Ever since seeing An’an’s painting appear in the auction catalog, Shen Nanyue had been restless.
On one hand, she was excited to finally have a clue about An’an.
On the other hand, she was worried for her safety.
The group responsible three years ago had been vicious and ruthless.
She could only pray that An’an’s disappearance had nothing to do with those people.
Lost in thought, she didn’t notice that Zhou Yushen had already walked up to her.
“Zhou Yushen? What are you doing here?”
Shen Nanyue hadn’t noticed him, but Zhu Yuan spoke first in surprise.
Only then did Shen Nanyue come back to her senses.
She looked up and met Zhou Yushen’s calm, unreadable eyes.
A flicker of surprise crossed her face.
As if nothing was unusual, Zhou Yushen casually sat down beside Shen Nanyue and calmly answered Zhu Yuan’s question.
“I came to meet a business partner. When I came out, I happened to see you two.”
“A business partner? You’re discussing business here?”
Shen Nanyue looked at him suspiciously and couldn’t help asking,
“Man or woman?”
“A woman.”
Shen Nanyue frowned slightly, examining Zhou Yushen with suspicion.
“A woman? She’s not trying to take advantage of you, is she?”
Zhu Yuan cried out in alarm, suddenly studying Zhou Yushen thoughtfully.
With a face stunning enough to shake heaven and earth, in the workplace he was absolutely the type people would want to prey on.
If he truly didn’t want to work hard anymore, selling his looks could indeed bring him wealth and success overnight.
Squinting, she continued sizing him up.
Under her gaze, Zhou Yushen suddenly felt as though he had genuinely done something morally outrageous.
Just as he was about to explain— Zhu Yuan raised her hand and interrupted him.
“Being lazy, greedy, and tempted is human nature. Men and women alike can’t resist temptation forever. If you really did something like that, honestly, I could understand.”
Her words instantly darkened Zhou Yushen’s expression.
Subconsciously, he looked toward Shen Nanyue, only to find her still calm and detached, as though it had nothing to do with her.
An inexplicable flame rose rapidly inside him.
“The boss of Zhengfeng likes drinking. I simply catered to her preferences. She got happy after drinking and signed the contract. What could possibly have happened?”
His voice was icy, clearly expressing his displeasure.
Seeing that he was genuinely angry, Shen Nanyue tilted her head toward Zhu Yuan and gave her a look.
Men all had strong pride and self-esteem.
And talking about him being taken advantage of right in front of him—of course he wouldn’t be happy.
Zhu Yuan gave an awkward laugh and patted Shen Nanyue on the shoulder.
“What I mean is, this kind of thing is pretty normal, so I understand. But I believe you’d never do something like that. After all, Yueyue’s taste has always been excellent!”
She glanced at Shen Nanyue.
“Besides, you’re already being kept by Yueyue, a rich and beautiful sugar mommy. No one else could possibly catch your eye!”
The more Zhu Yuan spoke, the more sincere she sounded, clearly believing she was handling the situation perfectly.
Meanwhile, Shen Nanyue’s expression grew darker and darker.
In the end, Zhu Yuan simply stood up and pretended to check the time anxiously.
“I just remembered I’m supposed to go riding with the brats from the club. I’ve gotta go first.”
With that, she mercilessly abandoned Shen Nanyue and Zhou Yushen there together.
Holding her wine glass, Shen Nanyue stared fiercely at Zhu Yuan’s retreating figure.
Wasn’t Zhu Yuan the one who said she’d spend the whole night with her?
Cowardly deserter!
Meanwhile, Zhou Yushen leaned sideways and looked at Shen Nanyue meaningfully.
“So I’m being kept by Miss Shen?”
“I don’t spend money on men.”
Shen Nanyue shot him a glare.
Why was he taking advantage of the joke and pushing further?
Zhou Yushen merely smiled without saying anything.
She asked again, “Done talking with your client?”
