When Lin Heng received a call from Shang Xinglu, he was in his office while his assistant, Yuan, was briefing him on his upcoming schedule.

As the phone rang, Lin Heng gestured for Yuan to pause.

Yuan stood quietly by the side, eyes downcast, feigning indifference.

His mind, however, wandered wildly—he suddenly felt like one of those refined and dramatic head eunuchs in ancient costume dramas.

The moment Lin Heng spoke, Yuan immediately confirmed that he was talking to Miss Shang.

To be honest, they should really be calling her Mrs. Lin.

But Miss Shang was particularly sensitive about anything related to age.

For example, at charity events, if a little child wearing a red scarf came over and called her “Auntie,” she would absolutely refuse to swipe her card and would even pretend not to have seen the child at all.

However, if the child sweetly called her “Big Sister,” that little one would experience warmth as gentle as a spring breeze.

As for the title “Mrs. Lin”—it sounded undeniably old-fashioned.

Worse, it always made Yuan think of Lin Heng’s mother, Gu Wanyu.

Because of all these considerations, over time, they had all unanimously agreed to call Lin Heng’s wife “Miss Shang.”

In the past, Yuan used to find it quite annoying to receive calls from Miss Shang.

She was even pickier than Lin Heng.

But now, Miss Shang never called him, nor did she ask about Mr. Lin’s whereabouts. The moment she stopped asking, Yuan actually started missing it. As the head steward of this grand household, he was very invested in his boss’s romantic life.

The reason was simple: if the boss was happy, they were happy. If the boss was miserable, they would be, too.

So, really, the boss’s happiness was their happiness!

At that moment, Lin Heng, with an expressionless face, said into the phone, “So, should I just tell her that we haven’t slept together in ages? That’s why we don’t have kids? Do you think that explanation would be better?”

Thud—!

Yuan’s tablet fell to the ground.

“S-Sorry, sorry, my hand slipped…” Yuan quickly bent down to pick it up, conveniently hiding his utterly shocked expression.

But this was simply too shocking! Even after Lin Heng hung up, Yuan was still dazed.

Lin Heng tapped on the desk and said with a stern face, “If you keep spacing out, I’m deducting half your bonus this month.”

That wouldn’t do!

Yuan quickly snapped back to reality and resumed his report. As he spoke, he stole glances at Lin Heng’s expression. Then, all of a sudden, he blurted out, “Uh, Mr. Lin, would you like to go out for a drink after work to unwind?”

And maybe he could even arrange for some beautiful girls to help Mr. Lin relax a little.

Otherwise, this… this was just too tragic!

Lin Heng glanced at him.

He didn’t say anything—for now.

…

Meanwhile, on Shang Xinglu’s end, she hung up the phone, filled with guilt.

At the end of the day, no matter how impotent Mr. Lin might be, he was still a man.

It seemed like male pride could be quite fragile in this aspect…

Feeling guilty, Shang Xinglu went out shopping in an uncharacteristically good mood.

She was so preoccupied that she didn’t even bother engaging in her usual tense, explosive battles with her mother-in-law, Gu Wanyu.

Somehow, she even forgot to use the black card Lin Heng had given her. Instead, Gu Wanyu ended up buying her a bunch of things.

Yet, even after returning home, Shang Xinglu remained troubled.

She mulled over the issue again and again, convinced that something had to be done.

As if possessed, she opened her web browser.

She had been to a high-end male escort club called “Huanlongshi,” but what about female escort clubs?

This… she truly had no idea.

Then, another deep existential question arose in her mind.

How does one go about unspoken rules with rising starlets?

That, too, she didn’t know.

Another question—how does one pick up girls for some intimate fun?

Shang Xinglu finally rolled her eyes. Like hell I’d know! Why am I even worrying about this?!

But still unwilling to give up, she searched for “Huanlongshi, female version.”

Nothing particularly useful came up.

However, in a forum post, a user bragged about their experiences in a certain red-light district abroad. While boasting, they mentioned a crucial keyword: “Tiger’s [censored].”

Shang Xinglu hadn’t thought much of it before, but after searching for it—

Oh. Oh. OH!

That face!

That chest!

Those long legs!!!

That aura!!!

That price!!!

… So many choices! How had she never known such magical places existed?!

However, since she wasn’t a citizen of that country, this wasn’t exactly legal.

But by now, she had completely forgotten her original purpose. She was simply enthralled by the mesmerizing images on her screen.

Just then, Marilyn called her for dinner.

Shang Xinglu snapped back to reality, hurriedly turned off her phone, and rushed out for dinner.

Marilyn stared at her blankly. “Madam…”

“Huh?”

“You have a nosebleed. Didn’t you notice?”

Shang Xinglu wiped her nose with her finger and looked at it.

Oh. She really did.

As for why… well—

Shang Xinglu chuckled awkwardly. “The weather has been dry lately, making me feel a bit irritated.”

Marilyn helped her deal with her nosebleed, taking her sweet time. By the time they finished dinner, Shang Xinglu had already forgotten what had just happened.

After spending the whole day out, Shang Xinglu was exhausted. She had just finished her shower and was about to sleep when her phone rang.

It was her best friend, Shi Rui.

