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Lu Tinghe cast a glance down at the bar. In the next second, his masseter muscles suddenly tensed, and his gaze darkened. His grip on the wine glass tightened slowly.
At the bar, Shang Li was sitting obediently in their direction. She seemed a little tipsy, her body swaying slightly as if she had drunk a bit too much.
The woman beside her had already slumped over the bar, looking like Tan Weiwei based on her posture.
More importantly, there were two unfamiliar men standing next to them, clearly engaged in some sort of tugging and pulling.
Just as Lu Tinghe was about to take the next step, Bo Yan Zhi threw his glass down, quickly getting to his feet first.
He cursed under his breath and took off running downstairs.
Tang Yu, standing nearby, looked shocked.
Wait… Bo Yan Zhi and his young master are both eyeing the same woman?
Lu Tinghe muttered, “This guy could apply for a patent, with how fast he’s moving like a rocket.”
Tang Yu: “…”
—
Downstairs, a man in a floral shirt was gripping Shang Li’s arm, attempting to pull her up from her seat. He leered, “Miss, you’re drunk. Let me take you home.”
At this moment, Shang Li was about seventy to eighty percent drunk, but there was still a faint trace of awareness left in her.
She tried to shake off the man’s hand with all her might, but it felt as though her strength had been drained, and she couldn’t muster any energy.
Shang Li shifted her body slightly toward Tan Weiwei, “Weiwei, get up, we… we need to go back…”
Tan Weiwei lifted her head, which seemed as heavy as if it had been filled with lead. Her eyes were glazed over as she mumbled, “Go back? No, I’m not going back… I want to keep drinking!”
The two men exchanged lewd glances and probably couldn’t be happier to have “picked up” two beautiful women to take home.
At that moment, a hand wearing a watch worth tens of thousands of dollars landed on one of the man’s arms, pulling it away from Tan Weiwei. “Let go of her.”
The man glanced at Bo Yan Zhi, eyes filled with hostility. His tone was arrogant as he sneered, “Who the hell are you?”
On the other side, Lu Tinghe shoved his hands into his pockets and lazily lifted his eyelids, looking at the man as if he were some kind of idiot. “He’s her husband. I’m her boyfriend. Take a look—do you want to deal with him first or me?”
“Or should I say…” Lu Tinghe curled his lips into a sly smile. “Do you want to fight both of us?”
The atmosphere froze.
The man stared at Lu Tinghe’s face for a long time, feeling as though he had seen this incomparably noble face somewhere before under the dim lights.
Most of the people who frequented Baolong Bar were second-generation rich from Jingdu, and in an instant, the man’s companion in the floral shirt recognized Lu Tinghe.
“Bro, it’s Lu Tinghe…”
Lu Tinghe leaned against the counter, seemingly hearing their conversation. His posture was lazy, yet it exuded an inherent elegance.
His pitch-black, mesmerizing eyes narrowed slightly. “Sorry, my name’s not very pleasant, I hope I didn’t embarrass you.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the man froze in place, feeling a chill shoot from his feet to his head.
“Ah, so it’s Young Master Lu. My apologies, we didn’t recognize you. We’ll leave right away.”
After the two men hastily fled, Shang Li seemed still unaware of the situation.
She shook her head slightly, a tipsy smile hanging on her lips, her gaze dreamy, like a little kitten longing for comfort.
“Lu…Tinghe?”
“Mm, good girl, still remember me.”
Bo Yan Zhi, still holding Tan Weiwei’s arm, attempted to pull her up. “What’s going on? Drunk like this? If you can’t handle your alcohol, don’t drink. Is this alcohol personal vendetta against you?!”
Tan Weiwei suddenly lifted her head, and with a swift motion, slapped Bo Yan Zhi hard across the face. “You damn well get lost. Men are all the same, worthless!”
Bo Yan Zhi, clutching his red cheek, almost burst out in anger. “I shouldn’t have bothered with you. You should just be picked up by someone else! Tomorrow, get a pregnancy test, and it’ll be a two-for-one deal!”
