On the highway.
The driver, Tian Jun, sped toward Shanghai.
Lu Sangning and her assistant, Qin Yi, sat in the back.
Although Qin Yi had no idea what had happened, seeing Lu Sangning's unhappy expression made her heart ache.
She gently suggested, "Ms. Lu, Shanghai is still more than two hours away. Why don't you close your eyes and rest?"
Lu Sangning nodded and leaned back in her seat, but even with her eyes closed, she couldn't fall asleep.
Her thoughts were a mess.
An utter mess.
On one hand, she trusted Zhang Yong deep down and kept feeling that he couldn't be that kind of person.
On the other hand, she feared that he really was.
When she truly faced losing a relationship of three and a half years, it still felt as though a huge chunk of her heart had been gouged out.
After dinner.
Lu Chi took a shower, then soaked for a while in his family's spacious swimming pool.
He was just about to return to his room to sleep when he heard Pan Feng return from playing mahjong.
The moment she stepped through the door, she asked loudly, "Honey, is Sangning back?"
Dressed in gray silk pajamas, Lu Yuanqing sat on the sofa waiting for his mahjong-loving wife.
His wife was wonderful in every way, except for one bad habit: she loved playing mahjong.
Once she started, she would play all day.
"Just look at you. You've been playing mahjong for half the day, and only now do you remember to ask about Sangning. You have no sense of responsibility as a mother."
Knowing she was in the wrong, Pan Feng hurried over to her husband with tiny steps and threw herself into his arms.
She wheedled, "Honey, I haven't played in ages. My old girlfriends invited me today, so I only went for half a day. Be understanding~"
Lu Yuanqing sighed. "Ah, I really don't know what to do with you. You're not allowed to go tomorrow!"
Pan Feng blinked and pouted like a little woman. "All right. Anyway, what about Sangning? Is she back yet?"
Lu Yuanqing shook his head. "Not yet. That child is stubborn. I told her about Zhang Yong, but she definitely wouldn't believe it. She'll insist on verifying it herself.
"Ah, it's just as well to let her give up on him herself. I've already arranged for people to go to Kunming and deal with that scumbag Zhang Yong."
"Honey, how are you planning to deal with him?"
"I had Zhou Fu take some bodyguards over on our private jet. They should be there already, waiting for an opportunity to act!"
Pan Feng nodded, took out her phone, and called Lu Sangning, wanting to remind her not to be too upset, since her father was there to back her up.
In a foul mood, Lu Sangning glanced at her ringing phone and hung up.
Pan Feng told Lu Yuanqing, "She hung up... she's in a bad mood. Still, things have come to this, and she has to face them. By the way, what about Chi? Has he gone to bed?"
Just then, Lu Chi came over from the pool. Seeing Pan Feng, he nodded and greeted her as Mom.
Pan Feng beckoned him over. "Chi, come here. Mommy won quite a bit at mahjong today. Here, there's fifty million on this card. Take it for pocket money."
Lu Chi looked up at Lu Yuanqing and shook his head. "No, Mom. Dad already gave me some today."
Forget it, I can't take this money, or my bargain dad will call me greedy again. I already took a hundred million from him today, and now I'd be taking another fifty million from Mom.
Lu Yuanqing placed the card in Lu Chi's hand. "It's fine, son. Take it."
More than two hours later.
With her thoughts in turmoil the entire way, Lu Sangning finally arrived in Shanghai.
She took out her phone and called Zhang Yong.
As expected, Zhang Yong still didn't answer.
She called more than ten times in succession, but Zhang Yong answered none of them.
The last of Lu Sangning's hopes slowly drained away.
Qin Yi comforted her. "Ms. Lu, let's find a hotel and settle in first. Whatever it is, we can deal with it tomorrow. Getting anxious now won't help."
Lu Sangning nodded, her head muddled and swollen, like a wandering soul.
Having helped her father manage the company for years, she had always been known for her shrewd competence and decisive efficiency, but she was somewhat wooden when it came to romance.
Qin Yi arranged a hotel, and Lu Sangning checked in.
