As soon as the words fell, the handsome guy immediately felt as if a sledgehammer had struck his chest—shocked and furious. His gaze landed on Xue Qin's hand gripping Lin Yu's arm, and he felt as if his heart had been torn to shreds.

  His name was Zheng Tianyi, and he had known Xue Qin for a long time. He had always liked her and was well aware of her aversion to physical contact with men. Yet now, she was holding Lin Yu's arm!

  Lin Yu was also taken aback but quickly realized Xue Qin was using him as a shield. *Not a chance—I’m not helping her with this.*

  He pulled his hand away and smiled at Zheng Tianyi. "Don’t misunderstand. I’m already married. She’s just messing with you."

  "He Jiarong! You heartless bastard! That’s not what you said last night in bed! You promised me you’d divorce that woman!"

  Xue Qin immediately fired back with a furious, convincingly emotional outburst.

  Lin Yu’s jaw dropped. *This woman is really going all out—she doesn’t even care about her reputation anymore?*

  Then again, it made sense. Since she wasn’t interested in men, why would she care about reputation? She probably wanted men to stay as far away from her as possible.

  But while she didn’t need her reputation, *he* did—he was a married man!

  "In... in bed?!"

  Zheng Tianyi felt dizzy, as if he were about to faint.

  *That fast?!*

  Just a few days ago, when he’d asked Old Man Song, he’d been told Xue Qin didn’t have a boyfriend.

  And now, not only did she have one, but he was a married man! Zheng Tianyi couldn’t believe he’d lost to a married man!

  "Bro, let me explain—" Lin Yu sighed helplessly.

  "Shut up! How dare you explain, you beast!" Zheng Tianyi’s face turned beet red as he glared at Lin Yu. "Qin’er, can’t you see what kind of irresponsible man this is? He’s clearly the type to love and abandon!"

  "I never expected him to be like this either." Xue Qin’s expression darkened, as if genuinely hurt.

  Zheng Tianyi’s face lit up with hope. *There’s still a chance!* He quickly said, "Qin’er, as long as you agree to break up with him, I’ll let go of the past and promise to love you for the rest of my life."

  "I don’t know how to choose... You two can compete fairly." Xue Qin sighed.

  "Fine! I’ll definitely defeat you!" Zheng Tianyi snarled at Lin Yu.

  Lin Yu was so angry he could’ve spat blood. *This vicious woman just set me up with a powerful enemy in minutes!*

  "Bro, listen to me—" Lin Yu tried again.

  "Hah! Save it. Let’s settle this with real strength."

  Zheng Tianyi ignored him, said "See you tonight" to Xue Qin, and stormed off.

  Xue Qin looked quite pleased with herself. *Since I dislike both of them, let them tear each other apart.*

  "That was *brutal*!" Lin Yu felt emotionally drained as he angrily buckled his seatbelt.

  "I gave you such a nice suit. The least you could do is help me with this tiny favor." Xue Qin smirked. "Besides, countless men would kill to be my boyfriend. You’re lucky."

  "I don’t want it!"

  Lin Yu suddenly regretted agreeing to Old Man Song’s request to treat Xue Qin.

  At this rate, *she* might not get better, but *he* would end up with a stress-induced illness.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  ---

  The banquet was held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Qinghai’s new district, nestled by the sea with an elegant atmosphere and a constant stream of luxury cars.

  Though Xue Qin’s Porsche was expensive, it was hardly eye-catching here. Just by the entrance, two brand-new Rolls-Royce Phantoms were parked.

  This was Lin Yu’s first time attending such an event, and he couldn’t help but feel out of place. The fanciest dinner he’d ever been to was the auction hosted by the Zhou family.

  Tonight’s banquet was clearly on another level—probably required a net worth of hundreds of millions just to feel comfortable showing up.

  *I must be getting arrogant, daring to come to something like this.*

  As soon as they entered the lobby, a hostess greeted them. Xue Qin presented an invitation card, and the hostess respectfully escorted them to the conference hall on the eighth floor.

  Lin Yu was stunned when he saw it. The hall was lavishly decorated, exuding luxury and grandeur.

  Two long buffet tables lined the sides, while round tables draped in pristine, silky cloths filled the center. The tableware was spotless and crystal-clear, with fruit baskets and drinks arranged in the middle.

  Many guests had already arrived, mingling and chatting by the buffet tables.

  After a few questions from the hostess, they were led to the outer tables and told to choose one.

  Lin Yu realized then that seating arrangements were hierarchical. Given their placement, they were likely among the lowest-tier attendees.