“Finished. So I came to find you. I saw you dancing from far away just now—you danced beautifully.”
As he spoke, he casually poured himself a glass of wine, lightly clinked it against Shen Nanyue’s glass, then took a sip.
Shen Nanyue wasn’t sure if she was imagining it, but the way he looked at her just now seemed full of silent accusation.
For a split second, she felt oddly guilty—like a wife sneaking out behind her husband’s back to have fun outside.
She shivered violently, goosebumps erupting all over her skin.
“It’s late. I’ll call a designated driver and send you home first.”
As she spoke, she took out her phone and started booking a driver through an app.
Zhou Yushen looked at her with a smile.
“So you really are starting to keep me now?”
“Shut up!”
Shen Nanyue glared at him fiercely, though her gaze carried no real intimidation at all.
Zhou Yushen only smiled without saying a word.
Lowering his eyes, his gaze swept over the auction catalog beside her hand, quietly memorizing its name.
Not long after, a designated driver accepted the order.
Shen Nanyue stood up and called to Zhou Yushen.
“Let’s go.”
Zhou Yushen followed beside her as the two walked out shoulder to shoulder.
The intimate distance between them, the way they occasionally lowered their heads to whisper to each other—they looked even more captivating than a couple deeply in love.
Chen Mu stood not far away, watching their departing figures.
The hand gripping his wine glass trembled slightly, as though he were suppressing overwhelming emotions.
“Look! This is a photo from when I went to Beijing last month to discuss business with Old Master Zhou. Despite his age, the old man’s still in great spirits.”
A friend at the same table pulled out his phone to show the photo.
Chen Mu glanced at it casually.
Then his eyes suddenly fixed on one corner of the image.
He abruptly snatched the phone away.
“Chen Mu, what are you doing?”
Chen Mu said nothing.
He simply stared intently at a blurry figure in the lower right corner of the photograph.
Beside the corridor of an ancient-style garden stood a man in a suit, talking on the phone.
Although his face couldn’t be seen, Chen Mu instinctively felt that the man was Zhou Yushen.
He returned the phone and asked casually, “Have you ever met the young master of the Zhou family?”
“Never met him personally. I heard he’s been studying abroad, but I have heard some gossip. Apparently, the Zhou family’s young master is actually an illegitimate son! Madam Zhou couldn’t have children herself, so they brought Young Master Zhou back and entered him into the family registry to inherit the family business!”
Among wealthy elite families, illegitimate children were fairly common, though still deeply looked down upon.
In the hierarchy of high society, illegitimate children occupied the very bottom.
Zhao Qingqing frowned in disgust.
“And the Zhou family’s madam agreed to that?”
“Well, she couldn’t have children herself. Whether she agreed or not didn’t really matter.”
Chen Mu fell silent.
Sitting nearby, Lin Siwan noticed something off about him and quietly asked,
“Brother Chen Mu, what’s wrong?”
Chen Mu glanced at her, carefully choosing his words before finally speaking.
“Zhou Yushen is very likely the Zhou family’s illegitimate son.”
…
Three days later.
Shen Nanyue appeared alone at the auction venue.
Zhu Yuan had something urgent come up at the last minute, so Shen Nanyue had no choice but to come by herself.
After arriving and handing her invitation card to the staff for inspection, she entered the venue.
Today, she wore a Chanel-style short skirt paired with a neatly tailored pink blazer.
Her slightly wavy hair fell naturally over her shoulders, making her look playful and lively.
The moment she entered, she ran straight into Chen Mu and Lin Siwan.
Lin Siwan first sized Shen Nanyue up, concealing the jealousy in her eyes before speaking in confusion.
“Sister? Why are you here?”
Before Shen Nanyue could answer, Lin Siwan suddenly gave an understanding “oh” and smiled.
“The auction catalog I left at the bar the other day ended up with you. You saw that Brother Chen Mu and I were coming to the auction, so you came too, didn’t you?”
— The end of the Chapter–
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