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

At this moment, someone in the corner of the table hesitated before speaking up: "Don't you guys think this young master looks familiar? This afternoon, I went up the mountain and saw a young man hiking on the winding mountain road. He was very handsome and dressed quite plainly. I didn't think much of it at the time, but now, looking at this profile, the more I look, the more he looks like him."

The man in the silver-gray suit immediately laughed and waved his hand: "How could that be? The young master of the Bai family walking up mountains? Don't be ridiculous, you must be drunk and seeing things."

The man thought it made sense and didn't insist. He picked up his glass and smiled, trying to smooth things over: "That's true, I must have misread it."

The group chatted and laughed, but Zhao Ziang remained silent, his heart churning with turmoil.

He gripped the wine glass tightly, his knuckles turning white, his palms icy cold.

Impossible, absolutely impossible.

Why would the young master of the Bai family be walking alone on a mountain road wearing a cartoon hoodie? Why wouldn't he even have a car to pick him up? And why was he so down on his luck that he was mocked for his shabby clothes, looking like someone who was just trying to mooch off a meal at a street stall?

It must just be a coincidence.

He tried to convince himself repeatedly, but the hand holding the wine glass still tightened uncontrollably.

Zhao Ziang forced himself to suppress his panic and calm down.

Whether it's true or false is no longer important. Zhao's Real Estate is now in dire straits, and the fate of the whole family is hanging over tonight's banquet.

As long as they can get close to Bai Yanzhi and cling to the Bai family, the Zhao family will have a chance to turn things around.

He took a deep breath, clearing his mind of distractions, and a burning ambition, ready to gamble everything, rekindled in his eyes.

With Shen Ye's connection severed, the only option now is to wait for an opportunity to act.

Meanwhile, at the main table.

Bai Jiheng leaned back in his chair, slowly swirled his wine glass twice, and then beckoned to the waiter standing beside him: "Go and invite Uncle Chen over."

The waiter acknowledged and withdrew. Bai Ci, biting her fork, glanced at Zhao Zi'ang, who remained oblivious in the corner. She roughly guessed her third brother's intentions and didn't ask any further questions.

A moment later, Uncle Chen strode over, bowed at the table, and whispered, "Third Young Master, you wanted to see me?"

Bai Jiheng gestured with his chin toward the east corner of the hall, his tone crisp: "The man at the third table in the corner, wearing a dark blue shirt and a gold-chain diamond watch. Find out his identity, his background, and how he got in."

"Alright, please wait a moment, Third Young Master." Uncle Chen responded and left.

Bai Ci watched him disappear behind the pillars, then Bai Jiheng suddenly turned to look at him: "Aren't you curious why I investigated him?"

"No need to guess." Bai Ci put down his fork. "You slammed your wine glass down on the table just now, it would be strange if we didn't check."

Bai Jiheng raised an eyebrow, about to reply, when Shen Tinglan across from him suddenly put down his wine glass and said calmly, "Third Young Master is quite adept at this kind of thing. After all, he has dealt with quite a few people since he was a child, and he is already very familiar with the process of investigating people's backgrounds."

"To deal with someone, you naturally have to find out their background first." Bai Jiheng glanced at him sideways, "Name, family background, how they got in, you can't miss a single thing."

Shen Tinglan took a sip of champagne: "Let me remind you, that person has glanced at the main table more than three times, clearly heading this way. If you don't get the message by the time he gets there, you'll have to deal with it on the spot."

Bai Jiheng gave a lazy smile: "I've never lost when it comes to improvisation. But you, who's usually so quiet, have come to give me a warning tonight. What, are you worried I'll go too easy on you?"

"I'm just worried that you'll go too far and turn the Bai family banquet into your personal stage." Shen Tinglan said calmly, "The scene in the corridor was already lively enough. Two shows in one night might be too much for the guests to handle."

Bai Ci bit his fork, his gaze shifting back and forth between the two. He could tell that Shen Tinglan clearly carried a sense of superiority, as if "you don't need to lay the groundwork before you deal with someone."

"You certainly know how to talk," Bai Jiheng said, taking a sip of his wine. His tone wasn't truly angry. "Since you're so concerned about propriety, why don't you demonstrate for yourself what 'just right' means when the others arrive?"

Shen Tinglan ignored his provocation: "With you here, it's not my turn to make a move."

As soon as he finished speaking, steady footsteps sounded behind him. Bai Yanzhi returned from his social engagements, sat down, and glanced at the two of them: "What happened?"

Bai Jiheng spoke frankly, tilting his head towards Bai Ci: "Ask this taciturn guy in your family."