  About half an hour later, nearly all the guests had arrived. Lin Yu didn’t recognize most of them, but a few familiar faces stood out: Deng Jianbin, Wei Gongxun, Zheng Shifan, Old Man Song, and Zheng Jiacheng, the Zheng family patriarch.

  Shen Yuxuan’s father, Shen Hanshan, was also present. Unfortunately, Shen Yuxuan himself wasn’t there—otherwise, Lin Yu would’ve rushed to sit with him.

  The current table made Lin Yu deeply uncomfortable. Everyone here knew Xue Qin—men and women, all clearly from wealthy families, likely tagging along with their elders. Lin Yu didn’t know a single one, and no one greeted him. It was painfully awkward.

  "Ah, Tianyi’s here! Come sit with us!"

  Zheng Tianyi arrived shortly after. Spotting Xue Qin, he immediately made his way to their table, sitting next to a girl beside her.

  "Qin’er, you’re here early."

  Zheng Tianyi tried to ingratiate himself, but Xue Qin ignored him completely.

  Seeing Lin Yu seated right beside Xue Qin, Zheng Tianyi’s eyes burned with jealousy.

  After some small talk, the group fell into casual conversation.

  "Hey, do you guys know why this exchange conference was called?" a girl asked curiously.

  "How do you not know? First, because of the recent crackdown in Qinghai’s medical circles. Second, because of the fire at Qilin Tower. Today, all the big names from every industry are here. The city’s leaders, Xie Changfeng and Zeng Shujie, will give speeches later, focusing on these two incidents as warnings."

  A man in a tailcoat said smugly, clearly proud of his insider knowledge. His father was a prominent figure in Qinghai, so he was well-informed.

  "I wonder who Yu Shixin pissed off. To be taken down overnight and drag down the entire medical community..."

  "Must be some young master from a powerful family. I heard Deng Jianbin and Wei Gongxun personally stepped in."

  The tailcoat man munched on melon seeds, speaking with certainty. "His father’s background must be way above mine."

  "Not necessarily. I know all the rich second-gen and young masters in Qinghai. I asked around—none of them were involved." Zheng Tianyi puffed out his chest proudly, subtly flexing his connections.

  "Then who could it be?" Another girl frowned. "I know all the notable young people in Qinghai too. I can’t think of anyone else with that kind of influence."

  "Maybe it wasn’t a young person at all," the tailcoat interjected.

  "No, I heard it was definitely a young man." Zheng Tianyi lifted his chin smugly.

  Hearing this, Lin Yu—who had been silent until now—raised an eyebrow. *Does Zheng Tianyi know I was involved?*

  "Who was it?"

  The whole table turned to Zheng Tianyi eagerly.

  "I don’t know the exact name, but my dad said it was probably some young master from a major Beijing family here on vacation!" Zheng Tianyi declared, as if he were talking about himself.

  He clearly relished being the only one in the know.

  *Pfft—*

  Lin Yu couldn’t hold back. He spat out his water, laughing uncontrollably. *I’ve been upgraded to a young master from a Beijing powerhouse?*

  "What are you laughing at?!"

  Zheng Tianyi’s face darkened as he barked.

  "Have you no manners?"

  "What an idiot. What’s so funny?"

  "Just trying to steal the spotlight!"

  The others at the table immediately scolded Lin Yu.

  Xue Qin shot him a disgusted look.

  "Sorry, sorry! I just remembered a really funny joke. My bad!" Lin Yu apologized, still fighting back laughter. "Please, continue."

  "Right, I think so too. If it wasn’t a local young master, it must’ve been someone from Beijing." The tailcoat nodded in agreement. "My dad even asked Wei Gongxun about it, but he wouldn’t say a word. Think about it—what kind of person could make someone at Wei Gongxun’s level keep their mouth shut?"

  "That settles it, then."

  "We’d better be careful when we’re out having fun. There’s always someone better."

  "Too bad we don’t know who it is. Would’ve been nice to make friends."

  Everyone murmured in agreement.

  Lin Yu pressed his lips together, barely suppressing his laughter. In reality, he’d asked Wei Gongxun and Deng Jianbin to keep it quiet to avoid trouble.

  "What’s so funny? Did you choke?"

  Xue Qin rolled her eyes and lightly smacked Lin Yu’s hand with her chopsticks.

  To her, it was just venting frustration. But to Zheng Tianyi, it looked like flirting. Jealousy flared in his chest, and he abruptly stood up, pointing at Lin Yu.

  "What the hell are you laughing at?! Is what we’re saying *that* funny to you?!"