I raised stunning young ladies, but they all wanted to possess me.

Inside the room.

When Gu Yan saw the mother and daughter below, especially the unmistakable sadness in Pei Yuran's eyes, she felt like vomiting blood.

Did he forget to check the almanac before going out today? How come all these unexpected things happened at once?

And what's Chen Sinian up to? Why didn't he tell Pei Yuran that she was coming?

He subconsciously activated his Emotional Eyes and looked at Pei Yuran.

In my field of vision, Pei Yuran's mental fortress...

It's strange. On the surface, she seems healthy, lacking the obvious sense of ruin that Cecilia possessed.

But upon closer inspection, one can sense an indescribable unease, like an ice sculpture that operates intricately yet has an empty core.

Or a building that has been perfectly restored but has lost its original vitality.

Gu Yan had never seen her in this state before.

Considering his entanglement with the female lead, he's bound to have a bad ending.

This is a belief ingrained in his very being.

As for Cecilia, she ran away after arranging the marriage with Bai Zikong, so they were even and she wasn't too worried.

But Pei Yuran is different!

After six years of treatment and companionship, he knew this seemingly cold girl all too well.

She possesses an extraordinary tenacity and dependence, but she conceals it within a thick layer of ice.

If she finds out that I left without saying goodbye...

She would definitely not let him go easily; would she use force to keep him here?

Although he only read the first part of the novel, all three female protagonists in the first part went crazy later on.

Pei Yuran is very likely to be the female lead in the later parts, and even if she isn't, she'll probably be just as good!

Gu Yan panicked immediately and subconsciously looked around the spacious private room.

Behind the sofa? Behind the curtains? Or under the table?

This private room is designed to have a wide view, so it's very simple and there's hardly any room to hide!

Cecilia also saw Pei Yuran downstairs.

Whether it was because of Gu Yan's excessive attention to Pei Yuran earlier, or some kind of natural aversion between the female leads, her icy blue eyes narrowed slightly, and a hint of displeasure instinctively rose in her heart.

Downstairs, Chen Sinian had already braced himself and gone to meet him.

He put on a stern face and adopted the air of a host: "Madam Pei, Miss Pei."

"Isn't it rather impolite for you two to barge into my Chen family's auction in this manner?"

"Boss Chen, let's not beat around the bush. You should know why Yu Ran and I are here."

Pei Youyi smiled elegantly at Chen Sinian's questioning, but the smile did not reach her eyes.

"Where is Xiao Yan? My daughter wants to see him."

Her gaze swept across the entire room, her voice clear and distinct.

Chen Sinian's heart skipped a beat.

As expected! They really did come to collect a debt of gratitude from Master Gu Yan!

Isn't Master Gu going a bit too far with this?

He remembered that people were saying that Master Gu's health wasn't very good.

Although he felt a bit amused and exasperated, Chen Sinian was determined to protect Master Gu Yan, whom he respected.

"Master Gu Yan? Madam Pei, you jest. What brings Master Gu Yan to my door?"

"This is Shanglu City, are you sure you haven't made a mistake?"

His face showed just the right amount of confusion.

"Boss Chen, don't play dumb with me."

Pei Youyi looked at Chen Sinian, and the smile on her face faded a little.

Her gaze shifted to Zhang Zihao, who was hiding behind Chen Sinian, and her voice, though gentle, carried an undeniable authority: "Isn't that right, Zihao?"

Zhang Zihao, whose name was called, shuddered. He felt Pei Yuran's cold and sad gaze fall on him, and his calves even cramped up.

Why was he so quick to speak back then, allowing Aunt Pei to extract information from him in just a few words?

"Madam Pei...did I...did I say that?"

"I can't quite remember."

He forced a smile that looked worse than a grimace, his voice weak and strained.

"You told me personally that Master Gu Yan would be attending this auction."

"Could it be that I'm hard of hearing and misheard?"

Pei Youyi took two steps forward, naturally exuding the aura of the matriarch of the Pei family. Although her tone was still gentle, it made Zhang Zihao's forehead begin to sweat.

"I...I..."

Zhang Zihao was sweating profusely, his eyes darting around frantically, his mind blank, unable to utter a single complete sentence for a long time.

Zhang Xiong, standing not far away, clenched his fists so tightly they cracked, feeling both anxious and angry.

That brat!

Could it be that he really can't withstand the pressure and will sell out Master Gu Yan?!

Everyone present who knew the inside story and participated in the performance had their hearts in their throats, watching Zhang Zihao with tension.

At this critical moment.

"Madam Pei! You've got it wrong! I wasn't talking about Master Gu Yan! I was talking about Gu Yan!"

"The 'Yan' in 'speech'! Mr. Gu Yan, the head of the Gu family who runs a jewelry business in Shanghai!"

Zhang Zihao suddenly raised his head, as if he had suddenly grasped a lifeline, and his voice rose slightly because of his urgency.

"Patriarch Gu Yan! Patriarch Gu Yan, are you inside? Madam Pei is looking for you!"

As he spoke, he quickly pointed to a VIP room on the second floor in another direction and shouted loudly.

The entire room fell silent.

A few seconds later, the door to the private room opened.

A well-dressed, refined-looking middle-aged man in his forties walked out with a hint of doubt in his eyes.

"Madam Pei, my name is Gu Yan. May I ask what brings you here, Madam?"

He walked to the railing, bowed slightly to Pei Youyi below, and spoke politely.

Pei Youyi: "...?"

She was stunned, staring at the completely unfamiliar Gu Yan family head on the stage, momentarily doubting her ears and memory.

Could it be... that she really misheard?

Chen Sinian and Zhang Xiong both breathed a long sigh of relief, and only then did they dare to break out in a cold sweat.

The two looked at each other and saw the same thought in each other's eyes.

That brat Zhang Zihao, just beat him severely when we get back, no need to kill him.

In crucial moments, he thinks pretty quickly!

Coincidentally, there really is a Gu Yan family head in the Shanglu City business district whose name sounds the same as Master Gu Yan but is written in different characters. He is in the jewelry business and was indeed invited to another private room today.

Zhang Zihao's quick thinking managed to salvage the situation.

Pei Youyi frowned slightly and muttered to herself, "Could it be... that I really made a mistake?"

However, Pei Yuran, who had been standing silently beside her, didn't even glance at the Gu family head.

Her cool gaze, like the most precise radar, slowly swept across the entire auction hall.

Finally, those eyes, seemingly filled with ice crystals, fixed on the luxurious private room on the second floor, which had the best view and whose one-way glass now faintly revealed the silhouette of a person due to the changing light inside.

Her heart skipped a beat without warning.

I don't know why.

Perhaps it was some kind of inexplicable intuition, or perhaps it was the irrational special feeling of being a female protagonist in a female-oriented online novel.

She was absolutely certain.

The person she had been searching for for a long time and who she had been longing for...

It's in that private room!