It wasn't until ten that night that Zhang Yong found a spare moment to call her back.
"Hey, baby! I was busy the whole time you were calling earlier. I've only just had time to call you back. What are you doing? Did you miss me? Kiss, kiss, kiss~"
Zhang Yong was as flippant as ever, calling her baby with every breath.
In the past, Lu Sangning would certainly have been deceived by his sweet talk.
But now, all Lu Sangning felt was irritation.
"Yong, where are you right now?"
"Me? I'm in Shanghai, staying at the Xigelila Grand Hotel. I just got back to the hotel, and I'm about to wash up and get some rest."
The Xigelila Grand Hotel?
When Lu Sangning heard those words, she glanced down at the conspicuous words on the tissue box on the bedside table-[Welcome to Xigelila]-and her heart sank to rock bottom.
How ironic!
Wasn't she staying at Xigelila herself?
"Which room are you in?"
"Me? I'm in room 666. Six is your lucky number, so I specifically chose three sixes. I hope everything always goes smoothly for my baby. Triple sixes, strike it rich!"
"Mm-hmm, Yong, you're so good to me. You think of me in everything you do."
Still on the phone, Lu Sangning put on her slippers and went out with Qin Yi.
Their room was 308. After heading out, the two took the elevator straight to the sixth floor.
Filled with apprehension, Lu Sangning arrived outside room 666.
Zhang Yong was still chattering away on the phone.
"Baby, did you miss me? I really wish I could see you right now."
"Yes, of course I did."
Lu Sangning tipped her chin at Qin Yi, signaling for her to knock.
Knock, knock, knock.
Zhang Yong asked, "Baby, what's that sound on your end?"
Lu Sangning replied, "Nothing. There's no sound."
Lu Sangning hung up.
"Who is it?" A man's wary voice came from room 666.
Then the door gently opened.
An unfamiliar man poked his head out and asked impatiently, "Who is it? Who are you?"
Qin Yi quickly looked up at the room number and feigned surprise. "Sorry, we're looking for a friend. We've got the wrong room."
"Hmph, how do you even get the wrong room?" Annoyed at being disturbed, the man slammed the door shut.
To him, those two women outside probably weren't decent people.
Lu Sangning and Qin Yi walked back.
Lu Sangning's face remained livid the entire way, the temperature of her whole body dropping below freezing.
Zhang Yong had said he was in room 666 of the Xigelila Grand Hotel, yet she was staying in that very hotel, and there was no Zhang Yong in room 666!
Zhang Yong was lying!
Lu Chi's inner voice had been telling the truth, and Dad was right too. Zhang Yong really had betrayed her.
The more she thought about it, the more upset she became!
Standing beside Lu Sangning, Qin Yi felt as though all the blood in her body was about to freeze.
It was a cold that pierced her through and through, from the inside out!
It was unbearably cold.
By now, Qin Yi had grasped the gist of what had happened. She cursed viciously, "Zhang Yong is a real bastard. He clearly isn't staying here, yet he deliberately lied to you and said he was, Ms. Lu. I'm afraid there's more to this."
Lu Sangning nodded. "Exactly! Zhang Yong is a scumbag! A liar!"
Having confirmed her suspicions, Lu Sangning wanted to go home and find somewhere deserted to cry her heart out.
She had always appeared aloof and commanding to others, but little did they know that she had a lonely, helpless side too.
The so-called strong career woman was nothing more than a facade of strength. In truth, who didn't have a soft spot in their heart?
Qin Yi reminded her, "Ms. Lu, if we leave just like this, I'm afraid Zhang Yong will deny what happened today afterward."
Those words reminded Lu Sangning, whose thoughts were in chaos.
She had always handled company matters in an orderly fashion, but she had no experience with matters of the heart.
After all, Zhang Yong was her first love.
"Yes, you're right. We can't just leave like this."
Lu Sangning took out her phone and made a video call to Zhang Yong.
Perhaps wanting to get her out of the way quickly so he could go do something else interesting, Zhang Yong answered almost instantly.