The sickly one in F4 was the group's darling.

The dazzling crystal chandeliers illuminated the vast banquet hall, where elegantly dressed celebrities gathered. Champagne bubbles rose slowly in the stemmed glasses, and melodious string music gently echoed around the carved dome.

Zhou Yan accompanied Bai Ci into the room. Near a pillar, a young master was chatting and laughing with his companion while holding a wine glass. He stopped halfway up the glass, the wine swirling around on the side of the glass, but he didn't bring it to his lips.

His companion followed his gaze, but the word "What's wrong?" got stuck in his throat before he could utter even half a syllable.

A series of murmurs arose from the surrounding area.

"Wow, this guy is so outstanding! Whose young master is he? I've never seen him at any banquet before."

"He looks unfamiliar. To be able to travel with Captain Zhou, he must be someone important, right?"

"Zhou Yan usually has very high standards, and ordinary juniors are not even worth his attention. The fact that he personally led the way suggests that he must come from a top-tier family."

"That outfit, isn't it a custom-made piece by Young Master Bai? I remember those cufflinks were a one-of-a-kind piece by the legendary craftsman Henry Bryan. Young Master Bai wore them for half a year without changing them. How come they're on him?" A knowledgeable young man lowered his voice, his tone full of disbelief.

"It's not just the clothes. Look at that brooch on his clothes. It's a relic of a fallen royal family from the Southern Continent. It was auctioned off to an anonymous buyer at the Tianxu Market last month."

"An anonymous buyer? Who's making such a big purchase?"

The whispers in the crowd, like a lit fuse, spread from the entrance all the way to the depths of the hall. The guests who had been discussing Xu Yan's incident just moments before all turned their attention to the young man, their eyes fixed intently on him.

A wealthy woman in the champagne section shielded half her face with a fan, revealing only a pair of shrewd eyes: "Whose child is this? I've been in this circle for twenty years, and I've never seen him before. Judging from his figure and demeanor, he doesn't seem to come from an ordinary family. The fact that Zhou Yan accompanied him in suggests that there's more to this person than meets the eye."

"Could it be the Bai family?" someone tentatively asked.

As soon as he said it, several people around him gasped in shock.

"The Bai family? You mean?"

"Didn't you see Zhou Yan standing next to him? That's the youngest captain in the Enforcement Bureau, and he's very close to Bai Yanzhi. Who else but a member of the Bai family could get him to personally accompany them into the banquet hall?"

"That's not right. The Bai family only has three young masters. When did this extra one appear?"

At the edge of the crowd, a middle-aged man in a silver suit held a wine glass, thoughtfully examining Bai Ci. He lowered his voice and said to the person next to him, "He doesn't look like Bai Yanzhi, but his eyebrows and facial features are somewhat similar to Bai Jiheng's."

The companion next to him immediately waved his hand: "Don't talk nonsense, let's not discuss the Bai family's affairs. Haven't you heard? Just now, some fool caused trouble in the dressing room. It's probably because of this little brat that the Xu family's port cooperation was directly canceled, and Xu Yan himself even had his access to the Bai family canceled."

"What? The Xu family was expelled because of him?"

"What do you think? The Third Young Master handled it personally, and didn't give Xu Yan a chance to say a second word the whole time."

These words were like a boulder thrown into water. The surrounding chatter rose and fell sharply, and everyone tacitly put away their disdain and curiosity, replacing them with a more complex expression: fear, inquiry, and a subtle anxiety of eagerness to please.

Several young ladies from aristocratic families, who were usually arrogant and haughty, were now unable to contain themselves. They exchanged glances, their faces showing a mixture of hesitation and anticipation. One of the ladies in a pink dress gently tugged at her companion's sleeve.

"Do you think... we should go over and say hello? If we could strike up a conversation with him, it would be good for our future in the industry..."

Before he could finish speaking, another lady in a blue dress interrupted him: "Don't be impulsive. Didn't you hear what they just said? What if he doesn't like being disturbed? Wouldn't we just be making a fool of ourselves?"

