7:15 PM.

Cars kept stopping in front of the Royal Hotel, where the Tsinghua University alumni reunion was being held. Men and women dressed in various ways got out of these cars, and as soon as they saw their familiar classmates, they immediately gathered together with surprise. Some walked into the hotel together, while others simply stopped and started catching up, bursting into laughter one after another.

Just then.

A black, extended Lincoln slowly pulled up in front of the hotel, instantly attracting the attention of most of the people around.

Before they could even wait at the door, a hotel staff member in uniform came forward to help open it. The driver in the front of the car had already gotten out and quickly ran to the back seat to open the door.

What first came into view was a pair of obviously expensive silver stilettos and the woman's fair and slender ankle. Then, the black silk evening gown slowly fell down, making her ankle even more visible. When the person was fully in front of everyone, the buzzing conversation and laughter around them slowly and gradually disappeared.

Almost everyone stared blankly as the woman in the black dress standing in front of them politely nodded to them, then turned around and led a man in a suit who looked remarkably well-matched to her out of the car behind her.

The man probably couldn't see, but the woman kept whispering something in his ear. After a while, the two of them crossed the crowd at the entrance and walked into the hotel.

The two had barely entered the hotel when a group of people, still reeling from the beauty filter, immediately began discussing the two of them frantically.

—Was that pretty young lady also an alumna of theirs? How come he didn't know that Qingda University had produced such a stunning beauty? It doesn't make sense. The campus belle of their year was Xia Yang. He had never heard of anyone prettier than Xia Yang. With that figure and that aura just now, with her around, was Xia Yang's campus belle title obtained through some kind of underhanded scheme?

—You guys don't know this, do you? I know a little about the inside story of that photo of Xia Yang in her flowing white dress with the school beauty back then; it really was staged on purpose…

—Really?

—So many years have passed, what's the point of me lying to you about this?

—Hey, doesn't anyone else think that the pretty lady who just walked by looked familiar? It's like I've seen her somewhere before…

Now that you mention it, I think I have a vague recollection of her. I feel like she's someone I know, but I just can't quite place who she is.

...

Not only were people at the hotel entrance wondering who she was, but the students who had already entered the alumni association meeting place also had the same question and began to whisper among themselves.

Tang Ning ignored the others' intentions. Since they hadn't eaten dinner yet and were worried that Pei Yuan would be hungry, she pulled Pei Yuan to a long table filled with cakes, desserts, sushi, and other treats. Just as she was about to ask him if he liked sweets, she immediately heard a lively commotion coming from the doorway.

Tang Ning looked in the direction of the sound with curiosity, and then saw Han Jun, dressed smartly, being surrounded by a large group of people as he walked in. The person following closely beside him was none other than Xia Yang, who was dressed in her finest attire.

Well, to be honest, at first glance, the two of them actually look quite well-matched.

Tang Ning raised an eyebrow indifferently, and was about to look away when she saw Han Jun standing at the door, exchanging pleasantries with someone while subtly searching for something around him, until his gaze fell on her.

Out of politeness, Tang Ning smiled at him.

That one smile was enough to freeze Han Jun in place, his eyes widening as he looked in that direction in disbelief.

Standing beside him, Xia Yang immediately noticed Han Jun's unusual behavior. She followed his gaze and her eyes narrowed the moment they met those of a beautiful woman with an aloof and elegant demeanor not far away. A strong sense of crisis spread through her heart.

She subconsciously tugged at Han Jun's sleeve, but before she could say anything, the man strode towards the woman in front of him, his steps becoming faster and faster until he was running. In no time, he reached the woman who had attracted the attention of almost everyone present.

From the moment he arrived in front of Tang Ning, Han Jun's eyes were practically glued to her face.

His chest heaved with a strange emotion, and after a long while, Han Jun finally uttered a question.

"Tang Ning?"

The man's voice wasn't loud, but it was loud enough for the small group around them, including Xia Yang who had just come up behind him, to hear clearly.