…

Meanwhile, Lin Heng got off work and, just as Assistant Yuan had suggested, went out for a drink.

It was a bit pitiful, really. Including his two assistants, there were four of them in total—all men.

Among them, Fang Liao was Lin Heng’s university classmate, and the two had a decent relationship. The bar wasn’t far; there were plenty of them behind the financial district. Sitting there at night, they could expect to run into at least half of their acquaintances.

Lin Heng thought it was just a casual drink to unwind. Little did he know, his colleagues had other plans.

Apart from Fang Liao, who was Lin Heng’s friend in private, the other two had no interest in spending extra hours with their boss after work.

Assistant Yuan had chosen a different kind of bar this time—one much livelier than their usual spots.

The location was perfect, too. A group of businessmen in suits wouldn’t stand out.

Most importantly, the women who came here were bold and confident, with looks well above average.

Assistant Yuan figured that for someone as uptight as Lin Heng, a chance encounter would be much more exciting and natural than arranging for an escort.

So, this bar was the perfect choice!

Sure enough, they had just sat down when several women started glancing over.

Within minutes, a woman approached them.

Assistant Yuan had been to this bar before, but this was the first time he had witnessed such treatment!

He was completely stunned.

Then, he became envious, jealous, and resentful.

Honestly, if he were a woman, he would have seduced his boss long ago! Why let these other women have a chance?

“Hey, handsome, just got off work? Want to have some fun?”

A short-haired woman with multi-colored highlights smiled at them. She was wearing a tank top, denim shorts, and a small vest. Her figure was well-proportioned, neither too thin nor too muscular. Her upturned eyes and bright smile gave her a seductive charm.

Three of the four men thought—this could be interesting.

The only one unfazed was the woman’s intended target.

Lin Heng remained silent.

The woman waited.

Lin Heng stayed silent.

The woman chuckled, unfazed, and repeated her invitation.

By now, not only was she watching Lin Heng, but so were her tablemates, as well as Lin Heng’s assistants. All eyes were on him, waiting to see his response.

Under the intense scrutiny, Lin Heng’s expression remained unchanged.

No reaction.

He didn’t even let his eyes wander, keeping his gaze fixed on the woman’s face.

At that moment, the DJ switched songs, and Lin Heng finally spoke at his usual volume, “Sorry, the music was too loud just now. I didn’t hear you.”

Fang Liao: “…”

Assistant Yuan: “…”

The women: “…”

The short-haired woman was momentarily stunned before bursting into laughter.

“You’re interesting. Alright, I’ll say it again—handsome, want to have some fun?”

Fang Liao stepped in to smooth things over. “Sure, sure! Don’t mind him. He’s just old-fashioned.”

Assistant Yuan quickly followed up, “Exactly! Beautiful, what’s your name?”

Lin Heng calmly pointed to the wedding ring on his ring finger. “I’m married.”

Fang Liao: “…”

Assistant Yuan: “…”

Fang Liao suddenly wanted to punch Lin Heng in the face.

If he could do it without losing his bonus and salary, Assistant Yuan would have, too!

The atmosphere became unbearably awkward.

Just then, another woman stormed in, high heels clicking against the floor.

She was undeniably beautiful, but her sharp, seductive features made her look like a classic femme fatale—like the white-boned demon trying to drag Tang Seng into her lair.

This “femme fatale” grabbed the short-haired woman’s arm and, despite the deafening music, managed to shout loud enough to be heard by everyone nearby.

“He said he’s married! Didn’t you hear? Why are you still standing here?!”

Assistant Yuan was even more shocked.

How long had his boss been here? And already, women were fighting over him?

…Was this the cruel reality of a looks-driven world?

The short-haired woman scoffed. “And what’s it to you? We’re all just here to have fun. Why are you butting in? Are you his wife or something?”

She rolled her eyes dramatically.

To her surprise, Lin Heng spoke up. “Shi Rui.”

The short-haired woman: “?!”

Her expression was filled with disbelief, as if she were thinking—This is your taste? She’s actually your wife???

Shi Rui didn’t even have time to respond before suddenly turning around and yelling, “Shang Xinglu—get over here!!!”

Despite the blasting music, Shi Rui’s voice cut through the noise, making people at nearby tables turn their heads.

The only person who didn’t react stood out like a sore thumb.

Lin Heng, whose vision was excellent thanks to his glasses, finally spotted her. Three tables away, near a booth entrance, a long-haired woman was crouching slightly, desperately trying to hide her face.

Shi Rui was fuming. She shouted again, “Your husband is being hit on! Why are you hiding?! Get over here!!!”

Shang Xinglu, realizing there was no escape, had no choice but to walk over. She put on her best polite, graceful smile.

“Oh wow, what a coincidence. We’re all friends here.”

Shi Rui pinched her arm, eyes filled with rage, as if saying—I can’t believe I have such a useless best friend! This is how you handle someone hitting on your husband?!

But Shang Xinglu remained unfazed.

She simply said, “A bunch of acquaintances sitting together in a place like this is kind of boring. Why don’t we just… call it a night?”

Lin Heng narrowed his eyes, his presence suddenly overpowering.

“Oh? And what kind of strangers do you want to meet?”