Due to the commotion caused by Zhong Xiaoyu and Qi Bai, the relationship between Guan Xia and Xu Nian had changed, though neither had quite realized it yet. Plus, with the cold weather, Xu Nian kept worrying that Guan Xia might be chilly. So, not only did he hold her hand, but he also tucked it directly into his coat sleeve, making it completely unnoticeable from the outside.
Guan Xia and Xu Nian were immersed in a sweetness they had never felt before. Even amidst the surrounding noise, they instinctively tuned it out. This led to Guan Xia only snapping out of it to check on Pang Le when she realized the girl was already drunk.
Actually, Pang Le had always had a good alcohol tolerance; Guan Xia had never seen her drunk before. The reason it was obvious this time was because Pang Le's cheeks were flushed, her eyes dazed. Although she and Lu Tingfeng were each sitting on their own chairs, when Guan Xia looked over, Pang Le was practically draped all over him.
She was acting like a bit of a rogue, now stroking Lu Tingfeng's face, now touching his Adam's apple. Lu Tingfeng's eyes were still bright and clear, but his face and neck were flushed a vivid red, perfectly illustrating the phrase "blushing furiously."
The only thing that put Guan Xia somewhat at ease was that Lu Tingfeng seemed clearly delighted, unable to control the smile on his face. His arm around Pang Le was careful and gentle—he didn't dare hold her too tightly, afraid others might think he was taking advantage, yet he didn't dare let go, terrified she might fall.
Guan Xia's first reaction upon seeing this wasn't to intervene but to sigh inwardly. She knew that despite Pang Le's verbal hesitation, once she laid eyes on Lu Tingfeng, it was hard for her to truly commit to giving up.
Xu Nian, who had been watching Guan Xia, naturally followed her gaze and spotted the pair who were even more inseparable than them. His expression remained neutral, but he couldn't help feeling a twinge of envy. After only a second's hesitation and a glance at Guan Xia's face, he pretended to check the time and said, "It's past one in the morning already. You should get some sleep. Pang Le is drunk again. Let me help you take her upstairs to rest. The toiletries we brought are in the car; I'll go get them and bring them over later."
Once again, Guan Xia was touched by Xu Nian's thoughtfulness. Seeing Pang Le getting more and more out of hand—her hands were now wandering towards Lu Tingfeng's abs—Guan Xia jolted to her feet in alarm. Hurrying over to the pair, she chimed in, "Right, right, it's time to rest."
Watching Guan Xia move away, Xu Nian felt a sudden emptiness in his hand and a pang of loss in his heart. He shot Lu Tingfeng a glare before quickly standing up and following Guan Xia, arriving a step behind her.
As she got closer, Guan Xia saw that Pang Le's hand had actually slipped inside Lu Tingfeng's shirt.
Guan Xia immediately felt awkward and offered Lu Tingfeng a strained smile before trying to pull Pang Le's hand away and hoist her up. She coaxed, "Pang Le, you're drunk. Let me help you to bed."
Guan Xia was practically worrying herself sick over her friend, but Pang Le was utterly uncooperative. Wriggling in Lu Tingfeng's arms, she dodged Guan Xia's hands and kept shouting, "No! I don't want to sleep here! I want to go home and sleep! I want to go home, I want my own bed!"
Unable to control Pang Le, Guan Xia could only humor her, "Okay, okay, we'll go home to sleep. Then get up, and I'll take you home."
Something in Guan Xia's words seemed to set Pang Le off again. After calming down for just a second, she started wriggling once more, clinging to Lu Tingfeng and refusing to let go, loudly insisting, "I don't want you to take me! I want Lu Tingfeng to take me! I want Lu Tingfeng to take me home!"
Knowing Pang Le's reservations all too well, Guan Xia couldn't possibly let Lu Tingfeng take her home. It didn't take a genius to guess what might happen between them with Pang Le's boldness unleashed by alcohol.
To prevent Pang Le from regretting it the next day, Guan Xia summoned all her patience and strength. Despite it being winter, she was flustered and sweating from the effort.
But a drunk Pang Le was utterly unreasonable. No matter how much Guan Xia pleaded, Pang Le kept shouting, "I just want Lu Tingfeng to take me home! I don't want you to!"
Facing Pang Le, who was acting like a stubborn child refusing to listen, Guan Xia felt both a headache and helplessness. Meeting Lu Tingfeng's eyes, which looked innocent but held a hint of amusement, only made her headache worse.
Making one last attempt, Guan Xia reached out again to pull at Pang Le. "Be good, Pang Le. If you really haven't had enough to drink, we can go out again tomorrow. But it's late, you really should sleep."
