After entering December, Lu Zhuonian became noticeably busy.
Many school courses had entered exam week, and the shooting range was making final preparations for the international shooting competition.
Near the end of the year, various cocktail parties and dinners were happening one after another; some could be postponed, but others could not.
Chen Zemian occasionally drove for Lu Zhuonian, driving around Beijing several times a day, sighing at how many events wealthy people had.
Sometimes he drove the Pagani, but most of the time, he drove a black business Mercedes that was not too conspicuous.
“Many people drive Mercedes-Benz, so it won’t be conspicuous if I drive this car in advance.”
Before getting out of the car, Lu Zhuonian quietly agreed on a meeting place with Chen Zemian. “I’ll go in and toast, then leave. My dad went to Dongcheng for a meeting today, so no one will be watching me.”
Chen Zemian had been with Lu Zhuonian for a long time and didn’t think much when he spoke. However, thinking that the original story began with the funeral of Lu Zhuonian’s father, his mouth ran ahead of his brain, and he subconsciously asked, “Is your dad not dead?”
“…”
Lu Zhuonian had his hand on the car door but withdrew it when he heard this. He turned around and asked Chen Zemian, “Are you being polite?”
Chen Zemian choked and coughed, quickly apologizing. “I’m sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean that. I meant your dad — is he not coming?”
Lu Zhuonian looked at Chen Zemian for two seconds. “Do you think those two sentences mean the same thing?”
Chen Zemian was speechless; his face flushed, and even his ears felt hot. He really couldn’t come up with a reasonable explanation, so he could only continue apologizing.
Lu Zhuonian didn’t pursue the matter further. He was afraid Chen Zemian would forget the business because he was busy making excuses, so he confirmed the meeting time with him again.
“I’ll be out soon. Try not to sleep,” Lu Zhuonian said, having seen Chen Zemian’s extraordinary ability to fall asleep with his eyes closed. Before getting out, he changed the air conditioner to external circulation and said with concern, “If you sleep, leave a gap in the back window for ventilation. Don’t die in my car.”
Chen Zemian lowered the air conditioner’s temperature. “Definitely not.”
Lu Zhuonian: “…”
Normal people would say they definitely wouldn’t sleep.
Chen Zemian always spoke in ways that shocked people without making a sound, and no one could predict what he’d say next.
Lu Zhuonian pushed open the car door and got out. Seeing Chen Zemian holding the car window and waving, watching him leave, he felt like he had left a pet in the car.
It was the kind of pet that was very disobedient, pretending to obey but actually disobeying.
It must be said that Lu Zhuonian’s summary of Chen Zemian was very accurate, and he understood him well.
Chen Zemian lay by the car window. As soon as Lu Zhuonian’s back disappeared, he immediately closed the window, turned up the air conditioning temperature, lowered the seat, lay back, and closed his eyes.
The three actions happened almost simultaneously. He held the steering wheel to absorb warmth and stuffed his hands into his sleeves to keep warm.
Beijing was dry and cold in December. Lu Zhuonian wore a cashmere coat, while Chen Zemian had already put on a cotton coat.
Chen Zemian’s physical condition was weak. As soon as winter came, his hands and feet got cold, and his whole body felt cold and drafty. No matter how many clothes he wore, he couldn’t warm up.
Chen Zemian deliberately exercised to strengthen his body, but unfortunately, the effect was minimal. He became even lazier to move when the weather got cold. He had recently been infected with the flu virus, suffering coughing, fever, and body aches. Originally, He wanted to stay home to recover, but his immune system was so aggressive it attacked everything. Based on the principle of killing the host if it can’t kill the virus, his body temperature nearly reached 40 degrees Celsius. Chen Zemian was confused by the fever but was very dedicated and didn’t forget to call Lu Zhuonian to ask for leave.
He couldn’t remember their exact conversation, but when he woke up, he was already in the respiratory department, with Liu Yuebo sitting beside him playing games.
Xiao Kesong, Xue Duo, and others came to visit.
Chen Zemian declined their visits, saying not to come — the hospital was full of sick people, many with pneumonia or influenza, and it would be bad if they got infected again.