Everyone, including Xia Yang, stared in disbelief at the stunningly beautiful woman.

Tang Ning?

Tang Ning!!!

Who here doesn't know Tang Ning, the CEO of Ningzhen, from their Qingda University? Even if they don't know, given how often he appears in financial news, they can't ignore him even if they want to!

In their memories, Tang Ning was always dressed in an unchanging black suit, with her long black hair tied up and serious black-rimmed glasses. Although she didn't put much effort into her appearance, no one could ignore the aura of authority she exuded.

Instead of the beautiful woman in the black backless evening gown, silver high heels, long, loosely wavy hair reaching her waist, matching diamond jewelry, and exquisite makeup, perfect from head to toe.

But when these people really looked closely, they finally realized that her features really, really resembled Tang Ning's; it's just that they hadn't dared to look closely before, and now...

Tang Ning...

In no time, the news that the beautiful woman they had been discussing was actually Tang Ning spread throughout the hall.

It was this news that caused a continuous stream of people to flock to this area, and in no time, almost everyone who came to attend the alumni reunion was crowded into this spot.

On the other side, Xia Yang, who had been taking care of herself and dressing up since seven o'clock in the morning, and had even skipped breakfast and lunch, was staring intently at Tang Ning's face not far away in order to make her waist look thinner.

If Xia Yang harbored resentment and bitterness towards this person for repeatedly humiliating her before, and even for failing to sway Han Jun as she had expected, then seeing Tang Ning now, transformed and attracting everyone's attention, overshadowing her own brilliance, filled Xia Yang with a deep-seated hatred.

From childhood to adulthood, her most prized possession was her face, which was also the source of all her confidence when appearing before Tang Ning. But now…

Xia Yang gritted her teeth in resentment, a flash of anger crossing her eyes.

Almost simultaneously, Han Jun looked at Tang Ning, who was completely different from before, with an almost greedy gaze, and called her name again in a soft voice.

"Tang Ning..."

Before Tang Ning could react, a chubby man suddenly squeezed out from the crowd, smiling broadly, and said, "Tang Ning, wow, it's been a while, I almost didn't recognize you! Old Han is so lucky!"

As he spoke, he raised his hand and lightly punched Han Jun on the shoulder.

This person was none other than Han Jun's former roommate and his closest friend. When he first confirmed his relationship with Tang Ning, the first person he introduced her to was this roommate named Qian Wence.

His relationship with Tang Ning and Han Jun has remained good over the years.

However, after graduating, he went straight to take the civil service exam and is now working within the system, living a pretty comfortable life.

Before the two could even reply, Qian Wence teased them again, "What's going on with you two? You've been married for ten years, why did you come to the alumni reunion in separate shifts? Are you too busy with work to even have a chance to meet up..."

We've already broken up.

Before the man could finish speaking, Tang Ning immediately interrupted him with a gentle smile.

These seven words not only caused the other classmates present to exchange incredulous glances, but also left Qian Wence with the rest of his words stuck in his throat. He didn't know whether to speak or not, and he could only subconsciously glance at Han Jun standing to the side.

But he found that his good friend's face was now ashen, as if he had eaten something terrible.

Oh no, he messed things up!

Just as he was feeling extremely embarrassed, Tang Ning took Pei Yuan's hand without any hesitation and said, "Hey, Lao Qian, let me introduce you to my new boyfriend, Shen Yin."

"Haha, hello, hello, hello, my name is Qian Wence, I am Tang Ning's classmate."

Tang Ning offered him a way out, and Qian Wence immediately took it, shaking Pei Yuan's hand and waving it up and down.

Tang Ning's new boyfriend was indeed quite handsome, but she soon noticed something was off; his eyes seemed...

Before I could figure out why, a woman's teasing voice suddenly came from the crowd.

"I never thought you two, a golden couple, could break up. This Ms. Tang brought her new boyfriend. Mr. Han, what's the meaning of you coming here with Xia Yang? Could it be that you and she..."

