Little did Zhu Qianying know that her beloved son had betrayed her country while she was abroad, selling her out completely.

After several days of intense work following their return to the US, Cheng Ye, the boss, announced that he would treat everyone to a big dinner that evening.

Everyone looked at Zhu Qianying, because they all knew that whether or not to go in this matter ultimately depended on whether Zhu Qianying agreed or not.

If there's anything that has had a huge impact on Zhu Qianying besides her son, it's food!

This foodie has zero resistance to delicious food. After hearing Cheng Ye's suggestion and meeting everyone's gazes, she hesitated for a moment but still agreed.

Why did she hesitate?

Because of the large meal, drinking was inevitable. But ever since she ruined things by drinking on New Year's Eve, she has developed a psychological aversion to alcohol.

As if God was on her side, one thing after another happened that day. Zhu Qianying hadn't stopped working since lunchtime. It was almost six o'clock, and there was only half an hour left before lunchtime, but Zhu Qianying still had to work for at least another hour or two.

"Cheng, I still have a lot of things to finish. Order some takeout for me. I won't go to the dinner party. You guys go ahead!"

Zhu Qianying has been in the United States for five days. With a mountain of work piling up, she is secretly anxious. All she wants to do is finish her work quickly and return to L City to be with her beloved son. This time, she has no choice but to reluctantly give up the delicious food.

"Let my assistant go help you. We're fine, we can wait for you!"

Cheng Ye seemed determined to have her go with him. Before Zhu Qianying could argue, he hung up the phone. Soon after, there was a knock on the door of Zhu Qianying's office, and her two assistants entered.

In fact, Zhu Qianying had to do almost all of the work she had piled up herself. Otherwise, she could have just dumped the work on her assistant and gone back to China to be with her son.

Now that the two assistants have come in, there's very little they can actually do for Zhu Qianying. Cheng Ye couldn't possibly be unaware of this, yet he still let the two assistants in, clearly intending to tell Zhu Qianying that she absolutely has to attend this dinner party today.

Once she understood this, Zhu Qianying immediately started packing her things and said to her two assistants, "Let's go, I'll take care of these things tomorrow!"

After all, it was a group dinner, and Zhu Qianying didn't want to spoil everyone's fun because of herself.

Dinner was at a Chinese restaurant. Whether it was fresh fish, shrimp and crab, crispy Cantonese roast pork or various stir-fries, they were all Zhu Qianying's favorites. She had been so busy these past few days that she didn't even have time to eat much. After this big meal, she was able to make up for all the missing nutrients and calories.

Everyone else, like Zhu Qianying, enjoyed the meal immensely. Afterward, they all clamored to go to a bar for drinks, a suggestion that was almost unanimously agreed upon.

The word "almost" means "almost".

And that is Zhu Qianying.

Going to a bar for drinks was almost always a fun activity after every gathering, but Zhu Qianying was always thinking about her mountain of work, and she also constantly reminded herself that it was best to drink less to avoid getting into trouble.

Seeing that everyone raised their hands except for Zhu Qianying, Cheng Ye said, "Yingying has a lot of work to deal with urgently. How about we go for drinks another day?"

The disappointment of everyone was palpable. Zhu Qianying knew that Cheng Ye was indirectly threatening her, but she had no choice but to compromise.

"It's okay, I can take care of my work tomorrow. Let's go, shall we go to the usual place?"

Everyone immediately got up with great enthusiasm and headed to their usual bar.

This bar is usually quite busy, always bustling with people, but this time, all I saw were bartenders and waiters busy setting things up, with no customers in sight.

Zhu Qianying looked around in confusion, then leaned closer to Cheng Ye and asked, "Cheng, why is no one here anymore? Did something happen?"

Generally speaking, unless there has been a murder or the property has been seized, it is impossible for the place to be so deserted.

Cheng Ye shook his head. "I don't know either. I've only been back for a few days, just like you."

Zhu Qianying thought it made sense, so she didn't ask any more questions.

The group followed the waiter to the center of the bar and sat down in twos and threes around tables.

Cheng Ye naturally sat with Zhu Qianying. Originally, Zhu Qianying's two assistants were also sitting with them, but before they started drinking, the two assistants were pulled away by other colleagues. So, at Zhu Qianying's small table, only Zhu Qianying and Cheng Ye were left sitting opposite each other.

After sitting down, Cheng Ye's gaze almost never left Zhu Qianying. Under the dim, almost ambiguous lighting, Zhu Qianying felt increasingly uncomfortable.

Turning his head to look around, he said, "Cheng, why don't we sit over there?"

Zhu Qianying pointed to the private room behind Cheng Ye, where several colleagues were sitting scattered around. Even with the two of them added, it wouldn't feel crowded.

"I prefer this kind of table!" Cheng Ye insisted.

Zhu Qianying pinched her brow helplessly. Wasn't he making it obvious that he wanted her to stay here with him?

Are you feeling unwell?

Whether intentionally or not, Cheng Ye interpreted her helplessness as discomfort. As he asked, he reached out and placed his hand on her forehead.

Zhu Qianying felt increasingly awkward. She wanted to avoid him, but that seemed too hurtful. Yet, letting him continue like this would seem too intimate for their relationship.

"I'm fine..." Feeling embarrassed to dodge, she could only reach out and grab his wrist, pulling his hand away.

Cheng Ye cooperated readily, letting her pull his hand away, but as soon as she released his wrist, he grabbed her hand back.

Zhu Qianying was startled and tried to pull her hand back, but she couldn't pull him away no matter what she did.

Cheng Ye was holding her left hand. He pulled her left hand under his eyelids, lowered his eyes, and looked at her slender and white fingers.

Zhu Qianying vaguely understood his motives and opened her mouth to explain something. His slightly rough fingertips slowly stroked her ring finger.

"Why aren't you wearing your wedding ring?"

As she spoke, she raised her head, her deep eyes staring straight at Zhu Qianying.

Zhu Qianying sighed inwardly, but on the surface, she remained calm.

"I haven't been wearing it all along, so it's not surprising that I'm not wearing it now, is it?"

She appeared very calm, but she knew that this excuse was completely unconvincing and wouldn't fool him.

The fact that he asks this question actually indicates that he already knows something.

"You didn't wear it before because you and he were divorced, but didn't you say you were getting remarried? So why aren't you wearing your wedding ring?"

This time, Cheng Ye seemed determined not to let her escape!

Zhu Qianying was too lazy to make any more futile struggles. "That's right, I haven't remarried him yet!"