After the door of the private room closed, Zhuo Xiangqiao, who had been lying on the ground, also straightened up. His eyes were clear, showing no signs of drunkenness. He picked up two sheets of paper from the corner of the table, looked at them with satisfaction, and then slowly savored the wine that was set aside, a smile of pleasure tugging at his lips.
Upon returning to his apartment and opening the door, he immediately saw Cenhuan sitting in the living room.
"Where were you yesterday? You didn't even take your phone." Cenhuan had bought groceries the day before and when she returned, the room was empty. After calling, she discovered her phone was still in the room. Smelling the lingering scent of alcohol on her, Cenhuan frowned, "Did you go drinking?"
Lin Yue smiled appeasingly at Cenhuan, then ran into the bedroom to grab a set of clothes and hurried into the bathroom. After taking care of herself, Cenhuan was still sitting in the living room.
"A director from the United States wants to collaborate with you on a promotional MV, and the company also plans to have you stay there for a while."
"When do I leave?" Lin Yue paused, lowered her head, and after a long while, she finally asked.
"You're leaving tomorrow."
"Okay." Lin Yue smiled at her, "Then spend tonight with me."
Apparently reminded of the recent events, Cenhuan nodded her head.
After leaving the bar, Zhuo Xiangqiao went back to the Zhuo Family mansion to clean up and then drove away again. Liao Yun, who had come up empty, sat on the sofa in the lobby, stewing in her frustration, while Zhuo Jianzhang beside her smiled contentedly, looking at the newspaper in his hands.
Zhuo Xiangqiao drove to a discreetly located club and as soon as he entered the private room, he saw the person sitting on the chair. Everyone in the room stood when he arrived, respectfully greeting, "Young Master Zhuo."
Zhuo Xiangqiao sat down, looking at the person across the chair, "So this is the person you found."
The person beside him nodded, "Yes, I found him exactly as you instructed, Young Master. He's a notorious paparazzo in the circle, often blackmailing celebrities with their private photos. He'll do anything for money!" Knowing his subordinate's reliability, Zhuo Xiangqiao looked satisfied at the person sitting opposite him and threw a newspaper in front of him, "Who instructed you to do this?"
The man across looked at the newspaper before him, his eyes shrinking, his body curling up, yet he said, "I didn't write this, Young Master, you can't wrongly accuse me."
Zhuo Xiangqiao, clearly not believing him, signaled to someone behind him. Immediately, the person walked up to the front, presenting photos and a memory card to him. Zhuo Xiangqiao threw the photos in front of the man, who completely deflated upon seeing them — the photos and the memory card he had supposedly destroyed were still intact.
"Now, you can confess honestly." Zhuo Xiangqiao leaned back in his chair, his gaze emotionless, the atmosphere in the private room ominously tense.
The man across promptly revealed everything he knew, "A woman! That day she called me about news on Lin Yue. Young Master, if I had known Lin Yue was one of yours, I wouldn't have dared agree to it!"
"A woman? What kind of woman?" Zhuo Xiangqiao asked, seemingly thinking of someone.
"I don't know, she always contacted me via phone. Each time it was her reaching out, and the phone number was always different." The man quickly explained, regretting his decisions if he had known this would happen, no amount of money would have tempted him to take the job, "All her calls are in the log of my phone, and I recorded our conversations."
Immediately, someone stepped forward and searched the man, extracting the phone from his person. They found the call logs and recordings and placed them in front of Zhuo Xiangqiao.
Zhuo Xiangqiao fiddled with the phone with one hand while tapping the table with the other. Seeing him silent, the man grew more anxious, his legs shaking uncontrollably.
After a while, Zhuo Xiangqiao threw the phone to his subordinate, a smirk forming on his lips as he looked at the man across him, "Check this phone for more details, send it to the respective parties, and tell them I suggest they come forward to defend their rights."
The man across, hearing Zhuo Xiangqiao's words, collapsed to the floor. Knowing he had offended nearly everyone in the circle over the years, and with Zhuo Xiangqiao's words, he wondered how he could continue to survive! Seeing Zhuo Xiangqiao's departing figure, the man quickly crawled over and clung to Zhuo Xiangqiao's legs, crying out, "Young Master, I know I was wrong! Please spare me!"
Zhuo Xiangqiao looked disdainfully at the man clinging to his legs, kicked him aside, and walked out of the private room.
"Check who that person he was contacting is." Although he already had a suspect in mind, without solid evidence, he couldn't confirm his suspicions.
"The company has already arranged for Miss Lin to go to the United States first." his subordinate informed him.
"Hmm." Zhuo Xiangqiao walked ahead, having been abroad for years, he always received news about Lin Yue promptly, "Thank you for your hard work these past few years."
Hearing his boss praise him for the first time, the subordinate was stunned, scratching his head and chuckling awkwardly. If Cenhuan and the company's employees saw their usually stern boss making such a gesture, they'd be shocked. Hearing the laughter behind him, Zhuo Xiangqiao looked back disdainfully and quickly left the area.
The next day, early in the morning, Cenhuan and Lin Yue packed their things and arrived at the airport. The company hadn't arranged any staff to accompany them; only Cenhuan flew with her.
Lin Yue, barefaced and wearing large sunglasses, waited at the security checkpoint for Cenhuan. Once she was done, they proceeded together.
On the plane, Lin Yue gazed out the window at the swiftly passing clouds, sighing deeply. Cenhuan beside her patted her hand, and Lin Yue turned to give her a comforting smile.
After many hours of flight, both were physically and mentally exhausted. Upon disembarking, the reception staff at the airport led them to a hotel that had been booked in advance. The moment they touched the beds, both fell into a deep sleep. When they finally awoke, it was already noon the next day.