I was exposed for adding my female boss to my group of female friends.

Lu Qingxuan's eyes widened: "Me and him? Are you kidding me? If he were drowning in this pool, I would wait until he was too exhausted to struggle before I tried to save him."

Qi Yunche chuckled, wondering if her best friend had noticed that the usually aloof Qi Yunche was indifferent to any man and even acted like a high-and-mighty flower in front of others, only becoming more talkative in front of her.

Yet, this same girl became exceptionally excited whenever Chen Ya was mentioned, chattering incessantly. Perhaps she herself didn't realize that, in Qi Yunche's eyes, she treated Chen Ya somewhat differently.

Lu Qingxuan, with an expression as if she had simultaneously seen a cockroach and a rat, frowned and said to Chen Ya:

"What happened today? You were misunderstood by Miao Aoxue and Yun Che. I just came out with you, how could this happen?"

"This may be related to your diet."

After Chen Ya finished speaking, he immersed his body in the warm pool, the temperature of which was just right, and made comfortable sounds.

Qi Yunche chuckled.

“I think he’s quite interesting, completely different from the treacherous and cunning you described.” As Qi Yunche spoke, his eyes kept sizing up Chen Ya. “He’s handsome and has a good physique.”

Lu Qingxuan nudged her with her elbow mischievously: "What's wrong? Are you tempted?"

"A little."

Chen Ya looked up at her, somewhat surprised. This girl, whom he was meeting for the first time today, was rather bold.

Upon hearing this, Lu Qingxuan became a little anxious and quickly said, "Don't let his smart appearance fool you, he didn't even finish junior high school."

"Really? But I think there's a kind of innocent and wild beauty in his eyes."

"What's so beautiful about her? You're just lusting after her."

Qi Yunche pouted and said, "Are girls not allowed to be lecherous? Hey, Qingxuan, you're acting a bit strange. Are you being possessive of your food?"

"Who's hoarding their food?!"

Lu Qingxuan jumped into the water, scooped up a handful of water, and splashed it at Qi Yunche. Qi Yunche was not to be outdone, and the two girls started to playfully fight. For a moment, they were like birds singing sweetly, lively and fragrant. Their black hair was disheveled, their skin was smooth and creamy, and their pink and fragrant skin was like a zither with its strings wet with spring.

After soaking for a while, both girls couldn't take it anymore, so they agreed to get out of the water, but Chen Ya said he wanted to soak a little longer.

Lu Qingxuan blushed and turned around, saying, "The bathrooms are separate, so don't go to the wrong one."

Chen Ya said slowly, "If I go astray, the law will punish me."

“It sounds like you think being punished is worth it,” Lu Qingxuan said, sweating. “By the way, you should come up soon. Soaking for too long is bad for your heart, and… it’s also bad for a man’s fertility.”

After saying that, she immediately stopped, turned around and left.

Fortunately, Qi Yunche had already left. If she had heard him, she would definitely have said something like, "Why are you still concerned about his fertility? Are you planning to have his baby?"

After soaking and washing, I felt completely refreshed and then a little sleepy. I ordered a fruit platter in the lounge, asked the waiter for a blanket, and dozed off for a while. After that, I was no longer sleepy at all.

Chen Ya went to find Lu Qingxuan and Qi Yunche. When he found them, the two girls were sitting there chatting.

"12 billion?!" Lu Qingxuan exclaimed in surprise, then quickly lowered her voice and whispered, "Your family really spent 12 billion to buy a courtyard house?"

Qi Yunche nodded: "Yes, I also thought it was too expensive at first, but after taking a look, I felt it was really worth it."

"How many square meters?" Lu Qingxuan asked.

Qi Yunche said, "It's over 800 square meters, which isn't very big."

Lu Qingxuan said, "My house is also over 800 square meters, how come it's not worth 12 billion?"

Lu Qingxuan looked incredulous, while Qi Yunche secretly covered his mouth and laughed.

"That's what courtyard houses are like. They're not only comfortable and impressive to live in, but they also have cultural value. I heard that Jiang Wen even used the rooftops of those houses to film a movie. Besides, you have your own Guihezhuang, which is much more impressive than a courtyard house of a few hundred square meters."

Lu Qingxuan said, "That's different. Guihe Manor belongs to the Lu family, while your family bought such a big courtyard on their own. How can they be the same? Besides, doesn't your family already have a villa in Yunshui Mountain Villa? Why do you suddenly want to move to a courtyard house?"

Qi Yunche said with a smile, "It's mainly because of my dad's work. He said that 6 million out of the 12 billion was used to buy the neighbor's house."

Chen Ya walked over, sat down beside him, and asked, "What does your father do for a living?"

