I'll treat you to dinner!
In the dimly lit living room, only the light from the phone illuminated Lu Zhiyan's face, making his expression clearly visible.
He looked at the email on his phone and muttered to himself, "Song Zicheng, from Anhui, 20 years old, a third-year student in the History Department of Beijing University."
"History Department," Lu Zhiyan repeated the three words to himself.
This made him recall the first time he met Song Zicheng at the hospital, and he felt that Song had a unique temperament that made him unforgettable to those who met him.
As if he had seen something, Lu Zhiyan suddenly frowned, a strange expression on his face: "Both parents died in a car accident, and he has a younger brother with leukemia. He is at the Affiliated Hospital of Beijing North."
Seeing Lu Zhiyan from the Affiliated Hospital of Beijing press his right hand against his temple and ponder for a few seconds, then lean back on the sofa, gazing at the half-moon hanging in the sky outside the window, a wicked smile quietly appeared on his face.
A ringing phone interrupted his thoughts; he swiped his finger, and the call connected instantly.
"Lu Zhiyan, guess who I saw at the bar?" Qi Chao's loud voice came from the other end of the phone.
Lu Zhiyan was too lazy to guess: "I'm hanging up now."
"Hey, hey, don't hang up! I saw that guy from the coffee shop this morning at the bar. He was singing on stage, and he was really energetic. I'll send you the location, come quick."
Before Lu Zhiyan could reply, the call was disconnected with a "beep". Immediately afterward, an address was sent to him. Lu Zhiyan glanced at it for a few seconds, then stood up from the sofa with a clean and decisive motion.
A dozen minutes later, at the entrance of BC Bar, Lu Zhiyan had just gotten out of the car when he saw Qi Chao waving as he came out. Qi Chao put his arm around Lu Zhiyan's shoulder and said, "I knew you would come."
The two sat in the corner of the last row of the bar, a secluded spot where the lights couldn't reach them. Others couldn't easily see them, but the two of them could see every part of the entire bar.
"Let me tell you, when I first came here and saw that guy on stage, I didn't even realize it. After he sang for a minute or two, I started to think, something's not right, and he looks more and more familiar. That's when I remembered, isn't that the guy from the coffee shop?"
Qi Chao, holding a wine glass, looked at Song Zicheng on the stage and said in a high-pitched voice, "Look, what a contrast! Interesting, very interesting indeed."
Lu Zhiyan didn't speak. He took a sip of wine and clicked his tongue, as if the wine was a bit too strong. He leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, and his thin-soled leather shoes tapped lightly in the air to the beat of the music.
His eyes were fixed on Song Zicheng, who was wearing a sleeveless vest, loose jeans, and a brown baseball cap on the stage. He could vaguely see the earring on Song Zicheng's left ear.
Lu Zhiyan carefully examined Song Zicheng, who was standing in the center position, from top to bottom. Today, his outfit exposed all the muscles that were usually hidden under his clothes. With a little more movement, one could even see his abdominal muscles and supple waist.
In the darkness, Lu Zhiyan stretched out his hand as if measuring something. His lips moved slightly, but no one could hear what he said.
Suddenly, Song Zicheng, who was still immersed in the music, felt uncomfortable all over. He stood in front of the stage and quickly scanned the area under the lights.
No strange people were found.
But for some reason, he always felt that somewhere in the bar, a pair of eyes like those of a jackal or a tiger were staring intently at him, making him feel uneasy and fearful.
Even from a distance, Lu Zhiyan could clearly see the subtle expressions on Song Zicheng's face. He seemed to smile with satisfaction, raised his hand, and drank the wine in his glass in one gulp.
After the energetic DJ left, the entire bar was enveloped in soothing, flowing music, making people feel very relaxed.
Qi Chao tapped his finger on the table: "I've already inquired. That kid sings here every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday night, from 7:30 to 9:30."
He then leaned forward, somewhat curiously, and said, "Hey, you know, he doesn't look that old, he should still be a student, right? He's working at a coffee shop and singing here, how desperate is he for money?"
"His parents died in a car accident, and he has a younger brother with leukemia." It was a very tragic story, but when Lu Zhiyan said it, it became cold and indifferent, as if he were telling a very ordinary story.
Upon hearing this, Qi Chao's eyes filled with sympathy: "That's so tragic."
"Why don't you go and help him?" Lu Zhiyan suddenly said casually.
Qi Chao was stunned for a moment, looking regretful: "But I don't know him, and besides, I'm straight, I'm not into that kind of thing."
Tonight's performance went smoothly on the surface, without a single mistake, but Song Zicheng still sensed something was wrong. As soon as the time was up, he immediately went offstage, changed his clothes, and prepared to go home with his bag.
Before he had taken two steps, the door to the dressing room was suddenly pushed open. Song Zicheng was startled and looked up to see that it was the man.
Although they had met twice, Song Zicheng was completely unfamiliar with him; they were just strangers he had met before. He never expected that the man would be here.
Seeing Song Zicheng's puzzled expression, Lu Zhiyan spoke first: "I just listened to your song downstairs, and you sang it very well."
"Thanks."
As Lu Zhiyan slowly approached, Song Zicheng felt a sudden pang of unease. Just as he was about to leave, Lu Zhiyan pulled a card out of his pocket: "This is my business card."
In fact, Song Zicheng had no interest in his name or what he did for a living. Out of politeness, he accepted the name and looked down. The three characters "Lu Zhiyan" were very eye-catching.
Clarté Joaillerie Group Vice President.
Clarté Joaillerie?
Song Zicheng thought for a moment and realized it seemed to be the largest jewelry company in the country.