As soon as the man finished speaking, the gazes of everyone around Han Jun and Xia Yang became ambiguous.

Although the woman who spoke did not show herself, Tang Ning immediately recognized her as none other than Xia Yang's best friend, Zhou Li.

Even after recognizing her, Tang Ning's expression remained unchanged.

Hearing such teasing, Xia Yang, who was standing next to Han Jun, blushed slightly and looked up at Han Jun with affection.

It was this look in his eyes that caused a commotion among those around him.

Hearing these voices, Han Jun's eyes never left Tang Ning's face. He watched her take the initiative to tell others that they had broken up, watched her take the initiative to say that the blind man was her boyfriend, and watched her remain unmoved when others teased him and Xia Yang.

Suddenly, a surge of resentment and frustration surged through his chest.

In a fit of impulse, he even wanted to grab Xia Yang's hand and retaliate by telling everyone present that, yes, Xia Yang was his girlfriend!

But the words that were already on the tip of his tongue turned into, "Don't believe everything you hear. Xia Yang and I are just classmates. It's definitely not what you think. The reason we came together was because her car broke down on the way here, and I saw that she couldn't get a taxi, so I gave her a ride. That's enough!"

Han Jun said this with a smile.

The parties involved have already taken the initiative to clarify, and they are not tactless people. Moreover, many of them wanted to take advantage of this alumni reunion to build a good relationship with Han Jun, so they would never dare to offend him.

So the group laughed it off and let the matter drop.

The others were fine, but Tang Ning clearly saw that Xia Yang's face was deathly pale, and even her hand hanging at her side was trembling. It was obvious to anyone how angry she was.

Even Tang Ning doesn't want him anymore, and she's already showing off her boyfriend in public, but Han Jun still doesn't seem to want to be with her. What do you call that? You're offering yourself up and nobody wants you.

Perhaps Tang Ning's amused gaze was too unrestrained, for Xia Yang quickly noticed and abruptly looked up at her. Caught red-handed, Tang Ning showed no remorse whatsoever. Instead, she curled her lips, looked Xia Yang up and down, and scoffed, her contempt evident on her face.

Xia Yang was so angry that she almost fell over.

You bitch!

But as the music started playing in the hall, the woman she was talking about completely ignored Han Jun standing next to her, grabbed Pei Yuan's hand, and was about to dance with the others.

Upon hearing Tang Ning's suggestion, Pei Yuan panicked and quickly waved his hand, "Dancing? I can't..."

"It's okay, I know how to do it."

Tang Ning was excited.

"But I can't see..."

Pei Yuan said in a low voice.

These few words made Tang Ning stop in her tracks. She then turned around and flicked Pei Yuan's chin, saying irritably, "Have you forgotten everything I said before? I said I'd be your eyes. Come on, relax a little..."

As they were talking, Tang Ning had already led Pei Yuan into the group of ballroom dancers. With a bright smile, she slowly began to lead Pei Yuan in dancing.

"Ouch, you stepped on my foot..."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, just be careful."

"ah!"

Did I step on you again?

"No, I just want to say that my boyfriend is getting more and more handsome the more I look at him, he's handsome in every way!"

Tang Ning said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Pei Yuan paused for a moment, then pursed his lips and smiled as well.

It was then that Tang Ning noticed that Pei Yuan had a small dimple on the left corner of his mouth, which looked incredibly cute.

Little did he know, in Pei Yuan's eyes, Tang Ning, whose dark eyes were filled with his reflection, was the one who moved him the most. He was so moved that he didn't know what to do. He just wanted her to keep looking at him like that, just looking at him...

Pei Yuan's current favorability rating: 89.

The two of them got along quite well, but watching them, Han Jun standing to the side felt as if ants were gnawing at his heart, and a mixture of emotions, such as jealousy, resentment, and grief, were fermenting within him.

Xia Yang arrived at his side at this moment. Seeing the expression on Han Jun's face, she took a deep breath and suggested, "Would you like to dance with me?"