They stood not far away, wanting to approach and get to know each other, yet afraid of making things worse, so they could only watch Bai Ci with their own thoughts in mind.

Bai Ci felt uncomfortable being stared at by so many eyes and subconsciously wanted to shrank his shoulders.

Xiao Qi's voice immediately echoed in my mind, tinged with a hint of anxiety: "Bai Bai, you have to maintain your fierce and tough persona, don't be shy!"

He had no choice but to straighten his back and try to keep a straight face as he followed Zhou Yan, but his slightly reddened ear tips still betrayed his nervousness.

Zhou Yan glanced at his tense body, then at his bright red ear tips, and slowed her pace by half a beat, just enough to block the most intense gazes from one side.

He said in a low voice, "Just follow me, don't worry about them."

Bai Ci gave a soft "hmm".

In another corner of the banquet hall, Zhou Jianguo, with his silver tongue, actually managed to strike up a conversation with several CEOs.

He stiffened his neck and boasted about his meager resources: "...So, our company has a bright future, and cooperating with you guarantees a sure profit!" The bosses listened with half-smiles, but no one responded. He continued to promote himself with great enthusiasm.

Zhou Jianguo knew these people didn't take him seriously, but he didn't care. As long as he could become a familiar face and hand out his business card, tonight wouldn't be a wasted trip.

Just as he was about to continue the conversation, Mr. Zhao, who had been sitting in the corner without saying a word, spoke up as if it were a casual question: "Mr. Zhou, after saying so much, I still haven't asked which distinguished guest you came with today? The Bai family's threshold is not one that just anyone can cross."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jianguo was delighted. He immediately straightened his tie, waved his hand modestly, and raised his voice by eight octaves: "Not at all, Mr. Zhao, you flatter me. Today, it's all thanks to Young Master Shen Ye who brought us here to broaden our horizons."

"Young Master Shen Ye?" President Wang raised an eyebrow, showing interest. "The son of the second branch of the Shen family?"

"Exactly, exactly!" Zhou Jianguo was beaming, as if Shen Ye were his own son. "Young Master Shen and our daughter Qianqian are good friends. Young people like that get along well. That's why tonight, Young Master Shen said he'd bring us here to get acquainted with the place, so we can visit each other more often in the future."

His words were ambiguous, implying that his daughter had a close relationship with Shen Ye and was about to rise in status. Sure enough, President Wang and President Li exchanged a glance, their attitudes visibly warming up.

"I see, my apologies." Mr. Li raised his glass. "Since you're Mr. Shen's friend, then we're on the same side from now on. Come on, Mr. Zhou, let me toast you. We can discuss the cooperation in detail when we have time."

Become!

Zhou Jianguo was overjoyed, feeling he had never been so smug in his life. He tilted his head back and downed the wine in his glass in one gulp, his eyes and brows brimming with undisguised pride. Just as he was about to press his advantage and boast a few more words about his daughter's "methods," he noticed that the atmosphere around him had changed at some point.

First, President Zhao's gaze shifted from him to the doorway, his wine glass hovering in mid-air; then President Wang and President Li, one by one, turned their heads, craning their necks, as if they had seen some extraordinary figure. A buzz of discussion surged around them like a tide, completely drowning out his earlier boasting.

"Whose son is that? His looks, his demeanor... he's no ordinary person."

"See those cufflinks? Henry Bryan's one-of-a-kind pieces! They were with Young Master Bai before, how did they end up with him?"

"And the brooch, that was an item auctioned at the Tianxu Market last month. I remember it was bought for a high price by an anonymous buyer. Could it be...?"

"This guy came with Captain Zhou. Look at Captain Zhou's demeanor, he's like a knight in shining armor."

Zhou Jianguo frowned, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart. He followed the gaze of the crowd and first saw Zhou Yan, the tall and upright captain of the Order Enforcement Bureau. Then, he saw the face of the young man next to Zhou Yan.

Amber pupils, cool and refined eyebrows and eyes.

He looked exactly like the kid in the circus costume that he had cursed on the mountain road that afternoon.