A Twisted Love Affair
Chapter 30: Zhou Luchen, where did you go (1)_1

Chapter 30: Zhou Luchen, where did you go (1)_1

Shen Jing pouted. "That’s not enough at all."

There was no sound anymore. She had taken twenty minutes; Zhou Luchen hadn’t waited for her.

Standing in the hotel’s entrance, Shen Jing looked up at the night sky. She couldn’t see any stars; her eyes were dazzled by the towering buildings.

Look how aloof Young Master Zhou is. If he says five minutes, it’s strictly five minutes. If it’s even one minute more, he can turn around and leave. How heartless. She couldn’t overstep the rules Zhou Luchen had set.

The driver opened the car door. "You should go. He’s left with Young Master Chen."

Shen Jing lowered her eyes. "I don’t want to go."

The driver watched her get into the car and closed the door before taking his seat. "Then where do you feel like going?" he asked.

This was Shen Jing’s first time in Ao City, and she wasn’t familiar with many places. Where to go? Where else could she go? She had no acquaintances, after all.

"I might as well go," she decided. "Get something good to eat. I’m tired of the hotel’s pastries."

As she spoke, she licked her lips. Living with Zhou Luchen easily drained her energy, especially with their nightly exertions. Young Master Zhou was never one to be gentle or cherish women.

The driver nodded and then drove her to the Lisboa. The event was on the 3rd floor.

Group B had even invited people from Group A, blatantly targeting them. All the influential directors from the Ao Area were present. It had been a while since such a lively banquet was held at the Lisboa, and many financial groups from Hong Kong were in attendance.

As soon as Shen Jing entered the venue, she searched for Zhou Luchen. Unrecognized by anyone, she quietly slipped into the crowd.

Zhou Luchen, where on earth are you?

Naturally, she didn’t attract attention upon entering. The seasoned directors present had seen it all; what kind of beauties hadn’t they encountered? Consequently, when Shen Jing passed by, they assumed she was a server at the banquet. Some even asked her to pour wine or fetch tissues. Her vintage black qipao with gold embroidery was too understated, too dark. If one didn’t look closely, they wouldn’t notice how the black accentuated her fair skin, or how alluring the subtle charm she exuded in the shadows was. When she swayed, her waist moved with incredible suppleness. This really wasn’t her fault; she had always walked slowly, finding it hard to pick up her pace.

"Miss, you have a great figure." The words slurred from a portly middle-aged man whose breath reeked of alcohol. "How long have you been carrying trays here? Come on, fetch me a bottle of French Brew." His lecherous hand reached for her bottom.

Shen Jing snatched a porcelain plate from a nearby table, spun around, and smashed it over the man’s head. She didn’t care if he was drunk; being drunk was no excuse. Without consent, it was harassment.

CRACK!

The porcelain shattered. Blood slowly oozed from the middle-aged man’s head, the wound shockingly visible.

"Manager Zhao—" someone screamed.

"Ah, why are you bleeding?" Shen Jing feigned surprise, retreating in panic.

She was the one who had hit him.

The middle-aged man wasn’t actually that drunk. Seeing Shen Jing’s waist sway, fluid as water, had stirred the sordid desires in his heart, and he simply couldn’t suppress them.

He chuckled. "Do you know who I am, daring to hit me?"

Shen Jing didn’t know who he was. "You’re despicable and vile! Your hand just now..."

"Just now what? Accidentally brushed your shoulder, did I?" The man instantly straightened up, adopting the demeanor of a respectable gentleman.

These people are such phonies, she thought, damn good at pretending. They feign innocence so perfectly, twisting it to seem like her fault, like she attacked someone without reason.

"That’s a lie!" Shen Jing retorted.

The middle-aged man smiled, appearing like an honest man incapable of such sleazy behavior. "So, if I accidentally bumped into you, that gives you the right to hit me?"

Hearing this, Shen Jing bit her lip. "We can call the police! Ask them..."

But the entrepreneurs nearby were busy talking business. There were clearly no cameras here. Who would be a witness? No one. No one had seen the middle-aged man attempt to harass her.