Qi Yunche said, "He's also a high-level employee."

Lu Qingxuan said, "Don't listen to her modesty. Her father is Qi Shiyan, from Beichen Company."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ya was somewhat surprised: "Your father is Qi Shiyan?"

Qi Yunche looked up: "You know my dad?"

Chen Ya shook his head: "I've only heard about it."

Then, he looked Qi Yunche up and down.

He does indeed look somewhat like Qi Shiyan.

Unexpectedly, I ran into the daughter of an old friend here.

Qi Shiyan and Xu Zhendong, the father of Xu Dashao, joined Beichen in the same batch. He is very smart, good at managing his network, and also very capable. Therefore, he was promoted very quickly and is now half a level higher than Xu Zhendong in the company.

Qi Yunche turned to Lu Qingxuan and said, "If you really don't believe me, come with me and take a look. There's no one else at home right now. Trust me, after you see it, you'll definitely exclaim that it's a great deal. That courtyard is really worth 12 billion."

Lu Qingxuan's eyes lit up: "Okay, then I definitely have to go and see for myself."

She turned to Chen Ya and asked, "Are you coming with us this afternoon?"

Chen Ya thought to himself that this could be considered an inspection of his subordinates' family life, so he nodded and said, "I'll drive you around."

Lu Qingxuan scoffed: "If you want to broaden your horizons, just say so. Why do you have to do me a favor?"

Qi Yunche chuckled to himself: "Why do you always criticize him? What he says makes sense."

The three quickly got dressed and went to the underground parking garage together. Qi Yunche's bodyguard had also brought a car. Qi Yunche wanted to sit with Lu Qingxuan, so they got into Chen Ya's car together, and the bodyguard followed behind in his car.

After the two girls sat in the back seat and fastened their seatbelts, Qi Yunche suddenly asked curiously, "How's your driving skill?"

Chen Ya said, "Ask Lu Qingxuan."

How is his driving?

Lu Qingxuan tilted her head and thought for a while before saying, "I didn't feel anything, I didn't notice."

"If you don't notice whether I drive well or not, it means I drive very well," Qi Yunche said. "I get carsick easily. I get carsick when the brakes are applied too suddenly, when the accelerator is pressed too hard, when there are many turns, and when I overtake. I hope I won't get carsick when you drive."

Chen Ya laughed and said, "No wonder it's called 'Qi the Carsick'."

Qi Yunche laughed and said, "Hehe, I hope your driving skills are better than your ability to tell lame jokes."

Following the navigation for a while, just as Lu Qingxuan had said, neither of the two girls felt like they were driving, and Qi Yunche didn't get carsick at all. The two girls kept talking and laughing all the way.

Suddenly Qi Yunche asked, "Are the bodyguards' cars following behind?"

Chen Ya glanced at the rearview mirror and nodded.

“You seem to be a very good driver. Why don’t you try to shake him off?” Qi Yunche suddenly said.

"Why?" Chen Ya asked, somewhat surprised. "There's no need for that."

"They follow me around every day, it's so annoying. I just want to see what happens if I shake them off."

Chen Ya drove calmly, without any intention of speeding up.

"Be understanding of him; this is his job."

He was right, and Qi Yunche couldn't refute him. He pouted and muttered, "Then who will understand me?"

However, she did not continue to urge Chen Ya to speed up.

The three drove into the narrow alley and tested their driving skills for a while. Suddenly, the view opened up, with neat courtyard houses on both sides. Qi Yunche directed them to stop in front of a courtyard house and waved his hand, "Roll down the windows!"

Then, she took out her key, pressed it gently, and the entrance door to the underground parking garage next to the courtyard house opened softly.

Chen Ya turned the steering wheel and drove in, and Lu Qingxuan's eyes lit up.

Inside the garage is a long, downhill passageway. The floor is paved with antique-style anti-slip tiles in a meander pattern. The walls on both sides of the passageway are decorated with antique-style reliefs, stone pillars, and brackets, all designed in an ancient style, creating a unique and antique atmosphere.

Qi Yunche said with a hint of boasting, "These walls are designed in the style of the Imperial Garden in the Forbidden City. According to the master, this is a feng shui corridor that can attract wealth and ward off evil spirits. I don't know if it's true."

After Chen Ya's vehicle drove in, the spotlights on the ceiling of the passageway lit up one by one, like something out of a Mission: Impossible movie.

After turning from the passageway into the garage, the scene before my eyes was even more stunning. The garage below also featured an antique design, with blue brick walls, a huanghuali wood bracket ceiling, wooden candlesticks and small lamps along the edges, snowflake-patterned floor tiles with hand-carved designs, and extra-wide landscape paintings in between.

