Why did the system take my request to take photos with a cosplayer seriously?

Long He entered the room, his gaze quickly sweeping around.

The suite was spacious, the dining table was already set, two candles were not yet lit, and the red wine was being decanted to allow it to fully interact with the air.

One seat, one bottle of wine.

The "investor" has not yet arrived.

The waiter pulled out a chair, and after hesitating for a long time, Longhe finally sat down.

She tried her best to remain calm and asked, "Where is that gentleman?"

The waiter poured a small half-glass of red wine, then stepped back half a step and gave an official response.

"Please wait a moment, they will be here soon."

Long He nodded without asking any further questions.

She picked up the wine glass, brought it to her nose, and smelled it. It was probably some kind of high-end red wine, ridiculously expensive.

Since the other party has spent so much money on her, they probably wouldn't treat her to anything cheap.

Time passed by, second by second.

Her heart was racing until she heard footsteps behind her.

Long He gripped his wine glass tightly and slowly turned his head...

nobody.

She turned back.

Ding Heng had already sat down in front of her.

He leaned back in his chair, his right hand casually resting on the edge of the table, while his left hand gently twirled the wine glass in front of him.

The light fell on his sharply tailored dark gray suit, outlining his tall and straight figure.

It was as if he had been sitting there all along, waiting for her.

Long He froze, his brain completely shutting down.

Ding Heng smiled, raised his wine glass, and gently gestured in her direction across the candlestick.

"Brother, we meet again?"

Chapter 347: Failed Attempt at the Under-the-table Deal (Sorry, I fell asleep in the early hours!)

Long He glanced at the doorway, then turned back.

"Wait... what are you doing up here?"

She sounded confused, her mind not quite processing what was happening.

Ding Heng raised his wine glass and swirled it gently.

"Didn't I already tell you?"

Tell me what?

"promise……"

Ding Heng pointed to his suit and said, "I'm dressed like this today because I'm here to have a nice meal with you."

"..."

Longhe's brain went blank for a full half minute, and all sorts of past memories surged up from the depths of his mind.

Private jets, outrageously generous contracts, and the show's sudden change of heart on the day of the finals...

From beginning to end, it was Ding Heng who stood behind her and exerted tremendous effort!

Long He instinctively slammed her hand on the table and stood up, but Ding Heng reacted quickly and reached out to grab her wrist.

"Brother, don't be in such a hurry."

"Don't rush?!"

Long He's chest heaved violently: "You...!!!"

"You just told me so many heartfelt things,"

Ding Heng kindly advised, "Shouldn't we have a proper talk?"

Long He's mind was a jumbled mess, and when she looked at the face she had known since childhood, it suddenly felt incredibly unfamiliar.

"Ding Heng, what are you doing?"

She sat down again, her voice trembling: "We're brothers..."

"If I didn't do that..."

Ding Heng sighed and chuckled: "Brother, can you tell me the truth?"

Long He was speechless.

The words she spoke today, which she had mustered up the courage to say, she probably would never have said in her life if it weren't for the investor's trap.

"But...I...you..."

Longhe stammered as he tried to defend himself, only to find that his mindset had regressed to what it was before.

Just now in the car, when she mustered up the courage to ask, "Why don't we try making it work?", she was actually quite frank.

But now... the so-called mysterious investor, the dinner party that made her agonize for days, and the unspoken rule that she was prepared to turn against him but had to uphold her bottom line, was actually her brother from beginning to end.

No wonder he could fulfill almost all of her requests, providing her with a private jet, signing her a contract that was practically free, and subtly arranging for the production team to help her win the championship on the day of the finals.

No wonder her mother never stopped her from the beginning, and even advised her to "carefully consider" the investors' opinions.

Yang Sijie probably knew all along, and may even have helped Ding Heng deceive her!

Logically speaking, Long He should be happy.

The man who wanted to sexually harass her wasn't a greasy old man, but her handsome childhood friend. This is a plot straight out of a wish-fulfillment novel in the entertainment industry.

But the actual emotions are much more complex...

Are you moved? Absolutely!

But along with that came feelings of grievance, anger, and confusion, all of which mixed together and made her nose sting.

She reached for the glass of red wine in front of her, tilted her head back, and drank it all in one gulp.

Setting down his wine glass, Long He began to pant heavily, staring wide-eyed at Ding Heng, his eyes slightly reddening.

Ding Heng picked up the decanter and poured Long He another half glass.

"Brother, calm down first."

"I really can't calm down right now."

Longhe sniffed.

"Really...really, Ding Heng, do you know what I've been thinking about all the way here? I was thinking about what to do if that investor is a difficult person, I was thinking about whether I should just walk out, I even went through the public relations plan in my head! And you're telling me that person is you?"

Ding Heng did not avoid Long He's gaze, and only spoke after her emotions had calmed down a bit.

"If I had told you the truth from the beginning, in which direction do you think things would have gone?"

"meeting……"

Long He's voice abruptly stopped.

Given her personality, she would never accept Ding Heng helping her in this way, and no matter how much her mother tried to persuade her, she would find a way to refuse.

Even if she eventually signs under pressure from all sides, she will become a workaholic, desperately taking on commercial performances, running errands, and releasing albums, single-mindedly trying to recoup her brother's investment.

This would allow their relationship to return to the "brotherly" level, with neither owing the other anything.

Secondly, she will find it even harder to face the women around him.

She already didn't know how to handle her feelings for Ding Heng, and if the "boss and artist" relationship were added on top of that, she would feel even more awkward.

She was powerless to change anything, so she could only choose to be an ostrich, burying her head in the sand and pretending not to see anything.

Then one day, she will lose him completely, just like in her dream.

Growing old alone, filled with regret for the rest of my life...

After a long silence, Long He took a deep breath and got straight to the point.

"Bro, do you want to sleep with me?"

"This……"

Ding Heng hadn't expected Longhe's problem to come so directly.

He hesitated for a few seconds before finally choosing to admit it frankly.

"There are countless men across the country who want to sleep with you, and I'm no exception."

What happens after you finish sleeping?

Longhe continued, "Do you also hope that I, like them, will not compete or fight, and will stay obediently by your side?"

"Longhe!"

Ding Heng rarely uses Longhe's full name.

"I know you've always liked me, and actually I like you too."

Long He's breath hitched, but Ding Heng didn't stop confessing.

"I first realized this when you first became a trending topic! I saw your name on the screen, clicked on it, and saw the girl I grew up with standing on the stage in a gorgeous performance costume, with tens of thousands of people below chanting your name."

My feelings at that time were complicated... I felt a little proud, but more so, I felt possessiveness during adolescence.

The girl I've protected since she was little, she should belong only to me!

Ding Heng took a sip of red wine and caught his breath.

"The second time was when you finally contacted me after several years. At that time, my career was just starting out, and I realized that I could give you a better future. So the idea of ​​having you began to take root in my heart, and as more and more women surrounded me, the idea grew bigger and bigger!"

I started telling myself, with my current resources, supporting a celebrity shouldn't be too difficult, right?

"It's really not difficult."