed, Shen Jia hadn’t mentioned it.

In their six months together, Shi Zhi and Shen Jia hadn’t reached the stage of discussing family matters. Shen Jia preferred to keep a low profile, while Shi Zhi deliberately kept things under wraps.

The most flamboyant person at the moment was walking right beside her. As he pressed the elevator button, Fu Xiling unabashedly bragged, “But his family’s hotels are still a bit lacking—can’t compare to ours.”

Shi Zhi looked around.

This hotel was indeed impressive, likely five-star quality, with luxurious decor, spacious halls, and an air of grandeur.

The staff they passed wore polite smiles and greeted them with “Good afternoon.” At the front desk, a group of foreigners was checking in. From the looks of it, there was some group event, and they had booked the hotel together.

In the elevator, two foreigners were unfolding a tri-fold brochure, intently studying the densely printed English text. One of them asked his companion in English if he had seen the meeting location.

It seemed the brochure was overly complex, and the two foreigners were struggling to figure it out. They held the elevator door open, appearing ready to head back to the front desk for clarification.

Fu Xiling pressed the button for the sixth floor and, in fluent English, explained to them that the conference hall was located there.

The foreigners made a face of sudden realization and finally pressed the “close door” button.

They enthusiastically asked Fu Xiling if he was also attending the exchange event.

Fu Xiling smiled and replied, “I’m not—I’m just hotel staff.”

The foreigners, apparently on their first business trip here, began asking about local attractions and food.

Fu Xiling spoke English effortlessly, chatting amiably as he recommended a nearby food street and a few specialty restaurants.

When their floor arrived, they exchanged farewells.

Shi Zhi, who had remained silent the whole time, finally spoke as the elevator doors closed again. “Your English sounds pretty good.”

Expecting some modesty, she was instead met with Fu Xiling’s nonchalant reply: “I’m good at many things.”

Shi Zhi promptly ignored him.

Fu Xiling brought Shi Zhi to the hotel’s top floor, where there was an office suite designed for business use.

A staff member entered, delivered some documents Fu Xiling needed, and then brought a platter of fruit, snacks, and a pot of freshly brewed chrysanthemum tea.

The room was spacious, with a sofa big enough to seat a dozen people.

Fu Xiling, reviewing the documents, didn’t even look up. “Go ahead and study. If you need anything, just call me, and I’ll have them prepare it.”

The central air conditioning was perfectly set. Shi Zhi leaned into the sofa, flipping through her notes. At first, she couldn’t concentrate, part of her attention drifting to Fu Xiling’s conversation with the staff:

“Many new hotels are introducing butler services, one-on-one communication. We’re not planning on offering that yet, but we still need to ensure guests can reach someone 24/7…”

Shi Zhi had rarely discussed serious matters with Fu Xiling, always pegging him as an idle second-generation heir. But now, it seemed he wasn’t just about eating, drinking, and playing around.

After a while, Fu Xiling left for a meeting. Shi Zhi, having acclimated to her surroundings, started studying seriously.

She was startled out of her focus when Fu Xiling suddenly sat in a single armchair diagonally across from her and knocked on the table.

Still thinking about her notes, Shi Zhi frowned and looked up, only to see Fu Xiling sipping tea. “You’re not eating anything or drinking water. Afraid I’ll poison you?”

“If I were that timid, I wouldn’t have come with you,” Shi Zhi replied, setting her book aside and reaching for some fruit.

She wore a Hetian jade bracelet on her wrist. Reaching over the cherries in the fruit platter, she picked up a slice of watermelon with a fork and took a bite.

Fu Xiling set down his teacup and suddenly asked, “Has Shen Jia contacted you recently?”

“No.”

“I don’t think he will.”

Shi Zhi glanced at Fu Xiling, tempted to ask why. But watching him sip tea like a prince with an air of leisurely detachment, she suddenly felt a wave of disdain for the rich and decided not to give him the chance to act mysterious.

“One of his friends came to see me,” Shi Zhi said, briefly recounting how Shen Jia’s friend had mentioned his low spirits and even crying.

Fu Xiling looked down at his phone, silent for a long time. Just when Shi Zhi thought the topic had passed, he suddenly asked, “Feeling soft-hearted?”

Shi Zhi stared at him.

He continued, “Don’t take Shen Jia’s tears too seriously.”

Shi Zhi knew this.

She had seen Tao Jia’s recent Weibo post, which was just a frustrated meme, and Shen Jia hadn’t commented as he usually did.

But Shen Jia ignoring Tao Jia didn’t bring her any joy.

Someone like Shen Jia, who fancied himself a noble gentleman, would cry over their breakup only partly because of the split. More than that, it was likely his inability to reconcile with his indecision and less-than-virtuous side.

Fu Xiling seemed to share her thoughts.