The young masters were confident in their health. Not only did they visit as usual, but they also moved the mahjong table to play with Chen Zemian, which was very considerate.
Yan Luo also came several times, saying that Shen Qingwan had gone to the shooting range to deliver a cake again, giving it to him without seeing anyone, and said that the cake was quite delicious.
Chen Zemian immediately said, “If you like it, eat it all. Good things don’t come often. You’re amazing to appreciate Shen Qingwan’s craftsmanship. I can’t eat sweets now because I have a cough.”
Yan Luo saw that Chen Zemian looked weak and suggested he take some Chinese medicine.
Chen Zemian was lying in the car. Even with the air conditioner set to 28 degrees, he still felt cold, so he zipped his cotton coat up to his chin, half his face nestled in the collar, feeling sleepy.
This body was indeed too weak — it was time to supplement some nutrition.
Chen Zemian couldn’t take Chinese medicine. He should buy more milk and goat milk. If that didn’t work, he could make some medicinal wine and drink a cup before bed to warm up his body. Chen Zemian’s father made medicinal wine every winter, adding four herbs: ginseng, deer antler, wolfberry, and rehmannia root. The wine didn’t smell too strange. After drinking a small cup, the whole body felt warm.
He had been in good health in the original world but couldn’t stand staying up late for long and eventually died suddenly. It showed that no matter what you eat, getting enough sleep is more important.
After coming to this world, he could sleep well and always felt sleepy.
There were still forty minutes before the time agreed upon with Lu Zhuonian. It shouldn’t be a problem to take a nap. The car had external circulation on, and the rear window was left open… right?
Chen Zemian hesitated a little but couldn’t open his eyes to check the rear window. Based on the principle of “life and death are determined by fate; sleep first, talk later,” he let his consciousness sink and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
Anyway, there was external circulation for ventilation.
Chen Zemian wasn’t sure whether he had opened the window or not but believed that Lu Zhuonian had set the external circulation before leaving.
When he opened his eyes again, it was pitch black around him, and the car was quiet and still.
Chen Zemian’s whole body was stiff. He reached out to touch his phone in a daze. When he saw the time, his soul flew away, and he woke instantly.
22:37.
Oh my God, how was it already past ten o’clock? Wasn’t it 8:10 when he fell asleep?
The meeting time with Lu Zhuonian was 8:50, so he was almost two hours late — and Lu Zhuonian hadn’t called.
Chen Zemian unlocked the phone with his trembling fingers, his mind confused and foggy. He wanted to call Lu Zhuonian but couldn’t press the right numbers. He finally dialed but couldn’t make a sound when he opened his mouth. It was really frustrating.
He was anxious and fully awake now.
His heart pounded, and he jumped up from the driver’s seat, breathing heavily.
It turned out he had been dreaming.
Chen Zemian glanced at the car’s display.
21:10.
A little late, but not too late.
It was impossible for him to sleep for more than two hours.
Chen Zemian picked up the phone and drove to the banquet center’s exit while calling Lu Zhuonian.
Beep-beep-beep —
He waited several times before the speaker automatically hung up.
Chen Zemian dialed again.
Still no answer.
He found a corner to park the car, made a third call, sent a WeChat message, and tapped Lu Zhuonian.
There was no response.
Chen Zemian frowned and unconsciously rubbed the screen with his thumb.
Why wasn’t Lu Zhuonian answering? Had something come up?
He shouldn’t have ignored all three calls. Besides, knowing Lu Zhuonian’s habits, even if he didn’t answer, he would check the phone and press the power button twice to hang up instead of leaving it on.
Especially since they had agreed on a time to meet.
Lu Zhuonian was a trustworthy person. No matter how busy, he would at least send a “wait a minute.”
Could the phone be out of reach?
If he hadn’t just had that dream about being unable to contact Lu Zhuonian, Chen Zemian would have waited a while before checking.
But the dream left him in shock, his heartbeat still racing. The dream’s scenes and reality fitting together made anyone worry more.
Chen Zemian opened the car door and shuddered at the cold air rushing in. His throat felt dry and itchy, so he coughed a few times and called Xiao Kesong.
