"Ma’am, is there anything I can help you with? Are you lost?"
In the winding corridors, Xiaoxi Ji walked hurriedly, her eyes darting around.
Waitstaff and hostesses she passed politely asked if she needed assistance, but Xiaoxi Ji did not respond.
She just kept walking until she stopped in confusion at a corridor corner.
Is what she’s doing really meaningful?
Though the Heavenly Palace supposedly only has nineteen rooms, each room’s location is different, and although they are connected by corridors, each has its own elevator. She has no idea which room Chen He is in, so how is she going to find him...
This is assuming, under the premise that Chen He is indeed here.
But in truth, she’s not even sure if this is just her imagination; what if there really is a KTV called "Heavenly Palace" in White City, and what if everything Chen He said is true...
Moreover, even if everything is turned around and she actually finds Chen He, what then? Xiaoxi Ji realizes she doesn’t even have the courage to rush into the room and confront Chen He.
Just as Xiaoxi Ji hesitated about whether to give up and pretend nothing happened, she suddenly heard a vague but familiar voice.
"...Yes, I’m in Beidou, because Miss Xia had to attend an awards ceremony at the last minute, the crew gave us a seven-day break... I wanted to ask if you’re in Beidou too... Haha, it’s nothing, I just wanted to invite you for a meal as a thank you..."
Xiaoxi Ji’s body instantly stiffened. Even if the voice sounded somewhat distorted, how could she possibly not recognize it?
Xiaoxi Ji took two steps forward, her gaze passing over the obstructing door pillar, and she saw Chen He.
With his back to her, Chen He stood in a corner by the window, holding a phone, speaking with a kind of humble posture to someone on the other end.
Initially, Xiaoxi Ji was furious. She couldn’t understand why Chen He wanted to lie to her, but before she could step forward, she quickly saw the reason.
The door to the room on the other side opened, and a woman in her fifties or sixties, heavily made up and dressed lavishly, walked out. Before Chen He could react, she had already grabbed him.
"Baby, who are you talking to secretly? It’s not your little girlfriend, is it?"
"Sister Yan, why did you come out... It’s not Xiaoxi, it’s one of the investors. I heard they are also in Beidou, so I..."
Chen He’s face changed slightly, and he urgently said a few more words to the person on the other end of the call before quickly hanging up, smiling at Sister Yan and explaining.
"Really? You better not be lying, you promised when you’re with me, you’re not supposed to think about that little Saintess..."
Sister Yan was obviously extremely drunk, her footsteps unsteady, most of her weight leaning on Chen He’s body, her hands tightly around Chen He’s neck, chuckling.
"Of course, I’ll do as I promised you, you see, when have I ever gone back on my word while being with you?"
Chen He suppressed his disgust, using all his strength to support the plump woman, barely managing a smile.
"Then you’re very obedient, aren’t you? No, I want to reward you!"
As Chen He’s expression changed, Sister Yan already, without any warning, planted her plump lips on his.
And not just satisfied with one peck, she pinned Chen He against the wall for a French kiss.
As Chen He was overwhelmed by Sister Yan’s presence, Xiaoxi Ji, at the end of the corridor, staggered backward a few steps, her face pale.
Her whole body trembled uncontrollably, a difficult-to-describe nausea spreading throughout her body. She gagged but nothing came out.
The scene she witnessed left her mind blank; she simply couldn’t believe that person was Chen He, the Chen He she knew.
Yet the facts were laid bare before her; she hadn’t had a drop of alcohol today, and everything in her vision was clear, leaving her not even an excuse to deceive herself.
As the entangled couple turned around, Xiaoxi Ji instinctively pulled back, not daring to let Chen He notice her presence.
She just leaned against the wall, covering her mouth firmly, letting the tears fall down like beads, finally crouching helplessly on the ground.
The conversation between the two also revealed a more crucial piece of information, that Chen He had cheated more than once, and the time she was deceived might have been longer than she thought.
After Zhou Wang appeared, Xiaoxi Ji always thought she didn’t like Chen He that much anymore, until now, the searing pain throughout her body made her realize how much she actually cared about this relationship.
Or perhaps, it wasn’t just because of Chen He, but also because, in this relationship, lay the part of herself she was most unwilling to kill.
Xiaoxi Ji didn’t know how she left there; only when she snapped out of her daze and numbness did she find herself back at the elevator she had been at before.
Going up from here would lead to the room where Zhou Wang and others were.
Xiaoxi Ji instinctively wanted to turn around but suddenly froze.
Because she suddenly realized a fact.
While she resented Chen He in her heart, what about herself?
Where was she any better...
She remembered those moments when Zhou Wang took liberties with her, remembered her uncontrollable indulgence, and recalled the damp sheets in the stillness of the night.
"Turns out, we are all the same..."
Xiaoxi Ji suddenly laughed.
...
The door was half open, and in the dimly lit lounge, Zhou Wang, pressed against the wall under a soft body, looked astonished.