For a moment, all she could think of was Zhou Luchen—the man who had spared no expense, even diving into the sea, to buy her a fish; the man who had held her in his arms as they slept just last night.

She looked around blankly, her lips trembling as she murmured, "Zhou Luchen, where are you..."

Where on earth was he?

She didn’t want to offend these prominent figures; such issues couldn’t be resolved with a few words of defense. That was the harsh reality. These people only bullied the weak and feared the strong; the truth often didn’t matter.

The middle-aged man, Zhao Zhiqiang, was a locally notable hotel manager who catered to out-of-town tourists. He had come with his wife.

As soon as the commotion started, Mrs. Zhao immediately pushed through the crowd. She knew Zhao Zhiqiang’s lecherous tendencies all too well, but now that the situation had escalated, there was no way he would admit to anything.

Mrs. Zhao shoved Shen Jing. "What are you doing? What did you do to my husband? At a fine banquet like this, you should just carry your tray properly! How could you hit someone on the head?"

"Uh—" Shen Jing looked around for Zhou Luchen, but in the shoulder-to-shoulder crowd and her blurry vision, she couldn’t find him.

Mrs. Zhao glanced at the injured Zhao Zhiqiang, then sized up Shen Jing. She’s quite attractive, she noted.

Mrs. Zhao’s first instinct was to de-escalate. "Just kick this waitress from your hotel out, and we won’t pursue the matter," she said. "You injured someone, and we’re not even asking for compensation, which is already generous. What are you crying about?"

They expected her to swallow this insult silently.

A bespectacled gentleman came over and grasped Mrs. Zhao’s hand. "She’s the lady accompanying Mr. Zhou."

Mrs. Zhao intentionally raised her voice, trying to sound bold. "What Mr. Zhou? Which Mr. Zhou? Is there a boss surnamed Zhou in the Ao Area that I don’t know?"

The man whispered, "It’s United Bank. The Zhou Family. Zhou Luchen."

Mrs. Zhao’s pupils shrank. She reassessed Shen Jing. "Alright, alright, let’s leave it at that for today. I won’t hold it against you. Don’t cry, now. You were the one who caused the injury first."

Shen Jing wanted to argue again, but Mrs. Zhao had already pulled Zhao Zhiqiang aside; when it came to smoothing things over, Mrs. Zhao was faster than anyone.

"Are you alright? Did the Second Young Master bring you here?" The one speaking to her was the bespectacled man, dressed in a suit, a corporate director. Shen Jing recognized him; she had seen this Director Sun in Hong Kong before.

Shen Jing turned her head away. Her vintage-style leather shoes gently crunched over the broken porcelain as she turned and left, tears falling despite her efforts. She hadn’t said a single word.

「...」

Director Sun watched Shen Jing’s retreating figure, then put down his glass and went upstairs, pushing open the conference room doors. The atmosphere inside was tense; conversations were held in hushed tones.

Zhou Luchen sat in the main seat, signing a contract. He didn’t know Director Sun well. Without even raising his eyes, he calmly continued his discussion with the other corporate executives.

"Second Young Master." Director Sun smiled and approached Zhou Luchen. "She’s in trouble."

Zhou Luchen didn’t spare Director Sun a glance, his expression utterly indifferent.

"Shen Jing," Director Sun clarified.

Zhou Luchen’s voice was cold. "What happened?"

"Zhao Zhiqiang, the general manager of Heyun Hotel... harassed her," Director Sun said, lowering his head to add, "The incident just now was quite serious."

Heyun what? Zhao Zhiqiang who? Zhou Luchen clearly didn’t know this hotel, nor had he heard of Zhao Zhiqiang. He picked up the remote control, continuing to listen as his assistant analyzed the Hong Kong stock data displayed on the monitor.

Director Sun urged, "You should still go down and take a look. She hit him hard enough to make him bleed."

Zhou Luchen turned a page, his expression unchanging, as if the contract before him was far more important.

"Hit what? I’m busy."

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