Xiao Kesong answered quickly, his charming and romantic voice flowing out of the receiver. His usual tone had a hint of a smile. “Why are you looking for me? Did you miss me?”
Chen Zemian wanted to laugh hearing Xiao Kesong’s voice and coughed a few more times. “Cough, cough, cough, business. Where are you?”
Xiao Kesong named a bar. “Want to drink?”
“I’m sending Young Master Lu to attend…” Chen Zemian had forgotten whose party it was. Lu Zhuonian had told him, but he hadn’t listened carefully. Too late to regret now, so he reported the location first. “A cocktail party at Chateau Delphi Winery. I made an appointment with him to leave at 8:50, but he hasn’t come out yet. Is Young Master Ye here?”
Xiao Kesong said, “Chateau Delphi Winery? Isn’t that where the annual meetings are held? Usually company presidents and senior executives attend. Ye Chen and I are together. Zhuonian showed up on behalf of his father.”
Chen Zemian stepped out of the car. “Yes, yes, he said his father went to a meeting somewhere, and he made an appointment with me to leave early, but now I called him and no one answered.”
Xiao Kesong asked, “Did he hang up or did no one answer?”
Chen Zemian succinctly outlined the cause and effect. “No one answered. We made an appointment. The meeting time was 8:50, but he didn’t call me when the time came. I called him starting at 9:10, but he hung up automatically after three calls. He didn’t reply to my WeChat messages. I don’t know if he was stuck somewhere or if he lost his phone, so I thought of asking you or Master Ye to see who was at the cocktail party and whether we could contact Master Lu. After all, it’s been almost half an hour, and this has never happened before.”
Xiao Kesong listened quietly and said in a serious tone, “You mean Zhuo Nian has lost contact?”
Chen Zemian hesitated and said, “With a bodyguard following him, nothing should happen. Do you have his bodyguard’s phone number?”
Xiao Kesong responded in a deep voice, “Wait a minute, don’t hang up. I’ll ask.”
Xiao Kesong, who had always been cynical, suddenly became so serious that Chen Zemian grew a little nervous and paced around the car twice.
The venue not far away was brightly lit, with faint music drifting on the wind.
Huge French windows, as transparent as crystal, were adorned with dark blue gauze curtains. Occasionally, a noble lady in a luxurious dress flashed by, her skirts a swirl of red and purple — graceful and elegant, the light from her jewels brighter than the lights themselves.
It was a prosperous scene, full of peace and tranquility.
Would something happen? It was better if nothing did.
However, things did not go as he wished. Although Chen Zemian hoped everything would be fine and that he could smoothly pick up Lu Zhuonian and leave, events unfolded differently.
In less than five minutes, Xiao Kesong brought Chen Zemian some extremely bad news.
“The bodyguard has also lost contact.”
Chen Zemian was shocked. “What about Mr. Lu?”
“Something might have happened to Lu Zhuonian,” Xiao Kesong said quickly. “Chen Zhe, don’t worry. Ye Chen and I are already rushing to Chateau de Delphi. Do you remember Liu Yuebo’s elder brother, Liu Hao? He is at this cocktail party. Here’s his number. I called him, and he said he did see Zhuonian leave before nine o’clock. Now, we don’t know who took Zhuonian away, or…”
Chen Zemian interrupted, “I’m parked at the exit now. I just asked the guard. The banquet has just started and only a few cars have left.”
“I’ll ask someone to contact the owner of Chateau Delphi,” Xiao Kesong said immediately. “Ye Chen and I have analyzed the situation and both think that Zhuonian is most likely still in the winery. Can you go in and look for him?”
Chen Zemian took off his cotton coat and stuffed it into the trunk, then took out a spare formal suit of Lu Zhuonian’s and put it on. “Okay, I’ll go look for him first. Don’t worry, I’ll let you know when there’s news.”
Ye Chen’s voice rang in the receiver. “If someone asks about your identity, just say that I’m my brother Ye Xi — the Xi of Yuxi — and the invitation letter has been sent to your WeChat.”
Chen Zemian took out his tie and hung it around his neck. “Okay.”
“Don’t fight,” Xiao Kesong snatched the phone and said. “It’s better not to fight.”