“What a coincidence! Last time at the hospital, you said we could get to know each other if we met again. This is the third time we’ve met, and I still don’t know your name,” Lu Zhiyan said with a smile.
“My name is Song Zicheng, a student at Beijing University,” Song Zicheng replied. After saying that, he glanced at his phone and said, “It’s getting late, I have to go back. Goodbye, Mr. Lu.”
"etc".
As he passed by Lu Zhiyan, he was grabbed by a pair of burning hands. Song Zicheng stiffened. Lu Zhiyan looked at his profile and said, "I haven't properly thanked you for taking me to the hospital yet. Now that I've run into you again, I must repay this kindness. I'll treat you to lunch tomorrow."
Lu Zhiyan didn't give Song Zicheng a chance to refuse: "I'll send you the address later. Remember to come. I'll be waiting for you."
After he finished speaking, he leaned forward, and the two of them were very close. Song Zicheng felt very uncomfortable and turned his head away. Inadvertently, he seemed to hear a sneer coming from beside his ear.
Once Lu Zhiyan was out of sight, Song Zicheng rolled his eyes. He ran a hand through his hair and muttered under his breath, "They're filming a movie here, and you say you'll wait for me? Do you think everyone's like you, the boss? I haven't even said I'm free yet. Honestly."
He had originally planned to go to the hospital early in the morning to pick up his younger brother and take him home. He had already left the house and walked for a few minutes when he remembered that he had an appointment at noon. So he made a phone call: "Dr. Ling, could you please tell Zi'an that I have something to do and I will pick him up in the afternoon?"
The moment the call ended, an unknown number called. The instant the call connected, that familiar voice came through: "This is Lu Zhiyan. I just added you on WeChat. Please accept my request. I'll send you my address."
Song Zicheng was completely confused, not knowing how Lu Zhiyan knew his phone number and WeChat. When he opened it, he saw that Lu Zhiyan's WeChat profile picture was a full moon, and his WeChat name was just a capital L.
"Hello, Lu Zhiyan," followed by a restaurant address.
Song Zicheng replied "okay," then clicked on the address and saw that it would take more than an hour by subway and bus.
However, he did know the name of that restaurant. After all, it was the largest restaurant in the entire capital, and the people who ate there were all wealthy and powerful.
"I'll have my assistant drive to your building at 10:30."
"No need, no need, I can go by myself."
"No, that won't do. After all, I'm inviting you to dinner, so I should be polite. Send me your home address."
Song Zicheng clicked his tongue and then sent an address.
At this moment, Lu Zhiyan, who was standing by the office window, raised his eyebrows when he saw the address. He had a playful expression on his face. He held his phone in his left hand and put his right hand in his suit trouser pocket. He smiled and said with excitement in his voice, "Interesting."
Cui Junyu had just finished work. He sat down in his chair, opened his food delivery app, and was thinking about what to eat for lunch when a message came in. He had no choice but to get up and leave.
He looked at the address Lu Zhiyan sent, which was a 30-minute drive away, and was still a little shocked when he found out who he was going to pick up.
Because he had just booked the restaurant yesterday, and having been by Lu Zhiyan's side for so many years, he had never seen Lu Zhiyan book this restaurant for anyone else.
So Cui Junyu was very curious about who this person was the whole way, but as he drove, he gradually noticed something was wrong. The address looked familiar.
When he was almost at the entrance of the residential area, he spotted Song Zicheng. He then remembered that the address he had checked earlier was not here; it seemed to be an old, dilapidated residential building not far from here.
Over the years, he had never doubted his professional abilities, but now it seemed that Song Zicheng was indeed quite extraordinary.
Song Zicheng stood there twenty minutes early. The weather was bad today; there was no sun, and the wind was howling in his ears. He was wearing a long-sleeved shirt, but he was still a little cold.
As the time drew near, he looked up at the road and saw an extremely conspicuous Rolls-Royce driving towards him, impossible to miss.
Although there weren't many people walking around the neighborhood, there were still a few scattered around. Noticing their gazes, Song Zicheng took out a mask from his pocket and put it on, then took out a hat from his bag.
Cui Junyu saw Song Zicheng's every move clearly. Before he could think much, the car had already stopped by the roadside. He rolled down the window and greeted Song Zicheng, who was standing by the roadside: "Hello, Mr. Song, my name is Cui Junyu, I am Mr. Lu's secretary. I'm here to take you to the restaurant. Please get in the car."
Song Zicheng nodded, opened the car door and sat in the back seat. He glanced at the luxurious interior, his face expressionless, and simply said, "Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Cui."
Cui Junyu glanced at Song Zicheng through the rearview mirror and saw that Song Zicheng had taken off his mask and hat, revealing his unmasked face, which was magnified in the mirror. Cui Junyu was momentarily lost in thought as he looked at him.
He smiled and replied politely, "It's no trouble at all, Mr. Song. You can just call me Secretary Cui."
"Secretary Cui?" Song Zicheng repeated softly, feeling a little strange, but didn't say anything more: "Okay."
The two didn't speak again. Halfway there, Cui Junyu heard the sound of a backpack zipper being opened. Through the rearview mirror, he saw Song Zicheng holding a tablet in his hand and a pen in his right, as if he was writing something.
Before leaving home, Song Zicheng brought his tablet. He figured he wouldn't know what to do during the more than one-hour round trip, so he might as well bring his homework with him.
Although he is a junior majoring in history, he doesn't have many classes a week, but he still has homework every week. In the past, he would spend two hours on Sunday afternoons reviewing, but he was afraid he wouldn't have time today, so he planned to finish his homework on the bus.
Perhaps he was too engrossed in writing, for when he looked up, the car was almost at its destination. He put away his tablet, put his mask and hat back on, thanked Cui Junyu, and got out of the car.
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