Ye Zhen was ticklish. She wanted to squirm away when Lu Beichuan pinched her waist, but Lu Beichuan forcefully kept his arm around her. He didn’t allow her to dodge or escape. She could only stay by his side, looking intimate as if nothing could come between them.

After Ye Zhen had repeatedly glared at him with an indignant gaze, Lu Beichuan finally took back his hand that had “commited a lot of evil”.

“Do you know what absolute sincerity means?” Ye Zhen restrained her anger and patiently and systematically guided him, “Madam Zhou had seen all sorts of people in her life. You’re so young. What you’re playing with now is just leftover from other people’s games. Do you think it's appropriate for you to play tricks and schemes in front of her?”

Lu Beichuan furrowed his brow and didn’t comment on Ye Zhen’s words.

“Mayor Zhou is in politics, and he has more experience than Madam Zhou. With their experience, they look at us like we’re children. Any trick or scheme won’t be up to par in front of them. The political world is more sinister than the business world. You should be clearer about that than me."

Lu Beichuan asked in a deep voice, “You think I should be forthright?”

“At the very least, you have to be forthright in front of Mayor Zhou,” Ye Zhen said, “I can see that he doesn’t like schemers and dislikes even more when people try to manipulate him for their own benefit. You should be more sincere in front of Mayor Zhou. Who knows? You might get unexpected gains from that.”

After saying that, Ye Zhen inwardly sighed. She increasingly felt apologetic towards Lin Zhan. After all, she had learned this from Lin Zhan’s experiences in the novel.

Listening to her nagging, Lu Beichuan couldn’t stop his growing smile. When a waiter passed by them, Lu Beichuan turned around to block Ye Zhen. There was a tall champagne tower behind Ye Zhen that blocked the line of sight. When no one was paying attention to them, Lu Beichuan lowered his head and stole a kiss. The delicate and tasty kiss was soft and sweet like eating honey.

Ye Zhen was shocked that this jerk would dare to kiss her in public. She stepped on Lu Beichuan and hissed out, “Lu Beichuan! What are you doing?”

Lu Beichuan wasn’t bothered at all by his little wife, who was practically baring her teeth at him. At this moment, melodious music began to play in the big hall and the lights were suddenly dimmed. The sound of conversations quieted down. Soon after, lights were projected through patterned circles from above and onto the floor. These circles of shadow and light danced along with the music.

The clustered groups dispersed and formed a circle.

Under Mayor Zhou’s invitation, Madam Zhou was the first to enter the dance floor. A beam of light focused on them as they danced to the music.

Lu Beichuan bit Ye Zhen’s ear and whispered, “Do you know how to dance?”

His voice was mixed in with the music, so Ye Zhen couldn’t hear him clearly. “What?”

In the next moment, her body shook and Lu Beichuan brought her onto the dance floor. A beam of light shone on them.

“Do you know how to dance?” Lu Beichuan asked.

Ye Zhen was forced to embrace Lu Beichuan in a face-to-face manner. Their ten fingers were tightly clasped together, and their figures were snugly against each other. Ye Zhen had never felt this type of intimacy before, and she immediately blushed. Her heartbeat accelerated. She was flustered and instinctively wanted to flee, but Lu Beichuan’s fingers were tightly clasped together with hers. His wide arms were powerful and strong, manifesting strength.

Everyone was looking at them, and Madam Zhou also smiled at her.

She leaned towards Lu Beichuan’s ear and hastily said, “I only learned the first half. I haven’t learned the second half yet!”

Lu Beichuan whispered, “Step on my feet. I’ll carry you.”

The arm around Ye Zhen’s waist suddenly exerted force. Ye Zhen’s felt light. Her entire body had left the floor. Lu Beichuan whirled around as part of the dance. Panicking, Ye Zhen tightly embraced Lu Beichuan and stepped on his feet.

The beams of light in the big hall roamed around, flowing all over the place. These lights were as dazzling and resplendent as diamonds. The surrounding lights had been dimmed. Only the dance floor was enveloped in halos of light.

After Mayor Zhou and Madam Zhou had taken the lead on the dance floor, one after another, men invited the women around them to step onto the dance floor and elegantly dance to the melodious music.

Ye Zhen was practically hanging onto Lu Beichuan. He was tightly holding her waist as her feet leaned on his. The front of her high heels were on his shoes. Her right hand was tightly clasped with his hand while she gripped Lu Beichuan’s shoulder with her other hand. Her nerves were tense as he led her move by move and spun her around.

