Chapter 69 Take care

The time was now 1 a.m.

Chu Yuxuan was surrounded by top-notch beauties. As soon as he opened his mouth, someone was ready to hand him fruit or light his cigarette. What's indulgence? What's pleasure? What's extravagance? What's debauchery? This is what you call expertise.

An hour earlier, the "money scattering" stunt had undoubtedly made this playboy the center of attention. Many people, seemingly nonchalant but actually scheming, had moved closer, hoping that this young master would get drunk and play the role of a generous spender again, to make up for their earlier missed opportunity.

Chu Yuxuan glanced around at the men and women surrounding him. Amidst the bizarre scene, he noticed someone sneaking a photo of him. The young master remained calm, casually leaning to the left, tightening his hold on the beauty in a low-cut mini dress beside him. He turned his face to the side, his eyes lewdly and wantonly fixed on her ample cleavage, naturally posing for the camera. He then removed his hand from the waist of the other beauty on his right and picked up a drink from the table labeled "Tonight, No Return Home," personally delivering it to the lips of the beauty in his arms. The gesture was self-explanatory; the words were in the drink.

The beauty in his arms, a newcomer to the industry named "Qing Lu," had just joined not long ago. Although she had a great figure and appearance, she was a newbie with only a few thousand fans. After seeing the recruitment notice from Qing Ya, she recommended herself and was signed at a very low price by the influencer base.

Qing Lu opened her mouth, looking at Chu Yuxuan with surprise and fluster. Her already slightly tipsy face seemed to flush like red-hot iron.

"Don't move, I'll feed you," Chu Yuxuan's magnetic voice was filled with seduction.

Good-looking and rich, and so good at flirting—what woman can resist?

Earlier, the playboy's extravagant display of throwing money was actually triggered by Qing Lu's curiosity: "Why are they throwing white paper? It feels like they're throwing paper money, which is odd."

Chu Yuxuan smiled at her and said recklessly, "Looks like they made you uncomfortable? Don't worry, I'll make you feel better."

He then took out his wallet, and with the flair of "letting loose for a beautiful woman," began scattering money generously, leaving "Chen Yuanyuan" speechless. Her myriad emotions boiled down to an exclamation of "D*mn!"

If not for the bar manager hastily picking up the money and trying to dissuade him with a forced smile, saying, "Mr. Chu, this is illegal, stop throwing money," who knows how much more the playboy would have scattered.

After Qing Lu finished the drink, she bashfully lowered her eyes. Little did she expect the young master to gently lift her chin with one hand while using a tissue to carefully wipe her mouth with the other. He leaned in close, as if about to kiss her.

If it weren't for the loud music in the bar, her heartbeat, rapid as drumbeats, might have been clearly heard.

Some were joyful, while others were sorrowful. On the left was the passionate fire hidden beneath gentleness, while on the right was the visible frost.

The girl who looked resentful after being suddenly ignored by Chu Yuxuan was Xiao Zejiang, the one who had called Chu Yuxuan earlier that evening to invite him for drinks. Xiao Zejiang had been signed to the influencer base before Zhao Yanan's father's incident. At that time, she was a modest blogger with only a few hundred thousand fans. She rose to fame at the end of last year due to her cosplay of anime characters, and now her followers had reached a staggering 12 million, nearly rivaling top celebrities.

People around were commenting, "Xiao Zejiang is so pitiful, she seems abandoned… Qing Lu is already on the job?"

"See? The rich get bored with what they've played with and don't even bother looking back."

In fact, although Chu Yuxuan seemed to be fickle and indifferent, he was actually benefiting both influencers. For the newcomer Qing Lu, the most lacking thing was scandal. Having a "relationship" with this playboy would make her popular; after all, even negative fame is still fame. The rise of influencers often involves having no limits, and flirting with the rich is a trivial matter.

As for the already famous Xiao Zejiang, overtly flirting would only lead to being criticized online, so Chu Yuxuan acted coldly towards her tonight, at most just holding her waist.

By nearly 2 a.m., after a lively and noisy time, Chu Yuxuan was quite drunk and, feeling tired of the pretense, decided to head to the hotel for some rest.

As he left the bar with Qing Lu, Chu Yuxuan was chatting with her, but suddenly stopped, staring intently at a familiar figure waiting by the bar entrance—Xia Zhu.

The once-glamorous star was dressed in a wool coat, shrinking from the biting cold wind, looking somewhat desolate.

"Yuxuan," seeing the person she was waiting for finally come out, Xia Zhu stepped forward with a smile and said, "Can I have a word with you?"

Qing Lu recognized this celebrity but didn't know she had lost her former glory. She looked timidly at Chu Yuxuan and whispered, "Mr. Chu, I'll wait for you over there."

Chu Yuxuan nodded, letting go of Qing Lu's waist, and asked Xia Zhu, "What do you want to say? I'm in a hurry."

Xia Zhu pressed her lips together, her very pretty face showing a natural, pure smile as she said, "In just two months, I almost couldn't recognize you."

Chu Yuxuan could easily guess Xia Zhu's current situation. Given her temperament, she was unlikely to reconcile with Gao Ning.

The love she had pursued turned out to be an empty wish, and her career was ruined by herself. What a pity.

But he wasn't about to feel sorry or soften his stance. He replied calmly, "If you want to say such nonsense, then I really can't stay."

Xia Zhu continued to smile, seemingly trying hard to maintain a joking tone. She said, "Hey, we were once a couple. Is it necessary to be like this? Hehe… Anyway, I'm here not for anything serious, just to say… I'm sorry."

"Yuxuan, I've thought a lot these past few days. Honestly, I don't even know why I ended up like this. Heaven gave me a bright path, but I walked step by step into darkness. Hehe, it's really sad."

"But I don't regret it. Pursuing what I like has no regrets, but what I pursued was just an illusion. Yuxuan, don't you see? Yesterday, I suddenly realized that our relationship was just like that. The pain I experienced, didn't you feel it too? I'm really sorry, I shouldn't have been so selfish, not loving you but coveting your tenderness, your love."

"That's my own fault," Chu Yuxuan lit a cigarette, grinning. "Aren't you also at fault? Heaven is fair."

"Yeah…" Xia Zhu took a deep breath, after a moment of silence, shrugged and said, "Alright, apology done. Although I know you can't forgive me…"

"Forgiveness or not, it doesn't matter."

"Then… can I have a hug? Just as a farewell."

"Farewell?" Chu Yuxuan had no intention of hugging, casually asking, "Where are you going?"

Xia Zhu didn't retract her open arms, smiling, "I plan to sell the house and take my mom back to our hometown. With my savings plus the money from selling the house, it will be enough for us to live out our lives in the small town."

This was quite practical. A celebrity's brief appearance could earn more than an ordinary person in a small county would earn in a lifetime.

"Hug?" Xia Zhu asked again, her eyes full of expectation.

However, Chu Yuxuan only said lightly, "Take care," and then walked past the old acquaintance with firm steps and a cold expression.