After she finished speaking, seeing that Han Jun seemed to ignore her, she wasn't annoyed. "Don't you think your attitude is too warm? You're almost always going along with her and doing whatever she wants. Do you think you can win her back like this? No, to win someone back, you need to be flexible. You have to be cold for a while and warm for a while. If you're always warm, she naturally won't take it seriously."

"Moreover, a woman's possessiveness and jealousy can be quite terrifying. You're currently alone and your attitude is always on her side, so of course she's fearless. But if someone else appears in your life, she'll naturally turn her attention to you."

Xia Yang continued to persuade her.

Did Tang Ning think she had won just like that? As long as this game of chess isn't over, it's never certain who will win or lose!

Xia Yang clenched her fists, and out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Han Jun's eyes had already flashed with interest.

It's done.

Xia Yang raised her chin, but the smile on her lips had not yet appeared.

Just then, Tang Ning, who had been dancing, suddenly pulled the blind man next to her down from the dancing area, picked up a small plate, and began to feed him while eating.

Seeing this, Xia Yang was about to say something when she realized that Han Jun's gaze had been drawn to Tang Ning, and he was walking towards her without even acknowledging her presence.

Xia Yang was left standing there, furious and fuming, feeling uncomfortable all over.

Tang Ning was genuinely hungry. She asked Pei Yuan and learned that he was also hungry. Why was she still dancing? She should eat something to fill her stomach.

Because Pei Yuan is blind, all his food and drink are provided by Tang Ning. Because she is afraid that he will eat something bad, she will taste it before giving him anything. If he eats something delicious, she will immediately pick up another piece and put it into Pei Yuan's mouth without thinking.

"Ptooey, this tastes awful, it's fishy and bitter, you absolutely mustn't eat it..."

Despite saying that, she suddenly had a wicked idea. She picked up the sashimi she had just tasted and held it to Pei Yuan's lips, her smile almost impossible to hide.

Unexpectedly, Pei Yuan ate it without changing his expression.

Upon seeing this, Tang Ning was completely stunned. "You... don't you think it tastes bitter and fishy?"

"feel."

Pei Yuan said blankly.

"Why don't you spit it out? Hurry up and spit it out..."

Tang Ning quickly said this.

But it was too late; Pei Yuan had already swallowed his words.

"Everything you put on my plate tastes good," Pei Yuan murmured.

Upon hearing this, Tang Ning was taken aback for a moment, then frowned and said, "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?"

"I shouldn't have teased you on purpose..."

"You're my girlfriend, so it's only right that you tease me. Besides, chewing on what you just ate makes it taste a little sweet."

"real?"

"real."

"Let me try it. Hey, it really is sweet, quite delicious..."

Tang Ning exclaimed in delight.

Pei Yuan stood beside her and just smiled.

At roughly the same time, several alumni of Qingdao University standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows watched almost the entire interaction between the two.

"Oh my god, this is so sweet! I never would have guessed that Tang Ning, who always seems so serious in the newspapers and on TV, could be so sweet when she's in love?"

"That's right, it's just that her boyfriend's eyes... well, they're really handsome. I used to think that this Tang girl was going to be hopelessly in love with Han Jun for the rest of her life!"

"Yeah, back then, everyone could see that Han Jun didn't love her even half as much. I heard his family wasn't well-off, but he ended up building such a big company. Who would believe he didn't take advantage of Tang? If you ask me, he was probably just using her. Hey, why are you pulling me along? What did I say wrong?"

"Han Jun, come here for some fresh air too. You stay here, we're done, we'll be leaving now!"

The others immediately gave Han Jun, who was standing behind them, an awkward smile, then grabbed the classmate who had been talking out of turn and ran away.

Han Jun stood there calmly, his eyes flickering, and no one knew what he was thinking.

The alumni reunion wasn't just about eating, drinking, chatting, and dancing. Before long, it was Tang Ning's turn to give a speech.