“Don’t be so nervous. Follow my rhythm. Trust me.” Lu Beichuan intimately leaned next to Ye Zhen’s ear. Those quiet words entered her ear and were accompanied by warm breath that lingered at the tip of her ear. Ye Zhen’s ear felt itchy. She suddenly flushed.

Ye Zhen could feel everyone looking at her, making her feel nervous and shy.

Her right hand squeezed Lu Beichuan’s hand, and she decreased the distance between them.

A satisfied smile flashed through Lu Beichuan’s lips. Step by step, he calmly led Ye Zhen to dance in the crowd.

“Turn.”

Ye Zhen only had a smattering of formal dancing. She had only learned the first half of how to waltz. Now that Lu Beichuan had brought her onto the dance floor, she had been pushed to do something way beyond her ability. Her dancing was somewhat shaky and not fully proficient. The surrounding gazes made her muscles tense up. All her energy was put on following Lu Beichuan’s steps. Thus, she didn’t hear Lu Beichuan’s instruction and was caught off guard when Lu Beichuan let go of her hand.

Ye Zhen instinctively tried to grab his hand when he let go, but she was met with empty air. An unprecedented sense of crisis surged up. Ye Zhen fiercely trembled. She incredulously looked at Lu Beichuan for pushing her away. He followed that with spinning her around a few times.

Ye Zhen’s dress fluttered up because of her spinning; it bloomed like a flower underneath the light and shadow.

After three spins, Lu Beichuan pulled Ye Zhen back with his right hand. He used more force than before. Ye Zhen almost smashed into Lu Beichuan’s chest. She raised her head to look at Lu Beichuan. Her heart was beating as loudly as thunder. For a while, she couldn’t calm down.

Lu Beichua ardently stared into Ye Zhen’s eyes. He said, “I won’t let go.”

Ye Zhen’s palms were sweaty.

In that moment when she was stunned because Lu Beichuan had pushed her away, Ye Zhen truly thought he was going to push her away because he didn't want her anymore.

But now...

She looked up and saw the reflection of herself in Lu Beichuan’s eyes. Under the situation where the music was so mellifluous and the passionate mood was running high in everyone present, she felt as if she could hear the sound of her heartbeat. It sounded extremely vigorous. Ye Zhen was in great turmoil.

As more and more people joined the dance floor, Ye Zhen eventually got it down to a fine art when Lu Beichuan spun her around. Outside the dance circle, a pair of eyes were staring at Lu Beichuan and Ye Zhen.

It was Shen Weiyin.

There was someone behind Shen Weiyin. His teasing gaze moved from watching Lu Beichuan and Ye Zhen to Shen Weiyin. The owner of those eyes was exercising his restraint to the utmost, but he was pretending to light and frivolous like clouds. He swirled the wine in his wine glass. There was a hint of a mocking smile at his lips. After finishing off the wine in his hand in one gulp, he placed the wine glass on the tray of a passing waiter and walked over to Shen Weiyin.

“Miss Shen, may I have this dance?”

Shen Weiyin looked up at this guest who had suddenly appeared in front of her. “You’re…?”

“Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lu Shaoyan.” There was a faint smile at the corners of his mouth and a light-hearted look on his face. He stretched his hand out towards Shen Weiyin in a gentlemanly manner and asked, “How could a woman as beautiful as yourself not have a dance partner?”

Shen Weiyin didn’t immediately recognize him. It was only after he introduced himself that she suddenly recalled that this person was Lu Beichuan’s second uncle and had been living abroad for several years.

It wasn’t that no one had invited her to dance, but that her sights were set high. No one could match her skill level in dancing.

Although… she looked over this tall, handsome, and humorous man and stretched her hand out.

“It's my honor.” Lu Shaoyan courteously kissed the back of her hand. Following the rhythm of the music, they spun around on the dance floor.

“Miss Shen, it’s been so long since I last saw you. You’ve become more and more beautiful.”

Shen Weiyin slightly smiled. “Mr. Lu, you’ve become more and more handsome too.”

“The genes of the Lu’s have always been very good.” Lu Shaoyan looked through the gap in the crowd to see Ye Zhen whispering something to Lu Beichuan. “I thought you and Beichuan would end up as a couple. Who would have thought… Well, people are subject to the whims of fortune.”

