Financial freedom starts from graduation

Chapter 573 Strange

Although he was sure he had heard it, Zhou Wang was still in shock, so he didn't do anything immediately.

But Qu Peining, who was still holding Zhou Wang's neck, couldn't wait any longer.

Even though her mind wasn't quite clear anymore, the moment she said those words, Qu Peining felt so ashamed that her whole body burned, and she even wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

However, deep down, she possessed a decisiveness that most girls lacked. So, without waiting for Zhou Wang to make a move, she gritted her teeth, turned Zhou Wang's head around, and brought her lips to his.

"Wow!"

Jiang Mubai, who was standing to the side, had no idea about the complicated relationship between the two. She acted as a good mood-maker and screamed when the two's lips touched.

Qu Peining, sensing that more than one pair of eyes might be on her, was in a complex and indescribable state.

Her body tensed, and those invisible gazes seemed to transform into a faint electric current spreading throughout her body, causing every inch of her skin to tremble slightly.

She actually became that kind of "shameless" woman, kissing a man in public.

The strangest thing is that this man wasn't even her boyfriend...

Or from a truly moral standpoint, she was the one who should never have kissed him; anyone else could have, but not her.

Before Qu Peining could sort out these chaotic thoughts, Zhou Wang, who was almost easily aroused, was no longer satisfied with just touching her lips.

In an almost ferocious manner, he broke through her virtually non-existent defenses in a mere second.

When those dense nerve endings became completely entangled, Qu Peining's mind went completely blank.

All the noises from the outside world faded away, leaving only a ringing in my ears.

She felt as if she had fallen into a vortex that surged and sank, a strong sense of weightlessness constantly assaulting her mind, and where she was no longer important.

It turns out that going from resistance to addiction... only takes a second.

What captivated Qu Peining even more was the astonishing sense of tacit understanding within this seemingly passive intimacy.

Almost without hesitation, the two naturally fell into the most enthusiastic beat and found their own rhythm.

It was as if the two had rehearsed many times beforehand.

Oh, not "seems"—they had indeed rehearsed countless times back in the Shanghai clubhouse.

After all, Qu Peining had already undergone so much hardship in that cycle of reincarnation, and now, entering that scene that seemed to awaken her memories, she responded so naturally—

So skilled it's heartbreaking.

In the end, Qu Peining broke free first.

The main problem was that the two of them were kissing so passionately that they didn't care who else was around. Jiang Mubai, who was standing to the side, was a little jealous, since Zhou Wang had never kissed her like that before.

So Jiang Mubai deliberately yelled "Ouch!" and knocked over an ice glass. The icy liquid landed on Qu Peining's feet, soaking her shoes and socks, and made her startle and open her eyes.

The surrounding noise rushed back into her ears, and the spotlights on the ceiling, moving in irregular patterns, obscured her view of everything before her, leaving only the real...

Only Zhou Wang continued his seemingly endless quest.

"Well……"

Qu Peining didn't know where she got the strength, but she finally pushed Zhou Wang away.

Zhou Wang staggered and sat down on the sofa. He seemed really drunk and didn't seem to realize what had happened. He just wiped his mouth with a lingering sense of satisfaction.

This action made Qu Peining angry again and she wanted to hit him, but after thinking about it, she realized that she had taken the initiative, so she held back.

Surprisingly, after such a kiss, although Qu Peining's head was even more dizzy, her consciousness seemed to clear up a lot, and she didn't feel as drunk as before.

"Hehe, now that we've finished kissing, shall we continue?"

At this moment, Jiang Mubai picked up the dice cup and made a suggestion.

"No, we can't play anymore!"

Upon hearing that they were going to continue, Qu Peining immediately and urgently stopped them.

"Ah, why?"

“I… Zhou Wang can’t drink anymore.”

Qu Peining tried to use Zhou Wang as a shield.

But what infuriated Qu Peining was that before Jiang Mubai could say anything, Zhou Wang straightened up and waved his hand with a slurred speech:
"Who...who said I can't do it? Keep going!"

