Chapter 85 Chapter 85

At 7pm, the celebration banquet for "The Last Days Lovers" kicked off at an InterContinental Hotel in P City.

Despite being only a short day, the banquet hall was still decorated with exquisite elegance. It was a semi-open space, with a spacious terrace on one side and several long tables arranged on either side. The gentle night breeze, meeting the cool air inside the banquet hall, gently lifted the elegant figures of the young men and women.

Inside the heavy main door, the crystal chandelier reflected a clear light, while the lights in other corners were not fully turned on. The lingering light and shadow enveloped the guests coming and going in the hall, making everyone feel more at ease.

The neatly dressed waiters were polite and kept their backs straight even when they were slightly nodded. They looked much more calm and decent than the young employees of Huayi Interactive Entertainment Group.

A colleague smacked his lips and said, "What a grand display."

Another colleague echoed: "The venue is really luxurious."

Then the two looked at each other and confirmed that they had the same idea: there was no point in doing so many empty things, it would be better to give out more bonuses.

Tang Bian was arrogant because of his talent, and never concealed his contempt for these vulgar things. But just as he rolled his eyes and was about to give some advice, Song Yi, who came to his side silently, gave him a glare.

Song Yiyi warned silently: "Shut up and eat."

Tang Bian looked around silently and raised an eyebrow at her: "Where can I get food?"

Song Yi glanced at the long tables in the corner and gestured for him to go there to get some food. There were no delicacies on the long tables, but only tea and snacks, which seemed to be just decoration.

Obviously, the focus of this celebration banquet was not the “banquet” but the “celebration.” It was not the “achievement” of the working group that was being celebrated, but the “achievement” of the sponsors’ financial power.

Tang Bian took a sip of the champagne in his hand speechlessly, frowned, and walked away in disgust.

Most of the colleagues were discussing the decoration of the banquet hall in groups of three or five. Tang Bian took a few steps and saw An Jiyue who was bored.

She stood alone, away from the bustling crowd, seemingly uninterested in the splendor of the surroundings. In her hand, she held not a champagne glass, but a simple, unadorned purple clay tea bowl.

Tang Bian walked up to her, shook the champagne in his hand at her, and deliberately asked, "Would you like some?"

An Jiyue kept silent and shook her head, looking at Tang Bian thoughtfully, and the two of them exchanged glances back and forth.

An Jiyue asked tentatively, "Is it hard to drink?"

Tang Bian nodded vigorously: "It's unpalatable!"

He put down his unfinished tall, narrow-necked cup. The wine was also chosen by the sponsors, and he hadn't spoken directly to save face for the sponsors. On closer inspection, it was understandable; the funds for the celebration banquet had all been used to maintain appearances, so naturally, the food and drink had to be done with some effort.

Hiding in the corner at this moment, Tang Bian finally breathed a sigh of relief and asked An Jiyue for a cup of tea to rinse his mouth.

An Jiyue introduced: "This is the portable tea set Zhu Ling gave me. It also comes with her own flower tea bags."

Tang Bian was full of praise: "It is indeed convenient. You are worthy of being Zhu Ling."

They all looked at the woman chatting and laughing softly with a group of sponsors. She was wearing a sequined black mermaid dress, which made her look bright and capable. She generously placed the champagne glass back on the tray and began to introduce her handmade flower tea, inviting several interested sponsors to taste it.

But Zhu Ling wasn't the most popular guest tonight. Zhan Nianqing, who had recently successfully transformed the brand's reputation, was at the peak of his popularity, even attracting many veteran entrepreneurs seeking his advice. Zhan Nianqing was warm and sincere, and when he encountered a question he couldn't answer, he would call Guan Haifu to explain it in person without any airs.

Although Guan Haifu hadn't yet fully graduated, she was bright and motivated, and had a lot of ideas about self-media operations. An Jiyue heard several company representatives discussing this young woman. They suspected that bosses like Zhan Nianqing were conservative and would offer new graduates only the industry average at best. Their conversations even hinted at their intention to poach her.

An Jiuyue and Tang Bian were watching the scene with great interest when they were suddenly caught by Director Zhang.

Director Zhang: "Xiao An, what did your old classmate say? Several sponsors have already asked me."

An Jiyue quickly replied, "He just sent me a message saying he has an emergency meeting and will be here soon."

Director Zhang felt relieved and nodded to her with a mixture of pity and shame. His current news was still that his own Director Xiao An and male guest number three had a past affair when they were young and frivolous, but now they were both separated.

Under such circumstances, it was not easy for An Jiyue to put aside past grudges, maintain a professional attitude, and even invite others to attend the celebration banquet on behalf of the program team.

Director Zhang patted her gently and said, "I know your difficulties. Thank you for your hard work."

An Jiyue's eyes flickered slightly, and she smiled unnaturally and bit her lip.

It was indeed not easy for her to invite Lu Ye.

Ever since she met Lu Ye, every time she tried to confirm details of the evening celebration banquet with him, Lu Ye would block her in various ways. His methods included, but were not limited to, kissing her, hugging her, feeding her food and drinks...

Therefore, thin lips, shoulders, and snacks from S City were all used to block her mouth.

In the afternoon, in the air-conditioned apartment, An Jiyue held onto the entrance, her cherry-like lips stretched into a firm straight line, refusing to enter.

Lu Ye, who was already preparing to change into his home clothes, turned to look at her and raised his eyebrows: "What?"