Shen Weiyin remained silent.

“Although I was young when I went abroad, I knew there were three major companies in Haibin. Lu Corporation and Shen Corporation occupied the top two positions. But something seems to have happened to Shen Corporation recently?”

A hint of surprise flashed over Shen Weiyin’ face, but it quickly disappeared without leaving any traces. She smiled and asked, “Mr. Lu, where do you hear this gossip?”

Lu Shaoyan raised his eyebrows. “Really? You haven’t heard about Shen Corporation’s failed investment?”

Some gossip wasn’t baseless. Although they might be exaggerated, there was still some truth to them.

Shen Weiyin had already known about this matter a year ago. Old Master Shen didn’t have a successor, and she knew that her family business wouldn’t be able last long. At its current crumbling and precarious state, it was only a hollow shell with a glamorous facade. The only family that could afford to throw huge capital into Shen Corporation was the Lu’s.

Although the Lu’s and the Shen’s were family friends, it was limited to her grandfather’s generation. In the generations below Old Master Shen and Old Master Lu, there was no such thing as a friendship that experienced life and death together.

The Shen’s wanted the Lu’s to help them by filling in their huge deficiency with funds, but that required an excellent relationship between the two families.

Moreover, Lu Beichuan was the one in control in the Lu’s. Unless they were a family, why would he lend them a helping hand?

Although Lu Shaoyan said those words, Shen Weiyin’s expression remained unchanged. “Is that so? I’m not involved in the family business, so I’m not too clear about that.”

Lu Shaoyan chuckled. He wasn’t surprised that this woman would pretend to be stupid and unaware.

“Miss Shen, you actually don’t know about this? Well, I advise you to pay more attention to your family business. After all, if the Shen’s go bankrupt, your following days probably won’t be good.”

Shen Weiyin’s feet were sluggish to react, and the dance steps were messy for a moment. However, it only lasted for a moment before her smooth dancing resumed.

“What’s your purpose in saying this?”

“If the Shen Corporation is bankrupt, so many people will lose their jobs. You know, I’ve always been a kind-hearted person, so I can’t stand to see something like that happening. Moreover… Miss Shen is so beautiful. I wouldn't want you to be swallowed by the wolf’s lair that is the entertainment circle.”

The smile swiftly dropped off of Shen Weiyin’s face. “If you continue to say such nonsense, you and I have nothing to talk about.”

“Look, my nephew already has a son and his relationship with his wife is good enough they’re practically stuck at the hips. There’s no gap for you to stick a needle in. Why don’t you look for another target? What do you think of me?”

Intuition told Shen Weiyin that plotting with this person was like discussing with a wicked person to give up his own interest. It was doomed to fail just like asking a tiger for its skin.

Some of the other couples were obviously aiming for Ye Zhen and Lu Beichuan. They were looking for chances to bump into Ye Zhen in order to make her look bad.

Lu Beichuan furrowed his brow. With Ye Zhen tucked in his arms, he turned a few times to create more room around them and moved them over to Mayor Zhou’s vicinity.

“Are you okay?” Lu Beichuan quietly asked Ye Zhen.

Ye Zhen nodded to indicate that she was okay.

When their intimate appearance fell into Shen Weiyin’s eyes, it was like a raging inferno that burned her, a knife that cut her, and countless needles that pierced her. It collapsed her rationality and put an end to her calm.

She had to use all of her self-control, and even then, she was barely able to restrain herself from losing her temper in this situation.

Shen Weiyin tightly clenched her hands. She felt as if she had been burned, cut, and pierced. This pain made her jealousy jump to an extreme degree. Under the myriad of emotions, her eyes suddenly reddened.

“Other than being kind, I have another great strong point, which is abhorrence of evil. People like Ye Zhen and Lu Beichuan, who show public displays of affection, should be burned to death!” Lu Shaoyan was half-joking. “You don’t want these two people to hurt innocent bystanders by continuing to show public affection, right?”

Even in such a situation, Shen Weiyin remained outwardly calm. “What exactly do you want to do?”

“I want Lu Corporation, but other than money, I don’t have any capital to compete with Lu Corporation. If I help out Shen Corporation by giving it funds, can the Shen’s help me get Lu Corporation?”

“You…” Shen Weiyin looked at him in shock. She was absolutely incredulous. “You’re a member of the Lu’s!”