Seeing this, Bai Ci quietly explained what had happened: "This afternoon on the mountain road, that person was sitting in the car, laughing at my unfashionable clothes, and even asking if I was a street vendor or someone who had snuck in to freeload a meal."

After listening, Bai Yanzhi remained expressionless, showing neither joy nor anger, but his aura subtly turned colder.

He pushed the exquisite caramel pudding in front of him toward Bai Ci, its golden caramel shell adorned with bright red raspberries, its color enticing.

"Don't think about these things, have some dessert." His gentle tone dispelled the chill in the air.

Bai Ci picked up a small spoon and scooped out a piece of soft, chewy pudding. His older brother's tone sounded no different from usual, but he could always feel an invisible pressure in the air.

"How does it taste?" Bai Yanzhi asked softly.

"It's incredibly delicious." Bai Ci looked up, a few crumbs of caramel on her lips. "It's even sweeter than wild berries from the mountains."

Bai Yanzhi picked up a napkin and naturally wiped the residue from the corner of his lips: "If you want to eat this in the future, just have someone make it for you anytime."

At this moment, Uncle Chen returned, bent down and whispered, "Young Master, Third Young Master, we've found the person."

He handed over a tablet, on which a clear photo and information were displayed: "This person's name is Zhao Zi'ang, the second son of Zhao Yuanshan, chairman of Zhao's Real Estate, and he is twenty-six years old this year. He entered tonight with an invitation from Old Master Zhao."

"Zhao's Real Estate?" Bai Yanzhi repeated in a low voice, his tone knowing.

Uncle Chen continued, "This company was highlighted in the risk control department's warning report last week. Suppliers are overdue for six months, bank credit lines were frozen last month, and two bridge loans will mature next Wednesday. The company's cash flow has dried up, and it is on the verge of collapse."

Bai Jiheng leaned back in his chair, a sneer playing on his lips: "No wonder he's so eager to climb the social ladder. He's not here for the banquet tonight; he's clearly desperate and clinging to the Bai family for a lifeline."

Bai Yanzhi handed the tablet back to Uncle Chen and ordered in a deep voice, "Thoroughly investigate his whereabouts tonight, and register and report everyone who has been in contact with him."

"Yes." Uncle Chen bowed and withdrew.

Bai Jiheng casually asked, "What does Big Brother plan to do?"

"Let's eat first." Bai Yanzhi said calmly.

With just three words, Bai Jiheng instantly understood and stopped asking questions.

He knew his elder brother's temperament all too well; whenever he made a move, he would always plan it thoroughly.

Bai Ci lowered his head and ate the pudding, scraping off every last crumb of caramel from the bottom of the plate.

He thought to himself that Zhao Ziang really shouldn't have worn that dark blue shirt tonight; the color was too eye-catching. If he had chosen something more understated, he wouldn't have noticed him immediately, and his third brother wouldn't have asked any further questions.

"Finished eating?" Bai Jiheng's voice pulled him back to reality.

Bai Ci looked down and saw that the plate was already empty. He quickly put down his spoon and nodded.

"There's still caramel crumbs on your lips." Bai Jiheng pointed to the corner of his mouth, his tone slightly disgusted. "Do you need someone to remind you to eat every time? Are you a three-year-old?"

Bai Ci raised her hand and rubbed it haphazardly a couple of times, but didn't rub it in the right spot.

Bai Jiheng couldn't stand it anymore. He grabbed a napkin, his movements less gentle than Bai Yanzhi's, carrying a hint of casualness and roughness, and then threw the napkin on the table: "Alright, that's clean. Remember to clean up after you eat out in the future. Don't run around with food crumbs on your face and embarrass the Bai family."

"I rarely eat out," Bai Ci retorted softly.

"So you can be careless at home?" Bai Jiheng chimed in.

Bai Ci blinked, speechless, and could only obediently reply, "Oh."

At the corner table, Li nudged Zhao Ziang with his elbow.

"Bai Yanzhi has returned to the main table."

Zhao Ziang looked up and saw that Bai Yanzhi had already sat back in the main seat, the young man next to him was eating with his head down, and Uncle Chen had already stepped aside.

Bai Jiheng held his wine glass, his posture relaxed, while Shen Tinglan maintained her aloof demeanor.

He had been waiting all night for this opportunity.

Bai Yanzhi returned to the main table. Uncle Chen wasn't beside him. Bai Jiheng seemed to be in a relatively good mood. Shen Tinglan was a little further away. If they didn't go now, when would they?

He put his wine glass on the table and stood up.

"Where to?" Li asked.

"Let's go to the head table." Zhao Ziang straightened his collar, took a deep breath, and said, "Opportunity waits for no one."