An Jiyue's eyes were sharp: "Let's finish the business first."

Lu Ye looked at her doubtfully: "Haven't we talked about this before?"

An Jiyue: "Airport pick-up and lunch are all arranged. I've also ordered afternoon tea, which will be delivered shortly. So now it's your turn to fulfill the contract. I need to go through the process with you—"

Lu Ye raised his hand to interrupt: "You may have misunderstood the meaning of afternoon tea."

His cold brows remained motionless as he walked over calmly, lowered his head and explained something in her ear.

The girl's face flushed red.

"Director An, please think about it again. Once you've thought it through, we can continue."

Lu Ye was already sitting back on the sofa. He took out his computer from his bag and placed it on his knees, seizing every opportunity to get into work.

After a long silence, the sound of rustling and swishing echoed in the quiet room. Lu Ye's fingertips paused and he looked up.

From the entrance to the living room, sun hats, suspenders, and pumps were scattered all over the floor. When he looked away, a thin, beautiful figure stood before him, so close that he could reach out and touch her.

Her skin was so fair and delicate that even the pores were not visible. She had her back to the gauze curtain, her shoulders and waist gleaming with the soft light of the afternoon sun, and her whole body exuding a sweet fragrance like cream.

Lu Ye used all his restraint not to reach out.

He was still stroking the touchpad of his laptop, wandering around absentmindedly, and asked casually, "Have you thought about it?"

An Jiyue bit her lip and reached out to move his computer away. She smiled sweetly and harmlessly, put a hand on his shoulder, and sat on his lap.

She leaned forward, her clear voice tinged with allure, "Afternoon tea, please enjoy."

Lu Ye's eyes suddenly darkened. He took a deep breath and locked her to his chest with a deep kiss.

Lu Ye will not be polite to her.

Of course, he never refused to pay after eating everything.

So, Chief Lu, who was elegant and radiant, showed up as scheduled despite being late.

An Jiyue quickly signaled to Director Zhang: "Here, I am."

There was no introduction, no recommendation, but Lu Ye still became the new focus the moment he appeared. A hot new star in the financial world, a white moonlight guest with a good appearance and reputation but no successful match, all eyes in the banquet hall lingered on him for a moment.

At this moment, he was stroking the cuffs of his navy blue shirt and chatting with several sponsors.

Director Zhang saw the undercurrents surging around Lu Ye and couldn't help but sigh, "Guests like this, while they can attract traffic, can also easily attract trouble. The Lijiang Group incident was a lesson learned. The most infuriating thing is that he backed out halfway. We should really be more cautious before inviting guests like this. I heard a lot of your hard work was wasted, wasn't it, Editor Tang?"

Editor Tang glanced at An Jiyue and hesitantly replied to his boss, "Ah, it's not that bad. His plot was difficult to write anyway."

Director Zhang ignored it and continued, "But thankfully, the replacement guest was timely and very charismatic. For a dating show like ours to have three happy endings, it's truly a miracle."

Tang Bian naturally replied, "Actually, there are four pairs."

An Jiyue stepped on him calmly. Editor Tang had been privately calling her and Lu Ye the hidden couple of "The Last Days." The writing staff had even been clamoring for her to treat them to a meal, and she had generously done so, only to excite them even more.

Director Zhang was puzzled: "Four pairs?"

Editor Tang quickly tried to make amends, "I'm talking about the Luzhu couple. Even though they didn't end up being a couple, their relationship was still very successful."

An Jiyue shook her head, picked up her tea bowl, and walked away. She was afraid of getting into trouble if she stayed any longer.

More importantly, she was afraid that her eyes would betray her inner feelings sooner or later. Because, the moment Lu Ye showed up, she felt her spirits lifted, and her eyes lit up a little.

Lu Ye was chatting with Zhan Nianqing. An Jiyue slowed down her pace, pacing in the dark corner of the hall, looking at him from afar, her eyes quietly shining.

Across the crowd and the lights, she always felt that she could hear his emotions. For example, at this moment, facing Zhan Nianqing, his smile was shallow and gentle, as if he had relaxed the taut strings that were usually tense, just chatting with a friend he respected.

His cool features, his indifferent demeanor, and his every move resembling that of a gentleman were a stark contrast to the Lu Ye of just a few hours ago. An Jiyue internally despised him for a second.

This moment of distraction caused her to bump directly into a large and loose figure.

"Don't you watch where you're going?"

The other person was completely scalded by the hot tea in her hand, and without thinking, he scolded her harshly. An Jiyue didn't care about her own knuckles, which were also burned red. She apologized repeatedly and asked the waiter to bring a dry towel.

There was silence in this corner of the hall, and everyone's attention was focused on the scene of An Jiyue and the waiter wiping the clothes of the strange man.

Some overweight men would insist, "My shirt is made of silk. A little hot water will ruin it!"

An Jiyue vaguely remembered this face; he was a generous sponsor, and several of the outdoor photo shoot venues were owned by his family. With his wealth and influence, he wouldn't get embarrassed over a silk shirt.

She calmed down a bit and apologized repeatedly without any fear or trepidation: "I'm sorry, I was distracted and didn't see you."

The man did not stop there: "What about my clothes?"

An Jiyue took a step back, greeted calmly, and said politely: "I will compensate according to the price."

She put one hand behind her back and clenched her fist, and her calm and clear eyes were filled with vigilance.