“Am I? That hasn’t been true from a long time ago.” Honest people speak the truth. Lu Shaoyan chuckled. “I’ll pay a visit to Old Master Shen. I hope Miss Shen will cooperate with me at that time.”

He added, “Unless Miss Shen no longer wants to be a white lotus that’s not stained by mud in the entertainment circle.”

The music stopped.

Lu Shaoyan let go. He made a gentlemanly gesture at Shen Weiyin, and then he left.

A woman like Shen Weiyin looked shrewd, but as long as one grasped her weak point, she was easier to control than anyone else.

After the beautiful music came to an end, the dancers smiled as they left the dance floor with their partners.

Mayor Zhou looked at his wife, who had been absent-minded this entire time. He smiled and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Charlie called and said something came up. He probably won’t be able to come.”

Charlie was Madam Zhou’s favorite young pianist. Despite his young age, he was already famous and was called a genius in music circles. Madam Zhou was especially mesmerized by his playing of Serenade.

Charlie didn’t hold concerts often. It was even rarer for him to play at private parties. This time, Madam Zhou happened to find out that Charlie was in Haibin and went out of her way to invite him to her birthday party. To her surprise, he had easily agreed and even said he would dedicate a song to her at her birthday party.

This had made Madam Zhou very happy, and she had been looking forward to this for a long time. However, shortly before the dancing part of the party had begun, she received news that something had come up for Charlie. This left Madam Zhou extremely upset and disappointed.

Ye Zhen, who wasn’t far from Madam Zhou, naturally heard their conversation. Looking amused, she looked over in Ye Qing’s direction.

Tonight’s highlight was coming up.

Just like in the novel, Charlie hadn’t come, but Ye Qing was present. When Ye Qing heard that Madam Zhou wanted to hear Serenade in the novel, she said she had been practising playing this song since childhood and went up on the stage. Her playing of Serenade flowed as smoothly and naturally as water. When Madam Zhou closed her eyes, it was as if Charlie was the one playing piano.

However, the truth was that Ye Qing had learned this song specifically for Madam Zhou. She had found out in advance what Madam Zhou liked this song and had done something so that Charlie wouldn’t be available tonight. This is what allowed her to perform in front of Madam Zhou in the novel.

“Mr. Lu, can you play the piano?” Ye Zhen raised her head and asked him.

“I know a little bit.”

Growing up in a family like the Lu’s, it was natural that he would spend his childhood under the instructions of various home teachers. He wasn’t an expert in all the areas he studied, but he was at least competent in them. For something like piano, it was a must.

Ye Zhen could almost picture a little Lu Beichuan being buried by an avalanche of these lessons in his childhood.

“Then you definitely didn’t have a happy and carefree childhood.”

Lu Beichuan thought it over. “I was quite happy learning those things. It wasn’t painful.”

Ye Zhen looked at him.

“The important thing is that I had the chance to try,” Lu Beichuan said, “I was able to experience novel things that ordinary people might never have the chance to try. Exchanging a childhood for a good life is a very worthwhile deal.”

Hearing these words, Ye Zhen couldn’t resist a more thorough look at him.

She thought it over and came to the same conclusion as him. “You’re right. If you give other people the choice to become a person like you by sacrificing their childhood, they would definitely be willing.”

Lu Beichuan raised his eyebrows. “You’re reversing casualty. I am what I am today because I sacrificed my childhood. Moreover, not everyone can succeed.”

These strong and confident words made a ripple in Ye Zhen’s heart. She felt an indescribable shock. She had seen Lu Beichuan’s unconventional side and also when victory was in his grasp. She was very proud of having a man like him.

“Mr. Lu knows how to play the piano?” While they were speaking, Madam Zhou had gotten close to them at some point and vaguely overheard their conversation.

“I know a little.”

“That’s too bad. I invited the famous master pianist Charlie to come here tonight, but something came up and he couldn’t come. I can’t forget Charlie’s playing of Serenade. It's unfortunate that Serenade’s difficulty level is too high. It's very rare to find a person that can bring out the same implicit charm in that song that Charlie can…” Madam Zhou’s tone was extremely regretful.

“Serenade? Madam Zhou, I know how to play that song.”

Everyone looked towards the direction of that voice and saw the excited Ye Qing standing on the side with a glass of wine.

Ye Zhen raised her eyebrows and looked at Lu Beichuan. She was looking forward to the upcoming show!