At this moment, Jiang Mubai chimed in with a grin, "Sister, there's still half a bottle left. Let's at least finish this bottle before we leave. It's a 100,000 yuan bottle of wine; it's not good to waste it like this..."

One hundred thousand?

Qu Peining was startled. Although she did not come from an ordinary family, she had always lived a relatively simple life, and the number 100,000 still frightened her a bit.

She clearly remembered that Moutai only cost a few thousand yuan...

After glancing at the remaining half-bottle of Martell, and adhering to the principle of not wasting anything, Qu Peining finally nodded.

"You can drink the wine, but... you can't play this kind of game anymore!"

After making the concession, Qu Peining immediately emphasized another point.

What kind of game is this?

Jiang Mubai blinked his innocent big eyes, as if he couldn't understand what Qu Peining was saying.

Qu Peining knew she was faking it, and said somewhat angrily, "You know what I mean, kissing...kissing is going too far!"

"Alright, alright, whatever you say."

Jiang Mubai pouted, looking as if she were the one who had been wronged.

Qu Peining took a deep breath to suppress the urge to use a grappling technique to knock Jiang Mubai down on the spot, and silently shook the dice cup.

The three continued playing a modified version of "bragging".

What annoyed Qu Peining was that Jiang Mubai seemed to have some kind of superb dice-rolling skills. Before, it was fine, he would often roll "single dice", but now, he was frequently rolling "triple dice".

She didn't break her promise and stopped kissing, but... is kissing the neck normal?

Seeing her lower her head and press her lips to Zhou Wang's Adam's apple, and even seem to lick it lightly with her tongue, Qu Peining was furious but had no idea how to react.

Jiang Mubai played many of these ambiguous little games.

For example, things like knight face-to-face dance, tearing beef jerky with your mouth, blindfolded hide-and-seek, and other random nonsense.

In Qu Peining's eyes, Jiang Mubai was seducing Zhou Wang in various ways, which forced Qu Peining to get involved in those little games in order to stop her.

Even though Jiang Mubai outwardly reduced the scale, it was clear that Qu Peining still couldn't bring herself to dance while riding on Zhou Wang's back. ...Although she had studied martial arts since childhood, her dance skills were actually quite good; otherwise, she wouldn't have joined the performing arts troupe after leaving the military.

Unable to finish those mini-games, Qu Peining could only drink more and more, and her once clear mind seemed to start to become muddled again.

The game only stopped when Zhou Wang got up to go to the toilet.

Qu Peining glanced at the little bit of wine left in the bottle and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

In any case, this rather torturous night for her is finally coming to an end.

"Sister Pei Ning, have some water, it'll help you feel better..."

Jiang Mubai handed her a bottle of warm water with concern. Qu Peining glanced at her, then nodded slightly and accepted the bottle.

"I wonder why President Zhou hasn't come back yet. Could he have gotten lost?"

Qu Peining was still a little dizzy and did not respond to Jiang Mubai's question.

No matter how well-behaved Jiang Mubai was at this moment, Qu Peining could no longer feel any goodwill towards her.

...Qu Peining finally understood that this girl had absolutely no sense of shame. She had just heard that she was a nightclub star with many fans, but she didn't seem to care about her image at all.

She would do almost anything to seduce Zhou Wang.

After taking a few sips of water, Qu Peining rested for a while. Feeling drowsy due to the effects of alcohol, she unconsciously closed her eyes.

Until one moment she suddenly woke up again. Looking at the still noisy surroundings, Qu Peining's eyes flashed with a hint of confusion before she realized where she was.

But... why am I the only one left in this booth?

Qu Peining regained some clarity in her eyes and remembered that Zhou Wang seemed to have gone to the toilet, but wasn't Jiang Mubai just next to her?
Qu Peining couldn't help but stand up and ask the security guard who had been diligently standing guard. When she learned that Jiang Mubai had left more than twenty minutes ago, Qu Peining was first surprised that she had only dozed off for a short while but had actually slept for so long. Then she realized something was wrong...

