After ninety-nine online romances, I finally met my ex in person when school started.

Jiang Yao bit her red lips, too exhausted to even refute.

At 4 p.m., the plane landed at Kyoto Nanyuan Airport.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom drove off the helipad and headed straight for the core area of ​​the China World Trade Center.

When Jiang Yao got off the bus, her legs were trembling, and she could only stand up by having Zhu Xun Chuan hold her waist. This flight was the most tiring one she had ever taken, and it had exhausted all her strength.

The two took a private elevator directly to the top-floor penthouse.

With a "ding," the elevator doors opened.

In the entryway are two pairs of exquisitely crafted limited-edition crocodile leather men's shoes and a pair of haute couture women's shoes inlaid with diamonds.

There are outsiders in the living room.

Zhu Xun Chuan changed into slippers and walked into the spacious and bright living room with Jiang Yao in his arms.

The atmosphere was unusually subtle.

Gu Qinghan, dressed in a fitted black business suit, sat on a single sofa, holding a cup of black tea in his hand, his expression aloof.

On the main sofa sat a middle-aged couple. The man wore a dark, hand-tailored British suit, exuding an air of authority; the woman wore a dark green cheongsam and a top-quality imperial green jade necklace, radiating elegance and nobility.

The two men carried the aura of a centuries-old, wealthy family. This was an aura that ordinary nobles in Kyoto could not possess.

Su Mucheng, dressed in loose loungewear, sat opposite the couple, her hands clasped tightly in front of her, looking uneasy.

Upon hearing footsteps, all four turned their gazes at the same time.

The moment Su Mucheng saw Zhu Xunchuan, her eyes reddened. She stood up abruptly, disregarding everything, and ran straight over to throw herself into Zhu Xunchuan's arms.

Zhu Xun Chuan loosened his grip on Jiang Yao and steadily caught the frightened fawn.

"What's wrong?" Zhu Xun Chuan gently ruffled her soft hair, his voice soft.

Su Mucheng buried her face in his shirt, her shoulders trembling slightly, her voice shaking.

"Brother Chuan... they said I'm from the Pan family in Hong Kong Island."

The air in the entryway seemed to freeze.

Su Mucheng gripped Zhu Xunchuan's pure white shirt tightly, burying her face in his chest, her warm tears quickly soaking a small patch of fabric.

She was wearing a set of loose pink cotton loungewear. Her usual radiant presence in front of the camera was completely gone. At this moment, she was just a girl who was extremely insecure, clinging tightly to her only piece of driftwood.

Jiang Yao stood beside Zhu Xun Chuan. Her black silk halter dress was slightly wrinkled, and her shapely, long legs were encased in sheer black stockings beneath the hem.

Two hours of tenderness in the cabin at high altitude left a lingering trace of languid affection in the corner of her eyes.

Seeing Su Mucheng throw herself into her man's arms without any hesitation, the young lady of the underworld who had just taken over the underground order of the three northern provinces narrowed her long, narrow eyes.

She didn't react, but instead naturally reached out and possessively took Zhu Xun Chuan's free right arm, leaning her entire body weight on it.

On the single sofa, Gu Qinghan gently placed the bone china teacup on the coffee table.

A crisp "ding" sounded.

This Kyoto University counselor, dressed in a well-tailored black business suit, had her crossed legs creating a breathtaking curve beneath her black suit skirt.

She coldly observed the embrace and the undercurrent of competition in the entryway, and pushed up her gold-rimmed glasses.

"The snow in the North didn't wake you up, but the peach blossoms are blooming more and more profusely." Gu Qinghan's voice was cold and clear, directly breaking through the sticky and ambiguous atmosphere in the room.

Zhu Xun Chuan ignored the sour smell. He gently patted Su Mu Cheng's back with his left hand, and then squeezed Jiang Yao's palm with his right.

He raised his head, his gaze passing over the three women and landing on the middle-aged couple sitting upright on the main sofa.

The middle-aged man wore a bespoke, dark blue striped suit and a Patek Philippe watch worth tens of millions on his wrist. The woman wore a dark green cheongsam, and the imperial green jade pendant on her chest was of exceptional quality and priceless.

This is definitely an old-money family at the very top of the pyramid.

But under Zhu Xun Chuan's cold gaze, the couple did not display any arrogance befitting a wealthy family.

The middle-aged man's hands were even clenched into fists somewhat unnaturally on his knees, and his eyes were bloodshot. The woman in the cheongsam had even red eyes, and she dared not take her gaze off Su Mucheng, who was hiding in Zhu Xunchuan's arms, for a moment.

It was all about being extremely cautious. It was all about feeling guilty.

Zhu Xun Chuan took off his black trench coat and casually handed it to Jiang Yao beside him. He put one arm around Su Mu Cheng's slender waist and led her to the center of the living room.

Jiang Yao held up her trench coat and hung it in the most conspicuous position on the coat rack in a show of defiance before walking over in her high heels and sitting down next to Zhu Xun Chuan.

Zhu Xun Chuan pressed Su Mu Cheng's shoulder, gesturing for her to sit to his left. He himself sat casually in the center of the sofa, his long legs stretched out. Jiang Yao was on his right, Su Mu Cheng on his left, and Gu Qing Han opposite him.

He transformed a simple political situation into one where he exuded an aura of absolute authority.

"The Pan family of Hong Kong Island?" Zhu Xun Chuan lit a specially supplied cigarette and held it between his fingers. "Fourth Master Pan, Pan Hongxuan. I heard that several of the southern branches of Guangying Media were businesses that slipped through your fingers back then."

Pan Hongxuan stood up and nodded with a wry smile.

This tycoon, whose every move in Hong Kong's business world could cause a tsunami, was now behaving extremely humbly in front of Zhu Xun Chuan.

"Mr. Zhu has a keen eye." Pan Hongxuan did not sit down again. "The Zhao family fell, the Chen family was destroyed. Who in the capital doesn't know Mr. Zhu's abilities now? I apologize for the intrusion."

Zhu Xun Chuan exhaled a puff of smoke.

"Mu Cheng is my person. She's in charge of Guangying Media now." Zhu Xun Chuan stared directly at Pan Hong Xuan. "Hong Kong's entertainment industry is declining. Does Fourth Master Pan think the mainland film and television market is lucrative and want to use this family reunion drama to snatch some food from my bowl?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Yao's eyes turned cold. The butterfly knife hidden in her sleeve slid into her palm.

Gu Qinghan straightened up as well, her account on the city bureau's privileged intranet activating in the background on her phone. With just a word from Zhu Xunchuan, she could make it impossible for these Hong Kong tycoons to move an inch in Kyoto.

"Mr. Zhu, you've misunderstood!" Pan Hongxuan's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly waved his hand.

Mrs. Pan, who was standing next to her, could no longer control her emotions and covered her mouth, bursting into tears.

"Actors. Stars." Pan Hongxuan sighed, his tone tinged with deep melancholy. "With that kind of status, they wouldn't even be able to get through the front door of an established family in Hong Kong. If we were truly doing this for business, why would we resort to such a laughable method?"

Zhu Xun Chuan flicked his cigarette ash. He wasn't angry about the actor/star comment, nor did he say anything, waiting for what was to come.

Pan Hongxuan leaned forward, his hands braced against the marble coffee table in front of him.

"I am the fourth son of the gambling king. Due to an accident in my early years, the doctor determined that I would have no children for life. In a large family like the Pan family, a son without an heir would have long been marginalized and squeezed out of the center of power."

Pan Hongxuan's eyes were red and his voice was hoarse.