“Honestly, I think Shen Jia does like you quite a bit,” Fu Xiling said, setting down his cup. “He hasn’t started chasing after Tao Jia again yet. Their relationship is just ambiguous for now.”

“I know.”

If this matter were left to Shen Jia, he would need at least a year to end things with Shi Zhi and rekindle with Tao Jia.

“But you were too decisive. You didn’t give him that chance and exposed the hesitation he was trying to hide.” Fu Xiling chuckled. “You caught him off guard. His tears aren’t entirely for you.”

“Then why do you think he cried?”

“My guess? He feels powerless and resistant to his situation. He might even be complaining to his friends, saying, ‘I didn’t do anything, so how did it come to this?’”

Eventually, Shen Jia would figure it out.

And when he did, would he and Tao Jia end up together?

Shi Zhi frowned, set down her fruit fork, leaned back into the sofa, and casually spun her bracelet. Abruptly, she changed the subject to something irrelevant: “Is running a hotel profitable?”

“That’s a tricky question.”

Fu Xiling’s gaze briefly flicked to her wrist before answering just as vaguely, “Well, it depends on the person running it…”

Shi Zhi studied the room’s furnishings, her eyes drifting from the cabinets to the table and then the chairs.

Her gaze carried a hint of ambition, reminding Fu Xiling of the first time they met years ago—her sharp determination back then.

He suddenly laughed to himself and, after a while, asked curiously, “Have you ever hit someone before?”

Shi Zhi was speechless, completely baffled by his train of thought.

“…Are you losing it again? Don’t tell me your charming Miss Yao Yao is not only arrogant but also a martial arts expert.”

Fu Xiling laughed. “Not at all.”

Shi Zhi didn’t bother probing further into his inexplicable amusement. She wasn’t the type to dig into things that didn’t concern her, especially since she didn’t care about Fu Xiling’s antics as long as they didn’t harm her interests.

What truly occupied her thoughts was still Shen Jia.

Even though she didn’t seem heartbroken—no crying, no sulking, and cutting off all contact—she still cared.

She might appear calm, but she hadn’t moved on.

In fact, she was still contemplating how to strike back at Shen Jia and deliver a “fatal blow.”

Fu Xiling understood this well.

So when Shi Zhi suddenly asked him if there was any way to get an invitation to a certain resort project banquet on the 17th of this month, he wasn’t surprised.

Almost as if he’d expected it, Fu Xiling pulled out his phone, scrolled for a moment, and showed her a photo of the invitation. “You mean this one?”

The so-called resort project was a countryside development that involved numerous investors, promoting a “return to nature” theme with villa-style accommodations.

The project had just wrapped up.

The lead investor, under the guise of celebrating an elder’s birthday, had invited a group of investors and friends to the event to drum up publicity. Business often worked this way—connections and interests intertwined.

But Shi Zhi didn’t know these details.

When she and Shen Jia were still on good terms, he’d mentioned it briefly. At the time, Shen Jia had only said that his family’s elders didn’t want to travel and had sent him to attend.

It happened to fall around the summer vacation, and if the timing worked out, he suggested bringing Shi Zhi along.

Back then, Shen Jia had said, “Treat it like a getaway. It’s not far—just two days. Shi Zhi, will you come with me?”

When Fu Xiling mentioned his family’s hotel business earlier, Shi Zhi wondered if he could somehow get her in.

But when Fu Xiling actually produced the invitation, she felt an odd, indescribable sensation, like she was being guided into a pre-written script.

Shi Zhi didn’t believe in “trust without doubt.”

Her experiences had taught her otherwise, making her instinctively suspicious. “How did you know I wanted to go?”

Fu Xiling responded quickly, avoiding a direct answer. He simply mentioned that Yao Yao would also be there and that Shi Zhi’s exams should be over by then. He then asked for a favor—to show up at the banquet as a guest.

After a pause, he added, “Of course, if you want to go, even better.”

Shi Zhi, not particularly pleased, ate another slice of watermelon. Without any good reason to refuse, she agreed.

The sweltering days eventually passed, and exam week wrapped up in its wake. The day after Shi Zhi’s final exam was the banquet date.

The invitation stated it was an evening event. Fu Xiling came to pick Shi Zhi up that afternoon.

He had switched to a more comfortable SUV, with two large gift boxes in the backseat.

When Shi Zhi casually asked about them, he replied, “One’s for the elder celebrating their birthday, and the other is for you.”

Not used to receiving unearned gifts, Shi Zhi felt uncomfortable. “What is it?”

“Battle armor.”

As the car sped down the highway for nearly half an hour, Fu Xiling suddenly asked, “I’ve noticed you trust me quite a bit. For an overnight trip, you didn’t even ask about the accommodation arrangements. Aren’t you worried about following me?”