When Hu Lei arrived at the Maven Resort, the place was already busting with activity. Though the event was relatively small, it made the place look alive. The last time she had been there, there had hardly been anyone in the entire property.

The actual meet was held in a large ballroom. At first, Hu Lei had thought that there would be queues, and she would have to stand for a long time. She was already feeling a little tired, and her shoes were not the best for strenuous activities.

Luckily, the event was quite organised. Each of the invited authors had a round table, and there were attendants regulating movement. Moreover, there was a waiting area with simple refreshments for the guests.

When the fans came in, they would provide the details on the authors that they would like to meet. The attendants would ensure that the traffic of guests flowed smoothly and without favouritism. Hu Lei had come primarily to see Carefree Dreams. However, how could she squander an opportunity like this?

Of course, she understood that she would have countless opportunities to meet with these people in the future if she wished. However, they would consider her to be a peer, not a real fan. Therefore, she decided to meet a couple of other authors.

She did not have to wait for long before a chance came up. An opening appeared almost immediately at a certain author's table. When she approached the table, she felt her lips twitch as she looked at him. The author was a super muscled man with a hard face.

It was not like she had anything against his appearance. It was just that he crushed her assumptions too thoroughly. His work was in the slice of life genre with light-hearted high school girl characters. Moreover, his penname was Light Butterfly.

Still, Hu Lei's constitution was very strong. So, she didn't behave abnormally. She sat down at the table and listened as the other people excitedly asked questions. She did not have anything to ask. She quietly listened and felt very satisfied.

She decided that she would participate in one of these things as soon as an opportunity came up. It looked refreshing when people who were interested in books talked. Also, she felt it would be fun to share a few secrets about her characters. After all, everything could not be written down.

Since Hu Lei had begun writing, she had been antisocial. There were limitations because she was never in the country. Also, she did not use social media accounts. With her lifestyle, she did not feel like it was appropriate to be involved in such matters.

"Miss, do you have a question?" the author turned to her.

All the people looked at her. It seemed like she was the only one who had not talked.

She felt a little awkward because she had been zoning out.

"No, I just wanted to meet you. I am really looking forward to the upcoming chapters." She smiled brightly.

Her smile seemed to blind the entire table.

"You look exactly like ChuChu." One of the girls at the table suddenly said.

"She really does. From the yellow eyes to the green dress." A male fan added.

"It is obviously a costume with a classy interpretation." A girl said with a knowing nod.

Hu Lei felt like crying and laughing at the same time. It was obviously a coincidence. She was not that type of diehard fan. If she were to cosplay, she would obviously choose a Carefree Dreams character. Well, actually, that would be difficult because romance novel characters changed outfits. But the point stood.

However, she did not express such thoughts. So, she laughed, without giving a definite answer. There was no need to make things complicated.

After a while, she moved to another table and then another.

Unluckily, her goal of meeting Carefree Dreams was not achieved. After a while, no one else was left on her list except for this in-demand author. She returned to the waiting area and decided to catch up a little on her reading.

"Oh, I did not realise Ms Hu was coming here. Otherwise, I would have accompanied you." A person suddenly spoke.

Hu Lei could recognise the voice, but she still looked at Bei Gong Hai before speaking.

"Thank you for the thought, but I have my own means." She smiled politely.

She turned her eyes back to her phone.

Bei Gong Hai looked a little awkward. Usually, when he talked to girls, they were always too happy to chat. He rarely even had to make an effort. They would come running by themselves. He wondered whether she was playing hard to get. He had even gone to the trouble of finding out her real name, but she did not seem even a little moved.

It was not like he liked her. She had just piqued his interest. He liked his character in the movie, and he was very fascinated by the mind which could come up with the fascinating idea. He wanted to know a little more.

"It seems like Ms Hu does not want to talk to me." He said in a self-deprecating tone and with a light laugh.

He knew how she would respond. She would feel bad because of ignoring him and then attempt to make amends apologetically. This was the ultimate move against girls who acted tough. Once they were shown a vulnerable side, they would immediately break.

Unfortunately, Hu Lei was not easy to manipulate. After all, she had not only been a master of violence in her old life. She had done her share of espionage, infiltration and grifting. How could she be moved by this level of talent?

Seeing the lack of a response, Bei Gong Hai smiled. It seemed that this girl was a tough nut to crack. She had successfully captured his attention. However, he did not want to abandon his path yet. Every woman had a little softness.

"Have I offended you in anyway?" He asked with a controlled amount of sadness.

Hu Lei did not want to be bothered, but she did not want to speak in case her mouth spoke some unpleasant words. She used her free hand to discretely tap on one of the legs of her chair. The contact was light, but the sound was loud. It was one of her many parlour tricks.

Immediately, the people's eyes were drawn to their location and more importantly, to Bei Gong Hai the celebrity. Before he knew what was happening, there were fans all around him, and Hu Lei was no longer on the scene. She had disappeared.