Shang Li, struggling to keep her balance, stood up with difficulty, her lips pouting, her gaze moist and hazy. With each breath, there was an indescribable sensuality about her.
“Weiwei… Weiwei’s in love…”
Hearing this, Bo Yan Zhi’s heart unexpectedly lifted in joy. “Heh, so she finally realized she’s been played by Chu Yan?”
Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, Shang Li’s body swayed, and in the next moment, she collapsed into Tang Yu’s arms.
Lu Tinghe: “??”
Tang Yu hurriedly reached out to catch her, but as he saw the increasingly dark look in his young master’s eyes, he felt as though he was holding a hot potato. He didn’t know whether to keep holding her or let her go—letting go would mean dropping her straight onto the floor.
Lu Tinghe chuckled darkly. “You sure know how to pick them. Is Tang Yu more handsome than me?”
Tang Yu’s brow twitched. “No, no, of course, it’s Young Master who’s more handsome.”
Lu Tinghe lazily glanced at the two of them before speaking. “What’s with the hugging? Don’t you plan on letting her go? Tomorrow, I’ll have my father prepare a room for you and bring her home, huh?”
Tang Yu was stunned into silence: “…”
He didn’t dare release her, not when the young master hadn’t moved to help. If he let go, wouldn’t she just collapse to the ground?
Lu Tinghe felt as though there was a pressure building in his chest. He turned around, his voice cold. “Fine, I’ll drive. You two get in the backseat. I’ll give you some privacy.”
Tang Yu: “Young Master, this isn’t right, you’ve been drinking, you can’t drive.”
Lu Tinghe smirked, “Lately, I’ve developed a new hobby—drunk driving.”
Tang Yu: “…”
Meanwhile, Bo Yan Zhi, still irritated, was holding onto Tan Weiwei’s arm. “Hey, stop fooling around, there’s still one more over here—what should we do?”
Lu Tinghe smiled and said with a light tone, “The cooked duck is right in front of you. Do you want to let it fly away? It’s up to you.”
Bo Yan Zhi: “…”
—
A short while later, Shang Li was shoved into the backseat of a Rolls-Royce by Tang Yu.
At this moment, she was thoroughly drunk, her eyes half-closed. Her lively, sparkling eyes were now hazy and distant. Her originally pale cheeks were flushed with a soft red hue, and her long hair covered most of her small face, giving her a particularly helpless, vulnerable appearance.
Lu Tinghe watched her for a while, his emotions carefully restrained. He then turned his head to look out the window.
From the driver’s seat, Tang Yu asked, “Young Master, where to?”
“Jing Wang Plaza.”
Tang Yu’s breath hitched for a second.
Damn, is the young master planning to kidnap a decent woman and take her home?
Lu Tinghe added, “Don’t tell my father.”
“Understood, Young Master.”
“And also, have Uncle Tang come over tomorrow morning.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
—
The Rolls-Royce sped smoothly on the elevated highway. Lu Tinghe draped a thin blanket over Shang Li, who was slumped in the backseat.
Shang Li shifted slightly, exhaling softly as her breath returned to a quiet rhythm, a subtle but steady sound.
Lu Tinghe’s gaze lingered on the black canvas bag in her lap.
In his memory, Shang Li had always carried that bag. The white teddy bear on it, holding a small bowl, looked cute and silly, almost resembling her in its innocent charm.
Back in high school, this bag had been used to carry her sketching tools. Now, it had become her everyday backpack.
During their senior year, there were the ninety-eight egg pancakes and countless bottles of sports drinks and milk tea. If Shang Li hadn’t bought them for him, he could have replaced this bag with something more stylish by now.
She really was a bit foolish.
At the thought, Lu Tinghe’s gaze deepened, and his eyes darkened slightly.
Shang Li had bought him so many things. Was it so hard for her to buy more for the guy she secretly liked?