Mr. Song, you have crossed the line.

Zhou Chiyao's original intention was to cover for Song Shiyan, but after seeing everyone's expressions, he belatedly realized that he had messed up. This was not covering for him; he had completely exposed Song Shiyan's thoughts.

Oh no, oh no, will Brother Yan kill him?

He looked at Song Shiyan with a slight tremor, but saw that the man was not angry at all. He calmly picked up his chopsticks and said, "Let's eat."

Zhou Chiyao: "..."

Why aren't you angry?

The next moment, he instantly understood. Since Song Shiyan had brought her along, it meant he didn't intend to hide it from them. He wanted her to integrate into their circle and prepare for being together in the future.

My goodness!

This is serious!

Rong Zheng assumed that everyone was surprised because they didn't expect her to be the one to save people, and had no idea about the complicated thoughts in their minds.

Everyone was so shocked by this bombshell that they were practically out of their minds. They had no appetite for drinking and started eating as soon as they picked up their chopsticks.

Fu Xingzhou took a couple of bites, still reeling from the shock. He put down his chopsticks, stood up, and said, "I'm going to the restroom." Then he looked at Zhou Chiyao and said, "You'll come with me."

Zhou Chiyao probably knew what Fu Xingzhou was planning to do, so he got up and walked with him toward the bathroom.

The two entered the bathroom, and Fu Xingzhou locked the door from the inside. Looking at Zhou Chiyao, he asked bluntly, "Brother Yan has taken a liking to Dr. Rong?"

Zhou Chiyao nodded, "It should be."

Fu Xingzhou's deep eyes held disbelief. "But isn't she Lu Peichuan's ex-wife?"

"Yes."

"She also had a daughter with Lu Peichuan?"

"Yes."

Fu Xingzhou turned on the tap and splashed cold water on his face to calm himself down.

Zhou Chiyao lit a cigarette and, seeing that Fu Xingzhou had finished washing his face, handed him one as well.

The two smoked in silence, processing the news.

Fu Xingzhou, having smoked most of his cigarette, asked Zhou Chiyao, "When did this happen? Why were there no signs before?"

Zhou Chiyao exhaled a smoke ring. "Do you remember when Brother Yan personally went to Jiangcheng a while ago to collaborate with the Lu family on an AI project?"

Fu Xingzhou naturally remembered, "You're not trying to tell me that Yan-ge has had feelings for Dr. Rong since then, are you?"

"I was puzzled back then, why would such a small project be worth Yan Ge's personal supervision for so long? Now it seems that he was probably not there to supervise the project at all, but to guard people."

Fu Xingzhou didn't believe it. "Dr. Rong wasn't divorced yet back then. Would Yan-ge really go to such lengths to become a male mistress?"

"Didn't that scandal break out about Lu Peichuan's extramarital affair? I reckon that Brother Yan knew about their marital discord, which is why he went there to keep watch."

"So, you're saying that Brother Yan has had feelings for Dr. Rong for a long time?"

"Yes, after Lu Peichuan and Dr. Rong divorced, Brother Yan returned to Beijing and even asked me to arrange a special admission for Dr. Rong to the First Hospital."

"Was Dr. Rong's visit to the First Affiliated Hospital arranged by Brother Yan?"

"She originally applied for the opportunity to study at the First Affiliated Hospital based on her own abilities, but Lu Peichuan intervened and canceled it."

The amount of information was overwhelming, and Fu Xingzhou was simply overwhelmed. He stopped talking and silently smoked to process it.

"Judging from Dr. Rong's reaction, does she know that Brother Yan has feelings for her?" Zhou Chiyao raised an eyebrow and asked Fu Xingzhou.

Fu Xingzhou recalled Rong Zheng's behavior after entering the room: calling him "Big Brother," saying thank you, being polite and courteous, without any hint of romantic feelings between them. Clearly, she was unaware of Song Shiyan's feelings for her. "Is Brother Yan really going to keep this 'other man' a secret affair like this?"

Zhou Chiyao nodded with a smile. Although he didn't want to admit it, it seemed to be the truth.