Pang Le dodged her hand, burying her face in Lu Tingfeng's chest and refusing to look up. Xu Nian wanted to help but was afraid of touching somewhere he shouldn't, so he didn't dare really intervene. This resulted in two people being utterly powerless against Pang Le.
The commotion from the four of them soon drew the attention of the others. Zhong Xiaoyu, who was in the middle of having fun, saw the situation and grandly waved her arm, coming over to help.
But drunk as she was, Pang Le was genuinely strong. With Guan Xia, she had still held back a little, but with Zhong Xiaoyu it was different. With one shove, she nearly sent Zhong Xiaoyu tumbling to the floor.
Ji An reacted quickly and caught her. He looked at Pang Le, then at Guan Xia, and said helplessly, "Why not just let her sleep here? With so many of us around, nothing can happen."
As long as the two weren't left alone, sleeping here was fine. Just as Guan Xia was about to nod in agreement, Pang Le started making a fuss again. She abruptly pressed down on Lu Tingfeng's thigh to stand up, pulling him along as she stumbled towards the exit, yelling, "I won't sleep here! I want to go home! I want my own bed! Don't anyone try to stop me!"
Guan Xia clutched her head in frustration. Knowing Pang Le so well, how could she not see that Pang Le's lustful impulses were taking over?
Unfortunately, while Guan Xia was striving for Pang Le's sake, Pang Le didn't understand her good intentions at all and even found her annoying. She forcefully shook off Guan Xia's hand, dragged Lu Tingfeng into a car, and refused to get out.
After struggling for a while longer, Guan Xia had no choice. She could only watch helplessly as the summoned designated driver drove off with the two of them.
At that moment, Guan Xia didn't know whether to feel sorry for Pang Le or for Lu Tingfeng.
She could almost predict the scene after tomorrow: one party having had their fill but unwilling to take responsibility, the other finally making substantial progress and even more unwilling to let go.
Thinking of the troublesome situation about to unfold, Guan Xia stared anxiously in the direction they had left.
Xu Nian, not understanding Pang Le as well, naturally misunderstood. He thought Guan Xia was worried about Lu Tingfeng taking advantage of Pang Le. Pressing his lips together, he explained solemnly, "Guan Xia, don't worry. Old Lu might seem unreliable, but he's definitely not the type to take advantage of someone."
As he explained, Xu Nian casually smoothed Guan Xia's slightly disheveled hair and collar, then, worried she might be cold, very naturally took her hand and tucked it into his sleeve again. He suggested, "I've also called a designated driver; they should be here soon. If you're really worried, why don't we follow them to check?"
Guan Xia had been thinking the same thing. Hearing this, she immediately grew anxious, pulling Xu Nian towards where the car was parked. "Yes, yes, let's follow them. It'll put my mind at ease, and I can start preparing early."
Xu Nian didn't understand what preparations to make. He wanted to ask, but after looking at Guan Xia's expression, he ultimately didn't voice the question.
They were only five minutes behind Pang Le and the others when the designated driver Xu Nian called arrived.
Five minutes might seem short, but catching up to Pang Le's car was impossible. So, Guan Xia simply had the driver head straight for the residential complex where Pang Le lived.
After arriving at the building, Guan Xia immediately saw that the lights in Pang Le's apartment were on. But they waited and waited, and Lu Tingfeng never came down.
Seeing this, Guan Xia understood everything. She could only give up, covering her face with her hands in resignation. After a few seconds of silence, she said somewhat helplessly, "Forget it, let's go. We're going home too."
Guan Xia had drunk quite a bit earlier, but after all this commotion, she was long since sober. She first sent a message to Ji An explaining the situation, then thought for a moment before turning to ask Xu Nian, "Do you think... this guy Lu Tingfeng did it on purpose?"
Having calmed down, Guan Xia kept thinking something felt off. Pang Le had such a high alcohol tolerance, how could she get drunk so quickly? It was just the time it took for her and Xu Nian to confirm their relationship, and when she turned around, Pang Le was already drunk. Meanwhile, Lu Tingfeng seemed completely fine. Guan Xia genuinely suspected Lu Tingfeng had some ulterior motive.
In an instant, Guan Xia convicted Lu Tingfeng in her heart. Any sympathy she had felt for him vanished, replaced by the thought that he deserved it.
Guan Xia's tone was calm, but Xu Nian's heart still skipped a beat. He subconsciously sat up straight, racking his brains for a long time. But no matter how hard he thought, his memory only contained the fact that Guan Xia had never paid Lu Tingfeng any attention. He could only answer honestly and sincerely, "I don't know. But based on my understanding of him, he wouldn't and couldn't deliberately do such a thing. There must be some misunderstanding."
Guan Xia felt a flicker of doubt initially, but then she remembered Lu Tingfeng's seemingly innocent yet laughter-filled eyes and immediately felt her guess was confirmed. She couldn't help but snort inwardly, casting away the last shred of pity she had felt for Lu Tingfeng.
