The Illusion of Knowing the Ropes and the Car Key at the Entrance

The white Bentley Continental GT drove smoothly onto the hillside road in Jiangcheng's western suburbs.

Outside, the temperature remained stubbornly high, and the leaves had curled slightly in the heat.

Inside the luxury coupe, however, was a tranquil world entirely cut off from it all.

Lu Chuan held the leather steering wheel with one hand, watching the winding asphalt road ahead.

At the end of the road,

the Hot Spring Spa Club's gray-tiled, white-walled gate, hidden amid lush greenery, slowly came into view.

There were no flamboyant neon lights, nor any gaudy, oversized signs.

There was only an understated natural boulder, engraved with a few discreet dark-gold characters.

Lu Chuan looked at the gate.

His fingers unconsciously rubbed the stitching on the leather steering wheel.

At the same time, his gaze shifted ever so slightly, and he instinctively glanced at Zhao Yifan in the passenger seat.

The movement was fleeting.

Just a momentary lapse of attention.

But the reason behind it was deeply rooted in memories of his previous life.

In his previous life, Lu Chuan had wanted to become a familiar face at this high-end spa club, which operated under a strict invitation-only membership system, and put on airs in circles where everyone was rich or influential.

He had come here many times.

But he had never been entitled to walk through the gates on his own.

Every time, he had shamelessly tagged along on the strength of Zhao Yifan's platinum membership card, following behind him and trying to look as though he were a regular too.

Every time he saw this gate, he had to rely on the man beside him.

The muscle memory and psychological conditioning built up over all those years gave him an instinctive sense of dislocation when he saw the gate again in his new life.

Zhao Yifan had been sitting in the passenger seat, watching the scenery outside.

He was far more perceptive than a straight shooter like Han Dong.

He noticed Lu Chuan's glance almost the moment it came his way.

He turned and met Lu Chuan's gaze.

Being looked at like that made Zhao Yifan a little uneasy.

He pushed up the blue-light glasses on his nose and finally couldn't hold back.

"Why are you looking at me?"

His tone wasn't harsh, but it made clear that he had noticed something was off.

Lu Chuan came back to his senses at once.

Of course, he couldn't explain anything about his past and present lives, much less dig deeper into the subject.

Without a flicker of expression, he looked away and watched the entrance barrier drawing closer.

"Nothing."

Lu Chuan's tone was as even as if he were commenting on a tree by the roadside.

"Just taking a look."

He turned the steering wheel, and the car rounded the bend smoothly.

"I just wanted to see if you thought this place's name and entrance were a bit pretentious too."

The excuse came naturally.

It was flawless.

Zhao Yifan looked at Lu Chuan's calm profile, then at the boulder sign ahead, with its deliberately old-money air.

Although he felt certain there had been more to that glance, he couldn't find anything wrong with what Lu Chuan had said.

Zhao Yifan could only push his doubts back down and let the matter drop.

The Bentley Continental GT drove slowly through the spa club's gate.

The car gradually slowed.

Up ahead on the entrance drive, several security guards in crisp, dark uniforms stood at attention.

Lu Chuan didn't try to gun the engine and draw everyone's attention like Chen Ziang had.

Like a quiet cruise ship, the car glided smoothly into the designated drop-off area right in front of the lobby.

It came to a steady stop.

"Get out."

Lu Chuan pushed open the heavy car door, saying only those words.

He stepped out in one fluid motion.

He neither looked around nor waited for security to come over and direct him.

A guard wearing white gloves hurried over to greet him.

Before the guard could ask anything,

Lu Chuan had already pulled the weighty Bentley key from his pants pocket.

Without so much as another glance at the guard, he gave a casual flick of his wrist.

The key arced through the air.

"Have it washed for me."

Lu Chuan gave the instruction offhandedly.

"And get the interior a basic treatment. I'll pick it up here when I leave later."

He said it as naturally as could be.

Like a man of the house handing his coat to the housekeeper when he came home from work each day, he seemed utterly familiar with the routine.

Zhao Yifan had just opened the passenger door and stepped out.

Standing beside the car, he had seen every one of Lu Chuan's movements and heard his tone.

The guard neatly caught the key as it flew through the air.

For a guard working at a place like the Hot Spring Spa Club, knowing how to read a situation was the most basic professional skill.

Rolls-Royces, Maybachs, Bentleys.

Luxury cars worth millions came and went every day. Valuable as they were, they weren't enough to make the guards lose their composure or become excessively deferential.

The instant the guard caught the key, his gaze instinctively swept over the front of the car.

Jiang A·54321.

When he saw the black-and-white license plate with its consecutive numbers,

the guard's back snapped straight.

He knew full well what terrifying connections and influence lay behind someone who could drive around with a plate like that in Jiangcheng.

Combined with the young man's unruffled manner, as though he treated this place as his own backyard,

the guard's attitude did a complete about-face.

He didn't maintain the same businesslike manner he had shown when he stopped Chen Ziang's 718 earlier.

Instead, he immediately drew back the hand holding the key, folded both hands in front of him, and bowed deeply.

"Certainly, sir."

The guard's voice held genuine gravity and respect.

"We'll be sure to arrange our highest-grade detailing and care, as you requested. We hope you enjoy your visit."

Standing to one side, Zhao Yifan silently pushed up his glasses.

He had seen the entire change in the guard's attitude.

Lu Chuan paid no attention to the guard's deference.

He turned and walked toward the clubhouse's entrance hall with Zhao Yifan.

The flagstone path beneath their feet was clean and tidy, and the water features on either side burbled softly.

The two walked one slightly ahead of the other.

At last, Zhao Yifan couldn't hold back.

The string of unusual details had piled up in his mind, making him immensely curious about Lu Chuan's background.

"Do you come here often?"

Zhao Yifan turned his head and looked at Lu Chuan's profile as he asked softly.

As he asked, he was already prepared to hear Lu Chuan deny it or brush him off with some inscrutable remark.

Lu Chuan didn't break stride.

He looked at the warm light spilling from the lobby ahead.

"A few times."

Lu Chuan gave the answer calmly.

He wasn't lying.

Nor did he explain.

In his previous life, he really had come here many times.

But in this life, it was his first time even crossing the threshold of the gate.

To Zhao Yifan, however, this half-true, half-false answer became ironclad proof.

He didn't press further.

He closed his mouth.

That casual "a few times," combined with Lu Chuan's smooth, practiced actions at the entrance, was enough to convince Zhao Yifan that Lu Chuan came here often.

The two passed through the automatic glass doors.

They entered the Hot Spring Spa Club's lobby.

Looking across the spacious entrance hall,

toward the marble reception desk not far away,

Lu Chuan spotted the two roommates who had arrived ahead of them.

Han Dong stood beside a carved wooden pillar.

And next to Han Dong,

Chen Ziang stood with one hand in his pocket, trying hard to keep his back straight.

Putting on the airs of a local young master, he seemed to have just given Han Dong a thorough lesson on the club's hierarchy and his own family's gold membership.

Although he was trying hard to maintain the air of someone on his home turf,

the embarrassment of being sent to the ordinary parking area by security earlier still made his posture look somewhat stiff.

Just then,

Han Dong's gaze swept casually across the room and landed on the two men coming in through the doors.

He immediately waved in excitement.

Chen Ziang turned around as well.

Under the lobby's soft lighting,

the four men of room 504

met one another's eyes for the first time

in the lobby of this top-tier private club in Jiangcheng.