Chen Zemian chuckled, “I’m going to find someone, not to rob someone. Why fight?”
Ye Chen briefly explained, “It’s not clear what’s going on now, and we can’t take too tough measures to find someone. After all, all the important figures in Beijing are here. It’s not easy to cause a city-wide stir. It’s the face of the Lu family. Even if something big really happened, the fewer people who know about it, the better.”
Chen Zemian said, “Don’t worry. I’ll just go in and take a look. Maybe Young Master Lu just lost his phone. Such a formal cocktail party won’t cause any big trouble.”
If something serious had really happened, the novel would surely mention it. The male protagonist appeared safe and was able to escape danger several times later. Chen Zemian believed this time would be no different. Lu Zhuonian was lucky and should be fine.
Xiao Kesong and Ye Chen’s reactions were overly cautious and vaguely unusual.
“Zhuonian may also be feeling unwell.”
Ye Chen hesitated, as if trying to choose his words or reluctant to say more. In the end, he did not say where Lu Zhuonian was feeling unwell, only suggesting, “You can check the lounge and the bathroom first.”
Chen Zemian had been with Lu Zhuonian all day and hadn’t noticed any signs of illness. Moreover, if he was just feeling unwell, he could just be in the lounge. Why check the bathroom? Was Lu Zhuonian drunk?
He asked Ye Chen, “Does Young Master Lu have a poor alcohol tolerance?”
Ye Chen was silent for two seconds, then said, “Zhuonian is more sensitive to some alcohol ingredients. Drunk people are not very sober. You should be careful. It’s best not to stay in the same room with him. Find a lounge to lock him up and wait until we arrive to deal with him.”
Ye Chen’s words were abrupt and vague.
Chen Zemian vaguely felt something was wrong but couldn’t put it into words, so he didn’t pay much attention.
How could he not be sober? Even if Lu Zhuonian was drunk and throwing a tantrum, Chen Zemian was confident he could control him. Besides, he didn’t seem like someone with poor alcohol tolerance.
While talking on the phone, Chen Zemian’s hands were not idle.
He used the reflection in the car window to adjust his clothes and tie.
Lu Zhuonian was two sizes bigger than Chen Zemian, with shoulders an inch wider. He wore a well-cut, fitted jacket, which hung loosely on Chen Zemian — making him look somewhat inconsistent.
Fortunately, Chen Zemian had long legs and tucked his shirt into his pants, revealing a narrow waist with an unusually high waistline. He managed to wear the ill-fitting coat in a particularly high-end fashion sense, similar to a lazy oversized style, but more chic and handsome. From a distance, it looked like his legs started below his chest, and he appeared relaxed and unrestrained, full of vigor and vitality.
Finally, Chen Zemian poured some water into his hands, pulled his bangs back, revealing a smooth and full forehead.
In just half a minute, simply by changing his coat and hairstyle, Chen Zemian transformed from a driver in a bread coat to a suave young man from a wealthy family.
He looked good — but cold.
When the cold wind blew and the north wind howled, Chen Zemian really admired those who wore skirts.
Chen Zemian hung up the phone, took out the electronic invitation, and successfully sneaked into the cocktail party under the identity of Ye Xi, the young master of the Ye family.
The waiter did not dare neglect the young master of the Ye family, so he sent two people to lead the way and took Chen Zemian into the castle-like winery.
Passing through the tall French archways felt like entering another world.
It was magnificent and brightly lit.
The air-conditioning was set very high, and the warm wind was intoxicating, mixed with the smell of wine and various perfumes. The alternation of hot and cold made Chen Zemian’s nasal cavity itch.
He coughed twice, took out a silk handkerchief from his chest pocket, pinched his nose, and held back a sneeze.
The waiter was quick-witted and immediately handed him a warm towel.
Chen Zemian took the towel and imitated the arrogant tone of the young masters as he ordered, “Take me to the bathroom.”
As expected, the waiter didn’t doubt it at all, raised his hand, and gestured for him to follow.
Chen Zemian went into the first restroom, looked around but didn’t see anyone. He came out, frowned, and asked, “Is there only one restroom on each floor?”