As it turned out, Guan Xia's prediction was absolutely correct. It hadn't even been three days—just two days after the gathering—when Guan Xia and Xu Nian received the same message, one after the other.
The phone rang just as the two of them were curled up together in the study at Guan Xia's place.
During the two-plus months Xu Nian was away on business, Guan Xia, having spare time, had opened the system interface's halo increase/decrease details. She had intermittently drawn a stack of portrait sketches by cross-referencing the list and videos. Even though Guan Xia now had the freedom to use the halo as she pleased, they couldn't just ignore the already identified suspects. They were leaning against each other, deep in discussion, when they heard the ringtone.
Picking up their phones to look, Guan Xia and Xu Nian exchanged a glance, somewhat at a loss. The message was from Lu Tingfeng, inviting them to dinner.
Observing Guan Xia's expression, Xu Nian cautiously asked, "Lu Tingfeng is inviting us to dinner. Should we go?"
Guan Xia didn't agree immediately. Instead, her eyes shifted thoughtfully as she asked Xu Nian, "Has Lu Tingfeng been in touch with you these past couple of days?"
Xu Nian subconsciously shook his head.
Pang Le, however, had been in contact with Guan Xia. Just as Guan Xia had predicted, Pang Le was full of regret and remorse. Perhaps to avoid Lu Tingfeng, she had sent Guan Xia a message the afternoon after the gathering, saying a friend of hers had some trouble and she needed to travel far away.
Guan Xia guessed that Lu Tingfeng probably couldn't find Pang Le, which was why he had turned to them.
To be honest, Guan Xia wasn't very keen on going. But to avoid being completely in the dark if Pang Le asked about it later, she thought for a few seconds and finally nodded. "Let's go. We're free anyway. We can treat it as another group gathering."
Now that Guan Xia was willing, Xu Nian felt a bit reluctant. After all, he had finally gotten a girlfriend, and their alone time hadn't even lasted two full days. But since Guan Xia had agreed, he naturally wouldn't object. He smiled and nodded, saying, "Okay, then let's go together."
Arriving as promised at the location specified in Lu Tingfeng's message, Guan Xia regretted it the moment she stepped into the private room. She truly hadn't expected Lu Tingfeng to be this shameless. In the middle of winter, he was wearing a V-neck shirt, very nonchalantly revealing his neck, collarbone, and even hints of fading red marks lower down, half-concealed.
Even without experience, Guan Xia was an adult and naturally knew what this meant. She instantly understood Lu Tingfeng's intention: to inform everyone while also hoping they'd put in a good word for him.
Guan Xia couldn't help but curse inwardly, "Devious dog of a man," before sitting down with a displeased expression in the chair Xu Nian pulled out for her.
Afraid of incurring Guan Xia's wrath, Xu Nian didn't dare even glance in Lu Tingfeng's direction. He could only pretend to be blind, sitting beside Guan Xia with downcast eyes, meekly starting to pour tea.
Guan Xia and Xu Nian were determined to stay on the sidelines and not speak, but Zhong Xiaoyu, who had arrived around the same time, had already exclaimed in a low voice, "Wow, Brother Lu, what are you doing? We're all close here, no one's going to fight you for her. Why are you pulling this 'staking a claim' routine with us?"
Zhong Xiaoyu exclaimed a couple more times, then, unable to bear the sight any longer, grabbed the jacket Lu Tingfeng had hung nearby and tossed it directly at him. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief. "That's better. With you pulling this stunt, I didn't even dare look at you. It felt way too intimate for our kind of relationship."
Ji An was also torn between laughter and exasperation. Only after Lu Tingfeng, having achieved his goal, obediently put on the jacket did Ji An lift his eyes to look at him and say, "Alright, out with it. Why did you call us here? As long as it's not to ask us to be matchmakers, anything else is negotiable."
Lu Tingfeng pouted, looking at one person, then another. He sighed, put away the pretended grievance on his face, and said helplessly, "I really did call you out today to ask for help. But not as matchmakers, you can rest assured about that. I just want you to brainstorm, or maybe analyze, what's wrong with me. We'd clearly progressed to that point, yet now she's avoiding me like the plague."
Guan Xia pretended not to hear, lowering her head to slowly sip the tea Xu Nian had poured. But inwardly she was thinking, 'Everything's fine, you're just too greedy. The first stroke of the character isn't even down yet, and you're already thinking so far ahead. With Pang Le's personality, of course she'd run. This just shows you don't understand Pang Le well enough. Otherwise, with your looks, why would Pang Le run?'
Since Guan Xia wasn't speaking, Xu Nian naturally remained silent too. One poured tea, the other drank it, a perfectly coordinated pair.