Does that mean Zhou Wang has been in the toilet for half an hour?

What about Jiang Mubai?
Qu Peining couldn't believe that the girl had really left like that.

Although she couldn't figure it out yet, Qu Peining's heart clenched instantly, and she had a very bad premonition.

"Where's the bathroom?"

Qu Peining then asked about the security guard.

"Uh, the regular restroom is over there, but if Mr. Zhou needs to use the restroom, it should be the VIP restroom, which is in that direction..."

After finding out the location, Qu Peining, still feeling a bit dizzy, rubbed her head and walked out.

She first went to check out the public restroom, but stopped at the door because it was crowded both inside and outside, and there was even a long queue at the women's restroom.

Neither of them seems like the type to be here...

Following the directions, Qu Peining arrived near the VIP restroom.

Security guards were stationed at the entrance to the corridor, but they let her through after learning Qu Peining's seat number.

As she approached the closed bathroom door at the corner, Qu Peining's heart pounded faster and faster.

She didn't know what she was nervous about, but she was just very nervous.

As she reached the bathroom door, Qu Peining took a deep breath, grabbed the doorknob, and twisted it sharply.

Click!

The door opened easily, and the crystal chandelier in the bathroom was on, but to Qu Peining's relief, there was no one inside.

Then Qu Peining felt a sense of emptiness. Where could those two have gone?
Could it be that they really left without a word?

Qu Peining was about to turn and leave when she caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye.

She approached the sink and picked up a metal lighter from it. The black lighter had a small bear on its surface and the "Zippo" logo was visible.

Qu Peining didn't recognize the brand of the lighter, but she knew it belonged to Zhou Wang because she had just seen him use it.

Why did Zhou Wang leave his lighter here?
Out of the corner of her eye, Qu Peining suddenly noticed the trash can next to the sink.

Because there was no other trash inside, that small piece of cloth was very conspicuous.

Qu Peining didn't have the eye to recognize what it was at a glance, but the style and color of the fabric were so similar to the suspenders Jiang Mubai was wearing.
Qu Peining, who had just relaxed, felt her heart tighten again. She pushed open the bathroom door and walked out, glancing around. Only then did she notice that there was another relatively secluded room on the other side of the corner.

Next to that room hung a plaque that read "VIP Lounge".

The door was tightly shut, and no light could be seen through the cracks, but it seemed as if some kind of feeling was telling her that the vanished Zhou Wang and Jiang Mubai were right there.

Boom boom boom!
As the footsteps slowly approached, Qu Peining seemed to be able to hear her own heart pounding.

Because this place was far from the main hall and not so noisy, as she moved forward step by step, Qu Peining seemed to hear some rustling sounds again.

But the sound didn't feel real, and Qu Peining wasn't sure if it was just her imagination.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Qu Peining arrived at the door.

She stood quietly for a few seconds before finally mustering all her courage, grasping the doorknob, and turning it.

Click!

The unlocked door opened with a click, but it seemed that no lights were on inside, and most of the place was pitch black.

But... with the help of the light shining in from the corridor, Qu Peining still spotted Zhou Wang at a glance.

He leaned against the wall not far from the door, a flickering light coming from his mouth.

Zhou Wang... is he smoking here?

A look of confusion flashed in Qu Peining's eyes; she didn't understand why Zhou Wang was hiding in such a dark room smoking.

When she saw Zhou Wang, Zhou Wang obviously saw her too.

Zhou Wang's expression of surprise flashed for a moment, then he suddenly reached out and pulled Qu Peining inside.

Qu Peining wasn't panicked, but she was a little surprised by Zhou Wang's strong reaction. Just as she was about to ask, her feet, which had been feeling a bit unsteady, suddenly seemed to bump into something.

Faintly, Qu Peining heard a muffled exclamation.

Puzzled, Qu Peining looked down and saw a figure squatting on the ground, right in front of Zhou Wang.

It was hard to identify, but the one squatting on the ground could only be Jiang Mubai.

"?"

Qu Peining became increasingly bewildered.

(End of this chapter)