The waiter quickly replied, “There are two on each floor, one on the east side and one on the west side. This is the closest one. Is there a problem, Mr. Ye?”
Chen Zemian said, “There are too many people.”
The waiter replied carefully, “There is a lounge upstairs with a separate restroom. If you don’t mind the trouble, I can take you up there?”
Chen Zemian frowned slightly, showing obvious hesitation on his face, pretending to be arrogant as if he wanted to use the separate restroom but was too lazy to go upstairs.
The waiter said, “The elevator hall over there can take you directly to the third floor. Shall I take you there?”
Chen Zemian waved his hand to signal the waiter to go ahead. “Okay, you go first.”
Although Lu Zhuonian’s mysophobia was half true and half false, his picky nature was real. Even if he was really drunk and felt unwell, he wouldn’t go to a public restroom to vomit. It was more likely he would use the restroom upstairs.
Chen Zemian turned and walked into the elevator.
The elevator sign indicated the second floor was the restaurant, the third floor the lounge, the fourth to seventh floors were guest rooms requiring a card to enter, the eighth floor was the conference room, and the ninth floor was the gym and outdoor swimming pool.
Dinner had just started, and the third floor was very quiet. The doors of unused lounges were all open, and the end of the hallway was visible.
Chen Zemian walked around and found only five rooms in use. The doors of two were ajar, and voices could be heard inside.
A faint smell of cigarettes drifted out of one room.
Chen Zemian did not hear Lu Zhuonian’s voice; generally, no one smoked in front of him.
The remaining three closed rooms were easy to check. The buildings here were all French-style, and each room was connected to a sun terrace with flowers and plants.
Chen Zemian went to the terrace of the next room, stepped on the railing, leaned over to take a look, and saw the general layout of the lounge.
The first two rooms were checked smoothly, but unfortunately, there was no sign of Lu Zhuonian. The curtains of the third room were drawn and could not be seen through. Chen Zemian couldn’t help but feel a glimmer of hope.
He hesitated for two seconds between climbing over the terrace and knocking on the door. Finally, remembering Ye Chen’s advice to “reduce the impact,” he didn’t play with the wind. He took a pack of tissues from the empty room and knocked on the door next door.
The man who opened the door was in his forties and looked at Chen Zemian suspiciously.
Chen Zemian leaned against the wall and pretended to play games, holding a piece of paper under his chin. When the door opened, he walked in without looking up. “Here, here, I got the paper.”
The man stopped him: “Who are you looking for?”
Hearing the strange voice, Chen Zemian paused, looked up at the man, pupils slightly dilated, and said with shock and dignity, “Hey, who are you?”
The man was a little amused. “I haven’t asked who you are yet. You must have come to the wrong place.”
Chen Zemian was confused. He looked back at the room card and then into the room.
An old man in a Tang suit sat on the sofa. There was no one else.
Search for Lu Zhuonian failed — three times.
Chen Zemian sighed inwardly, pretending to be defeated because he had walked into the wrong room, and said, “Sorry, I went the wrong way,” then turned and ran away.
“…”
The man watched Chen Zemian flee in panic and laughed, “Whose child is so impatient?”
“Young people are like this now,” said the old man, “My little grandson is the same. He doesn’t look at the road when walking, and his eyes never leave the phone.”
Chen Zemian’s heart pounded as he ran into the stairwell in one breath, not hearing what the people in the room said behind him.
Although his acting skills just now were seamless, smooth, perfect, watertight, and peerless, he still had to say — Don’t act next time. Just flip over.
Acting is much harder than flipping over the terrace from the third floor.
He would have enough acting skills to flip over twice.
The key was that he was too nervous. When he spoke, he was afraid his heart would jump out of his throat. It was simply fatal.
Lu Zhuonian, Lu Zhuonian, I have pushed myself to become an actor just to find you. Where are you, brother? Please show up soon. Just give me some clues!
The heavens seemed to have heard Chen Zemian’s prayers. Just when he was at a loss, he suddenly heard the fire door upstairs ring.
The voice-activated lights came on.
Chen Zemian’s heart skipped a beat as he looked up.
*****
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Author: LazyHermitGal
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