Zhong Xiaoyu, who always spoke her mind, thought for a moment and said quite bluntly, "Brother Lu, since there are no outsiders here, I'll just ask directly: could it be that your performance wasn't good?"
Guan Xia, who was drinking tea, nearly choked upon hearing this.
Xu Nian's hand also shook, wanting to laugh but not daring to.
Everyone's expressions were quite telling, only Lu Tingfeng's face was as dark as a pot. He practically glared at Zhong Xiaoyu through gritted teeth, saying, "Don't talk nonsense. My performance was excellent, couldn't have been better. Hurry up and think of another reason. It definitely wasn't that."
Zhong Xiaoyu said "Oh," still giving Lu Tingfeng a somewhat suspicious look before continuing, "Then is it that your physique isn't up to par? You look like you've lost weight recently. Have you been slacking on your workouts? Did your abs disappear?"
Lu Tingfeng gritted his teeth once more, "My abs are still there, all six of them, not a single one missing."
"Then is it your face that's gone slack?" Zhong Xiaoyu scrutinized Lu Tingfeng for a moment and said, "Doesn't look slack either. But you do have pretty heavy dark circles, and some crow's feet. Not to criticize you, Brother Lu, but you're almost thirty, you really should start taking care of your skin. Learn from Captain Xu, do some face masks or eye patches when you have time. Don't just rely on having a good-looking face and mistreat it. See, now you're paying the price, aren't you? You know Pang Le better than anyone, she's totally looks-oriented. Otherwise, why would someone as beautiful, successful, and capable as her fall for you?"
Zhong Xiaoyu rarely got the chance to lecture Lu Tingfeng, so having finally caught one, she was brimming with enthusiasm and couldn't stop.
Zhong Xiaoyu was enjoying her lecture, but because of her comment about the face mask, everyone, including Lu Tingfeng, looked at Xu Nian with slightly odd expressions. Especially Lu Tingfeng, whose eyes seemed to say, "Who would have thought you were that kind of person in private, Xu Nian."
Guan Xia also looked at Xu Nian with surprise. It wasn't that she thought men shouldn't use face masks, but she hadn't expected the outwardly steady and rigorous Xu Nian to be so meticulous in his personal care.
Xu Nian truly hadn't anticipated the conversation turning to him. He felt somewhat awkward and embarrassed inside, but didn't show a hint of it on his face, maintaining his usual calm and composed demeanor as if completely unaware of the others' gazes. He simply turned his head to explain to Guan Xia, "It was the night before returning to Yongquan City from Jianyang. I thought since I was coming back to see you, I shouldn't look too disheveled, so I quickly put on a face mask."
That mask was borrowed from Wang Yu, some kind of astaxanthin emergency repair one. He had to trade two big meals for it.
Hearing this, Guan Xia had a sudden realization and felt a bit happy inside. No wonder when Xu Nian returned on the first day, aside from looking a bit thinner, he didn't seem to have changed much. So he had secretly put in some effort before coming back.
Guan Xia tried hard to control her facial expression, but under the table, she quietly slipped her left hand into Xu Nian's right palm.
Xu Nian appeared equally composed on the surface, but his right hand quickly tightened its grip, even pushing his fingers between Guan Xia's, successfully achieving their first interlocked fingers.
Although Lu Tingfeng couldn't see the little action under the table, knowing Xu Nian so well, how could he not detect the smugness beneath Xu Nian's calm facade? His heart instantly soured even more with jealousy. Quite unreasonably, he shot a glare of blame at Zhong Xiaoyu, annoyed at her poor choice of words.
Seeing this, Zhong Xiaoyu muttered discontentedly, "You're the one who asked us for advice, and now you're unhappy when I point things out. So what did I say wrong? It can't be that you're too handsome and too devoted, and Pang Le is actually dissatisfied with that."
Zhong Xiaoyu had just said it offhand, but Lu Tingfeng's heart stirred upon hearing it, and he urgently pressed, "What did you say? Too handsome and too devoted, and Pang Le might be dissatisfied with me because of that?"
Zhong Xiaoyu was puzzled, but Lu Tingfeng seemed to have had a sudden epiphany, as if a crucial channel had been opened.
Seeing the look of sudden understanding on Lu Tingfeng's face, Guan Xia secretly breathed a sigh of relief in her heart.
Regarding this destined couple from the original story, Guan Xia had no objections and no intention of driving them apart. Although their different personalities made her somewhat gleeful at Lu Tingfeng's expense, she sincerely hoped these two could overcome their hurdles and find happiness together without too much turmoil.
Especially now that she had embarked on a new journey in her own life, she naturally also wished for Pang Le to achieve her desires and have a smooth-sailing life.
