Xiao Lin curled his lips into a smile, pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth, and wore a nonchalant expression.

He had a crush on Anru when he was a teenager. Anru was innocent and carefree when she was young, and she was his fleeting dream.

However, the dreams of our youth are the easiest to shatter.

As Anru grew up, she displayed all the vices of their circle: greed, selfishness, and ruthlessness. These traits instantly extinguished any superficial liking.

After graduating from university, he grew tired of the glamorous and extravagant lifestyle and applied to Johns Hopkins University in the United States to study medical biology.

Two years ago, after returning from M, he did not join the family business. Instead, he took out the family's startup fund and co-founded a medical company with friends—Qingke Biotechnology, whose business focuses on diagnostic and treatment research and development.

In the past two years, the company's business development has been slow and there has been little profit. The company has been burning money continuously for experimental research and development.

Tonight was the first time he had attended a gathering of his childhood friends since returning to China. His goal was clear: to get some investment from these wealthy people. But before the investment was even mentioned, a second gathering was started.

He had met Yu Chengjue a few times. If An Ru had chased after him for several years despite her status, he must have some outstanding qualities. Tall, handsome, reserved, and profound, he had emerged as a dark horse in the investment circle in the past two years. The annualized return of the several public funds under his management reached 50%, making him a hot star in their circle.

Here, he unexpectedly encountered Anru's love rival, Yu Chengjue's unforgettable ex-girlfriend, and watched with great interest.

The girl sitting to the right seemed to understand something and turned to look in their direction.

As the cold gazes of the crowd swept over him, Xiao Lin's cheeks tightened, his crossed legs unconsciously came down, his body leaned forward, and his interest intensified.

"Brother Lin, how are you?"

Shen Hongsheng, who was sitting to his left, leaned closer and said, "That kid Yu Chengjue is really lucky with women. How could he bear to leave such a beauty behind?"

He clicked his tongue in amazement, which displeased Zhang Jie, who was sitting to Xiao Lin's right.

"Shengzi, how can you talk like that? If Xiaoru finds out you're talking about her here, your little lover will definitely be exposed, and if Ranran finds out, she'll skin you alive."

"Oh, oh, oh, I was wrong, I was just saying it, how could you take it seriously?"

Shen Hongsheng nudged Xiao Lin with his shoulder: "Brother Lin, you agree, right?"

Although the music in Lovehouse was powerful, Anru could still faintly hear the voices of the group. She turned to look at Shen Hongsheng.

"Hongsheng, go and test her."

Anru's eyes held a deep meaning; she dared not look at Xiao Lin, but stared intently at Shen Hongsheng.

Aside from being short, Shin Hong-seong was quite good-looking and dressed elegantly, making him a high-quality man in ordinary circles.

"I!"

Shen Hongsheng pointed to himself, somewhat uncertain.

"What? Didn't you just say that she was a rare beauty, and that it would be great to have the chance to win her heart?"

Anru stared at the other person expressionlessly, the threat in her eyes obvious.

Upon hearing this, Shen Hongsheng glanced at the beauty in front of him again, his heart stirred with desire, but he ultimately couldn't resist.

He stood up, straightened his clothes, and walked towards Qin Suisui with a determined air.

As Qin Suisui turned around, she saw that the gaze that made her feel uneasy came from An Ru.

She snorted coldly, not understanding why, even after all these years, Anru still couldn't hide her emotions when she saw her.

"Miss, may I sit next to you?"

Shen Hongsheng held a wine glass in his hand, a smile playing on his lips. He knew this posture was the most attractive.

"Can't."

Qin Suisui looked up at him and said coldly.

"You are not welcome here. Please leave."

Shen Hongsheng froze as he was about to sit down. He looked at Qin Suisui in surprise, finding it hard to believe that she was so cold.

"Miss, why are you so resistant to coming to a bar?"

Anru and the others, who had been paying attention to the commotion, could see the surprise on Shen Hongsheng's face after being rejected, even though they hadn't heard what the two were saying.

"That kid Shengzi is no good."

The other three men were eager to try their luck. It was rare to see a stunningly beautiful woman alone in a bar, especially one who had a grudge against Anru. They were even more eager to take advantage of her, even if it was just verbal, to win Anru's favor.

Seeing that the group was getting up and preparing to go over, Xiao Lin couldn't help but speak up.

"This bar is owned by Wen Zong. Are you sure you want to cause trouble in his bar?"

The three men turned to look at Xiao Lin, exchanged glances, and hesitated in their steps.

"What are you afraid of?"

Anru scoffed, "People probably come to bars to hook up with men. If you go over and introduce your backgrounds one by one, they'll probably follow you around."

Anru's provocative words made Xiao Lin raise an eyebrow, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes. This woman's personality remained so domineering even after marriage. However, he didn't know her, so he could say a few words to her, but he would never stand up for her.

The three walked in that direction. He pressed his fingers to his temples, glanced at the time, and prepared to find an excuse to leave first.

In the short time it took to eat a meal, he realized that his childhood friends were no longer the same as he remembered them. Rather than wasting time here, he decided to go back and think of other solutions.

He was just about to get up when he caught a glimpse of Anru's rival casually standing up.

The other person had their back to him and said something, but the four people, including Shen Hongsheng, all looked unpleasant.

Wang Cheng and his companions even tried to grab each other with their hands.

At that moment, a girl with short, ear-length hair ran over from the direction of the stage and pushed aside the people blocking her way.

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