Tang Ning wasn't too surprised by this, as she was already used to it.

But because she was a little worried that Pei Yuan couldn't see, she deliberately led him to a less crowded place to sit and told him not to wander off, and that she would be back in a little while.

Pei Yuan smiled and agreed.

No sooner had Tang Ning left than someone sat down next to him.

"hello."

The visitor greeted them with a smile.

Even without turning his head, Pei Yuan recognized him just by hearing that voice.

Han Jun.

How did he end up here?

While pondering to himself, Pei Yuan immediately put on a gentle and kind expression. "Hello, I remember your voice. You are Ningning's ex-boyfriend, right? I was quite surprised when I heard your voice before."

"Before? I thought Tang Ning would have explained it to you before bringing you here, but it turns out she didn't. Oh well... Let me formally introduce myself. My name is Han Jun, and I was Tang Ning's boyfriend for ten years. We've known each other since our junior year of college."

Han Jun smiled.

He had thought that if he told the blind man, the blind man would be furious, but to his surprise, only a hint of astonishment flashed across his eyes, nothing more.

Not only that, he also spoke in a gentle voice, "Perhaps Ningning felt that the past was the past, that it had no meaning, and that it was unimportant, so she didn't tell me."

"you……"

Having understood the meaning behind his words, Han Jun's gaze sharpened as he looked at Pei Yuan. He stared for what seemed like an eternity before finally suppressing the sudden surge of anger within him. He crossed his arms and continued, "Is that so? Then Tang Ning once went bankrupt helping me start my business, and for me she even..."

He moved closer and recounted, word by word, all the kindness Tang Ning had shown him to the blind man before him, his eyes constantly watching the changes in his expression.

At this moment, Pei Yuan's smile remained unchanged, but his heart was filled with murderous intent, yet he did not reveal a trace of it on his face.

Having finished saying those words that were meant to provoke him, Han Jun, who hadn't found any flaws, turned to look at the bright and elegant Tang Ning on the stage, his heart pounding in his chest.

Han Jun's current favorability rating: 78.

Words, seemingly laced with venom, poured from Han Jun's mouth: "You don't actually believe Tang Ning is serious about someone as blind and worthless as you, do you? We just broke up the day before, and she contacted you the next day. You don't really believe she's fallen for you, do you? She's just playing with you to spite me. Once her anger subsides, she'll naturally return to me. Then, you, this decoration, will be useless..."

This passage allowed Han Jun to see that the blind man's ever-present upturned lips finally closed up.

"Think it over carefully. Tang Ning and I are the most compatible couple. Someone as blind as you can be destroyed anytime I want."

After leaving behind such a threatening statement, Han Jun turned and walked towards the swimming pool outside the floor-to-ceiling window.

But who would have thought that as soon as he came out, he heard the sound of a white cane lightly tapping the ground behind him.

Han Jun frowned, turned around, and saw Pei Yuan standing against the light, his expression completely obscured.

“I think you’re wrong…” Pei Yuan said in a low voice, “If you two have been together for ten years and she can still choose to break up with you and be with me without hesitation, it only proves that her feelings for you are nothing special, and you are nothing special either.”

"What did you say!"

Han Junli shouted.

"I said..."

Pei Yuan took another step forward and, before Han Jun could react, grabbed his hand. With a sudden pull, they switched places, and Pei Yuan was now standing at the edge of the pool.

In the instant they passed each other, he heard a barely audible murmur beside his ear, and a strange smile appeared on the man's lips.

"I could destroy you right now if I wanted to."

Then, Pei Yuan immediately shoved Han Jun's hand forward. Facing the people behind them and the surveillance cameras above, a look of fear flashed across his face before he plunged into the cold pool behind him with a splash.

"ah!"

"ah!"

Screams erupted as people kept running toward the pool.

By the pool, Han Jun stared incredulously at his empty hands, seemingly unable to comprehend what had just happened.

As for Pei Yuan—

Yes, he really can't swim, but so what?