"Wait a minute." Fu Xingzhou suddenly remembered something. "Isn't Brother Yan talking to the Wei family's little princess?"

"Look at them, they don't seem like they're dating at all. They don't see each other, they don't go on dates, and she didn't even come to Yan-ge's birthday party. If I'm not mistaken, Yan-ge must be being pressured by Old Madam Song to get married, so he asked the little princess for help."

"With Yan-ge's looks and qualities, what kind of woman couldn't he find? Why did he have to fall for a divorced woman with a child? And this woman is Lu Pei-chuan's ex-wife." Fu Xing-zhou still couldn't accept it and took a deep drag on his cigarette.

Zhou Chiyao couldn't understand this either, but... "You know Yan-ge's personality. If he wasn't determined, he wouldn't have brought him to meet us tonight."

That's why Fu Xingzhou was even more worried. "Putting aside the huge difference in their social status, their relationship is far too complicated and won't end well."

Zhou Chiyao patted Fu Xingzhou on the shoulder, "That's why we brothers are needed to support you."

Fu Xingzhou turned his head to look at Zhou Chiyao, "You support it?"

"Although Brother Yan seems to have a glamorous life, we know how difficult his journey has been: being kidnapped, abandoned, in a car accident, and paralyzed in a coma..."

After a pause, Zhou Chiyao continued, "He's had such a hard time. He's already thirty and has never had a woman by his side. Now that he's finally found someone, I'll support him as long as he likes her, no matter who she is."

Fu Xingzhou was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled and said, "Brother Yan's taste is really...unique."

The two returned to the restaurant after finishing their cigarettes.

Liang Huolin looked at Fu Xingzhou with a questioning gaze.

Fu Xingzhou nodded to him.

Liang Huolin understood instantly.

After Zhou Chiyao and Fu Xingzhou sat down, Tao Yao and Lu Sheng pulled them aside and asked them in hushed tones.

Rong Zheng felt that Song Shiyan's friends were acting strangely. It was one thing for them to whisper to each other, but they also kept glancing in her direction while they were talking.

Is there something on her face?

Song Shiyan noticed Rong Zheng's discomfort and lazily raised his eyes to look at everyone. "You're all so busy, why don't you go back and chat?"

Zhou Chiyao looked at his girlfriend Tao Yao and said in a pretentious manner, "We're here to celebrate Yan-ge's birthday today, why are we talking about work?"

Fu Xingzhou also looked at his girlfriend Lu Sheng and said in a fake tone, "That's right, it's outrageous."

Only Liang Huolin and his wife Bai Zhi remained relatively calm.

After that, everyone stopped whispering and continued eating and chatting normally.

After finishing their meal, Zhou Chiyao asked Song Shiyan, "Same as always, how about a few rounds?"

Song Shiyan nodded.

Zhou Chiyao looked at Rong Zheng, "Dr. Rong, do you know how to play mahjong?"

Rong Zheng: "No."

When she was in school, she focused on her studies and had no time to play cards. After marrying Lu Peichuan, she stopped associating with his friends, so she still had no chance to play cards.

Zhou Chiyao suggested, "Yan Ge is a top-notch card player, you can have him teach you."

Rong Zheng looked at Song Shiyan, who was looking at her. He asked, "Want to learn?"

Afraid of spoiling the fun, she shook her head, "I've never done this before, I'm not learning it, you guys have fun."

Song Shiyan didn't press the matter, and simply hummed in agreement. He then looked at Liang Huolin's wife, "Miss Bai, could you please take care of her?"

Bai Zhi nodded, "Okay." Then she looked at Rong Zheng, "Dr. Rong, would you like to go sing karaoke, or go to a teahouse for tea?"

Rong Zheng: "Let's have some tea."

The men walked toward the card room.

The women went to the tea room.

Song Shiyan walked over to Liang Huolin and said in a low voice, "Just a heads-up, don't say anything carelessly."

Liang Huolin could tell that Song Shiyan and Rong Zheng's relationship wasn't yet official, and he knew that Song Shiyan was worried that the women would ask too many questions out of curiosity and scare Rong Zheng. He couldn't help but smile and say, "It's not even a done deal yet, and you're already protecting her like this?"