Most importantly, it's big. Chen Ya just counted, and there are a full 22 parking spaces.

Just looking at this basement alone, you can tell it cost over 100 million to build.

The three of them got out of the car. Lu Qingxuan looked around silently for a long time before finally saying, "Yun Che, I believe you. This courtyard is definitely worth 12 billion."

Qi Yunche said calmly, "Actually, the renovations are fine. The main problem is that it's difficult to get a permit for building a basement. The original owner of this courtyard house was very powerful, and only he could get it done. Now, if you buy a courtyard house and want to build a basement, you simply can't do it."

Lu Qingxuan nodded repeatedly: "That's true."

Qi Yunche led them to the alloy security door at the basement exit. After scanning their irises, the door opened automatically, and the group took the elevator up to the courtyard, right next to the entrance.

When the elevator doors opened, Lu Qingxuan was even more surprised. The design inside the basement was already amazing, but who knew the courtyard was even more beautiful than she had imagined.

Qi Yunche deliberately remained silent, only arrogantly flicking the hair on his forehead; at this moment, silence spoke louder than words.

After Lu Qingxuan finished exhaling, she said, "My house is only a three-courtyard house. The one next door is even more impressive. It's a five-courtyard house, and its estimated value is 21 billion."

Lu Qingxuan asked, "What are three-courtyard and five-courtyard?"

"The number of gates determines the number of courtyards. Ordinary families only have one courtyard, while only royalty, high-ranking officials, or wealthy merchants can afford to live in a five-courtyard house."

After Qi Yunche finished speaking, he added, "Aren't you curious about who owns the five-courtyard house next door?"

Lu Qingxuan finally entered the alley and asked, "Who is it?"

"Beichen, the founder," Qi Yunche said firmly.

Chen Ya was shocked.

Good guy.

It turned out that I was the one living next door.

Methods for modifying previous explanations and reloading chapters

The chapter before chapter 245 was blocked immediately after its initial update. It underwent multiple revisions and repeated reviews before finally being approved. However, even after approval, the original text was completely altered. Not only was the main text of chapter 245 changed, but three sections of the outline were also cut. This is the reason for the recent hiatus in updates.

However, I've already settled the plot details, so readers don't need to worry about those. Just continue reading following the new direction. Personally, I think the revised version is better than the original.

(The main reason for the revisions is related to sensitive issues, such as schools. Don't be curious about what the old outline was supposed to cover; it's not significantly better than the new outline.)

For readers who subscribed to Chapter 245 before it was blocked, the chapter they see will still be the unedited old chapter. Here's how to reload the chapter:

For Android users, tap the center of the screen on this page to bring up the menu, then tap the "Directory" (the lines of text) in the bottom left corner.

Then, in the pop-up table of contents, place your finger on "245. Guess" and press and hold (for about 2 seconds). At this point, a dialog box will appear asking if you want to re-download the chapter.

Click "OK" to download the chapter again.

I'm not very familiar with the steps for iOS users, but it's probably the same as for Android. If it doesn't work, remove the book from your bookshelf and add it back to your favorites; that should allow you to download it again.

Existing subscribers will not need to pay again for re-downloading.

==

Q: Why not just publish the modified content directly instead of having to download it again? It's such a hassle.

A: First, if it's published as a new chapter, then I'll have to pay again, which is unfair to readers who have already paid to subscribe to the old chapters. Second, the revised chapter has more words than the original one, and the extra words are taken from the old chapter. It's like I'm reselling words I've already written, which is a loss for all readers.

People might say I'm just being frivolous, but I take writing books very seriously. I'd rather lose money myself than let my readers lose money. Please trust me on this point.

Also, daily updates will resume starting today.

Chapter 248 Whoever Loses Kisses (Thanks to Xsrk for the patronage!)

Distant memories flooded Chen Ya's mind.

That was a few years ago when he was still in Beijing. Once, at a dinner party, a big shot waved his hand and said he would give him a courtyard house to live in for fun.

He was unusually drunk to the point of unconsciousness, and only remembered that when he woke up there was indeed a room deed on the hotel table.

He seemed to have visited this courtyard house once, but only once. He was too busy with other matters and never came back.

As time passed and the world changed, his memory was completely washed away by the years until today when Qi Yunche reminded him of this matter.

Oh, so my neighbor next door is myself.

Chen Ya secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, no one knew about this, otherwise he would have been laughed at.

Lu Qingxuan's attention was no longer on the house; the news that the founder of Beichen lived next door had greatly shocked her.

This mysterious founder of Beichen has left behind countless legends in the martial arts world, each one holding immense attraction for her. She whispered to Qi Yunche: